DIY Turkey From A Plastic Bucket

November 8, 2015 by lauraschachter@gmail.com

Learning Fun With Turkey: Turkey Learning Activities

Tons of learning activities revolving around a turkey. Great ideas to incorporate around Thanksgiving. DIY turkey container (he really eats!), rhyming activities, letter identification, initial and ending sound fun, and more!

You can see the directions to make a turkey out of a Cascade container here.

Get the directions to make the Print & Cut turkey here.

Ways to Use Your Turkey

Pass out cards to help kids practice basic skills: letter identification, beginning & ending sounds, rhymes, numeral identification, counting, addition, subtraction, or any skill you choose. We used cards from my Turkey Time: Literacy Pack. You can pass out cards to the whole group, or use the turkey in a center. Kids will feed the turkey!

Use the “Turkey Time” rhyme to spark excitement with the kids. Change the key words in the rhyme to help students’ focus on the specific skills.

Get your free copy of the turkey rhyme here.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bzdf4OqBvDfcbWFOTFhkWFRXZFE/view?usp=sharing

Materials Needed for Bucket Turkey

Plastic bucket (I got mine from the Dollar Store)
Foam or card stock
Felt to cover the turkey’s body
Hot glue
Magnet
Tape

DIY Bucket Turkey

Step 1: Cut out the shapes for the turkey. Use foam or card stock for the turkey shapes. I use foam for a more durable turkey.

Step 2: Fold the beak in half.

Step 3: Tape the feathers together and glue the black pupils into the middle of the eyes.

Step 4: Tape a magnet or rock to the tip of the beak. This is just to give the beak some weight. It will help keep the turkey’s mouth closed.

Step 5: Tape the beak to the back of the bucket.

Step 6: Tape or glue the eyes to the top of the beak.

Step 7: Tape the feathers to the back of the bucket.

Step 8: Hot glue felt around the base of the bucket.

Step 9: Your turkey is ready for learning fun!

Thanks for stopping by! Don’t forget to head over to The Primary Pack to see more ideas on how to use the turkey!

Head over to my TPT store to get my “Turkey Time” pack. It will be 50% off for the rest of this week for Kelly and Kim’s Markdown Monday. Check out their blog for this week’s deals!

http://kellyandkimskindergarten.blogspot.com/2015/11/markdown-monday-linky-party-november_8.html

Playing with Base Ten Blocks!

May 1, 2015 by lauraschachter@gmail.com

A few weeks ago I found an amazing activity on Step Into Second Grade with Mrs. Lemon’s blog! She used place value blocks to create her name and then found the value of each name. You can see her blog post here. I knew right away that we needed to try this activity! I had kids ages 5-8 playing with the base ten blocks together, so I needed to be able to differentiate for their learning needs and abilities. We ended up working with letters, names, and sight words and it was a hit!!

We broke out actual base ten blocks, but you could have kids cut out paper blocks to create their names and glue to paper. The kids had tons of fun using the blocks to create their names.

After creating their name, they wrote out the value of their name on a post it note.

The values were broken down by hundreds, tens, and ones.

After watching how each individual child used the base ten blocks to create the specific numbers, I thought it might be interesting to have two different kids to create the same name. It turned out really cool! We ended up with different values for the same name.

The next idea was inspired by an awesome kid! She wondered out loud if there was a difference between her real name and nickname. This led to more exploring!

We couldn’t stop at names. My daughter (she just turned 5) wanted in on the fun. She knows all her letters and is starting to learn sight words, so we brought in learning that was appropriate for her, too!

She created her upper and lowercase letters. Then, she counted all the blocks that she used. I had her use the ‘ones’ blocks. After counting, she either dictated the number of blocks or wrote it herself.

Then, we brought out the “Greater Gator” and compared the amounts!

http://theprimarypack.blogspot.com/2014/10/greater-gator-diy.html

You can create your own “Greater Gator” or use popsicle sticks or just a symbol on a post-it.

Then, we moved on to sight words. All the kids created sight words and differentiated in the way they recorded the value of the word.

We loved all the fun that we had with base ten blocks! It kept kids ages 5-8 engaged and learning on their own level. I thought it was a huge success! Thanks so much to Step Into Second Grade with Mrs. Lemons for the fantastic idea 🙂

I Spy Letters: DIY Containers

September 24, 2014 by lauraschachter@gmail.com

I love finding new ways to interact with letters. The “I Spy” bottle is an old stand-by, but can be used in lots of exciting ways. Kids love the chance to spin the bottle and find hidden treasure.

