Teacherself

Family and Me Art Activity: Who Lives in my Home

2013-10-11T18:34:00.001-04:00

Our Kindergarten program is Play-Based which means teachers plan specific activities based on the interest of the children. In the first couple weeks of school, one of my students asked: "Can we talk about families, please?" This allowed us to take that question and turn it into a week of 'Family and Me' themed activities.

One of the activities we did was called Who Lives in my Home. I took many different art materials: fabric, construction paper (different shapes and sizes), tissue paper, stickers, popsicle sticks, cotton swabs, lick-it circles, pipe cleaners, crayons, coloring pencils, markers, and glue.

I made a template of a house and traced it onto different colored construction paper.

Here are some samples of what my students made. They came out SUPER cute!

Eid-ul-Adha

2013-10-07T20:34:00.003-04:00

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In the middle of next week (October 15/16), muslims all around the world will be celebrating Eid-ul-Adha (pronounced EED-UL-UDD-HA).

What is Eid?

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Eid is a celebration that muslims take part in every year. There are two different times of the year when Eid is celebrated. One is called Eid-ul-Fitr and the other is called Eid-ul-Adha. This post will be on Eid-ul-Adha. To find my post on Eid-ul-Fitr, please click here.

What is Eid-ul-Adha?

The translation from the Arabic title, Eid-ul-Adha, is Festivity of Sacrifice, where Eid means "festivities" and Adha is "sacrifice". This Eid takes place in the last month of the Islamic calendar (a lunar calendar). It is in the remembrance of Prophet Ibrahim (also known as Prophet Abraham) and his son Prophet Ismail (also known as Prophet Ismael).

The Story Behind Eid-ul-Adha

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Prophet Ibrahim loved his only son, Prophet Ismail more than anything in the world. One night, as Prophet Ibrahim was sleeping, he had a dream in which Allah (God) asked him to make a sacrifice in the name of God. He would have to sacrifice his most loved thing for Allah. He had the same dream many other nights in which Allah had asked him to sacrifice Prophet Ibrahim's son. Prophet Ibrahim was very concerned about this task but because he trusted God so much, he agreed to do so. He talked to his son about his recurring dreams and Prophet Ismail agreed to the sacrifice as it was going to be in the name of Allah. When Prophet Ibrahim was going to cut Prophet Ismail's throat, his son had been replaced by a lamb instead by God. This was the sign that the Prophets had passed their test and faith in God.

This is the reason Eid-ul-Adha is celebrated by muslims: to remember the faith of the Prophets and the sacrifice they were willing to make for Allah.

How is Eid-ul-Adha celebrated?

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Eid-ul-Adha is celebrated by sacrificing an animal in the name of God. It may be a sheep, goat, cow, and/or, camel. There is a very specific method to how an animal is sacrificed in Islam. It is done by saying the name of God and then slicing the throat so the blood is drained out so the animal is sacrificed in the least most painful way. The name of God is said to acknowledge that the animal is only being sacrificed with respect and not merely to take a life of a living thing (it is sort of like how the tribe in the movie, Avatar, killed their animals for food).

Through this sacrifice, the meat is considered Halal (permissible) for muslims to eat. The sacrificed meat is divided into three parts. 1/3 is given to the poor and needy, 1/3 is given to your neighbours, and the last is for yourself and your family. It is encouraged for muslims to wear new, clean clothes if they are able to afford it. They visit family and friends on the occasion and also attend the Eid prayers on the morning of Eid-ul-Adha. When the prayers are completed, muslims hug each other in celebration and say Eid Mubarak (meaning Happy Eid and/or Eid Greetings). Many people celebrate Eid in their own different and unique cultural ways, but the sacrifice and the prayer on Eid are key rituals of Eid-ul-Adha. Families have big feasts, girls may get Henna painted on their hands, and/or, families may go out to celebrate with gatherings or to a local Eid Fair.

