If you need a reason to enjoy eating one (or two), celebrate National S’mores Day on August 10th!

Keep reading to find out s’more about two teaching resources available in my TpT store and a freebie you can download.

Get S’more Practice With 2-Digit Numbers

Do your first or second-grade students need s’more practice with two-digit numbers? Then, this enticing small group math activity, designed for practicing and reviewing 2-digit number skills is just what you need!

With this flexible resource, you can choose the skills that best match your students’ instructional needs. You’ll also have a choice of color or black/ white and one-sided or two-sided activity cards.

You’ll find 6 printable activity mats. Each mat has 10 two-digit numbers. There are a total of 24 different numbers.

There are ten sets of 24 cards, including a set with just the numerals.

The skills covered are:

• the number after or 1 more than
• the number before or 1 less than
• 10 more than
• 10 less than
• number word
• expanded form
• how many tens and ones

Your students will:

• Take turns to pick a card.
• Read the card and determine the corresponding number.
• Cover or color the s’more with that number.

Who can color or cover all their numbers first?

Extend the use of the skill and number cards with the additional matching activities or the open-ended worksheets that are included with this resource.

Head on over to my TpT store to learn more about S’More Numbers 2-Digit Activity. Your students might also enjoy my Fin-tastic Numbers 3-Digit Activity.

Graphing and Data Collection Activity

Next up is an activity that will engage your first, second, and third-grade students in collecting and graphing data.

Your students will work with a partner to:

• Pick and replace the letters in the word s’mores in a paper lunch bag.
• Pick until all the letters have been drawn.
• Keep a tally of their results in a table.
• Use their collected data to complete a bar graph (2 versions, one requires students to label the graph).
• Interpret their results by answering questions.

Find this activity in It’s in the Bag for Summer or It’s in the Bag Year Round Bundle. Be sure to try out the free doughnut-themed version of this activity.

How to Make a S’more

What would a s’more-themed unit be without making (and eating) some?

But alas, this is just a sequencing and writing activity! Still, it would work well as a follow-up to making some!

Do spend some time discussing or experiencing how to make s’mores before having your first, second, or third-grade students write about it.

This activity is easy to prepare. Simply print each page.

You will need copies of both writing pages for each student plus one copy of the picture page for every two students.

Then, add crayons, scissors, glue, and pencils so you’ll be all set.

Your students will:

• Color the pictures (optional).
• Cut out the pictures (6).
• Sequence the pictures.
• Glue the pictures.
• Write a sentence about each picture.

I always tried to check my students’ work after sequencing but before gluing. Hmmm, I wonder why…

Interestingly, most of the clipart I looked at had the marshmallow under the chocolate while most of the recipes I perused had the chocolate under the marshmallow.

So there are many ways to make s’mores. The pictures I chose show roasting the marshmallow and adding the chocolate before the marshmallow.

Click on the highlighted words, How to Make a S’more, to download your free copy of this activity.

Looking For S’More Resources…

Check out these categories in my TpT store!

• Graphing Resources
• Number & Place Value Resources

These blog posts showcase a variety of free writing activities to download.

• Do You Want a New and Awesome Apple Resource?
• Who’s Ready to Ring in a New Year?
• Read to Inspire Kindness and Inclusion
• Back to School with Miss Mingo
• Why is That Scolding Hawk on My Balcony?

Find s’more freebies offered by others.

• Let’s Read Snack Bag Topper (Primary Playground)
• End of the Year Gift Tag (Elementary Adventure Store)
• Solar Science Experiment (Florida Online Academy)
• Open-Ended Game (TLC Talk Shop- Tamatha Cauckwell)
• Bookmarks (Let’s Learn S’more)

Don’t forget the recipes and crafts!

• S’more Treats (Hershey’s)
• Fireside S’mores (Betty Crocker)
• Popsicle Stick S’mores (Glued to My Crafts)

Share your favorite way to make s’mores in the comments below!

Photo in title image by Tiffany and David Photography.

The post You Need to Try These Activities for S’more Fun appeared first on Just Ask Judy.

A Sale For the New Year

Check out this hashtag sale, #NY2025, on TPT to snag some fabulous dollar deals! What better way to get excited about teaching and learning in 2025?

The last time I checked, there were over 1,800 resources listed. But hurry because these deals are only available on December 31, 2024, and January 1, 2025.

With so many resources to choose from, you’ll want to use the categories at the top of your TPT screen to narrow down your search by grade level and subject area.

You’ll find two of my resources listed in this sale. My Addition Facts to 20 Addition Strategy Math Posters is a year-round seller. Roll and Read Consonant Blends and Digraphs is a newer resource that will give your kindergarten, first, and second-grade students the repeated practice they need to read 119 short vowel high-frequency words.

Check out these blog posts for more resources, ideas, and freebies related to addition facts, repeated reading, and consonant blends and digraphs. 

1. Addition Facts (site search for posts)
2. 6 Cool Penguin Resources to Energize Your Math 
3. Do You Want to Know All About Rapid Word Recognition Charts?
4. How to Address the Challenge of Consonant Digraphs

An Updated New Year’s Freebie for You

The year on this freebie has been changed to 2025.

