Here is a page for making your own Printable Name Tags. I used these when I was teaching in a summer preschool program. I printed the page off on heavy duty card stock, cut out one strip per student, and then laminated them. I used them as a writing center for little ones to practice writing their names (in this case, I also had to provide many of the kids with a card that already had their name on it). You could also introduce them during the first days of school. For example, before laminating the cards, write each child’s name using a black marker. After lamintaing, place them on the left-hand side of a pocket chart that is visible for the kids when they enter the room in the mornings. As children enter the room to start each day, have them find their name and practice writing it by tracing what you have already done for them. They can then move their cards to the right-hand side of the pocket chart to let you know they are present at school. It’s quick, easy, inexpensive, AND reusable-love it!
Posts Tagged ‘Kindergarten’
Name Tags
May 23rd, 2009Art Project of the Week-Turtle
May 23rd, 2009We are really going green with this cutie of a turtle. He is made with an apple sauce cup and a plastic spoon. The best thing about this project-no need for glue!
Supplies Needed:
- apple sauce cups (emptied and cleaned), 1 per child
- green paint, brushes and smocks, 1 per child
- plastic spoon, 1 per child
- green construction paper, 1 5X8 piece per child
- pencil, 1 per child
- markers, 1 per child
- tape, 5 small pieces per child
Allow each student to paint the outside of an apple sauce container. While the paint dries, demonstrate how to make the turtle’s body parts. Using a pencil, plastic spoon, and green construction paper, trace the top of the spoon for the turtle’s head one time and the end of the spoon (trace down until you reach the middle of the spoon handle) four times. Once traced, cut out the pieces. Tape the straight end of each piece to the inside of the dry apple sauce cup. Bend the ends of each leg to make the feet. Finally, use a marker to draw a face. Don’t forget to name the little cutie!
What is Symmetry?
April 7th, 2009The lesson will begin with the students seated at their desks. The students will be shown a picture of a butterfly. The students will be asked what it means to say that the butterfly is symmetrical. Students may recognize that one side of the butterfly is the same as the other. Students will be told what symmetry means and told that many things in nature often have symmetry/are symmetrical. They will then be shown several examples (a leaf, a rainbow, a daisy,etc. They will then be asked if they can name anything in the classroom that has symmetry. Examples will be given. The students will then be introduced to the activity. Each student will receive a copy of dot paper. Once distributed, the class will be shown how to fold the paper in half lengthwise along the center line. With the paper folded in half, I will use an overhead projector to demonstrate how to cut out a triangle, leaving the uncut fold as one side. Students will be asked to do the same. Before children unfold their papers, the students will be asked if someone can draw a picture on the chalkboard of how he or she thinks the figure will look once the paper is unfolded. The children will then be asked to unfold their papers to see what figure was created. Students will be asked to tell how the halves on both sides of the fold are alike. Some students may recognize that both halves show triangles that have exactly the same shape and the same size. The students will then be told that when the halves on both sides of a line match in shape and size, we can say that figure is symmetrical and we can call that line a line of symmetry. The students will then be given a picture of a heart cutout. Students will be asked to draw a line of symmetry on the heart. Students should recognize where the line of symmetry is. Students will then be given construction paper in order to make other shapes-a square, a circle, or an invented one. How to fold and cut the paper will be demonstrated. For each shape, students will be asked to draw the line of symmetry on it.
Author Study
March 15th, 2009During the first two weeks of school, I engage my first grade students in an author study. This is a great way to introduce your students to the elements of literature and your favorite author. I personally love Eric Carle and find him to be a hit with most kids because of the nature of his stories. His illustrations are also very recognizable for young readers.
How to: I begin by telling the students about the author. I show pictures of the author and give a brief history of the author’s life. Each day I read a selection from one of Eric Carle’s collection of books. After a story has been read, the story is discussed in detail (title, author, patterns in the illustrations, story plot, etc.). Using large chart paper, I make a large graph to hang during our author study. The graph is something that we fill in as we read each book. The graph allows us to see commonalities between the books the author has written. An example of the graph categories are:
Book Title Kind of Pictures Main Idea Main Characters Setting Problem Solved?
I then lead the class in a written activity based on what we discussed about the book. I have on hand a copy of the front cover of the book (for the kids to refer to) and an overhead projector. I use a transparency of the “Author Study Worksheet” on the overhead projector and guide the students through the completion of their own worksheet. This activity is a great way to assess your students’ handwriting and speed during those first days of school.
Extension: For each book we study, I also have the students engage in a follow-up art activity in which they can make a character or something related to the book.
An author study can be a great project for any time of the year. Complete one so children understand what an author study entails. Children can then choose their own author to study by reading from their collection.
