Geometric Snowman!

My class has been learning about plane shapes so I created this fun GEOMETIC SNOWMAN activity and it was a great success and lots of fun!

First we used the SmartBoard to sort squares, triangles, rectangles and circles.  They we used these shapes to solve a riddle and build the secret picture!  A SNOWMAN! 

After we created the snowman using the shapes on the SmartBoard, the kids had to create their own Geometric Snowman out of construction paper, using only squares, triangles, rectangles and circles!

The snowmen came out fantastic and they had a great time exploring shapes!

Check out the accompanying SmartBOard FREEBIE in my TpT store!

Enjoy!

Jillian Coster

Ho! Ho! Happy Holidays! 20% off!!

YEAH!!  It's CYBER MONDAY AND TUESDAY!!  Head over to my TpT store to check out my sale!  EVERYTHING in my store is 20% off on 11/26 and 11/27!!  And if you enter promo code CMT12 at checkout you will get another 10% off!  Happy Holiday shopping!  

Click the button below to head to my store!

SANTA'S HELPER!

Ahh!!  Where has the time gone?!?!  I can't believe we are down to the last few days of November and the Holiday Rush is now HERE!!  Well to help get in the spirit of the holiday's at school, I re-created an addition fluency game to have a jazz of holiday!! 

Santa's Helper and Holiday Helper are games of addition fluency!  They are aligned with the Common Core and will help your students gain fluency in addition facts up to 12.  Check then out in my TpT Store or by clicking the pictures below!  

*Please note, they are basically the same games!  After I created Santa's Helper I felt I should re-name it to be sensitive to those who don't believe in SANTA!!

~Jillian

Turkey Hunt Math Game!

Here it is!  Turkey Hunt!

My First Graders continue to ask NON-STOP "When can we play MONSTER MASH?" so I decided to make a new version with a TURKEY theme!

Same idea as Monster Mash, the students play on level 1 or 2 game boards and roll dice to add addition facts up to 12 or 20, and "catch" turkeys!

I've seen so much improvement with their addition fluency and they are always so excited to practice their facts this way!  I'm already thinking of a new version with a HOLIDAY Theme where they play to help SANTA!  Check back soon!

The first three people to comment and become new followers of my blog will be sent Turkey Hunt for FREE!  Leave me your email!

~ Jillian Coster

Monster Smash Math Game! Addition!

With so much of the common core's focus being on fluency, I've been trying to give my kids lots of experiences with addition facts in fun, interactive and engaging ways. So Monster Smash was born! The kids LOVE this game and ask me to play it ALL the time. The object of the game is to "catch" the most monsters by solving addition equations rolled on dice. I've created two levels. Level one focused on facts to 12 and level two focuses on facts up to 20!   Check it out in my TpT store!

My kids have enjoyed this game so much I've decided to create more seasonal versions of the game! Look for them soon!

Let me know your thoughts! The first three people to comment and follow my blog will be sent Monster Smash for free!! Leave me your email!

ADDITION BINGO!!

New Game!  I just created a new Addition Bingo Game that is really helping my kiddos build their fluency with facts up to 20.  They are having so much fun with it! 

Check it out in my TpT store!  

The game description is listed below!

Addition Bingo is Common Core Aligned and will help your students practice addition fluency up to facts of 20, in a fun,

Exciting, interactive way!

Addition Bingo comes with 5 Bingo Boards and 5 different sets of calling cards!

Set 1: Addition Doubles

Set 2: Addends of 2

Set 3:  Addends of 3

Set 4:  Addends of 4

Set 5: Addends of 5

Print, Laminate, cut out calling cards and PLAY!

First student to cover 5 spaces in a row or column wins!

The first 3 people to follow my blog and let me know their thoughts on ADDITION BINGO will be sent my Addition Bingo game for free!  Leave me your e-mail!

~ Jillian  

Guided Reading!

Along with Reading Workshop, I also pull several Guided Reading Groups each day.  I’ve always had a hard time with record keeping and having an efficient system for recording books that I send home, and then hopefully are returned, after I finish with a reading group.

