Category Archives: Small Groups | Centers

Small group ( 6 or less) and independent centers for students to practice skills and strategies.

Book Clubs Reading Groups

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Reading Groups?

LOVE THEM!

BUT….
My High Kiddos
don’t want to meet with me
as often as my others…

so, enter

BOOK CLUBS

We have grouped our BOOK CLUB kids into groups of six.

Each has the same book.

They have worked with the packet with me first during guided reading.
Model, model, model.

Then …

RELEASE THE KRACKEN!

I mean …release the firsties!

Book Clubs work as a team
to help each other read the story,

have a “LITERATURE” discussion ( the hard part),

and then they complete the packet TOGETHER.

Do they copy…yeah ( get over it) .

They ARE Learning from each other.

I have heard the BEST discussions ever
( and I wasn’t involved in it!).

They really CAN do it.

They enjoy the new packet.

I give them a “reward certificate”
&
LUNCH with the teacher
when the TEAM completes their packets
AND
give a
GROUP ORAL REPORT
on their book!

They want MORE!
( I try to switch the Book CLub groups , depending on the book level).

It takes them about 1-2 weeks to complete it.

We have a “core” reading series
we HAVE TO DO are highly, most decidedly will, are

encouraged to do, first.

SO… Book Club is their UA (small group) time.

So here it is! Check it out! Good for ANY story or book.

BOOK CLUB

“Book Club” Book Reports

Tips & Tricks

When students are independent readers, begin BOOK CLUBS
Hold students accountable
“Chunk” their work time ( I have them work for 15-20 minutes)
If needed…choose a LEADER to begin the discussions.
All club members need the same book.
Have booklets ready ahead of time. When they finish one…start another!

Check out these resources to help with reading & writing in YOUR classroom! 🙂

If you like it..PIN IT! 🙂

Book Clubs for Reading Comprehension!

Flexible Seating: Stools, rockers, rugs, and seats…For READING??

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Why flexible seating?
When I was in elementary school

( Way back in the DINOSAUR days )

1970’s

We sat in rows.

Many rows.

All of us looking straight ahead.

At the teacher, at all times!
No flexible seating, here.

We kept our hands & feet to ourselves.

We kept our books in our desks.

And we read QUIETLY to ourselves.

Shhh…whisper!

We read.

Some people enjoyed it.

Some people just pretended.

Most did what we were told.

We didn’t ask…WHY?

Is there ANOTHER WAY?

How to bring flexible seating options into my classroom?

Because at home…

I would lay on my bed and read for HOURS!

(picture by Dreamstime.com)

And that is how I LOVE TO READ!

I want my students to LOVE to read!

So I have “changed it up!”

I have added flexible seating options in my classroom for kids to

read in a comfortable, relaxed, enjoyable experience.

Every day after lunch my first graders do

READ TO SELF.

If you have not read the book

DAILY 5

from “The 2 SISTERS” YOU NEED TO!

My first graders read to themselves.

Not to me,

Not to a partner,

JUST TO THEMSELVES!

Therefore…READ TO SELF!

I set the BIG TIMER!

I use THIS one.

We start the year at 6 minutes. Read.

We work on increasing our reading STAMINA.

Read longer.

Today, we are at 18 minutes!

18 minutes of uninterrupted reading

of books THEY choose!

BUT there is MORE!

They don’t sit in rows.

They don’t sit at their desk.

We have flexible seating choices for reading.

READING ROCKERS

TALL STOOLS

SHORT STOOLS

SHORT STOOLS at SHORT TABLES

CHAIRS by themselves

READING RUGS

CORNER NOOKS

FLAT OUT ON THE FLOOR

And when we are done?

Stools under the tables.

Rockers stacked in baskets.

Rugs in the tub.

And chairs stacked.

They MOAN when the timer goes off.

They ask during other times of the day

to Read in the Rockers.

THEY WANT TO READ!

I have taught them to LOVE to READ..

ANY HOW…ANY WHERE!

Flexible seating choices have made a HUGE difference

in the reading choices my students make.

They want harder books.

They want to read MORE!

It’s hard to walk into a first grade classroom

and hear…SILENCE.

But the “whispers” of reading are heard, daily!

UPDATE

More flexible seating CHOICES!

I won ..yes…won these

4 AMAZING Stools at our recent

NorCAL Teachers Meet UP

in Pleasanton,CA!

