The Joy of Teaching – Page 38 of 46

July 1, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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The ONE Thing You Should Do to Get Your Child Ready for Kindergarten

This simple advice on kindergarten readiness comes from a kindergarten teacher: “Of all the activities to get your child ready for kindergarten, the single most important thing you can do is to READ!” Modeling reading and reading with your child every day is the best thing you can do to help your child prepare for kindergarten. Isn’t that a relief?

Consider these recommendations from an experienced kindergarten teacher:

Model Your Own Enjoyment in Reading
Does your child see you reading material that is not on a screen? With daily use of phones and tablets, it’s easy to substitute a device for a printed book, magazine, or newspaper—but it’s important to model reading books for your child and model your own enjoyment in reading.

Spend Time Reading with Your Child
Devote about 20 minutes a day to reading and talking about what you’ve read. For example, ask your child’s opinion about the story to encourage him or her to interact with the text. And, most importantly, find books on topics that interest your child, whether it’s dinosaurs, tractors, or princesses.

Get a Library Card
Frequent library visits help you find books on topics that interest your child, and librarians are a great resource for book ideas. Be sure to check your library’s schedule for story-time events.

Read Rhyming Books
Select some books that rhyme. Rhyming books and songs help children recognize sound patterns in the language, as well as the rhythm of the language.

What about fine motor skill development? Kindergarten teachers agree that fine motor skills are developmental and depend on when a child is ready, but you can supplement reading with creative activities that are fine motor focused, such as crafts, cutting, coloring, painting, Legos, Playdough, and beading. For supplemental activities that include mazes, matching, and crafts, try these Evan-Moor resources: Never-Bored Kid Books (PreK–K) and At-Home Tutor: Reading (PreK).

The ultimate goal is to encourage reading and nurture a life-long love of reading. The good news for parents is that taking time to read puts your child on the path to academic success in kindergarten and beyond.

Contributing Writer

Theresa Wooler has more than 10 years’ experience in K–6 classrooms as a parent volunteer and homeschool educator, has taught high school English, and is currently involved in education through Evan-Moor’s marketing communications team.

June 24, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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5 Fun Activities for Learning Colors and Shapes

With items around your home and inexpensive dollar store buys, you can have fun teaching your child colors and shapes! Here are a few ideas to try this summer, including a link to web-based flashcards from Evan-Moor:

Color and shape activity from Learning 4 Kids

1. Color and Shape Matching

What you need: Colored buttons or pompoms, paper, and markers

Use colored markers to draw shapes on white paper. Have your child fill in the shape with the matching color, using a package of small pompoms or colored buttons. Here’s an example with a free printable.

2. Muffin Tin Sorting

What you need: Muffin tin and construction paper

Cut colored paper into different shapes and tape each shape to the bottom of the inside of a muffin tin. (For example, red circles, yellow triangles, blue squares, orange rectangles.) Cut extra shapes and have your child place the shapes into the correct muffin tin. Other ideas:

Have your child collect small items of different shapes around the house or outdoors and place the similar shapes in the correct muffin tin. (For example, coins, buttons, pebbles, erasers, Post-it notes, magnets, Legos, blocks, and small toys.)
Have your child collect items of the same color and sort the items in the muffin tin. Using tongs or chopsticks to place items in the muffin tins adds fine motor practice!

3. Shape Sponge Painting

What you need: Pack of sponges, paint, and paper

Cut sponges into geometric shapes such as triangles, rectangles, and squares. Let your child design a creation or give examples of how geometric shapes can form a house, truck, kite, or ice cream cone. These printable pages to cut and color can also be used for sponge painting ideas:

From Never-Bored Kid Book and Learning Line: Colors and Shapes activity books.

Shape game from HANDS ON as we grow

4. Tape Shapes

What you need: Painter’s tape

There are many creative ways to use painter’s tape for learning shapes, such as this clever Tape City and shape ball game. You can use painter’s tape to make shapes on the floor and play various games with the large shapes, such as rolling a ball and calling out the shape or having kids jump in a particular shape. You can also use colored marbles or pompoms to sort colors in each shape.

image of Evan-Moor's colors and shapes online flashcard activities

Evan-Moor’s online flashcard activities

5. Online activities

What you need: Computer or tablet

Evan-Moor has created online flashcard activities to help children learn colors and shapes. The interactive activities are touchscreen compatible and include a timer that can be used to create a “beat the clock” game or can be hidden from view. Access the free Colors and Shapes interactive activities here.

