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Finding the Time to implement Literacy Experiences in the Preschool Classroom centers letters literacy names small group whole group

Bringing literacy experiences such as interactive read alouds, shared reading or shared writing and interactive writing doesn't have to add more direct instruction time to your day. In fact, adding more direct instruction time would not be the goal when working with little learners!

So the...

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How to Teach Letters without Letter of the Week

Raise your hand if you were (or are) a Letter of the Week Teacher

I’m raising my hand because I once taught preschoolers using LOTW.

LOTW seems so logical. You teach one letter a week and by the end of the year - boom all the letters are covered. You know you covered all the letters - good...

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Using Meaningful Experiences to Teach Letters alphabet classroom experiences letters name writing reading

ABCD... do your students know all their letters?

Letter identification is one of the first things parents, administrators and some teachers think of when they think of preschool learning.

Truth is there is a TON more that goes into supporting children in the area of literacy before they are...

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What are Play Schemes and Why are they Important? centers classroom development dramatic play play play schemes play-based preschool

Have you heard of play schemes before? If you’ve ever wondered why young children play certain ways and repeat those actions over and over again - play schemes might be the culprit.

Understanding play schemes not only helps us understand the development of our young children, but it also...

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Process Art Vs. Crafts in Preschool art art supplies classroom crafts create creative paint preschool process art

“Every child is born creative. The challenge is to keep that creativity alive.” That is quote from Kristina Webb.  Pretty true right?! Sometimes without intent, our schooling systems try to put that creativity into a box by focusing heavily on product-art, rather than...

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Why Every Preschooler Needs to be Playing Cooperative Games cooperative games empathy learners prescholers preschool teachers small group win

 Gameplay and young children can be so much fun and full of so many great benefits. But if you have some children who struggle with the winning and losing aspect of a game, a cooperative game is just what you need. Don't get me wrong, because playing cooperative games is important for all of...

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Free Play + Playful Learning = Engaged Centers centers change classroom explore fresh learners learning materials overwhelm play playful preschool teachers

Let's see if you can relate to me on this one, creating centers that draw children in and keep them engaged and make them want to go there, as well as helping them learn important skills that we've got to meet isn't as easy as it sounds. And that isn't even to mention handling the sometimes...

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Leveling Up your Centers with Tray Tasking centers counting curriculum fine motor independent play manipulatives math skills organization science small group tray tasking

Have you ever heard of tray tasking? If not, don't worry, it is not as fancy as it sounds, but it does hold some serious magic when paired with centers. So, we're going to talk about the what, why, where and how of using tray tasking.

What Is Tray Tasking?

For me, tray tasking is placing an...

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