Learn to Read and Write

Bottle Cap Game Freebie June 2014

If you know me, then you know I love making games and activities from cheap or free materials. 

I love creating different ways to use bottle caps or lids in the classroom.

Centers on the cheap are fun and easy to put together and they often last longer. 

Bottle caps are everywhere and it is a great way to recycle.

I have had a few comments on some of the feedback from our popular Bottle Cap Games BUNDLE for any Word List, outlining that acquiring bottle caps was tricky.

Here are some ways to collect your bottle caps:

1. Hold a table competition to see which table brings in the most lids.

2. Use the sign found in our Bottle Cap Bundle to ask parents to bring them in.

3. Ask staff to bring in washed bottle caps and place in a container.

4. Place a box in the playground, near your assembly area each morning and ask parents to donate them.

5. Collect them yourself (I have been collecting them for years!)

4. Ask family and friends to save them for you. 

You don't need that many to get started but in no time you will have loads and loads of them!

I have a massive list of ideas and just need to find the time to blog about them!

Here is one of our popular freebies; I Don't Have it:

Players: 4 or more.

How to Play:

Choose one person to be the ‘guesser’ and everyone else lines up to face him or her. 

The guesser chooses a bottle top from the container and reads the word out loud. 

He shows everyone the lid for them to read out loud as well. 

The guesser puts the bottle cap on the floor in front of the other children. 

The guesser then turns around and closes his/her eyes. 

One of the players in the line picks up the bottle cap without talking and puts it behind their back. 

All players in this line then put their hands behind their back and call out, ready.

The guesser turns around and says, “Who has the word .......?” One at a time, the players in the line say, “I don’t have it.”  The guesser has to try and tell who is bluffing. 

If they think that they know they can call the player's name. The guesser gets two turns. If he guesses                           correctly, he  has another turn, if he guesses  incorrectly; the person who has the cap becomes                         the guesser and plays with a new  word!  

            Players keep on playing until time is up. 

Students can then complete one of two differentiated worksheets after they have played the games a few times. 

For our bottle cap games and other literacy ideas using bottle caps, click here or the image below. 

Printables for any Word List April 2014

I love the idea of having ready to go printables that will work for any list and that can be used in a number of ways.

This set of printables will come in handy for any kind of word list that you use; sight words, spelling words, vocabulary words, math words and more.

This file (click on any of the images to see the resource in my TpT store) is jam packed with ready to go printables for K-1 and some grade 2 classes.

Download the preview file for a closer look, here.

I have divided the file up into seven sections.

1. Learning my Words

2. Working with my Words

3. Working on Meaning

4. Working in pairs

5. I am Arty

Here's a close up of some of the art projects that integrate words from any word list. 

6. Hands-on 

For the printable activity featured below, you will need an old coffee or Mc Donald's drinks tray, four old bottle lids from large spray cans like fly spray or oven cleaner. You don't have to paint your tray! Print out the spinners found over at Graphics from the Pond and write chosen words (child or teacher can write the words).

Students simply roll one or two dice, choose a spinner then spin it the corresponding amount on the die (dice), read the word and write it on the record sheet provided in the file. 

Here are some of our hands-on printables in action. 

and....

7. Wordy Math

I love bundling worksheets and making booklets so that everything stays together and you can see students' work at a glance. You could print one or two worksheets to a page and staple as a ready to go booklet.

Or you could place the printables in plastic sleeves and store in a binder for individual students. This would be great for fast finishers, morning work or center work. 

You might also like to print and laminate a few printables and store in a tray ready for centers or fast finishers or as a quick assessment tool. Sub teachers or special education teachers could place several pages in a plastic display binder that becomes a mobile aid. Students use a dry erase (whiteboard) marker to write. Wipe off any writing later with a damp cloth. This would be ideal for interventions and other one-on-one sessions. 

Click here to see more of this file.

You might also like our sight word, word walls.

Storing Magnetic Letters January, 2014

I consider magnetic letters one of the most used and practical teaching tools I have ever purchased. 

I have several containers of them in upper-case, lower-case and also a few boxes of numerals!

I have two sets of magnetic letters (plus back-ups). The first set is my set that only I can use!

This tray sits at the front of the class in the easel for easy access. I also have a lower-case set going across the top of the whiteboard on the easel. I purchased this tray (called inserts for storage trays) over a decade ago from Elizabeth Richards, click here to see this product. 

I use my set during guided reading, word work, spelling words demonstration and word or sentence work that needs to be modeled. 

The second set is for students which I have always stored in pocket charts. I came across a kind of pocket chart that had both back and front. I have capital letters on one side and lower-case letters on the other side.

My friend gave it to me for my accessories but I noticed that it had more than enough pockets to hold my magnetic letters! I found it over at Pink Lily.

The hanging storage is practical as it is portable and ideal for groups and teachers who move from classroom to classroom. 

