Deb Maxwell

Do you need to help your students decode nonsense words or multi-syllabic words? Nonsense words are frequently assessed on early reading screening and proficiency tests. It’s a challenge for students who are accustomed to trying to make sense of reading, but being able to do it successfully helps students decode more challenging texts. To make sense of nonsense words, we need to view them as word parts. This activity shows students how nonsense words fit together to make longer words. A word l

Students follow directions to create three unique snowmen. Following directions helps young children develop their receptive language skills. Are you ready for Valentine's Day? Valentine Problem Solving Task Cards DOLLAR DEAL: Valentine's Primary Math Packet FREEBIES : Valentine's Day Following Directions Lesson Valentine Themed Fact Sorting Math Center St Patrick's Day and spring are not as far away as you think! Be ready with these great products: Shamrock Place Value - free sample St.

"When two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking. And it says its name." This is a sign to help students decode words with vowel teams. The sign shows 3 common sets of vowel teams walking down a side walk. The first vowel is saying its own name. This is a good reminder for students when they are learning the long vowel sounds. For some fun practice with this skill, check out my I have, Who Has? Vowel Teams Activities. Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedbac

Following directions is such an important skill! This apple-themed freebie is a fun way to practice. Some students struggle to understand the vocabulary or language we use when giving directions. Working on this activity with a teacher can be really helpful for the student and very revealing to a teacher. More Practice Following Directions: Valentine's Day Following Directions Lesson Snowman Following Directions Freebie Do your students need help understanding how to use reading strategies?

An almost magical framework for identifying the author's central message and retelling a fictional story. This FREE poster can be used at any level! It works with almost any fictional text. It's my favorite comprehension strategy! Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedback on any product you download. Be sure to follow for information on freebies, sales, and new products. I also blog at: Not very fancy I'm on Facebook, too! Not very fancy Facebook Page Deb Looking for

your class will love playing 'I have, Who has? with these winter themed games designed to give students practice decoding words with the silent e spelling pattern. $ This file contains 4 sets of cards for “I have, who has?” There is a 24 card set and a 30 card set of each game. These games are designed to accompany a systematic approach to teaching phonics. Silent e is typically the student’s first introduction to the long vowel sounds. The sequence of instruction begins with the a_e pattern, t

Your kids will love playing "I have, who has?" with these Wintry Vowel Teams games. Use it for a whole group game, a small group game, or a word work center. I love to use this type of game during my morning meeting activity. This file contains 4 sets of cards for “I have, who has?” Pgs 4-27 are sets of 30 cards. Pgs 29-48 are 24 card sets. You can also get this file bundled with the Silent e Games: I have, Who has? Wintry Long Vowel BundleThese games are designed to accompany a systematic appro

Kids need so many experiences with unknown addend problems and compare problems! This Problem Solving Pack provides 20 unique problems focusing on these two challenging problem types. (Some of these problems are related to winter.) There are three formats for each problem (large print, print-and-go, a paper-saver) Each problem is differentiated. Rather than putting numbers in the problems, I left blanks. There are several number sets for each problem. I usually tell my students to try to do all

Give students explicit instruction in foundational reading strategies for emergent readers. Helpful for both parents and students, these 18 posters use words and images to teach strategies for beginning readers. Students will be proud of their developing literacy skills when they learn how to use these key strategies to read text independently: Use picture clues.Think about what would make sense.Go back and reread.Point to each word.Look at the first letter.Look at the last letter.Break the wor

This zip file includes 'I can' statements for all ELA CCSS in first grade: Literature, Informational Text, Language, Writing, Foundational Skills, Speaking and Listening and Over-arching. Each category has its own color. The categories are unified with a star theme. Each statement has two sizes: full or quarter page. Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedback on any product you download. Be sure to follow for information on freebies, sales, and new products. I also blog at

Students will love the pretty designs they make when they follow directions to decorate these hearts. Following directions helps young children develop their receptive language skills. Vocabulary like first, second, third, last, and middle are tough for lots of kids. Following directions is also a behavior skill. Sometimes students who seem defiant really just do not understand the idea of following directions. This worksheet can actually give teachers valuable information. Monitor students as

Apple themed math worksheets for primary grades. Lots of equations! These are differentiated with a basic and a challenge option for most skills. Common Core Aligned for first grade. They would make excellent review for 2nd or even 3rd grade. True/False equations--addition--2 levels True/False equations—subtraction--2 levels Missing Addend –addition--2 levels Missing Addend—subtraction--2 levels Continue the number pattern--2 levels Greater than/Less than/Equal to ***BONUS easy page for beginn

Print these lyrics to the hand clapping game Miss Mary Mack so students can have their own copy. Have students put it in a poetry folder and read it over and over again to develop fluency. Also use it to practice decoding words with the final -ck or final -y sound. Check out my blog post to learn more about how to play the hand-clapping game: Miss Mary Mack Can Teach Your Class I'm on Facebook, too! Not very fancy Facebook Page Deb Are you looking for more centers, visuals, lessons, and activ

Your library is one of the most important features of your classroom. We spend lots of money collecting wonderful books, so it’s important to have a good organizational system in place for our students and for ourselves. A good organizational system will help make your books more usable. Classroom libraries are always growing. It’s best to have an organizational system that allows for growth. I used my knowledge of children’s literature, elementary curriculum, and teacher preferences to desig

Number line cards with 10-frames for numbers 0-20. These can be displayed to help students understand the relationship between the numeral and the quantity. The 10 frames helps them to begin to see the connection between groups of 10 and place value. These cards are only half a page, so they don't take up much space. Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedback on any product you download. Be sure to follow for information on freebies, sales, and new products. I also blo

Illustrated Focus Statements for Key Math Concepts supports the CCSS Number and Operations in Base 10 Standards for first grade. Each slide has a simple picture to illustrate the learning target. The wording is chosen to expose students to challenging content vocabulary. Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedback on any product you download. Be sure to follow for information on freebies, sales, and new products. I also blog at: Not very fancy I'm on Facebook, too! Not

Following directions is such an important skill! This apple-themed freebie is a fun way to practice. Some students struggle to understand the vocabulary or language we use when giving directions. Working on this activity with a teacher can be really helpful for the student and very revealing to a teacher. More Practice Following Directions: Valentine's Day Following Directions Lesson Snowman Following Directions Freebie Do your students need help understanding how to use reading strategies?

First grade I can statements to support CCSS ELA FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS Standards for display. (There are 28 !) You can select the size that works best in your classroom: full or quarter page. I can statements for other ELA standards are also available, or get them BUNDLED and SAVE Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedback on any product you download. Be sure to follow for information on freebies, sales, and new products. I also blog at: Not very fancy I'm on Facebook, to

These statements support the Writing CCSS for 1st grade. I made them fairly small to save space. I attach them to anchor charts. They are intended to be printed and displayed. Thanks for visiting my store! I would really appreciate feedback on any product you download. Be sure to follow for information on freebies, sales, and new products. I also blog at: Not very fancy I'm on Facebook, too! Not very fancy Facebook Page Deb Are you looking for more centers, visuals, lessons, and activities?

St. Patrick's Day themed centers and activities. Common Core Aligned. Letter cards (in two sizes)--letters are created using base 10 block graphics. Number cards to match each letter card. Letter cards can be printed with or without matching number cards. Students will practice base ten counting and comparing numbers using greater than and less than symbols. Directions for playing several versions of 'war," using the cards make differentiation easy. Letters could be placed around the room and