Centers Sunday #9 {Free K-2 Centers}

Hi friends!! I'm bringing you a special edition of Centers Sunday today. I had some special requests to create reading passages. I haven't written too many passages but I actually enjoyed creating these and I am excited because I can use them with my second grade group on Monday! Yay! :)

I created passages for first and second grade that are St. Patrick's day themed. For kinder, I created an emergent reader booklet. Here we go:

Kinder

To make the booklets just print, cut in half and staple on the left. You can pick this file up here.

First Grade

I know with primary students it is very hard to get them to refer back to the text when answering questions. It definitely takes some practice. With this passage I specifically asked students to go back to the passage to highlight their answer and then circle the answer. You can have students use highlighters, markers or crayons to find their answer in the text. You can pick the file up here. This passage is written at a Lexile level of 250. 

For second grade I created a passage at a Lexile level of 450.The students follow the same procedure as the first grade passage. They read the passage, read the questions, highlight where they found their answer and circle their answer choice.

You can pick the second grade file up here.

I hope y'all can use these in your classrooms this week! The rest of my day Sunday I will spend at church, at a St. Patrick's Day party and then home to work on the finishing touches of Jackson's fundraiser! I'm hoping to get the fundraiser active by Monday! :) Have a great week!!

Leader in Me Ideas, Thin Mints Should Not Be Called Thin, St. Patrick's Day Math, a HUGE sale and PUPPIES!!

I think I win the award for most random blog post title ever... :)

I hope you are having a fantastic week and that your children are being little angels for you! I wanted to share what I've been up to (besides being way pregnant and eating thin mints). 

Monday I visited my kinder friends' room to work with some of their kids and help take down some bulletin boards. I saw some really cute "Leader in Me" ideas. (If you're not familiar with The Leader in Me curriculum, it's all about goal setting and following through.) My friend Hannah asked me to make her the kindergarten TEKS (Texas standards) cards with small visuals last year and of course I did it for her. I began the TEKS cards by making the second grade set for my own room and then I got so many requests I ended up spending hours and hours and days and days making them for all the other grade levels...and of course visuals for kinder. I'm not complaining at all because I love helping other teachers...but I will say...it's not the most fun in the world... Luckily for Hannah, I love her and was more than happy to help. I love the way she posted them. (All of my photos have a St. Patrick's Day background today...I'm in the spirit y'all!)

I also saw this little gem. LOVE! She's so clever!

Here's an up close view.

Monday I went home from school with a box of thin mints. UGH. Now, before I complain about them I want you all to know that I do realize I'm an adult and I am not the cookie monster. I should have the self-control to eat only 1 serving of cookies, right? Well.....let's just blame it on being 33 weeks pregnant (because that makes me feel better) but I totally, TOTALLY do not have that kind of will power or self-control right now. It's bad. The box is gone, it's no longer in my home...but I will not confess to the amount of servings I had before the box was removed from the premises...*shame*. 

So I decided that enough is enough! I know I'm pregnant and I'm supposed to eat a little more than usual and gain weight. But I don't think extra calories from sweets (which is my biggest weakness right now) is going to be the most beneficial for my baby. I should be eating more of the good stuff: veggies, fruit, etc. 

I saw this really cute idea on Pinterest (where else?!) and thought it was very appropriate for what I need to do. (I would link back to the pin but the pin is only a JPEG, no site.) I need to get out of the habit of eating sweets and giving in every time I see a cookie, piece of candy, etc. This will not only be good for me and the baby now but also for when the baby is here and I'd like to not look like a pregnant girl any more. 

I read that it takes 21 days to form a habit. So the idea is to stick 21 sticky notes to a door frame so you can take them off one at a time as you work towards your goal. I lined the doorway to my bedroom with the sticky notes at 5:30 this morning before I left for work. My husband didn't know what I was doing and was probably thinking I had lost my mind... :)

I love this idea because it can apply to anyone about any topic. You can use it to motivate you to get to the gym or use it with your classroom. It can also be used with a  student who needs a little extra help accomplishing a goal. Now...let's see if this keeps me away from those darn cookies!!! 

Alrighty, no more cookie talk! I am thrilled to finally be finished with my kinder St. Patrick's Day math unit. Here's a sneak peek at what's inside:

We played the "Roll and Color 1 More" game today in small group. 

Most of the kids didn't need the counters but a few did. Sorry about this photo, I took it upside down! :) You can see the file here. It's going to be on sale until Friday! Which leads me to the HUGE sale portion on this post...

