6 Traits of Writing Bulletin Board

Just a quick post today to let you know that I've just updated my 6 Traits of Writing Bulletin Board pack. I've given it a fresh new look with new images and fonts. 

It comes in two versions - chalkboard and polka dot - and includes 89 skill cards ready to go. I've also included an editable version of the skill card so you can add your own if needed. 

I've also included two different types of headings. The page size version shown here:

 and the large circular letters with a smaller description card shown here:

This is the bright polka dot version: 

  

If you are one of the 1,222 people who has this pack wishlisted, you can pick it up for the next couple of days 20% off!

-in Word Family Pack

Just a quick post today to show off my new pack - I really like this one! It is 70 pages covering the -in word family. This is about 20 pages more than the -at and -an word families I've already posted, but I'll be updating them soon to include the extras I've included in this pack. 

 

There are 17 Word Word activities in total with a good combination of "print in color and laminate" activities and "just photocopy" worksheets.

I have a few more in the works and then I'll be giving a set away. If you don't want to wait, you can find -in here (20% off at the moment), -at here and -an here. Once I update -at and -in with the 20 extra pages the price will go up slightly so you could grab them now and get the updates for free!

Cooking Up Gingerbread Fun!

Today I just have a quick post to let you know I have posted a new 140 page pack called Cooking Up Gingerbread Fun! It has 20 reading, writing, literacy and math activities and centers. 

The good thing about it is that it doesn't include 'Christmas-y' type things (trees, decorations, presents, Santa etc) so could be used if you are not allowed Christmas themed activities at your school.

 

 

 

 

The above pics are from the preview which you can check out on TpT . It's 20% off at the moment. Now I'm back to reports.

Why Place Value Hundreds, Tens, and Ones Bingo is a Classroom Must-Have

Looking for an engaging, low-prep way to teach place value? Say hello to Place Value Hundreds, Tens, andOnes Bingo—a fun and interactive game that’s perfect for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-grade classrooms! Whether you’re tackling tricky misconceptions about numbers or reinforcing foundational math skills, this bingo game is a game-changer!

Here’s why I’m obsessed with this product:

1. It’s Perfect for Differentiation No two students are the same, which is why this bingo set comes with four different types of calling cards to meet diverse needs:

• Standard Form
• Word Form (American and British options!)
• Place Value Form (e.g., 9 hundreds, 3 tens, 4 ones)
• Expanded Form (900+30+4)

Got a mix of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd level mathematicians in your room? No problem. You can easily switch up the calling cards to make the game more or less challenging depending on your group’s skill level or make differentition even easier with my Tens and Ones Bingo Game. Both games look similar, meaning different groups can be playing different games at their level. Plus, the inclusion of two-digit numbers ensures students understand the difference between tricky pairs like 910 and 91. No more place value confusion!

2. It’s Low Prep (and Budget-Friendly!) Let’s face it—teachers don’t have hours to prep elaborate games. Luckily, this set is as simple as print, laminate, and play. You only need to cut out the calling cards (just 2-3 pages per set), and you’re ready to play again and again. Prefer a no-laminate option? Just slip the boards into plastic sleeves, and students can use dry-erase markers to cross off numbers. Bonus: It’s designed to save on colored ink. Only a small portion of each game board uses color, and there’s even a black-and-white version included!

3. It’s Flexible for Whole Class or Small Groups With 26 unique game boards, this set works perfectly for a whole-class activity. Want to focus on small group instruction? Pull out just a few boards for targeted practice. It’s great for math centers or work stations, early finishers, or even a quick review before a test. Many of those who have purchased have left feedback that it was perfect to leave for a sub!

4. Misconception Busting Made Fun One of the best parts of this bingo game is its ability to tackle common place value misconceptions head-on. For example, distinguishing between “nine hundred ten” and “ninety-one” can trip up students, but seeing the numbers represented with base-10 visuals reinforces the correct understanding in a hands-on way.

Why You’ll Love It Place Value Hundreds, Tens, and Ones Bingo is the perfect mix of fun, simplicity, and educational impact. Your students will stay engaged while building critical math skills, and you’ll love how easy it is to prepare and use. If your kiddos are still working on tens and ones, check out the Tensand Ones Bingo Boards or the Bundle in my store for even more place value practice!

      

Grab your set today and make place value practice a breeze!

I take it back...

