How to use TPT'S New Digital Activities Feature + Back to School No Prep Printables!

In-person school begins for me in a matter of weeks and, just like you, I am doing absolutely EVERYTHING I can to be as prepared as possible.  Teaching during a pandemic is no joke. Without a doubt there will be last-minute changes, hiccups, and honestly things may or may not end up being a bit of a hot mess!  While I am prepared to be flexible I also want to have everything that I can in place before we start.  To that end I made this brand new packet:   

It is full of over 100 no-prep, quality math and literacy (and some just-for-fun!) printables that can be used at the drop of a hat.  Say one of my littles suddenly develops an unfortunate cough or loses his mask or licks someone else (it is first grade afterall!)...I will have backup work in place so that my class can be hard at work while I see to the pressing matters at hand.

 

Here is a peek at just a few of the MANY pages in this packet:

My district is planning on starting in-person, business as usual (with extra safety precautions), but we have also been told that things could shift at any moment and we should be prepared to convert to distance learning with little notice.  Fortunately these printables can be used as a distance learning resource as well!

Teachers Pay Teachers has added an amazing feature that can turn PDF products into digital activities…and it is all customizable by YOU.  Let me walk you through it!

 

 

Isn’t that cool?  I’m so excited that, no matter where your students may be, they will be able to receive quality instruction and practice.  One of the hallmarks of teachers (and elementary students!) is that they are SUPER resilient.  Despite the complexities and craziness of this year, we may very well be all the stronger because we went through it!  If you would like more information about this feature you can check out TPT's page about it HERE. 

 

Don’t forget to make your life just a little bit easier and grab this packet while it is on sale!  Happy Teaching!

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August Boom Cards Bundle

I’ll admit that I may have had a panic attack or two in March when schools closed and distance learning was thrust upon us, but I actually am now finding myself somewhat appreciative of the experience.  We teachers were suddenly forced to embrace teaching in a whole new way and with all new tools.  It sure wasn’t pretty at first (at least for me!), but I really feel like I got the hang of it and was able to do the best I possibly could for my first graders.

 

One of my saving graces in the Spring was my discovery of Boom Cards!  They are floating all over Pinterest and Instagram so you’ve probably heard of them by now (if you haven’t, check out my post about them HERE...oh, and it includes a FREE deck!).  Let me just be 900th person to tell you…they are amazing!  They are no-prep, engaging, productive, self-checking(!!!!), and FUN!

I’ve been working hard to create monthly bundles of Boom Cards decks to use with my first graders this year and to offer to you as well!  Each bundle will have 12 easy-to-access decks with a variety of math and literacy skills that are appropriate for that time of the year and the developmental levels of our first graders. Today I wanted to share my all new August Bundle of Boom Card decks!  The decks can be purchased individually (they are linked) or you can grab them all at once and SAVE with the deeply discounted bundle!

 

Boom Cards really are the way to go, whether you are using them in your classroom, as part of your homeschooling efforts, or for distance learning!

 

 

You can also check out the other monthly bundles and the rest of my Boom library HERE. Hang in there, teachers!  Happy teaching!

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Alphabet Mats

It's been quite a while since I've written a blog post and I actually have a very good reason for that, haha!  Baby number two is well on his way!  Between morning sickness, chasing my toddler, and starting a new school year with a batch of new first graders, life has been crazy!  I'm super excited to share this new product though because I feel it is a powerful tool to help your cute kiddos get a better grasp on their knowledge of the alphabet!

These alphabet mats are available in both colored and black/white, ink-friendly versions.  You can print them out, laminate them if you like, and use them in so many different ways.  Here are a few ideas!

Use mini-erasers (the best ones come from the Target dollar spot!) to help students fill in the letters.  You could also laminate the pages and use a dry erase marker for repeated practice.

Break out the play dough and let students have a blast creating the letters or even making the objects pictured on the side of each mat!

Print out a black/white copy and let students use markers, stickers, etc. to decorate the mat, having so much fun while they add to their alphabet knowledge!

Honestly, the sky is the limit on fun manipulatives you can have children use!  I love these sparkly pom-poms!

