Hurry...Let's Do Some Math!

In the beginning of the year, we all know that skills can be all over the place {especially in first grade!} Some kids are experts at counting, while others have trouble even holding their pencil! 

To capitalize on collaboration {and peer help!}, we play “Hurry to ____!” a lot in these beginning weeks! 

The basic concept is to fill up your number chart before any other team.  To play, first split your kids into groups of four or five.  Once you say go, each child takes a turn writing one number in a box, then passes it to the next child who writes one number in the box and so on. The kids must write their numbers correctly {no reversals!} so it’s definitely a challenge!  Our goal is to make it all the way to 120 over time!

It's fun to listen to the kids help each other out and cheer each other on!  Click here to snag a copy of this set of games! 

If you're interested in even more games to play, head on over to Lucky to Be in First to snag some more freebies! 

Have an awesome week!

Spiders and Bats…Imagine that!!

Spiders and bats are fascinating and some children might be afraid of them...until they learn some interesting facts about them. Fall seems to be the perfect season in which to engage in the study of these interesting creatures!  

Spiders

Spiders are often confused with insects..the 6 legs vs. 8 legs, 3 body parts vs. 2 body parts etc.  Here is a poem, sung to the tune “Itsy Bitsy Spider”, that will help your students learn a little bit about spiders. Download the file to get the pocket chart cards and words. 

Click {HERE} to download the free file

                    Here are some great books to use when studying spiders. 

"There's a Spider on the Floor" Song is an old favorite that children enjoy. It is fun to use a fake spider (Get one now since we are so close to Halloween!) or use a hand puppet. Go around to the children as they are singing and put it on their heads, stomachs, legs etc. as the song progresses. (The words to the "classic" version are below.) There are a lot of videos on Youtube.com with various renditions of this song but click this link to this version and has children singing it during a mini-concert. Children love watching other children!

Make these spider headbands and wear them as your class performs their own "There's a Spider on the Floor" song! 

Click {HERE} to download the free file with all the templates and directions. 

Bats 

Bats are fascinating creatures of the night that are often misunderstood. We LOVE studying about bats in our classroom and the more we learn about them, the more we appreciate what they do for us! Bats eat so many pesty bugs and mosquitoes that without them, we would probably be covered in bug bites! Here are some of our favorite books to enjoy and provide information on bats. 

We like to use our Bat-theme throughout the classroom, in centers, during writing, and in math. Here is a Math booklet entitled "How Many Wings on My Bats?" that is a cut-and-paste activity to do whole class or in a Math Center.   

Click {HERE} to download the file. 

Visit us at our website for more ideas for Bats and Spiders! 

Check out our TPT "store" for Bats and Spider products, too!