Luck o' the Irish FREEBIE

It's about time, teachers . . . for  a St. Patrick's Day FREEBIE.  Luck o' the Irish is a creative activity I designed for my G/T students.  It challenges 2 of the 4 traits of gifted children: fluency and flexibility.  [The 4 traits are: fluency, flexibility, elaboration & originality.] Despite developing this activity for GATE, I have used it very successfully with 1st graders in a heterogeneous classroom, and with 2nd - 5th grades in enrichment pull-out classes.  The results of this activity always amaze me.

Following is the assignment sheet that I send home, giving my students 1 week to complete it.  

I encourage my students to enlist the help of their families.  It creates a wonderful home-school connection, giving overly zealous parents a constructive focus for interacting with their gifted children.  (If you've ever taught G/T, you know what I'm talking about!) Projects like this are terrific for helping shy children speak before an audience. Similarly, it prompts children who have oral communication deficits to practice their communication skills.

When the children present their projects the following week, reward them with a participation certificate.

Sure, and you'll love this project.  You can find it in my TpT Store or my Teachers Notebook Shop.  Did I mention that it's FREE?

This product is part of a larger product, Destination Imagination.  

You can find Destination Imagination here or here.

Mad about March unit FREEBIE

It's about time, teachers....for spring!  At least we can hope.  Yesterday there was snow on the ground; today it's 66.  Gotta love March weather in the heartland!

Speaking of March, I have launched my thematic unit, Mad about March, for primary grades. You can find it on TpT and, now, on Teachers' Notebook.  The unit includes ELA, Math, HOTS, and music curricula.  The ELA activities are:

And here's a FREEBIE from the ELA portion of the unit:

The math portion of the unit includes:

If you like what you see, blow on over to my TpT store or  my Teachers' Notebook store.  

March Poetry Freebie

It's about time, teachers . . . to add some March poetry to your students' portfolios.  My series of Poetry Possibilities on TpT now includes March themed poetry.  

Here is a free preview:

These poems each come with a teaching point and an eclectic collection of mini-lessons and activities.  The readability of the poems makes them appropriate to both primary and intermediate classrooms.  The skill lessons allow for remediation of older students or differentiation for younger ones.  Concepts and skills included in this 33 page unit are described here:

Stop by my TpT store to check out Poetry Possibilities for March.  I think you will like them.

Tooth Fairy Fun Freebie

It's about time, teachers, ...to say good-bye to February and Dental Health Month.  But before it's gone, I have another FREEBIE to share.  It's from my Destination Imagination unit on TpT.  It's called Tooth Fairy Mystery and is my alternative to Show & Tell.

Above is the assignment sheet that I distribute 1 week before the project is due.  Then on the due date, the children share their pictures and stories with the class.  Thus, they have the opportunity to exercise their oral communication skills, but with a purpose.  Participation is always voluntary, and encouraged, I have found, by giving out participation certificates.  (See below.)

If you teach the primary grades, then you have certainly experienced children losing teeth in school.  For years, I sent the teeth home in zip lock bags.  Then, once I reached the empty nest era of my life, I found the time to create little felt bags to keep the tooth extra safe on it's journey to the Tooth Fairy.  These tooth bags are super easy to make from a small piece of felt and some cording.  They can be done completely by hand, or speed it up by breaking out your sewing machine.

As my 2 beautiful granddaughters approach the time to start losing teeth, I have created Tooth Fairy boxes for them.  I think they are going to love them!

The boxes were $1 at Michael's.  I found the heavy duty stickers that trim them there, too.  Finally, I dressed up the exterior with ribbon scraps.  My first grandson will arrive in May; can hardly wait!!!  So, I'm thinking about a pirate theme for his Tooth Fairy box.  I guess I have plenty of time to mull that over.

Another Leap Year FREEBIE!

It's about time teachers, ...  for Leap Year.  Actually, Leap Year is already here, but we are approaching Leap DAY.  In honor of that special event, I am offering another freebie.  This one is designed for GATE, exercising your students' fluency, flexibility, elaboration, and originality.  It's called Leaping Lizards and is part of my TpT product Destination Imagination.  

Before you look at the product, you have to hear how it came about.  After years of hosting Show & Tell without ever really listening, I tuned in one day.  Chrissy came to the front of the class and with all the drama of a diva, pointed out a rather loose tooth at the front of her mouth. Then, one hand on hip, and using the other hand to shake a menacing finger at the class, she proceeded to warn everyone to stay away from her at recess because she was NOT going to lose that tooth at school!  Then she concluded with the additional admonition that the boys, especially, had better keep their distance.  I'm pretty sure I heard a growl.

I'm nearly certain that those moves mimic her MOTHER.  = )

Then Jeff took his turn at Show & Tell.  With great ceremony and exaggerated courtesy, Jeff asked if he could use a chair for his Show & Tell. Naturally I agreed.  He sat on the chair and quickly removed one shoe and sock.  Then, holding his foot straight out in front of him, he declared that everyone needed to line up and take a look at the planters wart on the bottom of his foot because after school his mother was taking him to the doctor's to have it removed.

