On the Road Again...

"What exactly are you girls doing now?" We're asked this question a lot... and mostly by those who knew us as kindergarten teachers in the public school setting.

We're on the road.... a LOT!  We are making our way across 9 counties to share our combined 50+ years worth of tried-and-true tips and tricks-of-the-trade in both Early Childhood Literacy and Math.  The miles and miles that we travel are worthwhile, as our audiences appear truly interested and appreciative.  We appreciate them, TOO, as they bring so much  ENERGY to each 2 hour workshop of FUN!

100+ Powerpoint Slides: EXPECT MORE in Literacy

100+ Powerpoint Slides: EXPECT MORE in Math

Our workshops are designed for preschool teachers and providers.  As former kindergarten teachers, we KNOW where their kiddos are headed after they leave the amazingly loving and nurturing environments that preschools provide every day for, in many cases, several years of their young learning lives.  We have also learned, and it has become crystal clear, that teachers on both ends (preschool and kindergarten) need and want to know what the 'other guy' expects on their 'side' of the teaching and learning continuum ~ in order to best meet the needs of their students.  What do my students need to know now to be successful both this year and in their next year?  What did last year's teacher expect?  What does next year's teacher expect? Am I doing enough?
                          And that's where KBound comes in!  
Since leaving our kindergarten classrooms last fall, we have been mentoring preschool teachers in their classrooms, giving ourselves as a resource for ideas to improve the quality of behavior, classroom routines, management and curriculum.  We are helping teachers and students to prepare for the next BIG step = KiNdErGaRtEn! At the same time, we are offering professional development by presenting evening workshops to teachers that illustrate early learning and transition essentials through a variety and abundance of meaningful, hands-on materials and manipulatives.
Opportunities for mentoring and for professional development are just two of the ways that KBound is helping to BRIDGE THE GAP between preschool and kindergarten.


Our KBound MiniMEs have become the HEART of our blog and our workshops

MyOwnCuddly.com created our "real"  MiniMEs,

who go on the road with us

MiniMEs are an integral part of our power point presentations! Shown above, they help to demonstrate the many benefits of YOGA in the classroom (and they also help to protect the identity of young learners ;)
                                                                                                  

They began as simple characters, constructed with simple shapes.  They were created to represent us in cartoon form among the printed stories that we would share.  When they took on their plush 3D form, they began their travel-by-suitcase with us, appearing at workshops to look "cute"!  With each day they seemed to be quietly supporting us in our work... cheering us on!  Today we speak of them as part of the team.  When in doubt, we ask each other, "What would the MeMes do?"  They have, indeed, become sorta silent partners (isn't that right MeMes?)?  OK, ... moving on ...

Along with our MeMes, we bring an ABUNDANCE of other visuals to our workshops! Manipulatives and charts and books and props and stuffed, supporting dolls are toted wherever we go. . .  

Setting Up takes time. . . 2 hours ahead of start time

We've presented in a Township Hall basement and in fancy -ISDs.  It doesn't seem to matter where we meet!  Our meeting locations (which are set up by CCR- thanks Ladies!) are quickly transformed and ready for 2 hours of energetic, idea-filled Kbound fun :)  Our very first presentation took us to Barry county... to which we hauled tubs-full and bags-full and suitcases-full and poster-size-carriers-full of materials.  After several trips to the car and back, through hallways and up three floors, one of us declared (hearing her father's no-nonsense, this-is-ridiculous-and-I'm-not-doing-this-again.EVER. voice in her head), "ONE TRIP!  From now on, we make ONE. TRIP!"!!!!! . . . to which the other of us replied (hearing her own highly organized, motivated-to-tweak voice in her head), "CHECK!"!!!!  Today we each roll a lightweight dolly (the kind with wheels, not the sit-on-our-shoulder 'conscience' types ;) with one large plastic tub, stacked efficiently with computer bags, etc. SIMPLE. MANAGEABLE. CHECK. CHECK. CHECK! (thanks Jodie)  
  

Ready for a group of eager educators!

