Goldilocks and The Three Bears

 
The week before Holiday Break seems like a good time to read and learn from the story of "Goldilocks and The Three Bears".  We enjoyed many learning activities from our math and literacy lesson pack "The Three Bears" 

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Kindergarten-Literacy-and-Math-with-The-Three-Bears-1328278

We retold the story many times using the interactive book and props.

We reviewed color words and used them to write a sentence about sitting in chairs.

We figured out how many red bowls and blue bowls Mama Bear could use to make porridge for 10!

After learning about characters, setting, and story structure, we made character puppets to use with our friends to retell the story.

Enjoy!

Molly C

The Crayon Box that Talked

     My class started getting a little snippy with each other and had some difficulties sharing and being kind earlier this month.  We addressed the problem by reading "The Crayon Box That Talked" by Shane Derolf and Michael Letzig.

    Then, students worked together using crayons to draw a cooperative picture.  I listened for kind words and actions toward each other.  We talked about how it felt to use and to receive kind words.  I took a picture of each group working.

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Later, I hung the drawings along with the photos and book for display.  This has been the most popular display in the classroom.  My students love to find their photo and the things they drew.  I like to think that it is because they enjoyed the good feeling of kindness and remember it when they remember their work.

Enjoy, 

Molly

Gingerbread Men!

     Run, run as fast as you can. You can't  catch me I'm the Gingerbread Man!!!

     

     We read a few versions of the Gingerbread Man story last week.  This was a great opportunity to talk about story characters.  We also recalled the beginning (B), middle (M), and end (E) of the story.  Then, we just had to made some of our own!

 

     We made them by making a ball of dough for the tummy, a smaller ball for the head, and some dough snakes for the arms and legs.  We decorated them with chocolate chips and raisins.  Fortunately, they did not run away!

     We wrote about who our gingerbreads could be running away from using Teaching with love and laughter's adorable printable.  You can get this for free at http://teachingwithloveandlaughter.blogspot.com/2013/12/gingerbread-writing-freebie.html

     We used our free Gingerbread teen number ten frames match that's part of our Winter Counting Pack - Get it for free here:  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Winter-Counting-Activity-Pages-436707

     We also made some gingerbread playdo by adding cinnamon, ginger, and cloves to a basic playdo recipe.  What fun!

Enjoy,

     

     Molly C

Veterans Day

     We wanted to teach our kindergartners about Veterans Day in an appropriate, thoughtful way. We found Veterans Day by Jacqueline S. Cotton at Scholastic.

     We also found this simple, thankful song on youtube, "Thank You Soldiers"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUKL_QU2C4g&list=PL2B3C1F286FA74FED&index=2

     Then, we painted on red and blue papers with a heart drawn in the middle with red, white, and blue paint.  When dry, we cut them out for display.

     We added a poem adapted from the one on first-grade-friends@blogspot.com.

     We also used this simple read and find practice sheet for sight words.  Feel free to copy and use this as well.

     Our Pledge of Allegiance lesson & close reading booklet would be a wonderful match for learning about Veterans Day.  The lesson is available at our Teachers Pay Teachers store either individually or included with 19 other lessons for informational text in our lesson book, 

An Entire Year of Kindergarten Activities based on Informational Text

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Right-To-The-Core-Kindergarten

Yours truly,

     Molly

Thanksgiving Learning and Fun

After reading about the pilgrim families and their many chores, we chose to make our own Friendship Fruit Salad and our own butter for our bread.  We planned what we'd need and each child brought some fruit to share.

A beautiful and delicious cooperative dish!

 

Shaking, shaking, shaking that cream in a jar...finally it thickens to butter!

Decorated turkey feathers dress up our bird & classroom!

Written notes of, "I am thankful for ..." hung on our tree display.

Beautiful watercolor leaves!

Kindergarten Pilgrims and Wompanoag Indians share in the feast.  Check out our shape-patterned headgear!

Cookie Math

     Laura and I are working on a new book with lessons for contextual problems & equations in Kindergarten.  

     We took the "pretend cookies" out last week to work on composing numbers and fair sharing problems.  We'll try some subtraction problems soon as well.

Students record different ways they were able to make 6 cookies for their friends.

Recording ways to make 6.

     We found several books to go along with cookie math problems:

Yours truly,

     

Molly C

Pumpkin Math

     We had such a great time Halloween - and such wonderful learning! 

Telling math stories about pumpkins, ghosts & bats in a field.  Fourth graders helped!

Estimating, then checking the circumference of a pumpkin.  Then, deciding if our estimate was too long, too short or just right!  Fourth graders helped here too!

Color in the beginning of pumpkin patterns and decipher the rest!  Parent helping here - with a little one sleeping right through the fun!

Roll 2 dice, add the amounts together and color that number!

Pumpkin Jumble!  Roll a die, then follow the rules for getting a pattern block.  Try to build the whole pumpkin puzzle!

 Many of these activities are based on Box It & Bag It Mathematics pumpkin math activities.

Yours truly,     Molly

  

Fall Collections

     We asked families to help our students find some "signs of fall" as part of their homework last weekend.  Along with a note requesting the activity, we sent a baggie for the collection.  Almost all students brought in seed pods, tree nuts, leaves, grass seed heads, dried flower heads, etc.  Because some did not participate from home, we combined all the collections into one.  My class looked at the collection together at our circle area.  Children shared ideas about what types of things we saw.  We drew circles on the large paper and I wrote a label for the type of items that could go in that circle.  For example, I wrote flower seed heads in one circle and reddish orange leaves in another.  Laura's class observed and sorted their collection materials in a sensory table with a small group during centers.

"Everyone say - fall!"

Then, we read the book "Leaf Man" by Lois Ehlert.  The children loved finding various animals and leaf men on the pages.  We were motivated to make leaf men of our own!

 

     Later, I put together baggies of various more durable parts of the fall collection in sorted by type and in quantities of 6 to 12 (the number set my kiddos are currently working on) items.  For math, children chose a baggie and explored, counted & recorded the contents on a work sheet.  They did this twice and compared the quantities.  

     Those beautiful fall colors motivated us to sing about the color words and introduce red, yellow, orange, brown, and green.  We used this read and color sheet to practice some with the new words.  You can download it for free below.  These activities and many more are available in our "Fall Fun Kindergarten Math & Literacy Lesson Bundle" at tpt.  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Fall-Math-Literacy-Lessons-for-Kindergarten-1487487

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Fall-Coloring-Sheet-1518051
Click link for free download.

     Hope your fall is coming along well!!!

     Yours truly,

               Molly C