Word Bingo with Coin Markers

While tutoring emerging readers sight word Bingo is often a favorite game. It is easy to find printable bingo cards or even to make them yourself. One of my favorite resource is the premade Dolch Primer Bingo cards (8 in total) at Bingo Card Creator. Playing sight word Bingo by itself is a great learning game but I wanted to add in an extra learning component. I decided to pull out my play coins. For "A" to have a Bingo (win the game) he needed to have over $1.00 on his card. I included one penny as the free space marker and the coin that would put it over the dollar mark. Then I gave him one quarter and different combinations of nickels and dimes. I had about $1.20 available to him, even though he only needed to reach $1.00. I was hoping he would figure out that if he went with dimes then he would need to look for less words, but he used all the nickels first. I think strategy will come later as he learns the coins better. I also introduced a hundreds chart to help with the counting of the markers. "A" has never used a hundreds chart before, but he was definitely intrigued. I love his "Aha" moment when he noticed tens were right underneath each other. It was through the use of the chart that I discovered he could count by tens (something he had failed to share with me before)! I really liked the use of reading and math integrated into the game. We will definitely be playing it again.

Word Family Samples

When I tutor struggling readers I often start with working on word families. I often times use a slider to show different beginnings sounds to the word family we are focusing on. Recently, I came acrposs a new way to make beautiful sliders for word families at The Snail's Trail blog. By taking paint sample from the hardware store (don't be ashamed-grab away) you can do so many great learning/craft activities. To make the set of word family cards get 13 long paint chip samples and 34 single samples. You can get samples that have three/four to a card but will need to cut out each individual color. If you choose that route you only need 12 (I would get extra in case you make a mistake). On the long samples you would put consonants, blends, and diagraphs. On the individual color sample cut out a square - I used a small scrapbook square hole punch that I got for $10.99 with it 40% off on sale. Then write out word families on each sample. I found this website useful to see different word families. However, the best tutorial with exactly what to write I would go to The Snail's Trail (link above). Did I mention that each set makes over 500 words!?!

Top 10 Historical Picture Books.

I must say first that this is one of my favorite genres and I could have easily made it a top 50 list. Away we go...

1) Henry's Freedom Box by Ellen Levine: A beautifully illustrated book about the true story of a slave who mailed himself in a box crate to freedom. Ever since reading this I have wanted to build a replica of the box and see what it must have been like for him and his 27 hour journey. Weird I know...

2) Mighty Jackie: The Strikeout Queen by Marissa Moss: This is a true story of a 17 year-old girl who played for Chattanooga Lookouts. One day in 1931, she striked out both Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. After reading this I was struck with the injustice of not ever hearing who she before reading this book.

3) Buffalo Storm by Katherine Applegate: This book is so beautifully written I had to tell everyone who teaches the Oregon Trail or Westward Expansion to include it in their lessons. It is a story of a young girl who needs to leave her grandma behind as her family goes west. On her journey she sees buffalo running and the majestic experience helps her not be so afraid.

4) Back of the Bus by Aaron Reynolds: This is about a young boy who is riding the bus with his mama the day Rosa Parks refused to go to the back of the bus. I particularly love the voice and language used as the story is told through the young boys eyes.

5)The Rag Coat by Lauren Mills: This is one of my favorites about an Appalachian girl who can't go to school because she doesn't have a coat. Every adult in town chips in to make a coat out of scraps they had lying around. The children are ruthless and make fun of her ugly coat until they realise that the coat is made up of scraps from their past. Great tale to discuss bullying. I also love to do the text-to-text connection with Joseph's Little Overcoat by Simms Taback.

6) The Royal Bee by Frances Park: I love this story of a poor Korean boy 100 years ago who is desperate to go to school so he can better provide for his mother. His determination gets him into the school (normally for wealthy families) and later to represent his school at the royal bee.

7) Encounter by Jane Yolen: This is a story of a young Taino boy (native people of San Salvador) as his people meet Christopher Columbus. This definitely tells the side of the people who already inhabited the lands discovered, and brings up some deep questions and discussions.

8) Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming: This is an inspiring tale of a girl in Indiana who becomes a pen-pal with a girl in Holland, during post WWII. When the American girl discovers what the dutch girl is living with out due to war she starts to send care packages.

9) Train to Somewhere by Eve Bunting: Bunting is a historical fiction book genius who is not afraid to discuss heart wrenching subjects. If you teach Workshop her books are on all the reading list because they so easily lead to great discussions. This book is about the orphan trains post WWI and a girl orphan who is the last to find a home.

