Colors of Hanukkah

My son’s best friend is Jewish so we have been learning a lot about the Jewish faith through their family. It came up in conversation the other day that this little girl doesn’t celebrate Christmas the way our family does— she celebrates Hanukkah. This led to a deep dive into learning about Hanukkah, checking out Little Dreidel Learns to Spin by Rebecca Levington from the library and practicing our dreidel spins. We also worked on this Colors of Hanukkah craft:

This was a really fun, simple way to learn more about Hanukkah and a little bit about the Jewish faith. It is an easy craft to prep with everything you need included in one download. We printed the templates, cut out the blank spaces and added contact paper behind the template to serve as a sticky surface. I cut up some colorful paper (also included for printing in case you don’t have construction paper at home) and my kids sorted the colors and stuck little pieces of paper to each template.

To finish off each template, I added clear tape to the top to get rid of the sticky surface and hung these up in my son’s bedroom! Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate! Grab these templates by clicking HERE. Let me know if you try this craft!

I SPY Phonemic Awareness Sound Game Montessori Literacy Activity

If you haven’t heard of the I Spy Phonemic Awareness game yet you’re in for a treat!

This activity is perfect for literacy development at home or at school with toddlers, preschool, prek and kindergarten students OR simply anyone learning to read English. You'll find it helpful for teaching reading and writing in a traditional Montessori classroom or homeschool environment.

Here is how it works:
This I SPY sound game is meant to help students on their reading journey by isolating individual sounds that make up words. When you introduce this game start with 2-3 sounds at a time and grow to 4-5 sounds at a time as students become more comfortable with the game.

1. Print the cards and posters on heavy white cardstock. Cut and laminate for durability.

2. Start with 2-3 beginning letter sounds (for example /s/, /d/, /n/). Lay out three images with these initial sounds (for example sun, dog, narwhal).

3. Begin the game by saying, “I spy with my little eye something that starts with /d/”. The students should point to the dog card. If they do not you can follow up with, “You pointed to a card that starts with /n/. Which one starts with /d/?” Repeat this until all the cards have been identified.

4. Once students have mastered beginning sounds, move on to end sounds. If this is too tricky, you can start with beginning and end sounds. “I spy with my little eye something that starts with /d/ and ends with /g/.”

5. The final stage is to bring together all the sounds in words. ”I spy with my little eye a /d/ /o/ /g/”. The students should be able to find the dog and repeat at the sounds in the word.

   CLICK HERE FOR THESE I SPY GAME RESOURCES

Interested in the Letter Sounds Phonics Alphabet Flashcards that pair perfectly with this game? You can find them here: CLICK HERE.

Famous Classical Composers and Intentional Listening in the Classroom and Home

My teacher-mom mind is always trying to find new ways to teach my kids about the world around them. This year-long collection of famous classical composers is a way for us to practice mindful listening at home during playtime.

Here is one way you can use these cards:

1. Print these cards on white card stock. Laminate and cut for durability.

2. Pick a composer to start with and display the card in a prominent spot. Review the information with your kids and explain that all the music played this month during playtime/morning arrival/quiet reading time/dismissal time will be music composed by this month’s famous composer.

3. Find or create a playlist with music by the composer (Spotify has some wonderful options).

4. Switch out the composer each month and marvel when your child recognizes a song by Mozart ;)

I plan to use these cards at home but they could just as easily be used in the classroom during morning work, quiet reading time, dismissal, indoor recess— you name it!

For the link to the Famous Classical Composers cards CLICK HERE. I hope you enjoy these cards— let me know what you think and how you use them in the comments below!

Easy Activities and Crafts for Fall

When my son started school last year we went from having all day to play and learn together to having a very minimal amount of time together before bed. I wanted a way to connect with him after he got home from school in a way that was meaningful but also fun. And so my Activity-a-Day collection was born.

My son looks forward to our daily activity and I value the time we get to spend together talking about his day while also working together on a craft or game. The fun artwork keepsakes for our walls is an added bonus ;)

These November themed activities can be completed in order or randomly selected. I’ve found I can typically get through about half of the activities in one year so I save the rest for the for the next year. All the activities come in one easy download and include all the templates and instruction you need to get started!

Don’t forget to pin these images to save these ideas and let me know which of these activities is your favorite.

CLICK HERE FOR THIS INSTANT DOWNLOAD

Have a great November!

December Advent Activities

We are changing things up this year and doing an activity-based advent calendar! I can’t wait to see how these daily activities transform our December. Keep reading to learn more about how you can join us!

