In our Class

Create a welcoming and colorful display banner that celebrates your students, their emerging drawing skills and your classroom values with a free pennant banner I shared with you back in 2016.

Each student can draw themselves and write something to complete the sentence In our class, we ...

Prior to making the pennant have a class discussion on your classroom community, its values, goals or expectations. Write some short sentences on the board for students to read and refer to as they write. 

I hope your students are having a great time back at school and are eager to draw and write. 

Find this banner to print for your class or at home, here in Google Drive

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• joining my free newsletter
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Back to School

Pencil Pack Art Project - Start with a Square

Start the new school year with an art project that can set the scene of a wonderful year of drawing and creativity! Your students can start with a square to draw a pack of pencils and then finish with a background that explores their emerging drawing skills.

They could:

• add arms and legs to create a pencil pack character, adding a background scene as well
• draw some of their favorite lines - scribbles, loops, circles, zig zags etc
• draw a rainbow or wavy lines with some colors that they would like to incorporate into their artworks this year

Before you start this project, have a class discussion on drawing and how it fits with your learning program. You may

• encourage drawing before writing
• have specific times for drawing lessons
• provide paper and directed drawing projects in a center as a stimulus for writing, creativity or as a fast-finisher

Once completed these pencil packs would make a lovely display for the back-to-school weeks or the first page in a folder collection of art projects. 

This project is included in our new Start with a Square Directed Drawing pack. It includes 4 project options for 10 drawings. Here are the steps for you to follow too:

I hope your first weeks at school (although often busy) are rewarding and you build some lasting happy memories with your students! 

You may also like:

• the Start with a Square drawing and writing pack
• the Start with a Circle drawing and writing pack
• more back to school activities and ideas

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Back to School, Directed Drawing

3 Extra Ideas for the Rainbow Car

Here are some extra ways to use our Rainbow Cars Number Display Posters in math warm ups!

Daily Counting

With your numbers up on display, have your students count each morning - looking at the numeral and saying the number name.

Fix the Mix

Mix up your number line by switching some cards. Ask students to reorder them and count in the correct sequence. 

Quick Add

Hold up 2 cards and have students find the total. Encourage them to count-on from the larger number - e,g. here they will say 3-4-5. 

Count-on to Make 10

Ask students to add more counters to each window to make a total of 10. Again, have them count-on from the existing number. Talk about how many were added to make the total of 10. 

I hope you love these fun ways to use your number display for essential math concepts and skills! 

You may also like:

• more math ideas for the classroom
• math activities for making 5
• a car themed bulletin board or classroom door

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math warm up

Bird on a Leaf Drawing

 Find a cute bird on a leaf drawing to complete in the Pond Premium Coloring Club this week! Your children can complete it directly on the page or you can provide large art paper for them to begin an art project.

After drawing using the steps as a guide you can encourage them to

• draw more leaves or foliage
• draw additional background - the sky, more birds, other animals
• paint or color - I used crayon and watercolor layers 

I hope you enjoy this creative activity with your students or children. You may also like:

• more drawing and writing projects
• to join the Pond Coloring Club
• to make a paper craft bird

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Art Ideas for Kids, Directed Drawing

Folded Paper Owls

If you have children new to paper craft here is a project to teach them a few simple folds. You'll need a square of paper to do a half page diagonal fold to start. Finish with a few smaller ones and some paper scraps! 

Once completed they look great on a classroom banner or bulletin board. 

You may also like:

• more owl ideas for the classroom or your learning program
• more paper craft projects
• to get our newsletter (it's free)

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owls, Paper Folding Craft

Meteor Craft

When meteoroids enter Earth's atmosphere at high speed and burn up, the fireballs or shooting stars are called meteors. Your students can make one to help create a dazzling classroom display or to spark engagement in some research, reading or writing!

You'll need:

• the printable page from the Pond Coloring Club (free)
• crayons
• scissors
• glitter or sequins (optional)

Have your students warm up by doing some scribble coloring on the back of their page. Big strokes and patterns are lots of fun and also support emerging handwriting skills. Hanging in a display the craft star will turn and twirl - it will be nice to see this bright warm yellow.



