Money Activities for Kindergarten and 1st Grade!

Confession: This is the first time in 4 years that I have actually taught a money unit to my 1st graders.

GASP!

My old school was a Common Core only school. Common Core... ONLY! Money isn't in the 1st grade Common Core, so it was cut from our yearly schedule. We would show coins during our morning calendar routine and sporadically here and there for exposure, but we never taught an entire unit or even a lesson surrounding money. To be honest, we rocked our test scores so we didn't have any regrets about cutting the unit.

*My first year teaching, I did use my Penny Pockets behavior management program which allowed us to practice money in a fun way*

Alas, it is a whole new year, in a whole new school and things are different! My new team sat down and we discussed cutting back our money unit to 2 weeks and we decided to focus on the mastery of coin recognition and counting same sets of coins (all pennies, all nickels, etc.) up to $1.00. After the first week, it was easy to see who had already mastered these skills and those students were challenged with counting mixed coin sets.

All that being said, I wanted to create a small money unit that didn't have as much exchanging coins and buying items, but more focused on an introduction to coins! I think this unit would be appropriate for grades K-1!

Here are some pics of the unit in action:

 Race to $1! Fun partner game to challenge your higher students. 

There is also a race to $2 and a race to _______ option!

 Match 'em up! For each item there is a same-coin tag and a mixed-coin tag for differentiation.

 One of my littles practicing counting same-coin sets!

 Sort and graph! One of my intervention groups practicing their coin identification.

  A resourceful sweetie checking our reference posters!

 Heads or tails? One of 3 different money games to help students practice counting coins! 

Another group doing the sort and graph activity!

The unit contains:

reference posters

4 differentiated activities

3 partner games

practice pages

It is also on SALE just until the end of tonight!!

Click the cover above to check it out :)

Other first grade teachers, do you teach a money unit even though it isn't in the Common Core?!?

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Five for Friday! 1-19-2014

I haven't linked up with 5 for Friday in a lonngggg time, but here we go!

(1)

 We have been cookin' lots here in my little apartment. I found THIS easy recipe and tried it out... it was a smashing success and the big casserole lasted us quite awhile!

(2)

Show me the MONEY!

My students have been identifying coins and their values all week long:

I will have more to come on this later - we have lotssss of activities to share!

(3)

Close reading!!

I wrote a whole post about this topic in my classroom, HERE, but we continued this whole group with a non-fiction passage on Emperor Penguins:

This is just one of the 10 passages in my Close Reading for 1st grade winter unit:

I also got this question that I thought was a great question that many are probably wondering about my close reading in 1st grade post:

Question:

This text looks so so difficult for my firsties-I have students ranging from reading beginning kindergarten levels to end of first grade levels and I worry that most of them will be really lost with a text this long. How do you find this goes for the lowest, struggling readers? I guess I need some reassurance =)

My Answer:

Hi -----!

The MLK passage is a bit more difficult than the ones in my close reading pack. That being said, the process and passages ARE difficult for my firsties... that's kind of the point. It is not supposed to frustrate them and when I teach it, I do not expect them to read it on their own. I try to teach them the process of close reading. My high group can read it on their own and I most 2nd graders could read these passages on their own. In first grade, I read it aloud to them as they echo read and follow along. We also read the passages MANY times, so words they were unfamiliar with, become much more familiar as they keep reading. I am a happy teacher when I read one of the comprehension questions aloud and my students go back into the story looking for the answer without me asking them to do so!

The first time you do this with your first graders, it may be very discouraging, but keep going! The first few times are all about modeling, modeling, modeling. Showing them what to do. By the end of the year, many of your students will understand the process of close reading and readily provide their answers with text support.

When they get to the older grades and as their reading level gets higher and higher, they can attack the text on their own and use the close reading skills they learned to do it on their own.

I hope this helps!!

(4)

I shared this on my Instagram, but I am SO excited because next week we are starting my ALL-TIME FAVORITE WRITING UNIT!!!!!! All About Books!

Here is how they came out last year!

(5)

Deirdre over at A Burst of First has planned a New England Blogger meet up next weekend that I am so excited to attend!!

Are any other New England bloggers coming out?!

Happy Long Weekend!

PS - GO PATS!!!!!!!!!

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Our Penny Pockets - Classroom Management

Even though TECHNICALLY money is not a 1st grade common core standard, my kiddos still need to know about it right?!?

Right.

So, I have this behavior management tool called, "Our Penny Pockets" which allows me to teach and review coins and currency all year long!

Essentially, students earn pennies for their good behavior throughout the day and every Friday they can buy something from my store. There is one big, big rule though... by Friday, when it is time to cash in, students must've made all the proper exchanges. Everyday after lunch students have the opportunity to trade in 5 pennies for a nickel, or 2 nickels for a dime, etc. You better believe if a student comes to me on Friday with 12 pennies, they will be told to come back to the store next Friday with the proper coins!

The kids love it and they also get the opportunity to save for bigger cash items like lunch with me or no shoes for a day or any other fun incentives you have!

By the end of the year my kiddos are pros with their money! They want to earn their prizes :)

In my Penny Pockets Packet, you can print out the coins back-to-back and laminate them for long term use. It takes some prep to get everything ready but it is so worth it once you're finished. I also included some sales slips for the students to fill out before they cash in! 

If you like it let me know with a comment here or feedback on my TpT page!

<3 Susan

P.S. - I made my pockets from cheapo felt I bought at the local craft store, sewed them together, and stapled them to the wall. They lasted the whole year and the kids will bring them home with their foam hand at the end of the year.

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