freebie

  • Friday Freebie – Spider Numbers

    Happy Friday! Since it is officially October I can start sharing Halloween freebies, and I know you will love what I’ve got for you today. These spider web numbers from KidSparkz would be a great addition to your halloween math centers. Add some spider rings that the children can count and you’re all set! Have a great weekend, spend some time enjoying everything autumn!

  • Friday Freebie: Evidence Checklist

    Happy Friday! It’s that time of year when the weather is perfect and the last thing I want to do on the weekend is stay inside, so my goal is to be super productive today so that I can enjoy my weekend! Yesterday I shared some thoughts on informal assessment, and I mention using those observations as evidence for your formal assessments.  Here is a freebie checklist to help you keep track of all of the evidence you need to collect – it’s pretty basic, but you can white out the fields if you want to personalize it to your own assessments.  Download your copy here and enjoy your weekend…

  • Friday Freebie – Leaf Patterning

    Happy Friday! Somehow it’s already the second week in September, and because of the strange weather we’ve had this summer, our leaves have already started to change.  Nothing like messing with my seasons! This freebie is a cute patterning activity that uses different colored leaves.  This would be a great center or a fun activity to send home for families to work on together.  Download your copy here and enjoy your weekend!

  • Friday Freebie – Calendar Practice

    I’ve shared my love for traceable calendars before, so I feel like ABC Helping Hands made this freebie for me! Go download their free year’s worth of traceable calendars and follow the link above to see how I use these in my classroom.

  • Discussing Routines with Preschoolers

    Every year my back to school activities include experiences that are designed to help my kiddos get used to our daily routine.  One of the activities that I do with them s to discuss routines, and help them put this idea into perspective by considering the routines that they follow at home. I give them each the opportunity to tell me what they do when they wake up in the morning – the kinds of things they have to do to get ready for school.  This takes some prompting at first, but after they get going they have pretty good memories, and it’s fun to see what their priorities are…

  • Friday Freebie – Parent Letter about Holiday Celebrations

    It's a little early for this particular freebie, but it fits really well with this week's parent communication theme, so you can download it and file it away for later in the year.  This is the letter that I send out every year before winter holidays (usually the beginning of November so I have plenty of time to get it out, get it back, and start planning). It lets parents know why I like to include holiday activities on my lesson plans and gives them the opportunity to share what their preferences are when it comes to discussing holidays in the classroom.This is a great way to make sure that…

  • Sharing Positive Messages with Families

    Kids do great things during the day - they share, they tell funny stories, they help without being asked, they melt our hearts with their sweet comments. In an effort to share these great moment with parents I created Happy Notes, which you can download for free! I really need to be better about sharing great stories with parents, so the idea behind Happy Notes is that you can write down something great right when it happens, then share the note with the child, and they can take it home and share it with mom and dad. These are a great way to reinforce positive behavior, and a perfect way to let…

  • Friday Freebie – Reading Logs

    Happy Friday! Many of you are in full back to school mode, so I wanted to share a great idea for keeping track of all if the books little ones read.  I am all about encouraging readers, I created this reading log last year, when the children I was working with were participating in our local library's summer reading program. Don't get me wrong, I love any program that promotes reading, but keeping track of all of the books they read was not fun. This log is one that even preschoolers can complete independently - they just color in one of the pictures each time they finish a book.August is…

  • Friday Freebie – Positive Behaviors

    I have found the cutest freebie ever! I can’t even wait to share these with you – these are Beehavior Beads (they all have a bee theme).  The idea is that you print a bunch of them, laminate them, and punch a hole in the corner of each one, then each child gets a necklace (a ribbon, lanyard, or piece of yarn) and they can collect them as you catch them “bee-ing” helpful.  Such a great idea! Go download your set from Double Trouble.

  • First Day of Preschool Freebie

    The first days of school can be a little difficult for everyone.  Children are nervous, parents want your attention, and you desperately want to start your routines off right.  I’m hoping I’ve got something that will make you end that first day just a little less exhausted! I put together a freebie to help make the first day run a little more smoothly.  It is designed so that parents can complete the simple activities with their child, giving them something to do while they wait for an opportunity to talk to you one-on-one.  The freebie includes: A sign and keepsake photo mat. Parents can take a photo of their child…