I’ve never succeeded at making or keeping New Year’s resolutions. Have you? Here’s a free print-and-go resource that’s a little different.

The focus is on anticipating the possibilities a new year offers. I’m all for instilling a little hope for a better future right now.

Try this activity with children of various ages, at home or at school. The clipart and prompts are geared toward children, but the activity is suitable for all ages. The youngest can dictate their responses. You can also have children choose to respond to just 3 to 5 prompts or to complete them over more than one session.

Simply download, print, and provide writing tools.

Then, do a little brainstorming and you’re all set.

Use the first word as a prompt to complete the phrase in a way that’s meaningful for you. For example, my eight-year-old grandson might finish “See” with “The Grand Canyon”.

Here are a few of my possibilities for 2025.

• Make a quilt.
• Eat healthy.
• Be patient.
• Try to walk even farther.
• Learn more about teaching writing skills and decoding multisyllabic words.

Ah… the possibilities are wide-ranging!

Click the highlighted words to download your free copy of A New Year of Possibilities.

My hopes are for a healthy and forward-looking new year for everyone!

I’d love to hear from you! Pick a prompt and share how you would complete it in the comments below.

Photo in title image by Tigerpix LLC.

The post Who’s Ready to Ring in a New Year? appeared first on Just Ask Judy.

During a typical fall, school kids in my part of Virginia take field trips to the local orchard.

For this not so typical fall, here’s a free apple tree life cycle resource along with a new apple tree-themed product for use with Google Slides^TM to support your instructional needs.

Apple Tree Life Cycle Resource

This free printable resource, for first and second grades, makes a great addition to your apple unit of instruction.

It includes:

• picture vocabulary cards
• a cut and paste life cycle activity
• writing paper with a picture word bank

To start, I suggest sharing books about apple trees. If you don’t have any handy, here’s a selection of ones about the apple tree life cycle listed on Amazon. How to Grow an Apple Pie (Charles, 2020) is a tempting choice.

Print the picture vocabulary cards. Choose color or black and white. Print on cardstock and laminate for durability.

Use these cards as part of your instruction, as a center activity, or as visual support for reading and writing activities.

Follow-up your direct instruction with the cut and paste activity. Print one copy of the life cycle page for each student and one copy of the pictures for every three students.

Students will:

• Color the life cycle pictures.
• Cut out the circles.
• Sequence the pictures.
• Glue the pictures on the life cycle page.

As a final activity, your students can write about the life cycle. Make one copy of the first page for each student and copies of the second page as needed. The word bank includes pictures and labels to support their writing. This is open-ended so you can add your own directions and expectations.

Download this free Apple Tree Life Cycle Resource by clicking on the highlighted words!

I recently added a version of one of my favorite resources to use with Google Slides^TM. 

Apples on My Tree Fact Families for Addition and Subtraction

This flexible resource, for use with Google Slides^TM, is designed to help your first and second-grade math students develop or extend an understanding of addition and subtraction fact families. There are 61 apple tree slides, each with a set of red and yellow apples to visually represent the two parts of a whole.

There are 32 fact families with sums to 10 and an additional 29 fact families with sums 11 to 20. All of the facts for Make 5, Make 10 (no flip-flops) and the doubles are included, along with a balanced representation of other facts (a few flip-flops included) to support your instruction in mental computation strategies.

Use these slides with your whole class or a small group or assign them as an independent task.

Learn more about these Addition and Subtraction Fact Family Slides by heading on over to my TpT store. Check out the print version of Apples on My Tree Fact Families +/- while you’re there.

Looking For More Resources…

Yes, you can grow apple trees from seeds! Learn more by visiting these sites.

• How to Grow Apple Trees From Seed (Practical Self Reliance)
• Growing Fruit Tree Plants From Seed (Penn State Extension)

Peruse these blog posts for related teaching ideas and resources.

• Toss It! How to Actively Engage Your Students– Addition and Subtraction Facts and Multiples of Ten
• How to Teach Fact Families With Animal Crackers– A Hands-on Freebie

Browse for more first and second-grade apple-themed products in my TpT store.

• Make Ten Addition Fact Strategy Game With Fall Themes
• Apples in My Basket- Place Value Activity For Tens and Ones
• It’s in the Bag for Autumn- A Data Collection and Graphing Activity
• Roll, Read, and Collect CVC Word Game

If you’re looking for a mouth-watering apple side dish that’s a perfect fall accompaniment for breakfast, brunch, or even dinner, try this recipe for stewed apples. They’re one of my favorites and easy to make. I’ve never actually used a recipe. I make mine with a little bit of water, butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. I’ve also used apple juice and cinnamon instead. Multiply the ingredients in this one, as needed.

• Easy Stewed Apples Recipe (Sunday Supper Movement)

I’d love to hear about your favorite apple recipe or the ways you incorporate apples into your lessons!

Photos by dmitryersler and Coffee Beans and Children’s Dreams.

The post Do You Want a New and Awesome Apple Resource? appeared first on Just Ask Judy.