Stop, Swap and Roll!

I am so excited to be a part of Jungle Learners Stop Drop and Roll link up and give away! I love having the opportunity to use an activity from other TpT authors! It's a great way to connect with other teacher-authors! 

This time around, I was linked up with Alex over at Kindergarten Connection!

I "ran" to her store as soon as I got the match, and then spent the next couple days trying to decide what item I wanted to use! She has sooooo many to choose from! I finally had to use inny minny miennny mow to decide! In the end I landed on her Word Family Wizard for the -AT Family! I have a student that I work one on one with for reading. He is in first grade and came into the year with minimal letter and sound knowledge. We started studying a letter and a basic sight word each week. I mean an intensive study! We drilled the letter and word in multiple ways, over and over and over... you get the idea! He has made HUGE gains in the last few months and I have been looking for an opportunity to move him into word families! When I saw her Word Wizards, I knew this was my chance! Alex was kind enough to send me the whole kit and caboodle for the Short A families!

This pack includes 8 different activities: -at book, trace and write, cut and paste, -at puzzles, roll and write, spin and read, spin and graph and a roll and go game. SERIOUSLY?! She has everything you need to practice these families! My favorite thing about this packet is that there are a variety of activities included. It is not just worksheet after worksheet. Students are writing, they are cutting and they are playing! This is especially important with kiddos in Special Education. We are continually looking for ways to engage students (like any classroom teacher is!). We often require multiple different activities to mix things up a bit! This pack did just that!

Take a look at some of the work he did!  Our regular routine is an activity page on the letter of the week and the word of the week. My kiddo has been in this routine since the year started, so I wanted to keep him in this same routine. I stapled the Trace and Write, Cut and Paste, Roll and Write, and Spin and Graph  into a packet, similar to what he typically sees. Each day we completed one page. We even had time to throw in the board game at the end.

We started with the -At book! We read through the book together and highlighted the ending sounds to show that they are the same. 

**Pictures are of completed activities, as parent permission was not received to use the student in pictures**

Trace and Write

Cut and Paste 

Roll and Write

Spin and Graph

We ended the week playing Roll and Go! Let's just say I got beat... every. single. time! =D

He LOVED it! I am excited to use the other packs with this kiddo as we continue this year! He has made HUGE gains and I know he will only continue to grow. His latest statement (which brings tears to my eyes) is "I'm going to be a reader Mrs. Nystrom. I AM going to read" I can't count the times he has said this in the last couple weeks. My response every time is "You ARE a reader... you are reading books right now"! Activities like this make that possible. He is so proud of the work he is doing and he is recognizing the gains that he is making! What more can a teacher ask for?!

Please make sure you check this pack out! She has a BUNDLE version as well as individual short a packs (-at family, -ad family, -ag family, -an family, -ap family and -am family!

I am also excited that I get to GIVE ONE AWAY!!! Woot! Woot! Enter the raffelcopter below for your chance to win your own bundle!!

Alex also discounted the Short A bundle, as well as other Word Family products! Make sure to grab these great deals!

Make sure you stop by The Kindergarten Connection to see Fun With Digraphs in action as well as enter her giveaway to WIN your very own copy!!

This pack is also discounted in my store... along with ALL of my Reading products!!

Don't forget to check out the other great products that were a part of this Stop, Swap and Roll event! Head over to the Jungle Learners for more link ups!! 

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All I Want For Christmas Is....

...A TpT Gift Certificate!!

Who doesn't want that?! Seriously!! As a teacher, there is nothing better then finding great resources and not having to spend a dime!! 

Some blogger friends and I have teamed up and are giving away $10 gift cards before Christmas! What a great gift for a teaching friend you may know...or YOURSELF!! =D

Enter the Rafflecopter below to win a $10 gift card from me... and then make sure to check out the rest of the links for more chances to win a gift card!! 

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!!! 
~Danielle

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An InLinkz Link-up

Black Friday DOLLAR Sale!!

