Homework Folders Make Me A Little Crazy

So now we are implementing the Common Core and I have to face the fact that my homework folder no longer "cuts it" since it does not reflect the standards I am now using. Oh dear! I have to reformat them AGAIN! Here we go... What do I want to include on these? I finally decided to change a few things but the basic stuff remains the same! First, I buy a set of legal size folders in bright colors (okay it was $30). They look like this:

Now I had to decide what matters the most on these folders because space is limited. First I put my name on the top on a long strip so if a student drops it (not uncommon) someone will return it to me!

I also put my start and end time since parents ask this throughout the year. My hw theme was Pete which should not surprise a soul! Lovin' it! On the left are my sight words, color coded by trimester. and the OCR letter/sound cards are on the right. Got it? On the bottom I write their name with proper formation as a model for when they are working at home. Good idea, right?
Here is the back of the folder and notice that a few things have changed. Our kids need to know 2D and 3D shapes so I have them here, labeled. They also need to be able to count to 100 and count by 10's so I included that. I want them to know their colors and how to read them so they can do many of the stations I have created and these are important words to anchor them when working independently. The sticker is to remind parents to send in a note when their child is absent since this becomes a huge issue at my school.

Finally when all the pieces are cut out and glued on the folder with a label at the top (student name) I am ready to laminate the folder. I open up the folder and slide the entire thing through the laminator, cut it out, staple each side and cover it with colored duct tape. Generally these last an entire year but they are a huge amount of work! I also make extra ones to have on hand.

Do you have an easier system that you use. I like the legal size because I make many things on 81/2 by 14" paper and want it to fit in here. I also have them take home a literacy bag with their little books. I would love new ideas for this. What do you put on your folder? Do you have a better system?

Summer Reading: Fran's Picks!

I admit it. I am a reading junkie. I love books of all kinds and I would never admit how many I have purchased on my Kindle. Don't judge me. I love books of all kinds and crazy as it sounds I love professional ones too. Here are my top five suggestions that I have already purchased:

So now I have my hot little hands on these and I can barely contain myself. I know-crazy. I have really searched out the best reads for primary grades since I am a kindergarten teacher. I have been a Common Core coach for the last two years (k-5) but the grant is over and I am returning to kindergarten.  I am so excited to have a class again! This has been a long and valuable journey but my heart is still with students and their families. So now I need to get on top of my game! What are you reading this summer? Other suggestions?

I hope this has been a good year for you with implementation of the Common Core. Remember to forgive yourself if you didn't always get it right. This is hard and will be an ongoing process. We can help each other as we travel down this road. Look out for road blocks!

Little Red Hens In Kindergarten

My kindergarten teachers are working on a unit of study about teamwork and we are using the story of the Little Red Hen to do this. The teachers have been growing corn (see the previous post) and are reading a variety of versions of this story. This allows you to compare and contrast stories, focus on different characters that appear and talk about the sequence of the story.

They also love doing art with this unit and I had to post some of the hens the children created. We kept the shapes simple but so much learning went on during this activity. Students had to listen carefully to each step and the results are hilarious... 

This leads to writing for a purpose. Students can make a bubble map describing the little red hen and then write about her. Common Core does not need to be complicated!
This can easily be integrated into a farm unit and a study of chicks and their life cycle. We like to use it to teach character traits and the message it clearly has about working hard to reach a goal.

Baby It's Cold Outside... for California

Happy New Year everyone. I have been so busy preparing for a conference presentation that I have neglected my blog. I want to post some products that I have that are ideal for this time of the year and are aligned to the Common Core:

This is a great product which is filled with literacy and math activities. No it is not just printables that you run off. I am not a big fan of that and trust me principals are not impressed when they walk into your room and see too much of that. The Common Core is about kids working collaboratively and interacting with each other to build knowledge. This packet is filled with activities that kids can do at stations to build their understanding of counting on, the teen numbers, sight word games, more letter knowledge practice, winter vocabulary,etc. If you have ELL's this will be a good match for your students. In addition to that it is filled with emergent readers that my students love using.