I'm very excited to be a part of this huge sale!! :) Everything in my store will be 28% off starting tomorrow and ending Friday at midnight. Today everything is 20% off. I have a TON of clip art I'm looking forward to buying tomorrow! Yay!! 

And last but not least...PUPPIES!! My step dad's client's dog had puppies. There were 9 and now there are 6 left that need a good home. If you're in the San Antonio area and you are interested send me an email and I can get you the contact information. They are adorable little guys! They are mixed breed, I really don't know what they have in them but the owner of the mom can tell you more about her. 

Have a great evening y'all! 

Centers Sunday #5!! {FREE K-2 Centers}

Hello everyone! I hope y'all had a great weekend. I've been a little under the weather with a cold...hopefully it will be gone soon! I'm here to bring you some fabulous K-2 centers that are all about the MONEY! I figured it was appropriate since tomorrow is President's Day and all...and we have school! Boooo!! (Makeup day for our ice day...in South Texas we don't get snow days, we get ice days!) :)

Alrighty, here ya go!

Kinder:

For this center, kinder kids practice identifying both sides of a penny, nickel, dime and quarter. Make sure you explain to them that they have two chances of spinning a penny, but they have to shade in the side of the penny they landed on (heads or tails). This will help them see that pennies are not only Lincoln's face but also the torch. You can pick that file up here.

First Grade:

For this center, students will need a number cube. They spin a coin, roll the cube and count out that many of the coin. So if they spin a penny and roll a 6, they count out 6 pennies and record on their sheet. To make it more challenging, you can give them a number cube with numbers 7-12 on it. You can pick that file up here.

Second Grade

For this center, students pick a card and count the amount of money on the card. Recording sheet included. You can pick the file up here. 

I hope y'all find these useful this week. I'm very busy working on a file for second grade teachers in Texas. I've had requests to make a 2nd Grade Social Studies notebook that is similar to my 2nd Grade science notebook for the Texas TEKS. It's coming along, but it is quite an endeavor! I'll make sure to post about it when it's all complete. 

Have a great week my friends!! :)

Valentine Card Printable {Freebie}

Hey Y'all! I hope you're having a fantastic week so far. I know many of you are out on yet another snow day, this weather has been insane!!

Tomorrow Jackson's Mother's Day Out class is having a Valentine's Day party. I made these little tags and attached them to packs of Gushers fruit snacks. It was super easy and fast!

I have a secret to confess...I LOVE Gushers. They are soooo yummy! I'm 30 weeks pregnant but I'm really, really trying to watch my weight gain (because I remember what a nightmare it was trying to lose the weight with baby number 1). So eating Gushers is probably not something I should be doing right now. However, I did eat two small packs in the process of this Valentine's Day card making....and I have another confession. My best friend in the entire world (Ashley) and I used to live in an apartment together...and she loved Gushers too...and I would steal them from her from time to time...Sorry Ashley! haha! I never wanted to buy them because I knew I shouldn't or I might eat the whole box, so I would sneak one or two packs from Ashley here and there...I know...terrible!!

Ok now that I've gotten that off my chest, if you'd like to use the file to create your own Valentine's Day cards I have a blank version of it here. Later this week I'll be posting a rodeo themed big book and emergent reader, so stay tuned for that. 

Have a great evening!! :)

Centers Sunday #3! {Free K-2 Centers}

Hi friends!! I'm sorry for posting this kind of late...I had a very cranky toddler that made it difficult to get work done. But now little one is fast asleep and I can share these centers with you. I made the centers Groundhog Day themed. Today is Groundhog Day...and I hear Phil saw his shadow, so six more weeks of winter. You may have already taught some Groundhog Day lessons in your classroom or you may be planning on doing them sometime this week. Either way the kids are more than likely familiar with this cute little critter and I'm hoping they will enjoy these centers. Alright...here we go!

Kinder: Word Families

For this center, students lay out the header cards, read the words and decide which word family they belong in and record. You can pick that file up here.

First Grade: Counting Coins

Students count the amount of coins and match the amount to a groundhog. Recording sheet is half a page. You can pick that file up here.

Second Grade: Addition With and Without Regrouping 

Students read an addition problem, sort it according to whether you have to regroup or not and then record and solve. You can pick that file up here.

I hope you can use these centers!! I am off to bed early, this third trimester is really taking a toll on me! Night y'all!