I created my own “I Spy” containers with my daughter. She wanted to be a part of the process. We started out by getting some plastic containers from Oriental Trading. I used two different sized containers. One large one for home and a smaller one for traveling. You can see the two I got here, but you can use any type of recyclable plastic bottles.

I found some Melissa & Doug alphabet beads on clearance and those became our letters for the jars.

We dye rice for our sensory tub, so she was able to choose the colors that she wanted in the containers. She poured, I swept up the rest 🙂 We followed Jenn Drake’s directions to dye our rice. You can see that here.

My daughter layered letters and other interesting objects between the different colors. I have collections of buttons, and all sorts of little objects. She went through all of them and we identified the beginning sound of each object, as she dropped it in the jar.

Here is the completed container. We left about an inch and a half of empty space at the top. This allows the objects to move freely around the jar.

I did not glue the top of my bottle, because I am using it with children in my home. If I were in the classroom environment, I would definitely super glue the top on the container.

Here is our “I Spy:Scavenger Hunt” center. I kept the wooden box from the Melissa & Doug beads, to contain the “I Spy” bottle. This allows children to roll the bottle, but keeps it in a contained space. I have a focus wand and interactive letter worksheet from my Going On a Letter Hunt pack. This particular worksheet is focusing on the lowercase letter “c”. The letters in our bottle are all uppercase, so my daughter had to recognize the lowercase letter and identify the corresponding uppercase letter.

She had a ball with this activity! First, she found the letter “c” with her focus wand. This helped her to really bring her attention to the specific letter that she needed to find.

Then, she spun the “I Spy” bottle until she found the capital letter “C”. She immediately scooped up her focus wand and highlighted the letter “C” in the bottle.

She completed the rest of the letter hunt. This includes tracing the letter, writing the letter, using visual discrimination to highlight the letter, and completing a cut and paste activity.

The cut and paste activity is differentiated. There are two differentiated worksheets.

In the easier version, there are less letters to cut out and students match the letters when gluing.

In the harder version, there are more letters and students must identify and glue the correct letters in the four squares. Students must differentiate between the letters provided.

We had more fun with the “I Spy” bottle. My daughter would find a letter and then write the letter on a dry erase board. She also was the teacher and gave me a letter that I needed to find. The possibilities are endless. You can set this up as a partner station, where each student gets a chance to be teacher. The other student needs to find the specific letter. You can add writing the letter on dry erase boards to the activity.

We use the Going On a Letter Hunt activities in so many ways! We use so many types of text: leveled readers, pocket chart poems, environmental print, word walls, picture books, chapter books, work sheets, posters, even words on food! My daughter LOVES them!

I created a Going On a Word Hunt series for my son. He wanted to get in on the fun. The beauty of these scavenger hunts is that they can be used with any text. I hope that you found some fun ideas to use with your kids! You can make your “I Spy” bottle with sight words, numbers, or anything your heart desires.

You can get them here:
Uppercase Letters
Lowercase Letters
BUNDLE: Upper and Lowercase Letters
Dolch: Pre-Primer Words
Dolch: Primer Words

Romp and Stompin’ Letters!

July 11, 2014 by lauraschachter@gmail.com

I love watching young children learn the alphabet. It can be such a magical experience. They are gaining the key to a magical word of meaning!

You can make this experience magical for your kids, by getting them to move and “experience” the letters. Kids love to move around and explore their surroundings. You can capitalize on this and have them explore letter attributes in the same way!

I have always loved using hands and feet with kids to help them learn. I love hands, because they can slap high fives. I love feet, because they can really stomp on the letters and incorporate movement into their learning. This is what I love about Romp and Stompin’ Letters. Kids can really interact with letters in a ton of different ways! Check out the quick and easy ideas below!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Romp-and-Stomping-Letters-Hands-On-Alphabet-Activities-Sort-Letter-Attributes-1283772

I recently shared an interesting photo with you. While I was in the dollar store, I found these…

You may ask, what in the world is a lip gloss boot? Well, I really have no good explanation for you. I think the lip gloss is supposed to be stored in the boot. I am a collector of strange items, so I saw these and knew that I could put them to use! I am now the proud owner of 4 lip gloss boots. They will be used in my new “Romp and Stompin’ Letters” unit! Hopefully, you are lucky enough to have a dollar store that has these beauties in stock 🙂 Let me show you how I use mine…

I created a set of “Stomp It” boots with clip art and blocks, K-cups, or wine corks. I hot glued them to the sturdy backing and the kids can really “stomp” with their hands.

