OU and OW Word Work

January 25, 2014, 6:14 pm

≫ Next: February Reading Logs and Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

≪ Previous: "How To" Instructional Writing

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This week my students will be introduced to the spelling patterns /ow/ and /ou/ as we head into Unit 7 of our Reading and Language Arts program.


Each day we do one or more word work activities related to the weekly spelling pattern(s). Most, if not all of the word work activities we will cover this week are from my "Out and Around with Little Brown Mouse" pack which is available in my TPT store. The word cards from the packet will be used for Move it Monday, Trade It Tuesday, and Walk and Write Wednesday. Click HERE to grab the word cards for FREE.

We will also be busy with 100's Day activities this Thursday and Groundhog's Day and Chinese New Year fun on Friday. It is going to be a jam-packed week. I can hardly wait!

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February Reading Logs and Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

January 29, 2014, 7:50 pm

≫ Next: The Little Engine That Could

≪ Previous: OU and OW Word Work

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Can you believe it is almost February?

In preparation for the upcoming month I recently updated a few of my homework packet pages... Now I am ready for Monday.

My 1st graders do such a great job on their weekly reading logs and they are really enjoying these new tic-tac-toe spelling activities.

You can grab your own copy of these below.

February Reading Logs
February Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

Enjoy!

The Little Engine That Could

February 4, 2014, 6:14 am

≫ Next: Why I Love Teaching 1st Grade

≪ Previous: February Reading Logs and Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

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This week we will be reading The Little Engine That Could in our reading textbook.

Since we are working on writing summaries, I thought it might be fun to create a summary template that formed a train - beginning with the little engine pulling a bunch of train cars behind it.

This is what I came up with.

I think my students are really going to enjoy creating this one!

Grab a copy for yourself here.

Why I Love Teaching 1st Grade

February 5, 2014, 6:32 pm

≫ Next: oi and oy word work

≪ Previous: The Little Engine That Could

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1st week of 1st grade

Same child...90 days later

PRICELESS!

oi and oy word work

February 8, 2014, 11:47 pm

≫ Next: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

≪ Previous: Why I Love Teaching 1st Grade

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This week we will be working with the oi and oy sound spellings.

Since our classroom Valentine's Day celebration on Friday is a 1950's theme... I created a a word work pack to go along with the theme.

The pack includes:

20- oi word cards
20 - oy word cards
Read and Write the Room (oi/oy sort)
Scoot (fill in the missing letters)
2 Word Searches
I Have.. Who Has (2 sets of 20 cards)
Game Board

You can grab the word searches HERE for free.

If you are interested in the entire pack, you can find it in my TPT store.

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

February 9, 2014, 4:08 pm

≫ Next: Slowing Down

≪ Previous: oi and oy word work

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This week we will be reading The Itsy Bitsy Spider and The Tortoise and the Hare in our Reading Anthology.

My students usually know the first verse from the Itsy Bitsy spider rhyme - but not the later ones... So, this is always a favorite.

And... there are always a few if not more, who ask for a copy of these later verses to go home. So this year I created this little booklet for them.

They will begin by filling in the missing rhyming words for each verse and then illustrate the pages.  On the last 3 pages they will be asked to 1- list the spider's problems, 2- tell how she tries to solve them, and finally 3- identify the central message of the story.

I know they are going to love this. 

Grab a copy for yourself  HERE.

Slowing Down

February 17, 2014, 11:50 am

≫ Next: /er/ spelled ear and long e spelled ey

≪ Previous: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

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Time to SLOW DOWN! With 2 four-day weeks in a row and so many holidays to celebrate, our first grade team decided to slow it down and only cover one week's language lessons in the eight days. Whew!!!

I felt like I was in over-drive... and trying to push my firsties just a little too hard to keep up.  

Can you imagine trying to cover the sound spellings for oi, oy, ph, wr, and possessive pronouns, read 2 stories in your anthology, and 4 decodable books in 3 days - so you can assess on Friday? And if that wasn't enough...just try to throw in Presidents' Day and Valentine's Day into the mix! Yikes!!!

So, we took on oi and oy last week and will cover ph and wr this week.

Note: For my Imagine It followers that's Unit 7.11-7.15.

In preparation for the week, I created a new wr word work pack and 2 PowerPoint Shows to use to practice decoding wh and ph words. Grab your freebie page HERE. To grab the PowerPoint shows click on the pictures below.



In addition to the word work materials, I also created a new geometry foldable pack to go along with chapters 20 and 21 in our math book. You can grab a freebie foldable HERE. The rest of the booklets are available in my TPT store.

Happy President's Day!