I have retelling cards and a reader for The Mitten. I like to read a variety of versions of this story and compare and contrast them. Retelling is a really important skill for our little ones since it leads to their ability to summarize and our ELL's need oral language practice that is fun and interesting. This cards will fit in your pocket chart and become a flow map! If this sounds like a good match for your kiddos you can grab it here.

Stay cozy with these "Winter Warm-Ups that meet the Common Core. I will post some other products later when I can grab a few minutes. What activities do you love to do with your kids at this time of the year?

Don't Miss Cyber Monday On TpT: I Am So Excited to Have a Sale!

I am so excited to finally put some of my packets up for sale this week. You can "gobble" up any of these sets to help you plan for the upcoming weeks or put them away for next year at prices you won't want to miss! How cute is this sale button? My amazing, smartie, techie friend Traci created it and I love her creativity. Her blog is Dragonflies In First  and she is wildly creative.

Here are the bundles I think you will be interested in for this time of the year:

T is for Turkey and Turkey Leftovers: These packets are perfect for young learners at this time of the year and are filled with activities to use if you do a celebration just before you go on break. You can find these here in my TpT store.

A Bundle of Alphabet and Number Foldables:  My kinder teachers love these mini books and their students are having so much fun practicing the letters of the alphabet and saving them to review. The number books work on number sense, allowing students to count, use ten frames and store all their understandings in a little book to save and use for review. Teacher posters are for guided instruction and for use in centers.Doing RTI? Grab these as a perfect resource for this time of the year.

Gingerbread Holiday Joy In Literacy and Math: Are you getting ready for December? . Who does not love the many versions of this holiday story? You will find a wide range of activities in this bundle. Students read their own emergent reader, practice retelling the story in a pocket chart with cards, and even make their own bracelet. Also included is a headband for number counting fun, working on teen numbers, and number writing work. These are perfect for your activity days and you can grab this here.

There's An Elf In Our Room Bundle: Do you need some academic activities before you go on your winter break? This bundle was a huge hit in my kindergarten classrooms last year.  These packets provide an opportunity to make a classroom elf who loves watching students work on letters, sounds, rhyming and reading! An adorable cut and paste emergent reader is provided for students to share with their families. Students work on counting by two's and even create a jingle bracelet to add some holiday bling! You can purchase this Common Core aligned bundle right here. 

Hanukkah Readers for Young Learners: This is an amazing deal to grab for your young students who need Common Core aligned readers just right for this time of the year. In this packet are two teacher books that are interactive and engaging. One is perfect for building math concepts, while the other is informational text which teaches about the of traditions of Hanukkah with repetitive text and cut and paste fun. This is a great package for this time of the year. 

 So my friends- I putting all of these on sale for 20% off and TpT is offering an even bigger discount with the code CYBER. This is my first big sale ever but I am full of gratitude for all of you who read this blog, leave thoughtful comments, and continue to show your support for Kindergarten Crayons. Have a wonderful week of teaching. Click on each title to grab it from my store and I hope you fill your cart up with wonderful products.

From Seed to Pumpkin ( A Common Core Retell)

I love this time of the year but for me I am busy working on writing units of study with my team at the district office. We just finished a Thanksgiving packet and I am so glad to move on after looking at curriculum maps, content and language objectives, informational text, and still slamming in some games to make all this look like fun to the kids! The rigor is going to kill me (just sayin").

So what have I learned in all of this? Materials for teachers need to be simple and easy to put together. So here are my "famous" retelling cards that form a flow map in a pocket chart. Teachers in my district are probably sick of seeing these for all kinds of topics. This time I did it for the growth of a pumpkin. How are these different? Let me share my thinking.

I did not include the transition words because I want students to practice this orally. They need to use words such as first, next, after, last, finally... you get the idea. Some of your students might be reading by now and that's why sentences have been provided to challenge them.  Common Core is all about offering differentiation. The language is still simple and repetitive.Be sure to model the language you want them to use and do this over several days. Now you can hand out the cards so students can have an opportunity to retell the growth story while the others watch. I often do this during my morning opening. Listen for those crucial transition words. Can they do this? This can be a great assessment for oral language, but teach it first! 

