Problem solving is challenging for young students (and many adults too)! To support my little friends, I teach them problem solving strategies that they can use when they encounter a problem. We want our students to become independent thinkers who can solve problems, control their emotions, express empathy, and help others.
Print the cute and free "my little book of opposites" with images to color, cut, and glue! This is a perfect companion to Opposites by Sandra Boynton.
I spy with my little eye... a giant octopus! Help him and his ocean friends find the hidden objects in the picture.
PinterestFacebookEmailTwitterProblem-solving is challenging for young students (and many adults too)! To support my little friends, I teach them problem-solving strategies that they can use when they encounter a problem. We want our students to become independent thinkers who can solve problems, control their emotions, express empathy, and help others. I introduce the problem-solving techniques a...Read More
Two Points: This is MY method, and not necessarily right for you, your teaching or care philosophy, your set-up, or your students. Curriculum participation by my students is VOLUNTARY. I invite them to participate, but if they choose not to, then that is fine. I usually offer them a choice of a few of the activities and let them decide where we start and where we go. An engaged child learns, a dis-engaged child rebels. The 3-year rotating curriculum is theme based. Some times we stick to the plan, but usually I observe what they are interested in learning about, what they are asking questions about, and suggest up to three different themes they can choose from for us to study. I make my own 3-year rotating curriculum for many reasons: Packaged curriculum is often only one year. Since I teach for 3 years, this would be redundant. Most packaged curriculum focuses on skills my students master early. My 2s count to 20, know 11 colors, know most of their phonics, uppercase and lowercase letters, 10 shapes and some of their numbers and I still have 3 years of curriculum to teach them. They often are worksheet intensive. My students usually are cognitively advanced from their fine motor skills. I have 4 year olds that still can't write well. If I had relied on worksheets for the last 2 years, there is no way they would have the skill sets they have. Worksheets are also not considered Developmentally Appropriate Practice [DAP] for children under the age of 8. We use them here for writing practice starting at age 4. [Yes, worksheet-intensive public schools are not using DAP for kindy through 3rd grade!] They can be expensive. If you are purchasing worksheets, why would you spend even $1 a week/$52 a year when you can purchase a 400 page Scholastic preschool workbook from Sam's Club for $8 that covers probably more material, is most likely aligned with the public school expectations, and is colorful. Colored copies are NOT affordable to make from packaged curriculum. Most [ALL!] preschool learning should be interactive. Pinterest is a better source for ideas. My students change every time I do a theme. I have to be able to tweak it to the interests and capabilities of those currently in my care. Plus, I'll find more interesting activities on Pinterest, have an idea for a new game, etc. It's a constant evolution to keep my curriculum relevant to our current group, situation and resources. However, curriculum planning and creation is very time consuming. Even with older curriculum I spend several hours going over it prior to teaching - updating, creating new materials, purchasing and setting new classroom decorations. While I have had my 3 year curriculum, this year I found myself wanting a more specific schedule to focus on specific skill sets for this particular group of children. Most of these skills can be incorporated into our themed curriculum, or they take 5 minute sessions to pop into our day. I have two groups, the younger preschoolers are 2-3 years old and the older ones are 4-5 years old, all at the same developmental and skill set level within their group. This makes it easier, as I can tailor everything to just 2 groups. If I were to have additional levels of children, then it would be tailored to each level. Children here are taught at their developmental level, not age. Asychronastic development is normal, so I may be teaching a child at various levels depending upon the subject matter. For the younger preschoolers, I came up with this structure. For the older pre-k students, I came up with this one. For instance, both of them have Measurement & Comparison on Friday for Reasoning. However, for the younger students, this would be a more/less, longer/shorter, big/little, etc. activity, while the older students would be measuring with rulers, yardsticks, tape measures, measuring cups, unit blocks, foot steps or themed units, and graphing the measurements to compare. Same skill set, differentiated at vastly different levels. Even this needs conditional tweaking. All the pre-k's know how to spell their last names now, so that is no longer a relevant skill activity for music and will be changed out. In another post I'll get into the curriculum components and the importance of each. For instance, how counting on Friday teaches 1-to-1 correspondence and creating method processes for counting groups of objects. CLICK PICTURES TO VIEW LARGER I use this MS Word template, available for FREE on TPT, for curriculum planning. Often, the daily skill sets above are either already incorporated, or can easily be incorporated, into the theme planning. For an example of a completed curriculum unit, check out our Owls Theme. Each monthly theme is broken down into 4 sub-themes. For instance: SPACE Astronauts & Rockets The Universe Our Solar System Aliens & Robots We also have a musical component, often classical, and an art component, often a