Last Minute Thanksgiving Resources {Including a FREE Directed Drawing}

Happy almost Thanksgiving. :)
I love this time of year.  The holiday season is just getting started. It's not yet December, so my kids aren't too crazy yet. Best of all, some delicious holiday eating is only days away.
To help take advantage of this special time, I thought I'd share a few Thanksgiving themed resources. I'll started with a quick and simple Turkey Directed Drawing.

This directed drawing is a favorite of my students. They always seems so surprised with their directed drawing creations and this turkey is no exception. These directed drawings make an adorable display that students are sure to be proud of.  Plus, this drawing is super simple to teach.

Click here for your FREE copy of my Turkey Directed Drawing.

Another resource I'll be using, during the days leading up to Thanksgiving, is my On Point Leaning Journal for November.  I've used these print-and-go math and literacy activities in a variety of ways over the years (depending on my group of students).  

In the past, I've made my On Point Learning Journal into a booklet that students work on at their own pace (if they've completed all of their work).  This year, I've been using the activities in small groups for review and reinforcement of skills from earlier in the year. Having quick-prep and meaningful, seasonally inspired activities makes planning a snap.

Click here for more details about the On Point Learning Journal for November.

One final Thanksgiving themed resource I'd like share is my Perky Turkey Fact Family Scoot. I actually created this scoot a few years ago.  Originally it was a subtraction scoot.  Well, this year, my students are in need of a little extra practice with fact families.

I tweaked the original Perky Turkey Subtraction Scoot so that my young learners can have a chance to work with fact families.

Students will scoot to each turkey card and write the fact family numbers on their recording sheets.  Then, students will write a fact family with each set of numbers.

My students love scoot and write the room. I know they'll enjoy practicing fact families with this activity.

Click here if you would like a FREE copy of Perky Turkey Fact Family Scoot.

I hope these resources are a help for you in the weeks/days leading up to Thanksgiving.
Thank you for taking time to visit School Is a Happy Place.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Hello November {Resources & Ideas, Including Three Freebies}

Hello November.  I can't believe you are already here.  It feels like school just started a few weeks ago.
Since the season has come for all things turkey, I wanted to share some favorite resources for November.
First up are the completely updated math centers we'll be using this month, Thanks and Giving {10 Math Centers for November}.

Pictured below is a preview of the skills covered with this set of centers.  We will be working on balanced equations, time to the half hour, basic addition, basic subtraction, missing addends, place value, fact families, and more.
I love using these monthly centers to lay the ground work for upcoming instruction and to review skills we've coved so far this year.
You can click here for more details about these activities.

The (also completely updated) literacy center companion to our November math centers is Thanks and Giving {10 Literacy Centers for November}.

Again, pictured below is a preview of the skills covered with this set of centers.  We will be working on sight words, initial blends, ending blends, antonyms, sentences, parts of speech, and more.
We will be busy, busy, busy.
You can click here to learn more about these centers.

Besides our November literacy and math centers, a couple of other resources I'll use are my free Veterans Day and Thanksgiving math mini books.  I made these books a few years ago, but I like to pull them out each year so that my young learners can get a little extra practice with word problems.
Click on the pictures below if you would like a free copy of one (or both) of these math mini books.

Another freebie that is perfect for November is, my Perky Turkey Subtraction Scoot.   We spend most of October working on subtraction, so this scoot activity is a great review.

My kids last year loved scoot and write the room activities.  We haven't scooted this year, I think this activity will be a wonderful introduction.

Click on the picture below if you would like a FREE copy of Perky Turkey Subtraction Scoot.

In addition to all of this November inspired math and literacy, I also like to make a couple of seasonal craftivities.  One of my favorites is our Thanksgiving Writing Craftivity.  

Students put together their Pilgrims and then write about what they are thankful for.  These little Pilgrims make a really sweet display.

There you have it...some of my go-to resources for November.  I love this time of year and want to make the most of it.  I hope some of these ideas and activities will be a help in your classroom.

Thanks for stopping by.

Thanksgiving Tidbits (Activities and Freebies)

It's a little less than a week until Thanksgiving.  I cannot believe it.  It seems like Halloween was just last weekend.  Craziness!  We'll have a couple of days in school next week to wrap up some of our Thanksgiving activities, then we're off for a little break.
Traditionally, my first graders get a little (let just say) spirited the week or two leading up to a holiday/break.  Being prepped and ready with plenty of engaging learning activites is super important.  Here's a peek some at a few Thanksgiving inspired math and literacy activities we stayed busy with this week.

We started off by making our Pilgrim Writing Craftivity.  Our class cabinets have been embarrassingly bare for the past couple of weeks and these little Pilgrims look great.
On the backs of the Pilgrims, students wrote about what they are thankful for.

Some of our literacy time has been devoted to Thanksgiving themed literacy centers.  I am so happy to see how much independence most of my students are gaining as we work through our year of math and literacy centers.

Speaking of math centers, those have been Thanksgiving themed as well.  Math centers are an awesome way to provide ongoing review and to lay the ground work for upcoming instruction.  The fact that they can be seasonally inspired makes them even better.

Another Thanksgiving related resource we used during our math time was my It's Turkey Time Math Mini Book.  I made this book a couple of years ago and have been using it ever since.  It includes word problems that review several of the skills we've been working on so far this school year.
If you would like to have a FREE copy of this math mini book, click on the picture below.