In my last post, I was hoping to get *just* sick enough to justify having a day off because I was so exhausted. I wish I hadn't written that! By midday the VERY NEXT DAY (Monday), I could barely talk. I had to whisper Tuesday because my voice was gone and I started to get a cough. Wednesday and Thursday I had to have off because I couldn't talk or stop coughing. Never in all my years of working (even before I became a teacher) have I ever had to have more than one day off. But they weren't the lovely, relaxing days off I envisaged them to be. Nope. Basically it was wasted time. I didn't get any marking, planning or creating done. I sat at the computer for a long time though, mostly just staring at it, wishing I could feel motivated to do something... anything.

Friday was tough. I had a coughing fit of two (or three...) when I couldn't stop coughing for a few minutes. My poor kiddies were so concerned. I had a lovely reception though when they saw me come out the door in the morning! Even the parents noticed! It's Saturday evening and my voice still isn't perfect. It starts to get croakier if I start talking. I had TWO naps today. 

At least now I know why I was feeling so exhausted last weekend - I was coming down with something! Hopefully those naps will rejuvenate me and I'll be 100% tomorrow. 

I did get this pack finished today. You can click on the pics to see it at TpT. It's 20% off, as always, for the first few days.

 It has 5 math centres/centers:
1. 1 page of word problems with addition, subtraction and multiplication scenaries (10 problems).

2. Autumn Number Order (3-digit numbers). Comes with 6 sets of 6 cards to place in order and a choice of 2 recording sheets (record in ascending or descending order).

3. Greater Than/Less Than Leaves - 2 sets of cards (2-digit and 3-digit numbers) and recording sheet.

4. True or False Equations - Sort the addition facts onto the True and False mats and record. Some facts require students to mentally add multiples of ten and then the ones (e.g. 22+17, 32+15).

5. Apple Place Value - Sort the apple cards onto the Hundreds, Tens or Ones mat according to the underlined number. Students record the value of the underlined number on the recording sheet.


Have you ever wished for something and had it come back and bite you on the bum? I'd love to hear your 'be careful what you wish for' story! Even if you haven't got one, leave a comment below and I'll give this pack to a person or two sometime tomorrow.

Peek at Last Week

We've been comparing and contrasting like crazy lately. We've compared food, clothes etc of traditional Australian Aboriginals with us today in SOSE, characters/settings/plots in English, insects in science and shapes in math. We've used Venn diagrams, comparison matrices and double bubble maps.

 Totally pinterest inspired!

We're finishing up our unit of procedural texts. Here are two charts we made earlier in the unit. 

 

Because I don't have a lot of wall space, I hang a lot of charts up on string going across the room. But sometimes a gust of wind will come in the windows and blow the charts up and they hit the fan... tear! rip! So I fold sticky tape around the edges of the chart and it stops them ripping. 

I'm always too busy during math to take photos, but some of kiddos have had a lot of trouble counting money, so we've worked on that the last week.

   

I've updated my Word Family, Blends and Digraphs pack with about 30 more cards. You can go to your Purchases page to redownload. 

I also made up a Fast Finishers board freebie based on a request. The lady wanted a similar style to my CAFE board cards. You can grab it in Google Docs here.  

I also uploaded a Fall writing craftivity that my class did earlier in the year. You can check it out here:

Oh, we won the Green Gnome for our garden too! :D

Word Sorting schedule bulletin board

A little while ago, I shared a word sorting schedule that I made earlier this year so that each group could see what activity they were doing on any given day. I have to admit, I didn't like it. And not just because it wasn't cutesy. As I wrote in that post, I am REALLY bad with doing our words sorts consistently-particularly when we have public holidays, excursions, assessments, special assemblies etc. I always forgot what 'day' we were on (I see one group each day, and that is their Day 1 or first activity. The following day I see another group, and that is their Day 1, but the group I had yesterday will be on their second day).  It got a little confusing.

So this is what I'm using now and I LOVE it! The activities are typed on the flower pots with a short explanation of what the kids do. I've typed up each kiddos name in their 'flower' group underneath the flower pots. They don't even actually have names, to let the kids know what activity they are doing I just hold up the flower and tell them their activity as I move their flower down the pots.

You can see above that I have 3 days when I'm not meeting with a group to introduce their word sort (I have 5 groups, but 8 activities). I meet with strugglers on these days or get in some quick reading conferences!