master, and Spanish vocabulary component that we incorporate. This planning form may not include all games, file folder games, manipulatives, room-set up, etc. that I utilize. For those of you trained in curriculum creation, I do NOT do a full curriculum development for each activity. With having these children usually from infant to school-age, I keep an internal evaluation of progression and plan out only weekly learning objectives. Since I am creating the activities for my personal use, I do not need to create written procedures and evaluations. My curriculum is stored currently in file folders in a large office bookcase unit. I would like to get it into boxes so that I could have EVERY theme-related item, including dress-up, room set-up, manipulatives, etc. together for an easy pull. File boxes will most likely be the easiest, but they do take up a lot of space. In each file some of the things I probably have: Completed planning sheets All the books I own for that theme Flannel board Sentence and word walls File folder games Samples of previous crafts DVDs CDs Coloring pages Mini-book(s) Build-a-[theme item] game Curriculum creation is one of my great joys. I love the research and compilation, the creativity and excitement of bringing something fun and educational to my students. Learning is rarely linear. Children take developmental leaps, sometimes in odd directions. As a teacher, it is important that I keep each one challenged without pushing or inhibiting their growth, and that takes constant evaluation and a good eye for when those leaps happen so that we can move on to a higher level of instruction. When we do an activity, I constantly question if they WANT to do another round, another activity, and I usually cut them off while they are still engaged. I want them wanting more, and they will usually ask if they can continue. One of the most important desires and abilities I can instill in them is that of self-directed learning. So as they choose to go off with their rulers after we've spent several minutes doing a measuring activity, conferring between themselves as to procedures and what to measure next, I step back and let them. They know I am here as a resource, rather than an intrusive director. It is my job to ensure that when I invite my students to learn, they glow with excitement and anticipation of a fun, interactive, playful time. The results, so far, have been astounding. A few of my complete curriculum units are available through my TPT store. Apples Dental Ice Cream Penguins Rainbows St. Patrick's Day Valentine's Follow Connie -'s board Classroom on Pinterest. Tags: preschool, child care, pre-k, curriculum, development, teaching, education, homeschooling, homeschool, home, school, preschool curriculum development, planning
Involving your preschooler in family history work can be fun, simple, and very rewarding! Here are three simple ways to involve your preschooler in family history!
If you’re old enough, you remember those chemistry sets for kids filled with toxic and downright dangerous chemicals, glass test tubes just waiting to shatter and scary metal tools. Yes, they were fun, but most of the contents have been banned replaced with many safe “chemicals” you probably have at home. So skip the “store...
What do you think of when you hear “preschool crafts?” Construction paper and glitter? Cut and paste worksheets? These kinds of crafts quickly find their way to the trash can in our house! I would rather my children spend their time making something worthy and beautiful that we’ll hang onto for awhile. If it doesn’t
A few weeks ago our little daredevil had her first x-ray due to a little jumping on the bed incident. Yup 1 little monkey jumping on the bed, she fell off and bumped her head… broke her clavicle. Well ever since, she has been fascinated with the bones inside her body so there couldn’t be […]
We have crossed the 2020 finish line (hurrah!) and I think it's safe to say that we are *all* hoping for a better year. Are you looking for some strategies for a better homeschool year? I've decided to dust off this post from the archives. I hope it helps you a little bit as we all attempt to dust ourselves off and march into 2021. Oh, January. I have such mixed feelings about you! On the one hand, January is the opportunity for a fresh start. It's a time to reevaluate what is working in our homeschool... and also what
A few weeks ago our little daredevil had her first x-ray due to a little jumping on the bed incident. Yup 1 little monkey jumping on the bed, she fell off and bumped her head… broke her clavicle. Well ever since, she has been fascinated with the bones inside her body so there couldn’t be […]
I have a new favorite chart! I found this on pinterest and knew it would be great to use during the first week with my new little first grad...
Today, I am thrilled to welcome Lucinda Leo. I first 'met' Lucinda through the Gifted Homeschoolers Forum blogger community. I am a huge fan of her work and I honest-to-goodness wish she didn't live all the way across the pond because I know we'd have a lot to chat about over a cup of coffee... and I have a sneaking suspicion that our children would hit it off too! Lucinda and I are both unexpected homeschoolers and we are both parenting gifted and twice-exceptional children. We share similar styles and I just know you are going to love what she
Hey everyone! Week 1 is done..yippeee! We had fun getting to know each other and getting those rules and procedures down. My group this year is ready to learn. I can tell already, which makes my teacher heart so excited to see what we can do this year! This week in reading we are working ... Read More about Sequencing, Nursery Rhymes plus Centers- What I am Teaching This Week
A very simple little finger rhyme for babies and toddlers about caring for a little spider. Great for lots of giggles and tickles!
