Easter Stories, Books, Music, and Fun Resources!

I can't believe Easter is almost here! 

It's barely April, and we still have snow here in New Hampshire!

But it's ok to keep an Easter theme AFTER Easter, too. After all, they'll still be eating chocolate bunnies and jellybeans, right?

When it comes to Easter, I go straight for the classics!

• The Tale of Peter Rabbit
• The Velveteen Rabbit

I'm not sure this one would be considered a classic yet, but in my heart, it's a classic!

• Rechenka's Eggs 

How about a little Easter Music?

• Easter Party Music

Did you know you can get a wealth of music, often with visuals, for free on Youtube?

There are plenty of music videos for kids on Youtube: Just go to Youtube and search "Easter Music for kids."  You'll find plenty, but definitely check it first... you never know!

I recently put all my Easter resources together into a bundle. It contains 6 different resources with printables, worksheets, games, and center activities, at an awesome markdown (Almost 50%off!)

These are the resources bundled into this set:

• Easter No Prep Printables 
• Nouns or Adjectives Easter Sorting Game 
• Math Fact Easter Egg Game 
• Easter Egg Fillers
• April Science and Social Studies Activities
• Easter Themed Writing Paper

Check out the whole bundle here:

• Easter Activities and Centers Bundle

Here's a useful dollar deal! Just explore the image for this variety of writing paper for Easter stories!

Easter Themed Writing Paper

I also promised Easter Stories. Explore these links for previous blog posts, with popular Easter stories!

What does a bunny have to do with Easter?

An Easter Warning and an Easter Tradition

Yes, I realize not everyone can celebrate Easter due to its association with the Christian religion. It's all good. Of course, we respect each other's beliefs. 

But everyone can believe in Spring! Try these ideas!

Signs of Spring Resources  

Celebrate Spring With Games

How do you celebrate this time of year?

This blog post contains links to items on Amazon. These are affiliate links. If you use them, I'll make a small profit from your purchase, but it won't affect what you pay Amazon!  If you use them, THANK YOU! (It's not much, but every bit helps!)

Playing Math Games to Strengthen Important Skills

I find games to be a great way to learn and develop skills.

Brain research tells us that adding the element of fun helps to connect the memory. Isn't that a great reason to play learning games?

I like to teach a game during small group instruction time, so I can watch the children play and make sure they are focused on the learning goal. I'll have them play a couple of times with guidance before I let them play on their own.

After a game has been introduced and practiced, it will be available as a choice during math stations or centers.  There are times when certain children are assigned a particular game as well.

It's a good idea to allow the children to play games below their level, as these are important skills that should be mastered in order to perform the higher skills with ease. Just because the skills are easy for the child doesn't mean they don't have value! In fact, if the game isn't somewhat easy, it won't be fun for the children. Also, if the game isn't somewhat easy, the children will be more likely to make mistakes, which won't help them master the skills. I've learned "practice makes permanent," and we don't want to make incorrect skills permanent, do we? If you've ever had to unlearn a bad habit, you'll know just what I mean!

I have a series of BINGO games that I designed to go along with second-grade skills. They all have a sports theme, which is a big draw for the kids. I find once they learn the format of a particular game, it takes less time to teach a similar game, meaning more time practicing each skill!

You can find this resource here:  Par 3 Adding 3 Addends

As mentioned above, once the students know the format and how the game works, they can play similar games to strengthen similar skills. It just so happens that I have several math games that follow this same format with different sports themes that can be found here:

Sports Themed Bingo Math Games

Still looking for more math games to strengthen their skills?

Here are plenty more Math games, including several freebies! Math Games Category
 

Games are a great way to build skills AND have fun!  Enjoy!