Search results matching tags 'literacy', 'education', 'classroom', and 'teachers'

Kabongo Reading Games Review

Anonymous — Wed, 18 May 2011 11:00:24 GMT

Spring fever is in full-swing and both teachers and students alike are looking forward to summer vacation. Its times like these that call for a little something new to shake things up and keep everybody going for another month (or two). A few weeks ago I stumbled across a site called Kabongo that will help put an end to spring fever in your early childhood classroom. Kabongo isn’t just another online learning game site; it’s THE hot new online learning game site. What makes Kabongo stand out from the crowd? Well, since you asked:

Critical Thinking Skills: Unlike many online games that focus on very basic skills and right or wrong answers the games at Kabongo target the critical thinking skills and problem-solving strategies that are essential for future reading success.
Research Based: Games are designed by cognitive psychologists and learning experts
High Quality: The animation in these games is fantastic- move over PBS and Disney!
Interactive: There is no “osmosis” learning going on here, everything is highly engaging and fun.
Learning Skills Chart: Kabongo provides a Learning Skills Chart that lists the skills covered in each game which is very helpful for teachers and parents.

Kabongo features three different learning habitats; each habitat is broken up into three games that target different skills. Each habitat is offered for a one time flat fee of only $4.95, however you can use the coupon code shown above (LEARN) for free access to everything for a limited time! That’s nine games absolutely free. The habitats are:

Galaxy Gardens
Laughter Lake
Twister Top

How does it work?

Go to Kabongo and click on “play free” at the top of the page.
Next, sign-up to create your free account.
Once you confirm your subscription, log-in and select your habitat to start playing.

Aside from classroom use, Kabongo is also a great resource for parents. Kabongo has many parent friendly features such as a parent dashboard and progress reports delivered directly to your inbox.

Since summer vacation is right around the corner and many parents are looking for rainy day suggestions consider sending out a link to your parents letting them know about Kabongo. Kabongo’s target ages are 4-7 so you can suggest that siblings have a turn too.

'); //-->

Pizza Box Flannel Board

Anonymous — Sun, 08 May 2011 21:38:23 GMT

A flannel or felt board is an important part of any early childhood classroom. One of the biggest benefits of having and using a flannel board is the opportunities it creates for oral language development. At the flannel board students can re-tell nursery rhymes, fairy tales, and other popular stories. Flannel boards come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

I was very fortunate to have a beautiful, free standing easel with flannel on one side and a magnetic dry erase board on the other. While being very pretty and expensive the large easel does have its drawbacks. The flannel board easel is very tall which obstructs your view when you are trying to monitor all the students in the classroom. It is also very narrow making it difficult for two students to stand side-by-side and play. I prefer that my students use the flannel board in pairs because of the social interaction and oral language opportunities it offers. Another problem I encountered with the flannel board easel was that it was difficult to offer the students a variety of different flannel stories to choose from. When I tried to hang Ziploc bags from the side of the easel the story pieces were quickly mixed-up and became a huge mess.

The pizza box flannel board has solved all of my problems -except how to get rid of the giant flannel board. Now students can select a box and sit down on the carpet to re-tell their favorite stories. The re-telling center is much more popular now than ever before because I can offer more choices to the students. Creating your own individual pizza box flannel boards is super simple! I have included the materials you will need below.

Flannel/felt from craft store
Hot Glue Gun
Scissors
Pizza Boxes- ask your local pizza parlor for unused boxes, most are happy to donate
Optional: Computer labels

Next, cut your felt to fit the front of the pizza box and use the glue gun to adhere the flannel to the front of the box. Flannel stories can be stored inside the box. The name of each story can be typed on a computer label and attached to the side of the boxes. Store several boxes on a shelf and allow students to choose their favorites.

If you enjoy visiting Pre-K Pages please click the “Like” button at the top of any page or share it via other social media outlets using the links below.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

'); //-->

Winner of the Jack Hartmann Giveaway

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 11:00:04 GMT

The three lucky winners of the Jack Hartmann gift certificates are as follows:

1st place winner of a $50 gift certificate: Hope D.
2nd place winner of a $30 gift certificate: Sue H.
3rd place winner of a $15 gift certificate: K.R.

All winners have been notified via e-mail and will have seven days to claim their gift certificates.

The winners were selected using random.org. Thank you to everybody who entered, we had more than 200 individual entries but since there were five different ways to enter we had almost 600 entries total!

