This summer, I spent some of time making some classroom projects. These are some of the smaller things I worked on, but things I thought would be fun to add to our literacy and math centers.

Letter and Number Rocks– These will be great during literacy and math centers and will allow students to show what they are learning with some hands-on materials. We can add these to sight word building, making names, showing numbers in different ways, making number lines. The possibilities are endless!

How I made them: I found the stones at the beach. I am lucky to live near a beach that is covered in these smooth, flat rocks so I did not have to buy them. Once I cleaned them, I simply wrote the letters, numbers and dots with white paint first. Then I went over them again in bright colored paint. My last step- spray them with clear matte coat finish to keep them nice all year.

Letter Wood Slices- Another great manipulative to add to literacy centers. I like to have a few different types so that students can mix-and-match when they are building words.

How I made them: The process is exactly the same as the rocks. I had these wood slices that I bought from a store a few years ago, so I wrote the letters with white paint and went over them again with the bright colors. I do the white first so that the letter really pops. If you just use the colored paint, without the white base, the color is not as vibrant.

Story Stones- I love having these out during literacy centers, during small world play, at the block center. They can go anywhere and give students a chance to add story elements to their play. They help work on character and setting, and help students create their own stories with these different elements. I will add more story stones as the year goes on, I love making them!

How I made them: I also found these rocks at the beach, I cleaned them to make sure there was no sand left on them. Then I went on Pinterest to find lots of inspiration. I can draw from examples, but not when I have to come up with my own pictures. Then I drew each of the pictures in white paint first. I tried doing it without this step, but the images did not look very nice. It’s worth it to do this extra step. Then I painted all the colors, and added clear coat to set everything.

Note: This is the clear coat spray that I used, you could find any finishing spray at the craft store.

Stay tuned for some more DIY projects for the classroom. I have some awesome car tracks and colored blocks for the building center that I am excited to show you in some posts coming up.