Rainbow Puzzle Game


We made a rainbow puzzle game today. I posted on Instagram in February how easy it was to use a Sharpie to put numbers on your rainbow 'combinations to 10' puzzle. 


Today we made it a little more challenging with removable numbers!



We printed out some numbers (see end of post for free download). Laminated, cut them and added a velcro spot to each. We also added velcro to the puzzle.


Now your sweeties can be in the driving seat and challenge themselves to remember where the numbers go, and how they are 'linked'. I am asking my sweetie to trace his finger along the rainbow path so he understands the symbolism of the rainbow and how one end of the arc is linked to the other.


You could also play with a dice, roll a number and find the combination.


Grab some printable numbers HERE to make your own. I've included a color and backline version. 

You might also like my rainbow addition pack from TpT to help explain the concept to your class!



Thank you so much for stopping by!

- Mel x
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Heart Week Plan




I've added a new week plan to my office wall! You can add it to your teacher office, desk, planner, diary or folder too!

Find it in google drive HERE

Thanks so much for stoping by friends, I would love to have you on my email newsletter list. As a subscriber you won't miss new product news, flash freebies and fun new teaching ideas. Sign up HERE

More Fun Worksheets {Bundle Update}


Friends - happy weekend! I just wanted to stop in quickly and let you know that 3 new worksheets have been added to my growing bundle! 

A writing page to get your kiddos to learn more about bees!


A 'Best of This Year' poster page for students to write or draw about their school year. 


And an addition house (full packet of these coming soon) to review addition facts to 20. 

If you have the bundle, find the updates ready and waiting for you!


Thanks so much for stopping by!

- Mel x


Less is More #4


This is the fourth post in my little series to help you explore the concept of less=more.

I have had several heartfelt emails from followers to say that these posts are really helping. Thank you! To be completely honest, I was worried they were a little too blunt. I do know that changing your lifestyle patterns can be a sensitive issue, challenging and at times - confronting. These are not easy steps. They are ideas. Let them simmer and use some if they seem to resonate with you.

If you can:
  • do less,
  • have less
  • need less
you will have
  • more time
  • more energy
  • -more resources
for YOU and your students or family!

Let's further our exploration with lesson #4 - dominoes

The challenge this week is to think about how you are creating work for yourself.

Are there challenging or time consuming aspects of your life, home or classroom, that have been created by another aspect of your life?

Can you rid yourself of the first to in turn, abolish the related tasks or issues - and give yourself more of the things that bring you joy?

Let's look at an example.

How many hours or minutes do you spend wishing your were healthier or fitter? How much extra is added to your day in various ways because of this? How many books have you read? How many devices have you purchased? How many support groups have you joined?

I am no medically trained nutrition expert - nor am I immune to the constant modern day wish to be 2 dress sizes smaller than I am and ten times fitter.

But, I've read enough to know the basics.
So. Let's keep this simple.
Halve your meal sizes, and don't eat rubbish.
If you could stick to that general philosophy, what related exercise/diet time-chewers could you rid yourself of? What other dominoes would not fall or need to be even lined up to begin with?

Are you eating larger portion sizes because you spent 2 hours running on a treadmill and have hunger pains all day? Did the round trip to the gym suck 3 hours from your day?
Do you pay someone to clean your home (which can be very active energetic work) because you are too tired to do it yourself after all the gym visits? Are you training to be an athlete or to be healthy enough for a 'regular' life?

{Please know that I am not encouraging you to abandon your exercise routine. If I was in a different stage of my life, I would be doing daily 5-10km runs like I used to too!}

This example may not relate at all to you, but the notion of creating more work for yourself to dance around a root problem, thinking there may be a better solution, most likely will be. Often we create more work for ourselves, chewing up precious time and never fixing the first problem anyway.

What other challenges do you face, that with brutal honesty you could solve very simply by facing it head on?
  • Tired in the morning? Go to bed earlier.
  • Struggling to get a job finished? Ask for help.
  • Sick of how addicted your child is to video games? Throw them out.
  • Can't eat a single cookie without devouring the whole box? Don't buy them.
  • Looking at your clothes that 'used to fit' make you depressed? Give them away.
  • Tired of your cluttered messy house? Don't buy more stuff that will need to be looked after.
Even if you are not ready to take the big steps, knowing that you have consciously chosen to not 'fix' something when you know how it could be fixed, will save you time. You will be less likely to spend hours stewing on it, worrying about it, whinging about it or trying to find 'easier' solutions. You just accept it and move on to something happier.

