Are you looking for a new way to introduce your letter of the week? One of my weekly routines, at the beginning of the school year,  includes introducing a new alphabet poem.  I will write the poem on chart paper, or use a pocket chart version that I created. On Monday of each week, I will introduce the poem, and we will use it throughout the entire week. We will chant the poem daily, and my kinders will echo me. Along with chanting the poem, I will let the kids help me highlight the poem's focus letter throughout the poem. They love to "share the pen" with me. In addition to chanting the poem, and highlighting the letter of the week, we will also focus on tracking print. I use a pointer, or my finger, to follow along each word as I read the poem to the kids. This is a perfect way to teach directionality, tracking print, and other pre-reading skills. Did I mention that these poems are also perfect for practicing rhyming!

After a few days of using the poem, we add other words that begin with the focus letter to the bottom of the anchor chart. The kids help me come up with the words, and I then draw and label them. We also go back and label the pictures throughout the anchor chart. 

After using the poem throughout the week, I hang the poem in our classroom to display for future use. The kids may use the poem anchor chart for finding known words, sight word identification, and for their writing.

“I Don’t Know Why I Moved My Clip”

I created this clip chart to use as a tool to monitor classroom behavior. In the past, I used a traditional clip chart, but honestly I just couldn’t seem to remember why my kids moved their clips at the end of the day.  I was mentally exhausted, and when I asked them why they moved their clip, I kept getting the same answer- “I DON’T KNOW.” This was my solution to that problem. Now I can quickly glance at the chart to see what issues my kinders have throughout the day. If my students have several clips on the chart with their name on them, then I make parent contact through a written note at the end of the day.

You can also use this clip chart alongside a traditional color coded clip chart. Your students can place his or her clip on the traditional color chart, and then also place a clip on the behavior on this clip chart. You choose what works in your classroom.

Write students' names on clothespins. As your students have behavior issues throughout the day, they place their clip on the specific behavior. If they have multiple behavior issues, you may need to add extra clips for certain students. Use this chart as a visual reminder for your class, to document behavior at the end of the day, or as a way to monitor consequences.