These are the books I suggest by Eric Carle:
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
The Mixed-Up Chameleon
The Honeybee and the Robber
The Very Busy Spider
The Very Foolish Tortoise
A House for Hermit Crab
Little Cloud
The Very Lonely Firefly
Pancakes, Pancakes!
A list of additional authors for your study can be viewed here.
Birthday Sort
March 15th, 2009Abstract:
This lesson is an interactive way to teach students how and why graphs are used. This lesson is fun for the kids and they get to learn about their classmates birthdays.
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Mathematics
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Kindergarten
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| Objective: |
Students will sort themselves according to birth date. Students will graph the number of birthdays within each month and determine what information the graph provides (e.g. which month has the most, which has the least, and which (if any) has the same number of birthdays).
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| IMPLEMENTATION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning Context: |
Students have already been introduced to sorting and graphing. A lesson on sorting students according to hair color, eye color, and gender precedes this lesson.
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| Procedure: |
Students will gather and sit on the carpet area. Students will be asked if they know when their birthday is. They will then be asked if they think they share the same birthday with someone else in the classroom. They will then be asked if they think they share the same month as someone else in the classroom. As a group, we will briefly discuss that it is more likely that two people will share the same birth month rather than an actual birthday. The students will then be given instructions for the acitivity. Students will write their first names on a strip of paper. Large cards will be placed on the floor in the classroom. Each card will have the name of a month (pictures could also be added to help students identify the months-ex. a clover for March). The students will be directed to find the card with the name of the month they were born in and form a line behind it. Once the students have found their particular birth month, the students will be directed to count the number of students in the line they are in. The students will then be directed to look at the number of people in other months. On the dry-erase board at the front of the classroom, a graph will be present. The “x” axis will have numbers 1-10 and the “y” axis will have the name of each month in order from January to December. Once prompted, each group will be called up to the board. With teacher assistance, each student will place their name (written on a strip of paper) in the column of their month. Once completed, the students will be asked what the graph tells us. The students should be able to recognize that the graph reveals which month(s) has the most bithdays, which month(s) has the least number of birthdays, and which months have the same number of birthdays (if any). As a group, we will check our answers by counting the number of names for each month to accurately determine which month has the most, the least or the same number of birthdays. Students will then be directed to ask members in their month to determine if any share the same birthdate. In closing, students will be asked to share what they learned about using a graph.
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| Collaboration: |
Students will work collaboratively & individually.
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| Time Allotment: |
1 class period. 30 Min. per class.
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| Assessment/Rubrics: |
Students will be assessed acording to their participation, understanding of what is taking place, and their ability to follow directions throughout the group activity.
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What’s Alive?
March 15th, 2009Abstract:
This lesson starts out with a great book that introduces students to living and nonliving things. Students are then given the opportunity to work collaboratively to complete a picture sort of living and non-living things.
To find the book for this lesson, follow our link to Amazon.com.
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Science
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| Topic or Unit of Study: |
This lesson is an introductory lesson within a unit on animals.
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Kindergarten
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| Objective: |
Students will be able to distinguish between living and non-living things.
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| Summary: |
The teacher will read a book that introduces differences between living and non-living things. The students will complete an activity to apply their knowledge of living and non-living things.
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| IMPLEMENTATION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning Context: |
A unit on animals will be introduced. This lesson will be an introductory science lesson so students will learn to distinguish between living and non-living things.
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| Procedure: |
The students will be asked to sit as a group on the carpet. They will be introduced to the science lesson by being shown an actual potted houseplant and a pot with non-living flowers in it. The students will be asked to give a “thumb up” if they think the houseplant is a living thing. The students will then be asked to give a “thumb up” if they think the non-living flowers are a living thing. The teacher will then read the book, What’s Alive? by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld. The students will then be asked again to give a “thumb up” if they think the houseplant or the flowers are a living thing. Most students should agree that the house plant is a living thing. The students will then be asked to recall what they heard in the book. The students will be asked why the houseplant is a living thing and why the flowers are a non-living thing. As a group, the students will discuss the differences between the living and the non-living things. The students will then be asked to return to their desks and be introduced to the activity. The students will be directed to pair-up with their science buddy (pre-selected by the teacher) and sort pictures according to whether they are of living or non-living things. Once sorted, the teacher will verify that each pair has been sorted correctly and then supply glue for the students to complete the activity by gluing the pictures under the correct category on their papers. Students, because of their limited reading abilities will be directed to sound out the words on the worksheet (living and non-living) and to look for the first letter in each word to identify each category (living and non-living).
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| Collaboration: |
Students will work collaboratively. Students will work in groups of 2.
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| Time Allotment: |
1 class period. 1 Hr per class.
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| Assessment/Rubrics: |
Students will be assessed based on their participation throughout the topic discussion and their completion of the living/nonliving activtiy.
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