I have tried very hard to use my great easel in my classroom, but I struggle. We cannot always have paint, although all the students would love it! It is hard to have enough space to use the easel since it is so big! So I began trying using it it for various things. In the beginning of the school year I use if for "Look Who Is Here" with their pictures and their name card. In the morning as my students arrive, they hang up their picture or their name matched to their picture.
I use the back side for painting weekly but, not every day. I use it for drawing too, but we needed something new. Below are the games I have began using and I am in the process of creating more. My easel is a magnetic white board. If you don't have this type, setting aside space on your white board will work. Buying a smaller white board may also work.
The cards seen here are laminated and have magnets on the back. I use the sheet magnets from Oriental Trading Company. They have a stick side to adhere to the cards. I add the cards to a bucket on the shelf and give the students a few dry erase markers and they are ready to write! I have now added a number line to put at the top of the board so that my students had a number to look at or copy if they needed a model. The first one I made is Count and Write Dental! The one below is Count and Write Bugs. My students love finishing all of the cards and then getting their photo taken with the work they did. I print it out and place it right in their portfolio! So easy! I can also assess them using our Teaching Strategies Gold documentation for their final assessment for each quarter. It has become a favorite activity! We hang up their picture on our door when they finish this too! It is quite special. Their parents love it!
Stop by and grab one of these Count and Write games at my TPT store.