Phonics Interactive Notebook

The Phonics Interactive Notebook is an amazing product from Sweet for Kindergarten that my students and I loved. Interactive notebooks are a great way to keep track of learning and growth. The particular bundle that I used was the beginning and ending sound unit.

What you get:

40 engaging pages

Beginning Sounds Sorts
Ending Sounds Sorts
Beginning and Ending Sounds Practice Pages
How to Use (with picture directions)
Picture examples
Answer Key

How I used this product in my classroom:

I created a notebook out of construction paper for my students. If you have a notebook, that would also work great.
Students created the cover on the first day
I made an example for the students to look at before beginning.
Instructions were reviewed and reinforced.
The first day students had to refer back to the example a lot.
The second day, the students were pros at assembling their pages.
The dotted lines are very helpful in assisting students with cutting properly.

What I like about this product

It was perfect for word work.
Students can use this every day at centers.
There is a record of their learning
There are beginning and ending sounds for differentiation.
Cutting skills and letter/ sound recognition are being worked on at the same time.

This product is a must have for kindergarten teachers. My students are enjoying doing their notebooks everyday. They are learning all of their beginning sounds. I look forward to beginning ending sounds. This is a 5 star product that you can buy here.

Three Star Coloring System

by KinderMomma | Product Reviews

The three star coloring system comes from an amazing TPT creator, One Kreative Kindergarten, who offers many high quality products. This particular product is best for early elementary through kindergarten.

Often, when students begin coloring, they hurry through their work. This product encourages students to take their time and follow the three points.

This product encourages artistic expression. Students need to cover the entire picture that they draw with color.

What you get with this product

A three star coloring system rubric indicates what needs to be done to receive one, two or three stars.
19 topic sheets that students can draw and color pictures based on the system
18 topic sheets that students can draw pictures and write sentences about

How I use this product

I hung the three star coloring system rubric up, so the students would know what is expected.
I have the students draw and color their pictures, using the system.
We are at the beginning of kindergarten, so I don’t have them write sentences to go along with the pictures.

Benefits of the Three Star Coloring System

Kids did not rush through their coloring.
Students paid attention to detail and made sure their colors were appropriate.
Students displayed a greater degree of creativity.
The activity lasted longer and student didn’t finish in 30 seconds.

I am really surprised at how much my kindergarten students love this activity. I throw in some markers, and I think they can spend hours using this product.

Older kids can also use this as the product incorporates writing.

The three star coloring system proves to be a huge hit with my class of kinders. We give it not 3, but 5 stars. Find it here for 3.00.

Sight Word Activities (Serving up Sight Words)

by KinderMomma | Product Reviews

Our Teacher Tool of the Week comes from an amazing teachers pay teachers creator, Literacy with the Littles. Serving up Sight Words is a delightful and hunger inducing way to include sight word activities in our daily routines.

Sight word activities are a major part of the kindergarten and first grade curriculum. Sight words refer to the words that are most commonly found in texts and can usually not be sounded out. I don’t know about you, but I get tired of flashing cards every day. Our students do, also. They don’t have the longest attention spans, you know?

Finding new and exciting resources is well…… New and Exciting!

What is contained in this sight word center?

38 sight words that can be printed in color or black and white
26 lowercase alphabet letters (plus extra frequently used letters) printed on cute little doughnuts
Ideas for use
Recording sheet for the sight words

The sight word is attractively written on a colorful plate, and each letter is on a delicious donut. Can you tell that I like donuts? Who doesn’t?

Literacy with the Littles shares their special recipe for creating colored rice that looks like donut sprinkles. This sensory center would be very motivating for any student.

How I used the Resource in my Classroom

I passed on the sensory center as my kids would have that bin upside down in a matter of seconds. That’s just the type of class I have this year.
Word work is one of my Daily 5 centers. Serving up Sight Words fit right in with the activities that the kids complete.
I printed out 5 copies of the letters on card stock and laminated for durability.
I put each in a plastic bag.
I chose the 5 sight words that we are presently working on.
Students placed their donuts letters in a pile and searched for the letters in the sight word.
They covered the plate with their letters.
We used this center each day for an entire week, and the kids didn’t get tired of it. This is a great center because you can change the words and use again.
There is also a recording sheet that students use to write down the words that they make.
Literacy with the Littles also offers all of the Dolch words for purchase.

Other Ways to Teach Sight Words

Sing the letters of the sight words to familiar tunes. I sing LIKE to the tune of It’s A Small World.
Clap and say the letters in a sight word.
Have a picture or an action that goes along with the word.
Use a Word Wall so that students can learn to spell the words while writing in a journal.