Just can't separate Math and Literacy instruction!

Set up and Ready ...  We had a nice facility, state-of-the-art equipment, and a warm welcome in Lawrence!

    Our workshop participants are able to peek at some of our materials...

Simple, Meaningful, Funsical materials @ KBound.com  OR  TeachersPayTeachers.com

               CHEERS to sharing what we know WORKS! 
               CHEERS to the little ones who can do SO MUCH . . . 
    and to teachers who aren't afraid to EXPECT MORE of them! 

         COMING SOON:  KBound presents... 
         "Early Childhood Classroom Organization & Behavior Management"
                                                          and
       "Parent/Teacher Conferences: Transition from Preschool to Kindergarten"

                               
                                                    STAY TUNED!

                                                          M&J :) :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

from your friends at KBound!



Here's a song (author unknown) that is not only fun to sing with kids, but festive and motivating as well!
After repeated singing of any song, we encourage you to write it or type it in chart form (for the little ones, you can add rebus pictures to it... or have a friend draw pictures for you ;)
Display the chart and use fun pointers, props, and a microphone to read and to sing it all together!
Your charts can be for display purposes only (see chart below), which are read and reread with children.

OR your charts can become interactive, working charts (see chart below) which invite children to work on specific skills!  A Bingo dauber, highlighting tape, or drawing a circle with a marker will easily draw attention to spied letters that are the week's focus.  Tie in math by asking students to help tally the number of times that you find your focus letter... perfect!  On another day, and in another corner of the chart, you can identify and generate rhyming words.  The ideas for extending a simple and beloved song or poem becomes endless!!!

TIP: Laminating charts before they become interactive allows you to reuse them again next year.  Make sure that you use erasable markers, etc. so that you can return them to their original state. 

If you don't choose to laminate your interactive charts -and you are making weekly charts (GOOD FOR YOU!)- then you would have enough charts to send one home with each child at the end of the year!!!

Whether you laminate them or not, placing them into a special spot in your classroom each week (library or center) encourages children to revisit their songs, poems and their smart work on charts all throughout the year!

  

Celebrating!

KBound WELCOMES new friends! :) :)

We are CeLeBrAtInG!!!

              100 items SOLD on Teachers Pay Teachers!!!

Although creating KBound materials on TpT has been a bit on hold since we found our way into classrooms to mentor teachers these past several months, our products are still selling!  And we promise that we will be creating a closet-full of new products before too long!  We love our work!!!  Almost-daily teacher mentoring is in full gear and workshops (literacy and math) in nine counties are well underway.  We are meeting and working with amazing teachers who seem genuinely appreciative of our efforts to share our years and years of experience and our tried-and-true tips/tricks/ideas.

A BIG THANK YOU to Pat Graves at My Own Cuddly (myowncuddly.com) for creating our stuffed look-alikes to help us share our good news!  Pat can take any drawing and turn it into a cuddly friend.  These friends now travel the roads with us, helping us to share the KBound way :) :)

Powerpoint Presentation...with the help of our friends :) :)

CHEERS to the next 100 simple, meaningful, and funsical  KBound products for hardworking teachers everywhere... and the young ones they are preparing for their next big step!

Happy Valentine's Day!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!
Roses are red.
Violets are blue.
Sugar is sweet...
and so are you!

