This is a great place to start when finding what works for your students. Some generic items that you can use several ways include dice, dominoes, decks of cards, and believe it or not...PopIts! I will share specific ideas that I've used on other pages, but those are great items to have on hand. Board games would be another good investment, especially when on Black Friday when they are on sale. The ones I have include Candy Land, Chutes & Ladders, Trouble, Sorry!, Guess Who, and Connect 4.
I promised you more on board games...here we go! I read on another teacher's blog {I wish I remember which one} that you can use task cards with any board game. The task card will cover the content you want to focus on and the board game makes it interactive and fun.
If you have any questions or need to bounce an idea off on someone, feel free to email me at apocketfullofresources@gmail.com.
Until the next time,
Jenga
Jenga has quickly become a fan favorite in my classroom. I wish I could take credit for this game because, let me tell you, it's a goodie! I bought a couple Jenga games at Five Below and used tempra paint from Dollar Tree to create my blocks. The game cards came from @lifebetweensummers and is linked below. Instead of printing the cards off in color, I chose to use color cardstock instead. Badda bing, badda boom, we have a game! Short vowels, long vowels, vowel patterns, math...you name it, she most likely has it!
A little piece of advice, if you find a game you love, purchase the bundle because if the creator updates or adds more, you already own it! Jenga is definitely worth the purchase. I bought a photo craft box from Michaels to store all the cards. Best. idea. ever! I'll link that below, too.
Connect 4
When I'm working one-on-one with a student, I find Connect 4 is a great game to play! It's perfect for skills where you are sorting or categorizing because of how the game is set up. I found these red and yellow dots from Amazon. They are the perfect fit for Connect 4 chips! You will have to measure the top of your game to make the bar for the top. I find making a table in a document is the easiest way to achieve this.
Remember, if you are working one-on-one with a student, have them do all the work, even if it's your turn. I always have my students read the word and do the sorting. I just play the game.
