Fun in First

A Teaching Blog by Jodi Southard

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Daily Math Notebooks

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If I had to come up with the number one thing that the majority of my students struggle with when it comes to math each year, it would definitely be story problems.  The whole process of reading through the problem, figuring out how to solve it, and explaining their thinking afterwards is so challenging for first graders.  We work on this skill over and over throughout the school year because it is such an important skill.

We use our Daily Math Notebooks to allow us to work on problem solving as well as multi-step problems, which again, are SO challenging for young minds.

This Daily Math Notebook will provide your students with daily math practice. Students will practice word problems, multi-step problems, written explanations of their answers, and many other math skills. This works well in a whole group or small group setting as well as a math intervention group.

I love these because we can quickly review our important math skills each day.  We really focus on not only solving word problems, but explaining our thinking when we solve them.

In my former school, we used two school-wide strategies everyday that I still carry over to my classroom now.  The first one was called RUTA-C. This stood for Read, Underline, Think, Attack, Check.  This is a great way to help students work their way through story problems.  There are many other acronyms that you could use as well.  Some of the ones that I have seen include:

  • CUBES (Circle important numbers, Underline the Question, Box Key Words, Evaluate and Eliminate, Solve and check your work)
  • STAR (Stop and read, Think about your strategy, Act and solve your problem, Review the Answer)
  • RISE (Read and reread the problem, Illustrate, Solve, Explain)

Whichever one you decide to use, stick with it and use it consistently.  This will really help your students with working through story problems.

This Daily Math Notebook will provide your students with daily math practice. Students will practice word problems, multi-step problems, written explanations of their answers, and many other math skills. This works well in a whole group or small group setting as well as a math intervention group.

 

Another prompt that we use in our Daily Math Notebooks is, “I know______ because ______.”  This is one of my favorite ways to have students answer questions, because it allows them to explain their thinking in a logical way.  “I know that Abby has 9 pencils, because she has 5 red pencils and 4 blue pencils and 5+4=9.”  Without this prompt, so many of my students fall into the trap of explaining how they got their answers with sentences like, “I am smart.” or “I used my fingers.”

This prompt also works well when explaining their answers during reading comprehension.  “I know that Goldilocks was scared when she saw the three bears, because she screamed and ran out of the house as fast as she could.”  It truly is a great prompt to use in many areas.  Click on the picture below to download the freebie picture to post in your classroom.

Want to add Daily Math Notebooks to your math instruction?

Check them out by heading over to my Teachers Pay Teachers store. DAILY MATH NOTEBOOKS

What are teachers saying about Daily Math Notebooks?

“LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS!!!!!!! Was hoping you had a math version of your reading comprehension and here it is!!! LOVE IT! THANK YOU!!!” -Rhonda

“Perfect for my small group and I am able to use the same packet for both my high and lows and adapt what work I ask them to show or how we think about the problem.” -Taylynn

“Quick daily review of important math concepts. Can be used in the classroom in many different ways. For me, I project it on my white board and complete it daily with my class every day during our math meeting. This has been a quick, simple, and useful addition to my daily math instruction.” -Jeffrey

Click on the picture below to head to my store, or PIN it for later 🙂

This Daily Math Notebook will provide your students with daily math practice. Students will practice word problems, multi-step problems, written explanations of their answers, and many other math skills. This works well in a whole group or small group setting as well as a math intervention group.

Christmas Reading on the Move

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We all know that it is nearly impossible for 6 and 7 year olds to sit still for too long, but especially during the holiday season.  We can have all the procedures and expectations in place, and then…December hits.  We have to be able to find ways to keep our students engaged, but still learning.  These Reading on the Move passages are a great way to get students up and moving, all while practicing their reading fluency skills.

Christmas Reading on the Move is the perfect way to combine fluency with physical exercise. Children love and need to get up and move. In this Reading on the Move series of products, students will be moving as they read. It is the perfect way to add fun to fluency practice.

This Reading on the Move packet includes 3 differentiated levels of passages.  This makes it work so easily for the different levels of readers in your classroom.

