Search results matching tags 'teacher' and 'literacy'

Incorporating Literacy

treverreeh — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 21:04:00 GMT

I know that hands down incorporating literacy in the math classroom is very difficult, even for veteran teachers. My sister who is going to be an Eelementary teacher received a book in the mail that caught my eye, it was called "50 Literacy Strategies: Step by Step," by Gail E. Tompkins. A few of the more interesting things I came up with while incorporating her book into a math classroom would be:

Creating an Alphabet book for algebra class at the end of the year, pulling all the information together and creating and designing a book that encompasses their algebra class.
Creating quilts, where each students creates a picture for the class to see on your math topic for the day. Or just drawing pictures of what they have learned that day.
Having a gallery walk, where the teacher displays the quilts and directs the class through the gallery.
The last one I am going to share is dressing up like the mathematician for the day, say for instance Archimedes. The teacher is the character and you go through the lesson as normal and after the students ask questions, have comments, or present ideas.

It took me a half hour to get through a majority of the book and when I did I had 26 ready to go ideas on how to incorporate reading and writing in to a math classroom, I thought it was kind of impressive.

Pearson: 50 Literacy Strategies

Get Caught Reading Contest

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 23:00:30 GMT

I hope you will be joining us for the Literacy Beginnings book study blog party. Our party will kick-off here at Pre-K Pages on Monday, July 27th, there’s still time to get the book if you’re interested. So, you’re probably wondering why I’m talking about the party again if it hasn’t even started yet, right? Well hold on to your hats because I’ve added a little something to kick it up a notch!

I was thinking about lugging my book all over the US during the next four weeks (top secret locations- shhhh!) and I was reminded of the famous Flat Stanley project that we all know and love. Then it hit me, wouldn’t it be fun if I took pictures of myself with my book in interesting places too? That sounded a little too one-sided for me so I’m inviting you all to do the same thing! Can I get a little “Oprah’s Favorite Things” action here? That’s more like it!

Here’s how you can enter the Get Caught Reading Contest:

Take a picture of yourself reading your Literacy Beginnings book in an interesting or unusual location
Publish your picture in your book study blog party post
Link up via the link below
Vote for your favorite pictures

One winner will be announced on Monday, August 15. The winner will receive a $25 Amazon gift card. The contest should begin today (crossing my fingers- this is my first attempt at hosting a voting contest with InLinkz!) so start your cameras!

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Join the Literacy Beginnings Party

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 23:00:29 GMT

I’m so excited about the Literacy Beginnings book study blog party! We will kick off the party on Monday, June 27 with each chapter hosted by a different blogger. There’s still time to get the book if you want to join in the fun. I’m also planning for a fun contest to go along with the book study, stay tuned for more details!

Here is a list of the awesome blogs that will be hosting the chapter discussions:

Here’s how you can participate in the book study blog party:

Follow each of the blogs listed above.
Post your own chapter reflections on your blog, grab a linky party button (coming soon!), and link up your post to the linky party.
Don’t have a blog? No problem! You can join in by commenting on the blog posts.
Going on vacation? No worries! If you subscribe to the blogs above you can catch up on all the great discussions when you return.

Here’s a line-up of the topics and hosts:
Section One: Living and Learning week of June 27th
Pre-K Pages
Teach Preschool
Brick by Brick
Prekinders

Section Two: Foundation of Learning week of July 5th (no posts on July 4th)
Brick by Brick
No More Worksheets
Pre-K Pages

Section Three: Supporting Emergent Readers week of July 11-15
Look at My Happy Rainbow
Growing in Pre-K
Pre-K Pages

Section Four: Supporting Emergent Writers week of July 18-21
No More Worksheets
Prekinders
Growing in Pre-K

Section Five: Letters, Sounds, and Words week of July 25
Pre-K Pages
Teach Preschool
Prekinders

Section Six: Assessment of Literacy week of July 25 or August 1
The Seeds Network

I can’t wait to read all of your fantastic posts and comments! Happy Reading!

Want to let your friends know about the book study blog party? Click “Like” at the top of this page or choose from other social media options below.

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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.

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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.

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Stepping Stones Together Review

Anonymous — Mon, 02 May 2011 22:00:17 GMT

As a classroom teacher I feel just as much responsibility for my students learning during the summer months as I do during the school year. I want them to have a balanced summer filled with fun and learning support at home so they can begin the next school year right where they left off in my classroom. Unfortunately, research shows that children can experience significant learning loss during the summer months. Imagine if an athlete stopped training, he or she would see a significant decline in performance. The human brain is no different; it needs daily exercise to maintain learning.

In an attempt to prevent learning loss during the summer I provide parents with a calendar listing free or low-cost local activities such as library story times, public pool information, and discount days at the zoo or aquarium. I also send home a folder filled with educational activities for parents to do with their children. However, one skill that I am not able to fully support during the summer is reading. Many parents read to their children but when it comes to helping their children learn how to read parents want to help but often don’t know how.

I was recently introduced to Stepping Stones Together; an online program for parents who want to support their child’s reading abilities at home. I am not a fan of any pre-packaged curricula or “teach your baby to read” programs so you can be assured that Stepping Stones Together does not fall into either of these categories.

The philosophy of the Stepping Stones Together program is research based and focuses on fostering a love of reading in young children ages 3-7 while providing a positive bonding experience between parent and child. The program takes only 15-20 minutes per day so there is still pelnty of time for summer fun. This is not a program where the child sits in front of the computer while mom makes dinner; this is a fully interactive program that provides busy parents with the tools they need to take an active role in their child’s beginning reading skills.

Developed by Dr. Erika Burton, the Stepping Stones Together program provides simple, step-by-step directions that parents can easily follow. The program consists of the following components:

90 High-interest printable books on popular topics such as superheroes, princesses, sports, fairies and more
Printable incentive chart
Daily writing practice
Printable instructions explaining how to introduce the books
High-frequency word games
Printable certificates of completion for each level completed
Printable flash cards to introduce and review high frequency words in each book

While the program is designed with parents in mind, after careful review I believe it can be easily used by classroom teachers. Many teachers are required to teach their students to read but are not provided with all of the tools necessary to do so. Stepping Stones Together offers everything, including the books for a very affordable price. Classroom teachers can also send home the Stepping Stones URL in their summer educational packets for parents who are interested.

Here’s the good news, Stepping Stones Together is offering readers of Pre-K Pages a special one day only discount. This discount allows you to access to the complete program for one year for only $19.99, use discount the code Pre-K Pages If you missed the first day special you can still receive a 5% discount on the program using the same code.

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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.

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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.

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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!

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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.
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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.

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