Supplies - What do you put into your Files/Folders?

[kellybell]

Just ordered MFWK so I don't have the TM to read through yet and I'm curious about the details of what others have put into their files, how they've set them up and used them.
Thanks

I'm sure that there are as many ways to set up these files as there are MFWK teachers. Anyway, here's what I do and I'm sure you'll do yours differently.

As I was setting up my files, I kept the list in the MFWK TM handy. There's a list of all the subjects on just one page -- that list has really come in handy.

I took a look at our skinny paperbacks and put any of them in the file folders. We've got easy readers on butterflies, frogs, farms, ants, the solar system. So, I just tucked them in there. None of the other kids were actively reading them, so it was no big deal.

Not everything fits in the folder, of course. You can actually put a piece of paper in each file folder (or you can simply write on the file itself) notes to yourself for what you don't want to forget. Maybe you'll have a note that says, "page 101 of Science Encyclopedia" or "don't forget the butterfly rubber stamp for art" or "www.butterflies.com" or something like that. Or, you could just make a Word file for each lesson too that says what to remember that doesn't fit in the folder.

I have magazines (such as Zoobooks or Nature Friend) with pages marked that go with the lessons. If a magazine has two articles on two different things (sun and cows) mark them both and put in the folder for the first one (sun) and after using it for sun, move it to the cow folder.

Also, I like enchantedlearning.com for coloring pages and such. You don't need it, but if you have a kid who likes coloring pages (three of my kids don't, one does), then you can just go ahead and print out pages for the folders and it will be there when you need it.

Our dollar store sells cheap scrapbook stickers and if you find some that tie in to MFWK, you can stick those in the folders too.

HTH

[Rebecca in Ohio]

Hi

I put in anything and everything that I come accross that has anything to do with either the spiritual or the science topic of the lessons. Here are a few examples:

- magazine articles - we used to get the magazine "the Big Backyard" and so many of their topics fit somewhere into the K program. Sometimes half of the magazine would be ripped out

- stickers - ie fruit stickers for apple (fruits of the spirit)

- dot-to-dot pages - in some of our little puzzle books there would be the occasional elephant or dinosaur dot-to-dot so I would just rip out that page and stick it in my file

- on-line stuff - sometimes I would come across a poem or an activity or game on-line so I would print it off and stick it in the file

- muesum and other field trip brochures that would be related to a theme, occasionally there would be a travelling exhibit so we would do a theme out of order (ie we did J for Jewel when the diamond exhibt was in town)

- simple newspaper articles or photos

- old sunday school papers

I hope these ideas help. I've had these files for about 3 years since before my oldest started K, and I'll be keeping them around for a few more years until my youngest is done with them. I still occasionally add to them.

Rebecca

[Cyndi (AZ)]

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 2:00 pm

We loved Kindergarten!!! This is how we did it --

I used plain manilla folders, one for Creation and then one for each letter. I wrote on the label spot the number, letter and topic. For example, #12 Gg goat (farm animals). Before we started the year, I tore out all the workbook pages that related to each letter and put them in the appropriate folders. I also put in the Cuisinaire Rod Alphabet page for that letter. I'm not the "searches for magazine articles" type, but I do surf the web, so if I found a good picture to color, or map to print, I added that. I made all of the badges ahead of time (without distractions), and put the badge in the folder, too. Then my daughter could copy the badge I did; the one I made went on the wall with the flashcard, hers went on the bulletin board for a week, then back into the used folder.

I also made a folder for "ABC/Vowels" and put in the ABC Chart, the Short Vowel Song, the Blend Ladder, and all the extra calendar pages. I used the box the program came in to keep the envelope of Concentration Cards, envelope of Bingo Cards, and all the envelopes for the Picture Cards and Number Cards.

When it was time for a lesson, all I had to grab was the TM and the two folders and I was set. We kept her school supplies in pencil boxes. If we were on the road, or going outside for school, everything was already ready to go.

This program is SO EASY to organize -- it's all laid out in the TM. I was super intimidated at first, too, but then I started bragging to everyone how compact and organized everything was. I even used the library search and pre-order to get all books we needed, so library trips were fun just picking out extra readers.

The bonus for me was that at the end of the year, I made a "Kindergarten Memories" binder and put all the special pages from the used folders into a neat little book. They were already organized! I am NOT into scrapbooking, so this was a super simple way for me to preserve a very special year.

This is probably too much info, but doing it this way made things so simple for me. I absolutely loved it. Finding this curriculum was a total answer to prayer.

