Items filtered by date: April 2013

1-2-3 Come Make A Graduation Memory Book With Me

If you teach preschool or kindergarten and your kiddos are graduating, you might enjoy making this adorable Graduation Memory book, that's sure to become a cherished keepsake.

Here's How: Run off the mortarboard (graduation cap) pieces on a variety of colors, or give just 2 school color choices to your students.

They cut and glue together to make the back cover. Another cap makes the front cover.

Students could choose both of your school colors to make their cover.  One color for the back and the other one for the front.

To add a bit of 3D pizzazz, poke a hole in the center, insert a brass brad and tie with a yarn tassel.

If you have the budget, there are many companies that you can buy real tassels from that include a year charm.

Choose which master pages you want to include in your booklets; run off the pages on white copy paper and distribute one at a time to them.

Students complete their pages, cut them out, collate in whatever order you want them to, and then add their cover. 

Make sure you make a sample and then display each page on the board in the order you want them to assemble them.

Staple the pages together at the top point, so the booklet flips up.

To expedite things, for the "classmate" autograph page, have each student sign one page the day before, and then run it off. 

Do the same thing with the "special" autograph page, by having the principal, secretary, librarian etc. sign one page.

For the "High five's!" page, you can paint your students' hand and then press it on their page, or have a room helper trace their hand on a sheet of construction paper and cut them out, so students can glue it to their page or have students choose a partner and have them trace each other's hand.  When they are done, they can color their print.

I think the self-portrait page, as well as including a graduation photograph, will make this booklet even more special.

The last page is a short graduation poem, that was inspired by over a dozen others, that I found while Pinning away.

I hope you enjoy my version, and have as much fun making these memory books, as I did designing them.  I wish you a wonderful graduation day.

Click on the link to view/download the Kindergarten/Preschool Graduation Memory Booklet.

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away.  There's a "Pin it" button at the top.

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty.  Anyone who keeps learning stays young." -Henry Ford

14 pages. This quick and easy memory book for your little ones to make, is sure to become a cherished keepsake.

1-2-3 Come Write With Me!

If your students are like mine, they'll enjoy sharing things about themselves and giving their opinion, so making a bio-writing prompt "craftivity" will be interesting and fun for them.

I've included a mortarboard (graduation cap) template, so if you teach kindergarten or preschool and your kiddo's have a graduation ceremony, this makes a wonderful keepsake.

You can give students a variety of color choices or run the template off on just your school colors.

If you don't need the mortarboard, simply give students skin-tone colored construction paper and have them draw a large self portrait of just their head and neck.

Showing them a sample you made, will help them follow the directions of drawing just their head and making sure that they use the entire paper. 

My Y5's had a tendency to draw stick figures or too small of a circle for their face.  Children color and cut their portrait out and glue the bio writing prompt template at the bottom.

To make this "craftivity" even more of a keepsake, as well as add some 3D pizzazz, students pick a partner and trace their hand on a folded sheet of skin-tone colored construction paper.

This way they can cut once, and have 2 hands.  You may want this step done by a room helper to expedite things for preschoolers.

Show them your sample and explain that they glue the base of each hand to either side of their bio page, and then gently fold their fingers forward, gluing the tip of one finger to the front.

Completed projects make an adorable end-of-the-year bulletin board.  For that extra finishing touch, use wiggle eyes and fasten them with glue dots.

Adding a tassel to the center of the graduation cap also adds pow.  I made mine out of yarn, but you can also buy "real" tassels from a party store.   Some even have a little year charm on them.  If you have time, have students share their work with their classmates.

If you've already got enough end of the year activities, these bios are wonderful for a  "getting to know you" icebreaker for the beginning of the school year as well.

To expedite things, include the writing portion in your "welcome to school" letter or open house packet.   Parents can then help little ones fill in the information; children bring this to school the first day, where they'll make the head and hands and attach the bio paper.

For teachers who want to skip the "craftivity" portion, I've also included a bio-writing prompt sheet that has a small space for students to simply draw a mini self-portrait. 

Another idea is to have students fill this out at the beginning of the year, and then do it again the last week of school to see how things have changed.  In the past, I've seen a ton of growth in their self-portraits!

This page could also be included in whatever memory book you are making for your students' last day, or collect and collate the pages to make a class book during the first week of school.

Click on the link to view/download the Bio-Writing Prompt Craftivity.  Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away.  My "pin it" button is at the top of the page.

"If the heavens were all parchment, and the trees of the forest all pens, and every human being were a scribe, it would [still] be impossible to record all that I have learned from my teachers." -Jack Zakkai

6 pages. Add the mortarboard graduation cap for a sweet end of the year writing prompt "craftivity" or leave it off for a fun icebreaker at the beginning of the school year.

1-2-3 Come Make A Puppy Pal With Me

This puppy "craftivity" is really versatile. 

You can use the slider template and review upper or lowercase letters, 2D flat shapes, counting to 30, or skip counting by 2's, 3's 5's, or 10's, by cutting slits and inserting the appropriate strip of paper (slider).

