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Sharing Free Printables

by admin | Mar 18, 2014 | Categories

Just another reminder about sharing the things you find on this site. I created this site to help teachers and parents with FREE resources that I create. You DO NOT need my permission to share.

I get a lot of emails from Google with teachers asking for permission to share specific books and printables. When you ask for permission to share through your school website, your school district server does not allow me to grant that permission.

Please feel free to share these documents with your friends through sending them the website or by using Pinterest.

Thanks guys!

Talent Show and Program Ideas

by admin | Jan 31, 2014 | Categories

For PreK, Kinder and 1st graders

My classes have always participated in the Talents Shows or Programs and sometimes it’s difficult to find a performance for them that isn’t too hard, complicated or disastrous.  


Here is a list of what’s worked for me, and my coworkers in the past, plus a few we plan on trying out in the future.

Disney Songs
My class easily learned these by watching Disney Sing Along Songs on YouTube or video with the captions on and printed lyrics.

In Summer
Frozen Soundtrack
How cute would the kids look dressed up as snowmen singing In Summer?!
Costumes: Any white clothing, scarves, hats, mittens. Carrot noses are a must when dressing up like Olaf. Rubber noses can be found on Amazon here, but it would be a lot cheaper to make orange cones from construction paper or fun foam.  

I Just Can’t Wait to be King
Sing Along Songs: The Lion King
CD: CD: Classic Disney, Vol. 1: 60 Years of Musical Magic
I tried to get the kids to only sing Simba’s lines and not the bird’s but that didn’t work so well. In the end it didn’t matter. They were still super cute. And they added in the foot stomp themselves.
Costumes: We made lion masks out of paper plates and the kids wore

Everybody Wants to be a Cat
Sing Along Songs: The Lion King and Sing Along Songs: The Bare Necessities
CD: Disney’s Greatest Hits Vol. 3
Costumes: Cat masks or cat ears and painted on whiskers. Match brown, gray, black or white ears with their ears.

I Got No Strings from Pinocchio
Sing Along Songs: You Can Fly
Costumes: Blue or red shorts, white uniform shirts, suspenders, make yellow hats, draw marionette lines on their faces. 

The Bare Necessities
Sing Along Songs: The Bare Necessities
CD: Disney’s Greatest Hits Vol. 2
Costumes: All brown, black or white with bear ears, or bear masks.

The Ugly Bug Ball 
Sing Along Songs: The Bare Necessities
CD: Classic Disney, Vol. 1: 60 Years of Musical Magic
This adorable song is from the Disney movie Summer Magic.
Costumes: So cute with the kids dressed up as bugs. 

Little ones love being on stage.

Dr. Jean Songs
Check out her website for lyrics and movements to go with the songs.

My Mother Was a Baker  
CD: Dr. Jean and Friends
Our biggest hit ever from the school Talent Show 4 years ago. 
Costumes: The kids wore uniform pants and shirts they’d painted in art class.

Patalina Matalina 
CD: Dr. Jean Sings Silly Songs
Costumes: A coworker of mine did this with kinders and dressed them up in beach wear: flip flops, board shorts, rash guards, even a few hula skirts.

Bringing Home A Baby Bumblebee 
CD: Dr. Jean Sings Silly Songs
Costumes: Kids could wear black and/or yellow. Bee wings and antennae, or just be dressed as kids.  

Five Little Monkeys 
CD: Dr. Jean and Friends
Costumes: brown shirts, monkey ears can easily be made with headbands and fun foam.

Mother Goony Bird 
CD: Dr. Jean and Friends
Costumes: Anything!

A Tooty Ta 
CD: Dr. Jean and Friends
Nothing looks more bizarre than watching kids do this. Its even more fun to get the kids in the audience to do it with them. 
Costumes: tie-dyed shirts, uniforms, rainbow shirts, hawaiian shirts, whatever’s easiest. 

Children’s Favorites by Disney, Volume 1
I love this CD because I had it as a kid and I still remember all the songs.

I’m a Policeman
Costumes: Dress kids up in black or blue with those badge stickers the police or firemen hand out. Make a Police hat like this one. http://www.dariendotmom.com/blog/pinteresting_dotmom/diy-police-hat-cops-robbers-birthday-party/

Take Me Out to the Ballgame
Costumes: Baseball uniforms, baseball shirts and caps and jeans.

This Old Man (Knick-Knack Patty-Whack) 
Kids love singing this song. It’s a great counting song, easy to make up hand motions. 
Costumes: Anything!

Other Songs
If I Only Had a Brain from The Wizard of Oz
This came out so cute, even though the song was really hard for them to learn. 
Costumes: dressed as scarecrows: jeans, overalls, flannel shirts, floppy hats, etc.