Books about Eid-ul-Adha

Eid al-Adha by Robert Walker

http://covers.booktopia.com.au/big/9780778747611/eid-al-adha.jpg

The Best Eid Ever by Asma Mobin-Uddin

http://www.pathstoliteracy.org/sites/pathstoliteracy.perkinsdev1.org/files/the-best-eid-ever.jpg

The Perfect Gift by J. Samia Mair

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Hamza Learns About Eid-ul-Adha (author's name not provided but can be found online at MarhabaStores.com)

http://www.marhababookstore.com/image/cache/data/M%20book-eid-ul-adha[1]%20-500x500.jpg

4-3-2-1 Eid-ul-Adha is So Much Fun by Amira Gadd & Mariam Saada

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Eid Activities for Children

This website has fun activities for both Eid-ul-Adha and Eid-ul-Fitr on the same page. Enjoy!

http://www.ichild.co.uk/tags/browse/86/Eid

Trigeminal Neuralgia

2013-09-29T12:39:00.003-04:00

My mom's been diagnosed with Trigeminal Neuralgia. It's a facial condition that shoots out very sharp pains in her face starting from a nerve below her jaw and going up to her brain. To help raise awareness, please sign this petition for the World Health Organization. That way this condition will be on their list and there will be a wider opportunity for resources, funding, and research. Thank you so much! Also, this is good information for everyone to have in case we know of someone who may be showing symptoms of this condition but have not been diagnosed yet or have been misdiagnosed. After you sign it, it will ask you for donations. You don't have to pay. You can find the 'no, thanks' link at the bottom right when that page appears. Thank you again. I really appreciate it!

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/trigeminal-neuralgia-awareness-day/

Classroom Organization - Walkers and Bus Riders

2013-09-21T19:03:00.000-04:00

Looking for a super fast way to organize who takes the bus and who walks home? Make an easy organized list that is visible to any teacher in the classroom. It is easily read if you need a reminder or if a supply teacher is in your room. Saves a couple sheets of paper work in your supply binder!

I had stencils of a school bus and a foot. I traced it out on construction paper. I always type one sheet of class names on address labels and then print out the whole class set on many sheets at the beginning of the school year. It saves time because don't have to constantly write children's names on everything. Stick it on and ready to go!

Here is my Bus Riders list. It's right next to the front of the classroom where the bus riders exit from at the end of the day.

Here is my Walkers list. It's right next to the back door where the children enter and exit from.

Surprise Playdough

2013-09-21T18:19:00.006-04:00

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For the first week of school, I wanted to make play dough for the students. On Monday night I took out all my ingredients for my regular recipe. My play dough recipe can be found here: Play Dough Recipe

One of the ingredients is flour and I usually have the all-purpose flour at home for the play dough. Of course, when I needed it, there wasn't any left. And it was a holiday so most stores were not even open so I couldn't buy it at the time. Luckily, I also had whole wheat/bran flour. My grandma uses it to make roti (pita bread) sometimes and I thought: well, it's still flour so let's see if it works.

The play dough came out pretty awesome!!! Below is the picture of what it looked like with the whole wheat and bran flour I used instead of the all-purpose. The texture was different as you could feel the bran particles as you played with the play dough.

I didn't get a chance to go further with an activity but perhaps this could be hardened and put into the sand bin with some sand. The children can dig for "treasure" and pretend it to be valuable rocks they are on a hunt for!

Kindergarten Classroom Set-up

2013-09-07T17:07:00.003-04:00

This year I have been blessed again to have a Kindergarten classroom. I am at a new school so it means new classroom and new students. The first week has already passed us by and it went absolutely fantastic. This is the classroom set-up for right now. I don't think I will be making changes to it as it has worked very well within the first week of school.

The back of the classroom. My ECE and I decided to keep the table there as the sensory table.

We use blue bins for the kids' lunch boxes. The children come in every morning and their routine is to put their lunch boxes inside their blue bins and then hang their backpacks on the hooks. It helps to clear out a bit of the traffic when children are getting their lunches out from their backpacks during lunch and snack time. The red bins are for any art work they want to take home as well as all the forms and newsletters that need to be sent home for the day. The children clear out both their bins at the end of each day. This promotes self-regulation and independence. And of course it cuts down a bit of the work for the teachers as well!

Another view of the bins. I printed out the class list of names on mailing label stickers. Then I put them on card stock and taped it to the bins. They look fantastic and we were done all this work in about 20 minutes.

Here is my carpet area. We have a nice bookshelf and another book bin for large size books. There are carpet toys in the big wooden bins. And my white board is full of a really tiny calendar (because I am not big on calendar) and it has the basics such as days of the week, seasons, colors, months of the year, O Canada, picture schedule, and a stash of books we will be reading to the children during the day.