Not easy - but clear solutions are often the most efficient.
I wish you the best of luck, I am still working on this one too. I have to say, I love going to a restaurant and being able to order whatever I like - I just eat half.

Thanks so much for stopping by, I look forward to sharing more things that have worked for me to make more from less over the coming weeks.

- Mel x
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Bear Week Planner



I shared this cutie on my Instagram today and wanted to give you a chance to download it from google drive HERE

Use it near your desk, on your desk, in your planner or diary. Write your goals, plans, notes or special treats you have planned for the week!

Who says organization has to be boring?!

I'd love to have you on my newsletter email list so I can give you updates on freebie slike this, products for sale and teaching ideas. Sign up HERE

Have a lovely day friends, thanks so much for stopping by

Pick Me Flower Name Chooser


Make an adorable 'pick me' flower pot for your classroom and get your students excited about being chosen for a special job or task.


I have included 14 flowers in both 'fun face' and 'plain' versions. 
A backline option is also provided.

Once printed, simply write the names of your students on the stem, laminate for durability, stick to a craft stick or drinking straw (for stability) and pop them in a plant pot. 



Your students will love the surprise of who is going to be 'picked' next! 


I have a second plant pot next to the first, so that 'used' names can sit alongside and wait for the others to have a turn. I you prefer the surprise element, keep them all in the one pot and take the risk that some students may miss out and others will have multiple turns.


Find these printables in my TpT store!

- Mel x

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day, friends. I should have eaten peas today. And other green things. But I ate far too much chocolate and delicious sweet things.See you again soon, thanks so much for popping on by.

Math Pack Order and Position of Numbers

math centers kindergarten

My Math Activity Pack #7 has just been released and is packed with fun and skills based learning. 

These five activities will support your regular classroom learning program. They provide an opportunity for students to engage with the content and skills you have presented and explained in your whole group lessons. 

Little ones love getting stuck into their learning and actively constructing their understanding. To do that, they need to be 'doing' and they need activities at their level. 

The focus for Pack #7 is on number order and relative position of numbers 0-10. 

It includes:

1. Next and Before

Students will identify numbers immediately before and after a given number.
numbers before and after

2. Numberpillar

Students will write numbers to complete a 3-digit sequence from various starting positions.
order and position of numbers

3. Before and After

This activity is a great one to start your week with and will help students conceptualise the position of 'before' and 'after' through looking at real life scenarios.
before and acter concept

4. Super Number

This game will get students making 3-digit sequences that focus on before and after.
super numbers

5. Number Zoom

In this game, students will need to order number horizontally and identify numbers that come 'after'. 

ordering numbers

Pack #7 is in my TpT store HERE

from the pond math packs

You may be interested in my other Math Activity Packs to help sequence your small group learning.


Less=More #3





This is the third post in my little series to help you explore the concept of less=more.

In keeping with the philosophy, I am going to keep this post and tip, very brief.

If you can:

  • do less
  • have less
  • need less
you will have

  • more time
  • more energy
  • more resources
for YOU and your students or family!

Lesson #3 - one

What repetitive routines in your life can you minimise and do just once?

Here is one example. 'Tidy up' in my household is something I could do all day. In fact, I think there was a time in my life when it did.

Now, we do it once a day. At 4pm. The sweeties help me and we race around the main living areas quickly collecting items that are out of place. We put them all in a central location, our kitchen/breakfast bench.

Here is a sneak peek. Toys, books, papers, hair ties, phones - the usual. We bring them all to the bench. Quickly. 







Once everything is cleaned up, we meet at the table.

Rubbish is gathered first and thrown out. Clothing is taken to the laundry basket if needed. Books are sorted and batched and taken to the correct shelf.

And so it goes - sorting and packing away in batches.

It. Saves. So. Much. Time.

And is almost fun for the sweeties. It also makes you more relaxed about putting up with a little 'chaos' and mess through the day if you know that you have a tidy-up routine which is easier and faster.

Now, you can easily apply this to all areas of your classroom and school life as well as other domestic areas.

You will do less work and gain more time, I promise!


Thanks so much for stopping by, I look forward to sharing more things that have worked for me to make more from less over the coming weeks.
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FREE Mother's Day Poster

I'd love to share with you a page your students can complete for Mother's Day. They will record lots of information about her and perhaps you may like to laminate it as a keepsake for her!

It's available to member of our free Pond Coloring Club! It's really easy to join and you can find out all the info HERE

worlds best mom page


mothers day page

mom coloring page

Your sweeties will love drawing or writing about the 'best mom/mum in the world'! 

Find more ideas and activities for celebrating Mother's Day in the classroom on our website page!