If you enjoy visiting Pre-K Pages please click the “Like” button at the top of any page.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

'); //-->

Don’t Let the Pigeon Play

Anonymous — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 21:31:39 GMT

There’s nothing a teacher dreads more than being absent and having to prepare for a substitute. In addition to the preparations you have to make in advance, often while you’re sick, there’s always the fear that your students will go bonkers in your absence. I’m sure this has never happened to you, when you’re absent your little cherubs sit still and blink their wide, innocent eyes at the substitute teacher while patiently awaiting your return. If you are in the minority like me and your students need a little reminder of how to behave in your absence I made a special PowerPoint just for you. I was inspired by my friend Karen of Prekinders; her recently released Pigeon packet hooked me on the popular Mo Willems books.

This is how it works, just click on the picture above to download the PowerPoint and insert your students’ pictures in the empty boxes. Click on the talk bubbles to change the text. I gave you just a few examples to get you started, but having the students actually come up with the ideas for the text will be more meaningful. Insert duplicate slides and change text and pictures to create as many pages of the book as you will need. You can show the PowerPoint to the class or you can print the slides, insert the pages in page protectors, and place them in a binder to create a book that you can include in your classroom library and leave for your substitute.

If you enjoyed this post from Pre-K Pages please click the “Like” button at the top of the page or share it via other social media outlets using the links below.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

'); //-->

Student Picture Games

Anonymous — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 11:00:41 GMT

If you are looking for an activity that will engage your students and keep them on task then look no further. The secret is to use pictures of the students; they love to look at pictures of themselves and their friends. This activity can be done several different ways to allow for differentiation.

In the picture above you can see the sight word version of this activity. To prepare the activity take pictures of your students holding letters to spell sight words. Print the pictures on cardstock, laminate, cut, and then place on binder rings. I use the Rainbow Words program; this particular activity focused on the six words we were learning at the time. The students turn the cards and spell the words on their cookie trays using magnetic letters. I added a thematic picture to the cookie tray to make it fit with our theme. This activity is one of the all-time favorites in my classroom!

Using student pictures you can create activities to meet your students’ needs all year long:

Student Names: Take pictures of the students spelling their names. Students can then make their names and their friend’s names on cookie sheets using magnetic letters.
Upper to Lowercase Match: Take pictures of the students holding upper and lowercase letters and turn the pictures into cards. Have students match the upper to lowercase letters.
Alphabet in Order: Take a picture of each student holding one letter. If you have fewer than 26 students (and I hope you do!) then give some students an extra turn. Turn each letter into a card and have students practice putting the cards in order from A-Z. You can do this for both upper and lowercase letters. You can also use an alphabet strip and have students match the pictures to the strip.
Numbers in Order: Same idea as above only take pictures of the students holding numbers. Place Velcro on the back of each number card, laminate sentence strips, place Velcro on the strips and have students attach the numbers to the strip in order.
Power Points: You can use any of the ideas above and create Power Point presentations to show your students- fun!

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

If you enjoyed this post from Pre-K Pages please forward a link to your friends or use the buttons below to share the link on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.

'); //-->

Jack Hartmann Giveaway

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:00:08 GMT

I first heard about Jack Hartmann’s music from a colleague about nine years ago, all it took was one song and I was hooked. I started with the Rhymin’ to Read nursery rhyme CD then worked my way up to Hip Hop Alphabop, the rest is history! While most early childhood teachers are familiar with his music, we’re not all familiar with Jack himself so I thought an interview would be fun. Three lucky readers will be eligible to win a gift certificate for any of Jack’s products. Keep reading for contest details.

You’re a very popular children’s recording artist now, what did you want to be when you were growing up?
I was big into sports. I played lots of little league baseball and lots of golf. For a while I wanted to be a baseball player, pro golfer, child psychologist, and then a singer.

You travel all over the world singing your songs for kids, where is your favorite place to perform?
I did an outdoor concert in Breckenridge, CO. But really any concert where there are lots of children smiling and singing.

You have recently branched out in some new directions. Can you tell us about these new ventures?
Yes, we are sharing with others on social networks. I have a new blog, a Facebbok fan page, a channel on YouTube, an account on Twitter and a profile on Teacher Tube. Plus we are always looking to add more. But, most importantly, writing good songs is my top priority and first love. I love writing and recording in the studio. Making a new song is fun.

So many of your songs seem to be just what teachers are looking for, how do you come up with ideas for your songs?
I consult with my wife Lisa, first, then I consult with other top educators. Also, I read and research what teachers need.

Jack has graciously offered to host a giveaway here at Pre-K Pages. Three gift certificates for Jack’s merchandise will be award to three lucky winners! The gift certificates are in the denominations of $50, $30, $15. The more places you connect with Jack the better your odds of winning.