Retelling is an important skill and is part of the CCSS. However, what makes this truely a Common Core activity? Yup, doing it in collaborative groups of four, practicing academic language. Run the cards off  so that each group is provided with a set and store in a baggie. Students sit in a small circle and each one finds the next part of the sequence and continues to tell the story, using those important transition words. The teacher walks around and listens carefully as students work together. Your administrator will be impressed with your collaborative academic conversations and the kids will love working together to build their understandings. Are you willing to try this? This is what Common Core is really about!

Do you want these cards? I have them right here but be sweet enough to leave a comment and tell me what pumpkin activities you love to do! I forgot to mention that I sometimes prefer to make these cards magnetic and if you have a bookcase or file cabinet at the level kids can use this makes a great independent science/literacy center. I bought the magnets for just a couple of dollars at Walmart and they are self adhesive!

Have You Hired Help for the Classroom?

This is my latest packet for primary students. It is a great way to build community in your Common Core classroom. Our young students need to learn how to be responsible and solve their own problems. This is a huge part of 21st century learning.
What makes this chart unique?
I created 20 different job cards which gives you a huge variety to pick from.
You pick the ones you want and follow directions for customizing it for your classroom.
Jobs can be added on as your students mature.

Here is what the big cards look like. I love to run them on photo paper (I use Kirkland from Costco) since this makes them glossy and gorgeous. Once I decide which jobs I want to start the year off with, I print them and laminate them. Directions for putting this together is in the packet. I {heart} the final product. Super cute, right? Just play along.

Use clothespins for your student names. What an authentic way for your class to learn how to read each other's names. Love that.

Then I created student badges that the kids can wear when assigned a specific job. Yup, I love those badges and here is another use for them! So cute and if you put it in the right place on their collar, they can't even chew it. You know exactly what I am talking about.

Now this is where my brain was smokin'. I made a little reader that matches all the jobs that I have provided. Once again, you can customize it by only using the pages of your choice. The pictures match the badges and class chart so students can easily recognize the academic language. I hope you love this packet as much as I do. When I bring it to school for my kindergarten teachers I am hoping to feel the love! Do you have classroom jobs?

I am offering this packet for a special price right now. Are you interested? Okay. Now go enjoy your summer before it's over...

Core Smore: Recommendations for Summer Reading

Teach Like a Pirate is such a great read and it is all about teaching with passion. Hello, kindergarten teachers have been doing this forever. We could write this book. It is about student engagement, letting loose, wearing costumes, and bringing your personal passions into the classroom. Yup we have no problem wearing costumes, being drama queens, and doing the unpredictable. Read it and just enjoy validation of all that you hold dear to your heart as a primary teacher. I am loving it! The others are in my stack and I will report on them later. Promise.

Here are the books that I have been reading since early June. If you are really trying to wrap your head around the core standards I recommend the first book for a quick and easy reference that you can keep on your school desk at all times. It charts the standards in reasonable chunks and shows you what it looks like in kindergarten, first and second grade. It is very teacher friendly and I am a huge fan of easy! This is a winner: Common Core Standards.
Text Complexity is a lot more academic but if you are a "smartie pants" and need to understand this crucial topic to be a CC expert buy it. You will hear this term constantly so you might want to understand what all the hoopla is about. I swear it is an easy and informative book that is clear as mud... just kidding!
The Common Core: I have not even opened the cover but many people are suggesting this one so I am on the bandwagon cause I am afraid of missing the common core train. It deals with the reading strategies for teaching Common Core and I say "bring it on..." Do we ever do anything for more than a few years? Just sayin'
Now here is what I really need to know. What mindless trash can I read to give myself a brain break? I better bust out some beach books or I will never consider this a vacation!
What are you reading that I should be reading too? My list is growing...

It's Been A Common Core Kinda Year!

