Educational creativity

I love going to the Dollar Tree before going anywhere else to find supplies for school. Here is one I found this weekend. Bendaroos, also called stikki wikkis, can be used to make things or used as a more educational activities. You can use them to have children trace their names.  They stick to most hard surfaces. Let the kids outline shapes.  Slip a drawn shape in a page protector. I have used them with my Handwriting Without Tears letter cards to let them form numbers. One Little girl made a pattern on the blocks that were also on the table. I've seen these used on big books to circle sight words or letters the class is working on.  Just try to find a creative way to use them.  It's great when you can find them at such a great price.

Exploring words in a variety of ways will help children learn spelling and improve vocabulary.  I believe in a hands- on approach even when spelling words.  I plan on making word boxes using sight words I will show you as soon as they are finished.  I will be using the empty baby food containers and stickers and other letters.  Children will be able to put the words together using the outside word as an example.  I may also make a surprise word box when they start reading words a little better.  For now here are some really special ideas I would like to try this year.    Name work- provides letters so children can practice their names without worrying about correct letter formation.  These activities easily fit on a tray to encourage individual work. Word work - for older children Milk caps or bottle tops make a simple name game.  You can make each child a set and put it in a baggies with a label or just provide plent...

     I was attempting to show all the literacy center ideas as on post, but it has become a very large and long post.  Therefor I am going to show you one center at a time. Some things to remember about centers.      Centers need to be ever changing.  Repetition is good.  Kids learn exactly how to use the materials, but if you use the same materials day after day, week after week, month after month, the children will get bored and become a  behavior problem.      Centers should be mostly independent.  This way you as the teacher can facilitate, solve behavior problems, have small groups, and perform assessment.      Centers may seem like play to children, but they should be organized and purposeful. Letter Work provides children with multiple opportunities to play with letters.      Connect Game- you will need plastic link toys (fine motor) and a set of...

     One of the goals in preschool is letter recognition. Many children at this age just don't have the fine motor strength to write the letters yet, so here is a very tactile way to use letters. These letters are made out of cross stitching plastic.  It comes in all colors and very bright ones, too. I drew and cut the letters free hand, but I would like to see if the Ellison machine would cut it or at least trace the cut outs.  Mine are very big and not very uniform. All the kids need to do is put it under a paper and rub with crayon.  It will even work if the child doesn't put the crayon on its side. Even if the letter doesn't turn out right, they still had the experience with the way the letter feels.  And the kids will sit for a long time doing this. 

We made the letter C out of pom poms, and then made it look like a caterpillar. K really liked doing this.  If you look real close, you can see she tried to make it a pattern of big one little one.