This is one end of the carpet area. My easel goes in the middle. The left side is the dramatic centre. The left side of the easel is my science table because it is near the windows.

My reading centre. Children can read books here during centre time if they wish and they can play with the toys on the bench and the shelves under the bench. (At the back of the picture you can see the easel and the science centre table more clearly).

On the other side of the 100s carpet is the computer table. In this picture is the large table which we use mainly for creative work and literacy. On the shelf if my awesome typewriter which the kids LOVE. You can also see other literacy items such as my mini blackboard on one side and the other side of it has a white board. The other end of the shelf is puzzles, Math books and other Math toys.

Finally, this is the front of my classroom. It consists of an awesome reading table and two small tables. The table next to the sink is where I will be using Paint quite often. It also has a dry rack near by. At the right side of the picture you can spot a little blue lid right by the sink. That is the water table. We also have a sand table but you can't see it here as it is by the bathroom behind the dry rack.

Meet Ryze

2013-09-02T16:33:00.000-04:00

A few posts ago, I shared pictures about my Australian budgie, Raja. Now, I would like to show you my pet chameleon, Ryze.

Ryze is 2 and a half years old. I brought him home from the reptile store in April of 2011 when he was 2 months old.

Ryze on the day we brought him home. He was this tiny!!!

He is a veiled chameleon. He can change colors from different shades of browns and greens. Ryze eats crickets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. He is quite big now. This is him on my leg just hanging out!

If you have any more questions about Ryze, please feel free to ask!

Bulletin Board - Diving Into Kindergarten

2013-09-01T19:40:00.000-04:00

A new school year begins in a few days! I have left my old school and moved to a newer one. And by the looks of it, it seems absolutely fantastic! The administration is wonderful, my team is great, and my ECE partner is amazing! I went in everyday last week to clean and set-up my classroom. I will be doing another post on my set-up for this year. But I spent around an hour making the bulletin board and putting it together before the first day of school begins. I am teaching Kindergarten again this year and this is what the board looks like. And yes, the fish are 3-D!!!

Free Coloring Pages for Ramadan

2013-08-06T14:28:00.001-04:00

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If you have not yet had a chance to read my posts about Ramadan, please click here. To find out more about Eid-ul-Fitr, please click here.

Ramadan is coming to an end and it will be celebrated with Eid-ul-Fitr. Use these free coloring pages to keep children and their artsy mind healthy. They have been provided by Crayola. You can print them off or you can color them online. Here is the link to all the coloring pages: http://www.crayola.com/free-coloring-pages/holidays/ramadan-at-sundown-coloring-pages/?page=1&count=48

Here are the pages if you would like to print them right away:

"Teacher's Hefty Salaries..."

2013-07-13T15:36:00.001-04:00

I found this amazing post circling around few months ago and have no idea why I didn't share it. It is totally worth a read!

"Teachers' hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or 10 months a year! It's time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do - babysit! We can get that for minimum wage. That's right. Let's give them $3.00 an hour and only the hours they worked; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after school. That...would be $19.20 a day (7:45 to.....3:00 PM with 45 min. off for lunch and plan -- that equals 6 1/2 hours). Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children. Now how many students do they teach in a day...maybe 30? So that's $19.50 x 30 = $585 a day. However, remember they only work 180 days a year!!! I am not going to pay them for any vacations. LET'S SEE...That's $585 x 180 = $105, 300 per year. (Hold on! My calculator needs new batteries). What about those special education teachers and the ones with the Master's degrees? Well, we could pay them minimum wage ($7.75), and just to be fair, round it off to $8.00 an hour. That would be $8 x 6 1/2 hours x 30 children x 180 days = $280, 800 per year. Wait a minute -- there's something wrong here! There sure is!

The average teacher's salary (nation wide) is $50,000. $50,000/180 days = $277.77/per day/30 students = $9.25/6.5 hours = $1.42 per hour per student -- a very inexpensive baby-sitter and they even EDUCATE your kids!) WHAT A DEAL!!!

Heaven forbid we take into account highly qualified teachers or NCLB...

Make a teacher smile; re-post this to show appreciation!"

Online Reading Links

2013-06-21T10:32:00.001-04:00

As teachnology is on a constant rise, children are spending more and more time with it. I am taking courses in my Masters about incorporaring technology not just in the classroom but also at home. Here are some links that children and families can access on their computers. I have yet to try them on tablets or iPads but they definitely work on the computer.

