Ruby Bridges

 Ruby Bridges has always been a go to for me when introducing my firsties to civil rights. This unit was created 7 years ago out of a need for my own classroom. I have recently updated the craft and anchor chart and made a few minor updates to the lap book. You don't have to wait until February to teach your students about civil rights and compassion.  Grab the updated unit HERE.  

Weekly Dollar Deal - Pilgrim Children

 We continue on with holiday theme teaching!  This week's dollar deal is my Pilgrim Children Craftivitiy and Lapbook.  I always began this unit with a read aloud.  My two favorites are Sarah Morton's Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Girl and Samuel Eaton's Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Boy.  You can purchase the books HERE or HERE. Once the read aloud is complete I build an anchor chart with my students.  See the picture below.

Then I introduce them to the unit we will be working on for the week.  I start with the craftivity so that we can get them hung up in our classroom or hallway!  Then we move into the lapbook.  I always told my firsties that it was my job to make them independent learners and the lapbook does just that!  They always collaborated and researched to find the information needed.  With Covid it may be a little difficult to collaborate but breakout rooms work great for collaboration.  Once again those distant/virtual learners need to create so set up a time for parents to pick up materials and share away on Zoom, etc!!!! Grab this unit HERE. I promise you'll love it and so will your firsties!  Below are pictures of the unit:

Weekly Dollar Deal - Veterans Day

This month begins my most favorite time of the year... so many holidays and themes to celebrate in the classroom!  This week's dollar deal is a Veterans Day project. You can begin with a read aloud. Check out this LIST OF VETERANS DAY BOOKS. Then, you can "anchor" their learning with an anchor chart. Below is a picture of my firsties' thinking.  We brainstormed words that describe soldiers.  Anchor charts are such fun ways to display students' thinking.

  

You can extend their learning with THE VETERANS DAY PROJECT. This project comes complete with daily directions.  First graders need to create.  They need to use their scissors, glue sticks, crayons and markers!!!! Fine motor skills development at it's FINEST!! Even if you are remote, I implore you to print out this project and send it to your firsties.  Ask parents to do a curbside pick up of materials.  Students can display in their home and share during virtual class meetings.  I promise both traditional and virtual students will LOVE this project and they are so proud when it's complete!

Review: "These look SO cute outside! They were perfect with our current standards. I have been teaching about expository text as well as character traits/responses. I was able to use this for both and as a transitional lesson from one standard to the other. My principal even commented about how much she loved them outside in the hall!! Thanks :)" - Monica M.

Friday Featured Freebies - Veterans Day

 

This week's Friday Featured Freebies focuses on Veterans Day!

 Art with Jenny K. has a fun collaborative flag project.  Pair the flag with student writing for a beautiful hall or bulletin board display. 

Send a poster to a soldier currently serving or veteran! You can find this heart craft and 10 more Veterans Day crafts HERE.

Read alouds are such a fun way to teach students new information. The Poppy Lady explains why poppies are so important for remembering our veterans.   Crafty Morning has so many poppy crafts that your firsties can create.  Directed drawings are fantastic for firsties also.  Go HERE for a video on how to draw poppies.

Add these Military Branch Puzzles from Fantastic Fun and Learning to your Veterans Day stash! 

Let your firsties read about Veterans Day on their own with this Emergent Reader from A Dab of Glue Will Do. 

Create anchor charts with your firsties to help "anchor" their learning about Veterans Day!

Veterans Day Book and Video List

Sometimes understanding what Veterans Day is all about can be difficult for young ones.  Read alouds and videos are perfect in a virtual or traditional setting for introducing firsties to new information. I've compiled a list of some of my favorite  Veterans Day books and videos to help stock your classroom library.

Veterans Day Books

VETERANS HEROES IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD 

What's it about?  Veterans: Heroes in Our Neighborhood is an engaging rhyming picture book for readers of all ages that fosters mindfulness of and appreciation for the brave service men and women who are also our family, friends, and neighbors.  These are the men and women who bravely served our great country and now humbly serve in our communities.

