Friday, February 24, 2017

Author Study Hat for Dr. Seuss Week

Dr. Seuss Week is almost upon us! It sneaks up on my every year! I will never again forget the date, though, because my second daughter was born on Dr. Seuss's birthday two years ago. She came so quickly; I had planned to be at school the next morning for our Dr. Seuss Day fun. We had a visitor coming to read and everything. Well, she had other plans and surprised us in the middle of the night by making her appearance into the world a week ahead of schedule, and I missed out on Dr. Seuss Day with my class--which is kind of a big deal when you teach Pre-K, but she was completely worth it! Of course, we had a Dr. Seuss themed 1st birthday party for her a year later. :)

Now that the date is embedded in my brain, I think I'll be a little more prepared for it every year. I hope, anyway.

This year, I think I'll have my kids design these easy hats. They can draw their favorite Dr. Seuss character on the book, and it's totally customizable, so we can use them for other authors later.

Author Study Hat for Dr. Seuss Week | Apples to Applique


These color-cut-and-go hats are always a hit with my students, and give us something simple but fun to do during parent parties. They love being able to wear their creations, too!

Get yours here in my TPT store! They are super teacher-friendly and great for the last minute, because there is no prep! Literally print and go, then the kids do the rest. Enjoy!

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Caps for Sale Dramatic Play Center

My kids absolutely love dramatic play and retelling stories. We read "The Three Little Pigs" a few weeks ago, and since then, they just kept acting it out during their learning labs time. One of my paras made them some pig and wolf masks, and they all had a blast!

The next week, our librarian read them Caps for Sale and then had them act it out. Again, my kids just couldn't get enough, and started doing this on their own during learning labs. I decided to make a few cute props to aid in their play. I contacted my go-to clip art person, JolieDesign, and she came up with the fantastic clip art for me. Seriously, if you need clip art for your classroom, hit her up!

I am ecstatic with how these turned out!

Caps for Sale Dramatic Play Center | Apples to Applique

I designed retelling cards to help kids with summarizing or retelling the story in their own words. My students like to hold these up and play teacher with them. They're also helpful after a read-aloud to just show the kids and ask them questions about main events in the story.
I also made a sign for the peddler to either wear or display in their center, and masks for the peddler and monkeys. For the hats themselves, I'm giving them beanbags to stack on their heads; it gives them great gross motor practice!

I love watching kids act out their favorite stories. One of my students takes her turn as the peddler and always says, "Caps for sale! Fifty dollars for each!" It cracks me up every time, but the other kids don't seem to mind her price increase and just roll with it. ;)

Of course, I can't keep a resource this good to myself, so it's listed in my TPT store. You can find it here: Caps for Sale Retelling Kit and Dramatic Play Center. I hope your students love it as much as mine do, and I would love to hear how you utilize this kit in your classroom!