We wrapped up our week with a fun round of scoot.  When I say fun, I mean FUN!  My firsties think scoot is awesome.  They love moving around the room or in this case switching from desk to desk.  They get a huge kick out of scoot.
Since we have been working on subtraction the past few weeks, our scoot focused on basic subtraction equations.

If you would like a FREE copy of my Perky Turkey Subtraction Scoot, you can click on the picture below.
I addition to using this freebie for scoot with your students, it also works great as a math center or as a write the room activity.

Hope some of these activities are helpful to you during these last few days before Thanksgiving.  If you are among the lucky teachers that have the entire week of Thanksgiving off...enjoy your well deserved break.

Best.

Thanksgiving Rewind (Plus a Math FREEBIE)

This past week (or so) we have been having a little fun with Thanksgiving.  Turkeys, Pilgrims, and Native Americans, I love this time of year in the classroom.  

Here's a peek at some of the special projects and Thanksgiving inspired learning we've enjoyed . . .

One adorable craft my classes have made for the past few years are these wooden spool turkeys.  I pre cut turkey bodies from craft foam.  The kids glue the wooden spools to the body.  Once they are good dry, they glue the feathers to the opposite end of the spool.  After a little more drying time, they add the felt beaks and waddles and then finally the pipe cleaner legs.  

They are really cute and even more fun when they are all together in a group before they go home with each student.

Another craft we do around Thanksgiving time is a bean wreath.  They are so easy to make and I think the colors look like fall.
To make them, all you have to do is pour several bags of dried beans into a large bowl.  Next, add white glue and mix until the beans are well coated.  Give each student a piece of wax paper and a few scoops of bean mixture.
The students shape the mixture into a circle.  Let them dry for a few days.  Add any kind of bow you would like and you have a wreath that was super fun to make.

I also really enjoy these Native and Pilgrim photo projects.  As you can see, all you need for this activity is construction paper, glue, and photos of your students (feathers are also a nice touch).  Kids love using their pictures for this project.

For the past few years I have also really enjoyed using Babbling Abby's Spelling for All Seasons.  This packet has several paper toppers that are seasonally inspired, as well as a variety of recording sheets.

We used Abby's patterns for the three weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.  We made Native Americans, Pilgrims, and Turkeys to top our practice with word families.  

They looked fabulous hanging in the hall outside our classroom.

In math we worked on word problems using the math mini book that I made last year, It's Turkey Time.  Students work with a variety of skills in this mini book.  Addition, subtraction, fractions, fact families, and time to the half hour.  It is a great little review before going home for Thanksgiving break.

I'm all about using these types of seasonally inspired mini books to practice word problems.  

You can have a FREE copy of It's Turkey Time by clicking on the picture below.  (or maybe just pin it to use next year ;) 

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Thanks for stopping by.
Have a great long weekend!

Five for Friday: November 7, 2014

If you're happy that it's Friday, clap your hands. (clap, clap)

I don't know what it is about this school year, but things seems to be extra, super busy.  I know it's not just me.  My teacher friends at my school and at other schools are in total agreement.  There are definitely not enough hours in the day.  

One result of this pace is that I have missed every Five for Friday so far this school year.  But, hooray, hooray! this week is an exception.  I am so happy to link up with Doodlebugs Teachings Five for Friday and share five things from my week.

So here it goes...

Number 1

One of my to-dos this afternoon, before leaving school, was to prep my Veterans Day math word problem mini book.  We'll use these on Tuesday, along with a few other activities, to learn more about the heroes that protect our country.  

With this mini book students will work with number bonds, ten frames, calendars, addition, and more.  If you would like to use this activity with your students, you can have a FREE copy of myVeterans Day Salute by clicking on the picture below.

Number 2

We made a favorite fall craftivity, my Scarecrow Glyph.  I love glyphs.  You can really learn a lot about your students through them.  They are also a great way to cover a wide variety of math skills (depending on your line of questioning) and can provide inspiration for student writing.  

I especially like this scarecrow because it works in September, October, and November.  So, if you have them on display in your classroom, you do not have to be in a rush to change them out with another project.

For more details about this project, click on the picture below.

Number 3

This week we launched our November math centers, Thanks and Giving {10 Math Centers for November}.

With these centers, students are working on addition, subtraction, skip counting, fact families, twenty frames, time to the half hour, place value and more.  They are a wonderful way to review and to lay the groundwork for upcoming instruction.
We use them during our Math Daily 3 time for the Math with Someone rotation.

If you would like a FREE center from this packet, click on the picture below.  Touchdown Turkeys is a basic addition center.  It has full color center cards and a recording sheet.  

Number 4

We also started work with our November literacy centers, Thanks and Giving {10 Literacy Centers for November}.

With these centers, students practice skills such as short/long vowel discrimination, parts of speech, ABC order, sight words, sentence order, syllables, blends, and more.

If you would like a FREE center from this packet, click on the picture below.  Autumn ABC Order is just what it sounds like.  Students will practice putting fall themed words in ABC order.  This activity has color center pieces and a recording sheet. 

Number 5

Finally, I've just have to say how proud I am my own sweet first grader.  She ran with her daddy and me in a race last Saturday.  It was unseasonably cold, but that didn't slow her down one bit.  She ran the entire race.  She continues to amaze us.  It was a fun morning for our family.

That's all I have for now.  Thanks to Doodlebugs Teaching for hosting Five for Friday.
Enjoy your weekend.
Best.
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