Tumble Books

Tumble Books has an online collection of e-books for children and families (focus on elementary schools).

Clifford Interactive Storybooks

Children have choices in parts of Clifford stories making it interactive and fun for kids.

Little Critter

Little Critter stories online.

Storyline Online

Screen Actors Guild Foundation (SAG) is an online streaming video program featuring SAG members reading children’s books aloud.

Kids Yoga Adventures

2013-06-19T14:06:00.001-04:00

I was covering planning time for another teacher this week and in her Kindergarten class, the children did Yoga watching these videos. I can't believe I didn't know about them earlier! There are many episodes that you can do on different days or even for the whole week if it matches your theme. They are great for indoor physical activity time (as they are about 15 minutes long) and keep the children busy! Here are some links with the themes for a quick search!

Ocean Adventure

Circus Adventure

An Australian Adventure

Arctic/Penguin Adventure

Polar Bear Adventure

Bee Adventure

Space Adventure

Faritytale Adventure

19 Storytelling Techniques

2013-05-23T22:34:00.001-04:00

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I have been meaning to write a post about storytelling techniques for quite sometime. I have finally gotten a few minutes in my super busy schedule to come up with one! Here is a list of a few techniques I have used and some I haven't (but learned about them when I was doing my undergrad). Enjoy! Oh, and please post some other ideas that you know of or use in your classroom!

Felt Stories

Tell a story using felt! It allows for great visuals especially for books that may have patterns. An example of how I did a felt story can be found here: Silly Sally - Felt Storytelling Technique

Finger Puppets

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Using finger puppets are so engaging! Use them while you are reading or tell a story without the book. Works wonders each way! A fun story that I always like to do is The Three Little Pigs.

Puppet Show

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Oh my! What a fantastic idea to create your own puppet theatre! Use one of those 3-panel presentation boards (they cost around 8 dollars from Staples)! Got this picture from Google images and has now inspired me to create my own puppet theatre!

Stick Puppets

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Tell a story with stick puppets. Just as much fun as any other technique! Remember, any of these techniques work with poems and songs as well!

Cut a Story

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As you read the story, cut out a shape that may represent the shape. For example, "The girl was waiting for a valentine to arrive"; You can cut the shape of a valentine as you tell the story.

Draw a Story

and

Create a Class Story

Okay, I LOVE using this technique. That is a story that I drew in my classroom this year on the whiteboard. It can also be done on chart paper and then posted in the room. I chose to do it on the whiteboard. My students actually came up with this whole story on their own. Each child was given the opportunity to create the story. We started in a circle. One student gave one sentence. And the next student gave the next sentence of the story. We came up with this class story. Then they went to the desks and drew a picture of what their creation of the story was. It also became a class storybook!

Real Props

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This is one my most favourite stories! I have used this technique many times during my teaching experience. I used the book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff. I bought all the props (from the dollar store) needed from the story and put them in order of the story in the basket. As I read the story, I pulled out the item/prop and laid it in front of me. The kids love it and so do I!

Role Play

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Role play the story! You can add students as you go along. I did it with my students and they loved it! Caps for Sale is awesome to read! Grab a bunch of hats as props and you're good to go!!! Here we can build role playing and theatre skills!

Storybox Technique

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Fun way to have a few props in the box. An easy carry-with-you-anywhere box with all the things you need for the story. Check out my post Moosetache to find out how I did mine!

Musical Instruments

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Simple! Use musical instruments while you tell your story. Mortimer is a great one to use. Check out my post to learn more about how I used Mortimer in my classroom.

Clothesline

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Get a strong clothesline. Buy some clothespins. Get pictures for the story (make from felt or photocopy the pages of the book and laminate them for forever-use). As you read the book, ask a child to put the corresponding item on the clothesline. This book is fantastic for it!

Flashlight Fun

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Reading a story is SO much fun with the lights turned off and blinds shut. Make the room dark and turn on a flashlight!!! I love this technique. So much fun to do at any time of the day. Gives children a change and lets them know that reading can be done during the night as long as you have a flash light!!

Large Books

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Large books are great because the kids can see the pictures and words in a much bigger size! Awesome to listen to!