All 31 activities are hands on and designed to be a fun way for you and your students or kids to work together to create something fun or learn something new. There are a variety of activities including dramatic play, sensory learning, crafts, art projects, scissor skills, gingerbread houses, water play, math exploration, number sense, fine motor skills and more!

These activities can be used at home or at school and can be completed one-on-one or in small groups, centers or stations in the classroom!

Grab this complete list of activities plus ALL the printables necessary for completing some of these games and crafts by clicking here! If you do any of these activities and post images on social media please tag @SpaidsintheClassroom so I can share what you’re doing! Happy DECEMBER!

October Activity-a-Day Collection of 31 Crafts, Games and Activities for Toddlers Preschool Prek and Kinder

The ultimate collection of October, Fall and Halloween activities is finally finished and I can’t wait to share it with all of you! Keep reading to learn more:

This download includes a collection of 31 easy and low prep October, Fall and Halloween themed activities, crafts, and games for the whole month of October! It is perfect for toddlers, preschool students, prekindergarten and kindergarten students at home or at school and lesson plan-like instructions are included for each activity. Activities include: handprint art, counting, scissor skills, memory matching, dot art, treasure hunts, sensory bins, scavenger hunts, art projects and so much more!!

Activity-a-Day for the month of October means you get to make core memories with your kids WITHOUT the stress of planning and creating. I’m so excited to share this with you and I can’t wait to get started with my son on Oct 1st! Click HERE to download this product. Remember to tag @SpaidsintheClassroom on Instagram to show off any of the activities you complete!

Easy 4th of July Handprint Art Templates

July 4th is just around the corner! Have fun celebrating America’s independence with these cute handprint art templates:

This activity is perfect for any age and is such a fun way to record and treasure those little hands! Final products make for excellent fridge or classroom decorations!

This download comes with various templates to pick from and lots of different phrases and sayings! Click HERE for the instant download or on any of the images! Have a happy Independence Day!

Summer and July 4th Activities and Crafts for Toddlers, Pre School, Pre K, and Kindergarten

School is out for summer, HOORAY! Now what? I’ve got you covered with some fun, quick, and easy summertime activities, crafts, and games! These activities are perfect for rainy days, taking along on an airplane or car ride or filling time on a laid back summer day.

My son and I have had so much fun with these activities so far this summer! We love to use them with our IKEA flisat table and sensory bins. You can find more images and videos by visiting @SpaidsintheClassroom on Instagram. Below is a preview of the printables included in this instant download:

Activities included in this download are: a memory game, a repeating and extending patterns activity, scissor skills worksheets and a handprint art activity! Continue the fun into the 4th of July weekend with this July 4th bundle, too!

Interested in any of these activities? Click HERE for the summer bundle and HERE for the July 4th bundle or click on any image!

World Ocean Day Themed Activities for Toddlers, Pre School, Pre K, and Kindergarten

June 8th is World Ocean Day: celebrate the day with these fun ocean themed activities!

This digital download includes a week's worth of SEA LIFE themed activities, crafts, games, and open ended play. Encourage student learning about ocean themes with these engaging lessons.

Kids will practice identifying colors and ordering numbers in hands on matching and sorting activities. Simple sensory bin options encourage student engagement and music recommendations will help to round out your sea life themed week!

We had a great day playing with all these activities. Head to my Instagram account @SpaidsintheClassroom to watch a video of all the fun! Click here or on any image for the link to this instant download!

End of Year NO PREP Digital Escape Rooms for Grades 3-6

This is a great activity to have in your back pocket for the end of the school year! These digital escape rooms are a fun way to review grade level math skills just before everyone heads off for summer vacation.

Versions of these games are available for grades 3, 4, 5 and 6! These digital classroom escapes are also a fun and engaging way to review before standardized testing. Skills reviewed by grade level are below:

3rd Grade Skills: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and fractions.

4th Grade Skills: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and fractions.

5th Grade Skills: Multiplication, division, percents, fractions

6th Grade Skills: Rename fractions as decimals, equations, integers

In these games, you and your friends are excited to start summer break but you have one day of school left. To escape the last day of school you must use your math skills to crack the codes and avoid the principal's office, summer school and a massive summer work packet!

Students can work independently or in small groups for these digital activities.

In these activities, students will work through slides that are designed to look and function like a video game. If students can answer all the problems correctly they will escape the game and win!

Grab this bundle or find the links to each individual grade’s game by clicking here or on the image below!

Get a head start on the next school year by grabbing these year long digital escape room math bundles by grade level!