Writer's Checklist Bulletin Board

This is a quick share of one of my classroom resources.  Last year, I saw this great writing bulletin board here on The First Grade Parade.  You can print out her version there.  I made my own to match my blue and green color scheme.

I try to make sure that every space in my classroom is covered with something functional, and this definitely fit the bill.  It's easy for first-graders to refer to and understand, and it helps them check their own work before bringing it to someone else for editing.  I noticed much stronger sentences after I put up this display.

Crafty Lessons - Apple Time! (Freebie)

I don't know what it is about apples, but it seems that kids love learning about them.  I think it's because an apple is such a familiar item, so they already know a lot about it. That may be why so many teachers use apples as a beginning-of-the-year theme.

Here's an adorable apple craft that I have made with my Firsties, along with a pack of freebie printables at the end.

I looove paper plate crafts -- paper plates are so affordable, and they can be turned into so many things!  This time, we cut the plate on both sides so that it resembled an eaten apple.  (I recommend having your kiddos mark where they are going to cut -- the curved cut can be difficult for them to eyeball.)  We used one of the cut-off pieces to make the leaf, then cut a rectangle out of the other scrap to make the stem.

I think it would be awesome to glue real apple seeds in the middle instead of drawing them.

Then, their favorite part... which happened to be the most educational part!  We labeled the parts of the apple with Post-it flags.  You could also give each child a regular Post-it and cut it into strips.  (It seems that we forgot to label the flesh!)

We did this activity after reading a bunch of apple books all week.  I also have a pack of apple printables available for free in my TPT store.  The pack includes 4 graphic organizers, writing prompts, and apple stationary.  Nothing fancy, but I wanted to pass it on!