FREE New Year's Activities for the Primary Classroom

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone is rested and ready for the second half of the school year.  January offers lots of special learning opportunities.  One of which is New Year's themed classroom activities.  New Year's holds a special place in my heart because it is a time to focus on goals and can be a clean slate (if you want it to be).  New Year's Day is also my birthday, so I really enjoy extending New Year's past January 1st with my kids at school.
There are loads of free New Year's themed resources out there.  Here are some that I've used in the past and some I'll be using this year.

First up is a new math center I created to go along with my monthly math centers (Baby I's Cold Outside {10 Math Centers for January}).  It is called New Year Number Sense.  It provides students practice with identifying and ordering numbers that are 10 less, 10 more, 1 less, and 1 more than a given number.

The center includes colorful number cards and a blackline master recording sheet.  The recording sheet can be a stand alone activity if you would like.  Click on the picture below if you would like a FREE copy of this New Year's themed math center.

Another free resource I love (that includes some great centers) is Cara Carroll's Happy New Year! packet.  She shared this a few years ago and it's still a go to for me when we return from winter break.  It has activities for time to the hour, basic addition facts, abc order, antonyms, and for making words.  

You can click on the picture below for more details.

Last year we did a little non standard measuring with backed peas.  It turned out really fun, although I'm fairly certain some of my kids ate the uncooked peas.  Not to worry, we had plenty.

Students estimate how many black-eyed peas it will take to measure each picture.  Then students use black-eyed peas to measure.  

For this activity there are color and blackline master options for the picture cards.  There is also a blackline master recording sheet.  If you would like a FREE copy of this packet, click on the picture below.

An adorable New Year's freebie that I just recently came across is from The Glyph Girls (pic is from their blog).  At their Teachers Pay Teachers store they are sharing this colorful craftivity that students can write about their goals for the new year.  

Again, you can click on the picture for more details about this project.

If you are looking for a writing activity along the same lines, but do not have time for a craftivity.   You should check out the First Grade Buddies' New Year's Writing printable.  Students get a chance to write about their accomplishments from the past year and what they want to accomplish this year.  This print and go activity has been updated it for 2015.  You can visit their blog for your own copy.

If you are working on or would like to review number comparisons, you may want to check out my free greater than and less than printables I put together a few years ago.  If your students are like mine, they need constant practice recognizing and comparing numbers.

You can get your own free copies by clicking on the picture below.

Finally, I'd like to share my math word problem mini book for the New Year, Out With the Old and In With the New.  I'm all about using seasonally inspired word problems with my students and this booklet is a perfect way to do that.  

I've updated my New Year's themed math mini book through 2025.  You can have your FREE copy by clicking on the picture.

There are all sorts of fun classroom activities to go along with the celebration of the New Year.  I hope the suggestions above make your planning a little easier.

Best.

Baby It's Cold Outside: Centers for January, Freebies, and a Winner

Maybe I should say, "Baby it's wet outside."  we have had rain every weekend for at least the last month.  But, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a little cold air to hang around long enough for some snow.

Speaking of snow, there's plenty of snow inspired learning going on in my math and literacy centers for January.
Hot off the press is Baby It's Cold Outside {10 Math Centers for January}.  This common core aligned packet includes work with addition, subtraction, number comparisons, number order, nonstandard measurement, time to the half hour, missing addends, and more.  You can get a closer look by clicking on the picture.

Below is a FREE center from this packet, Snowman Comparisons.  With this center students will practice comparing numbers with the greater than and less than signs.  Click on the picture for your own FREE copy.

       

Also hot off the press is Baby It's Cold Outside {10 Literacy Centers for January}.  This packet includes work with rhyming words, long and short a discrimination, sentence sorting, contractions, synonyms, antonyms, compound words, sight words, and more.  You can check it out by clicking on the picture.

You can have a FREE center from this packet by clicking on the pictures below.  Hot Chocolate Blends provides your students practice with initial blends.  After matching all the initial blend picture cards with the word cards, students will write their answers on the recording sheet.

       

If you have any questions about these activities, please email.  I'll be more than glad to answer any questions.  Hopefully these packets and freebies can lighten your load a bit as you prepare to return to school after Christmas break.

Finally, we have a winner for School Is a Happy Place's first anniversary giveaway for a $50 Amazon gift card.  

Thanks to all of you that stopped by and entered.  Carrie, I'll get you your prize ASAP.

Best.

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas: Literacy and Math Freebies

Hi friends.  Hope you are doing well.  We started our first round of family parties today with a brunch.  We had a great time.  My daughter is the perfect age for so much holiday fun, just old enough and still young enough.
Speaking of fun, what character is more fun than Pete the Cat?  Yesterday, our class read Pete the Cat Saves Christmas and did some work with this book.

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas follows Pete as he overcomes his fears about being too small to take over for Santa, since he is sick.  Of course the illustrations are fabulous.  The text is rhythmic and rhyming and like White Shoes, Four Groovy Buttons, and School Shoes, has a theme song that student love to sing.

After reading, we made these really cute Santa Pete the Cats to put up in class for the last few days before break.