We’d love to hear your ideas for teaching children colors and shapes! Please leave a comment.

Contributing Writer

Image of Theresa Wooler Theresa Wooler has more than 10 years’ experience in K–6 classrooms as a parent volunteer and homeschool educator, has taught high school English, and is currently involved in education through Evan-Moor’s marketing communications team.

June 16, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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10 Easy Ways to Keep Your Child Learning All Summer

Summer is a time filled with swimming, picnics, and lots of watermelon. It is also one of the most natural times to engage your child’s curious mind! Whether homeschoolers take a break over the summer or homeschool year-round, these 10 fun and easy ways to keep kids learning all summer are sure to be a hit.

Set up an obstacle course in your yard. Jump like a kangaroo from one place to another, wiggle like a snake around a hula hoop, use a water hose to make a curvy line on which to walk. Have your child make predictions about how many jumps she has to make, how long he can walk on the water hose, how many steps it is from one place to another. You get the idea – any excuse to get them to move is great!
Go on a nature walk and have your child observe nature. Your child can take a photograph or draw in a notebook. If you take walks in the same place regularly, take note of how things change over time. We use our smartphone to take photographs and teach our children about what makes a great photograph in order to connect nature with art.
Watermelon equals summer, and there are tons of learning activities to do with a watermelon. To measure circumference, use a string to go around the watermelon, and then use a ruler to measure the string. See if the watermelon floats. Estimate the number of seeds in a piece of watermelon, and then count them.
Paint like Pollock – Jackson Pollock, that is! Simply get an inexpensive canvas (many craft stores offer them 50% off), choose colors to match your décor, and splatter paint it. Another idea is to splatter paint on pieces of cardstock and make them into thank-you cards.
Start a rock collection. This is especially fun if you are taking a trip this summer. Your child can extend this topic to include gems and minerals, too. Be sure to look for identification guides at your local library!
Start a pen pal exchange. Your child can write his/her cousins on postcards and look forward to receiving mail. Currently, we are writing our great-grandparents, who really appreciate getting a little note in the mail each week!
Host a book or toy exchange. Have each child bring 3–5 items to trade for someone else’s treasures.
Give back to the community. You can participate in park clean-ups, have a bake sale or lemonade stand, or hold trike-a-thon to raise money for your favorite charity.
Visit local museums or art galleries in the heat of the day. Also, be on the lookout for historical markers in your area or on your vacation.
Have a family book club or movie club. Everyone reads the book or watches the movie, and then discusses things like:
- What do you think the message of the movie is?
- Would you want to be friends with X character?
- What part was the most interesting to you?
- Would you recommend this movie or book to a friend

BONUS idea: Participate in summer reading programs where your child can earn prizes. Be sure to check with bookstores, restaurants, and your local library. For even more ideas, you can check out my Summer Activities Pinterest board or Evan-Moor’s Summer Activities Pinterest board.

Now it’s your turn! What are your favorite ways to keep kids learning during the summer? Please leave your ideas in the comments section!

Contributing Writer

Amy Michaels is a certified teacher with 11 years of elementary classroom experience who is actively homeschooling her own children. Her mission is share the best teaching methods and resources with all homeschoolers. Amy supports parents through her podcasts, webinars, and online training for homeschoolers on her website http://www.thrivehomeschooling.com.

June 11, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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The ABCs of Kindergarten Success: Ways to Help Your Child Learn the Alphabet

Image of magnetic letters spelling the word "kindergarten" A child’s academic success may very well begin with learning the ABCs. As years of studies have concluded, “The cognitive skills children demonstrate at kindergarten entry can potentially shape their early school experience.” (Sameroff and Haith, 1996)

Recognizing and naming all upper- and lowercase letters of the alphabet is an expectation of kindergarten, as stated in the Common Core Reading Standards. So becoming familiar with the alphabet will give your child a strong start in kindergarten.

From PlayDrMom’s blog

Here are a few parent-tested ideas for alphabet fun for preschoolers and kindergartners:

Alphabet Games: Learning Through Play

Interactive activities such as Evan-Moor’s online flashcards engage children in playing games with letters. Use this link to access free online activities: The Alphabet.
Apps such as Dora’s ABCs are a favorite with young children.
This alphabet scavenger hunt is a clever idea to get children active and practicing matching letters to objects!

