Going to Kansas
City, Kansas City, here I come!
Actually, I just got home from KC where I picked up these ideas!
Hot
Number! (Nola Faulkner)
The teacher picks
a random number between 1-10.
That’s the number that is the HOT NUMBER. Students stand in a circle and one by one count by ones from
1 – 10. The student who says the
hot number can jump or cheer and then must sit down. Keep counting from 1-10 until one child is left.
Polite Partner
Share (Meghan Burkholder)
Before reading a
story, do questioning and partner talk.
The kids turn to a partner and say:
Eyes to eyes.
Knees to knee.
It’s nice that
you
Are partners
with me.
After sharing
their thoughts they thank each other.
It’s also a great way to practice taking turns when talking.
McDonald’s
Cheer (Michelle Sanders)
Ba, da, ba, ba,
ba.
I’m loving
it! (Arms overhead like the golden
arches.)
Fun Rules (Jackie Fursman)
*Handwriting or
work – “I accept no slop.”
*Hoods cannot be
worn unless it rains or snows inside the school.
*You can only run
in the school if there’s an elephant or tiger chasing you.
*You can only lay
down if “I” do.
*Ask three before
me when I’m at the reading table.
1, 2, 3, Show
Me! (Joy, Olathe, KS)
Using individual
white boards the teacher asks a question and the children write a
response. The teacher says, “1, 2,
3, show me!” Children quickly hold
up their slate and show the teacher.
Sample
questions: Write the number
15. Write the letter Mm. Write 5 tally marks. Write the number that comes between 2
and 4.
Three Star
Sentences (Joy, Olathe, KS)
To help kids learn
the mechanics of sentence writing they can earn 3 stars. They get a green for using a capital at
the beginning; a yellow for spacing between words; a red star for punctuation.
Nuts and Bolts
(Jennifer Pyle)
Get nuts and bolts
from the hardware store. Write the
letters of the alphabet on the nuts.
The children have to screw the letters on the bolts to spell high frequency
words.
Doubles Don’t Give Me Trouble (Sarah Jackson)
(Tune: “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad”)
1 + 1= 2, 2 + 2 = 4, 3 + 3 = 6, 4 + 4 = 8, 5 + 5 = 10, 6 + 6 = 12
Now I know my doubles,
They don’t give me any trouble!
7 + 7 =14, 8 + 8 = 16, 9 + 9 = 18, 10 + 10 = 20, 11 + 11 = 22, 12 + 12 = 24
Mnemonic Device for Spelling BECAUSE (Rachel Micheel)
Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants
Make an
Appointment (De’Angela Briggs)
To make an
appointment card place 4 pictures on a 6” square of paper. (You could use sports teams, fast
food icons, seasonal objects, etc.)
Students trade papers and write their name on a line. As you work through the day, tell the
students to find their (name a picture on their appointment card) partner. They’ll have four different partners to
work with during the day.
Puppet Password
Have a class
puppet that gives a password every day.
For attendance, the children say the password instead of “here.” Select a password that is the subject
for the day, such as “Pilgrims,” “winter,” etc. Use this chant to introduce the password:
Mr. Mouse, Mr.
Mouse (or whatever your puppet is),
Oh, what do you
say?
What is the
password for today?
Pretend to let the
puppet whisper the password in your ear.
You can also let the puppet go home with a student each weekend and come
back Monday with a story and pictures.
Keep the stories in a class book.
Tissue Boxes (Natalie Bush)
Save cube tissue
boxes to make games. For example,
write CVC words on index cards and place them in the tissue box. Glue library pockets on the outside of
the tissue boxes. Children sort
the words by middle vowel sounds.
Check In
(Janelle Crouse)
Place a small
table outside your classroom door with a shape with each child’s name. (For example, a stocking for
Christmas) As children arrive they
find their name and hang it up.
*Use for name
recognition, phone number, address, birthday, etc.
“Have a super
sparkly day!”
Centers (Maggie
Mosher)
Have a grid at
each center with all the students’ names. As children finish the center they can color in the box with
their name and move on at their own pace.
They can’t go back to a center until all the names are colored in.
Pretty Nails
I have such poor, pitiful nails that I am always impressed with pretty nails. Isn't this Santa nail too cute? 