This board has really been a lifesaver. I've added it to TpT in case you want it. As always, it's 20% off for the first few days.

Personally, I love the flowers and the polka dot headings because the whole board is nice and bright. But I know it wouldn't fit well with everyone who has a different classroom theme, so I've made up a couple of other versions as well. I don't usually do that because I only ever post things that I'm already using in my class, but really, this board has helped me so much and it's just so EASY I thought I'd make it accessible for more people.

 

This is the pirate theme. Of course, I haven't printed these off, but this is what the board should look like. For this one, you move the pirate pictures (hat, map, parrot, chest, coins) down the pirate ships. The word sorting activity is written on the pirate ship.
 

I'm liking the look of the Hollywood theme. Wouldn't the board look really cute with a spotlight in the top right-hand corner? For this one, student names are written on the popcorn pieces and you just move the pieces down the boxes. The boxes outline the activity they are doing. 

You can check them our here: Flowers/Spring, Pirates, Hollywood/Movies at TpT. I haven't gotten them listed at TN yet, but I'll get there. I'm looking at making a jungle/money theme and perhaps an ocean/beach theme as well. If you want a specific theme made up, just let me know.

I've got to go and get ready to head into school - I'm expecting the delivery of all my new things! Yeah!

Also, on my previous post, I'm just about to add some new bloggers that you might want to check out!

Olympics Math and Literacy Activities

I didn't think I'd end up making a new pack these holidays, but I had some ideas for things I wanted to do next term and it kinda snowballed into 15 activities and over 100 pages!

I know most of the U.S. won't be in school for the Olympics, but we here Down Under are and I'm sure the kiddos are going to be SUPER excited. This will probably be the first Olympics that they can remember, since they would have only been 3 or 4 during Beijing. So... I made my pack Olympic themed. 

During our first week back in Term 3, my poor little things are going to be sitting an old Year 3 national NAPLAN test in language arts, reading and math. So a REAL test that is similar to what they would be expected to do in almost 12 months time. Why? The D word - Data. We will look over the tests (sat under NAPLAN conditions) and work out what we need to work on. Some of my little things won't even be able to read the first passage in the Reading test, let alone have been introduced to some of the content in the math test...

Anyway, it got me thinking of some things I could be doing to help prepare them for next year which is how this pack got started. So I made up some task card activities similar to NAPLAN questions: 

•  spell the underlined word correctly

• identify the mispelt word and spell it correctly. I've tried to include commonly mispelt words, past tense verbs and homophones.

  

•  punctuate the sentences (capitals for sentence beginnings and proper nouns, a range of ending puncutation and commas have been left out).

• which sentence is puntuated correctly (multiple choice slides for a whole class lesson. Students use fingerprint cards to show their response free from Angela Bunyi).

I also had a looksy (sp?) at what we need to cover this term and what I know my kids need and made up a couple of little things that will help like

•  part-part-whole models and writing number stories
•  calendar work
•  number sense - more and less 

  

And some revision activities for my Essential Revision Guided Math tub:

• meaurement
• data
• chance

           

So that's basically what's included, plus a few other things thrown in for good measure. You can read about the specifics of each activity in the description at  TpT here, TN here and for Aussie teachers, you can check it out at Teachers Marketplace. As always, it's 20% off for the first few days.

Money Activities and Centres

Sorry again for lack of posting. I am right into report card mode now. We have moderation next week, so I've got some marking to catch up on and it's keeping me very busy. I did make some time to make some money activities though since I had a couple of requests. 

 

 

They are on sale now for the next few days. I'll be back on the weekend with hopefully more (interesting, class-related) things to post!

T.I.M.E. Guided Math and THANKS!

Wow, thanks to everyone who left me comments about my Short and Long Vowel dominoes. It was downloaded about 4500 times! A big, big thank you to those who left feedback in my store! And to those who offered freebies - your generosity is sooo appreciated!

Just letting you know that it is now back to normal pricing but if you missed out on getting it for free, you can still grab it for 20% off + use the code TAD12 to get an extra 10% off the discounted price. 

I don't really have anything for you today except to let you know that I've finally gotten around to uploading my T.I.M.E. math board that I shared about here. 

 

Like everything else in my store, it is 20% off at the moment!

Ok, I better actually get something to ready for school tomorrow! I have my student teacher starting full-time tomorrow, so I've got to be at the top of my game! :)