Freaky Friday- Week 5; Old Lady Swallowed A Pie!

This year there are 5 Fridays in October, so you will be treated to 'spook'-tacular deals for 5 weeks!

The deals started on October 2nd and end tomorrow!

Here is how it works:

Each Friday the participating sellers will select one product from their store to mark down to just $1 for the day!

How will you find these products?

There are 2 ways:

1. Type freakyfriday into the TPT search engine

2. Click the links to the participating stores in the linky at the end of this post and it will take you directly to that store's $1 deal for the day!  

You can also click the first link- it will bring you to all the $1 deals of the day!

So what will you find from me this week?

I am happy to offer one of my favorite Thanksgiving packs:

If your students are anything like mine, they L-O-V-E this story:

by Alison Jackson 

(Don't have it...see below...you can WIN a copy!!!)

So I created a pack to go along with the story to help with recall, sequencing and retelling!

This Pack Includes:
*Listening Response Printable

*Sequencing Printable/Pieces

*10 Full Color Sequencing Cards

*10 B&W Sequencing Cards

*Directions for folding the reader

*Full Color 8 page Foldable Emergent Reader

*B&W 8 page Foldable Emergent Reader

***AND just added 10/15/15***
*retelling/sequencing crown (with assembly and directions for use)

This pack is normally $3, so by purchasing it tomorrow, October 30th, you'll save $2! 

If you and your students LOVE this pack, be sure to check out my entire 'Old Lady Swallowed' series- which is on sale for 10/30 only too!  Valued at $44, you can grab it for $20 on Friday!

When you purchase the bundle you get 'bundle only' retelling bags for each story!

Ready To Find All the $1 Deals for Week 5 (LAST WEEK) of Freaky Friday?

An InLinkz Link-up

Now here is your TREAT!!!

I would LOVE to give away a copy of The Old Lady Who Swallowed A Pie to one lucky winner!  (If you already own the book you can enter and if you win, you can choose another book in the same price range from Amazon!)

The only 'rule' for entry is you must reside in an area where Amazon will ship!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

We hope you have enjoyed these weekly deals!

We'd love to have you come back and visit again next year when we 'get freaky' all over again!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Until next post,

Halloween Gift Tags

This year I am going for a less traditional pack of goodies for my kinders!

My kids L-O-V-E their 'reading fingers' that we use in school, so I thought it would be a great idea to send one home so they can use it while reading books at home!

I found glow-in-the-dark 'Witch Fingers' at Dollar Tree (10 in a pack for $1!) and made a cute tag to tape them onto:

I simply cut the tags apart and taped the finger on! 

After posting a picture of them on my Instagram account and getting several requests, I put them up here to download!

It will open in PowerPoint so that you can edit them with your name!

I used KG Why You Gotta Be So Mean font (free to download for personal use) in 18pt size.

If you already have that font, or after you download it, once you open this document it will be all set for you to edit!  Simply tap the text box, highlight it and change to your name!

Don't have the font and can't download it?  No problem!  Use whatever font you have and/or like!

BUT that is not the only gift I have been working on!

Look at what I am having my boys bring their before/aftercare teachers:

SO simple to make!  I literally had this one done in less than 5 minutes!

1. Purchase EOS lip balm (I chose yellow to match the jack-o-lantern/go with the 'glow' theme- but they also have orange!  I got mine at my local grocery store- but they sell them at CVS and I saw them on Amazon too!)

2. Download the template I created

3. Cut on the dotted lines

(this one was done without the dotted lines- I 'eyed' it- the template will make it easier!)

4. Open the EOS lip balm and slide it in the hole.

5. Seal the lip balm

6. Sign the 'card!'

I am going to wrap it in some cellophane and add some festive ribbon before the boys hand them out on Friday!

Hope this makes 'gift giving' a tad less 'scary' for you this year!

Until next post,

Hair Gel Writing Practice Bags

Over the summer I attended a sight words workshop at the National I Teach K conference in Las Vegas presented by Mary from Sharing Kindergarten.

She shared her sight word stations and at one station she has the kids practice writing their sight words on hair gel bags!

GENIUS!

No mess- but all the 'tactile fun' of finger paint and/or shaving cream!

She used gallon size bags- since I was making a class set, I opted for quart size!

Fast forward to now where I watch my kinders struggle each day with fine motor issues!

So it was time to make some hair gel bags to practice our letters and numbers!

Now we are all ready for some fine motor

So how did I make these bags?!

I bought 5 bottles of CHEAP hair gel (I wound up only needing 3.5, but will keep the remaining gel to make new bags for those that find too much 'TLC' in their existence!)

I had a box of food coloring I use for playdough making in the cabinet so I was all set to make bags in all colors!

I purchased sandwich and quart size bags. 

I made a writing line 'template' to slide in the bags.

First I squeezed some gel into the sandwich size bag.  I didn't measure it- just eyed it!

Then I added a few drops of food coloring to the gel 

I closed the bag- getting out as much air as I could- and started squeezing and squishing the bag to mix the colors 

This is what it looked like once it was all 'mixed' (it doesn't take long or much effort!) 

I printed the writing line onto cardstock, cut it out and taped the bag to the cardstock template in 3 places across the top

This is what it looked like once it was all affixed to the template 

I slipped the gel bag/writing template combo into the quart size bag and got as much air out as possible before sealing the bag 

Now they are ready to practice writing letters and/or numbers!

'Erasing' is easy!  Simply rub the space back and forth! 