Other techniques can include: Singing chants during a story/song (We're going on a bear hunt), Physically participating (stamping feet, clapping hands), Use stuffed animals to tell a story, Word Cards/Pictures (when they hear a part of the story, they hold up their card/picture), and Hear and Respond (every time they hear a certain word, they must respond with an action/chant. Ex., "little frog" say ribbit ribbit or jump 3 times).

Math Songs for Kindergarten, Preschool and Toddlers

2013-05-11T17:10:00.001-04:00

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Using songs on the computer are great for children as they are both auditory and visual. It allows for children to see and hear at the same time and it helps build concept skills as they are given the opportunity to put two and two together. For example, if they only hear the song with numbers, they will learn them as rote and won't know what it means. With visuals, and with time and practise, they will learn one-to-one correspondence. Here are some math songs I use in my classroom daily as they are fun and very educational. You will find shapes, Numbers, Colors, and Patterns, all part of Math!

Also, check out my Phonics Song For Kindergarten post here.

Shapes Song

Shapes Song 2

Number Song (1-10)

Number Song 2 (1-10)

Big Number Song (1-100; Bigger Numbers)

5 Little Ducks

10 in the Bed

Butterfly Colors Song

Butterfly Colors Song 2

Train Colors Song

AAB Pattern Song

Phonics Songs for Kindergarten, Preschool and Toddlers

2013-05-06T22:49:00.001-04:00

http://www.femail.com.au/img/worlds_best_kids_songs.jpg

Listening to songs has always been a hit in a Kindergarten classroom. But listening AND watching them is an even bigger hit!!!

Here are some links I always use in my classroom to help children with phonics. If you have younger ones, this is a fantastic way to get them started. It's fun and the children pick up quickly the sounds and words that begin with the sounds. In just a week, my students had started to come up with their own words that began with each letter even though the video gives only a few examples.
Most of the links that are teacher friendly, child friendly and parent friendly are by KidsTV123 (username on YouTube). ENJOY! Please also note KidsTV123 uses ZED and ZEE versions in different videos. If you search the specific sounds for the letter Z, they will show up!

Also, check out my post for Math Songs for Kindergarten here.

Sound Therapy

2013-05-05T22:43:00.001-04:00

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Anytime I talk to people about sound therapy, I'm amazed at the amount of people who haven't heard about it! So, of course I would like to share!

What is sound therapy?

It is basically using music as therapy. Research has shown that using music (at certain wavelengths and types of music) helps the body, mind and soul to relax and feel calm.

Many people use sound therapy if you're going for a massage, doing yoga or doing meditation.

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I used it in my Kindergarten classroom all year long and called it meditation. It allowed the students to calm down and relax for a few minutes (mind you, they couldn't sit still for more than 5 minutes meditating as per to their normal development).

When I was doing my undergrad, I remember reading about sound therapy. Sound therapy isn't just great for younger children but it is absolutely amazing for children and adults with special needs. Research also has shown that sound therapy helps with people who have:

Mood disorders
Depression
Anxiety
Amnesia
Schizophrenia
Alzheimer
Dementia

As I use YouTube a lot, I stumbled upon many videos for Sound Therapy. There was also one for a condition called Tinnitus. This is where there is a continuous noise in the ears such constant ringing, buzzing, etc. To overcome this condition, the following video was posted. It is a 6 hour video of the water from a shower hitting the wall. It is quite soothing for a person like me who doesn't have tinnitus so I hope it works wonders for people with tinnitus as well.

The sounds used in the above video are called natural sounds. The following are links to the natural sounds I have used at different times in the classroom. On a rainy day, I always used rain and thunderstorm videos as background noise. It helped the students relax and also helped scared students find love for the rain (as I have. I absolutely LOVE the rain). On super sunny days I have used ocean waves. These can work great with themes as well. For spring, you may use rain; summer, you may use ocean waves or water falls, etc.

Thunderstorm and Rain

Ocean Waves

Waterfall

Hot Springs

Nature and Forest (imagine putting up a tent in the classroom with this as background music!!! Fantastic!)

Birds

Dolphins and Whales

Underwater

Fire (one of my most favourite! Use this while students are reading or you are reading a story)

Wind

Here are some videos with soothing music. One of the them (1st one) is a video I showed my students a lot and they have fallen in love with it. The music plays a huge part of it! (Some started to refer to the video as the video with the meditation song!):

You can always search for specific videos on YouTube as of course these are not limited to the vast space for sound therapy.