Get silly with these dice game ideas or come up with your own. The idea is to assign an activity to each side of the cube. Kids roll the cube to see which activity they need to perform and for how long. You can create different themes like animal movements or sounds, such as Hop … Continued
I vividly remember growing a bean in a plastic baggie when I was a girl.
My little friend Maverick just loves hands on activities! Mav is demonstrating the Flipping Pancakes activity – one of our all time favorites for practicing speech sounds. It’s pretty easy to assemble- just print and cut out the pancakes. Then just grab a spatula from the dollar store and you’re all set. Just for fun […]
Last year I started writing these silly little fluency passages that would give my students practice at reading our CVC spelling words. I on...
Are you looking for tips and tricks for gameschooling preschool? You've come to the right place! This post is part of a new series, Gameschooling by Age Group. This series has been requested by readers for years, but I've struggled to write it because I don't think play should be confined to age groups and grade levels. Why? Perhaps the best way to explain my feelings on age ranges and grade levels would be by sharing a story... I have three children (ages 11, 10, and 8) and they are all big gamers. That said, my littlest guy has always been
In preparation for the writing test, plurals is the topic of the day. Here's a simple way to practice plurals with your kids that costs only cents. What you will need: 1. Sentence strips 2. Markers 3. List of nouns that follow the rules. What you do: 1. Write the noun on the sentence strip. 2. Fold the right hand corner to cover up whatever gets taken away on the reform of the word. 3. Write the new ending that makes the word plural. See pictures below! Before the flaps are folded down. After the flaps are folded down (minus the first one). You could even have your children make their own. You really can use any type of paper and any noun! Simple and cheap! Make on.
Mother Goose Rhymes Copyright 1943 Saalfield Pub. Co. Akron, Ohio This book was tucked in a bucket in the darkest corner of a junk shop. It was the only thing I bought from the shop and is now a prized possession among many. The illustrations and almost lost limericks are now forever captured here to share. There are many sweet rhymes that have been lost through the years. Surprisingly it is bound in spiral. I haven't heard this version of Polly since nursery school. Poor Solomon Grundy? I will have you know I wash on Saturday...such a sloth! Four and twenty...and we wonder why our kids can't count know? Because everything does it for them! This is such a lovely book full of so much I have to do it in two parts...(next Friday will be the other half of the book.) Join me over at Corey's for another week of Lil' Vintage Story Books. Those little bird clips from my previous post were purchased from Amazon. You can find the link here...
When we went to the Open House at my son's preschool, the P.E. teacher had these awesome little boards where the child launches a bean bag by stomping on
As a parent, you deal with a LOT of feelings on a daily basis. Right? And sometimes, it can all get to […]
Song Index
Let's cut to the chase here: I've been drooling over Spielgaben for years. As a school psychologist and homeschool mom to three kiddos, I am constantly on the hunt for high-quality, educational materials that encourage play and creativity. Spielgaben fits the bill, without question. I first heard of Spielgaben back in 2013, before we started homeschooling. It was love at first sight... and yet, to be perfectly honest, I couldn't justify the high price tag. It's not like I was homeschooling or anything. Fast-forward to 2014 when I found myself suddenly, unexpectedly, homeschooling. I took to the internet and once again
Anger is probably the #1 issue the kids I work with deal with. In this post you will find many great links, worksheets, and resources for addressing anger in children of all ages. One of my favorit…
Imagination makes piano teaching come to life, especially when you're having fun with a curious 3 year old. My little girl is lately rea...
Share & Help Me GrowOne of my favorite things to do with my children is sit and read together. We have logged countless hours on the couch together or snuggled on the bed reading wonderful stories that have inspired their imaginations and opened up great learning moments along the way. For my preschool children learning […]
A couple of weeks ago I mentioned in THIS post how I would be taking a giant step forward in “stepping up” my sight word instruction this upcoming year. Not that I need to “teach” sight words any differently, but offer continuous and hands on ways for my kiddos to practice them. Another area I will be offering...