You’ll Sing A Song and I’ll Sing a Song 
CD: Ella Jenkins; You’ll Sing A Song and I’ll Sing a Song
Just a beautiful song–especially precious with little voices. 
Costumes: Anything!

Rainbow Songs
I Can Sing a Rainbow here
Rainbow Connection: The Muppet Show: Music, Mayhem, and More! CD
Somewhere Under the Rainbow: Wizard of Oz Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD
Costumes: Divide kids into 6 groups: one group is red, one orange, one yellow, one green, one blue and one purple. You can either have kids bring in their color shirt, or bring in a white t-shirt to be dyed. 

*Performance Tip: No matter what the kids do, the parents and audience will laugh because the kids are going to be so stinkin’ adorable. However that can upset little ones who think they’re getting laughed at. I always tell the kids before the performance that people often laugh when they see something that is cute. So when they hear the audience laughing, it’s because they’re cute and they’re doing a good job. 

Gifts for Teachers

by admin | Nov 26, 2013 | Categories

Get Simple
If you’ve got multiple teachers to buy for make this is as easy as possible for yourself. 
Gift Cards. ALWAYS a favorite with teachers. Don’t worry about the amount. $5, $25, whatever you can afford will greatly be appreciated by teachers. 

• $5 or $10 Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts (or whichever coffee place is closest to the school) in a cute mug.
• $10 to Barnes and Noble or Amazon stuck in a kid-made card.
• $10 to Godiva — Seriously, one of the favorite gift cards I’ve EVER received from a parent. I got $25 and it took me months to use up. It was awesome.
• $25 to $50 to a teacher store such as Lakeshore. (That stuff is expensive, but great.)

Get Specific
Think about the special relationship your child had with their teacher. Did they connect over a favorite book, are they both art lovers, or math people? Do they both love dogs or the color pink? One year I helped a child deal with the death of a beloved pet. Later that year her parents gave me a plush dog.

Get Creative
Some of the best gifts are homemade!
Think about having your child make a card, a small gift or ornament. Check out these cute ideas:

• Candy Cane Bath Salts
• Jar Mixes
• Homemade Teacher Gifts from Hamilton Hams
• School Supply Cake by 
• Teacher themed coffee cup sleeve at Tip Junkie.

Go With the Theme
Lots of Classrooms have a decorative theme. My classroom theme alternates from Moose to Superheroes. I’ve gotten several cute plush moose or moose figurines from students. I’ve also gotten a few wonderful superhero storybooks. *Be careful with this one. I had a friend who had WAYYYY too many frogs. 

• If the theme is an animal, such as bears, rabbits, frogs, etc give a gift card to Build-A-Bear so they can make their own mascot for the class.
• Instead of stuffed animals or figurines, look for books that go with the theme. 

Create Your Own Theme
I love theme gifts! So fun. 

• Coffee Theme: a gift card, a mug, a bag of flavored coffee, a bottle of Torani Syrup, biscotti
• Pet Theme: (if you know how big their pet is) A new leash and collar, a box of treats or specialty dog cookies, toys, books, etc.
• Pampering Theme: bubble bath, loofah, pedicure set, body cream, Burt’s Bees Tips and Toes, 
• Date Night Theme: Popcorn, popcorn seasoning, gift card to Red Box or a movie theater, large boxes of candy, cute popcorn containers.
• Sports Theme: Local sports team memorabilia, such as a hat or T-shirt. Mini balls, a pack of sports cards, etc. If it’s baseball, add a box of Cracker Jacks. 
• Cooking Theme: wooden spoons, mixing bowls, dish towels, specialty mixes such as pancake and waffle mix, dip mix or soup mix, 
• Gardening Theme: a gardening gift basket filled with things such as gloves, tools, gardening tool caddy, seeds, bulbs or live plants. (We moved into a house with tons of hydrangeas all over the yard. The previous owner was a kindergarten teacher and the hydrangeas were all gifts from her students. years later they were a beautiful reminder to her of those students, and now we get to enjoy them!)

Give to the Whole Class
Books! Books! Books!
A nice box set or a beautiful hardback picture book is something the whole class will enjoy. Don’t worry if it’s a book the class already has. Books wear out. Multiple copies mean more than one kid can look at it at a time. Some great books as gift ideas:

• Frog and Toad Box Set
• Sometimes I Like to Curl Up in a Ball
• The Old Woman Who Named Things by Cynthia Rylant
• Junie B. Jones Box Set
• Oliver Jeffers books: Stuck, How to Catch a Star, This Moose Belongs to Me, Up and Down
• A Story for Bear by Dennis Haseley
• Curious George Box Set
• Amazing Machines: Truckload of Fun
• Kevin Henkes Box Set: Five Books About Lilly and Her Friends

Get Office Supplies
My favorite pens ever were a gift a received from a parent (who was also a teacher). The sharpie retractable pens. I love those things, but probably wouldn’t have spent the money on them myself. Here are some office supply ideas:

• Cute, colorful paper clips, thumb tacks, etc.
• A fancy stapler or tape dispenser
• Colorful pens
• Nice, black pens
• A set of Expo markers in multiple colors
• Stickers

Apps for Early Readers

by admin | Nov 6, 2013 | Categories

Teaching Patience

by admin | Oct 21, 2013 | Categories

Teaching patience to little ones is an ongoing process that will probably take years. While it’s true that some people are naturally more patient than others, it CAN be taught and practiced.

