Each year I teach my kindergartners a handful of reading strategies to help them figure out unknown words. We usually co-create an anchor chart, and review, model, and practice the strategies over time. This year is no different, except that I have decided to add a piece. I made a mini-anchor chart for my students […]
I used to think that bulletin boards would be one of those really fun and exciting parts of teaching. Well, it turns out that I am a teacher who tries her hardest to come up with a few bulletin boards that can stand the test of time (at least half of the school year, if […]
I want to share a lesson that I did on teaching setting that my kids just loved! We have been discussing setting in writing and reading, and the kids definitely understand it pretty quickly. However, it takes a little bit more to get them to add setting details to their drawings. I think they find […]
For a few years now my district has conducted “whiteboards” when we have a child demonstrating some significant behavioral issues. I honestly have no idea if our “whiteboards” are based on any specific education theories, or if they have just become a part of what we do. What I can say is that they are […]
I have to say that working with checklists in student writing has been a game changer for me in kindergarten. Once I began developing and using checklists with my students, writing workshop has not been the same since. Here is the premise: Young children struggle to revise their work. They write something, they love it, […]
I just want to share a quick freebie. I created this conference survey to send to parents in order to help me prepare for parent teacher conferences. I like for them to know that I care about their questions and concerns, and I like to have a heads up if they have anything they want […]
I am guest blogging! I have written a guest blog post all about different tools and anchor charts that I have my students keep inside their writing folders. There are FIVE absolutely free downloads there as well. Please jump on over to Jeannie’s great blog, Kindergarten Lifestyle, to read it!
Our school uses Math Investigations as part of our math curriculum, and one of the early kindergarten lessons is to create an attendance stick. The goal is to help kids develop one to one correspondence in counting, as each child gets one cube added to the stick to show that they are at school. For […]
This activity is quick and simple, but it really gives kids a strong visual aid for looking at the features of their name. The only prep needed is to copy one sheet for each child on to construction paper or card stock and have plenty of colored one inch squares cut. You can download the […]
At this time of year in kindergarten we spend a lot of time working with our students’ names. Their name is the first gift their parents gave them, and each child has a strong attachment to his or her name. Names are a fantastic and necessary jumping off point for so much literacy work! I […]