How does this work?

Students read the passage.  Then, they roll the dice and perform the corresponding “Christmas themed” movement.  After completing the movement, they color in a Christmas light.  Then, they reread the passage, roll, and color for a total of 5 readings.  This helps to take away the dread of rereading.  (If you need a Winter Theme instead, check out my Winter Reading on the Move packet.)

What are teachers saying about Reading on the Move?

“Oh my! The kids were so excited about reading. It really added to the fun on those days before break. Thanks so much.”

“These are awesome!! The kids practice fluency but they’re having so much fun they don’t even know it!”

“My kids loved these…perfect for all those wiggly little bodies!”

Check these out by clicking on the picture below.

Christmas Reading on the Move is the perfect way to combine fluency with physical exercise. Children love and need to get up and move. In this Reading on the Move series of products, students will be moving as they read. It is the perfect way to add fun to fluency practice.

 

15 Must Have Indoor Recess Items

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Oh, the joys of indoor recess.  Living in Indiana, we tend to spend the majority of our recesses indoors from about November to March.  Here’s the deal…I hate indoor recess!  But, we have to make the best of it.  For that reason, I came up with a list of my favorite Indoor Recess Items for your classroom.  I personally use many of these for my Morning Tubs, but they are also great for that dreaded inside recess.

All of the items are numbered and linked below, or you can click on the picture and use the direct links from the PDF file for easy access.

Please note: These are affiliate links.  I do receive a small commission when items are purchased from these links.  This helps to support my little area of cyber space and keep the blog up and running.

15 Must-Have Indoor Recess Items

  1. Legos – Hello.  What elementary classroom doesn’t need Legos, right?
  2. Bristle Blocks – The students love building with these.
  3. Goobi Playsticks – These sticks have magnetic ends to stick to the metal balls.  The set also comes with plastic connectors.
  4. Playthings Playsticks – These remind me just a little bit of Lincoln Logs, but they are plastic.  My students love building houses, cars, and more with these.
  5. Brain Flakes – These are fun to creative with.  Such a simple idea, but the kids love them.
  6. Emido Building Blocks – Similar to the Brain Flakes, but thicker and very sturdy.
  7. Cash Register – You would not believe how much fun my students have with this cash register.  They instantly begin playing store and trying to buy and sell everything in the classroom.
  8. TinkerToys – Here’s a throwback, right?  These are made with plastic pieces though.
  9. Wood Cabin Logs – Basically Lincoln Logs, but cheaper.
  10. Topple – The kids love this game, and I like that it really does involve some strategy to keep it from toppling over.
  11. Zoob Builders – These may be my absolute favorite.  I have given them as birthday presents as well.  They are so much fun, and the students get so creative.
  12. Cossy Engineering Blocks – These were a new purchase this year, and they’ve been a huge hit.
  13. Play-Doh – Are you brave enough to let your students use Play-Doh during indoor recess?  I’m not, but I use it for Fun Friday and Morning Tubs.
  14. Guidecraft Interlox Squares – These are fun interlocking squares, but I will warn you that if your students are not gentle, they do break kind of easily.
  15. Emoji Uno – I love a good game of Uno, but this Emoji Uno is a hit with kids.

What are some of your other favorite indoor recess items?

*Feel free to pin the image below for future reference.

15 Must-Have Indoor Recess Items

Phonics Instruction Made Easy

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Phonics instruction is important because students have to know how to decode print in order to become fluent readers that can comprehend what they read.  While decoding comes easily for some students, others need very direct and explicit instruction.  Everyone, even your highest readers, need a good understanding of phonics.  Once students start reading multisyllabic words, they need to be able to decode them easily.  We even use phonetic skills as adults to decode unknown words.  Think of all those medical terms or weird chemicals that we see on food labels.  Phonetic decoding is truly a lifelong skill.  For this reason, I make sure that I use a lot of explicit phonics instruction in my classroom.

