Monday, January 19, 2015

MLK Emergent Reader Printable {Free!}



Happy MLK Day Friends! I hope you had a relaxing day off. Today I want to share an MLK emergent reader I created just for YOU! In early childhood classrooms we teach our children about Dr. King but most tradebooks are way above their level.

I love that when I teach my kids about segregation they are so dumbfounded… “Mrs. Selva, why couldn’t they play together? Who cares what color they are?” It’s amazing and awesome that this generation has very little schema for racism…I guess that means we are on the right track!

This emergent reader will be best used as a supplement to your social studies lesson on MLK. The text is very simple and there are parts where children can extend their learning and record something they learned about Dr. King from the activities you do in your classroom. 

I’m going to offer the book with this disclaimer: Please do not copy the booklet for each kid in your class, hand it to them to color and then have them take it home in their backpacks never to be seen again. I walk a lot of pre-K and Kinder rooms and all too often I see some really amazing resources being used as busy work and it just irks me! Like anything emergent readers can be used for both good and bad…so please, please, pretty please use this in a meaningful way. I know you will because if you’re here…YOU’RE AWESOME!! J

Here are some simple pointers:

The cover should be folded in half with the crease on the left and the rest of the pages should be folded in half with the crease on the right. Tuck the 3 middle pages inside of the cover and staple on the left. (If you put together Reading A-Z books, it’s just like that!)






If you want to provide support for your kids still working on 1:1 correspondence, use a black permanent marker to make a “button” under each word. Show students how to “push the button” as they read each word. (This is a great book to use in your guided reading groups!)



On the fifth page students can record and illustrate a fact they learned about Dr. King. On the back cover you can ask students to talk and illustrate something that they dream will happen in the future. (Depending on time and the level of your kids you may or may not choose to do that.)



If you are a looking for a MLK resource for first, second or third (depending on guided reading level) click here. Last year I created this passage with questions for a small guided reading group of struggling second graders and it worked really well.


To pick up the kindergarten emergent reader click here. I hope you enjoy this resource, have a great week!!



Thursday, January 15, 2015

1,000 Followers Winners!


Hello friends! Today I’d like to announce the 5 winners of the 1,000 followers giveaway! If you see your name below I will be emailing you your gift card this evening! Thank you to all who entered!!



Saturday, January 10, 2015

1,000 Followers Giveaway!



Hello TLT Friends! I hope you are enjoying your weekend. It’s RIDICULOUSLY cold here in San Antonio…like so cold I don’t want to go outside. My body doesn’t function when it’s under 50 degrees…seriously…it’s sad!

Today I want to share my excitement for a recent milestone: I’ve hit 1,000 followers on Teachers Pay Teachers! I am so grateful for that. Since I started my new position as an Early Childhood Specialist I have had very minimal time to blog, create or post on Facebook. It’s been a real challenge with two boys under two and the full time job. I never sacrifice time with my boys to work, I just don’t. Family always comes first so the blog and store have had to be put on the backburner. That being said I am stoked that even though I don’t get to work as much as I would like to, my little old store has a lot of new friends! J

In order to celebrate I am throwing a giveaway: 5 $10 gift cards to TpT. If you win a gift card you can buy whatever you like, I’ll email you the gift card in PDF form. $10 goes a long way on TpT so hopefully you can snag something you’ve had on your wishlist.

I’m also celebrating by sharing some freebies for PK-2nd grade.



For PK I created some snowflake sorting cards. The snowflakes come in three different sizes and several different designs. I tried to pair designs that were similar so that students can sort by size and shape. In this freebie file I wrote directions for how to use the snowflakes in circle time and centers. You can pick the PK file up here.




For Kinder I created some snowflake subitizing cards. Subitizing (quick images) is HUGE in kindergarten and PK. In this file I created subitizing cards for 0-10 with instructions on how to use. You can pick the kinder file up here.



For firsties I created a penguin measuring game. The students use a snowflake ruler (or cut apart snowflake pieces) to measure the height of 9 different penguins. The directions for the game are in the file and there is a recording sheet. You can pick up the first grade file here.




For my second grade friends I created a “Snow Friends Subtraction” game for practicing subtraction without regrouping. I know how tough subtraction with regrouping can be for little second graders so I thought this fun “scoot style” game can help give them confidence. You can pick up the second grade file here.


Don’t forget to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway! All you have to do to enter is like me on Facebook and follow me on TpT. Thank you all SO MUCH for supporting my little blog and store. I hope that my products and ideas are helpful to you and that your students enjoy them! You are all a blessing in my life and I am truly thankful. :)

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