Serving up sight words was given 5 stars by my classroom of crazy Kinders. I agree with them hole (ha ha) heartedly. You can find this product here for only 2.99

Botley the Coding Robot Activity Set

by KinderMomma | Product Reviews

What is Botley the Coding Robot?

Coding is an expertise that should be introduced to children at a very young age. Botley the Coding Robot is the latest toy that breaks down a very complex skill into fun and entertaining pieces.

Here’s a little bit of information about your child’s new best friend. He will have your child learning code and impressing friends in a matter of minutes.

Botley the Coding Robot is a 77-piece activity set that comes with a remote programmer, detachable robot arms, 40 coding cards, 6 double-sided tiles, 27 obstacle building pieces and a starter guide with coding challenges.

The one thing that sets Botley apart from other coding toys is that your child does not need to be hooked up to a computer or any other type of device to use this robot. Botley has a very cute, child friendly voice that is very appealing and welcoming.

The Follow the Black Line feature is very engaging for younger children. Botley follows a thick black line on an included cardboard play space. It is similar to a two sided puzzle that can be constructed and reassembled in various different ways.

You can have Botley follow your own thick black line on paper also.

There are 40 coding cards that can be learned and entered into Botley to help him get through the mazes that are created with the included 12 cubes and 8 rods. The set also includes 2 cones, 2 balls, 2 flags, and a large orange circle. The circle is what Botley sets out to reach.

Botley is simple to use for younger students but still provides enough challenge for older students. Botley helps students think critically because it does exactly what you program it to do. Instant feedback is given by the actions of the robot. The cards have to be inputted into the remote in a particular sequence. Just pressing buttons just makes Botley noisy, and you don’t want that.

Children have to revise or add on to their plan if they want Botley to do something differently. There is also “Secret code” that will enable Botley to do flips and raise his

The biggest complaint about Botley is that he eats a lot of triple A batteries.

This is a great way to have students learn to code, develop reasoning and divergent thinking while making a new robot friend. We give Botley a five star rating. He is great for the homeschool and regular classroom as well as an educational toy. It will provide instant motivation to learn to code and develop Stem skills.

5 Best Stem Products for Kindergarten Students

by KinderMomma | Product Reviews

What the tarnation are STEM products anyway? Which are the best STEM products for kindergarten students? These items are all the rage these days. Why? The simple answer is because more standards have been added that I have never seen before in my 20 years of teaching.

The easiest way to teach these standards is to buy engaging and skill appropriate materials. That’s why teachers are always broke. New standards require new materials. We will explore the five best STEM products for kindergarten students and what makes them so educational?

New Trends

The new trend in education is to get students more interested in science, technology, engineering and math. That is what STEM stands for in case you weren’t aware of this heavily used acronym. It happens to be everywhere.

The idea with early learning products is to create a healthy attraction among children to engineering and reasoning skills. This will hopefully translate in the long run to innovative adults that pursue jobs in related fields. Do these products actually in fact do that? The jury is still out!

We may have to wait ten to fifteen years to see if we have more students who absolutely adore subjects like engineering, math, science and technology. That would be something, wouldn’t it?

So, will we have a better, more educated pool of statisticians, financial analysts, web designers and mechanical engineers? I sure hope so as I am investing a lot of my hard earned teacher cash into buying these latest trend products.

Which products meet the kindergarten standards?

Before you buy, it is important to really understand the STEM standards and what they hope to accomplish. Engineering is a term the average person thinks of as building. Yes, engineers build but with a solid purpose in mind.

They want to make things easier and solve problems with their building. This is what I keep in mind when looking for products. I want students to develop problem solving and creativity while “playing” with their STEM materials. I refer to this as “Play with Purpose.”

So, here are the 5 best STEM products for kindergarten. They accomplish the early education goals of “Playing with a Purpose.” When thinking about products for my classroom, I think about three things: the educational value, the price, and how long my kindergarten students will stay focused, occupied and learning. (Huge, right?)

VIAHART Brain Flakes 500 Piece Interlocking Plastic Disc set

Cost: This product is an Amazon Choice for STEM educational toys. It has incredible substance for the cost of 14.99 with eligible free shipping. With 500 pieces, students can work collaboratively or independently with no problem.

When looking at products, I like to ensure that a center of 4 or 5 students have access to enough materials. Teachers are always thinking of how to minimize problems and be proactive.