Everything you need for teaching phonics for the ENTIRE YEAR. This is jam-packed with phonics materials for 27 phonics skills that can be used for interventions, whole group instruction, small group instruction, independent work stations, partner activities, practice pages, and more. This is the perfect setup for teaching your phonics skill each week. Easily integrate your phonics instruction into your reading comprehension and fluency instruction for the week.

I love having a variety of resources for each phonics skill at my fingertips to use each week.  Sometimes, I use the same resources over and over each week, and sometimes I like to change it up a bit.  I put a variety of my phonics resources into Megapacks organized by phonics skill, and it has made lesson planning so much easier each week.

Everything you need for teaching phonics for the ENTIRE YEAR. This is jam-packed with phonics materials for 27 phonics skills that can be used for interventions, whole group instruction, small group instruction, independent work stations, partner activities, practice pages, and more. This is the perfect setup for teaching your phonics skill each week. Easily integrate your phonics instruction into your reading comprehension and fluency instruction for the week.

These Megapacks include everything you need for teaching phonics all year long. The year-long bundle is jam-packed with phonics materials for 27 phonics skills that can be used for interventions, whole group instruction, small group instruction, independent work stations, partner activities, practice pages, and more. (Over 1,800 pages of phonics practice.)

Everything you need for teaching phonics for the ENTIRE YEAR. This is jam-packed with phonics materials for 27 phonics skills that can be used for interventions, whole group instruction, small group instruction, independent work stations, partner activities, practice pages, and more. This is the perfect setup for teaching your phonics skill each week. Easily integrate your phonics instruction into your reading comprehension and fluency instruction for the week.

This is the perfect setup for teaching your phonics skill for each week. Simply open the file and print exactly what you need. You will easily be able to integrate your phonics instruction into your reading comprehension and fluency instruction for the week.

Each phonics skill pack can also be purchased separately if you just need some updated resources for one particular phonics skill.

These Megapacks include materials from the following products in my store, but ALL in one place:

★ 5-Step Phonics

★ Phonics Based Fluency Passages {The Bundle}

★ Phonics Based Poems

★ Phonics Color by Code

★ Phonics Roll It! Color It!

★ Phonics Tic Tac Toe Games

★ Reading on the Move Phonics Word Lists

★ Short Vowel Intervention

Check out all of my Phonics Megapacks by clicking on the picture below.

 

All in One Differentiated Reading Passages

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Reading instruction in a classroom with students at various reading levels can definitely be challenging.  If you follow a basal program, the text levels for each week may be too hard for your low readers and much too easy for your higher readers.  This is why I love doing small groups during my reading block.  I want to make sure that my students are reading text at their instructional reading levels.

These Monthly Differentiated Reading passages are my go-to during small group instruction or during our intervention/enrichment time.  I love that almost all of my students can read about the same topic and work on the same comprehension skill, but at their own reading level.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

Each month includes 4 nonfiction and 4 fiction stories at three different reading levels.  Each passage includes “Power Words” to increase their vocabulary skills.  The higher level passages include more Power Words than the lower reading level passages.  Every story also includes a corresponding comprehension skill, comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing component.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

How do I use these Differentiated Reading Passages in my classroom?

I typically use these during small group instruction for one of our weekly lessons during that time.  This allows me to differentiate easily for each reading group.  I also love that I can be consistent with keeping the same comprehension skill and vocabulary words for the entire class.  This year, I have actually been using these with my enrichment group during our I/E (Intervention/Enrichment) time.  I am able to really dig deep into each of these stories as we practice our reading fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension practice.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

I love that these Differentiated Reading Passages allow me to integrate reading with science and social studies.

One of my favorite things about these passages is that I can integrate reading with other subject areas by using the nonfiction passages.  It is often difficult to get everything in during the school day, so integrating subjects with each other is so important.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

What are teachers saying about these Differentiated Reading Passages?

