This week our theme is bugs. (Insects for those specifics out there)
I came across this idea in a Mailbox Magazine and I loved it. Since I have a large variety of skill levels in my classroom with the majority of the students being special education I thought this idea was perfect to be adjusted to meet all different levels.
Introducing...bug word clips!
I only made six of them, but the activity also had pictures of other bugs that you could use. I figured if I had trouble identifying the bug, the students might too. I cut out the pictures, colored them, and glued them onto a sentence strip. Next I wrote the bug name next to the picture and laminated the sentence strips. With the six words pictured above, you will need 84 clothespins. (I made the mistake of not counting prior to going to the store and the 72 that I thought would be plenty...turned out not to be.)
** NOTE: 84, if you are making 2 sets of words like I do. Obviously, only 42 if you are making one set!
For the activity the students will have to either match just the capital letters, or match all of the letters, depending on their skill group.
They will get good practice on their fine motor skills by having to clip the letters onto the sentence strips.
Here are some of the different skills that came to my mind when I saw this activity.
1. Great fine motor practice with the clips. I have several students who receive OT services, but that aside, every little guy could practice strengthening their fine motor!
2. Letter recognition, both uppercase and lowercase. To adapt the activity, one group will be working on just the uppercase letters, while others will be doing all of the letters.
3. Matching! The students will have to match the letter to the clothespin with the correct letter. Can't put a capital for a lowercase!
I know there is so much more, but these were my top 3. For older students you could extend the activity to have them make one of their own! Have you done any activities similar to this?