We also did a little comprehension lesson on problem and solution.  As a class we discussed the problems and the solutions in this story and then the students completed a graphic organizer.  If you would like a copy of this handout, you can click on the picture.  The clip art is from Melonheadz.

In math we are working on comparing numbers with the greater than and less than signs.  I made a Santa Pete themed math center for the kids to complete during part of our math time.  I printed nine copies of this center and partnered the kids to work on this activity.
If you would like a free copy of this center and recording sheet.  Click on one of the pictures below.  The clip art is (again) from Melonheadz and the fonts are by Cara Carroll.

My firsties enjoyed this book and really liked having activities to extend it a bit.  Pete is very popular and anything having to do with him seems to spark my students' interests.

I'll leave you with a pic from earlier this week.  Pete even got in on our elf fun.  Groovy.

If you would like to check out some additional classroom activities to go along with Pete the Cat Saves Christmas (including a link to a free pattern for the craftivity),  click here.

Have a great week.  

Be Mine Yes or No Way (A Valentine's Math Box FREEBIE)

My sweeties started their math boxes yesterday for the month of February.  I generally (but not exclusively) use these boxes to review and reinforce various math skills.  I find my firsties need constant reminders that they do know how to do things, because sometimes they forget they know.
My students work in pairs to complete the math box tasks.  I spend a good amount of time training them to take turns and how to coach each other when needed.
I'll try to post more specifics about how I use math boxes (math tubs, math stations, math centers . . . whatever you want to call them).  But for the time being I'll share a box I am using this month.  It is a number comparison sorting activity that uses the Whole Brain Teaching line of questioning YES or NO WAY.  Which is basically like TRUE or FALSE.

If you would like a FREE copy of this activity click on the picture below.

The activity includes two sorting mats, sixteen number comparison cards, and a recording sheet that has a cut and glue option.  You can use the recording sheets as a stand alone printable if you want.  The clip art is from Scrappin Doodles.

Enjoy!

There Was a Cold Lady

Hi Friends.
Like most of you, I have been "off" from work today to honor MLK.  I use quotes because I have spent a good bit of time working on school stuff.  I have to get a substitute this week.  I am taking off for my daughter's preschool conference (and a dentist appointment-YUCK).  It's pretty strange to be on the other side of the table on conference day.  But I must say it gives me a new perspective on how I conduct conferences.
Anyway, back to sub prep . . . I am leaving the book There Was a Cold Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow! by Lucille Colandro.  My students love these books.  They love the the rhyming text and the funny outcomes.

I have a couple literacy activities for the kiddos (sequencing and predicting).  I also created a few math activities to go along with this book.  I made a word problem mini book, a missing addend printable, and a number comparison printable.  The clipart is from Scrappin Doodles.

You can have a free copy of my activities by clicking on the picture below.  

Hopefully with the Cold Lady will keep my little darlings engaged while the cat is away :).

Let me know if you have any questions.  Have a wonderful week.

Spread Some Cheer This Year (With Some FREE Printables)

Winter break is almost over.  My first graders will be bopping through the door in a few days.  We will be hitting number comparisons for the next couple of weeks.  Every time I teach greater than and less than, I think about my second grade teacher and the little rubber alligator she got out when she introduced the > and < signs.  The open alligator mouth was the visual I needed to remember how to use those signs from that point on.
Now the alligator is certainly my go to, as I'm sure it's yours too.  When I started teaching I found this great puppet.

In class he's known as My Pal Al.  My first grade sweeties LOVE him.  He's silly looking and has some really pointy teeth.  I bought him at Target years ago.  He is still available.  I recently found him at Amazon.  He's made by Manhattan Toy Company.  He's is pretty fun to have in your class when your are teaching greater than and less than.

Something else I plan on using this year is a poster and poem I found on Pinterest.

I tracked it down to teacherbitsandbobs.blogspot.com. 

I've included a few printables I will be using this year as well.  (The clipart is from Scrappin Doodles.) 

You can get your own free copies by clicking on the picture below.

Finally I thought I'd leave you with a shot from my last celebration of the holiday season.  My birthday is on New Year's Day.  After a late night, we had a low key brunch at my parent's house.  If you look closely at all the candles, A is about to help me blow out, you'll know how old I am.  She made sure she put on exactly the right amount.  She's such a sweetheart.

Have a fabulous day.

Math Box Freebie for the New Year

My family just wrapped up our last Christmas party this afternoon and now I'm looking forward to the next chance to get together with friends for a fun evening.  Next up...New Year's Eve.  I'm still working on my party outfit. (I found a fab skirt at The Loft.  Cute right?)  But, I still have some work to do on top.  Anyway...

Thinking of the New Year also turned my attention to my school sweeties and what we will be doing  when we return from break.

In math we will be focusing on number comparisons and learning about the greater than and less than signs.  I created a New Year's themed math box activity to help students practice this skill.

We play Yes/No Way (a Whole Brain Teaching activity) all the time in class.  I put this activity to work for this math box.  Students will sort the cards according to if they show a correct number sentence or not.

Click on the picture below if you would like your FREE copy of this activity.

I hope you like it.  The clipart is from Scrappin Doodles.  If you have any questions or comments please let me know.  

Happy New Year!