All set to practice the next letter/number! 

Keep them stored flat!

They are also great to have at your guided reading/small group instruction table!  There is no way to break out finger paint or shaving cream during a small group lesson, but these bags serve the same purpose without the mess- or crazy clean up!

They can be used for writing words too!

If a bag happens to 'pop' it is housed inside a second bag so it will be easy to spot a 'leak' before it is too late!

You can make your bags seasonally tinted or go for a rainbow of colors like I did!

Until next post,

Freaky Friday Week 4- Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid Of Anything!

This year there are 5 Fridays in October, so you will be treated to 'spook'-tacular deals for 5 weeks!

The deals started on October 2nd and will run each Friday through October 30th!

Here is how it works:

Each Friday the participating sellers will select one product from their store to mark down to just $1 for the day!

How will you find these products?

There are 2 ways:

1. Type freakyfriday into the TPT search engine

2. Click the links to the participating stores in the linky at the end of this post and it will take you directly to that store's $1 deal for the day!  

You can also click the first link- it will bring you to all the $1 deals of the day!

So what will you find from me this week?

I am happy to offer a somewhat BRAND NEW resource...

If your students are anything like mine, they L-O-V-E this story

 by Linda Williams!

So I created a pack to go along with the story to help with sequencing and retelling!

This Pack Includes:

*Directions for each component of the pack

*Listening Response Printable

*Sequencing Printable/Pieces

*14 Full Color Sequencing Cards (and a set in black and white)

*Photo instructions for folding the reader

*Full Color 8-page Foldable Emergent Reader (and a copy in black and white)

*Story Sequencing/Retelling Crown

*Build A Scarecrow Activity & Writing Prompt (in both color and b&w)

This pack is normally $4, so by purchasing it tomorrow, October 23rd, you'll save $3! 

If you do decide to read this story to your class, and have access to the internet, this is a great video to play for the kids!  It puts the book to music and the kids will love to chime in for all the 'action' parts!

If you and your students LOVE this pack, be sure to check out my 'Old Lady Swallowed' series that contains similar items to complement each of those books!

Ready To Find All the $1 Deals for Week 4 of Freaky Friday?

An InLinkz Link-up

Be sure to check back next week to find out what the last $1 deal (Week 5) will be!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Until next post,

Pumpkin 'Picking' For ABC's!

While scouting Pinterest for some fun fall ideas, I stumbled upon this ABC center idea shared by Little Miss Glamour Goes To Kindergarten

I loved the idea of the kids pumpkin 'picking' for letters but we have only covered 13 letters so far, so I had to make my own printable

so that I could make sure they were working with and practicing the letters and sounds we have covered so far.

I haven't decided if I am going to have them use BINGO daubers to mark the letters they 'pick' and ID

 OR print the sheet on orange cardstock/laminate and have them use candy corn to cover the letters

and then I came across these foam shapes and Halloween themed erasers I had in my October bucket

that I could use too!

I am also toying with the idea of giving them connecting cubes and having them stack the cubes as they pull the same letter to count and see which letter they pulled the most.  

(It would also make a great 'partner game' using it as a 'BUMP'-type activity!)

As I was making it I thought 'I really should have a follow-up/extension activity for my early finishers' (and those that are ready for a bit more of a challenge) so I made some letter mats

They will 'pick' from the pumpkin, ID the letter (and sound) and see if it goes with any of the pictures they have on their mat (or have all the mats out on the table and they could find the one it goes to).

After they place the magnetic letter on the mat they then use a dry erase marker (or crayon- LOVE THEM!) to practice writing the letter

This would be a great way to differentiate for different learners too- the pumpkins of letters would be on the table to share, yet different students could be working on different skills!  You could even challenge them to ID the ending sound!

AND even better...these mats could be used for anytime during the year because they are not seasonally based!  Put letters in other seasonal buckets and containers to continue practicing throughout the year!

And as I finished printing all of my mats and prepping my center for next week, I thought...'I bet there are other teachers out there that also found this pin but couldn't use the printable 'as is' because of letters they have covered/not so far' SO I made the printable editable so that you can make it to match what your students are working on!

It will open in PowerPoint.  Simply click in the text box and type the letters you need!

I used KG Red Hands font- it is free to download for personal use.

You can use whatever font you are comfortable with and/or have access to!

WORKING ON SIGHT WORDS (or CVC, CVCe, etc):

Type words on the printable and then cut up some words to throw in the pumpkin (or write words on foam pumpkin or seasonal cut-outs)!

Kids pull the word, read it, find it on the printable and mark it- just as they would do with the letters!

Like the picture/letter mats too?  No worries- I included them in the FREE DOWNLOAD too!

So all you need to do is grab some:

*plastic pumpkins (or witch cauldrons!) (I found mine at Dollar Tree)

*magnetic or foam letters

*daubers, candy corn, themed confetti, themed foam shapes, themed erasers, and/or connecting cubes

*free printables 

and you will be all set for a fun ABC Center for next week!

Want to remember this for next year?  Here is a pin:

And if you are still searching for some Halloween fun for next week, you can find some rhyming activities, emergent readers, craftivities, read/count the room, playdough mats, math printables and more in my TpT Store via the 'Halloween' custom category!

Hope you have a 'spook'-tacular week!

Be sure to swing by on Thursday to read all about what I will be putting up for this week's freakyfriday $1 deal- only 2 more weeks of deals!

Until next post,