Holy moly let’s just all take a collective breath. 

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And another for good measure. 

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Ok. This year is going to be unpredictable. We can all just admit that. But ALSO, we love our students and families and, even in this crazy environment, are committed to supporting their education no matter what. We’re all in this together. (*cue High School Musical track*) So whether your school is 100% distance learning, attempting a face-to-face option, or some kind of hybrid model, let’s dive in and chat about how we can provide quality math units with the minimal amount of stress. Yes, I will be attempting the impossible: trying to siphon off stress from this crazy mess of a back to school season. 

Get Kids What They Need

Whatever your district is requiring, it’s clear that it won’t be safe for students to share supplies this year unless somehow you’ve got time in the day to sanitize things between each use. From a “work smarter not harder,” perspective, I’m jumping on the train of individual supplies for everyone. 

The immediate problem with the “every student needs their own supplies,” approach is this can get expensive pretty quickly and is likely way outside of budget realities for many schools. But let’s start our school year prep in an ideal world and assume you have the budget and adjust from there.

Build a Math Kit

The thing is, we need to focus on keeping learning (especially distance learning) as hands-on as possible this year. ESPECIALLY since so many students likely missed key learning points in the spring during the beginning of all this madness. Hands-on learning is more important now than ever. Endless worksheets (especially via Zoom) will not be enough to keep students’ education on track. Besides being important for our kinesthetic learners in the room, research shows us clearly that, “hands-on learning is uniquely positioned to support or elevate any type of learner,” (The New School). Plus, if students are at home, creating these supplies ahead of time and coordinating a drop off or pick up of them, will put everyone on an even playing field and imitate the classroom environment much more effectively than just crossing our fingers and hoping everyone has adequate access to paper and pencils. 

I’d recommend every student have a plastic box (with a lid), zippered pouch or even a gallon zippered bag that’s clearly labeled and exclusively theirs. Store it in their desk, locker, or cubby. The positive side of this is that students LOVE when things solely belong to them. It’s special and exciting. We’ll probably have to work on sharing a lot next year, but we can put a pin in that for now. 

This kit will serve as each student’s “Math Kit” and should store all kinds of fun manipulatives. Remember, we’re beginning our planning in an ideal world so, if you can swing it, here’s everything I can possibly think of that could be beneficial in this math kit. 

• Coins
• Base 10 Blocks
• Clock
• Measuring tools
• 100’s charts
• Counting manipulatives (Target dollar spot mini erasers are great for this!!)
• Number cards or playing cards
• Die/Dice
• Place Value Mat
• White board
• Dry Erase Marker
• Math journal

If you can include all those goodies in individual boxes for your students, your math blocks will be a breeze. They’ll have everything they need at the literal tips of their fingers without having to leave their desks for one second.
And for all my teachers who want to embrace in-person and virtual learning, I’ve got some great digital resources for you that will be sure to make math time go by in the blink of an eye. 

If you’re internally screaming at me because how dare I assume you’ve got the budget to buy 20 clocks for all your kids, I hear you. Don’t despair. I didn’t forget about you, I PROMISE! In fact, I created a free resource just for you. Because no classroom should go without the supplies they need to thrive at any time, but especially this year y’all we all need a little boost. 

For you, I’ve got a printable resource of manipulatives that’s FREE (yes, F-R-E-E) that will help you start creating quality math kits for your kids with no budget at all. 

Grab Your FREE Math Toolkit

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The most important thing we can do for our kiddos this year is to avoid panic, friends. Take another deep breath. Let’s come full circle and end this post like we started it. 

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And again. 

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I’ll be here with more math posts and ideas all year y’all. And if you missed our literacy series, head here to catch up! 

Now that you know WHY hoopla digital makes lesson planning easier, I want to show you HOW to use it!

First off, searching for resources is SO EASY. You literally type in the title you are looking for into the search bar at the top and hit search. You can even specify if you would like to find an eBook, audiobook, movie, or more. Once you find what you’re looking for, you simply “borrow” it and everything you check out is stored in a digital library right on hoopla digital so you can easily access it.

I’ve seriously been in awe at the wide array of resources that are available on hoopla. I’ve searched and searched for all sorts of titles for all kinds of lesson ideas, and guess what? I can always find exactly what I’m looking for!

How does hoopla digital increase student engagement?

So, let me tell you friends, the benefits don’t stop with my experience with hoopla. Student engagement is where it’s at! I love that hoopla digital offers the ability to project a book, making it large enough for students to see and follow along. Anytime I’m able to make things larger and easier for students to see, I immediately see an increase in engagement.