10) Pink and Say by Patricia Pollaco: This is actually part of Pollaco's oral history because Say is her great-great grandfather. It is a story of two boys: one white (Say) and one black (Pink) during the Civil War. Both fought for the Union Army in different units. When Say is injured Pink brings him to his mother to care for him. As their friendship blooms the hardship and horror of war continues. In the book there is violence and death. All though there is a sad ending Pollaco also leaves the reader with a sense of hope. It has been argued that this book shouldn't be taught in schools. However, war is more than the hero stories we are presented with and I feel we should try to teach the whole picture. This story is one of deep love. I love how both Pollaco and Bunting trust children to handle difficult topics. What a great showing of respect!

Top 10 ABC Books

I know this is awful to admit but I hate ABC books. How many "A is for Apple" do they expect a person to read. The always seem so simple and boring. Even "A" feels like I am treating him like a baby when I read most of them. However, I know that children need those concept books to help facilitate reading. After much painful research, I have compiled my list of top ten ABC books that aren't nauseating to read.

Picture found on web at Thomas Davis Group

1) Apple Pie ABC by Alison Murray: I just read this book this summer and I loved it. "A" made me read it multiple times. It is the story of a dog who watches his owner make an apple pie and each letter is his desperate attempt to get a taste.

2) I Stink by Kate McMullan: I have two boys so having an ABC book that talks about puppy poo and dirty diapers is a must. The best way to read this book about a garbage truck is with a New York accent, acting real tough. Better yet get the scholastic video of the reading. I always do dramatic pauses with the ABC page and give some really exasperated "OooOOOooo YUCK" for the gross things, but that is just me!

3) Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr: Okay, pretty much everyone loves this book about the letters in the coconut tree. It's a classic, pure and simple. To be honest, it took me hearing the song being sung on the Scholastic Video to truly appreciate it. Dang, now that song is in my head!

 cuz everyone should hear the song...

4) Al Pha Bet by Amy Krouse Rosenthal: This is another new discovery. It is a fun creative look at how and why the alphabet may have been created, something I have always wondered. This would be a great writing activity for older kids to think about why they think the letters were chosen in that order.

5) Dr. Suess ABC-An Amazing Alphabet Book: Honestly, who could go wrong with Dr. Suess. He was a creative genius! Plus it's just darn fun to say Fiffer Feffer Feff!!! I also like the book On Beyond Zebra about how words are just symbols and to not be afraid to make up some symbols of your own. Turned out well for Suess!

6) The Z is Zapped by Van Allsburg: Another favorite author of mine who leaves so much for the imagination. This book is set up like a play in 26 acts. There is a pencil illustration of each letter and on the back of that page is an explanation ("Z was Zapped"/"U was being Uprooted"). It is a great introduction to alliteration as well. There is one letter that doesn't follow alliteration and sometime I change the words so it does. I never understood that one letter...

7) The Alphabet Tree by Leo Lionni: When you see my author lineup these top ten are a no brainer. There are some great writers here! This story is about letters that live in a tree and get together to form words. It is great to show your child how letters for words, and maybe you can even get them to read a few!

8) AlphaOops- The Day Z Went First by Alethea Kontis: Why should Z have to always go last. He is sick of it, but when he tries to go first letters get out of order. Bickering and chaos ensue. Too Funny!

9) Alphabet Adventure, Alphabet Mystery, and Alphabet Rescue by Audrey Wood: I love the Wood family and everything they produce. The Napping House is my house every afternoon! Anyway these three books are a fabulous look at the letters (big and small) as they go on adventures. The illustrations are phenomenal! My son especially likes the Rescue one because it has a fire truck!

10) Superhero ABC by Bob McLeod: This book takes a comic book approach to introducing ABCs (keep in mind I have boys). Comics are intriguing to boy readers and -contrary to belief- help stimulate a love for reading, vocabulary, and fluency. The illustrations are so rich and vibrant anyone would be drawn into this book.

Top 10 Picture Books That Teach Math

1.) Guinea Pigs Add Up by Margery Cuyler. This is a funny book about after getting one guinea pig for class pet the class feels the pet is lonely, and the ask the teacher to get it a friend. Oops! The new guinea pig friend turns out to be a SHE! What starts out as two adds up to twenty and then as the animals get adopted the subtraction begins.

2.) Ten Black Dots by Donald Crews. This is a very primary book that would be great even for your preschoolers to start the idea of counting to ten. There are many ways to make it more interactive. I have heard of using poms with the book. I used black buttons with my preschooler, since he has a collection of them. I have also seen some really cute lesson plans with kindergartners that use this book as well.