After coloring or painting you can add a layer of white glue and sprinkle some glitter or sequins on. Allow plenty of time for drying if you are including this step. 

I hope your class has lots of fun learning about meteorites and practicing their scissor skills! 

Here is a star themed math warm up you may like to play this week too!

5 Star Math Warm Up

• put a collection of 5 stars in the play area
• players take turns to roll 2 dice
• when a total of 5 is rolled, a player may claim a star
• play until all 5 have been claimed

Variations:

• play for subtraction with a 12 and 6 sided dice, rolling for a difference of 5 (e.g. 2 and 7)
• all players can attempt to claim a star when a 5 is rolled (put one star out at a time) 

Don't miss out on more ideas and inspiration for your classroom - join the newsletter! 

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Craft for Kids, math warm up

Paper Craft Birds

Help your children make a colordul paper craft bird with just a few easy folds on a square of paper!

They can draw or cut some paper scraps to create an eye, beak and wing. Once completed they can be added to a classroom display or used in counting  activities! 

Here are the basic folds:

And here are some ideas for adding scrap paper detail:

I hope your beautiful colorful birds can create a welcoming display in your classroom your students will love looking at each morning!

You may also like:

• a rainbow bird math craft
• a square bird shape craft
• more paper folding crafts

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Paper Folding Craft

3 in a Row Math Warm Up

Here is a math game your learners can play with the bee grids included in our Math Kit bundle! 

3 for Bee - Finding the Difference 

• bee grid per player
• counters in various colors
• 6 sided die
• 9 sided die

To play:

• roll both dice
• find the difference - e.g. 5 and 3 with a difference of 2
• take the difference in counters and place them on the grid
• put counters down in sets of 3 (matching colors)
• e.g. the student in the photo below will partition 1 off their next number and use a blue, but use another color for the remainder 

Students can play independently or within a small group. 

Another math game for use with the bee grid (or any 9 grid) requires pattern blocks.

Pattern Block Slide

• one student is squares, the other triangles
• to start play they take turns to put one shape down at a time (3 each in total)
• they then take turns to slide one of their shapes across or down
• they keep sliding until someone gets 3 in a row
• this is a game for mathematical thinking and strategy and perfect for a quick warm up
• it also helps students to see different arrangements of their 3 shapes throughout the game - leading to fluency with numbers

Have fun with numbers today! You may also like:

• more math warm ups
• to find the bee cards
• to get our email newsletter with extra ideas and news form our store

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Math Kit, math warm up, Subtraction

Scribble Stars

Help your children learn to draw a scribble star. They will combine a spiral circle, 5 radial lines and then some back-and-forth scribble to create a star! 

Provide crayons and a large drawing book or paper to have plenty of room for practice. Once drawn they can be cut out and added to a classroom display.

Here are some scribble stars on a display of counting math crafts. The math craft is available in our new number game - Rocket to the Moon. 

To draw a scribble star:

• start with a little spiral to make a circle
• draw 5 lines from the circle 
• (young children may like to have the circle made larger to more clearly direct their scribbles to it's edge)
• scribble from the end point of each line back to the edge of the circle

I hope your students have fun making stars.

You may also like:

• Star of the Week for classroom community
• Rocket to the Moon Math Game
• Scribble Kids

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Art Ideas for Kids, numbers to five, Scribble Drawings

Scissor Skills with Jungle Leaves

Your children can make a lovely jungle or tropical vine with leaves from our Pond Coloring Club. They will practice scissor skills, snipping around the edge to create a fringe effect. 

 

Once cut, ask students to fold the little pieces gently back and forth to give the leaves some shape. You can attach them to string to dangle like a vine or attach them directly to your bulletin board or display.

If you have children still developing scissor control, enlarge the page (here I printed one at 160%) to provide them with a large leaf to cut. They can snip the edge, or use the lines as guides for making a larger leaf pattern.

You may also like:

• more scissor skills activity packs
• a lion craft

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Craft for Kids, fine motor, scissor skills

Race to 10 and Making 10 Math Warm Ups

Here are 2 math warm ups you can use with a small group of students at your guided math table! They will explore numbers and counting as they move a teddy (or similar) counter on a counting card. I've used counting cards to 10, you can adapt the ideas with larger or smaller numbers if needed. 