/er/ spelled ear and long e spelled ey

February 25, 2014, 6:47 am

≫ Next: TPT SALE

≪ Previous: Slowing Down

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This week we will be working with /er/ spelled EAR and long e spelled Y and EY.  I didn't have any word work packs to go along with these specific sound spellings...So,  I created 2 new word work packs over the weekend.

Here's a peek at a few pages of each.

Chim chimney, Chim Chimney, 

Chim  Chim Long E

is what I called the first pack. 

Since Mary and nanny end with long e spelled y and chimney sweep ends in the ey spelling... I thought I would go with a Mary Poppins theme.

We are Yearning to Learn /er/ spelled EAR is the title of the second.

Since researcher is one of the words I used... along with other forms of the word, I went with a scientific - learning theme.

Each pack includes:
SCOOT game
READ and WRITE the ROOM
I HAVE... YOU HAVE
WORD SEARCH
24-30 WORD CARDS of each sound spelling and an ABC order page.

Both packs are now available in my TPT store... but you can grab some freebies from each by clicking on the pictures above.

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TPT SALE

February 25, 2014, 11:17 pm

≫ Next: March Measuring

≪ Previous: /er/ spelled ear and long e spelled ey

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Make sure to visit all of your favorite teacher sellers at TPT on February 27th and 28th during the
3 Million Teachers Strong SALE.

ALL of my products will be discounted by 20%  and with the promo code:TPT3 you will save even more... for a total savings of 28%.

I can't wait to pick up some of those items on my wish list. Happy shopping!

March Measuring

March 6, 2014, 7:43 pm

≫ Next: March and April Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

≪ Previous: TPT SALE

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This week my firsties are working on measuring length using standard and non-standard units.

Since I had already planned a mini-Read Across America event for Monday, followed on Tuesday with Mardi Gras, and then St. Patrick's Day the following week, before heading off for Spring Vacation, I thought I would create a March-themed measuring booklet for my kiddos that included all 3 of these celebrations.

I had a lot of fun with this one - trying my own hand at writing rhyming verse like the dear Doctor. It actually turned out pretty cute... but best off all- my students are really enjoying the booklet and are getting lots of practice measuring using inches, centimeters, paper clips, and linking cubes. They are also learning how to use approximation - and determine the nearest whole or half unit when measuring.

And to top it off, my early finishers are enjoying coloring the pages...and they claim they LOVE measuring! Yippee!

Grab a FREE copy HERE before Monday, March 10th. After that, you can find it in my TPT store.

Please let me know if you find any typos.
Enjoy!

March and April Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

March 26, 2014, 5:58 pm

≫ Next: Collect the Evidence Booklet

≪ Previous: March Measuring

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I received a very nice comment a few days ago about my Spelling Tic Tac Toe activities. Yay!

In case you were wondering...I just love to hear back from teachers who are actually using my materials... or who plan to in the future. In fact, the more comments I receive, the more FREEBIES and more regularly I post.

Anyway... the comment ended by asking about whether or not I had a tic-tac-toe sheet for March and April. I do of course - put had only put them on TPT.  Since...sadly, no comments for a while.



However, since you asked Jessie Rue... here they are for FREE!

I hope you, your students, and their parents ENJOY! Have fun spelling!

Collect the Evidence Booklet

April 7, 2014, 9:03 pm

≫ Next: Common Core Math Adoption

≪ Previous: March and April Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

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I just created a little DETECTIVE- themed booklet for my students to SHOW the EVIDENCE they have collected to PROVE their answers to: who, what, when, where, why, how, author's purpose, central message and point of view. One the front cover they will write the name of their CASE FILE (AKA... title of the story) and their own name on the SPECIAL AGENT line.  On the back cover they will use all the evidence they have collected on the other pages to write a short CASE summary.

To make this even more fun, we will of course be wearing our fedoras and grabbing our magnifying glasses to help search for clues and evidence to crack the case and reveal our expertise at reading COMPREHENSION.

I'll let you know how it turns out! Can't wait to start.

You can grab a copy for yourself HERE. If you use it with your students, let me know how it goes... and PLEASE send me suggestions for revisions.

Enjoy your week.  Happy Sleuthing!

Common Core Math Adoption

April 13, 2014, 10:39 am

≫ Next: Open House and a Few Freebies

≪ Previous: Collect the Evidence Booklet

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Our district is planning to adopt a new common core aligned math text for next fall. As of yet, we have not piloted or reviewed any of the materials. So, I was hoping to get feedback from those of you who have already piloted or have adopted any of the following texts that have been approved in my state of California.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Math Expressions K–6

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Math in Focus K–8

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Go Math! K–6

McGraw-Hill McGraw-Hill My Math K–5

Pearson Common Core System of Courses K–8

Pearson Scott Foresman enVision Math K–6 TPS

Publishing, Inc. Creative Core Curriculum for Mathematics with STEM, Literacy K–8

Pros, cons, suggestions?