From Learn with Play at Home blog

Engaging, Multisensory Activities
Hands-on activities and arts and crafts provide valuable practice of fine motor skills and help young children visualize letter shapes.

Your child can color this ABC animal book and use it as a starting point to learn how letters correspond to sounds.
Use magnetic letters on the fridge, magnetic board, or magnetic cookie sheet to encourage children to play with letters.
Make letter shapes with Playdough.
Use alphabet-shaped pasta to make Alphabet Soup with your child.
This blog provides examples of alphabet crafts for each letter.
Trace letters in sand, uncooked rice, or table salt in a cookie tray with sides or other container. Here’s an example from the Learn with Play at Home blog.

Songs and Chants
How many of us still rely on the ABC song to recall the order of letters in the alphabet? Songs and chants are a memorable way to learn and remember the alphabet!

YouTube videos provide a variety of ABC songs, such as this “Super Why” ABC song.

Books to Read
Reading alphabet books is a great way to teach alphabetic awareness. Here are just a few favorite titles:

Alphabet Rescue by Audrey Wood
Brian Wildsmith’s Amazing Animal Alphabet Book by Brian Wildsmith
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, Jr., and John Archambault
Dr. Suess’s ABC by Dr. Seuss
The Hidden Alphabet by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Writing Activities

Writing letters strengthens children’s visual discrimination of letters.
These printable pages show how to write the letters of the alphabet in traditional or modern style. (from Jumbo Fun with the Alphabet)
Children will also enjoy writing their name, family names, and pet names.

For more ideas on kindergarten readiness, see this parent blog: 5 Tips to Help Your Child Get Ready for Kindergarten or these Evan-Moor resources:

Jumbo Fun with the Alphabet

Learning Line: Beginning Sounds activity book

The Alphabet flashcards

Please share your ideas for helping children learn the alphabet!

June 2, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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How to Prepare a Schedule for Homeschooling in the Summer

Image of How to Prepare a Schedule for Homeschooling in the Summer As soon as we can start going to the pool, our family switches gears into summer mode. It is easy to let school slide in the summer, but we maintain our priorities of learning and staying on a schedule. Our personalities just do better when we keep learning and staying in a routine, though we do adjust it for every season.

Why school in the summer?
There are 3 main reasons:

When kids stay in practice and continue using the skills they learn, their minds retain the knowledge better. When I taught elementary school, we would easily spend 4–6 weeks reviewing skills learned in the previous grade level to make sure the children were ready to learn the new information. By schooling just a little bit, it actually prevents a lot of that regression.
Most kids do better when they are on a schedule, so having a routine can help your family focus on what is important each day.
Doing a little learning activity can prevent boredom and all-day TV watching, too.

What should you include in your summer schedule?
Your summer schedule should reflect what is most important to your family. Here are some ideas of things to include:

15 minutes (or more!) of DEAR time – Drop Everything and Read (parents, too!)
Nature walks or gardening (mornings or evenings may be best)
A weekly visit to local events, museums, family music concerts, and art galleries
Art projects
Science experiments
Writing or drawing in a notebook
Creating a family video to share or teach what you have learned this year
Daily Summer Activities from Evan-Moor – If you are looking for super quick, easy, and fun learning activities, this book is your golden ticket. My kids ask every day (even on the weekends) if they can do their Evan-Moor daily learning activity books. No joke. At $12.99, they are worth every penny to save you time and keep your kids learning this summer.

Some final tips:

Summer is a great time to finish up lessons or activities that you didn’t get to do during the school year. Also, your child can review any areas where more practice is needed – just keep it short and fun!

We work on bigger learning projects in the summer rather than our traditional routine of teaching multiple subjects.

Since our family has younger children, we get outside in the morning while the temperatures are cooler. The kids play and get out a lot of energy! It is also a great time to run our errands – especially if we are buying ice cream!

We have our learning time after lunch when it is too hot to go outside. Then, when school is done, we have a snack and get ready to go to the pool.

Finally, ask your child what he or she would like to study! Summer is a great time to let your child take the lead on what to learn. If kids are interested, their motivation to keep learning will be stronger.

If you need some ideas for summer activities, Evan-Moor has several options for you to consider. TeacherFileBox has lesson plans for PreK–grade 8 in every subject. You can also follow Evan-Moor on Pinterest for inspirational ideas all year long. Be sure and like them on Facebook, too!