The next links are sounds that have been created to help people with certain conditions (please note that these videos are not a cure and that they may not work for every single person out there):

Anxiety and Depression

Please be aware that some people are able to see sound and taste/hear colour. That is called synesthesia. One of my good friends has synesthesia and when she told me about it, I was amazed! Though she has said that there are times when the sound is too much and she sees colours everywhere. So, please make sure you are aware of students of other people who may react differently to sounds!

Meet Raja

2013-05-01T13:55:00.001-04:00

I don't know why I haven't posted anything about my pet bird, Raja. Raja means Prince in Urdu. He is an Australian Budgie and he has been with us for a little over 5 years.

He is super friendly. He loves to sing and tweet. And he is just really, really cute!!! Oh, and he is a bit of a show off which is why he is super friendly!

We let Raja fly around in the house at times. He likes to take about 4-5 rounds around the kitchen and the living room and then he sits back in his cage.

In the cage, I have some bells for him, a swing and a couple of mirrors. He loves anything shiny so he is crazy about the mirror.

Raja loves walking on shoulders and arms. And he loves sitting on my finger. Every time I put my thumb up to his beak, he kisses it...so cute!!

I have taken him many times into different classrooms for the students to see. They love to observe him and listen to him when he is tweeting. It is a great way to spark an interest in pets, animals and science all at the same time.

For an art activity, I bought feathers from the dollar store and put it with paint on the art table. The children loved painting with feathers. Super fun activity.

On the science table, I took some feathers and put them with magnifying glasses. The students had a great time observing the feathers and feeling the feathers. I also put out white paper and crayons if they wanted to draw some feathers.

For the play dough table, I was lucky enough to have cutters in shapes of birds. The children loved recreating Raja with play dough (I also used green play dough so it seems more realistic).

My students drew pictures, painted pictures, built bird houses and wrote stories about Raja. They love it when he comes for a visit. Has anyone else taken their house pets for a school visit?

Bulletin Board - Kindergarten Pizzazz

2013-04-20T12:33:00.000-04:00

In my classroom about a month or so ago, my children LOVED talking about pizzas. I decided to make a Pizza Parlour in the Dramatic Centre. And in the art centre, we made our own pizzas with different toppings.

I used Large paper plates. (I took pictures I have to find them!)

Day 1: They painted the paper plates yellow for the dough

Day 2: They used red strips of construction paper for the tomato sauce

Day 3: They put cheese on (I used yellow tissue paper, put it in the shredder and used it as cheese).

Day 4: They added different toppings (used tissue paper and they cut them out themselves to make different toppings. Mostly it was cheese or pepperoni. Some added mushrooms!)

Here is what my bulletin board looked like!!

Mortimer - Storytelling With Instruments

2013-04-19T18:02:00.000-04:00

I love Robert Munsch as many other teachers do too. But the children love it even more with how I do the story 'Mortimer' in my classroom.

Very simple and very fun!

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWdsQdsC3dLuH51Ui6PtQGb7AF82a5mlQ4ePghvTUT4xTzF5vtIrKRcct5la7TK2bNaNCAHNyV3_Fx30y2OFeDSHeWrSJAmJNLE7iYtFx0UtwG5scCqF7RBvBZpiIz9xMruZe1okXipmig/s1600/Mortimer+-+Robert+Munsch.jpg

All you need is the book: Mortimer by Robert Munsch and...

http://www.mytimeasmom.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Musical-Instruments-01.jpg

Instruments!

Every time Mortimer sings "Clang, clang. Rattle, bing bang. Gonna make my noise all day", the children make noise with the instruments! I have done the story with the kids making loud noises with the instruments, medium-level noises, soft noises and even as-quiet-as-a-mouse noises. It's a ton of fun!! (Though, I do recommend you close the door during this circle time story!)

Classroom Centres - Sand Box/Table/Bin

2013-04-18T21:16:00.005-04:00

I know. I know. I have been MIA since the beginning of October. But it is unbelievable how busy I have become. Battling my Masters part-time with a full-time Kindergarten position, I don't know how I found the time to even sleep some days.

