Five Plump Turkeys - Shared Reading

My kiddos LOVE the Five Little Pumpkins song. They were really sad when we stopped singing it after Halloween. I'm excited to teach them the Five Plump Turkeys song. I'm going to use it for our shared reading the week before Thanksgiving. You can pick up a copy for your class here.

The packet includes a poster that can be used for shared reading or singing the song.

The packet also includes a large print version of the song that can be assembled on chart paper or in a pocket chart for shared reading. 

The packet also includes an ordinal number assessment. There's a basic assessment which asks the child to color the turkeys in order (1st, 2nd, 3rd). The advanced assessment asks the child to color the turkeys out of order (2nd, 4th, 5th).

Also, the packet includes color copies and black & white copies. So colored printer or not, your packet will still look super cute!

What songs or other activities do you use to keep your kiddos engaged before the holiday season?

All About Me Star, Poem, and Portfolio Page!

The first real "theme" we do every year is All About Me. It's a great way for me to get to know my kiddos and for the students to get to know each other. 

School & Home Connection

One of the activities I do is a star. I just cut a big star out of yellow construction paper and send it home with a note asking parents to work with their child to fill it with things about them. They can put their name on it, age, pictures of them, things they like, etc. Then, each child gets a chance to share about their star in front of the class. 

Last year, instead of the star, I drew each child's silhouette and had them decorate it with things they liked.

Shared Reading

This poem is our first shared reading of the year. It's a very simple poem and the kids always think it's funny. (I apologize for the horribly drawn monkey, I never claimed to be an artist. . . )

Portfolio Page

Here is the portfolio page I'm using this year (from Miss Pam's Room). I usually change which one I do every year. We have mixed ages in our classes so I usually have a handful who were there last year. I've come across so many different versions on pinterest. You can follow my All About Me board on pinterest here.

This is just a small taste of my AAM unit. More to come! Leave a comment and let me know your favorite all about me activities!

Pete the Cat Inspired Beginning Reader

Pete the Cat by Eric Litwin, is a fantastic book. It's a must buy (with CD). My kids couldn't get enough of it last year. I can pretty much guarantee you all my kids could retell it word for word. So this year, I'm going to use Pete the Cat as my main book for my colors unit. In previous years, I've used Brown Bear, Brown Bear. 

I created a beginning reader to use for our shared reading to go along with Pete the Cat. It's very simple and follows the, I love my (insert color here) shoes, rhythm. My hope is that this book will;

1. teach & reinforce color recognition to my younger kids.

2. introduce color words (the written print) to my older kids.

3. build their confidence as readers.

Here are some pictures of the beginning reader, I Love My Colorful Shoes. You can download it at my tpt store. Clip-art is by KPM Doodles, and font is by Kimberly Geswein. 

Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear your thoughts!