Items filtered by date: March 2013

3 pages. A fun way to review the numbers on a clock as well as things you can recycle.

2 pages. Students trace the beginning portion of the sentence and then complete the thought by writing how they reduce, reuse and recycle. Add more pizzazz by having students glue their school photo over either the boy or girl and then color.

1-2-3 come Study Butterflies With Me!

One of my very favorite science units was butteflies.  There is so much interesting science involved.

To help you with assessing the life cycle of a butterfly, I made up some anchor chart-posters, as well as traceable butterfly life cycle word cards with matching pictures.

There are several different life cycle charts for the various levels of a student. 

PK kiddos can simply color their poster; older students can color, cut and glue to the matching template or label the blank chart.

Use the traceable word cards on your word wall and/or have students sequence them in the proper order and make an Itty Bitty booklet.

Make several sets of the cards and have students play Memory Match or "I Have; Who Has?"

Click on the link to view/download the Life Cycle of a Butterfly cards, or the Life Cycle of a Butterfly anchor chart-posters.

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"The aim of education should be to teach the child to think, not what to think." -John Dewey

1-2-3 Come Learn About The Weather With Me!

Do you include the study of weather during your calendar time?

The calendar offered me the opportunity to teach my students about the daily weather in simple, quick and easy ways.

My Y5's enjoyed dressing the weather bear according to what was going on outside with Mother Nature. 

They also looked forward to taking their turn to put the thermometer outside and then bring it in and read it to the class.

We did a variety of graphs, including recording the daily weather for each month and then making comparisons and contrasts to the month before.

Studying weather also built their vocabulary and helped them understand and practice using adjectives, so I decided to make a trace and write easy reader as a nice review of that.

Picture clues help students read the text as they trace and write the weather words.

I've also included a graphing extension, a data collection sheet of the daily weather for a month + 10 traceable weather-word cards and matching picture cards, with a cover to make an Itty Bitty booklet.

These activities make nice Daily 5 and word work lessons as well.

Click on the link to view/download the Weather Easy Reader Booklet.

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"If we succeed in giving the love of learning, the learning itself is sure to follow." -Sir John Lubbock

1-2-3 Come Learn About 3D Shapes With Me

One of my Y5's favorite units was on butterflies.

We'd study them for the entire month of April, as we watched real larvae morph into fat caterpillars, spin their chrysallis and finally hatch as lovely Painted Lady Butterflies.

I worked hard at dreaming up butterfly lessons for all of the subjects, incorporating many of my standards.

Designing the 3D Shapes Butterfly book was especially enjoyable.

Because I like to incorporate several standards in every activity, this easy reader reinforces spatial directions, and is an interesting way to review/teach the 3D shapes. 

Students trace the words and shapes, as well as cut out butterflies and place them in the appropriate spatial direction - positions on the pages.

Click on the link to view/download the 3D Butterfly easy reader.

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"Minds are like parachutes.  They only function when they are open." Thomas Dewar

1-2-3 Come Make A Water Cycle Wheel With Me

I'm sorry this is getting posted late.  Because of an allergic reaction, I spent most of last night in the ER, and then was transferred to ICU 'til later this afternoon. 

Really makes your priorities in life clear, as well as appreciation of the much-taken-for-granted, simple act of breathing. 

Any hoo, I'm a firm believer in "better late than never" so here is a quick and easy water cycle lesson.

It is now even later, as I finished the article, and instead of hitting control save, I hit who knows what, and lost the entire thing!

Some days it just doesn't pay to get out of bed. Arggg!

I did this bit of science in April as it coincided with the April shower weather we were having outside, and was a nice addition to our weather studies.

Here's how to make a water cycle wheel:

Run off the templates on white construction paper. Students will trim into a circle and cloud shape.

Little ones may need help cutting the window on their cloud.

Students color blue raindrops onto the wheel windows and then place the circle behind their cloud so that it is in the center.

Poke a hole in the middle and fasten the wheel to the cloud with a brass brad.

To give the cloud more pizzazz and a 3D effect, have students press whisps of pulled-cotton on to the top.

Just an FYI: You need to model this step and explain to students how the pulled cotton balls look so much more realistic, than a whole cotton ball plopped on their cloud, other wise you may get quite a few kiddos who skip the pulling step and simply glue the entire cotton ball on their cloud. 

I further explained, that they were only getting a few balls that would be enough for their entire cloud if pulled apart, but certainly not enough if they just glued on the whole cotton ball.

This extra bit of explanation was very successful.  I not only wanted them to listen and follow directions, but to practice this wonderful fine motor exercise.

Inform students that they should pull apart all of their cotton balls and make a nice pile of "fluff" and then press it on their glue-covered cloud.

When everyone is done with their cloud wheel, review the water cycle concept as a whole group.

I've also included a cut & glue water cycle worksheet to further reinforce cutting skills and the new science vocabulary.

Another fun way to hone in on the words, and a great way to "get the wiggles out" is to do this action-chant:

My Y5's would crouch down and say: collection, then they'd jump up and say; evaporation.

Making a big cloud with their arms, they would exclaim: condensation. Their bodies would bend slightly forward as their clouds got heavier and heavier. 

Finally, they would fall down to the ground and yell: precipitation. I'd go through this 3 or 4 times. The 3rd time we'd say the words and do the actions as fast as we could.

For the last time, we'd do it in a low voice and move very slowly.  This quieted things down.

My Y5's LOVED doing this and learned the new vocabulary by the end of the day. Throughout the entire month, we'd practice the water cycle action chant.

Click on the link to view/print the Water Cycle activities.

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"Chidren have more need of models, than critics." -Unknown 

1-2-3 Come Tell Time With Me!

The mustache mania continues here at TeachWithMe.com

I thought it would be fun to make a mustache telling time game; it's entitled: "I Mustache You What Time Is It?"

This packet includes recording sheets, a mustache clock spinner + a telling time matching worksheet, which you can use as an assessment for time to the hour.

Click on the link to view/download the Mustache Telling Time Game packet.

If you're looking for more mustache activities, simply click on the link to zoom to that section of my site.

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"A good teacher has been defined as one who makes themselves progressively unnecessary." -Thomas J. Carruthers