Summer is approaching and we are winding down for the year. I don't think anyone wants another sweet treat at this point so look what I put together for my teachers! I bought the water bottles from Walmart and the energy packets. My teachers rocked out the Common Core units of study we created this year and I love them for working so hard and doing such an amazing job. I just wanted to show a little appreciation for all their hard work and give them the energy to finish out the week. Here is a simple idea you might like to adapt for your students or teachers during the hot days ahead.

A Deal Breaker In Kindergarten: My Newest Packet

I was recently in a meeting with a district administrator and she asked me what I considered to be crucial skills  for students to have before moving on to first grade. For once, I paused and gave this some careful thought since I think all of us are faced with this issue as we approach the end of the year. First, I look at a child's social and emotional development and that truly guides my thinking. With that being said, I really am concerned if a child cannot blend sounds to make words. This is a real deal breaker in my head because students who struggle with this skill often become overwhelmed the following year. Our first grade program moves at a crazy speed and these kiddos are not ready for the pace or the demands being placed on them. Administrators fight us on this but kindergarten teachers get to know their students quite well and often have well thought out reasons for wanting a student to spend another year in their classroom. Retention has become a dirty word! Right? The child who only recognizes a few letters or only knows a few sounds will obviously have a difficult time but not being able to decode simple cvc words makes reading laborious and difficult. It makes building fluency almost impossible. What do you think?

At this time of year I use every trick in the book to teach my students how to blend sounds to make words and decode simple cvc words. This packet is filled with activities that I have had great success with. It is filled with books that students make, cut and paste work, cvc word searches, literacy stations that are taught in a small group setting, games and much more. I only work on these skills with 25 words, five from each vowel group (a, e, i, o, and u). This builds student confidence and has been highly effective in my classroom.

I am almost finished. My husband is my official editor but he is out playing softball so keep your eye on this and I will let you know when it is in my store. I hope this makes a difference for you. The theme is Growing Flowers. Let the games begin!

A Tour of Books on Common Core

Where has the time gone? I have been out of town visiting my New York daughter and after a week of shopping, eating, visiting, coffee drinking, walking, freezing, baking and just plain old hanging out with her, I am back in warm southern California. We had an amazing time together and I have lots of memories to help me through the months when I don't see her. One of her friends came into her apartment for a visit, saw me first, and said OMG because the resemblance is pretty strong. She is just a younger, prettier version of me! It's always a source of entertainment to me to see that when I hold parent conferences and I have not met a parent previously. You know exactly what I mean!
So we are on to 2013 and at this time of the year I always like to reflect on the future and set some personal as well as professional goals that will drive my thinking as I move forward to the second half of the school year. What are your goals? What would you like to accomplish with your students? Are you willing to try new strategies? Is there some professional reading your are determined to do? What workshops are you going to attend? Do you have a conference you will attend that will offer up some new ideas? What technology skills are you determined to master?
With the new Common Core standards I have tons of professional reading to do and will try to find time in my schedule to do this. Here are some of the books I have purchased that look amazing:

How many of you have heard of Timothy Shanahan? If not, please check out his blog if you want to have a deeper understanding of CCSS. He is a distinguished professor as well as the Director of the Center for Literacy for the University of Illinois. His credentials are amazing and he has much to say about the Common Core S tandards that is worth reading. You can find his blog here and I hope you sign up for the thoughtful and interesting newsletter he sends out. Look at what he says about "The Daily Five" which has made me stop and think about how we are teaching our students. Clearly he is an expert on literacy and has sharpened my understandings of terms such as "close read", complex text, and text based questioning. I am anxious to read his book because he is so deeply respected. Check it out and do not tell anyone I suggested you spend a million dollars on PD!

With Common Core we are being asked to have our students use a more collaborative model for learning material and to me the books that build capacity for this are those written by Spencer Kagan. If you are an older teacher this should be a very familiar name to you but he has updated his material and I really love a lot of his classroom management ideas and structures. Many of you are already using them in your classroom but do not realize they are his. Have you heard of "Think, Pair, Share", or "Lines of Communication?" I recently bought his primary books because I think collaborative work is far more challenging to do with our youngest students and needs to be carefully planned out. I have found this out from hard core experience! So if your district is pressuring you to have students work collaboratively and this scares the pants off of you- check out his website here and see what you think. Some of his books are also available on Amazon.

