This Post is Brought to You by Future Rockstars and the Letter N

Does it ever make you wonder what others would think if they came into your classroom and saw you singing and dancing to some of the most ridiculous ingenious songs? I guess it's like the saying 'fashion over comfort' (because the heels are just too cute NOT to wear to work and walk around in for 10 hours, right?!?), but in this case, it's learning over rhythm and tone...and I think it's safe to say that unless your colleague is Paul Leka, sing your heart out, and watch those 5 year olds join right in!

 Well, ok...maaaaybe I'll keep my singing reserved for 5 year old ears only, since I do want you to come back and check out my blog again sometime soon. ;) On that note, I'll let you fill in your own amazing singing voice here...

I decided this song can be modified perfectly for the letter N. This is how it goes in Room 2:

Instead of "Na na na na, na na na na, we sang the song with /n/. We then manipulated the beginning sound of each student's name, who gets to stand and sing with this mic,

so that it begins with /n/ (for example, Jessica becomes Nessica, Bill becomes Nill). Once students are comfortable singing orally, each student receives his/her own page for the class book. The students fill in the second set of /n/, by writing lowercase n four times, then his/her 'N' name on the bottom line. Bind the book together to make a Rock Star Nn book.

I can't believe that I almost forgot to mention the dancing that goes along with this. While singing, students put out their right arm and wave it to the right, then put out their left arm and wave it to the left, then repeat one more time on each side (here's to hoping that gave you a clear mental image).

If you are a true Rock Star, then head over to my TPT store, or click here, to download the book covers and page.

The Missing Pumpkin

Woo-wee...I had no idea that switching schools and moving from full day kindergarten to half day kindergarten would make me feel like a first year teacher all over again!  Wow!  I've been eating, sleeping, and running Kindergarten since before the school year started.  Lucky for me I LOVE every moment of it!

This poem innovation came to me on one of my evening runs (who needs an i-pod when you're a Kindergarten teacher?!) and I had to take a moment to share it with you.  It seems to get my kids giggling every time it is read.  Here's how it goes...I started the year reading this book

(which is one of the cutest stories to hear the kids ‘rereading’ independently using the voices I used while reading)
and reciting the poem, “Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar.”  I then decided to change it to apples, 

then pumpkins,  

and my kids love it! 

When we changed the poem, we discussed which words we would have to change and why.  It was a great way to discuss the similarities and differences between how/where apples and pumpkins grow.  We also discussed and highlighted the sight words.  

I created a book to go with the pumpkin poem for kids to read at stations.   Boogie on over to my TPT store, by clicking on the pumpkin poem or the TPT button on the side bar, to download the pumpkin poem, and book, for free!  

Math Madness

Oh-my-goodness…I’m already knee deep in school ‘work’ and the year hasn’t even started!  The awesome part about this is that I love it!  I have been working diligently the past few days to reorganize my binder files.  Not much has been purged since I switched from hanging files to binder files 4 years ago…I bet you know where this is headed!  This will definitely need to be a story for another day (I’ll be sure to take a picture of my recycle bin to show you how well I did).  In the midst of this process, I came across some materials I have from a great online math resource-K-5 Math Teaching Resource. The website is http://www.k-5mathteachingresources.com/

I NEED to tell you a little bit about the site.  This website has a plethora of math activities, all organized by grade level, as well as domain.  All of the activities are aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).  There are a couple reasons why I like this site as a math resource.  One, the activities are very straight forward so the children understand the directions quickly and can get right to work.  Two, most activities come with a directions sheet that can be hung during the activity, or at a center if you wish, to serve as a reminder for students as they are completing the activity (even though most students won't be able to read all of the directions).  They can also be used as a reference during your lesson closure.  Three, most of the materials you need are included with the directions.  The materials are typically quite generic and simple, but they serve the purpose. 

Since the activities are organized by standard, it’s very easy to jump on the website and grab the activities that align with the standard being taught.  Also, several of the activities are linked to great math literature, which is a double bonus in my book!  Click on the link to see an activity from K-5 Teaching Resources for this book.

It's a good one, isn't it!!

I have noticed that some activities are those that can be found in other resources, such as Fill a Hexagon, which I know is also a lesson in the Investigations math series.  I know not everyone has access to a variety of resources at their school so this could be a bonus!

I think I should be getting paid by this company right about now for the advertising!!  Oh well, I continue on anyway.  Last year, I purchased the Kindergarten journal they offer and really like it.  It’s 90 pages and full of journal topics.  The journal topics are great, open-ended, multiple response topics that allow children to problem solve, both independently and collaboratively.  They also hit the ever so important 8 mathematical practices that are a crucial part of the math CCSS.  As with the activities, the journal topics are labeled with the standard being addressed.  AND, I know all my fellow labeling, organizational junkies will like this one...they can be printed, one topic per page, on address labels and stuck directly on each student's journal page!  

