Roll and Compute Dice Game

 

I spend a lot of my time blogging about books and reading, because that's what I spend a majority of my time doing both in school and at home with my children. However, I'm always looking for ways to modify and adapt materials others have created to make them more accessible for all children, regardless of age and performance level. 

Some kids struggle to add and subtract without tools, and they get confused when using fingers. Try these games to practice adding, subtracting, and comparing numbers while using dice.

Click on the images to download the Google Doc.

Feel free to add, change, or rearrange, but please don't sell the item if you've used my framework. Sharing for free is okay!

Bear Snores On

 

My little guy and I are working on rhyming and reading short, repetitive text. We were given Bear Stays Up for Christmas when he was a baby, and grabbed the rest of these books by Karma Wilson at the library recently. Check out some of the fun stuff we've done after reading them.

As a teacher with a master's degree in special education, I'm constantly thinking about modifications and accommodations to meet learners' needs, so I included some free printables in different output formats, which allow students to show what they know in different ways.

If your class is like mine usually are, there is a wide range of reading and writing performance, so I'm happy to be able to support you and your learner(s) and provide examples of different ways your students can demonstrate what they've learned.

 

This EdWordle is neat and can be used in many ways. Beginning learners can create their own using words they know from the story. Advanced learners can create their own, including only specific parts of speech or whatever you ask them to do, and even put it in a shape related to the story.

Here's another way of meeting standards, using a table to answer a question. You can even edit the Doc to include a row or two to have students add their own answer! 

Watch the read alouds below!

Bear Wants More video

Bear Says Thanks video

Bear Snores On video

Meet biologist Lzzie Daly and watch this video to learn about how she uses technology in the wild to learn about bears!

Spookley the Square Pumpkin, and other Fall Shape books

 Spookley the Square Pumpkin by Joe Troiano

A fall favorite of many kids, this book is also a fun short movie. Even my husband remembers the name and plot of the book! While we were pumpkin picking the other day, I even heard a child telling his father he was looking for Spookley in the patch! The theme here is that it's okay to be different, and that we should celebrate those differences. We love the rhyming, which allows for our son to help us read along. Here is the read aloud if you can't find the movie streaming.

Pick a Circle, Gather Squares: A Fall Harvest of Shapes by Felicia Sanzari Chernesky

The concept of this book is great, especially for beginning learners. However, the teacher in me gets a bit annoyed at seeing pumpkins be called circles when they're really more spherical. The books could mention faces of objects being 2D shapes, but chooses to call the objects themselves two dimensional figures. Anyway, my son and I have been searching out shapes in our environment lately, so it was nice to read on the day we went to the nearby pumpkin patch.

Walter's Wonderful Web by Tim Hopgood

This book is great for learning about shapes, the engineering process for littles, and alliteration. Walter ties to build webs in the shape of a triangle, circle, square, rectangle, and diamond. There are lots of W words in the book, obviously, and it's pretty repetitive so kids will enjoy joining in. Check out the read aloud below.

Want to read more fall / Halloween posts?

Looking for more shape / geometry posts?

Drop a comment below to share more fall shape books you've read!

Fraturtles and Other Books About Twins

I am a twin. People think my girls are twins, and sometimes it's easier to go along with than using the term "surviving triplets" all the time. Anyway, they are fraternals just like me and my twin. They look just like me and my twin, too! Their personalities are flipped from ours, though. Anyway, my son was a few months shy of 3 and books we got for him (and them in the future) refer to twins. We've really enjoyed many of them and wanted to share in case you're having multiples.

Fraturtles by Keith Greenstein

The book listing puts it best: "'How come fraternal twins are called twins when they don't look alike?" That's the most common question fraternals ask (and are asked) when they're young. Not only does Fraturtles answer that question, but it does so through a fun, easy-to-understand story about a twin who comes to realize that having a twin isn't about sharing their looks. It's about sharing their lives.'"

God Gave Us Two by Lisa Dawn Bergren

I don't consider myself a religious person, and although this book repeats its title as a phrase often, I also don't consider it to be a religious book either. Much like the book that it comes after (God Gave Us You), you will feel all warm and fuzzy inside while reading it. Spoiler alert: much like our next book, we find out in the end that the parents are expecting multiples. If you have a slightly older younger child, it's a great way to spill the beans! I think it's way more fun with the printed book, but you can check out a read aloud video here.

Big Brother Peanut Butter by Terry Border

I grabbed this one right before my girls came and we loved the theme! Kids often worry about being a good big sibling, and this one was funny and cute. My son loves food too, so it was great to see foods being used to send a message that loving each other is the most important thing family members can do. Watch a read aloud here.