Educational Benefit– This toy has limitless educational benefits. For one, the pincher grasp needed to hold a pencil is developed and strengthened. Also, this type of shape requires divergent thinking in a way that building blocks do not. One has to utilize visualization to proceed with construction.

Colors, sorting and patterning could also be taught with this product. The possibilities for construction are endless. Balls, trees, homes, cars, and trains can be created with this product. A question to guide instruction could be: What would you build that would provide food?

Child Focus– Student focus is off the charts with this product. They love it! I love it! The huge supply of pieces makes this resource invaluable. This educational masterpiece would be the most appropriate for ages 4-8.

Mr. Marble Run Starter Set (48 Large Marble Run Pieces + 10 Glass Marbles)

Cost: It is18.95 and qualifies for free shipping. This is an incredible value and a better alternative than the small marble runs that tend to be poorly created.

Educational Value-This is by far the best marble run for kindergarten classrooms. 10 glass marbles and 5 solid bases are provided.

This set is constructed very well and can be stored easily. Marble runs can be changed and marbles can be raced which allows predictions and outcomes to be tested. The scientific value of learning about force and what creates speed are inherent in this product.

Child Focus- Hours of enjoyment for anyone who wishes to test out this product. Children and adults will not be disappointed with Mr. Marble. Students four and up will be engaged from the moment they see this exciting product. Mr. Marble will be your best buddy. It is one of the best STEM products for kindergarten students.

Skoolzy Straws and Connectors Building Kits – 200 pc Fine Motor Skills Interlocking STEM Toys

Cost- Well, once again there is a lot of bang for your buck here. I know I don’t like spending over 20.00 for a kindergarten center, and this is very much worth every penny spent.

Educational Benefit- These straws have the ability to curve, so many various objects such as boats and 3 dimensional shapes can be created. This would be useful for a center of 3 or 4 students to be able to work individually and collaboratively.

One idea would be for the students to create a St. Patrick’s Day trap. Another idea would be to create a two-story tower where people would be able to go from one story to the next. These straws are colorful and bright and inviting. I highly recommend this product.

Child Focus- There are so many different activities that can be successfully achieved with this product. Simple geometric shapes can be developed as well as large structures. Children of all ages can easily create masterpieces independently.

Think Fun Rush Hour Junior Traffic Jam Logic Game and STEM Toy for Boys and Girls Age 5 and Up – Junior Version of the International Rush Hour

Cost– This game costs 19.99 with opportunity for free shipping. The hours that your child will be occupied and learning spatial, reasoning, and logic skills are well worth the price tag.

Educational Benefit– The game has 40 challenge cards and 15 blocking cars. The cards range from beginner to more advanced. Add on cards may be purchased to keep the game fresh and exciting. A card is chosen and the player must set up the cars to match the card.

The goal is to slide the cars without lifting them to allow the ice cream truck a path to escape. As you can imagine, this game is like a Rubik’s cube that uses logic, spatial sense and reasoning to move the cars in the appropriate manner. Students take turns sliding one car at a time and discussing. It is helpful to have two of these games eventually.

Child Focus– This game takes concentration and focus. I believe this is most appropriate for students 4-10. The easier levels are enjoyable for kids 4-6. Children feel a sense of accomplishment when they help the ice cream truck escape the traffic jam. Yay!!!!

IMDEN Magnetic Blocks, Magnetic Building Set, Magnetic Tiles, Educational Toys for Baby/Kids, 92 Pieces

Cost: This product is an Amazon best seller. It has amazing value for the price tag of 24.98 with free shipping. A learning center of 4 or five students can be created. One drawback is that not all the pieces are magnetic, limiting the ability of individual students to play with the pieces independently. A collaborative project is more beneficial.

Educational Benefit– This comes with triangles, hexagons, rectangles, and semi-circles that allow for easy shape recognition. There are non-magnetic letters and numbers that snap into the squares allowing other skills to be taught. The shape blocks have embedded magnets that enable them to be easily snapped together.

There are wheels and towers that enable a Ferris wheel and various types of cars to be created. The step-by-step instruction book provides for approximately 2 dozen creations. For a center, the teacher could have students build a car for a dog and explain their reasoning behind why the creation would serve this purpose.

Child Focus- This is a product that my students would use all day if they could. I join in when I can, as it is entertaining for adults as well. Children 4 and up would take great delight in this STEM product. It is fun and educational at the same time. Jackpot!!!!!!

These are the best STEM products for kindergarten students. Your students will enjoy and learn from all of these materials. The price and cost effectiveness are outstanding.