3.) The Greedy Triangle by Marilyn Burns. This is a great book to introduce geometric shapes. The story is about a triangle that feels life would be better if it could be different shapes, so it finds a shapeshifter and turn into polygons, quadrilateral, hexagons, etc. You can watch a video of this story online too. Two lessons I want to try with this is making a shape prop made from 8 pieces of cardboard and brad fasteners. The prop will allow me to change shapes as we read the book. I got the idea for the prop from Lynn Sherman, for details on how to make it go here. Another great activity would be for students to make a geometry shape book from the shapes discussed in the book. Lastly, there is a beautiful art project you can make that I found at Superheroes and Princesses  blog.

4.) Math for All Seasons by Greg Tang. Tang makes many wonderful books of math riddles and I recommend all of them. He does a wonderful job using rhyming, simple addition and subtraction, patterns, and more. Each of the pages in his book typically stand on their own so you can do short lessons for the easily distracted.

5.) Mission Addition by Loreen Leedy. A class solves addition mysteries in six different cases. The answers are at the back of the book. The single digit addition is explained in detail and the book almost has a comic book vibe to it. Engaging to any child.

6.) How Many Blue Birds Flew Away by Paul Giganti, Jr. This is another author that does a lot of math picture books. I also really like his book Each Orange Had 8 Slices. I chose the Blue Birds because this book looks at subtraction. One thing I like is after reading a problem he ask questions that are easily answered if the child was listening. He uses those answers to help the child think about the more difficult question being asked.

7.) Spaghetti and Meatballs For All by Marilyn Burns. I know I have already used this author but this is a great book. It is about Mr. and Mrs. Comfort that are going to have a family reunion and serve dinner. There are 32 guests invited with only 8 tables. The problem is when guest come Mr. Comfort and the guest rearrange the table and there isn't 32 seats left. I liked the fact that the Mrs. was the math genius in the story and how I could relate to nobody listening to her. My five year old used squares I cut as table manipulatives. To finish the study serve spaghetti and meatballs.


8.) The M&M Counting Book by Barbara McGrath. Some criticize this book because of the blatant advertisement, so if that bugs you try a different book. Better yet, try these activities with something else in its place, rather than M&Ms. Each child only gets 12 pieces and what an awesome reward for sorting, counting, shape building and doing multiples of 12 by arranging the candy into different groupings. The eating doesn't come until the end when they get to subtract. Added plus-Mommy gets to eat whatever is left over in the bag.

8.) One Hundred Hungry Ants by Elinor Pinczes. This is a cute book about 100 ants marching to a picnic. They keep forming different lines (2 of 50, 4 of 25, and 10 of 10). Their constant line changing makes them late to the picnic. A nice way to introduce 100 and even coins. The book suggests using black beans as ants for math manipulatives.

9.)Grandfather Tang's Story by Ann Tompert, This is a Chinese folk tale about two fox fairies compete in changing shapes into seven different tangram animals. The book does have a page where you can trace out the tangram shapes so your child  can make the animals. You can also buy tangrams for under $10. I also have a tangram app on my KnookColor I got for $3.99 for "A" to play with. Tangrams are a challenge but the problem solving is beneficial to say the least.

10.) Anno's Magic Seeds by Mitsumasa Anno. Another story told as a folk tale about a man named Jack who is given two magic seeds. He is told to eat one and plant the other. The seed he plants will double the next year. Then one year he decides to plant both. Then a progression of doubles emerges. Anno has many math books as well that would be good to check out.

*Note to Teachers: If you haven't seen the Math and Literature books edited by Toby Gordon I highly recommend them. There are ones for grades K-1, 2-3, 4-6, and 6-8 with different authors writing each. I know Marilyn Burns writes the younger grade ones. Each book chooses ten books and has lesson plans for each one. Some of the books mentioned above are highlighted in their books. I love them and they are a must for my professional library.

Top 10 Juvenile Non-Fiction Books

1.) You Choose Interactive History Adventures by Capstone Press: Do you remember choose your own adventure book as kids? Well, this brilliant series (over 22 titles) takes that format but in true history scenarios instead. Each book gives you three characters to be (real people during that time) and you get to see what would happen if you played out that characters role in history. An example would be: for the Underground Railroad you could be a runaway slave, a slave catcher, or someone who lived in a railroad stop and helped slaves. There is great text features to help keep it engaging. The books cover wars, immigrants, pirates, Titanic, Westward Expansion, Gold Rush, and Exploration. Once I got students to read them (a lot of book talking) I couldn't keep them on the shelf.

2.) A Street Through Time by Dr. Anne Millard: I don't know if some of your questions from little ones begin "In the old times did..."? This book looks at one street over the course 12,000 years. It is really helpful for children to see the changes in a localized way. Each page highlights the scene, and ask children to look for some of the details.

