Flashback post- Around the School- March

Hey everyone!  This is a flashback to an "Around the School" post from last March.  I plan to pick up this monthly post again next school year when I am back on my feet :)  In the meantime.... enjoy this one!! 
ps... Mason updates at bottom!

How often do you take the time to actually LOOK at all the other classroom bulletin boards and displays?  I know, I didn't either until I started this monthly post...but I am AMAZED at all the fun that is going on around the school!!

That brings me to my "Around the School" #3- March style!

So let's get right to it!

I love the simplicity of this project!!  How fun to sponge paint and then waaala... a shamrock! :)

CHICKS!!!  I looove this time of year!  It's chick hatching time!  The whole school watches the countdown to chicks (and I love to sneak in and hold a few ;)

I love how the above left pic shows the color of the eggs- yes this K teacher has a GREEN egg!  Then she shows how many of the eggs hatch!
(and how cute are those chick projects?!)

Ok, seriously Kindergarten teachers make the BEST bulletin boards!

Super cute Lincoln!!

Contraction Caterpillars! Love this idea!!

This cute project is a freebie from The Teacher Wife!

Leprechaun is in this Activity Pack
Banners are here

I absolutely LOVE this!!
Here is a closer look:

I hope you enjoyed this tour Around the School!  
 Let me know what you think! :) 
------------------
Mason is growing like a weed!  He is now 5 pounds and loving his bottles.  The only thing keeping him from coming home at this point is his breathing- or lack there of.  He still forgets (quite often!) to breathe especially during his feedings.  This is very scary to mom and dad.  They assure us that he will outgrow this but "when" is the magic question.
Thanks for your continued prayers!!

Bright Ideas~ High Frequency Word Practice

Hi Everyone!  Welcome to the Bright Ideas Blog Hop!  There are 186 fab bloggers participating in the hop- wowsers!  No links, no products, just great ideas!

Special thanks to the wonderful Shelley Gray from Teaching In the Early Years for organizing this amazing hop!

High frequency words (sight words) are so important to young readers.  This idea is a way to make sure your struggling readers have a way to practice and truly learn those words that are often hard to sound out.

This is an easy idea to

 use with any high frequency word list.

First, assess your students on your word list.  I like to highlight the words they can't read in 3 seconds or less.

Then, I create word rings.  I select 3-5 words to put on the first ring with the label "Words I'm Learning to Read."

(see sample labels below)

The other rings will have the other two labels and I will tell about them below.

I write the words on index cards and attach to the ring.   Having a small amount of words on the ring makes the activity quick (3-5 words).  Either a parent helper or I will pull the kids to read the words.  If the child can read the word in 3 seconds or less, a colored dot is put directly on the card.  When the card has three dots, that card is moved to the next ring.

Now ask the child to spell the same word orally.  If the child is successful, put a new dot in a new color.  Once the child can spell that word orally three times, the word is moved to the last ring.

The last step is to have the child write the word on paper or a dry erase board.  Put three more dots in a new color to keep track of mastery.  When the card has 9 dots, it can be placed loosely in the bag to revisit every once in a while.  All the rings can be put in the same ziploc bag for each child.

Why all the rings?

This gives the child 9 opportunities to master each word in a variety of ways: sight (reading), orally (spelling out loud), and kinesthetic (writing).

I hope this was helpful to you!  I'd love to hear how you tackle the tough high frequency words!

It's now time to hop on to your next destination!  You will visit my bloggy friend Jessica at The Littlest Scholars where she will tell you about movin' to learn using brain breaks! Fun!

If you'd rather, you can go directly to an idea that interests you!  See all Bright Ideas below!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

An InLinkz Link-up

An InLinkz Link-up