Here is May's monthly calendar along with other May items. This year seems to be flying by so quickly. I'm working on a theme list for the summer so if you have a particular theme you would like to see please drop me a comment on this post.

may number tracing calendar and other items
​

This week's free membership printable is Space Number Match Cards. I have created astronaut and spaceship cards with numbers 0-30. You can do an astronaut to astronaut ... a spaceship to space ship ... and an astronaut to spaceship match.

You can print the patterns on cardstock paper and laminate them after cutting them out. We do a few different activities with the cards. The first is a match and clip where the children find the two cards with the same numbers and then clip them together with mini clothespins.

You can also use these cards in pocket charts or do a memory match game with them. For younger children I recommend putting few cards for the children to pick from when first starting memory matches. 

Another activity we do is an even an odd number sort as well as putting the cards in numerical order. Another favorite activity is ring books which are super easy to make. Just punch a hole in the upper left corner of each card and attach a metal book ring. Children then flip through the cards and identify the number on each card.

You can see a video of this activity by clicking the image below. You can also download the patterns from the link below. The space number match cards are available to everyone until Monday May 1st ... after that date they will only be available in the member's section which is also where I have added space letter matching cards.

space number match patterns

I am running a "buy one get one" special on my membership printables from now until April 30th!! When you purchase a twelve month membership you will get another twelve months free ... when you purchase a six month membership you will get another six months free. If you already have a membership your membership will be extended. 

click here to see more included activities

click here to join

I made a set of eight cute spring puzzles that the children really loved putting together and I wanted to share them with you. The puzzles all come in black and white as well as color and each puzzle also has a greyscale puzzle guide. I have also included a blank puzzle guide.

I printed the puzzles on cardstock paper and then cut along the lines on each puzzle (there are eight pieces per puzzle). I then laminate the pieces for durability and attach a self-adhesive magnet to the back of each piece so that we could use them on a metal tray or cookie sheet.

You can also attach velcro to the back of the pieces and to the puzzle guide. You want to make sure the velcro on the pieces aligns with the vecro on the guide. Using velcro or magnets helps the puzzle pieces stay in place while the children are putting the puzzles together.

I set the puzzle guides out along with the puzzle pieces and the children picked a piece and placed it on the correct spot on the mat. I store the puzzle guides in a file folder along with the loose pieces that I put in zip lock sandwich bags.

You can see a video of the spring puzzles by clicking the image below and you can also download the puzzle patterns here.

I made a spring bunny activity for letter and number recognition and review. I printed the bunny and carrot patters on cardstock paper and the recording sheets on regular paper. 

In this activity children pick a carrot and dab the same letter or number on the recording sheet with the dot-dot-marker or bingo dauber. The then feed the carrot into the bunny box.

I used an exacto knife to cut out the rectangle from the bunny's tummy. I placed cardboard under the bunny to protect my work surface. 

I then took an empty box of tissues (I used the long box) and cut the opening to the width of the bunny rectangle. I then put self-adhesive magnets on the back of the bunny and then put another magnet on top of the first set making sure the sticky side was facing up. I then pressed the bunny on the box where it aligned with the opening. You can also use velcro if you wish. 

This activity can be done with with or without the recording sheet. If you are not using the recording sheet children would just pick a carrot and verbally say the letter or number on the carrot before putting it into the bunny box.

I have included uppercase and lowercase letters as well as numbers 1-30. The patterns come in both color and black and white. I do recommend laminating the bunny and the carrots for durability.

You can see a video of this activity which goes into more detail about how we made the bunny box by clicking the image above. This activity is currently located in member's section which is also where I have added spring fine motor cover-up mats.

We made water color paint from markers and water. It was super easy to do and the paint turned out great. You will need to have some type of containers (we used gladware containers which you can find here).

You will also need to have washable markers either new or used. We used crayola pip squeaks markers that I purchased online at Target. They were less expensive online versus buying them in the store. You can use any brand you wish for your paint.

I filled the containers less than halfway with warm water and then put the markers tip down inside the water. The color from the markers began to bleed into the water almost instantly. To make the colors more vibrant I put two markers in each container to make sure the paint turned out vibrant.. Since the markers where new I probably didn't need two but if you are using older markers you may need more than one marker.

I let the markers sit for 6 hours and then removed them. You can leave your markers in for less or more time until you are happy with the colors of the paint.

I made a spring flower sheet that the children used the watercolor paint with. The colors turned out nice and vibrant. The paint itself will stay nice for a long time if it stored in closed containers.

You can see a video of the liquid water color paint by clicking the image below. You can also download the spring flower pattern here.