Freebie alert! You all asked for resources that you can use in English and with English language learners, and we listened. Here you’ll find the English version of the Spanish and Bilingual Spring Pack we published about a month ago, plus a totally optional bonus download for Spanish speakers. The optional download includes translations into Spanish and light explanations of grammatical topics from the perspective of the Spanish language. Ready to get started? Either jump to the bottom of the page to download the free pack and optional download, or read on to learn more about whether this free Spring Learning Pack is a good fit for you.
Learning Focus
- Acquiring new Spring vocabulary
- Introducing, practicing, and/or reviewing numbers 0-9
- Developing and improving fine motor skills, including tracing, cutting, gluing, etc.
- Introducing, practicing, and/or reviewing important grammatical constructions
- Completing a bar graph (count and fill)
- Introducing, practicing, and/or reviewing the alphabet and individual letters with a specific focus on the letter F and related words
- Practicing visual discrimination
- Discerning between singular and plural nouns
- Introducing, practicing, and/or reviewing weather terms and subject pronouns
Vocabulary
These spring activities for preschool through first grade are aimed at the middle (roughly kindergarten) but can be used for PK with a little help and for first grade as independent-learning or morning basket activities.
- “Spring” vocabulary: basket(s), rabbit(s), flower(s), raindrop(s), butterfly/butterflies, cloud(s), umbrella(s), carrot(s)
- Numbers 0-9: zero, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
- Fine motor skills vocabulary and directions, such as: cut, glue, trace
- Alphabet/letters and particularly the letter “F”
- Shapes: heart, circle, star
- Other vocabulary: frog(s), balloon(s), dragonfly/dragonflies
- “To be” constructions, such as I am and It is…
- Colors in context: red, blue, green
- Season and weather terms: spring, summer, fall, winter, raining, snowing, cloudy, etc.
What’s Included
Pages upon pages of colorable fun! Huge thank you to Creative Clips and P4 Clips for the amazing spring clipart, which is used in all the puzzles, tracing pages, and more! Check out of some of the fun below.
Numbers
Numbers are such an important part of the world around us, and kids absolutely love to show off their counting skills. This pack focuses on numbers 0-9 in both implicit and explicit ways so that learners cycle through the numbers several times without getting bored. There are four number-specific activities (outlined below) as well as numbers sprinkled artfully throughout the pack.
Fun Interchangeable Puzzles
Five is more than a number. It is a word, a numeral, and an abstract concept. Help learners conceptualize the differences and physically manipulate the numbers, numerals, and words with these puzzles. If your learners are still working on their pincer grips or on their numbers, you can also use uncut puzzles as flashcards first and then then cut the flashcards later to create puzzles.
Fine Motor Skills Activities
In the free spring learning pack, you’ll find lots of important fine-motor skills practice, such as tracing, finishing patterns, cutting, lacing, and more.
Vocabulary for Spring
Spring is more than bugs, but you’ll also find bugs in this pack. We cover basic terms, like the seasons, but also go into more detail such as with important phrases like, “It is sunny. “
Letter F
The Letter F is a “gateway” letter because mastering Letter F gives learners a primer for other letters, such as E, H, and T. You’ll notice that in many of the activities, we also connected the learning to something else in the pack, such as the letter “F” with the vocabulary word “flowers” when forming the F (pictured).
Mini-book
There are a few phrases that kids learn surprisingly fast, and “I like” is one of them. In this mini-book, we leverage repetition and kids’ affinity for telling the world about their likes to build confidence with new vocabulary.
Ideas, Tips, and Tricks
Below we’ve outlined some ideas for this free spring learning pack. If you have a great idea to share, we’d love to hear from you or to read your comments below.
Pacing and Reusing
Bounce. Wiggle. Just one more thing. Sound familiar? If you have a learner with a less-than-lengthy attention span, you’re not alone. Happily, since learners acquire and retain new language better when they cycle through vocabulary and lessons several times in small increments, this is the perfect pack to spread over several days or even a week or so.
To reuse the pages, consider dry-erase markers and lamination, inexpensive sheet protectors like the ones that go in binders, or clear contact paper. This works especially well for classrooms and multiple students. Just write, swipe, and switch (or store and save for another learner, class, etc.).
Venture Outside
If you have access to a nice outdoor space or even a place where you can settle on a bench, kids love to learn outside. Even if you just use the outside space to help them run-off some energy before working on their puzzles, there are lots of ways to integrate the pack into what you are doing. For example, if you take the included vocabulary spinner outside, you can ask your kid to do a celebratory run around a tree or bench for every correct answer. Or, you can do a scavenger hunt for spring vocabulary. Or, use real objects to take counting to a new level.
Get Ready for the Unexpected
Technically this falls under “Head Outside,” but true story! When we took this lesson outside, we forgot to weigh down some of the puzzle and shape pieces, and they went flying into a stream. Of course, no one minded having to dig them out because it was such a pleasant day, but if you do head outside, get ready for something wild to happen! Check-out our water-logged pieces pictured above. Happily, they dried out quickly, and now we have a fun story to remember.
For Native Spanish Speakers Who Are English Language Learners
If you are working with learners for whom Spanish is native and English secondary, the bonus download translates and outlines some basic grammatical concepts specific to Spanish-speakers. It focuses particularly on how TO BE translates in the context of estar and ser and deals with the gustar construction, which does not always neatly translate into English.
Also Available in Spanish and Bilingual
Download Your Free Spring Learning Pack (English)