Click HERE or on the image below to be taken to my Teachers Pay Teachers shop and grab this packet of alphabet mats for yourself!

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First Weeks and a Freebie!

Whew!  The first two weeks of school have come and gone and I must say I am pretty happy with the way they've turned out!  Actually, to be completely honest with you, I was nervous and freaking out during the first few days.  This new batch of kids struck me as particularly challenging and needy, but they've adjusted well, are meeting expectations, embarking on new and exciting learning, and they've found a place in my heart!

As much as I do love them I think they gave me this rotten cold I've had all weekend, so in the interest of taking a nap I am going to keep this pretty brief and just share a few pictures of this and that from our first days in first grade.

To welcome my dears to first grade I put one of these on each desk at Open House.  My kids were extremely excited, to say the least!

I also gave them a cupcake after they had successfully completed the first day of school.  It was a long day for all of us!  I may have eaten one myself as well... 

We began our math workshop with games about counting and collecting.  Here my students are working together to collect 20 together.  On subsequent days they began using 20 frames to keep track of their counters.

To launch our reader's workshop and hopefully set a positive tone for the year I had students bring in their favorite reading book.  We gave them a place of honor in our classroom (this is at our carpet area) until everyone had brought one in.  The students were so eager and excited to use their books.

We sat in a big circle and looked at one another's books, discussing common interests and reasons that our books are special.  It gave me a lot of insight and the students enjoyed sharing something important to them.

Everyone then completed this page.  I brought in King Bidgood's in the Bathtub as my favorite book.  I'd forgotten how much first graders LOVE this book!

You can grab this page for free here!

We also began talking about story elements, particularly character and setting.  I read a variety of books (Ira Sleeps Over, Corduroy, and Blueberries for Sal) over a few days time and we charted the characters and setting.  This week we'll dive into problem and solution.

We also started working on these darling paper dolls from The Teacher Wife.  My students absolutely LOVE working on these and we are excited to share them with the parents at Open House next week.

Oh, and before I forget, here is my September Currently!

Well that is it for now.  I'm off to grab my box of Kleenex and catch up on Once Upon a Time episodes :).  Happy Labor Day, everyone!

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Free Chevron Banner!

My life is a large heap of boxes. This will be our fourth move in our two and a half years of being married!  However, it will be the first time we haven't moved over CHRISTMAS so I am pretty thrilled about it.

My laptop is going to get packed up for a few days so I wanted to share a quick freebie with you while I have the chance!  This cheery chevron banner will brighten your classroom and help your little ones feel welcomed! Click below or here to grab yours for FREE!  Enjoy!

Don't forget to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest!

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HUGE Giveaway from Creative Teaching Press!

Hey, all! I'm excited today to bring you another look at the darling new back-to-school items from Creative Teaching Press!

Creative Teaching Press has created on online gallery (right here!) so you can see all of the darling hot-off-the-press products!  I wanted to share a couple of my favorite products with you.  The groovy thing is...YOU can win ALL of these products in one fabulous gorgeous back-to-school prize package!  Pretty sweet, eh?  Here is what you can win...

Interested in winning all of these fabulous products? I thought so! Enter the giveaway below!  It will be open until the 11th! 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

And, for more chances to win the fabulous new products from Creative Teaching Press enter yourself into the contests of the other CTP Exclusive Bloggers!  The linky party for all of them can be found here.  

An InLinkz Link-up

Good luck!

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HUGE Giveaway from Creative Teaching Press!

Hey, all! I'm excited today to bring you another look at the darling new back-to-school items from Creative Teaching Press!

Creative Teaching Press has created on online gallery (right here!) so you can see all of the darling hot-off-the-press products!  I wanted to share a couple of my favorite products with you.  The groovy thing is...YOU can win ALL of these products in one fabulous gorgeous back-to-school prize package!  Pretty sweet, eh?  Here is what you can win...

Interested in winning all of these fabulous products? I thought so! Enter the giveaway below!  It will be open until the 11th! 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

And, for more chances to win the fabulous new products from Creative Teaching Press enter yourself into the contests of the other CTP Exclusive Bloggers!  The linky party for all of them can be found here.  

An InLinkz Link-up

Good luck!

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