1st Grade Geometry

Like most #teacherbloggers and #teachersofinstagram, one of my favorite things about teaching has always been creating engaging lessons. I enjoy taking what is needed from an objective and finding creative ways to make the content memorable for students.  It's what pushed me into the role of instructional leadership.  As an Instructional Coach, it's only one piece of my job but certainly still my favorite.

Recently, I was able to write the lessons for our first grade team during their geometry unit. There are so many amazing teacher created resources at our fingertips. That being said, I speak to teachers regularly about knowing the demands of their objective (TEKS) before searching for resources. Creating these lessons for our first graders allowed me to put that practice into play!

Using a formula of  TEKS study + our Madeline Hunter Lesson Cycle + Amy Lemon's Magic of Math Geometry Unit and Amy McDonald's Regular and Irregular Shapes Math Mini Unit ... our firsties had a great time!

Anchor Charts

 

I used a combo of the vocabulary cards from the Magic of Math Unit linked above as well as a few of my own to create each anchor chart.  You can download a copy of the 

roll, slide, stack labels here!

Student Work

  

Work Hard, Play Hard, & Be Kind

Happy summertime teacher friends!!! I hope you had a fabulous school year.  I'm so giggly to be able to share a new freebie with you.  But first a little backstory...

Like many campuses, every year my school selects a building theme.  This past year we chose a game theme and our slogan was "Work Hard, Play Hard, & Be Kind!" 

Our team does a wonderful job decorating and our students always love coming back to see what we've done with the building.  The foyer was decorated to match our theme announcement and each grade level hallway decorated in a specific game!

school foyer

(excuse the blur...bleh!)

Now the goodies...

I love, love, love the way our staff works together.  We have an awesome rapport!  One tradition that we implement, every year, is Affirmation Bags.  Each staff member has a bag that we place in the lounge or bring to faculty meetings to be filled with kind notes from other staff members.  It's amazing.  Somehow you always seem to have your "bucket filled" with just the right note on just the right day! Of course our affirmation bag has to match our theme for the year.  Check out our game themed bags that I made this year!

Striped bags from Amazon.

 I just love the way they turned out!

You can snag the editable labels in my Teachers Pay Teachers Store. 

Math Flashcard "Monstage"...with Freebie!

Well earlier this year I posted here about storing word wall flashcards into our daily binders.  After cleaning out my own first grader's binder, I realized that I never posted the math flashcard pics and printable!!! This one actually took me awhile to figure out. I knew that I wanted to use the super cute alien/monster duck tape.  I also wanted to figure out how to incorporate the word monster or alien into the label.  The results....

So I did have to explain to my firsties what a montage was, in order for them to pick up on the "mon-stage" reference.  I really don't think they were as concerned at that point with the words as much as they loved the super cool duck tape! giggles

The labels turned out too fun!

(Graphics & Fonts by: Springhill Graphics, Kevin & Amanda)

Of course you can grab your own set of labels by clicking here!! They are made to fit Avery 5163. 

If you've got another fun idea for a play on the word monster, alien, or space that would work for flashcard storage...I'd love to see your comments. Perhaps I can re-vamp for next year!

Sloth Love...with a freebie of course!

I absolutely adore spring and everything about it.  It is probably my favorite time of year for themes... rain forests, insects, ocean....just love!! Well right now we are in the midst of the rain forest.  We've written about crocs, explored research questioning, and now my personal favorite, THE SLOTH!!  These little guys make me smile. I just think they are 7 kinds of cute.  Now on to the work...

This week our scope and sequence focuses on story elements.  We've touched on these elements throughout the year in isolation but now we are drawing attention specifically to comparing these elements in stories by the same author. I was excited to be able to introduce and post these fabulous posters from Leslie Ann at Life in First Grade that I'd purchased earlier in the year...

You can get them HERE!

I chose to focus on characters, setting, main idea, theme, and sequencing this week for my firsties.

 Story elements, an author study, plus our rain forest theme meant one perfect combination...

My kids love hearing this story every year! And it was a fabulous fit for our Shared Reading lesson.

Today, I divided my kiddos into groups and had each group illustrate or record an assigned story element onto chart paper after hearing the story again. I whipped up this freebie to record our group work and display with our sloth craftivity which we will create on Friday.

Click here for your copy of the recording sheet!

And just for giggles, I MUST include this little guy that I fell in love with during our visit to the Dallas World Aquarium a few years back.  He just hangs out above the visitors. Totally head over heels for him!

I hope that you all are able to enjoy a little of the glitter that comes with this time of year and the fast approach of...dare I mention... summer break!!

