Calendar Math Journals

In my school we start our day with Every Day Counts Calendar Math. A couple years ago I started to include calendar math journals in my mornings and the kids really loved them! If we have to skip them for a day they are disappointed. When I had a regular sized class, my students would bring the journals to the carpet and complete them as we reviewed the calendar. Now that I have 36 students we review the calendar and complete a class journal together. Then they go back to their seats to complete their own journal. After they have completed the journal, we count to 30 (or 31) while pointing to the numbers.

To create the journals I staple the papers to the inside of a file folder. Last year I found the calendars on Mrs. Gonzalez's Website. This year I recreated her calendars but now her website is updated with the 2011-2012 calendars. She also has a bunch of other great stuff so check it out! Later in the year I staple a 100s chart to the outside. I've seen the calendar binders and I think they're awesome, I just don't have enough binders for my class.

In September we keep it simple and trace numbers and practice counting. I introduce the tricky teen chants on the teen days. 6 times during the month students make numbers in different ways (2 yellow buses and 3 orange buses=5 buses)
Click here to download the September Calendar Math Journal

In October we start a class graph of their favorite animals. The child of the day picks which animal he/she likes best and we graph it. We also start talking about dominoes.
Click here to download the October Calendar Math Journal

In November we graph the weather, start a daily depositor and continue to talk about dominoes. We add to our daily depositor every day (on Mondays we add for Saturday and Sunday too). I like to use 10 frames so we can practice counting on.

Click here to download the November Calendar Math Journal

I'll post the rest of the journals later in the year! =)

Orientation Treasure Map

Tomorrow I will finally be able to enter my classroom and begin organizing for the new year! This might be dorky, but I'm really excited! I'm determined not to spend my whole last week of summer break at school, but I know I have a LOT of work ahead of me. My co-teacher and I put everything we could into boxes and shoved it in the closet before we left for summer break. To be honest, I'm not looking forward to opening the closet door!

Here is a treasure map I made for our orientation. After we give our introduction talk, I plan on passing out treasure maps for students to do with parents. LittleKinderWarriors created a great treasure map that I loved so much, I recreated it so it would fit my classroom. Check out her blog!

Click here to download treasure map

After they find everything they can get a prize from the treasure box! I'm going to make a kindergarten survival kit for the treasure box prize.

Click here to download Survival Kit

Transportation Forms

Here are transportation information forms that I created for my class. Feel free to use it if you would like! =)

Click here to download these forms in pdf
Click here to download these forms in Microsoft Publisher
***I used the font Kinderdots to create this form***

Shape Poems

I just found these shape poems that I did last year with my class. They really helped my kids remember their shape attributes. The kids loved decorating the shapes to make them into little people. Most of these poems are really old, so I don't know who wrote them. If you know, send me a message and I'll make sure to give proper credit! My super-fabulous co-teacher wrote the poems for Tammy Trapezoid and Honey Hexagon. I ♥ collaboration!

Click here to download the poems