I don;t think any other words are needed!! Check out all of these AWESOME products that are only $1 on Friday and Saturday!! I have linked up FOUR different items!

You can grab these items for $1 through Saturday night!

Branches of Government

/SH/ Digraph Activity Pack

Sound Mats

December Counting Mat

Have fun shopping!! Make sure to check out these other great DOLLAR Deals!

An InLinkz Link-up

I am Thankful For... A Linky Party!

It's that time of year again! Can you believe it?! I am thankful for so many things; too many to capture here! 

Teacher/Blogger: There are many that come to mind; Amanda The Primary Gal, Greta over at Learning With Leeby, and my coworkers at my school just to name a few. The biggest name that jumps to my mind is Mandy over at Mandy's Tips For Teachers. Seriously! I am so thankful that I have connected with her. My journey as a TpT author and blogger would not even exist with out her. Mandy and I connected last winter. She needed some advice and an editor and I was lucky enough to respond and get the job :) She is so innovative and creative. Every time I edit a product, I am blown away at her creativity. 

She took me under her wing and almost urged me to create! Seeing her work put many (toooo many to be exact) ideas in my head. I decided it was time to give it a whirl and see what happened! Worst case, I would still have the resources to use with my kiddos school. Best case... I would have a store with resources that people wanted and loved. Best case, people would come to know my store and my resources. (My coworker was out of town last weekend and ran into some friends... who were talking about MY store... seriously... #sograteful!)

My family and I are so grateful to her. I am still trying to find a way to say thank you! This is a start I suppose!

If you haven't already, please check out her store. I can vouch for her math centers and her interactive notebooks! They are amazing. She hits the skills right on the head! 

Three Things in my Non-School Life:

v
First up, my child's' giggles. Seriously. There is nothing better then listening to your baby (almost two! AHH!) giggle while you play with the dog! Seriously, it just about brings tears to my eyes. He is so happy and has no care in the world. His innocent laugh will stick in my mind forever. He is the light of our world. I can't imagine my life without him. He is full of joy and spunk! He can dance like no other and he LOVES playing with his kitty and puppy. He loves cheese and piiiiizzzza! 

Secondly, My hubby. I am so thankful for him and the life we have built together. We have been together over 10 years, and I wouldn't change a day of it (ok... maybe a few). We have fought through being young, college years, deaths, fights and all that falls in the middle. We have created a life that is perfect for us. We are perfectly fine spending the night at home watching Mickey Mouse Club, or trying to keep the munchkin from literately sitting ON the cat. He keeps me in check and grounded. He manages the finances (even if it drives me crazy, I know it's for the best!). He even does some (...fine, MOST) of the cooking. He is just all around wonderful. I'm still trying to figure out how I got so lucky! 

Our Principal went to Hawaii... So we had a Hawaiian Day!

Finally, I wanted to keep school out of this post, but I can't. My school family the last 2 years has be AMAZING. I have worked in several places, and this is by far the best! We celebrate out highs and we support those with lows. We support each other in every way possible. I love going to work each morning- even after a really tough day. I have created many lasting friendships. I feel comfortable sharing my thoughts and opinions. I have a team that backs me up when situations arise. Best of all... we have FUN! 

A Product That I Can't Live Without
Hands down my Word Work Task Cards. These bad boys make word work and spelling FUN! Seriously... My kiddos said that "This is FUN Mrs. Nystrom!" "I actually like this!" I will tape them next time and share it! They love being able to choose how they are going to practice their words. They love getting using sand, or legos, or pipe cleaners. They love getting out the highlighters and the scrabble tile. Best of all... I can listen to them read their words and then trust them to choose their activity, get their materials, and then practice them ON.THEIR.OWN! It has been a huge motivator for kiddos and a HUGE time-saver for me. Annnd... I've discounted them just for you guys!! 

These are just a few of the MANY, MANY things I am thankful for!! 

If you are interested in linking up with me... here is the image! I would LOVE to hear what you are thankful for this year! =) Simply grab the image and list the teacher/blogger your are thankful for as well as three other things! Don't forget to include an activity/product (your's or someone else's) that you are thankful for! Then... add your link below!!