Math Strategy Posters...Plus My NEW Favorite Thing!!

Oh my word...I am all giggles over our campus' newest purchase! A COLOR POSTER MAKER!!! I am completely obsessed and having to pace myself to keep from running every single glittery printable that I can get my paws on through the thing. It is just amazing! (more on that in a minute...)

I don't post very often about math.  I have a huge passion for literacy and I'm sure that's evident by my previous posts and TPT products.  The other reason, is that we team plan on my campus.  My fabulous first grade teammates do a wonderful job of covering the other subject areas. A week or so ago we created anchor charts for our addition and subtraction strategies. My chart paper is quite large and I was worried about finding a spot to hang them on my shrinking wall space.  I figured it was the perfect opportunity to put the new poster maker to use! Soooo...I created a set of printables with the strategies.  Check them out...

You can get them HERE in my TPT store! ($2)

(Graphics & Fonts by: JW Illustrations, Melonheadz, DreamlikeMagic, Print Candee, Kevin and Amanda)

*Unfortunately at this time, I will not be able to make any custom changes to the strategies.  Sold as is.)

Now back to my new obsession.  Time for the magic...

Oh my!! Just amazing.

 And a perfect fit for my space! (Sorry for the pic quality on this one!)



Since I'm in a math-y kind of mood, I can't leave you without a freebie.  Here's a little doubles poster that I made to add to my meeting board!

You can get your own copy by clicking HERE!

(Graphics & Fonts by: ErinBradleyDesigns, DreamlikeMagic, Small Town Clipart, Kevin and Amanda)

I hope that everyone has a wonderful week and is looking forward to an upcoming break!

Pinkalicious & Cupcakes!

I love the week of Valentine's Day. Yes party day makes for a crazy afternoon, but it's the week that we read one of my FAVORITE books...Pinkalicious!! I just adore this book.  How could you not with this amount of pink in one place?  Even my boys get into it.  I had a little giggle today when after reading her call herself "Pinkerbell" one of the boys spontaneously yelled "Red-erbell" after she turns red.  haha.  Our theme for this week and last is cupcakes, so this fits perfectly. I use and just adore this little pack from First Grade Fanatics...

Click HERE to grab your copy.

We are also reviewing long a word families this week. I made a little gameboard for practice that matches our theme and thought I'd share as a freebie.

Get your copy HERE!

That's it for now Pink-tastic friends. Enjoy your Valentine's Day!!!

Behavior Clip Chart....Freebie!

Just before school started I posted a picture HERE about my new owl clip chart that I downloaded from 3rd Grade's a Hoot.  I'm loving this clip chart system!! I feel like I am signing (well actually a responsible student from each table is signing behavior sheets...unless a student is lower than "ready to learn", then I sign!) so many fewer folders at the end of the day and it truly saves a headache!! I LOVE that it gives a chance for those fabulous behaving students to strive for something above and beyond! Sooo...this post and couple of freebies are dedicated to those sweet owls! After reading the free ebook linked above I decided to go with the idea of adding "jewels" to the clips that reached outstanding for the day. Check out the bling (aka: glitter)!...

(Yes, my clips are spray painted white, because the wood color just wasn't working for me!)

Now on to the freebies...the ebook also suggests a "Clip Hall of Fame" for those receiving a certain number of jewels.  I went with 5! Once a student reaches 5 outstanding jewels, their clip is retired to the Hall of Fame! Check it out!

I just used a $3 frame from Walmart, some of my favorite ribbon from Hobby Lobby hot glued to the back, and this free printable!

Click HERE for your copy!

But wait, there's more...

One of my fabulous first grade team members needed her clip chart and hall of fame to match her zebra & green theme. Taadaaa!

Get your copy of the clip chart with hall of fame printable here!

And finally, one of my other teammates uses my Birdies & Buntings Classroom Decoratives so of course I'm glittering you with a clip chart that matches that set as well!!

Click here for your copy of the Birdie Clip Chart and Hall of Fame printable!

Well I hope that at least one of those will fit your room's decor and you can get some use out of this amazing little behavior management system.  I'm off to enjoy my fall weekend. giggles...

Word Wall "Stache" Freebie...

Well you know with all of the fabulous Duck Tape prints available it was only a matter of time before I got my glittery hands onto a few packages! It's been super fun creating a handful of projects with the tape lately.  I'm lovin' my newest Pinterest inspired project with the adorable mustache tape...