Kids can either stomp on the letters with their feet, use a “Stomp It” boot manipulative, or use the lovely lip gloss boot. I always have students say the letter’s name as they STOMP it!

Here is DIY directions on how I made my “Stomp It” boots and how I use them with painter’s tape.

Painter’s tape is a staple in my teaching. It easily adheres to the floor, wall, skin :), but just as easily peels right off. I make letters and numbers on the floor, so that students can trace them with their “Stomp It” boots, or walk the letters with their own feet. This is a great way for students to really experience the shape of each letter. You can also have students lay down on top of the letter to “make” the letter. This will force students to examine the attributes, such as curvy, straight, and dots. Students will decide how many kids they need to create the letter. For dots, one student can roll in a ball. This is hilarious and it really focuses students’ attention on the shapes of the letters.

I created an “Alphabet of Feet” to use for a bunch of different activities. They are so versatile and so easy to use!

I have used a variety of storage options, but in the end, my favorite is the alphabet pocket chart. It makes it very easy for students to sort letters and to clean up!!!

One of my favorite activities is to leave missing letters between letters on the floor. I leave a piece of painter’s tape in the missing space. Students can fill in the missing letters by moving along the alphabet. It helps them to build a sense of the beginning, middle, and end of the alphabet. After filling in the missing letters, I always have them “STOMP” on the letter and say the letter’s name at the same time.

This activity goes perfectly with the “Letter Line Up” extension worksheets. You can get a free sample here. I set up my letters on the floor to match the letters on the worksheet. Students can do the activity moving around with the letters and then complete the extension worksheet. They can use the letters on the floor to check their answers.

There are differentiated options to the “Letter Line Up” extension worksheets. Students can trace the missing letters (there are different amounts of letters missing), fill in missing letters (different amounts of letters missing), and a blank worksheet where students fill in all the letters. There are worksheets for both upper and lowercase letters.

You can also use the boots (homemade “Stomp It” boots or lip gloss boots) to use on the extension worksheets. Students need to “Stomp It”, “Stamp It”, “Trace It”, “Write It”, “Dab It’, and “Color It”. They are interacting with the letter in a variety of ways.

Here is the “Stomp It, Stamp It, Write It” in action. Students are interacting with the letters in so many ways!

Here is an example of how I set up my Romp and Stompin’ Letter Center. It includes stamps, bingo dabbers, crayons, pencils, stamps and stamp pad. All of this is stored in a little bin with the letter extension worksheets.

There is a lot you can do with the letter attributes portion of this pack. There are “Wanted” signs in color and B/W for each specific letter attribute. Students need to be cowboys and wrangle up those pesky letters! These can be used on a magnetic wall, cookie sheet, or turned into a file folder game.

Here are all the “Wanted Anchor Charts” and “Wanted” Letter Attributes signs. It also demonstrates how the letters and signs can be turned into a file folder game.

You can also use the letter attributes signs to use with the “Stomp Alphabet”. Students can search and move around the alphabet looking for letters with specific attributes. You can also use hula hoops, so students can pick up the letter feet and move them into the correct circle.

Here is the “Outlaw Alphabet” recording sheet. Students will sort the letters and then record their letters on the recording extension sheet.

Here are two more of the letter attributes extension worksheets.

Thanks so much for hanging with me! I am just so excited about this new unit, I had to share it with you! I hope that your students enjoy it as much as mine! It is great for students who need some extra help learning their letters and focusing on specific attributes of each letter.

Here is the fun part! Leave me a comment on this blog post and let me know how you would use this in your classroom or home. Also, let me know something that your students have struggled with in the past. I want to try and develop more teaching activities that really benefit your kids! I will be looking at all the comments and hopefully choosing my next project. If your idea/concept is what I choose, I will send you “Romp and Stompin’ Letters for FREE!