Cake Wall Weekly Freebie


I have a new menagerie of bits and pieces on my desk wall this week, including a cake-shaped week planner to jot down cake baking ingredients serious ideas and whatnot.

Random tidbit -when I came home from hospital with my beautiful baby boy 5 years ago I was in a cake-baking frenzy. It really took over me quite completely. I baked a full cake each day and was on a mission to perfect as many recipes as possible. I think it lasted about 3 months and I am still walking off the sweet consequence. 

Strange and beautiful memory all wrapped up in one. 

I am hoping to get something baked for Sunday (Mother's Day) to enjoy with the family. 

If you would like the planner for your wall, or diary or planner - or classroom click HERE to find it in Google Dive. 

Thanks so much for stopping by - have a lovely Monday! 

- Mel x

Edge It Frames for Worksheets

A new Edge It Bundle has been added to our graphics store - perfect for creating a tiny but lovely edge to your worksheet pages.

This is bundle #11 and I think it might just be my new favorite. It includes sets 61-65. 

Borders for worksheets

If you just cant get enough rainbow - a new Rainbow Edge It Bundle! #5 includes sets 21-25 and will be sure to add 'just enough' to the edges of your next resource!
Edge It Rainbow Set

Thank you so much for you all kindness and support - and for giving me a reason to stay creative and inspired! Find more information about our commercial Terms of Use here.

Super Awards


My little Sam had his kindergarten readiness assessment today {insert many tears - mine - how can he be almost-school-age?!}

Anyhow, he had a super fun time and we went to the shops afterwards for a little Lego prize for being so brave!

While at K. Mart we found some awesome $5 superhero capes! Hello! We love fun dress ups! Kiddos in my classes have always loved wearing a cape for a day or session as a reward for various things. I've had writing wizards, super spellers, reading chiefs and various others. 



I've made a set of awards that you can combine with these capes, or to use on their own. You can use them for 'super effort' in any area!

Find them for FREE in my TpT store HERE


You might also like to check out my blog post on having a Writing Wizard to encourage effort in writing - find it HERE

Have a wonderful day!

- Mel x

Less = More Lesson #1


It is an interesting concept less=more.

But true on so many levels. 

I will bring you a series of posts on this concept over the coming weeks, and in keeping with the general theme, I will try to keep them brief.

Remember less=more. 

If you can:
  • do less
  • have less
  • need less 
you will have 
  • more time
  • more energy
  • more resources 

for YOU and your students!


Let's dig in!

Lesson #1 - decisions


When you consider how many decisions a teacher has to make in a day, you can easily see why, by 3pm you can get quite exhausted. 

Many decisions come from questions. 

Questions often come from uncertainty. 

Remove uncertainty and you can limit unnecessary questions, and in turn, decisions. 

Less decisions = more productive time for you and your class. 

Routines eliminate unnecessary questions

There will always be some degree of uncertainty in any classroom, but there is so much of the day you can make 'routine'.

Routine simply means you do something in the same way, and expect the same pattern of behaviour in every circumstance.

The trick is it must be 100%. At least until you see your students relax into the 'I'm certain that this is the way she wants it done' mode. Then, you are free to relax to 99%.

Spend some time reflecting on your class structures, patterns and 'happenings' and consider what you can see fitting into a more structured routine.

For example, you ask your students to read a self-selected text each week that they turn to as soon as they come to their desk after each break. Each and every day, you get asked multiple questions related to the reading. Each question is an interruption in learning time and each time, you must make a decision. Questions about swapping books, abandoning texts, where to keep the texts, how many pages to read... on and on. It often disrupts other students, propels further discussion off on an alternative tangent and you often find yourself answering the same question dozens of times.

This scenario presents a wonderful opportunity for you to create a 'reading' routine. Create procedures {what, where, why, when, how} for what you expect and reinforce them with 100% certainty each day. For example, you could create an 'after break reading' routine where students:
  • select a text on Monday, 
  • have 15 minutes to choose, 
  • place a bookmark into the cover upon selection from a nearby basket, 
  • keep the book under their desk, 
  • may not change their book through the week, 
  • when 'finished', re-read for fluency 
  • must stay in their seat for 10 minutes reading 
  • can abandon or swap the following Monday.

Make these expectations firm, create a class chart or poster and reinforce them consistently. Apply this to other areas as well. 

It won't be long before the questions dry up, students are settled and most importantly, you suddenly have MORE time!


I hope this simple but practical tip helps and can't wait to share more with you over the coming weeks. If you have any fabulous ways to create 'more' time in your busy teaching day, please leave a comment or contact me so I can share it in a blog post!