These make a nice end-of-the-year activity, to send home with students as a fun way to review and practice over the summer, so they don't forget what they've learned.

Likewise, they are a terrific way to introduce your new students to these concepts at the beginning of the year as well.

Sliders are an easy way to whole-group assess and a fun way to review standards via playing "I spy" games.

Children can also make a keepsake card for Father's Day or Mother's Day, or to give to anyone else, by simply writing the recipient's name on the bone.

What makes this puppy extra special, is that you trace a student's foot with their shoe on, to make the puppy's ears.

Add a school photo for even more pizzazz.

I made the card on the right for my daughter, from baby Kaiden.

Finally, you can also use the Puppy Pal as a topper for a variety of writing prompts.

I've made writing prompt "bones" for the beginning of the year as well as the end. i.e. "I'll have a dog-gone great school year because ..." or I had a dog-gone good school year because..."

Click on the link to view/download the Puppy Pal Writing Prompt Card

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything that you think others may find helpful.

"The best teachers teach from the heart, not the book." -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Review Upper and Lowercase Letters With Me!

I liked to make up a summer fun packet for my students to take home at the end of the year.  It was a nice review of everything we had learned.

This packet was also handy for parents to have their child work on, if they complained of being bored, or an easy thing to give children when they wanted to play "school," while on vacation.

I designed this KnOWLedge Owl "craftivity" with that in mind. You could also make it at the beginning of the year, so that students can practice their letters, with their families at home.

Here's How To Make Them:

 Run off masters on a variety of construction paper. I chose funky color combinations, but you could also do more realistic owls in various shades of brown.

 Rough cut so that students can get their pieces and trim.

 You may want a room helper to cut the beaks and feet, just to expedite things.

 If you’re having someone cut these for you, it’s easier to trace a template on an old file folder. The helper traces once and then cuts 3-6 at a time.

 Pre-cut long envelopes so that students have a pocket to put their extra letter wheels in.

 Set up this “craftivity” as a center. When students are done with other work, they can come up and get the color owl pieces of their choice.

 Students glue the wings to either side of the owl. They can add some crayon details for more pizzazz.

 Student glue the feet to the bottom of their owl so that the tops are glued to the back. I also added crayon details here and then traced the belly of the owl with a white crayon so that the writing “popped.”

 Students cut out their white alphabet wheels. Older students can cut and poke their own holes in the eyes; younger students will need this done for them.

 To expedite things, I used a circle paper punch to make the letter “windows.”

Poke a hole through the owl’s head and attach whatever wheel you want your students to work on; fasten with brass brads.

 Students glue their beak on, after their eyes are in place.

 If you want the beaks to be 3D, simply cut a 4-inch wide strip of yellow construction paper, and fold it in half. Trace the triangle template so that it butts up against the fold, then cut the triangles out

Students glue their envelope half to the back of their owl and write their name on it.

 Close the open side with a piece of Scotch tape.

 This is a safe place where students can keep their extra wheels, so that they don’t lose them.

 There are lots of activities you can do with the KnOWLedge owl.

 Use as a review game. Choose a quiet child to call out a letter from a-j, k-t, or u-z.

 Students spin the top eye wheel ‘til they find those letters. You can also have students partner up and play this game with each other.

 You can play “I’m Thinking Of A Letter.” Give clues about the letter and students spin the wheels ‘til they find it. i.e. “I’m thinking of a letter that is a vowel. It comes after the letter N and before the letter P.”

 Play “Speed.” You call out a letter and see who can find the upper and lowercase letters the quickest.

 Use as an alternative or additional fun way to assess upper and lowercase letters.

 These are terrific sent home at the beginning of the year, so that students can practice with their parents.

 They also make a nice end of the year activity, so that students don’t forget what they learned over the summer, or preschoolers can practice before they come to kindergarten in the fall.

Ollie, the "Owl-phabet Owl" will be FREE for an entire year, after which time, he'll be up-dated and put in Diane's Dollar Deals in my TpT shop.

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN anything you think others may find helpful.

"Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember, involve me and I learn." -Unknown

10 pages. Common Core State Standards:RF.K.1d, L.1.1a   Look closely at Ollie the owls eyes.  You will see an uppercase letter in one, and a lowercase letter in the other.  Ollie is a "Turn & Learn" alphabet wheel.

25 pages. This packet includes cards (1-20) that are completed and great to use for games, anchor chart borders and flashcards, + a set for students to fill in with dry erase markers or run off as worksheets.

1-2-3 Celebrate Mother's Day With Me!

I'm so excited.  My mom and twin are coming from Wisconsin for Mother's Day weekend.

Since I live in Michigan, and they don't get to visit very often, it's a big deal for me.

That said, I just wanted to post a note to let you know that I'll be taking the weekend off, so I won't be designing anything new, answering e-mails, or blogging 'til later on Monday.

I hope all of you moms and moms-to-be, and teachers who are like an extra mom for little ones, have a wonderful weekend.

See you Monday.

As always, thanks for visiting.

"You are never too old to set another goal, or to dream a new dream." -C.S. Lewis