Back to School Sight Word Poems and Pocket Charts

8:16 AM

to Read (

Words)

Shared reading is so important in kindergarten and first grade! Young students need for teachers to model what reading is, how to read, and what good readers do! Shared reading is the perfect opportunity to do this. We use poetry for shared reading throughout the school year. We have a poetry notebook and we add poems each week. These poetry notebooks are perfect to keep in book boxes for the kiddos to use as a familiar read later in the year. Here are a few of our beginning of the year/back to school shared reading poems. We use these in both paper form and in pocket charts. If are interested in using these shared reading poems in your classroom, click here to get them in my tpt store!

QuickEdit

Crystal McGinnis

0 Comments

Cutting Practice Printables for the Beginning of Preschool or Kindergarten

7:38 AM

to Read (

Words)

It is amazing how many kiddos start school without ever touching a pair of scissors. Scissor skills are usually poor at the beginning of kindergarten, so this is one of the first skills that we tackle the first few weeks of school. First we learn how to hold scissors, how to use them safely, what to cut (not cutting our hair or clothing), and then we practice cutting. We cut straight lines, zig-zag lines, shapes, and more. I usually teach the kids this little song as we are learning.

Open shut, Open shut, that's the way we cut, cut, cut!

Thumb on the top, fingers on the bottom,

open shut, open shut, that's the way we cut, cut, cut!

We then use these printables to practice cutting. These make perfect morning work or learning centers later in the year! Grab these cutting printables here in my tpt store!

Grab one of these pins if you want to come back!

QuickEdit

Crystal McGinnis

0 Comments

Cafeteria Rules/Lunch Room Pocket Chart Sort

6:12 AM

to Read (

Words)

If you use my school rules pocket chart sort in your classroom, you may also like my cafeteria rules version. As a former kindergarten teacher, I know exactly how difficult developing cafeteria routines can be at the beginning of the school year (and even longer some years). I created this cafeteria rules pocket chart to help remind my kinders how they should behave in the cafeteria. We used this pocket chart sort daily the first few days of school before our scheduled lunchtime. This served as a consistent reminder for my kiddos. The pocket chart sort is pretty easy to implement. We looked at each behavior card and decided whether it was a good choice for the cafeteria, or a sad choice for the cafeteria. I also provided independent practice as a follow up.

You can get my cafeteria rules pocket chart here!

Cafeteria Rules Pocket Chart Sort

I also have a school bus version.

Check it out here!

Grab one of these pins to come back!

QuickEdit

Crystal McGinnis

0 Comments

School Rules Pocket Chart Sort Activity (First Day of School)

6:07 AM

to Read (

Words)

Summer is finally here! If you like to prepare for the next school year during the summer while you have more spare time, this may be something to add to your to-do list! This School Rules Pocket Chart Sort Activity is always a hit on the first few days of school (and several days after). This set includes 48 good choices and sad choices for your kiddos to sort and place in a pocket chart. We use this set whole group on the first few days of school, discussing each behavior and whether we think it is a good choice or sad choice. It is a great conversation starter, and can lead to some really insightful discussions of classroom choices. After we complete the pocket chart sort, we keep it displayed. Students, and teachers, refer to it throughout the year. I have also included some independent practice printables for the kiddos to use after the pocket chart sort.

You can grab this pocket chart sort in my TPT store by clicking here. I hope your kids love it!