Check out the fun at:

Instagram

#teacherstakepleasanton

I was the BIG..WINNER WINNER! 🙂

Yes…I won ALL 4

WHOOP! WHOOP!

And these Bad boys…

They are wooden rocking chairs,, and they SQUEAK!

I love to hear the squeak, squeak as they rock & READ!

Thank You Donor’s Choose!

My “flexible seating” is complete!

Now to “arrange” it into

WORKSTATIONS!

I absolutely LOVE IT!

( SO DO THE KIDDOS!)

Some of my “bloggy friends”

have also posted about

their experiences

with flexible seating.

Check them out.

How to fund and implement flexible seating

Teach2Love

10 things to know about flexible seating

Two Sharp Pencils

SassySavvySimpleteaching

If you want to learn MORE about reading

check out these blog posts:

Balanced Literacy

Read At Home

Guided Reading in 20 Minutes

Using Math Data for Guided Math Groups

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I teach MATH.

I “think”

I teach math well.

BUT…

HOW DO I KNOW IF THEY “GET IT”???

How do I know if they have mastered ( or internalized )

the concept,

BEFORE THE TESTING BEGINS???

I mean…it’s NOT…

I REPEAT…NOT

always about

THE TEST!

But.. my kiddos WANT to do well!

Even in First Grade, they KNOW!

They KNOW TESTS COUNT!

Whether or not we like tests or don’t,

TESTS COUNT!

And so…

How do I know if they are ready?

I have a district purchased math curriculum

I am required to teach.

We use Expressions.

I have a pacing guide from my district to use as a “tool”

to
Keep ME on track.

Mostly to ensure I have taught the required concepts for

THE TEST!

I am NOT a fan of WASTED WORKSHEETS!

SOME…I LIKE!

SOME…I DON’T!

So …now what?

I NEED DATA!

SHOW ME WHAT YOU KNOW!

And so…

THEY DO!

Here is my Lesson on

ADDITION using 3 digits:

So.. NOW WHAT?

Now I have LOTS of DATA

(Student information)

to put students into

guided MATH groups!

I have noted students who need scaffolding in:

number sense

subitizing

numbers beyond 10

addition

grouping numbers

writing numbers

expanding numbers

place value

shape recognition

AND ALL OF THIS…

with 2 pieces of white paper & some crayons!

But…

in the next few weeks

when we

“TEST”

My kiddos will “GET IT”!

I know they will!

If YOU need any help with

MATH PRACTICE…

Check out …

MONKEY MATH

for GRADE 1

See how I use it HERE and HERE

AND

BUGGY MATH

For GRADE 2

See how I use it HERE

I also have MORE MATH Products…

Math Talk for Math Discussions

Sticks and Stones

Thanks for following!

Here’s a FREEBIE for YOUR TIME! 🙂

ks and Stones

ENJOY!

Wendy

It’s National PUZZLE Day! Do YOU play GAMES??

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GAMES!

Today is NATIONAL PUZZLE DAY!

Wahoo!

Fun times with friends.

Do YOU play games in YOUR classroom?

I HOPE SO!

What a better way to practice academic skills & strategies.

The BEST way to learn social skills of sharing, taking turns, winning and losing.

AND..most importantly….

IT BUILDS YOUR CLASSROOM COMMUNITY!

Checkers

Boars Games for kids

Chutes & Ladders Board Game

Candy Land Board Game

I also have the children make their OWN games..

We play the “matching” game..A LOT!

Use spelling words, vocabulary words, math facts…whatever!

I give 1/2 the class 1 sheet of colored paper.

I give the other half

1 sheet of colored paper, too

BUT a different color!

We fold it into 8 rectangles.

EVERYONE writes the same words on their paper.

THEN…cut the cards apart!

When we are ready…find a partner

WITH DIFFERENT COLORED PAPER!

Turn over all of the cards.

Pick one of YOURS,

then choose one of your partners!

With different colored papers

…no mistaking whose is whose.

When game “time” ( set a timer ) is done

..pick up YOUR cards!

No mixing them up!

Take the cards HOME & PRACTICE!

Here WE ARE at WORK:

Kids in classroom playing learning games

Partner students in classroom playing learning games

Kids in classroom playing learning games

I hope you play games!

Have FUN!

Here are some MORE blog posts about

CLASSROOM GAMES!

PLAY ON

The Day the Boys Found Dice

I Spy With Word Walls

GOTCHA!

Games for ASSESSMENTS?

What TIME is it?