I also love that if students have different interests on a particular topic (and don’t they always) that you can borrow ebooks and audiobooks that fit their needs. Think about your Listen to Reading center – what if you could tailor audiobooks that matched your STEAM curriculum? Well, you can with hoopla!

What are my favorite titles available on hoopla?

Well, there are truly SO many, but here are a few:

Like I mentioned before, their resource library is MASSIVE!

In fact, I got so excited about what hoopla has to offer that I created another free lesson plan for you!

Using “Mechanimals” by Chris Tougas, available right on hoopla digital, students will work through the five step engineering process – (1) Ask, (2) Imagine, (3) Plan, (4) Create, and (5) Improve – to answer the challenge question: How can we design a mechanical animal that will perform a specific job for a farmer?

In this STEAM experience, students will create a mechanical animal that helps the farmer with a job of the student’s choice. Talk about opening the doors for your students to get creative!

You can truly go mild to wild with what materials students build with – from cut paper to clay, recyclables, and more. I made this turkey mechanical animal that has tons of eyes that act as cameras to help the farmer patrol for predators entering the farm – y’all literally ideas and creativity will be flowing through your kiddos’ minds!

Grab your free copy of this lesson plan guide by joining my email list below. You’ll be sent the password to visit the Freebies section of my website.

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All that said, I always incorporate handwriting into our literacy centers and small group instruction.  Here are 4 simple and effective ways to add handwriting practice into your daily routine while keeping it FUN!

(1) One of my students’ favorite ways to practice handwriting is rainbow writing!  I do rainbow writing slightly different than what you may have seen floating around on Pinterest.  By the way, here is a fabulous Pinterest board dedicated to all things handwriting for you to check out later!

I like to place my handwriting practice pages in a sheet protector to save paper PLUS that allows my students to use [Expo 2 in 1 Dry Erase Markers] which they LOVE!  There are so many fun colors for the kids to choose from while rainbow writing!

So here’s where my version of rainbow writing varies a bit…  The students trace all of the letters (or sight word depending on my reading group’s level) in one color.  After they finish with one color the students pick another color and trace again.  They are always so sad when it’s time to move on in the lesson because they would literally do this for hours!  A helpful tip while the kiddos are writing is to have them say the letter name or word they are writing so that they get that auditory reinforcement as well!

Here’s a quick video demonstration of rainbow writing.

(2) We don’t limit our handwriting practice to just letters and words, though!  We also practice correct formation of numbers.  One way we do this is through games!  Kids LOVE games (and I love that they are learning).

This differentiated game allows students to roll either one or two dice depending on the mat they are playing with.  Students must practice one to one correspondence, subitizing, as well as addition for the harder game version BEFORE they even practice handwriting.  This game also pairs perfectly with our [Expo 2 in 1 Dry Erase Markers]!  Which number will be the winner?!

You can grab this game in my [Thanksgiving Math Games] resource available on TpT.

(3)  A big focus in Kindergarten is on recognizing and reading word families.  Why not tie some handwriting and fine motor practice into that as well?  We love creating word family crafts for each word family we study!  Cutting, gluing, coloring, writing, and word family practice all in one – and we can’t forget our fun-smelling [Mr. Sketch Scented Gel Crayons].  I love how smoothly these color plus they are slightly thicker and easier for little hands to grasp!

You can grab this word family craftivity and many more in my [Get Crafty with Word Families] resource available on TpT!

(4)  If you haven’t learned this about me yet, you should know I love activities that appeal to multiple learning styles and modalities.  Thinking of ways to add some tactile component to handwriting and sight word practice I created tactile sight word cards.  These are super simple to make in a word editing software and I chose to print the words in the color of the [Elmer’s Classic Glitter Glue] to add an extra pop of color.  Students can run their finger along each letter as they read the word.  I also love to have them practice writing the sight word on white boards after the tactile experience.

Thank you to my friends at Go Teach! Handwriting for the fabulous free products and for sponsoring this post!  All opinions are my own.  You can find more fantastic teaching ideas on the [Go Teach! Facebook] page.

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The ideas I’m sharing today were all created with resources purchased at Dollar Tree which means they all ring in at a whopping $1.00 to $2.00 to create!

Number Recognition Puzzle

The first center I’d love to share is one that I’ve seen floating around on Pinterest.  Using a puzzle from the Dollar Tree, students can practice counting and number recognition skills!

When planning this center, be sure you set out time to actually construct the puzzle yourself so that you can write the numbers on the correct corresponding pieces.

Once the puzzle is put together, I flipped the pieces over a row at a time to write the numbers on the back of the pieces.  I chose to write the 5s all in red since skip counting by 5s is a big skill in our Kindergarten curriculum.  It would be so easy to differentiate this center for skip counting, numbers 101-200, etc.

