Train Wheels
Clickety clack, clickety clack!
Sing the train wheels on the track.
Clickety clack, clickety clack!
We’re rushing away,
But we’ll be back!
Clickety, clickety, clickety,
Clickety clack!
~ Author Unknown ~
We started out our train unit with the Polar Express in December. After the Christmas Holidays, we continued it with Freight Train by Donald Crews. Next we'll read The Little Engine That Could. So hop aboard and see where we've already been and where we're going next! Whoooo - whooooo!!!!!!!!!
Books: The Polar Express ~ Chris Van Allsburg Freight Train ~ Donald Crews The Little Engine That Could ~ Watty Piper Shortcut ~ Donald Crews The Little Red Caboose Stop, Train, Stop! (Thomas the Tank Engine book) ~ Rev. W. Awdry Tracks ~ David Galef Train Song ~ Diane Siebert
Activities: The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
Counting: I created these matching cards 1-10. Count the train cars and match to the correct number.
Letters/Sounds: I created these matching cards. Students match the correct beginning sound to the picture.
Name Trains: I used this font (Toy Train) to make a name train for each student. I cut the letters apart and they had to color the train and glue the cars back together in the correct order. We glued them onto a sentence strip. Build A Word: You could also use the Toy Train font to type out vocabulary or sight words and have students recreate them with the train cars. Culminating Activity: Listen to the book on CD-Rom or video, drink hot chocolate and of course, get a silver bell necklace to wear home. :) Resource: Teacher's Helper K Dec/Jan 2006/07 *Seeing the Sights (story recall) *On the Right Track! (story events) *All Aboard! (sentence starter) *Sensational Winter (winter senses)
Links: The Polar Express http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/thepolarexpress/educators.shtml http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/thepolarexpress/
The Polar Express http://www.kinderthemes.com/thepolarexpress.html
Ride the Polar Express http://www.marcias-lesson-links.com/polarexpress.html
Little Giraffe's Polar Express http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/thepolarexpress/
Polar Express http://www.cape.k12.mo.us/blanchard/hicks/Reading%20Pages/Polar%20Express.htm
Freight Train by Donald Crews
Freight Train Puzzle: I have a tray puzzle for this book. It's a little difficult, but a challenge for those Ks who are early finishers.
Sequencing: Have students color the cars from the book the appropriate color and then glue them in sequential order. Draw rails and a background. Number Train and Alphabet Train Puzzles: I have large floor puzzles for each of these. The students put them together, then take a pointer and read the letters/numbers back to me or the TA. Blocks Center: Add toy trains to the Block Center and your students can create their own railway. I have a railroad crossing sign that came with some other signs for the block center which are great ways to incorporate environmental print into this center. Generic Gameboard: Use die-cut train cars to create a path game on a piece of posterboard. You can make it multi-leveled by creating coordinating cards that are of varying difficulty. Sequencing: You can also use die-cut train cars to create sequencing activities. Students can sequence numbers, letters or even pictures of activities. Patterning: Provide students with a long strip of paper, an engine and a caboose along with train cars. They can color the train cars 2 or 3 different colors or you can provide them already colored. Have them glue their engine to the paper, then pattern their train cars. Add the caboose to the end. *I let my students color theirs and used a pattern. You could also provide colored cars precut using the Ellison die-cuts. Counting: Write numbers on large pieces of construction paper and have students count train cars to match the number and glue on. Nonstandard Measurement: You can use the same train cars from above and have students glue them in order from shortest to longest and then measure them using Unifix cubes. Unifix Trains: Have students create "trains" with Unifix cubes to match a number. I have Unifix number caps that we're going to use as the "engine." Musical Train Seats: Set your classroom chairs up like on a train (two seats facing forward, two seats facing backwards, two seats facing forward, etc.) Have everyone seated except one student to either blow a train whistle or hit the switch to start the music. Then have that person jump in the circle of students. Listen to a snippet of "I've Been Working on the Railroad" as the students walk slowly around the train seats. When you turn off the music, all students will try to be seated quickly, but you'll be one chair short. The person left standing will be the one to blow the whistle or start the music for the next round. Sounds Match: Our Ks have to be able to match letters to sound using paper/pencil as part of their RE class assessment. Some of my students have problems with just the concept of that, so I usually end up having to do some extra activities for that. I made this sheet as extra practice for some who were having problems.
Resources: The Little Engine That Could - The Mailbox K-1 Aug/Sept 2005 The Little Engine That Could - Teacher's Helper K Oct/Nov 2000 The Mailbox K-1 Feb/Mar 2006 Freight Train - Frank Schaffer Literature Notes (FS2774) Trains - The Mailbox K Dec/Jan 2001-02 I Can Make It! I Can Read It! Winter (TEC3513) Video - Big Trains, Little Trains
Links: Christmas Train (printable) http://www.dltk-kids.com/t/christmas/train.html
RAILPhotos.com http://www.trainweb.com/photos/index.htm
Train Party Supply for railroad theme
Numbers Worksheets for Train Theme http://www.first-school.ws/theme/printables/number-worksheet-train.htm
Alphabet Train Worksheets http://www.first-school.ws/theme/printables/alphabet-train.htm
Train (Railroad) Theme http://www.fastq.com/~jbpratt/education/theme/transportation/train.html
Preschool Trains Theme http://www.everythingpreschool.com/themes/trains/
Train Activities http://www.everythingpreschool.com/themes/trains/
Thomas the Tank Engine Birthday Party (activities to use) http://www.amazingmoms.com/htm/party.train.htm
Candy Train Craft http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/christmas/candytrain/
Train Graphics http://www.trainwreckcentral2.com/freestuff.html
RailFonts
Train Graphics for websites http://www.trainz.me.uk/graphics.htm
Build A Train Set (online) http://www.frontiernet.net/~imaging/train_set.html
Story Train (graphic organizer printable for beginning/middle/end) http://teacher.scholastic.com/lessonplans/graphicorg/pdfs/storytrain.pdf
Train (coloring page) http://www.wvevans.net/KidsDirectory/ColorMe/TRAIN2.gif
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