I will be posting our summer learning experiences on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, too. Head over to connect with me there, as well!

I hope you have a great summer full of learning and fun!

May 27, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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One Teacher’s Story: Using Daily Phonics for Assessment

In my first-grade classroom, I use a variety of Evan-Moor daily practice titles for quick lessons and easy assessments. While I don’t always use the lessons sequentially, I’ve found that these titles are valuable to help students practice a skill in class or for homework, and provide me a great way to check understanding every week.

Here’s how I’ve used Daily Phonics for assessment. My first graders were learning inflectional endings and I felt they were grasping the concept.

I decided to assess my students using Daily Phonics (grade 1.) My goal for the assessment was to break my students into groups so that I could challenge them with irregular verbs and possibly re-teach the few that needed it.
My students completed this weekly unit (Monday through Friday activities) in one 20-minute period. After grading their work, I realized that I was VERY wrong. My students had not learned inflected endings as I’d thought. Without the assessment piece, I would have kept moving along. Instead, I learned that I needed to re-teach inflected endings.
Next, I incorporated basic practice activities to re-teach the students, such as writing dictation sentences with inflected-ending verbs, hopscotch, and vortex-sorts using a Smart Board notebook.
Then, after a few weeks, I re-assessed my students with Daily Phonics

By using my weekly Daily Phonics assessments, I am able to quickly and easily assess my students’ understanding and differentiate my teaching based on their levels and needs.

Christina Sciarrotto has been an elementary school teacher for 13 years and currently teaches first grade in New York. She also serves as a mentor teacher and has served as a summer school principal for 8 years.

May 20, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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How to Prevent Math Summer Learning Loss

Summer learning loss, also referred to as the summer slide, is a fact. While reading tends to be a focus over the summer, it is actually math skills that are often lost over the summer break. “Most students lose about two months of grade level equivalency in mathematical computation skills over the summer months.” (Cooper, 1996)

There are helpful, and often free, resources to help parents provide their children with math skill practice over the summer, without feeling overburdened or taking away from fun summer activities. By incorporating the following activities and resources into summer break, you can help your child prevent the summer slide:

Play Games

Just because you’re practicing math doesn’t mean it has to be boring! Games like Mancala or Triangle are great ways to practice basic math. They’re also easy to travel with, so pack them in a picnic basket or travel bag. Or, get out a deck of cards and play math games like addition or subtraction war. Or try this pairs game using buttons or items around the house: Game of Nim.

Cook Together

Cooking is a great way to practice math. By scaling the recipe, children can practice their multiplication, or use smaller measurements to ask more basic questions like: “How many ½ cups will we need to make 2 whole cups?”

Math practice books

Skill Sharpeners: Math activity books are available at different grade levels (grades PreK–6) with quick and fun activities that are perfect for practicing math skills.

Helpful hint: If your child needs extra encouragement, try using a math log. Similar to a reading log, you’ll add a mark to keep track of every page of math your child completes. After he or she reaches a feasible and predetermined amount, reward your child with a special activity.

Math Stories

Taking turns telling stories is perfect for keeping children engaged. Include math in this activity by filling in the blank in phrases such as: “When Sally counted her cookies, one was missing. She only had…”

Learning about Money activity books

This Learning Line activity book highlights money as a way to practice math every day. As additional practice for hands-on learning, use real coins.

Helpful hint: Set up a toy cash register and play “store” with change. Have your child be the cashier to practice addition and subtraction with double-digit numbers.

Online flashcards

Evan-Moor is also offering free online flashcards to engage your child in practicing basic math skills. Use these links to access Evan-Moor online activities: Addition and Subtraction Facts to 10 and Multiplication Facts to 9s.

Contributing Writer

Trisha Thomas is the mother of two and serves on the board of directors at a co-op preschool. She has also been a marketer of educational materials for grades PreK–8 for more than 15 years.

May 11, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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Tips for Storing and Organizing Centers

One dilemma of classroom organization is how to store your centers.

Centers take some time to make, but once assembled, self-contained centers are valuable learning tools for years to come! You may be able to enlist willing parents and students to help you make the centers—and then use some of these tips to store and organize your centers:

A DIY classroom organizer made of cereal boxes

Folder centers are the easiest to store in a crate or box with hanging files or magazine holders. Use folders with inside pockets, small envelopes or self-closing plastic bags (for storing task cards), and of course, laminating equipment. It’s helpful to attach a cover sheet on the front of the folder for quick reference. Here’s a sample folder center from Take It to Your Seat Centers: Math, grade 5.

