Literacy
CENTERS
They Go Together!
Compound words
To reinforce compound words, gather 12
identical plastic eggs. Write a compound word
on each egg so the two words that make up
the compound word are on different halves
of the egg. Then take the eggs apart. Put
the egg halves, a sanitized egg carton, and
writing paper at a center. A student puts two
egg halves together to form a compound word,
writes the word on a sheet of paper, and puts
the egg in the egg carton. Then he continues
with the remaining egg halves.
foot
sail bo
at
ball
Lisa Vrana
Kate Schenck Elementary
San Antonio, TX
Word Detectives
a
Nin
Ch Words
1. Look in books for
ch words.
2. Write the words
you find.
Nouns
1. Look around the
room.
2. Write nouns for
the things you see.
Word study
Try this ongoing word-study idea! Make
task cards, like the ones shown, to reinforce
chosen skills. Place the cards and a magnifying glass at a center. For each child,
make a detective’s notebook by stapling
white paper in a construction paper folder.
Have each child use a glue stick, one white
and one black circle, and a black paper
strip to make a construction paper magnifying glass on the front of her notebook.
Then ask her to write her name on the
magnifying glass. A child takes her notebook to the center and selects a task card.
She writes the card title on a blank page in
her notebook and completes the task.
Andrea Patnaude
Anna McCabe Elementary
Smithfield, RI
14
The Best of The Mailbox ® Centers & Games • ©The Mailbox® Books • TEC61356
Literacy
GAMES
Race to the Place!
Rhyming
To prepare this partner game, remove the gameboard on page 65. Label one side of a plastic math
chip “1” and the other side “2.” Then put the math
chip in a disposable cup and set out two game
markers. Have each player place her game marker
on a different car. To take a turn, a player shakes
the cup and spills out the math chip. Then she
advances the corresponding number of spaces and
follows any instructions where she lands. If she
lands on a space with a picture, she names the
picture and a rhyming word. (Encourage players
not to repeat rhymes.)The players take turns as
described until they reach Clown Town.
Race to
the Place!
Pop! Stop.
Miss a turn.
Pop! Stop.
Miss a turn.
M;B9EC;
je
9BEMDJEMD
1
2
Switch!
f
(sung to the tune o
Dell”)
“The Farmer in the
er [F ],
If you have the lett
er [F ],
If you have the lett
you must be quick
Change your seats;
er [F ].
If you have the lett
Letter recognition
For this fun-filled game, gather a supply of
matching uppercase and lowercase letter cards so
there is one card per student. Have students arrange
their chairs in a circle and sit down. Give each
student a card at random. To play one round, name
a letter. Then lead students in the song shown and
have the two students with the named letter try to
change places before the end of the song. For added
fun, every few rounds say, “Alphabet soup!” instead
of a letter. Then have all the students switch places
as you sing the song, changing the first, second, and
fourth lines to “If you have a letter card.”
adapted from an idea by Linda Gordetsky
Boynton Creek Elementary
Delray Beach, FL
56
The Best of The Mailbox ® Centers & Games • ©The Mailbox® Books • TEC61356