We hope you love this new word awareness activity! (This post contains affiliate links.) My Three loved doing alphabet activities with me last year. When she was about 2 1/2, all of it started to click, and by three years old she recognized most of the uppercase alphabet. But one thing she didn't grasp as easily as letter names was letter sounds. In fact, I've noticed that she could use some support in a variety of ... Read More
Worksheets for short i words
Looking for some simple worksheets to review basic phonics skills? Grab our free short i worksheets! I pulled out these short i worksheets to use with my kindergartner for some extra review. I usually spend 15-20 minutes doing extra learning with my Five when he comes home from morning kindergarten. On this particular day I pulled out our stack of nine short i worksheets. (No, I wasn't planning to have him ... Read More
Roll and read games for short e words
Grab our free no-prep games for reading short e words! Today I'm sharing a set of games that you can use to help your learners read short e words. The great thing is that they come in six different levels - perfect for differentiation! Simply print the game of your choice and give it to a pair of students. They can take turns rolling the die and reading the corresponding column. The above image shows the simplest ... Read More
Color matching clip cards
Today I'm sharing a set of color cards that will help your preschooler match colors. This post contains affiliate links. How is your toddler or preschooler doing at learning those colors? Sometimes it helps to try a matching game. I created these simple clip cards to give your preschooler the opportunity to match colors and get some fine motor practice in at the same time. What you need: Color cards (download the ... Read More
Alphabet tracing book
Today I'm sharing a free alphabet tracing book, perfect for kids who are struggling to learn letter names. This post contains affiliate links. If you have students who struggle to remember their alphabet, this post is for you! I'm sharing a printable alphabet tracing book, a free sample from my collection of Alphabet Games & Activities. It's perfect for three types of children: 1- Young learners who struggle to ... Read More
Why I no longer use running records
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How to take a running record
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10 mistakes to avoid when teaching reading
Are you making these common mistakes when teaching reading in K-2? Let's make sure we're avoiding these ten common mistakes! Mistake #1 - Neglecting phonemic awareness instruction For years I thought a "hit or miss" approach to phonological and phonemic awareness was sufficient. Throw in some songs throughout the day, clap the syllables in our names, rhyme a bit, and play beginning sound games ... that should ... Read More
What is independent reading?
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Alphabet action cards
Today I'm sharing a set of free alphabet action cards - in two different versions! A few months ago, I finished teaching my Three the alphabet through our simple letter of the week activities. She loved it, and is busy writing letters wherever she goes - as you can see in the above story about a "cweepy monster." :) One thing she hasn't picked up on is letter sounds; she knows just a few of them. Her older siblings ... Read More