Category Archives: Play

Savanna Safari Animal Puppets / Masks

Posted on May 9, 2016 by Sandie

I finally finished the first of many products celebrating life on the African savanna.  I am always looking for ways to get students to read where they don’t realize that they are actually reading!  (It helps a little to be a … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, Play, Savanna, Science Themes, Thematic Teaching | Leave a comment

Kids as Teachers

Posted on December 21, 2015 by Sandie

I am always amazed at how proficient children are when they are given half a chance. Recently I was working with a group of first graders of varying achievement levels in reading. While I was working with one small group, … Continue reading →

Posted in Literacy Activities, Play, Thinking About Teaching | Leave a comment

School Should be Fun…Time on Task

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Sandie

Fun things are engaging.  Engagement brings extended time-on-task.  Extended time-on-task leads to better test scores.  Although we may whine and complain about standardized tests, in many ways rightly so, don’t we all want our students to score very well?  Isn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Integrated Instruction, Play, Thematic Teaching, Thinking About Teaching | Leave a comment

Child’s Play

Posted on January 5, 2015 by Sandie

I think it was Maria Montessori who said, “Play is the work of the child.”  Another one of my defining teaching expressions is “Children learn what they play.”  I don’t know who said that, but I believe these things and … Continue reading →

Posted in Integrated Instruction, Play, Project Based Learning, Thematic Teaching | 1 Comment