Math and Literacy Games with Ice Trays

The next center I’d love to share with you is inspired by one of my coworkers, Hannah!  She uses simple ice trays that you can purchase at Dollar Tree (2 for $1 people!!) to create math and literacy games.

Using a Sharpie I wrote in sight words on one tray and addition equations on another.

The kiddos can play in partners/teams and stand 2-3 feet away and toss in pom poms, beads, or small erasers.  If they make any into a spot on the tray, the student read the word or solves the addition problem.  Easy to set up and the kids LOVE it!  You could make multiple versions of this game with letters, numbers, cvc words and more!

CVC Word Building Center

The last center I’d love to share with you today is a CVC word building center using a lunch tray and letter beads from Dollar Tree!

I love that there is a large space for the letter beads and then three other compartments to spell out the CVC words and practice segmenting and blending.  I created some simple CVC picture cards that fit perfectly into the compartment next to the beads.  Add in some plastic tweezers for some added fine motor development!

Want the CVC picture cards?  I’ve uploaded a file with differentiated cards and recording sheets as a FREEBIE for you!  Simply click the image the below to grab your free copy!

Looking for even more Dollar Tree inspired centers?  Visit my friends by clicking the images below!

The Kindergarten Smorgasboard

Kindergarten Chaos

Male Kindergarten Teacher

Here’s a simple run down of how you can make bouncy balls with your class or child!

1.  Restock assessment materials for beginning of the year.
This is a true sanity saver!  When you finish up your Fountas & Pinnell (F&P), DRA, DIBELS, or whatever other assessments you use go ahead and do yourself a favor and make your copies for next year.  Nothing is worse than feeling prepped for back to school, then sitting down for your first F&P assessment only to find you don’t have any copies of the Level D Fiction book in your folder – btw its The Nice Little House (that skunk is pretty smart if you ask me).

4.  Use Scholastic points for end of year gifts.
Have you struck it rich as a teacher yet?  No?  Me neither.

A great way to get your kids a small end of the year gift without breaking the bank is to save your Scholastic points throughout the year from book orders.  If you don’t use Scholastic book orders in your class, do yourself a HUGE favor and sign up [here] immediately!

Every year I gift my students The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf.  The message of the story is one that is so powerful I feel every child should hear it.  And thanks to Scholastic, I gift it for FREE!

If you don’t have a class copy, again I highly recommend this book!

I personally think books make the best gifts.  I’ve given trinkets in the past, but love the meaning behind a book.  However, give what works best for you and your kids!

5.  Pin some ideas for next year.

6.  Clean, clean, and clean some more.
Let’s face it.  We start the year with perfectly manicured classrooms, everything is in order and CLEAN.  Add 20 children and fast forward 180 days.  How’s that room looking now?  More importantly, how clean is that room?  I’ll be the first to say that despite great intentions, as the year goes on things become disheveled – and often dirty.Take some time to clean before heading out to summer break.  You will thank yourself when you come back in August.  Want a little bonus tip?  Have your kids help!You can fill large containers/bins with warm, soapy water and dump toys, manipulative, whatever else that needs cleaning into it.  Let the kids go to town “playing” in the water.  They LOVE it!  We’ll just keep the fact that they’re actually helping us clean a little secret.

7.  Add behavior incentives (as needed).
If you have one of those classes that is well-behaved all the time, even at the and of the year – I hate you.    Ok… I didn’t mean that.  However, I am jealous.For the rest of us who have kiddos that seem to “forget” how to be in school, here’s a tip for you.  Every year I have taught I have used an end of the year countdown as a behavior incentive.  Each day we pop a balloon and earn the reward inside.  Yes, I said earn.  The kiddos don’t always get the incentive if behavior is not on point.  You can read more about how I set up my countdown [here].

8.  Keep kids engaged.
This ties directly into the behavior management that I mentioned above.  If your kids aren’t engaged, especially at the end of the year, kiss your classroom management strategies goodbye.  Nothing is worse than a group of kids who are flat out bored.One thing that I did this year to keep kids engaged until the last day was an animal PBL unit.  The kids picked an animal to become experts on during our animal unit.  During the last week or so of school the kids spent a ton of time building a virtual zoo exhibit on Book Creator, then actually building an exhibit.  Students voice and student choice for the win!  More to come on that unit later!

My reflection of the year can be found [here].

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Last week I went outside one day after school and took pictures of the bark of several trees right around our classroom.  I printed and laminated these to create a tree bark matching activity.  This center is super versatile!  Students can go outside in teams (with adult supervision) to try and find the tree that each picture matches.  This led to some of the best conversation of the day because students were unknowingly using great description words to justify why a certain picture match a tree or not.