By the time all of this occurred, I had been teaching for 15 years.  What did I miss all of those years?!?!?!?

Following that unforgettable day, I decided I needed to up the ante on Show & Tell day.  Hence, I devised and instituted Destination Imagination.  Succinctly, an assignment sheet is sent home each Friday describing the coming week's challenge.  The following Friday, students who choose to participate, present and explain their products.  Participation generally runs at around 70%, which is better than traditional Show & Tell.  My kiddos have a purpose for their oral presentation and a week's worth of working in a positive and productive way with their families.  It is also a wonderful home-school connection that directs eager parents to work with their children in a constructive manner.

Following is the assignment sheet for the Leap Year activity:

These activities became legendary in my building.  Parents loved them and my colleagues clamored to borrow them.  So, I created "Notes to the teacher" explaining some of the pitfalls and lessons I learned through years of using the challenges.  When I became the enrichment specialist and resource teacher for the school, I found these Notes saved me many, many repetitions in answering questions from the teachers.

First graders will do almost anything for a participation certificate, at least in my experience.  Each challenge then, has a certificate that is ready to print and distribute to those who participate.  Following is the page with "Notes to the teacher" and the certificate.

If you like this product, you can find it in my TpT store here.  For another example of a component of the unit, check out my Jazzy Jack-o'-lanterns freebie on TpT.

You may also like:

find it here.

Or you may enjoy:

find it here.

For younger G/T students, you may like:

find it here.

Presidents' Day Craftivities

It's about time, teachers, to honor our presidents, especially those born in Feb.  I've got 2 craftivities that will brighten your classroom and engage your students.

#1:  Presidential Silhouettes and Weaving

For every student you will need 1 sheet each of red, white and blue 9"x12" construction paper.  You will also need cardboard patterns of Washington & Lincoln.  The beauty of this project is that by encouraging your students to choose 2 colors of their choice for the background, saving the 3rd for the silhouette, you will give your classroom a burst of color without having all 20+ projects look the same.  

Since paper weaving has been around forever, I'm assuming you know how to create the woven background.  After each student has chosen which 2 colors to use for the weaving part, ask them to exchange 1 of those sheets for about 6 - 8 pre-cut strips of the same color.  I always cut my strips about 1" wide for 1st graders. 

When the weaving is completed, each child should borrow the silhouette pattern of their choice to trace on their remaining sheet of paper.   After tracing, if they are careful about cutting out the silhouette, they can actually make a 2 sided craft.  One side features the traditional silhouette.  The other side can host the scraps from the silhouette making a reverse or negative image. (See Lincoln projects above.)  Of course, just gluing the silhouette on 1 side makes a perfectly good craft.

I strongly recommend cutting the patterns out of sturdy cardboard, such as from the back of a tablet of paper, in order to have them survive for next year's students.

You could also do the weaving project with patriotic symbols, such as the star, above.  And, again, you can use the scraps to create the negative on the backside.  A star and liberty bell pattern can be found below.

#2 Patriotic Chalk Art:

This is one of my all time favorite crafts, but please realize it can be quite messy.  The pattern piece above actually reflects 2 methods of making the chalk rubbings.  One uses the shape pattern and rubs out from the edges; the other uses the scrap or negative of the shape with rubbings going in toward the center.

For the bell images above, provide cardboard patterns for the shapes.  Ask your students to trace the pattern on construction paper (color doesn't matter).  Insist that they trace the pattern onto another piece of paper because if they all try to rub chalk on the pattern, you will endure many complaints about purple symbols.  Each child should use his/her own shape.  

After cutting the shape out, students should generously rub blue or red chalk around the edges of the shape.  They MUST do this on what I call a "dirty" sheet, which is actually paper reclaimed from the recycling box.  It is essential that they rub the chalk on while on the dirty sheet, then move to the chosen construction paper background.  Demonstrate holding the shape securely with one hand while pushing the chalk out onto the background paper with 1 finger (hence the messy part).  You can make this project as easy or challenging as you like by making a single shape on the background or using multiple shapes and colors all on the same background, perhaps creating complex patterns.

The negative version of this craft works much like the presidential silhouettes above.  After cutting out the shape, the student should tape the scraps together (see lower left corner) and then rub the chalk around the edges of the missing shape.  Again, this step must be done on a dirty sheet.  Then, holding the negative steady with one hand, have the children rub the chalk toward the center on their background paper.  

Clean up absolutely requires lots of soapy hand washing in order to prevent chalk smudges everywhere, and especially on their clothes.

These patterns can be cut out of card stock or heavier cardboard.  You should insist that the students not put chalk on your templates.  Who wants to have to remake the patterns year after year????

Enjoy Presidents' Day!

Leap Year FREEBIE!

It's about time, teachers, . . . for Leap Year.  So leap on over to my TpT store to download this freebie.  It has literacy center ideas, a craftivity link, and a couple of ideas for sponge activities that exercise your students' verbal fluency and orginality.  Here's what it looks like:

Remember, it's FREE.  You can download it here.  OK, you can start leaping for joy now. ;o)