3.) How to Clean a Hippopotamus by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page: As a general rule anything these two is brilliant. I am a HUGE Steve Jenkins fan. This is my most current favorite of theirs (of which there is many). It is a book about the symbiotic relationships between animals. For you Nemo fans there is some really interesting facts about clown fish and sea anemone that blew me away!

4.) The Bill Martin Jr. Big Book of Poetry: This is my favorite children's anthology of poetry on the market right now. The 200 poems are arranged by themes of season, school, humor, animals, feelings and more. There are some old standbys but new poems to, and the illustrations are vibrant and inviting.

5.) A Seed is Sleepy and An Egg is Quiet by Dianna Huts Aston: These books are so beautiful written it is hard to describe. If you teach writing I would recommend these for lesson plans. Each book takes one thing from the natural word and finds one simple sentence to see that item in a new, creative light. Often times the page will have a piece of beautiful prose and then true facts as well. She just put out a new book about butterflies that I can't wait to get my hands on.

6.) Forest Explorer by Nic Bishop. Nic Bishop is a photographic genius. He takes life-size photos of animals, insects, spiders and other things you would find in the forest. Then he makes a photo collage of a scene. He follows up each photo landscape with field notes about what he as captured. His book Backyard Detective follows the same format and is worth checking out. The pictures in both are colorful and detailed and children can't stop staring!

7.) A Life Like Mine by UNICEF. This is my favorite from a group of books that look at children and compare their lives from all over the world. In A Life Like Mine it declares that all children should have the right to play, get an education, have shelter and food, not fight in wars, and other things we in America take for granted. The text features and photographs are amazing and I find children find the text accessible and not boring. Due to content I would wait until children are in 3rd grade for some pages (like war) but others are okay to share (play). Either way expect great discussions.

8.) If The World Were A Village by David Smith. This book looks at if you took all the people in the world and made them 100 people in a village what would that look like. It talks about how many people would be each nationality, what religion they would practice, what language they would speak, how much food, water, and money would they have. This is a great lesson plan to teach percentages and make pie charts to see the difference. Also brings up discussion about if we shared food we would all have enough, but we don't. Due to the math and content I don't know if primary age children would understand or even be interested. He has also made one about America that would be interesting.

9.) Wooden Teeth and Jelly Beans: The Tubberman Files edited by Ray Nelson. This is a funny book that looks at facts and tidbits of the Presidents of the United States of America. This book is simply for entertainment with facts strewn in and I wouldn't use to get all your Presidential facts but it definitely intrigues children (3rd-5th grade most likely). It was here that I learned that George Washington's teeth weren't made of wood, something I still here teachers say. Note to reader I think it ends with the first Bush or Clinton.

10.) Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival by Kirby Larson. This is about a cat and dog that were left behind in the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. The two animals meet and save each other's life, forming an impenetrable bond. Follow their inspirational story that has a happy ending, so even the youngest readers are inspired by the story.

Getting off the Sidelines

I am finally starting a blog!!! I have tons of blogs bookmarked, and rather than sitting and admiring I thought I should join the ranks. I am trying to learn not to sit on the sidelines, but accept that what I have to offer may be valuable to someone out there! I owe it to myself to try!

I guess this is where I should introduce myself: I am a woman in her early thirties who has been married for ten years and also has two amazing boys. My oldest son just turned five and my youngest is 8 months old. They are both full of joy, EXTREMELY active, stubborn, funny, smart, and keep me on my toes. My family also consists of two dogs who are very much members of our household. I was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, even though relocation may be in my future.

My two little men

My other two boys

I worked in public libraries for about  four year, and then moved to working at an elementary school library. I am very passionate about books, especially children's books.The next school year, I will be student teaching in a 5th grade classroom. My dream is to teach intermediate grades (3rd-6th). I have always said, "I want to talk to students about what we have read, not teach them to read." Now that my youngest is learning to read I find that statement more true than ever!!! Primary teachers have extra doses of patience that I was not blessed with. Teaching is my life's passion and I am so excited to dedicate my life to that.

 Poster students made me when I left on maternity leave! Covers of books I turned them on to reading!

I am a real person with life happening all around me. I am just trying to make sense of what is handed to me and be content in the moment. I hope in this blog to discuss experiences that I am trying to understand, review books, recipes, crafts, give teaching ideas, but will most likely will be about being a MOM (and all that brings with it).

I hope someone reads it and can gain something for their time, but if they don't that is okay. Like I said, I just needed to do it. My goal is to start making my life be the way I want it to- instead of waiting for my fairy godmother to wave a magic wand. If it hasn't happened yet it most likely isn't going to!