Have you heard of this website and are you familiar with the books and information they offer their readers?

If not, I highly recommend it. You can read about this research based program that focuses on building social skills, community in the classroom, classroom management, etc. which leads to academic achievement. There is a website here and a blog. Take time to look around since it is loaded with great information. Remember to sign up for their newsletter.

I think I better stop here because I feel sure that I have overwhelmed you. If you have gotten all the way to the end of this post you are a total rock star! 

Happy New Year! Go out and teach like your hair is on fire!

Love, 

It Was A Crazy Day...

Have you ever seen this project? I taught this to fourth and fifth grade students at my school and they worked in collaborative groups to complete these flowers. They had a blast but some students struggled with making the pedals and were able to get help from the children at their table. They had to listen, follow directions, use a stencil to create their own template, and then put it together. Once we got through this part we decided to add some glitter to the leaves which made them gorgeous. These students could not wait to take these home to their families. I would have done some kind of writing with this if there had been time.Next year I'll be a little smarter and plan ahead.  Common Core has brought art back into the classroom and our students really "blossom" when given these creative opportunities. The Legend of the Poinsettia is a nice book to read before starting this activity. What projects do you like to do?

This is a great card to do across all grade levels and the kids loved making it. In kindergarten I cut the strips out ahead of time in shades of green. The base is a rectangle and the star is a square that they cut on the diagonal. I love teaching longest to shortest with these strips. For some children this can be a real challenge and they might need more practice with this important math concept. My fifth grade classes are in the middle of a Common Core unit on Fractions so their teachers had them measure long strips of paper and cut them specific sizes, using their knowledge of fractional parts. The directions were placed under the ELMO and they had to work independently to construct this. The results were fantastic and they were so proud of their work! This project could be done in shades of blue and purple for a gorgeous winter scene and snow could be added with paint on your finger! Does this reflect common core- you bet! Do you have any other January favorites?

Do You Need An Elf Sitting On A Shelf Spreading Magic?

I am finally finished and ready to rock out my second packet with my elf buddy.  I love how it turned out and I am running it off right now for my teachers at school (I can feel the love). I have Part 2 completed with a focus on mathematics. Does it reflect the core? For sure! My favorite part of the packet is my "Jingle Bracelet" with a matching booklet. I think my little friends will think this is full of magic. The bell bling will probably drive their teachers nuts!  I have my book The Elf On the Shelf  in my teaching bag and I cannot wait to read this precious story to my kinder kids.. Maybe I should read this to the staff at the next meeting.
Sounds like a plan. If you are interested in this packet it is available on Teachers Notebook and TpT. 

Add Some Sparkle to Your November: You Need It

Add some sparkle to your November

These are back by popular demand and I think they will be great for kindergarten teachers and intervention specialists.. I worked hard on these to make them "just right" for this time of the year and then I tested them out in a variety of classrooms to make sure they were a good fit. The kids loved the topics and gave me a thumbs up! I love praise from five year olds. So here is the November set and remember that each book comes with its own sentence builders for your pocket chart. Build them and use sticky dots under the text.
All 80 pages are available in my TpT store for you to grab if this will make the crazy month of November a little easier. Gobble, Gobble  this here.

Common Core is not just about standards...

As I am learning about CCSS I have discovered that it is no longer just about addressing the new standards. It is also important that students work using a collaborative model and no longer are we expecting quiet classrooms where just the teacher is talking and one student is responding. This is a huge shift for many teachers and will be difficult for them to alter. We want students talking to each other, using academic language and being purposeful, helping each other.  We know that this is how we all learn best. Why not promote this in our classrooms? In my new role I often collaborate with other teachers and find that I am at my best when I have the privilege to discuss new learning with others. It has made me much more effective and I find myself doing a lot me listening now. All of us need an opportunity to work with others at our grade level and reflect on our teaching practices even if it means laughing at how an activity "tanked" and you had to rethink your lesson! I have been there more times than I care to admit!
What does this have to do with this packet?
First, I had to be sure that the activities were purposeful and differentiated for all  kinds of learners. I also made sure that students had opportunities to work collaboratively, often with a partner. I had  to provide an opportunity for students to show me their learning with a performance based assessment.
All of these activities can be used during guided instruction for intervention purposes too. Hopefully, these will be highly engaging and fun for students to use. I hope I pulled this off. This packet addresses crucial foundational skills our kids must have to learn how to read and I find myself always looking for new ways to visit letters and sounds. I will post this in my TpT store and TN after the hubs edits it! 
What do you think? Are you on board with this?
Stay safe. 

