Sight words are critical in learning how to read. Not only are sight words the most frequent words seen in our texts, but most of them cannot be sounded out based on the “normal” phonetic patterns we teach to our students. Memorization is key when it comes to sight words. Since flashcards can be boring, […]

Teaching questioning to primary readers can be tricky! I find that interesting because kids grow up asking questions nonstop!  Then, getting them to ask questions in an academic setting can prove to be challenging. Today, I wanted to share a few fun and free activities to get students asking questions both before and during reading. […]

Do you start your math block with a quick warm up?! I loved to kick off my math block in first grade with a fast and fun activity to get students thinking. I loved this time for spiral review so students can continue practicing skills they’ve already learned throughout the year! The math warm up […]

I love using all sorts of fun games when practicing addition (or really any math skill) in first grade. The game I am sharing today is a particularly easy one to prep and implement in your classroom right away. It is called Biggest Wins!   All you need to play this game is a die […]

This review activity is an oldie, but a goodie and I had to share it with you all! All you need to play the game, parking lots, are a few small cars and some room to make a racecourse or parking lot board.   In the video below, I share all about how to play […]

CVC or consonant-vowel-consonant words are a very familiar thing in the first-grade teaching world. These short vowel patterns are some of the first ones we focus on blending when teaching our students how to read! Once students start becoming familiar with this CVC pattern, I like to have them play some different games to help […]

After a couple of weeks in school, my first-grade students would start reviewing CVC words. We would blend them, segment them, and spell them. This hands-on game is great for students to practice segmenting and spelling different short vowel, CVC words.   To see how to play this FREE CVC phonics game, just watch my […]