NOT ANYMORE!!!

This form has been working great!  I am able to quickly record the title, level, date of reading group, students in the group, teaching points, ideas for next time and check off if the book was sent home.  The following day, if the book is left on my back table, I check off that it was returned!

First 10 people to comment and follow my blog will be sent this form for free!  Leave your e-mail address!  Enjoy!

~ Jillian COster

* UPDATE - I also made this great bookmark which helps keep track of which book was sent home with who!  I quickly write their name on the bookmark, tuck it inside the book and send it home!  The kids return the book with the bookmark inside the next day!  They love using the bookmark!  It makes them feel like "BIG" readers!

FUNDations GAMES!

CVC Word Concentration!  My kids have been having a great time with this game!  And it definetely has helped boost their reading and spelling of CVC words.  

Don't Let The Wind Blow The Leaves has been a huge hit with my first graders.  The kids pull CVC word leaf cards from the pile, spell it out-loud, then read it!  If they pull a WIND card, all their leaves have blown away and they must be returned to the pile!

Check these games out in my TpT store!

and CVC Bingo!

CVC Words BINGO!

We have been busy studying CVC words along with Fundations Unit 2.  But, for many of the kids it can get monotonous and a bit boring so I’ve been trying to come up with a few different ways to make it more fun!  First I thought of DON’tSpill the APPLES and now CVC BINGO!

Students can practice sounding out, blending and reading cvc words all while playing a fun game of BINGO!  It has been lots of fun!  Check it out in my TpT store or by clicking the picture below!  Enjoy!

~ Jillian

New CVC Word GAME! Don't Spill the APPLES!

We have been busy, busy working on building, tapping, blending, and reading simple Consonant-Vowel-Consonant words, along with Unit 2 in first grade FUNdations!  So, I came up with a new game where students can practice tapping out and reading CVC words.

Don’t Spill the Apples is a fun game that will help your student’s practice reading CVC words!  Word cards are put in an “apple basket” and students take turns pulling apple cards out of the basket, read them aloud and keep them in a pile.  If a WHOOPS card is pulled, they have “spilled” their apples and must return all their apples to the “basket!”

You can purchase DON’t SPILL THE APPLES in my TpT store by clicking the picture below!  Enjoy!

~ Jillian Coster

Reading Logs!

Today my first graders brought books home for the first time!  They choose a book to bring home each day from their individual books bins that they read from doing reading workshop.  Their book bins are filled with about ten books of their "choice," which are either at their independent or instructional reading level.  At the end of the workshop the pick out a book to practice reading again at home, and return to school the next day.

So, today we also started reading logs!  I attach the reading log to their homework pack, which goes home every Monday and comes back to school the following Monday.  The kids color in a smiley face for each day they read and write the title of a book they read.  I also have them do one readers response a week!  

Below is a link to a copy of my Reading Log!  It works great for me!  Enjoy!

~ Jillian

Reading STRONG!!

We are off to a great start in reading workshop and are setting weekly goals for our reading stamina! Our next goal is to reach 25 minutes of STRONG independent reading. It's a stretch for so early in the year but we are hoping to get there.

In the front of our classroom we have this sign hanging where we update the amount of minutes we can read strong and post it on a sticky note for all to see. It's a great motivator and it helps us reach our goals more quickly!

~ Jillian

Jumping into Fundations Unit 2

My first graders are off to a great start.  All 22 of them!  We have been busy setting classroom routine, expectations and great work habits!  Starting next week we will be moving more into the heart of the first grade curriculum and away from Kindergarten review.

We will be starting Unit 2 in Fundations where we will be focusing on tapping, building and blending simple CVC words.  

Visit my TpT store where I've posted a brand new collection of center acitivites to support CVC words from Fundations Unit 2 for first grade.  The collection includes word searchs, sentence scrambles, and word spinners for all 4 weeks of study!  Let me know if you have any questions!  Enjoy!

~Jillian