Thanks! 

Open House and a Few Freebies

April 28, 2014, 9:51 pm

≫ Next: Mother's Day Breakfast in Bed

≪ Previous: Common Core Math Adoption

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Tonight was our annual OPEN HOUSE. It is always a fun event!  I soooooo love seeing the children take their families on a tour of the classroom and proudly "show off" their work. It is a celebration of the year - but that also means many hours getting ready for the night. Here are a few pictures of our ocean-themed open house.

One of the favorite items the children left with for the night was a camera-shaped photo album filled with 4x6 photographs that I had taken of them during the year.

To make these, I simply printed the page below. Then, cut out the lens of the camera and laminated. Finally, I cut out the 2 laminated camera covers and used our school binding machine to punch and attach the 6-ring combs.

They were a hit! Grab a copy of the photo album covers HERE.

My students also left with a packet of poetry they had written. They loved their poetry unit! You can grab a copy of the Diving Into Poetry cover HERE.

Last but NOT least - the FREEBIE several of you have been waiting for...

the May spelling tic-tac-toe is finally available. 

Grab yours HERE. 

Enjoy!

Mother's Day Breakfast in Bed

May 4, 2014, 10:40 pm

≫ Next: Unit 10 Imagine It Support Files for 1st Grade

≪ Previous: Open House and a Few Freebies

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Two years ago I created a Mother's Day Breakfast in Bed shape book for my 1st graders to give their moms. Although they took several days to put together, they turned out so stinkin' cute that I have continued the project each year since. The moms absolutely love them... and many have shed tears of joy over the sweet comments their children have included in their books.  I've been told that these treasured gifts will be kept forever!

However, because they do take prep work and are time consuming, I thought many teachers might prefer a FREE folded paper version of the booklet. So I tweaked one I created a few years back with updated graphics from my favorite artists: Nikki at MelonHeadz Illustrating and Krista Wallden.

You can grab a copy of the "quick and easy" book HERE.

If you have the time and are daring enough, you might want to check out the SHAPE  book version HERE which my students began in class today. They are very excited about this project - and I know the mom's are going to love them!

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Unit 10 Imagine It Support Files for 1st Grade

May 18, 2014, 9:14 pm

≫ Next: Number of the Day

≪ Previous: Mother's Day Breakfast in Bed

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As usual I am behind schedule... but then again, I have been that way my entire life! I simply was not born with that inner clock - and everything takes me way longer than I think.

So, unfortunately I did not get out the Unit 10 Support files in time for those of you who are beginning it tomorrow. The good news is, I will be posting the files for FREE here over the next few weeks.

The first two weeks are complete and you can grab them here. Sorry for the delay!

Click here to download the zip file for Unit 10.1-10.5 Support Materials

Click here to download the zip file for Unit 10.6-10.10 Support Materials

Enjoy your last few days or weeks!

-Debbie

Number of the Day

May 20, 2014, 7:45 pm

≫ Next: June Tic-Tac-Toe

≪ Previous: Unit 10 Imagine It Support Files for 1st Grade

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I just created some new number of the day forms for next year and to add to the incoming firsties summer homework packets.

So, I thought I share them with you as well.

Click HERE to grab a copy.

Enjoy!

June Tic-Tac-Toe

June 8, 2014, 6:06 pm

≫ Next: Bears and Bees

≪ Previous: Number of the Day

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Although I am officially out for the summer, last Thursday was our last day... I realize that some teachers are not. So here is the June Tic-Tac-Toe for those of you have been asking about it and are still teaching away! Click HERE to grab your free copy.

Enjoy!

Bears and Bees

June 22, 2014, 10:26 pm

≫ Next: July and September Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

≪ Previous: June Tic-Tac-Toe

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Recently I received two special requests from TPT followers. One was to create bear table number bucket tags and the other bee-themed binder covers and spines.

Since both bears and bees are popular decor in primary classrooms... I thought I'd post them on my blog as FREEBIES for any others of you who might find them useful.

Click on the images to grab a copy of each.

July and September Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

June 25, 2014, 7:03 pm

≫ Next: August Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe

≪ Previous: Bears and Bees

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Due to popular request... I am finally finishing up my Spelling Tic-Tac-Toe Bundle. The only month left to complete is August. With any luck I will finish it tonight.

Until then, here are the latest additions for the months of July and September. Click on either the text links or the images to grab your copies.

Please let me know if you find any errors... I always seem to miss something! Thanks!