Only the Lord knows how much time (and money) has been spent there in the pursuit of teaching !
The treasures depend on the time of the year and which store you visit, but today I found some goodies!
I LOVE Dr. Seuss! Last year that was my classroom theme and I plan to use it again one day in the future :D
I found these two dice games that are super cute!
Math Dice---you roll 2 quantity dice (pictures) and one operations dice (+,-,x, divide>,<). Obviously, I won't be using the multiplication or division sides with preschoolers, but in a game format like this I can easily start introducing adding and subtracting quantities as well as which is is greater (more) or less than (less)! The dice being a soft foam means they should hold up well with kids too.
Action Dice-- this set also came with three dice: a character says dice, an action dice, and a number dice. These would be really good for those times in your day when you have a few minutes to kill or your class has some extra energy to get out. The best thing is that they can still be learning while playing (my FAVORITE thing about play-based learning!)
Building Words Blocks
These Dulpo- looking blocks have a dry erase sticker on them. It came with some directions or ideas of how to use them.
My class is starting to work on CVC words. The first two fact families we have covered are the "at" and "am" family. These would be a great activity to help kids build words in a hands-on format! I plan to use these in a small group or center where I can give some directions and model the intended activity.
The only thing I do not like about these is that the dry erase sticker is VERY easy to erase...so it will be hard to write on them and let the kids manipulate them without rubbing the ink off. I have a similar item (dry erase dice ) from the Dollar Spot and from the Dollar Tree. Great idea but I have had to tweak it a bit.....I have used permanent markers to write on them. When I need to erase I have found using a new black dry erase marker works great on any laminated or dry erase type surface. You simply color over the writing with a new dry erase marker and then it will wipe clean. Pretty cool huh?! A Magic Eraser tends to work well too!
Sand Writing Trays
I love letting kids practice their pencil grip and writing skills in different ways and sand trays are always a big hit! Last year I made some using plastic pencil boxes. They are great to snap closed but the lids tended to pop up instead of laying down to hold any letter cards; plus the sand still slid through the lids. I had some old Melissa and Doug wooden trays that worked well too (mine were from the wooden pizza pretend play kit and the lacing cards) but again, they didn't have a spot for the cards.
Thank you Dollar Spot for providing a cheap and good product for teachers!
Sand trays can be used for pre-writing skills like learning how to correctly hold a pencil; they can be used to practice writing letters, numbers, or shapes; they can even be used to help write names, sight works, or spelling words.
I have different colored sand( plain sand I added liquid water color to) and different types of cards to help change it up from time to time.
One time we used our fingers to write the letter and then used stones to trace back over it. Pinterest has TONS of ideas for writing trays.
Be prepared that sand will "escape" the tray! Some kiddos get a little too excited when using these types of materials and let's be honest.. we all know how sand just has a tendency to travel LOL !
I found two easy solutions for the mess that tends to follow:
1. place-mats: put some time of place-mat or even old lunch tray under each sand tray. This will help catch any loose sand.
2. mini boom and dust pan--I have found super cute tiny brooms and dust pans from the Dollar Tree. As in everything, lead by example in how to correctly use this center and how to clean it up. Most kids love to help in this area---at least at school haha!
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