Addition -- the kinder way

I have random favorite units to teach... and beginning addition is one of them. Here's why:

• It's fun and hands-on.
• It lends itself to great games and activities.
• The kids feel SO COOL when they learn how to do it.
• For some reason... the kids just get it. All of them. It's pretty amazing.

Anyways, here are my favorite things we did this year for our addition unit:

First, we start by learning number stories -- or number families (using the words "and" and "is" in place of the + and =)

We wrote a class book about animals and number stories...

This is always a favorite station -- the Domino Express. It's a great way to teach "number families."

And... my favorite game! Shut the Box. So fun for a small group, pair, or even individual practice. Check it out! It's a classic!

Then, the kids are so excited to learn how to use a + sign and = sign...

This was a really fun small group activity. The kids loved the ice cream theme -- and I loved the genuine practice. E-mail me or leave a comment if you want the printable!

This is another great practice for just learning the + and =... domino addition. E-mail me or leave a comment if you want the printable!

My kinders love it all -- I hope yours do, too!

"Earth Week" highlights

In our classroom, it's not just Earth Day... it's Earth Week! Here are a few highlights from our week:

Even though we do Dr. Seuss in March, I always save The Lorax for Earth Day. It's the perfect story for developing little tree-huggers. :) I love how the kinders honestly gasp when the Onceler cuts down the last tree. The horrified looks on their faces are just priceless. 

So, we made some adorable Lorax mustaches:

And I took each of their pictures...

... and we made these cute pointillism earths (paint + Q-tips)...

... then we glued our pictures in the middle and wrote about how we can help the Lorax take care of the Earth. Turn out great!

We went on a trash walk...

World's cutest Earth lovers.

Then, the kiddos brought in empty cereal boxes and snack boxes all week long. We spent a whole afternoon making crafts out of the boxes -- reusing!!! The kids were amazed with what we could make for free. And the best part is, we were helping the earth!

We made bookmarks with tracers, hole punchers, scissors, yarn, and markers.

The kids loved them! They turned out so cute.

Then, we cut up box fronts with pictures on them to make "puzzles."

I made direction signs to go along with both crafts so my kids could independently rotate between the two stations... and so we could make these at the science station during literacy workstations this week! Click HERE or on the picture above for the printables.

Then, we made "bird nest bags" by stuffing empty mesh produce bags full of sticks (from our trash walk), yarn, string, ribbon, paper, etc. We will hang them in trees on our playground to help the birds find what they need to make nests. Another great activity for reusing.

Last but not least, if you haven't read this book... stop what you're doing and read it! But, keep some tissues handy -- it will make you cry!!!

I know I say this all the time, but this one really is one of my FAVORITES.

Our Tree Named Steve by Alan Zweibel

It was a great week!!!

Digging for CVC words

Earlier this year, I introduced the sand table to my kids with "Digging for Letters". They loved it. It was a fun, novel way for them to practice letter identification. I loved how much fun they were having, the great fine motor experience it provided, and the responsibility it instilled in my kinders. 

Well, the sand table is back! This time, my kinders are "digging for" CVC words to decode.

  

I wrote a variety of CVC and CVCC words (using all 5 short vowel sounds) on small, plastic tiles (from our math kits). 

The kinders have been digging for the tiles, sounding out the word, and drawing/labeling the word on the recording sheet.

FUN, FUN, FUN practice with CVC words -- I love keep those little hands busy during literacy workstations. :)

Click HERE or on the picture above to download the recording sheet.

3D Shapes Unit

We just finished up an awesome math unit on 3-D shapes. This has always been a subject my students enjoy, and that I enjoy teaching, but this year, my kinders really "got it." We did lots of guided exploration activities -- and the kids know, label, and recognize the shapes better this year than they ever have before! We had a lot of fun, too!

Here are a few highlights from our 3-D shapes unit:

3-D Shapes + Playdoh

This was a really fun, student-directed activity. After introducing the 3-D shapes and hunting for them in our classroom/books/lives, we explored the faces of the shapes. The kinders pushed the four major 3-D shapes (cylinder, cube, cone, and sphere) into a flattened disc of play-doh. They then recorded the shapes (indentions) each 3-D shape made. This was a great way to explore the properties of the shapes.

Click HERE or on the picture above for the printable.