You definitely need to check out this website if you haven’t already!  If you have, or just did now, let me what you think and how you plan to use some of the activities.  I have been playing Race to Trace with my kiddos for a few years now and they love it!

So maybe that was a lot about the website, oops!  Back to purging and organizing I go...

As Promised...

I mentioned in my last post that I was working on a song poster to go with the Five Silly Monsters song book.  Well, it's done!  I love using interactive song posters in my classroom and my kiddos typically wear them out at centers. Here is the final semi-final product (I need to 'cutsie' it up a bit with some type of border when I can get into my classroom and get all of my craft goodies)

If you read my last post, you know that I bought monster puppets to use with this song, but I know not everyone is a shop-a-holic retail investigator.  I scoured Teachers Pay Teachers to find free monster puppets to share with you all, but came back empty handed (imagine the sad look on my face).  So, off to Google I went.  Google has and knows everything, right?!?  I got SUPER excited when I found some HERE at NickJr for, drumroll,... freeee!  Here is my disclaimer about these masks/puppets...They are from the show Yo Gabba Gabba which I also researched to learn is targeted toward preschool age children.  You KNOW what that means!  If the kids recognize the monsters, they may turn up their noses.  My cartoon challenged self has learned by experience that kids are VERY particular about their cartoons, wink wink!  End disclaimer.  As I was saying,  I think they are cute and would work as an added manipulative for the song.  

In addition to a counting or subtracting lesson, this song can be used for those weird five to ten minute time slots that tend to pop up from time to time before lunch or specials.  If you're in like, or love, grab this poster by clicking on the picture or on the TPT button located in the left side bar. 

Monster Monday

Happy Monday! 

I spent part of my weekend doing what I do best…shopping!  I can’t pass up a good bargain, especially when the item is beyond CUTE, so these monster puppets were a must have!

I bought these for $1.49 each at Michaels craft store.  

Now that I have these adorable monster puppets, I had to have a song to go with them.  I created this song that can be sung to the tune of “Five Little Ducks.”

Visual, hands-on learning is so important for Kindergartners.  Some students can act out the song using the puppets while the others use math manipulatives, or create a visual representation in their journals or on dry erase boards.  This provides the perfect opportunity to discuss what is happening in the song and touch on the Common Core State Standard that requires students to represent and solve addition/subtraction word problems.
After singing and acting out the song numerous times, the song book and puppets can be placed at a center for students to continue to practice reading with fluency and prosody. 

Pop on over to my Teachers Pay Teachers store, or click on the picture below, to grab the book for FREE!

I am currently working on poster size text, with numbers that can be manipulated, to make a song poster.  Check back in the next day or two to grab those, too!

Remind 101 Parent Letter

Alright, here I go with the Remind 101 parent letter, tips, and a bunch of other info.  First off, here is what the app looks like

When you download the FREE (who doesn't love free?!) app, you will create a group.  Each group that you create will be given a phone number and special message that parents will use to subscribe to the text reminders.  

You will need to write that information on the parent letter.  

Since I will be teaching half day Kindergarten this year (yikes!), I was able to create a group for both my AM and PM sessions.  Remember, you will be given different messages for each group so be sure to write the correct message for each group on the parent letter.  

A few notes about the app that I’ve learned so far.... 

One, you can schedule reminders to be sent out in the future so that YOU don’t have to remember to send out reminders!  If your memory is anything like mine, this is an Uh-Mazing feature!

Two, when parents choose to receive text reminders they simply become part of the group you created, so you can’t respond to individual parents/questions.  I personally think this is a great feature in order to maintain the purpose of the text (reminder only).  Don't forget to grab the parent letter below on my TPT page and add it to your beginning of the year parent packet.

Remind 101

If you haven't heard about the Remind 101 app for the iphone, you need to check it out.  I learned all about it at the ITeachK conference (which, by the way, was awesome)!  I tested it out this past weekend and think it is going to be fantastic for keeping parents in the loop about school events and deadlines.  When you get the app, a letter for parents is emailed to you.  It wasn't thorough enough for my liking, so I typed up a different letter.  I will post the letter as soon as I figure out how! So...off I go to read some more tutorials. :)

Let's give this a go...

Nobody likes to be left out of the fun, so I decided that I HAD to have a blog.  I thought I was pretty computer savvy...and then I tried to set up a blog.  Phew!  Thank goodness for all the blogs about blogging.  I thank you all for your 'blogging for dummies' posts tutorials.  I've already decided that blogging is going to be complete awesome sauce.  Stay tuned for all things KINDERGARTEN!