Margo's Math And More

Sticky Notes, also called "Post It" notes, are an invaluable tool in the classroom. They can be re-purposed in so many ways!

There are literally hundreds, possibly thousands of ways that creative teachers are using these in their classrooms. I was inspired by a teacher who was using sticky notes

to teach long division. Another colleague uses sticky notes as "removable or replaceable" parts for missing factors in multiplication examples.

My first idea was to do a Christmas wreath of sticky notes on a classroom wall, door, bulletin board or large chart paper.  However, it is now March and it's time for me to get

into the "spring swing of things"! I will write the Christmas post when that season returns!

Now I have this idea for spring. Hope this is the answer to your "what's next" bulletin board quest. It's so easy to do! Besides the "added bonus language arts" activity, I'm sure you could think of other creative extensions. Please share them in the comment section. I would love to see them!

Here are the prototypes of what I came up with:

As you can see from the first picture, I used the pages of colorful sticky note pads to form a spring wreath. In the second picture, I changed the wreath  into "flower heads" for a bulletin board.

Before I did any of this, our class had a discussion about spring...seasonal changes, the colors of spring, how we feel about spring, science facts about spring, daylight savings time, spring pastimes and recreation, etc., etc. We listed key words/ideas on charts, boards, in notebooks, and so on. This was done to help the class form a rich vocabulary about spring and to help with the spelling of "spring" words. 

Whether you choose to make a spring wreath or a full-blown bulletin board, you can continue this minilesson in a few ways:

*Make both the wreath and the bulletin board/use them together. In this case, I would have the wreath on large chart paper or someplace where the whole class can see and interact with it. This "place" could be a whole class "gathering" spot such as the morning meeting area or a surface that is easily accessible other than the bulletin board. Give each child a sticky note page. Prompted by the spring discussion,have each child write a spring word on their page.They can refer to the lists of words made during the discussion or to the bulletin board if it is done. (or they could come up with another relevant word) Each child will read their word out loud and then stick it along the edge of the chart paper or other surface for the wreath building.

Next, draw or attach a circle with the words "Stuck on Spring" in it to the middle of the paper/surface.

Ask who has a spring birthday (March, April, May). Find out who is the youngest-that person is first to interact with the spring wreath. That student will chose one of the slips of paper that was stuck on the perimeter of the chart (can chose their own) read the word, and attach it to the outside circumference of the circle as a "petal/leaf" of the wreath. You can follow this procedure every day until the wreat is finally "built". A different person/day, a different word/day. When you run out of the first words that were written on the sticky slips of paper, simply have the kids make more (new words or you can repeat the old).  

*This activity is very versatile. You may want to use this with spring synonyms, sounds, and other descriptive words to help students expand their vocabularies.

* You may want to skip the wreath making part and follow the same procedure of discussion, writing words on sticky notes, reading the words, and then posting them directly around the circumference of the flower centers of the bulletin board. (this may be better for older students)