Close your eyes.  See Valentine's Day when you were... let's say... 6 years old.  Keep your eyes closed tightly!  Really see it.  Valentine's cards and cookies.  Pink and purple and red.  Hearts galore, in every shape and size.  That's the easy part.  Now, smell Valentine's Day.   Try harder!  It had a smell - whether it was the sticky white paste used on your own ready-to-be-decorated shoe box from home or the handfuls of chalky candy Conversation Hearts, there's a definite Valentine's Day smell that can only be conjured up when you're made to think about it!  That's funny, but true.  Remember how fluttery you felt picking out and preparing your cards for friends (and...um...'kinda' friends......um...and 'I don't really like you, but my teacher says I have to give a card to EVERY-single-body' friends!) and how your hand was cramp-ridden when you were done writing your name and every-single-body's names on every store-bought (Holly Hobbie) card?  And what about the act of actually mailing each one of those cards in an albeit elementary, yet none-the-less oh-so-exciting fashion within your very own classroom?  Like it was all SO important that you couldn't possibly have imagined how any adult neglected to say anything about adding the valuable postage stamps (then .06cents each), so you found some on your mom's desk and you licked them, each one (total: $1.80= a lot of money WAY back then)?  Yep,... and, to this day, that's what Valentine's Day tastes like!  And, as my mother would agree, it was cheaper than when my very own offspring found stamps (.37cents each) on HIS mom's desk and licked them, each one (total: $11.10). Uh huh...And, when history repeats itself (as it usually does), he will likely spend about 100 bucks (the way the cost of stamps keeps rising) when HIS kid does it! 

What is it about stamps???  

ANYway, the point is that when you're 6, Valentine's Day is as important as it is exciting.  IT. JUST. IS.  

When you're ?6  (fill in the blank), it may or may not be as exciting as it once was. SIGH.  Truthfully,  the excitement of this particular day does eventually wear off.  Moral of the story? Close your eyes and re-live the magical memories of the day.  We all have them.  Go ahead and reminisce with your inner 

6-year-old self... It's probably time to check in anyway ;)  

 

By the way, here are some of our favorite Valentine's Day ideas to help you celebrate with any little sweethearts in your life ...      

                                       ENJOY!  

                    XO  M&J  XO   

Valentine's Day PHOTOS:  Snap individual shots and use to       make very special Valentines for families = Sweet Keepsake XO 

Identity protected by KBound ;)

Valentine's Day SPIN-the-BOTTLE Game:  Brainstorm a list of COMPLIMENTS that kids (and/or adults!) can give to each other ("You are nice to me", "I like your new hair cut", "You are good at cleaning up your toys", etc). Spin the bottle and compliment the person that it stops and points to = Be Kind XO

Spin-the-Bottle with Compliments 

SECRET MESSAGE Valentine Painting:  

1. Draw a heart

2. Write a SECRET MESSAGE with white crayon

3. Paint with festive watercolor

4. SURPRISE! 

Happy New Year!

HaPpY  NeW yEaR!

~an original poem for our KB Friends:

January means vacation is done~

and a new year has begun!

The calendar's changed, the Shelf Elf has packed~

I've picked up some weight, and that's a fact!

Most of me longs for the good ole routine~

teaching and testing and noon Lean Cuisines!

While part of me begs to just stay home in bed~

watching and reading and covering my head!

But, it's onward and upward to 2013~

with promises of peace, love, and new skinny jeans!

Of well-behaved kiddos, an increase in pay (!!!)~

of laughter and kudos and many Snow Days!

Anything's possible this time of the year~

So, CHEERS and Have Fun... 

     because summer is near!!!

(Hey, it's all about perspective, right? ;)

M&J

Here's an original song, perfect to use as you return to your classroom 

to celebrate ANY new year! (we started singing it in 2002!)! 

Hello New Year!

(tune: "Frere Jacques")

Hello New Year

Hello New Year

Goodbye Old

Goodbye Old

It's 2013 now

It's 2013 now

Goodbye Old

Goodbye Old

Happy Holidays 2012

HaPpY  HoLiDaYs 

from your friends at KBound!

We promise to be back here soon! 

Tis the Season to be busy, busy, BUSY mentoring teachers and conducting workshops that are loaded with sleigh-fuls of 

Simple, Meaningful, and Funsical activities!

M&J 

KBound SALE

 

                    Save 20% on KBound materials!!!
                               hApPy sHoPpInG!
                                       M&J