But I am back. Hopefully not taking huge breaks this time. I love, love, love the sand box. In my classroom, I have done quite a few different things with building sensory skills but unfortunately did not get the time to photograph all of them. Here are some of the things I have used and some I did not get a chance to yet!!

http://kindergartenlifestyle.blogspot.ca/2012/02/sand-table-in-kinder.html

I started off the school year with putting in letters and numbers in the sand box. It is the easiest thing to put in, it's fun and it is also academic. The students love it. Yes, it gets messy. But that is the point in Kindergarten. To get messy. Also, under the sand table, I put a little basket with brushes and pans from the dollar store. The children tidy it up themselves at tidy up time. It's great for self-regulation!

Sand is excellent for adding in other things:

http://www.microscopy.org/education/projectmicro/image001.jpg

Shovels and Pails. Scoops and Cups. (teaches them to fill and empty and learn about mass, capacity and quantity).

http://dinosaurstudy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/dinosaur-toys.jpg

Dinosaurs!!! (Always a hit! Add magnifying glasses)

http://image.made-in-china.com/2f0j00rBAauMOtJYqQ/RC-Toys-Mini-Construction-Truck-ABC3378-.jpg

Construction Toys!

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5cQpyzEpn02prfw2Lw1QVD9MtVdB-NIVGUT0NX7cIOxuSv7CJiZatscqMME1Qw7dM2DZj0t-y8j_T-_I5JCcnesa3RyvVfPYQyJ8oi0LZxsnZ156oT2oU9yZAkN6F_uUq-snBaRFeRYE/s1600/Pictures-Of-Sea-Shells.jpg

Sea Shells! (with pails and shovels. Goal can be to find as many sea shells and then count them. Also, can look for patterns. Add some magnifying glasses!!)

http://www.glancesatnature.com/d/2387-5/Nine+Rocks+_amp_+Sand.jpg

Rocks! (with brushes. Great for archeologist-in-the-making students to find fossils!)

http://www.jeannienmini.com/persistent/catalogue_images/products/e4003seacreatures.jpg

Sea creatures (could be the plastic ones or actual rubber toys)

with shovels/brushes

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4735153689_f61a7252b7.jpg

Jewels/Gems!! (Buy these from the dollar store/Michaels. Look for hidden gems! Add brushes/pails/scoops).

http://www.zegarelli.com/getwhet/images/s_whet_water_pour.jpg

Water! (Making the sand wet makes for an excellent way to build castles!)

There are so many other ways teachers use the sand box in their room. Another way to build fine motor skills (small muscles) for better hand control is to put in the alphabet on the wall or beside the sand table/box and have the kids use their fingers to write letters/numbers/words. It works really well for children who have not yet grasped the strength (or learning ability) to hold a pencil well. And most of all, it is FUN! They don't think this is work that they need to finish.

How do you use your sand table? (Please share how you have used sand in the classroom since I will be doing another post about the sensory bin.....which is different from the sand bin! Thanks!)

Happy Teachers' Day!!!

2012-10-05T19:26:00.002-04:00

Source: http://www.prrdweb.com/images/pages/World%20Teachers%20Day%20Online%20Image.JPG

October 5th is World Teachers' Day! I just want to thank all teachers out there who make a positive difference in every child's life. Teachers are probably one of the most under appreciated people of all the time all around the world. And please remember that anyone that has taught us anything is a teacher. Whether it be parents, family, friends, co-workers, etc. So thank you, thank you, thank you to all!!

Here are a few pictures that help teachers feel better about what they do. Enjoy!!!

Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4zWt3TTzwvPf7rtt_rYAJeWwO1_XfxQdt-DLcXdsV1Ezc9zrQLFrQq8ezeMG-tuB9RHNQlJf9rx94O_0CxLZm8EGyoX-iVDYtrLv20fKFouMDWn12o2hDgqvL9Xl_Vty7mOlKjUMRsGw/s1600/modernteacher.gif

Source: http://wikinewstime.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/World-Teachers-Day-Card-2012.jpg

Source: http://vincentloy.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/teachers-day-sms-masseges.jpg

Source: http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/c78.0.403.403/p403x403/523113_10151017799633639_2111779300_n.jpg

Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidRXHTj55ZP421tADPyM_MT432Iik2J3nIX31_qqEfks_cpfG3XHq_ea7xh6Q6sCrDmL70lKUDfDCAMjeEkWUm053uCxos5uGbWOp8RVzZrsf3euizf0EoPKz9DgEIv5oNrJIEkj2QU4/s1600/Teachers+Day+Wallpaper3.jpg

Recognizing Alphabets - Matching Centre

2012-10-05T18:04:00.005-04:00

I have been trying to put out different activities every other day in the literacy centre. Here is an alphabet centre that was donated to me by a teacher (I hit a jackpot with it because it was free!!!) If you are unable to buy it, I think it is super easy to create it as well (take a large bristol board, add pocket cards, label them with letters, cut out letters small enough to fit into the pockets and you are done!)

