That January “magic” is happening, and I am beginning to see my students’ writing become more uniform and ready for transitioning to lined paper.  It is amazing what just a few weeks of maturity will do.  I use the tall, small, fall terminology when describing letter placement, so these cute little owls placed just right really aid kids in seeing where writing should “live” when it is put on lined paper.  We begin this process of transition by tracing/writing tall, small, and falling letters (tail letters) on customized lined paper.  Once we have worked on the letter types we are ready to try the paper out as we write our own stories.  There are no mistakes in our class, just tries.  Trying over and over is how we learn.  We see where the letter shape didn’t work the first time, etc., then try again and again.  We also have a class meeting to give helpful letter forming “advice” to our classmates.  The kids are essentially becoming the teacher, and they love it.  This team building really comes into play when students are busy writing at their group tables.  Every child’s efforts are celebrated!  Students will have time to hone skills as they grow, but in kinder it is our responsibility to make writing fun! I also use this paper on my smartboard when we do an editing activity where I write a sentence incorrectly and ask students if they think my writing is just fabulous, or does it need help??? They love this!

   

Also, if you are predicting what the groundhog may see, you may need this quick freebie for making a prediction hat.  Just color, cut out the pieces, put on a sentence strip, and add the sun or the cloud.  This is a fast way to get a little science lesson in that covers winter weather predicting and the approximate time left before warmer weather returns.  Grab this if you need it!