This set of magnetic letters belongs in near the writing and word work area.

Here are some other ideas to help you organize your magnetic letters.

I found this storage system on Amazon. Click for the Pinterest link here. 

Mrs. Wheeler uses a storage caddy that she found at Michael's. Read more here. 

Hobby Lobby has this storage system with 46 compartments. Click here to have a closer look. 

I also use my alphabet cards to place behind the pockets, to help little ones remember where they go!

You can find the initial sounds cards in my store (download) in either of these three resources:

Alphabet {initial sounds} Posters, 

Cards and Desk Strips Bundled

Initial Sounds Bottle Cap Center

Beginning-Initial Sounds Alphabet Cards

Initial Sounds Bottle Cap Sentences Center Activity, January, 2014

I love using bottle caps for center activities. It's just so easy and quick. 

I had just as much fun creating this file; Initial Sounds Bottle Cap Sentences Center Activity

Ask your students to bring in bottle caps by having a table competition, you will collect them quick smart. You could also ask parents and staff to bring them in from home. If you're like me, then you will have containers full of them!

I have made many activities and games using bottle caps. You can see them in our store here.

This activity is for the development of initial sounds for emergent language learners.

This activity would be ideal for Pre-K and Kindergarten students.

Record the initial sound words on the bottle caps for pairs or individuals.

Have children read one of the three sentences on the page and then label the picture. They should listen for the sound and find the matching word on the bottle caps by looking at the first sound.

Children then complete the matching page by writing the missing word. they can use the bottle caps or the initial sounds chart/cards to self correct.

There are also some basic fast finishers ideas included, should you need them. 

I have used a range of basic sentences structures to develop fluency skills.

Teaching Sight Words with the Help of Videos, Online Games, Printables, Craft, Books and Pinterest Boards - July 2013

Sight words are words that we learn by sight, that is repetition and memory. 

I wanted to have a bank of resources to use when teaching sight words. Here are my best picks from across the net. You will find videos, songs, games, printable, craft and Pinterest boards. 

YouTube Videos

If you have access to YouTube in your classroom or at home then you might want to use these wonderful videos. They are a fun way to teach sight words and high frequency words.

High Frequency Sight Words Part 1 of 5 - Interactive Kindergarten 2:07

Sight Words Beginning with A Song 1:30

Sight Words 1 - Sample Clip: Dolch Pre-Primer and also some Fry Words 1:17

Primer Sight Word List Bouncy Flash Cards: bouncy letters make up words and no sound 5:31

Dolch Words Grade One: simple sight and read with flash over text 2:34

Second Grade Dolch Vocabulary Sight Words 3:34

Third Grade Dolch Vocabulary Sight Words 3:18

First 100 High Frequency Words with voice and background music: Fry's First 100 words with music and a child reading each word 3:41

~ Be sure to click on the Author of the video as they often have similar YouTube videos. 

Here are some other great sources that might help you with teaching sight words.

Sight Word Printables

Dolch Handwriting Center Cards Bundle - {all five lists} Polka Dot Theme

Summer Reading Activities for the Home - Sight Words + Reading Texts 34 pages Hands-on and body kinaesthetic games for the home by Clever Classroom

Free Sight Word Games Online

Simple Sentences from Cookie Learning - click to play

Sight Word Match from Cookie Learning - click to play

Labeling game from Cookie Learning: choose to label body parts, kitchen, living room or bathroom - click to play

Sight Word Craft

Craft Stick Puzzles from Mom to 2 Polished Divas

Sight Word Popsicle Stick Puzzles from And Next Comes L

Magical High Frequency Cards 

Sight Word Readers

Sight Word Readers Parent Pack: Learning the First 50 Sight Words Is a Snap! Scholastic via Amazon

60 Scholastic Easy Leveled Readers Phonics Early Guided Reading Lot (15 Books Per Levels A, B, C, and D) (Little Leveled Readers) by Scholastic via Amazon

Free Printable

FREE Fry's First 100 Words Snakes and Ladders Games x 6 - 6 pages - over 22,000 downloads

Pinterest Boards

Learn to Read and Write - Clever Classroom

Reading - Clever Classroom

Vocabulary - Clever Classroom

Word Work/Spelling - Clever Classroom

Literacy Games and Activities - Clever Classroom

Word Work - The Teaching Resort Resource

Learn to Read - The Wise Owl Factory

Clip art in cover image at top by Graphics From the Pond

Background by Poofy Prints - Etsy

Font by Cara Carrol

You have touched down on a brand new blog! Thanks for dropping by. I am working on adding some exciting content to my blog and hope you will return. 

I have a few boards that relate to the acquisition of reading and writing skills on my Pinterest page. here's the link, should you like to have a look for some inspirational pins. 

Clever Classroom on Pinterest

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