Taking Turns
No kid wants to be last in line, or the last one to get a cupcake when it’s someone’s birthday, but waiting is a fact of life that isn’t going to go away. It’s important for little ones to know they aren’t the only ones who have to wait. They won’t always be last, but they won’t always be first either.

1. Brainstorm with your class things to do while you’re waiting your turn: Count as high as you can go, read signs or posters that are near you, think up rhyming words, practice math facts, etc.
2. Playing games, such as board games are a great lesson in Waiting Your Turn. With a full classroom it’s easier to divide in teams and take turns writing letters or words on the white board, having spelling bees or practicing math facts.
3. Taking Turns While Talking. With a partner kids take turns talking. Give them a topic, such as “Your Favorite Foods” or “Your Favorite Animals”. The partners take turns saying ONE thing they like.  

Wait and Do Nothing
In school kids have to learn there are times when you have to sit and do nothing. Whether we’re waiting for our turn at lunch, taking a bathroom break or getting our vision checked in the clinic, sometimes we have to sit, wait and do nothing until it’s our turn.

1. Relate Waiting and Doing Nothing to their lives outside of school. When do they have to wait? At the doctor’s office, in line at the store, playing a game, when mom and dad are busy doing grown up things, etc.
2. Brainstorm things to do when you have to Wait and Do Nothing. My class came up with ideas such as sing a song in your head, count in your head, make up a story in your head, have a whisper conversation, make shadow puppets, etc.

Patience When Learning or Making Something

1. Introduce the words Patience and Frustration. 
2. Take a Break. When kids are frustrated they need to understand that it’s ok to take a break. Model what this looks like.
3. Practice stopping what they’re doing, taking a deep breath and relaxing, then getting back to work. You can have the kids practice this with an easy activity, such as putting a simple puzzle together, coloring a page or writing. 

Patience Waiting For Something
Birthdays, Christmas, growing, recess…we’re always waiting for something to happen.

1. Tell them about the things you are waiting for. Kids need to know they aren’t the only ones struggling with things. Let them know how you handle waiting: focusing on something else, counting down the days, etc.
2. Give them something meaningful to wait for that also gives them ownership. Growing seeds is a great way to do this. Hatching butterflies is another. Check out the Root Garden Viewer, the Sprout and Grow Window, and the Live Butterfly Garden. 
3. Cook together. If you Homeschool, baking or cooking is a great lesson in patience with a wonderful reward! Check out the Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook, Pinkalicious Cupcake Cookbook, The Disney Princess Cookbook, and Wookiee Cookies: A Star Wars Cookbook. 

Videos That Teach Patience
Check out Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood on PBS. Older episodes are available on Amazon Prime Videos. Several episodes have Daniel Tiger learning patience.

Kids Character Building: Patience

Books Dads Enjoy Reading to Kids

by admin | Sep 30, 2013 | Categories

My little boy LOVES being read to–and he doesn’t care who’s doing it. He’s too little to choose his own stories yet, so we choose for him. As an early childhood teacher I have several favorites that I enjoy reading, but I can tell there are some books my husband enjoys reading more than others. 

Tips for Dads (or anyone new to reading to children and babies)

• Choose books you enjoy reading. 

Choose books that were your favorites as a kid. 

• Help your child choose books. Look for nice pictures, easy text, humor or a shared interest.

• Do the voices. Make the sounds. Read with expression. This will make it more fun for both of you and encourage your child to read fluently when it’s their turn.

• Read together. If there are words in the book your child knows let them help you. 

• When reading to an infant, let them look at the pictures, but also make sure they can see your face. 

• When reading to a toddler talk a lot about what they see in the pictures. Point to things, give them the correct words, etc. 

• When reading to preschoolers, kindergartners and 1st graders it’s 

important to make sure every time you read a book together it isn’t about learning to read. If they are being read to, and they’re doing their homework they will learn to read. Reading together at this age and when their older is about learning to enjoy books and spending time together.

Here is a list of books Dads will appreciate as much as the kids do.