"Hey, Mistew Dicken." "Yes?" "Can I dwive that wobot?!" The smallest and youngest little boy (usually unengaged, and without a single care in the world) in my kindergarten class was beyond excited. I had just introduced my kids to Dash & Dot, Wonder Workshop's pair of blue and orange robots, designed to help teach young kids the concepts of coding. I showed them a YouTube video to announce that we would be getting a pair of the robots for our classroom. Clearly, the video had created a buzz of excitement, as very few (if any) of my students had seen a robot before, in the flesh...er...metal? Gears? Whatever. I had read about these robots while looking through Twitter, and then Googled them and read some more. New to the education scene, the robots were getting good reviews among educators who were incorporating coding into their classrooms. I knew that I could not fund the project, and I knew that the school could not fund the project, so I decided to try out DonorsChoose.org. It was Saturday, and I filled out the required information on the website, wrote the essay, answered some questions, and selected the items that I wanted. By Sunday night, they had posted my project, titled, Dash & Dot Are the Secret to Kindergarten Coding. By Monday afternoon my project was fully funded (thanks to two generous donors). That evening I answered a few questions to confirm the materials list, and the following day the items were ordered and shipped from the seller (Amazon.com). It was then that I showed the kids the video, and mentioned that they would arrive in a couple of weeks. They arrived on Thursday (two days later). Dash (L) & Dot (R) with control panel. We unpacked the boxes together (about an hour before the end of the day), and we set up the robots and drove Dash around (they are controlled by apps on an iPad). Their excitement was uncontainable. If you know anything about kindergarteners and uncontainable excitement, then you can imagine what the end of my day was like. Here are some things that kindergarteners do when they are so excited that they can't contain it anymore: run in circles, yell (for no reason), wrestle each other (mainly the boys), jump up and down, and laugh maniacally. It was like watching an episode of Oprah where she's passing out her favorite things. I knew that I had to direct their energy, and came up with a plan to introduce the robots' controls on Friday. I simply printed our weekly sight words on hearts (it was our Valentine's Day Party Day, after all) and put them on the floor in different locations. The directions were simple: start in one spot, drive Dash to the sight word that I tell you (they had to recognize/read the word on the heart), make him do a trick, and then drive him back to the starting point. Each student in the small group would get a turn. Easy. It was a smashing success. Everyone got a chance to drive the robot, and practice their sight words. Every child left this station beaming and chatting excitedly to their friends. Now, for more (and more challenging) ideas... So easy, a child can do it...literally. Notes from Dash & Dot: Day 1 - Each student got a total of, maybe, two minutes with the robot. Within that two minutes, nearly all of them were able to drive the robot (with a purpose) quite smoothly. That's how user-friendly the controls are. - My friend from the beginning of this post was easily the most engaged he has been all year. In fact, they probably all were. - The app that we used to control Dash is Level 1 of 3. As you go up a level, the controls get closer and closer to actual coding. - I noticed that one of my girls, who never answers questions (she has speech issues and struggles with her confidence because of it), was very excited and very confident while using the robot. Not only could she read the sight word that she was given, but she drove the robot effortlessly, giggling the whole time (see the video). If using these robots is a way to give a voice to a child in my room...wow. - During our little game, I found that some of the kids who didn't know the sight words before must have been acting. With the iPad in their hands, controlling Dash, they were able to find the sight words, no problem. It was not coincidence, or an accident. They found the word immediately, and then drove him to it. What an amazing experience! DonorsChoose was on top of every aspect of this project, and contacted me throughout the entire process with updates. They made it quick, easy and painless. I will definitely be working with them in the future, and would suggest that any teachers who need funding for a project (or who have a dream project for their classroom) work with them as well. Also, Wonder Workshop, the company that created Dash & Dot, has reached out to me, and informed me that they email teachers curriculum and ideas for the robots, as well as updates. What a great addition to an already great product! I love it when a product that I love comes with amazing customer service. Anybody looking for an engaging way to bring coding into the classroom should check these robots out. Great product...and we've only scratched the surface.
Use a few simple materials to have some sticky learning time! Adding the element of a vertical surface can completely transform patterning and sorting!
Have you ever started out doing one thing and ended up with something totally different? That's what happened when we tried an exploding milk experiment. It started off as a completely innocent experiment using milk, food coloring and dish soap and ended up as a bubbly, fizzy adventure. We did all of these activities at once but you can split them up over a series of days culminating with this bubbling milk activity. If you are in the mood for more science activities for kids, try our Making Color Disappear experiment. You will need: MilkDish soap in a small cupFood coloringTooth picksBaking
Looking for the perfect holiday or birthday gift? We've got a round-up of more than 30 book and game pairings for ages 1 to 101!
I LOVE snowmen!!! I find them very sweet :) Maybe, my interest towards snowy things is increased because I live in Barcelona, where we hardly ever get some snow. I am 31 years old and as far as I r…
Do you have a budding engineer in the family? Check out these 25 simple activities for little engineers! #5 is my favorite!