A Twin is to Hug by Boni Ashburn

This one is a quick and easy read. My three year old was able to read some of it to his sisters and he was so proud! I wish we had this on our baby registry before they were born because it would have helped him understand a little more about what to expect. He handled it well, but sometimes two years olds are centered on how hard it is to share parents and toys with their new sibling(s). This book does a good job of showing that it's hard for the twins to have to share everything (and everyone) with each other! Here it is being read aloud on video.

She's My Twin Sister by Lola Adebayo

Written by a British Nigerian author about her own twin daughters, this story tells how Amel and Amira are similar, but different. This is a common twin book theme! There is an attempt to rhyme, which sort of works despite the rhythm being off. It's out of print, so you'll need to track down a used copy or watch the read aloud video here. You can also find another book called That's My New Friend, which was also written about her girls.

Twintuition series by Tia and Tamera Mowery

I grew up watching their TV series Sister, Sister and naturally I was curious about their new books. I bought them for my niece, who is my twin's daughter, since she thought it was so cool we have more than one set of multiples in the family. My great aunt and great uncle are twins, as are my husband's aunt and uncle. Anyway, I haven't read them yet, but she gave them the thumbs up and something tells me they will be passed down to my girls when they're older. Did you know their little brother was an actor on Full House?

Twins: A Graphic Novel by Varian Johnson

I snagged this one from Scholastic for my niece, who loves that her mom and I are twins. At her age, graphic novels are super popular and she grabbed this one from the stack first. It's about finding your place in middle school and in life as a twin. It's great for kids who aren't twins, too, because it teaches them that it's okay to have different interests than those you are friends with.

The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley

Speaking of Full House, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen had a book series when they were younger. Solve mysteries with the sisters as they travel. These books are no longer in print, so snag them where you can! 

Sweet Valley Twins series by Francine Pascal

This one was a favorite of me and my twin when we were middle schoolers. Jessica and Elizabeth are exact opposites, despite being identical twins. It was set in the 1980s and 1990s, but kids today can still relate to a lot of situations they found themselves in. There's also a series for older kids that is set when the girls were in high school, and a TV series was even created later. As you can imagine, you've got to track down used copies.

Check out other twin books I've posted about here.

Do you know of more twin books you'd like to recommend? Please leave a comment below!

A Girl Named Rosita and other Hispanic Heritage Month Read Alouds

It's Hispanic Heritage Month. Have you read about any notable people of  Hispanic heritage? One such celebrated person of Puerto Rican descent is Rita Moreno, an actress born as Rosa Dolores Alverío. This book chronicles her struggles to be treated fairly as a Spanish speaker who faced stereotypes and discrimination in roles available to her throughout her career.

A very talented woman, Rita won many awards, including an Emmy, a Tony, a Grammy Award, and an Oscar. as well as a Presidental Medal of Freedom.

Check out the read aloud here. 

>View PBS's timeline of Rita Moreno's life here. Challenge students to add multimedia to it using Sutori, or view mine here.

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez Neal 

This book is part of what inspired me to create several Donors Choose projects to diversify my classrom. I came across a book called Always Anjali and thought, "Wow! I don't have many books with my students' names in them... let me see what I can find!" I wasn't super successful at finding their exact names, but I did find some from their varying cultures and religions. 

Alma is embarrassed by her long name, but she quickly learns her culture's naming tradition of being named after Spanish speaking family members. She hears stories about each person and identifies with their best traits. Then she learns that "Alma" belongs to her and the story it will tell to her future family members. Check out the read aloud above, which is read by an Argentinean legislator.

Soldier for Equality: Jose de la Luz Saenz and the Great War

This one is a biography. José de la Luz Sáenz (1888-1953)--or Luz--believed in fighting for what was right. Although he was born in the United States, he and his family experienced prejudice because of their Mexican heritage. When World War I broke out, Luz volunteered to join the fight. Because of his ability to quickly learn languages, he became part of the Intelligence Office in Europe. However, despite his hard work and intellect, Luz often didn't receive credit for his contributions.

We have so many more to share! For now, check out Scholastic's list of must-read books for Hispanic Heritage Month. 

Here is another non-fiction biography, Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez. This book is included in the Journeys and Making Meaning reading programs, and for good reason. An advocate for migrant farm workers, Chavez became well-known in an industry that was, and still is, notorious for exploiting workers. He helped them unionize and fight for better conditions. 

Here is the read aloud video.

Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family's Fight for Desegregation by Duncan Tonatiuh

This is a story you've probably never heard. Seven years before Brown vs. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, the Mendez family fought segregation in California. An American by birth, but a member of a bilingual Mexican family, Sylvia was forced to attend a different school than her white counterparts. A lawsuit changed that, and within a decade schools all over the country were being desegregated.

Want more Women's History Month resources? Click here.

See my posts about diverse literature here.