Boxes are easy to stack on shelves or book cases

Shoebox centers are easily stackable on a shelf or table in the classroom. Students can simply take the portable center to their desk. Plastic boxes with a cover also work well and ensure that boxes are the same size. Create simple labels by using sturdy cardstock attached with double-sided tape.

Example of a hanger pocket center

Hanger pocket centers can be easily stored on hooks anywhere in the classroom, and students can hang the center on the edge of their desk or the back of a chair while working on the task. Use a hanger and butcher paper or a brown paper bag to create these centers. Here’s a sample and directions for creating a hanger pocket center for grades 1–3.

Bag centers: Ziploc bags, canvas totes, or gift bags

Large Ziploc bags are useful for organizing center directions and pieces, and can be stored in plastic bins without taking up too much space. This is ideal when you’re low on storage and if you frequently rotate center stations.
Canvas tote bags make sturdy center organizers and can be stored in a tub or crate or hung from hooks in the classroom. Even better, students can help you label (and decorate) the bags!
Another alternative is gift bags with handles, which you can purchase in different colors to help you coordinate centers by topics.

Here’s a sample center from Take It to Your Seat Centers: Language, grade 3. Each bag could be labeled with a center skill, such as parts of speech, subject-verb agreement, root words, etc.

Image of canvas bag totes handing on hooks in a classroom

Another clever way to organize and store centers

Example of using paper gift bags for centers

Evan-Moor Center Resources

Everything you need to create quality centers is included in each title. Check out these teacher favorites:

Take It to Your Seat Centers: Language

Take It to Your Seat Centers: Math

Take It to Your Seat: Geography Centers

Take It to Your Seat: Literacy Centers

Take It to Your Seat: Phonics Centers

Take It to Your Seat: Reading & Language Centers

Take It to Your Seat: Science Centers

Take It to Your Seat: Writing Centers

and Phonics Intervention Centers

May 8, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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Book Report Project Ideas and Forms: Trading cards, book mobiles, and more.

What’s the best book that you’ve read this year? Turn that question into a hands-on book report project. Students can choose their favorite book for imaginative reports and create trading cards, mobiles, pop-up books, board games, and more!

Use these free printables for creative book reports from
Evan-Moor’s How to Report on Books:

A character trading card project: This book project focuses on recalling facts about a character and creating trading cards.

Book mobile project: This book project guides students in identifying setting/characters and problem/solution, and in creating a mobile.Tips: glue white paper to backs of construction paper for the illustrations (step #1); add a length of construction paper to increase the long strip to form a ring (step #2.)

An exciting event pop-up: This book report project focuses on summarizing an exciting event from a fiction book and includes instructions on making a pop-up book report form.

Other engaging book report ideas include:

See our Book Report Fun Pinterest board for more book report ideas such as making character puppets, comic strips, posters, story bags, puzzles, and awards.

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May 5, 2015
by Evan-Moor
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Teacher Appreciation Week: Thank a Teacher Today

What qualities make a teacher extraordinary? It’s been three decades since I sat in Miss O’Connor’s freshman English class at Mater Dei High School, but I still remember her warm smile, how she played a song by The Police to help her students connect with The Odyssey, and, more importantly, how she took an interest in me and encouraged me to take honors English.

I’ve often thought of her over the years: when I decided to study English literature in college and when I became a high school English teacher. Of the many extraordinary teachers I’ve experienced and who have taught my children, I believe the underlying quality to their greatness is that they love what they do and they care.

With a passion for teaching and working with children, teachers can inspire their students to learn. Standards, learning objectives, and daily goals follow. And, in the end, students learn and remember a teacher in their life who cared about them.

As we celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week, please take a moment to thank an unforgettable teacher who has affected your life or your child’s life!

Today, I thank Miss O’Connor – wherever she may be – for teaching with energy and passion, and for inspiring me to learn.

Your student, Theresa (Taugher) Wooler

Contributing Writer

Theresa Wooler has more than 10 years’ experience in K–6 classrooms as a parent volunteer, has taught high school English, and is currently involved in education through Evan-Moor’s marketing communications team.