Here are some games

for YOUR classroom:

CVC Scoot Game

CVC SCOOT

Who Am I Flapbook Game

Who AM I? Flapbook GAME!

What’s a SMORT? A SMART Sort!

SMORTS…What’s A SMORT?

A SMART SORT!

Shelves of Board Games

Check out my

GAMES for GIGGLES

Pinterest board

for MORE fun GAMES!

Here is a FREE game..to ENJOY!

FREE Game CHICKEN DANCE from 1stgradefireworks

CHICKEN DANCE

3 Steps to Sight Word Fluency

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3 steps to sight word fluency.

Not exactly steps..a hop..a skip..and a JUMP!

When teaching my kiddos to read,

I use MANY tools!

Books, whiteboards, markers, pocket charts, flashcards, etc..

But… when teaching sight words

high-frequency words

FRY words, Dolch Words etc, etc, etc.

It ALL comes down to this…

IF YOU CANNOT READ SIGHT WORDS,

You WILL NOT read at grade level!

Scary?? YES!

HOW DO WE HELP???

We research. We try. And we try AGAIN!

There are MANY resources on Pinterest

to help you find lists, and lists, and lists of words!

Awesome Sight Word Activities

27 Awesome Sight Word Activities

Sight Word Activities

Learn Sight Words Through Play

And LOTS of OTHERS!

Awesome Sight Word Activities

HFW Dots

NOW I know what to teach…

HOW do I Do IT?

Here are your

3 steps to Sight Word FLUENCY!

Step 1

Matching Game

Each student makes their OWN word cards on colored paper.

(Practice sounding out, spelling, & writing EACH word)

I use 8 – 10 words.

Then they cut them apart.

Find a friend who has a different colored paper.

Both friends turn their word cards face down.

Rock, paper, scissors…winner goes first.

Choose one of YOUR word cards and one of your friends.

READ BOTH CARDS…friends help if needed.

If they match…keep BOTH cards. If not, turn them over and partner’s turn!

Winner has the most matches at the end of time

( or when ALL cards are turned over)

PLAY AGAIN!

Awesome Sight Word Activities

Great PARTNER work!

STEP 2

Pocket Chart

MAKING WORDS

and

MATCHING WORDS

I use

MAKING WORDS

GRADE 1

Awesome Sight Word Activities

for my word study WORD WORK.

I make the letter cards and the word cards.

We pocket chart them ( my kiddos like to play SCHOOL during MAY DO time).

One of the Activities is

MAKING WORDS!

Awesome Sight Word Activities

After MAKING WORDS

we play

MATCH IT!

Awesome Sight Word Activities

Turn them over & MATCH IT!

We also invented

SPEED READER

(NOT SPEED RACER!)

I turn them over & as a class,

we read as FAST AS WE CAN!

Step 3

Word Wall for Sight Word Fluency

: Sight Words on the Word Wall

: Word Wall Sight Words

: Sight Words for Word Wall

We play

I SPY

They use their whiteboards

and I call OUT…

“I SPY A WORD ON THE WORD WALL that

starts with a “_____” and RHYMES with “____”.

They find it on the all…and write it on their boards.

Sometimes I will change it up with

“A verb that starts with a “__”, etc. etc.

The main theme here is PRACTICE…PRACTICE PRACTICE!

No matter how many “steps” it takes…

they need practice activities & time

to HOP, SKIP, & JUMP into FLUENCY!

Balanced Literacy for the Primary Classroom

ALL Classrooms should be a BALANCED LITERACY Classroom!

ALWAYS begin with BALANCED LITERACY!

And so we begin.

Matching Words

Making Words

I Spy

To help with Sight Word Mastery

CLICK on the links for help!

Small Groups

Those Crazy Word Walls

Hi Ho Hi Ho..It’s Off to High-Frequency Work we GO

Ready to TRANSFORM your Classroom

into a

BALANCED LITERACY Classroom?

Here you are!

Balanced Literacy

If you need more help, check out my TPT Store. LOTS of goodies in there!

Wendy

Holiday Literacy\Math Games and Activities and a FREEBIE

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Are YOU planning for December?

Get your first-grade math games & activities ready for DECEMBER!

Are you ready for holiday first-grade math games and activities?

Do you have your holiday reading and writing centers ready for December?

Do you need help finding them?

Easy Prep? High student Engagement?

I have HELP FOR YOU!

This ROUND-UP is to help YOU get organized,

NOW!!!!

The FREEBIE is at the BOTTOM!