Making 10

• place 2 cards side by side
• use one card to move teddy along the path, the other to keep a record of the numbers rolled
• to play, roll a 1-3 dice (123 Happy Dice from our Pond Coloring Club is ideal)
• move teddy along the track and put counters down to match after each roll
• after teddy reaches the end of the path stduents can record the numbers rolled to make 10 - e.g. 2+3+1+2+2 (optional)

Race to 10

• 2 students play together
• take turns to roll the die and move teddy along his path
• the first teddy to reach the end of the path is the winner

You may also like:

• a Math Bear craft
• more math warm ups
• activity cards from our Math Kit

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Making 10, Math Kit, math warm up

Torn Paper Collage

Have your students drawn and painted their Teacher Bear? Here are some ideas for adding more detail to their work and extending their creativity. 

Encourage your children to use crayons to add line detail over their paint (once dry). They can draw

• vertical lines
• horizontal lines
• zig zags
• loops
• spirals
• short lines for bear fur

Help your students learn to tear paper- first in long pieces and then smaller chips. They can collage these to fill the desk for their Bear Teacher.

While tearing, model mathematical language and talk about

• how to control the paper with small tears to begin
• the size of the pieces
• the shape of the pieces
• the colors
• how to cover the space

After your Teacher Bears are finished, display them in your classroom to celebrate your students' emerging skills and creative work!

For more details on how to draw the bear, visit this post! 

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Back to School, fine motor

Teacher Bear At Project

 

Draw Teacher Bear with your students for a back to school activity! They can follow your steps or create their own. I. used the Grandpa Bear directed drawing page to get started - it's in the Pond Coloring Club!

• follow the 6 steps as shown
• add a line for the desk
• add some teacher desk details - an apple, a pencil, a mug etc

After drawing your students can paint or color. 

After Art

Have a discussion with your students about school. Talk about the teachers in your school community, showing photos if available and helping them become familiar with names and roles of the people who help them each day.

Find more Back to School drawing and art ideas in our pack that includes writing paper too!

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Back to School, Directed Drawing

Ordering Numbers with Puppy Math Warm Up

 

Here is a math warm up for helping your children order numbers quickly.

You need:

• 3 frames (I'm using the Puppy Frames from our Math Kit)
• 3 dice per player

To play:

• students simply roll 3 dice and order them from smallest to largest as quick as they can on their puppy frame
• keep rolling and ordering in the math warm-up time you have available
• encourage students to say the numbers as well - giving you a greater opportunity to monitor each child at your table 

Challenge

• after students have played several times (over a few days perhaps) let them use numeral dice, giving them the opportunity to order numbers without counting

Have fun in math today! 

• find more math warm ups here
• find activities for numbers to five here
• find some number coloring pages here

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Math Kit, math warm up

Turtle Two and Three

 

For your learners to become fluent with addition and subtraction within 5, they need to become familiar with each of the numbers. Here is a number warm-up that will focus on number 2 and 3, and also encourage students to see these numbers as part of and relating to another group (within 9). 

Turtle 2 and 3 - A Math Warm Up for 2 players

You need:

• 9 grid (I'm using the Turtle Grids from our Math Kit)
• counters in 3 colors, in small bag to conceal them from view

To play:

• 3 of a color in a row wins - the player who completes the 3 is the winner
• students take turns to take 2 counters (without looking)
• if they match in color, they can be placed anywhere on the grid
• if they do not match in color they are put back
• keep taking turns until a 3 is made - clear the grid and start again

Options:

• encourage lots of math talk about 1, 2 and 3 (how these numbers combine, how many more, how many of each etc)
• encourage discussion that will guide students to an understanding of how 1, 2 and 3 are different
• talk about colors - observe any students having difficulty with red and green in combination
• to make the game more complex, include extra sets of counters so it is less likely they will get 2 that match so quickly

• find more math warm ups here
• find activities for numbers to five here
• find some number coloring pages here

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Math Kit, math warm up, turtles