THE POPPY LADY

What's it about? When American soldiers entered World War I, Moina Belle Michael, a schoolteacher from Georgia, knew she had to act. Some of the soldiers were her students and friends. Almost single-handedly, Moina worked to establish the red poppy as the symbol to honor and remember soldiers. And she devoted the rest of her life to making sure the symbol would last forever. Thanks to her hard work, that symbol remains strong today. Author Barbara Elizabeth Walsh and artist Layne Johnson worked with experts, primary documents, and Moina's great-nieces to better understand Moina's determination to honor the war veterans.

****Pair this book with the directed drawing video below for a lesson on the meaning of poppies and our veterans. Huge confession:  I was never taught about poppies and didn't learn about this special symbol until I was an adult!  Let's teach our firsties and carry on the tradition early in life!

H IS FOR HONOR

What's it About? Written by the son of a career officer, this book explores the branches of the Armed Services and speaks from the heart about the honor, privileges and sacrifices of military families everywhere. Children will discover why drill sergeants have to be so tough, what it means to be patriotic and why we need Special Forces such as the Navy SEALS, the Green Berets and the Army Rangers. H is for Honor also explains why the annual Army/Navy football game is more than just a game, how much letters from home mean to soldiers, how often military families have to move and what life on base is like. With an underlying message of courage and commitment that every child can relate to, the book will be especially meaningful to those whose parents, siblings or other relatives serve in the Armed Forces.

GRANDDAD BUD

What's it about? When a young boy's great-grandfather comes to his school to talk about Veterans Day, the boy is unsure what to expect. Why exactly do we celebrate Veterans Day - and will his classmates be interested in what Granddad Bud has to say?

HERO MOM

What's it about?  The moms in the book are superheroes. They may not leap over tall buildings, and they may not have super-human speed. But these moms construct buildings, fly planes, and make tanks roll. They do all kinds of things to help create a safer world. These superheroes are moms. Military moms. Hero moms.

HERO DAD

What's it about?  A boy compares his father, a U.S. soldier, to a superhero. 

THE WALL

What's it about?  

A young boy and his father visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. 

Veterans Day Videos 

Veterans Day by Kid History

Sesame Street Veteran's Greeting

Veterans Day Poppy Song

How to Draw Poppies

Weekly Dollar Deal - Halloween Creative Writing Project

This week's dollar deal is perfect if you need a fun Halloween activity.  The creative writing project comes with a week long lesson plan or you can choose to just use the quick write activity.  Within the unit you will find a list of my favorite Halloween books, ideas for anchor charts and how to help students generate their own ideas for writing.   Here is a peek at the unit:

You can grab the unit HERE.

Friday Featured Freebies

 

This week's Friday Featured Freebies will focus on free digital activities.  

1.  Our first freebie is a GIVEAWAY.  You can enter for a chance to win a $60 TPT gift card!  You could find lots of digital resources with that gift card!!!

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Go HERE to enter!

2. I think this next freebie is my FAVE!  The Techie Teacher has compiled a collection of Virtual Math Manipulatives.  It so child friendly and easy to use.  Students choose the manipulative they want to use and click on the picture. 

 

3.  First Grade Buddies and Company take you through the steps of creating digital resources from your print resources. 

4. You can find lots of FREE Boom cards Boom Learning. Go to the top of the page and click on STORE.  Type in your subject matter in the search box and click enter.  All of the cards associated with that subject will pop up.  Click on the drop down box next to Sort by and select Price - Low to High.  The free decks will be listed first. You can also find Boom cards on TPT!!!  When you download the cards on TPT you will get a link to the cards on Boom Learning.  Below are sets of free Boom cards.

Counting Digital Task Cards

Sentence Sorting

Sight Words

Let me know in the comments if you want me to find freebies for a certain subject, theme, etc.  Happy Friday!!!