KEEP READING! 🙂

Get your guided math centers ready to go!

Math games and printables prepped, organized, sorted.

Students can’t wait

for the exciting activities

to help them get through DECEMBER!

Do your kids need extra help with place value? How about a sorting activity?

Place Value Sorting Cards True or False?

How to help your students practice greater than and less than with game activity.

Greater Than Less Than Holiday Edition

Math Fact practice activities for December

December Fact Families

10 more and 10 less task cards for math games using the hundreds chart! Fun game!

This Elf is NOT on the Shelf

Now it is time for those literacy

( reading, writing, phonics, word)

centers!

Are YOU ready?

Literacy activities and games for reading, writing, and grammar for December.

The Elves are Working Overtime

Helping students read using Word Trees. Reading activity for fluency practice.

Sight Word Trees Holiday Edition

And for a FUN combination of Literacy and MATH…

The Winter Wonderland BUNDLE!

More games and fun activities to help your students practice grade-level standards in a highly energizing way! What a fun way to support learning through the HOLIDAY season!

Winter Wonderland Holiday Literacy & Math BUNDLE

Reading, writing, phonics, grammar, sight words, place value, task cards, and student practice pages to support learning through DECEMBER!

Winter Wonderland HOLIDAY BUNDLE

Do not forget to take care of YOURSELF!

Get planned and prepped for December

and then enjoy the season!

Laugh, giggle, give hugs & high-fives.

The holidays are for making memories.

MAKE YOURS!

Here are some posts that can help YOU, too! 🙂

When do YOU put up YOUR Christmas Tree?

What Does Read At Home Really Look Like?

Don’t Blink!

Balanced Literacy

Happy December! Take Care of Yourself and ENJOY IT!

THANK YOU for hanging in for this LONG POST!

Here is a FREEBIE for YOU!

Click BELOW

Holiday NOUN, VERB, & ADJECTIVES

Holiday Noun, Verb, & Adjectives

Wendy

Welcome the VOWEL KIDS!

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I would like you to meet my newest friends!

The vowel kids!

This is KATE. ( long a)

Her twin sister is Anna. ( Short a )

Anna left us for a short “vacation”

…so I can use her picture for LONG A!

Thank you to Nikki from MELONHEADZ for the cutie pies!

We took each vowel family and did some writing!

We brainstormed words ( see the word box)

that have our phonics pattern for the week.

Then we did an interactive writing .

( see my BALANCED LITERACY packet,

if you haven’t done INTERACTIVE WRITING)

The kids decided on her story. And then…

WE WROTE!

Meet the Vowel Kids

They were so cute! Best editors ever!

After we finished…

they critiqued.

They decided yellow was too hard to read.

They said that handwriting is very important,

if you want others to read it.

They said spelling is important. It can change the meaning.

And lastly, writing large and spacing our words,

makes it easier to read.

WOW! They were listening! 🙂

And so …each week for the next 4 weeks

I will introduce another friend.

Long e, Long i, Long o, and Long u.

We will chat, create, and write!

I Love my JOB!

If you are looking for more

writing ideas..

Stop on by!

Daily Language Practice

Helping kids EDIT their WRITING

Are your students ready for CENTERS?

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How to add games for independent centers!

We have been in school for 4 weeks. I know…we began JULY 31! I spend 3-4 weeks working on whole class routines & schedules. Then we spend a week or two working on centers ( without me actually taking reading groups) so I can monitor HOW they are doing during independent centers. AND THEN????

We begin INDEPENDENT CENTERS without the teacher!!! WHAT??? Yes!!

Release the KRACKEN!

Release the Kracken

And yes..we begin small group reading.

I used to call it GUIDED READING.

But I have added Guided Reading Skills & Strategies.

Sometimes, we work on words. Sometimes we work on skills.

Sometimes we read. Sometimes we write.

I use my assessments to guide my instruction.

I know WHO needs WHAT.

So what are the other kids doing?

MUST DO’s & May Do’s.

And this week..enter their FAVORITE CENTER SO FAR!

( Yes…in their WHOLE LIFE…as they say!)

Here is the FUN game for centers!

And they are LEARNING! WIN! WIN!

Short vowel dominoes

SHORT VOWEL DOMINOES

294 CARDS! WOWZA!

294 domino cards for short vowel practice. Domino games can be differentiated by vowel sounds, picture cards, or word cards. Fun activities for student learning. Games help students stay engaged while practicing short vowel CVC word families.