“This is one of the best purchases I’ve made on TPT! It allows you to use the same “Power Words” or vocabulary with your class, but the passages using the vocabulary are written at 3 different reading levels allowing all students to access the content! It also contains a written option and reading response for each reading. Wow! This has saved me so much time! Thank you!” -Sharon

“This is an AMAZING resource for guided reading. I love the prediction pages with a picture that really help the students stay focused on the topic. Also, I love telling them their writing goal for the week which is included.” -Nicole

“These passages are wonderful for comprehension in terms of teaching to look back in the text. I also love the vocabulary piece. The graphic organizers are great too. The passages are just the right length and the topics keep my guided reading group engaged! Thanks!” -June

“One of the BEST resources I have ever bought from TPT (and trust me I have bought A LOT)!! This has everything you can hope for! Absolutely no prep needed for your daily guided reading FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR! Having three different passages for each story at three different levels is amazing! This allows all the students in the class to practice the same reading skill, and learn about the same topic, but at a level that is good for them. LOVE LOVE LOVE this and use this almost everyday throughout the year!”

Check out each month or save on the ENTIRE YEAR Bundle.

Want to save time planning for your small group reading lessons each week? These monthly guided reading packets are your answer! Each Guided Reading packet includes 4 differentiated nonfiction passages, and 4 differentiated fiction passages. (24 passages in all) The passages include a lesson plan example, vocabulary cards, pre-reading activity, 3 levels of reading passages with vocabulary words and comprehension questions, a comprehension graphic organizer, and a writing response page.

A Bat Cave Classroom Transformation

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If you’ve been around here for awhile, you’ve probably come across my Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation.  It is one of my absolute favorite days in my classroom.  My first graders get so excited and talk about it for the rest of the school year.

One of the questions that I am usually asked is, “What all do you do during your Bat Cave Day?”  Well, I am a huge believer in making learning fun, but meaningful.  Even though it is a fun day, I still want to jam-pack it with learning.  This year, I wanted to add in even more reading, math, and writing based activities into our Bat Cave Day, so I created this Bat Cave Day activity packet.These bat-themed activities are perfect to use during a Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation or anytime you are studying bats. This packet includes reading, writing, math, and science activities that are geared towards 1st grade students.

During our Bat Cave Day, my students bring in flashlights from home, and we work in the dark all day.  They love this extra bit of excitement.  Throughout the day, they will be completing six bat-themed centers. (Batty Math, Spin & Add, Bat Writing, Batty Vowels, Roll to Color Short Vowels, and Fact or Fiction)

These bat-themed activities are perfect to use during a Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation or anytime you are studying bats. This packet includes reading, writing, math, and science activities that are geared towards 1st grade students.

I really based these centers around skills that my first graders are currently working on or need to review.  This allows us to continue our academic learning, even though we are adding some extra excitement to our day.

These bat-themed activities are perfect to use during a Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation or anytime you are studying bats. This packet includes reading, writing, math, and science activities that are geared towards 1st grade students.

My students will be rotating in groups of 3-4 students to complete each of these centers.  Afterwards, we will complete some of the other activities in this packet including ABC order, vocabulary practice, writing, and more.

These bat-themed activities are perfect to use during a Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation or anytime you are studying bats. This packet includes reading, writing, math, and science activities that are geared towards 1st grade students.

For the actual classroom transformation, I keep it pretty simple.  I purchase black tablecloths from Dollar Tree to place on our tables and in front of our classroom windows.  I also have some plastic bats that I purchased years ago from Dollar Tree that I use every year.  You can see everything that I use for my transformation in my Amazon store.  I promise you that you really do not need to spend a lot of money.  The ONLY thing I buy for this each year are the tablecloths, and honestly, if I just purchased cloth ones, I could actually reuse those every year as well.

If you’d like to check out the Bat Cave Day packet, click on the picture below.

These bat-themed activities are perfect to use during a Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation or anytime you are studying bats. This packet includes reading, writing, math, and science activities that are geared towards 1st grade students.

Read more about our Bat Cave Classroom Transformation here.

Remember to pin the image below to save for future reference.

These bat-themed activities are perfect to use during a Bat Cave Day Classroom Transformation or anytime you are studying bats. This packet includes reading, writing, math, and science activities that are geared towards 1st grade students.