To enter the giveaway follow the instructions below.
You have 4 opportunities to win:

General Entry: Leave a comment on this post and let us know which of Jack’s songs your class requests the most.

For each bonus entry, fill out the form below letting us know which of the tasks you have completed.
Loading…
Details:

The contest ends April 25, 2011 at 11:59pm
Three lucky winners will be chosen via Random.org and announced on the blog the following day.
The winners will have 7 days to claim their prizes or new winners will be selected.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

'); //-->

Spring Race to the Top Game

Anonymous — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 19:59:41 GMT

Race to the Top is a fun game that can be adapted for many different skills and levels. You can use these types of games to practice letter recognition, sight words, or even numbers. In the picture above you can see the Spring Alphabet Race to the Top game, in the picture below you can see the sight word version of the game.

To prepare this game use a pocket die as shown in the picture, or you can create your own for free using a small box. Select which letters, words, or numbers you want to use on your die and then write your selections on the flowers before you make copies. To record their answers students can use Do-A-Dot markers or crayons.

Race to the Top can be played in a small group or by an individual child. To play the game the students take turns rolling the die and recording their rolls on their sheet by placing a dot in the square or coloring it in with crayons. When a particular word, letter, or number has been rolled five times it reaches the top first and is declared the “winner”. I like this game because the students don’t compete against each other, the skills do. When a word wins I encourage the children to keep playing to see which one comes in second place, third place and so on.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

If you enjoyed this post from Pre-K Pages please forward a link to your friends or use the buttons below to share the link on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.

'); //-->

Spring Break Giveaway Winner

Anonymous — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 12:11:25 GMT

The winner of Karen’s Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus packet is Karen B! The winner was selected using an on-line random number generator. Thank you to everybody who entered, we had 228 entries. Stay tuned for another contest that is going to knock your socks off!

'); //-->

Magnetic Valentine Sight Words

Anonymous — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 11:00:31 GMT

This Valentine themed activity for practicing sight words is super simple yet still tons of fun for little ones. You will need one magnetic cookie tray or other magnetic surface per child, paper Valentine hearts, tape, sight word cards, and magnetic letters. You could also have the students match upper to lowercase letters on the trays. The cookie trays in the picture above are from the Dollar Tree and the hearts are pages from a notepad. First, tape the hearts to the cookie trays, I laminated mine first for durability. Next, make one individual sight word ring per child with the words they are learning, details can be found on the sight word page. Finally, place the letters that correspond to the words in a small Ziploc bag, one bag per child. Each child at the table gets one magnetic cookie tray, a ring of sight words, and a bag of magnetic letters. Students will spell the sight words from the rings on their cookie tray.

In case you are wondering how I can find so many magnetic letters without going crazy I’ve included a picture of my magnetic letter storage container for you above; it’s a nuts and bolts container from Wal-Mart. Each drawer is assigned a different letter; using this storage container I can find the letters I need quickly.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

If you enjoyed this post from Pre-K Pages please forward a link to your friends or use the buttons below to share the link on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.

'); //-->

Valentine Card Sight Words

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 11:00:48 GMT

This is a highly engaging and fun activity to help your students practice their sight words during your Valentine’s Day unit. To create this game you will need several different types of student Valentine cards, a marker, envelopes, laminating film, and mini mailboxes or other containers. First, write one sight word on the back of each student Valentine card with your marker. I used white labels on the back of the cards because there were already words like “to” and “from” and I didn’t want the kids to get confused about which words they were looking for. Next, seal, laminate, and cut regular sized envelopes in half and write the same words on the front of each envelope half. Give each student in your small group a mini mailbox or container to hold their cards. Students will match their Valentine cards to the correct envelopes and place the matched pairs in their container.

I use the Rainbow Words program so the six words pictured above are our first six purple words. I also used five different types of Valentine cards and grouped them by set, the reason I did this was so that each child in the small group would have a different set of cards and they wouldn’t get them mixed up. For example, I placed six Spiderman cards in a Ziploc, six Strawberry Shortcake cards in another Ziploc etc. Each set of cards has the same six words on the back. Also, if they finish with their set they can trade with a friend for another set- they loved this idea; they wanted to keep playing until they had a turn to match all five of the sets.

Don’t forget to sign-up for the Pre-K Pages newsletter. Subscribers receive early childhood teaching tips in their inbox each week.

If you enjoyed this post from Pre-K Pages please forward a link to your friends or use the buttons below to share the link on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.

'); //-->