HTH --Cyndi

[mrs_mike98]

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 2:43 pm

I hope this isn't considered hijacking, but I had an idea that goes along with this... but since I haven't yet used the program I'm not sure if it would work. Would making a "binder" (notebook) (like the Adventures History notebook) work? With dividers for each section, and the things that are gathered could be put in sheet protectors in their particular section. And then that's all that would be needed for lessons everyday, is the binder, and just grab what's needed out of its section. And when the student is done, he/she would have their own "K Notebook". Would that work for K? It was just a thought. :-)

[Cyndi (AZ)]

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 3:10 pm

Erin, that's a great idea if you want to keep everything in a binder all year. Page protectors, though, would get thick, and I wouldn't have hole-punched Kindergarten workbook pages, either.

Using a binder with those big hole-punched manilla envelopes to hold a week's worth of materials would fit better, and then you could write the necessary books, etc., on the front of the envelope to help you remember to get them ahead of time. If you wanted to keep a really big binder, you could probably fit all the other materials that I kept in the little box, as well, and you'd be a one-stop-shop!

I love it -- easy to organize, easy to customize!

[Mom1669]

Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:20 pm

Just a tip about finding information for the K folders. Last year we picked up TONS of things at our county fair! The different buildings always have little pamphlets for people to take. We found information about fish, turtles, frogs and insects at the conservation building. I found information about different fruits and vegetables. But the the 4H building was the best, coloring sheets, puzzles, I can't remember what else. It was really an amazing wealth of information! Plus the kids love going to the fair.

Just something to keep in mind if you have a county or state fair (which I'd imagine would be even better!) that you go to, or one near enough to make a special trip one day.

[MJP]

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 4:40 pm

Just in case you do not get the folders accomplished, I wanted you to know that we did not use any folders and had a wonderful year with MFW K. I know there has to be someone else out there like me!

[Mom2MnS]

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 8:55 pm

I use an A-Z accordion file - the kind you can find in the office supply stores - for this. I copied off the list of K topics, taped one on the wall by my computer, and carried one in my purse or diaperbag everywhere I went. It was so easy then if I saw something I liked to check the list and add it.

I made use of the ideas I collected this way: every week as I prepared for the next week's topic, I looked into my file. I wrote into the lesson plan anything that I wanted to use - and made note of anything I liked that we might use if dd wanted to expand the topic.

We enjoyed having it. It was fun to do, and I loved having things at my fingertips!

Whatever you decide, I pray that you will have a wonderful year :)

[RachelT]

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2007 9:30 pm

Hello! We also used an accordion file this year for the units. It is nice because it is all in one accordion file and I just had to put 2 units in a couple of the files to make it fit. I am kind of in the middle of the road on how organized I was with it. I did not have it completely filled and ready to pull information out when we got to each unit, but I did try to put things in ahead as I found them.

Some things that I included were extra coloring sheets, craft templates, or information sheets from websites. Very small books, stencils, etc. I also used it after we were done to keep everything for my next K'er. We also used a legal size envelope for the story pages that we made into books and those fit in the front of this accordion folder with the bingo cards, 100 chart, etc. So, the file can be a good way to organize the worksheets and information, but use it as a tool, not something to weigh you down!

I have also placed all of the completed worksheets into a 3 ring binder in page protectors. It did get very thick that way and I may try to weed out some of it later and just keep more of a sampling of my ds's work, but for now I have not tackled that project.

We are still working on completing our K scrapbooks. I took photos during each unit to highlight special projects, field trips, or just everyday fun stuff that we did. In this I am not placing as much of their work, unless it is small or thin and easy to fit on a page or two for each unit. I also have the uppercase and lowercase letter, the unit theme, the words to remember and the memory verse for that week all written out on the page. The kids like choosing and placing the stickers, decorating with shapes, even some illustrating with markers. We did not get it done every week during our K year, like I had wanted, but now that we just pulled it out again this week, it was fun to see the children looking back at things we did and talking about them as we worked a bit more on some pages.

Have fun with K!
Rachel

[Buttercup78]

Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2007 12:48 pm

I used the page protectors in a 3-ring binder, each labeled with the appropriate letter.

We also got a lot of pamphlets from the Farm Show and other events like that.

If you can't find anything, there's always the internet!

[Winkie]

Am I to understand that I should be collecting things through the summer to get ready for K in the fall? (The 26 folders that were mentioned.)
Karin

Posted: Fri Jan 26, 2007 4:52 am

Karin, it's helpful to have supplementary things for each unit gathered, but it's not *necessary*. You can certainly teach a unit without them. The more information you already have on hand, the less books you may need to get from the library at the time. For example, I can get free older National Geographics at my library, so I would look for ones that featured turtles, insects, kangaroos, etc. and then rip those pages out & stick them in my unit folders.