If you stuck around this long... you are in luck! I am giving away ONE of Mandy's November Interactive Notebooks! 

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Check out these other Teachers who also have a lot to be thankful for!!

An InLinkz Link-up

Mrs. Dailey's Birthday Bash!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MRS. DAILEY!!

Melissa has thrown together one heck of a celebration! 

Check out over 100 different $1 deals!! 

I have 4 different products linked up!

          

          

Oh... and make sure you stop by and wish her a Happy Birthday (Mrs. Dailey's Classroom)!! 

An InLinkz Link-up

Product Swap: Go Dig!!

Hey guys! I have been anxious to do a product swap for a while and was finally able to make it happen! This month, I was lucky enough to be matched with Crystal over at Primary on The Prowl!!

Seriously in LOVE with her logo! =D 

Of course, the first thing I did when I got my match, was head on over to store (HERE) and check out her awesome resources!

I was instantly drawn to Dig It! I am always looking for new ways to practice letter and numbers with my kiddos! We are all about hands on activities in our Learning Center! I work with several 1st graders this year! I run both a Math and Reading group with them! This bundle hit skills in both of their groups!! 

Check out how we used it! 

I decided to print the cards on different colored card-stock paper. I had the game all set up and ready to go when the munchkins came in!

This game is very similar to Go Fish! Students need to collect 3 of the same number. I called them "sets" with my group! Students ask their peers for the number they are looking for. If the peer has it, they hand it over, if they don't, they respond with "Dig It!"! The person with the most sets at the end,  wins! I used a bucket for the "Dig It" pile! Students had to "dig" in to grab their card. 

Demonstrating what a "Set" looks like!

DIG IT! (A student digging for their next card)

My kiddos LOVED this activity! I made a HUGE deal about having to dig for a card and they thought it was the funniest thing! My little lady couldn't stop giggling "This is sooo funny!!" over and over again! =D We have done a lot of letter recognition activities and this is the best that they have done with me this year! They were spouting numbers left and right! 

This is a MUST HAVE activity for any kiddo that needs help with number recognition! They were engaged and thinking during the entire group time! They also loved playing the game! It was a great big relief for me! Moans and groans about number practice get old!

**This is a bundled set!! I am looking forward to using the Alphabet version with my group in a couple of weeks! We are working on letters now! They are a very low group. **

Grab your copy HERE!! It is even discounted for the weekend!! 

I loved this product so much, I am hosting a giveaway for it! 

Enter the Raffelcopter at the end of the post below!!

Make sure you hop on over to Primary on the Prowl and see which product of mine she chose!! 

(It's also discounted!!)

Also, don't forget to check out all the other great Swap posts over at Jungle Learners!!

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November Currently

I can't believe that we are already into November! Only 2 more months to the dreaded 'C' word (I cant think about that until Thanksgiving) and until my munchkin turns 2! EEKKK! I'm not sure we are ready for the terrible two's... then again, some days he is preparing us! =)

CURRENTLY:

Listening: Eagen is watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse... Apparently they are missing rain, which could destroy their flower show! (In case you were wondering... their mouse-ka tools helped them out and they got their flowers!)

Loving: E has a little cold, so he is handing out the snuggles left and right! I could snuggle with him all day!

Thinking: I have a TON of things to get done! I am working on a project for school and a few November activities! Throw in planning for the week... and my day is pretty much full! 

Wanting: I think that is pretty self-explanatory... NEED COFFEE!

Needing: I have the prompts planned... now it's just a matter of typing and making them "cute"... as the hubby says!

Reading: In the limited spare time that I have, I am reading The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks! It's the 2nd or 3rd time, but it is still great. I went to see the movie when it came out and I.LOVED.IT! I think it may be my favorite movie of his! 

The Best of Me

Happy November Friends!

Check out the rest of the Currently posts over at 

Oh' Boy Fourth Grade