*Instead of putting them in alphabetical order, I arranged the books in each category by age-appropriateness: books for infants and toddlers first, books that can be read to kids 5 and up last.



Boys as the Main Character
Sloppy Joe by Dave Keane and Denise Brunkus
Elmer by David McKee 
Jamberry by Bruce Degan
A Boy, a Dog, and a Frog by Mercer Mayer (wordless)
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak 
Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox 
How to Catch a Star by Oliver Jeffers
Hey, Little Ant by Phillip M. Hose
Leo the Late Bloomer by Robert Kraus
Too Much Glue by Jason Lefebvre
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst
James in the House of Great Aunt Prudence by Timothy Bush
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney



Cowboy Books
Cowboy Small by Lois Lenski
Good Night Cowboy by Glenn Dromgoole
B is for Buckaroo: A Cowboy Alphabet by Gleaves Whitney
Armadillo Rodeo by Jan Brett
Cowboy Kid by Max Eilenberg


Dad Books
My Dad Loves Me by Marianne Richmond
Daddy Hugs by Karen Katz
My Dad is the Best Playground by Luciana Navarro Powell
Because I’m Your Dad by Ahmet Zappa
When Dad’s Don’t Grow Up by Marjorie Blain Parker
Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willams 
Just Me and My Dad by Mercer Mayer
Enemy Pie by Derek Munson

Dr. Seuss
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? by Dr. Seuss
Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss
The Sneetches and Other Stories by Dr. Seuss
Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? by Dr. Seuss
Oh The Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss


Fact/Non-Fiction Books
Boys of all ages love non-fiction books–and in my experience, the grosser the better. Dinosaurs Roar by Henrietta Strickland
Dig In! by April Jones Prince
Roaring Rockets by Tony Mitton
Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker
Dinosaurs A to Z by Andrea Posner-Sanchez
My First Dinosaur Book DK Books
Hot Diggity Dog: The History of the Hot Dog by Adrienne Sylver
Biggest, Strongest, Fastest by Steve Jenkins
Actual Size by Steve Jenkins
The Construction Alphabet Book by Jerry Pallotta
Bats by Gail Gibbons
Spiders by Gail Gibbons
National Geographic Kids Readers: Mummies by Elizabeth Carney





Funny Books
The Monster at the End of this Book by Jon Stone
Elephant and Piggie Books by Mo Willems
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems
Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
The Stinky Cheese Man by Jon Scieszka
Crankenstein by Samantha Berger
Frank Was A Monster Who Wanted to Dance by Keith Graves
Click Clack Moo Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin
Dogzilla by Dav Pilkey
Kat Kong by Dav Pilkey
Hi! Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold (a series)
Walter the Farting Dog by William Kotzwinkle (a series)

Inanimate Objects as Main Characters
Smash! Crash! by Jon Scieszka
The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
I Stink by Kate McMullan and Jim McMullan
Truck by Donald Crews (wordless)
The Witches Broom by Chris Van Allsburg



Pirate Books
Bizzy Bear: Pirate Adventure by Nosy Crow and Benji Davies 
Pirate Potty by Samantha Berger
Pirates! (Board Buddies) by Viviana Garofoli 
Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC by June Sobel
The Castaway Pirates: A Pop-Up Tale of Bad Luck, Sharp Teeth and Stinky Toes by Ray Marshall
How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long
Pirates Don’t Change Diapers by Melinda Long


Science Fiction/Star Wars
Star Wars ABC by Scholastic
Star Wars 123 by Scholastic 
Alien Al by Roger Priddy
Aliens in Underpants Save the World by Claire Freedman
Star Wars Heroes by Scholastic
Star Wars Villians by Lucas Books

Sports Books
Football ABC by Mark Weakland 
Z is for Zamboni (Sports Alphabet) by Matt Napier
Take Me Out to the Ball Game (Sing-Along Storybook)
Pete the Cat: Play Ball! by James Dean 
Froggy Plays T-Ball by Jonathan London



Superhero Books
Superhero ABCDC Superheroes ABC 123 by David Bar Katz
Nickelodeon Team Umizoomi: Tiny Heroes
Nickelodeon Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Ninja Heroes
DC Super Heroes: The Ultimate Pop-Up BookSuperhero Squad: Meet the Superheroes by Lucy Rosen
Superhero Squad: Iron Man Springs into Action by Kirsten Mayer
The Amazing Spider-Man (Little Golden Book) by Frank Berrios
Spider-Man versus the Green Goblin (I Can Read Book 2) by Susan Hill

Authors Dads Love to Read Aloud
Oliver Jeffers
Steve Jenkins
Kate McMullan
Dav Pilkey
Jon Scieszka
David Shannon
Shel Silverstein
Chris Van Allsburg
Mo Willems