3-D Shape Card Sort [Math Workstation]

My kinders go to 2 math workstations everyday, so I'm always needing new ideas. This is a simple way to provide rigorous practice with the 3-D shapes. The kinders sorted the picture cards by shape on a pocket chart and recorded the pictures on the page below. 

[I always use a recording sheet at my workstations. It provides my higher-ability learners with an enrichment opportunity. It also helps hold my kiddos accountable at their workstations.]

Click HERE or on the picture above for the printable.

3-D Shapes Snack [Celebration!]

This was a definite highlight of the unit. We celebrated our new knowledge by sorting, discussing, and eating 3-D shaped snacks! They loved it! I had the kids draw/label the snacks in each box.

We used: Bugles (cones), marshmallows (cylinders), cut-up pieces of Rice Krispie treats - not pictured (cubes), Kix cereal and cheese balls (spheres).

Click HERE or on the picture above for the printable.

Tower Power number game

On the 100th day, my kids had so much fun stacking 100 cups. I knew I had to make a small group & workstation game with the same concept. But, of course, I would be "tricking them" into practicing a target skill.

That's the way things work around here. 

They think they're playing. I know they're working. Win-win.

At a district meeting, another kindergarten teacher recommended a game she called "Tower Power." It entailed writing letters/words on cups, putting the cups in an empty Pringles can, and stacking them up to make a tower. I knew my kids would love it.

I tweaked the idea to meet our needs -- no can (just a basket), labels are easier than writing, and I included a recording sheet. I have found that simple recording sheets really help increase the accountability while my students are at independent workstations. 

For the target skill, I used numbers over 100. All of my kids can identify numbers 100-109, but several of them were struggling with the numbers over 109 -- like 117, 125, etc. So, this was the perfect game to practice.

How to play:

1. Take a cup from the stack. Read the number/word/letter. [You can't see them, but I typed numbers 100-130 onto labels and stuck them on the cups.]

2. Add the cup to the growing tower. Be careful!

3. Write the number/word/letter on your recording sheet.

4. Repeat until the stack is gone. My kids relished in their "huge tower" using all the cups!

Click HERE or on the printable above for recording sheets (number, word, and letter version all included).

Coin Sorting

I love teaching money. It is so much fun -- and a very high interest area for the kids.

I love that money lends itself so well to so many math workstations and small group activities. We spend about a month on money -- introducing all four coins, counting and making combinations. Don't get me wrong, we could buzz through the coins in a week. But, it's a great unit and the length of it really emphasizes mastery.

Three years ago, my teammates and I spend three days of professional development creating a huge math workstation binder. I love pulling activities from it -- there is always something ready to go! This is a great practice station from our binder.

Here is a great activity/workstation for sorting coins. Because counting and making combinations is so tricky, spending some time comparing and sorting coins is a great place to start. My kids have loved it so far -- and been very successful!

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First, put a handful of coins in four ziploc bags labeled A, B, C, and D.

Print out the coin sorting mat and laminate (or be ghetto and put it in a page protector with a little tape on top -- like me!)

Then, the kids pick a bag of coins, sort them on the mat, and record how many of each on the recording page.

    

Click on the pictures above for printables. Enjoy!

Name stamping

I love this quick, easy, valuable station. It's great classification practice... and the kids love using the "grown-up" stamps.

The kids stamp letters that ARE in their names and letters that are NOT in their names. 

I don't know why I never thought of this before... but egg cartons are the perfect "holders" for letter stamps. They keep the table clean and make it easy for little fingers to find the right letters.

Click HERE or on the picture above for a printable.

100 days of kindergarten! [Snack Mix]

Wednesday is the 100th day of kindergarten!! I am beyond excited to celebrate with my kinder babies. Every year, I try to add more to the 100th day celebration -- and I'm hoping this year will be the best so far!

Each year, we do a 100-piece snack mix. It will be one of the four "100th day stations" during our usually morning literacy workstation time. The kids love making this snack -- and they take such pride in it.

My wonderfully supportive classroom parents donate all the food items. The mix is made with 10 pieces of 10 different snacks [raisins, M&Ms, marshmallows, cheese balls, cookie crisp, goldfish, cheez-its, fruit loops, chocolate chips, and teddy grahams]. 

To help the kiddos count out their "10 groups of 10," I created this grid. I've had a paper in the past, but I fixed this one to include snacks my kids would like -- and of course, I had to make it cuter. :)

Click HERE or on the picture above if you want to do a 100th day snack with your kids, too!