Hey, What's The Big Idea?

So I have been busy for the last few weeks getting ready to roll out some CC units for our second and third grade teachers. Not an easy task for an old kindergarten teacher. The big buzz is learning how to backward plan when doing your unit lesson designs. Teachers need a true understanding of some new terms. The Big Idea is a statement that crosses disciplines and allows students to have a deeper understanding of the content being taught. They need to be able to apply this to their own lives. Wow! That changes the game big time and will be far more demanding for teachers to develop. Essential questions lead students to the Big Idea as they learn the content of the unit of study. Teachers will help students to formulate answers to essential questions as they read both fiction and non fiction and hold collaborative discussions. That was a mouthful. How will this look in kindergarten? I am moving on to that next. We need to keep Big Idea and Essential questions in kid friendly language. Collaboration is a huge piece of  Common Core and our kids will need practice with this over time. 
I made this Big Idea statement on 81/2" X 14" paper and gave them essential questions with nice backgrounds to make this a bit more exciting. It will be fun to create these for each unit so teachers can put them up in their room and refer back to them as needed...

Reading Closely... What is that?

So one of the jobs I have  this year is modeling lessons in other classrooms. When I started prepping for this I was lucky enough to obtain this adorable clip art from Nikki at Melonheadz. She is a wonderful graphic artist who makes fabulous graphics for our students. If you don't know her stuff check out her store at Teachers Notebook here. Make her a favorite. She is certainly one of mine!

Common Core Collaboration With A Freebie

So I have been really busy this week preparing for my Common Core training.There was so much to learn and understand. Remember, I am OLD.  I am working at a new school where the teachers function as one big family and support each other really effectively. The training went very well (thank goodness) and the administrator participated right along with his teachers. WOW! It was impressive to watch him make important connections with his staff, reminding them of the work they have already done. He validated their thinking through the entire session. I wrapped up these mini apples and used a tag to make the room look a little more inviting and they loved it! At the end of the day I had a slide about the importance of reflection and they wrote me beautiful notes with their personal ones in relation to their own Common Core journey. I am blessed to be at this school. If you want these apple tags grab them right here. Everyone loves a little gift to sweeten their day!

Bringing An Apple to Common Core Training

I have been in Common Core training for several weeks now and we are rolling it out to our district teachers this week. Yup, like they don't have enough going on in their classrooms. Anyhow I really wanted to make it a little extra fun so I talked to the other trainers and naturally my friend Karen thought of giving everyone an apple. Cute- right? So I decided to make a label for the apple, tie it up in a clear baggie with curling ribbon and add a plastic knife. At least the teachers can have a snack while I present my Power Point. I also added some funny e-cards and freebies. What teacher doesn't love free stuff? I am giving you these labels for free if you think your school might like using them when doing a training... I will upload them after the giant sale on TpT.

Common Core Is A Journey...

I just came back from a week of common core training and my brain might be broken from using it so much. I am exhausted but ready to do a lot more reading on this and exploration under our district leadership. I stayed in a gorgeous hotel in Palm Desert and got a chance to bond with some of my district friends. We went to all the classes ( yup we are super goodies) that were offered and even got a new ipad. Yes, you read that correctly. That was a huge perk that still blows me away! The conference had tons of teckies to offer support and I learned a ton of new tricks that were pretty exciting to me! Who knew about the four finger swipe? Not me! So now I am home after two weeks of hotel life where all meals were provided and I could forget about real life as I know it. Let's not even talk about the laundry.