Back to school is just around the corner! If you've been following me here on the blog, or on social media, you know I've been a kindergarten teacher my entire career (nearly 20 years!). Well....some BIG news is coming...this school year I will be transitioning to the Teacher-Librarian position at my current school (half time) and another school (half time).
I'm so excited to start this new journey and share my plans with you!
As I begin to think about the Library Learning Commons space, one of the areas I plan on setting up right from the beginning of the school year for the students to explore is the magnetic board. I've teamed up with Quality Classrooms to share a few of my favourite items that they carry!
The STEM Explorers Marble Runners manipulatives from Learning Resources is a great open-ended activity that you can quickly and easily set up! There are 18 individual pieces that students can use to create a marble run - any which way they like!
There are so many possibilities...I just love that students can be as creative as they like! All of the pieces are so different!
This set comes with 3 balls...which got me thinking of challenges I can set up for students to race one another or time which path was quickest!
Let's see if this works!
Each piece is easy to remove and re-stick if you'd like to modify your track!
The pieces come with a foam backing that sticks to virtually any surface!
I even tried it out on the window pane that reaches the ground which is perfect for our younger students to explore!
I have been wanting to try out this Giant Magnetic Letter Construction set from Learning Resources for a while now! The magnetic pieces are very large and durable!
I started by scattering the pieces around the magnetic board.
Can you see my hidden message?
These pieces are great to form both uppercase and lowercase letters...and even names!
What I like about these magnetic letter pieces is that they can even be used in a lesson - teachers can model how to form a letter step-by-step!
Students can take each piece of the letter they are constructing and run their fingers on top to trace it! I love manipulatives that are also tactile! It's so important for young learners!
(And for those of you who may be stuck as to which pieces to use to build the letters, this guide that comes with the set shows you how! It's even helpful for students!)
I know that the students will absolutely love using both the STEM Explorers Marble Runners and Giant Magnetic Letter Construction set from Quality Classrooms! Be sure to follow both myself and Quality Classrooms on Instagram for a virtual tour of my new Library Learning Commons spaces in the upcoming few weeks!
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