[Homeschooling6]

Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 10:33 pm

What I did was make up all 26 file folders like mentioned in the TM and put everything in there that will be needed for that week so all I have to do is pull that folder out.

I even put the books suggested for that week in the folder. I bought all paperbacks so it wouldn't be to bulky.

Blessings,
_________________
Linda

[cbollin]

First, how necessary are these file folders? Would we be missing a lot without them? Secondly, if I did subscribe to one magazine, are there any suggestions? Zoo Books? National Geographic? Something else?

I have not done the file folder approach either time that I've taught K. I thought about it this year, but I didn't plan that far ahead. I just became familiar with the topics coming up and if something popped in my path, I put it near my Kindy stuff. So, it doesn't have to be done that way.

I also did not find a need for a magazine subscription. I just use the Ideas forum for Kindy and find a link that someone else has left, or do a search. For example, on the Kindy Ideas forum under Penguin, I know I left a link to a nice article for Emperor Penguins. Other people have left great websites and pages and such and I have been so blessed from those links. I print as needed.

Ideas in general for magazines: does your recycling center have a magazine exchange section? I have received so many Nat'l Geo magazines and calendars and other things that can be cut as needed. Ask at church if people have a bunch of magazines sitting around. Use easy library books for the science lessons.

just a few ideas to get started.
-crystal

[courthart246]

Our folders don't have a lot in them. I did have some magazines around the house, and I tore some things out of there. Sometimes I will find a neat link or coloring pages or something, and I will add them. I have some Usborne science readers that are very thin, and I put those in there if I happen to have one on the subject at hand. I keep the blend ladder, calendar, 100 chart and our worksheets for the week in the folder and then move things to the next folder. This has kept my papers organized. I also have another K'er coming up in a couple of years, so the things I have collected will be helpful for her too. Love the idea of the folders! I probably don't do as much as I could with them, but with what we do, they work for us!

[FreshKid]

I made the files for K. (this is our first year) I only had a few things to put in them that I collected. Some we used, some we didn't, and some should have been in there so they weren't forgotten. I thought it was easier to just have one unit out at the time. I put in each unit's worksheets, ideas from various sources, an article that I picked up. (Since the worksheets were in order, I could take a quick look to see what day we were on when my brain was too fuzzy!) I didn't subscribe to any extra magazines. I also used them as a way to file away completed worksheets to look back at later.

We are on unit 21 now. If I were to do it over (and I may in a few years), I would make the badges ahead of time and the number cards. I also made flashcards from the word list. I only use the ones of which we have completed the unit. I'll save those for next time too. I also plan to save our library list and website resources. OF COURSE, I may not be able to find them then!!!

Beverly

[baileymom]

We did the file folders.

We're on Week 18, and haven't used them for anything but the actual worksheets. I tend to do all my planning the Sunday night before we start the unit, print crafts, articles, coloring pages off then, and throw them in the file folder, which sits out all week.

Magazine subscription probably not necessary if you have the internet, but if you do, my kids love Zoobooks. But you can't plan your animals...you just get the same mag everyone else gets that month.

Like another mom said, the best place to get ideas for your K units is the K idea board, it's been VERY helpful.

[hollybygolly]

Where are people getting info/brochures/articles to put in their file folders?

From anywhere, really. I found some old Zoonooz/Ranger Rick magazines that had a few articles about some of the kindergarten topics. If I happened to see a cheap picture book or little reader that was about one of the topics that went in there. I found a few puzzles at the Dollar Store of dinosaurs, that went into Dd folder. Really, any article, game, picture, book/coloring book, recipe, song can be of use during those topics. I just kept running folders and added things as I went across. Does that help?

[TurnOurHearts]

When we did MFWK, I was one of those moms *blushes* who didn't open her TM til August with plans to start right after Labor Day. I initially freaked, then chilled. I chose to use the internet for our "Day 1 - Present information on _______ (Turtles, Octopi, etc.)." Along with discussing our topic, we also used it as a time to teach about using the internet responsibly, how to use the mouse (for my K'er), etc. Both my kids (2nd & K'er) enjoyed our time on the 'net each unit. Note: I typically found sites the night before so that we weren't wading through useless/difficult/compromising sites.

I initially felt like a bad mom for not gathering the way I was 'supposed' to. That didn't last long. I'm always delighted to see how God leads & guides families individually. The way we did it was perfect for our family.

[karlafoisy]

When checking out the Zoobooks magazine website, I noticed it has a virtual zoo coming soon. Right now, it has info on lots of animals' homes, food, etc.
Here is the link: http://zoobooks.com/animalsatoz.aspx?n=284783