I only put out letters for now in a basket. As the weeks go by, there are picture cards with the whole word. The first letter is highlighted so they may match it and put it in the right pocket.

I put this centre on a round table. It is easier for more children to participate at one time rather than up on the wall or board.

Here are my kids working away! I did not even model this activity to them. They all knew what was expected which is super easy!

What are the children learning?

communication and social skills as they use this centre with other children and learn to take turns
sorting skills as they take the letters and sort them accordingly
matching skills as they match the letters accordingly
hand-eye coordination as they use their eyes to match the letters and use their hands to insert them into the pockets
literacy skills as they recognize their letters (both upper and lower case)
math skills if they are counting how many letters are in the alphabet
observation skills as they figure out the differences between upper and lower case letters
gross motor (large muscles) as they use their hand to insert the letters and insert them into the pockets

Recognizing Alphabets - Media-Enriched Activity

2012-10-04T14:06:00.001-04:00

One of the easiest and realistic ways for children to begin recognizing letters is to use media around them. This is such an easy activity where children can learn their letters. All you need is newspapers/flyers and yellow marker/highlighters.

I wrote down the letter that we are working on. I also send this activity as an at-home activity. It is easy for parents since they don't have to purchase anything to work with their children.

The goal is to highlight every S you see in the flyer or newspaper. If you don't have highlighters or markers, use pencil or pen to circle. And there you have another activity for learning alphabets! Choose a different letter each week and you have a centre ready!

Practicing Alphabets - Quick Activity

2012-10-03T21:25:00.000-04:00

Here is a very quick letter activity I came up with. I was using the die cutter to cut out alphabets and I noticed there was a lot of paper left for recycling which I didn't feel comfortable recycling. So I decided to use it for learning letters.

We are doing the letter S for the week. So I only used the letter S.

I put out paper, markers and crayons. You also choose to use paint. Finger painting would be fantastic for tiny fingers!

Here are my kids doing the activity. I allow them to start from the top or bottom. Whatever helps them make the S.

Here is the finished product. It was their first time but we are getting the point!

My Ever-Changing Classroom

2012-09-27T22:22:00.000-04:00

I am teaching Kindergarten this year and it has been a month already. In this month, I have rearranged my classroom a total of 4 times. Moving centres around to different locations based on the traffic in the classroom. But I think I have finally found the perfect spot to put things where I like. Although I am sure I will move something else around :)

Below is my main carpet area. A brand new white board easel was given to me so I have set that up. I will have to move it up a little bit so the chart paper fits. The wooden easel you see on the left side of the picture is now gone. It is resting in storage. I also got a brand new shelf that is on the left with the blue bins. I was so excited about those. That shelf is full of math manipulatives. I will be taking pictures of what I have and making a post about the Math Centre sometime soon too.

Here is what my room looks like from the rocking chair point of view. I have floor toys in those areas under that big counter. I have tables on the right side of the picture. In the middle of the room I have the paint easel.

This is my cute little reading area. A few kids fall asleep here but the children are in love with my cushions and my stuffed toys. I got those from thrift stores for fantastic deals!

Here is my dramatic centre. Right now I have a home centre going on. Thinking about changing it up in a few days. For now I have puppets, babies in a crib, a baby centre which has a diaper changing table and a shower area (I scored this from a thrift store for 6.50!!), the kitchen set and a dining table.

Here I have kept a little construction/tool site, big blocks bin (in which I have recyclable cones) and the sand box on the side. The area looks empty right now but with 26 children in the classroom, it gets BUSY!

Last to show right now is my messy desk. It is NEVER clean. Unless a supply teacher needs to come in. Then, I may tidy things up just a little bit.

I still need to start some crafts and put them up on the many bulletin boards that I have. I also bought a typewriter that I am going to put next to the computer (right after I put an organizer shelf on the back counter!!) I will post more picture later on (close-ups) as the days go by. Keep posted! And thanks for reading!