October Resources

It feels like we just started school, and already we're looking at October in the not-so-far distance. 

October brings fall, Fire Safety Week, football, and, of course, Halloween!

Brain research tells us if the children can make a connection with their learning, then learning will happen. I find most children can easily make a connection with special days and sports, which makes them more enthusiastic about learning! In face, I'm banking on their enthusiasm, and have plenty of resources to celebrate learning and building skills, in a fun way!

My latest baby is this one: October Team Building, Morning Greeting, Shares, and Daily Writing Prompts.

Teachers can project these questions as the children arrive in the morning in order to get them thinking about the day. These also can be used for daily writing prompts.

 

The above resource contains a free link to this Boom Learning Digital Resource: October General Knowledge Trivia Questions and Enrichment. These are great for your fast finishers and those who need a little something extra!

 

Here's a little something to maintain positive communication with parents: October Parent Communication Brochure

 

 

In an attempt to "fit in" more Science and Social Studies concepts, I've looked over my grade level College and Career Ready Science and Social Studies Standards, and found ways to squeeze these concepts into my day. Most of the work is done, all you have to do is print and go! I even have a S.T.E.M. activity with an October theme! Check out this resource here: Science and Social Studies Activities for October.

 

  

Check out this freebie sample here: Bats Informational Mini-Book

 

Here's a freebie to get the kiddos thinking about Fire Safety: Fire Safety What-If task cards.

 

 

It's fall in New England! There are so many beautiful changes here that make it one of my favorite seasons:  warm days, crisp nights, football, and the beautiful fall colors on the trees.  To make your life (and mine) easier, I've combined important concepts with fall ideas in these Fall No Prep Activities!

 

One of the best parts about Fall in New England?  Football! I've got plenty of Football Resources! Just click the images for each link!

 

 

Here's a freebie from the set above: 

 

Enjoy these October Resources!

Thanksgiving Resources

Wow, Thanksgiving is practically upon us!  

Can you believe it?  After that, Christmas, then another year!  Life, please slow down?

 

Well, I want to spend the next 7 school days celebrating Thanksgiving. It's a great opportunity to "throw in" a little history, as well as enjoy the things for which we are grateful!

How do I squeeze all this in? Well, I always start with loads of books.  Here's a collection of books I've loved. Some are fun, some are informational. I like to have a lot of books for each interest and each reading level so they all can enjoy them at independent reading time!

                                                            

Books are always a great start. Movies are another fun way to enjoy the holidays!

See the above image for a link to BrainPOP Jr's free Thanksgiving video! Don't you love BrainPOP?

Here are a couple of movies I've found on Youtube with a Thanksgiving theme.  Feel free to preview them and choose what is right for your group!

HERE are some videos from Scholastic that have been filmed at Plimouth Plantation. These are definitely worth a watch!

I try to squeeze in the holidays in all the subjects. This resource has loads of math and literacy activities with the Thanksgiving theme I'll be using these all week!

Thanksgiving No Prep Activities

 

There are a few Thanksgiving themed items in my November Science and Social Studies Printables!

 

There's an information mini-book about turkeys, complete with fun facts, vocabulary practice, comprehension questions, and a reflection page. (My kiddos LOVED this, especially the fun facts!)

 

Plus, there's a sorting activity, where the children have to decide if facts might have happened back in 1621, or if it couldn't have happened back then. Be prepared for giggles!

 

 

Here's a math game with a Turkey theme to practice those +9 facts. My kids LOVE this one!

Turkey Nines!

 

Here's a freebie version of the above game:

Turkey Nines Freebie!

 

I'm a big believer in having children illustrate ideas to help internalize learning. Here's my Thanksgiving Story, Informational Text in kid's language, for them to visualize and illustrate.

 

I can't let Thanksgiving go by without a reference to football! When I was a kid, we always had a football game in the morning, and a turkey in the afternoon. (My dad was a football coach!)

Here are links to a couple of football games my kids love!

Football Game Board and Cards

Counting to 1,000, plus short and long vowels:

Here's a freebie version of the above set:

Football Game Board and Counting to 1,000 Cards

 

Here's is a favorite with my boys:  Football Past and Present Verbs! Yes, all these verbs have something to do with football!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

My Favorite Holiday Activity

Ever have one of those activities that's a win-win?  It's something that works so well, you keep bringing it back year after year. 

That's how I feel about this Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker.  I've done this activity with second graders for about 15 years now.

 

I've always loved the music from The Nutcracker. When my daughter was 5, I figured she was old enough to go into Boston to see the Boston Ballet perform the classic. We read a few versions of the story so she'd know what to expect, put on our very best holiday dresses, and drove into the city.

Since I knew the story so well, I brought the CD into school, and shared the story with my students. I wrote this summary of the classic story, and played the music while the children visualized what it must look like, then illustrated the different parts of the story.

Every year, the children loved the activity, and it practiced some valuable skills: visualizing, summarizing, and sequencing. Plus, it gives them some exposure to classic holiday literature and classical music. Of course, you can't miss when the setting is called, The Kingdom of Sweets!

A couple of years after seeing the production in Boston, my daughter had the opportunity to audition for a production of The Nutcracker. She was in the youngest group, and the little ones had a very small part, but it was priceless. She went on to perform in the Nutcracker 3 years in a row before life just got too busy with other performances. However, the story of The Nutcracker will always be near and dear to my heart.

Enjoy this freebie: The Nutcracker story for Visualizing, Summarizing, and Illustration! It's one of my favorites!