Each week we (First Grade Teachers) send home a page of flashcards for students to cut out and keep for word wall word practice.  Until this year, we've just kind of crossed our fingers and envisioned that every child kept a plastic bag of flashcards at home in their quiet homework spot...giggles!!! So, this year we decided to add a spot in their Daily Take Home Binder to "stache" the flashcards. Perfect opportunity to use the "stache" tape.

First, I printed matching labels...

and attached the Duck Tape and labels to a quart sized plastic baggie.

Then I punched holes using our electric 3 hole punch (1 bag at a time) and added them to Take Home Binders. tadaaaa!!! Love!

Click HERE for your free copy of the "Stache" labels!!!

Happy taping!!

Posh Pencil Containers...

Well the first week has come and gone and I believe that I have recovered!! Following up the first week with a 3 day weekend is just perfection.  In my last bit of to-do's before school actually started, I decided to glitter up my classroom pencil containers.  I was so happy that Misty at 3rd Grade's a Hoot created a fab pencil freebie using the adorable pencil graphics from Melonheadz! I didn't want to purchase any new containers so I hunted around for a few that would fit my vision. I found a couple of decorative cans I had purchased at Michael's for my daughter's painting party.

The supplies...2 sheets 12x12 scrapbook paper, 2 medium plastic paint cans from Michael's, printed fab pencil freebie labels, scissors, and tape (not pictured)

I trimmed down the scrapbook paper to the height of the cans and glued the label.

I fit the paper to the inside of the can (you kind of have to shove it in there!) and attached a few pieces of tape inside.  My paper left a gap, but I just used some of the scrap that I had cut off to fill the space.

Tadaaa!! They are just what I wanted!

Check them out next to a few adorable classroom additions (I found them at a candy store in Destin!) that I found this summer...

Now on to week two!!! Sending gobs of glitter and giggles your way...

Where Has The Time Gone?...

OH MY EASTER BUNNY! It has been a month since I have posted!!! Y'all this past month has been CU-RAZY and has resulted in a short break from my glittery little blog.  First of all, our Spring Break was pushed back to the first week in April this year and seemed to take an eternity to arrive.  My kiddos were bonkers and of course the teachers were chompin at the bits for a break. And then there's the first round of state testing! Sheesh! I don't teach a testing grade level here in Texas but I do administer the test every year which is quite a bit of pressure.  Finally, my Spring Break arrived and then the chaos...my lovely little neighborhood here in Texas was hit by an F3 tornado.  My daughter and I were home when it hit. Thankfully, we and our home were left unharmed.  I prefer to never experience anything like that again.  The community is working on rebuilding and the amount of support has been just amazing!

It's just heartbreaking to see, but a miracle as well.  NO ONE was seriously injured!

Sooo...it's back to work tomorrow and time to get motivated to finish the year strong.  As I scroll through my blog Dashboard I am so refreshed by all of the ideas I see from such creative teachers and I'm getting excited to head back to the classroom and adding new glitter to this blog.   After getting inspired by Cara at The First Grade Parade revamping story retelling using a Wizard of Oz theme (you know I love me some Wizard of Oz! and glittery shoes) and loving my home more than ever after the tornado this week, I'd like to share this sweet little printable that I made as a reminder...there's no place like HOME!

Click here for your copy of the printable.

(Graphics by Dreamlike Magic, KPM Doodles, and Dennis Graphic Design)

Happy Easter everyone, enjoy your week, hug your family, and be thankful for your home!

Seuss-tastic Stuff with Freebie...

Well it's all giggles over here with all of the Seussy love out there in blog world and Pinterest.  It is my favorite time of year! I'm a HUGE Seuss fan year-round so I thoroughly enjoy these next few weeks.  We actually started our Seuss unit last week and will continue on for the next two.  Here is a bit of Suess love from glitter and giggles...

Last week our Shared Reading focus was on main idea and details. I made this little organizer to go along with our reading of The Cat in the Hat.

Click here for your copy of the organizer.

This week we are reading The Lorax. I'm going to print and laminate this gameboard for my students to use with their word rings during Work on Words.

Click here for your copy of the gameboard.

On March 2, we will celebrate Read Across America with a read in and Seussy snacks throughout the day.  Here are a few pictures from our celebration last year.

I purchased this print from Charm Studio. We recite the quote as our end of the day launch.

Thank you so much to all of the creative teachers sharing wonderful ideas, pictures, and freebies to make these next few weeks so enjoyable for my firsties and I.  I hope you have Seusstastic time with lots of glitter and giggles!!

(Graphics provided by My Fun Invites @ Etsy.)