Thursday, July 14, 2011

$10 Target Card??

Calling all creative minds! I have a bunch of these larger Altoid tins, and a few of the smaller ones, stored in my classroom, just waiting to be used! I would LOVE to have your creative ideas on how to use them in the classroom! I have a few ideas.....but I am sure YOU have a TON more! Tell me: how would YOU use these? The person who comments with the best, most creative educational use for these tins, as decided by ME, will win a $10 gift card to Target! So, let's hear it! Comments will close at midnight on Tuesday, July 19. And please: spread the word!



20 comments:

  1. I saw the other day a radio made with an Altoid tin. I would use them to store small game pieces or flash cards for whatever subject.
    miss_sadie_6@hotmail.com

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  2. You could put letter tiles in them for making words.

    Dana
    3rd Grade Gridiron

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  3. I'm not sure how this would translate to your class...here it goes:

    I saw this geometric puzzle the other day...wish it we're truly my idea, but it's not. We're making the larger version as well as a teeny tiny version.

    The teeny version would fit into the larger altoid tin nicely. You can find tiny wooden cubes at Hobby Lobby in the wood crafts section for about $3. Then paint like the tutorial shows.

    Here's the link:
    http://mermag.blogspot.com/2010/01/weve-gone-giddy-for.html

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  4. I'm thinking along the same lines as Dana...was thinking those cute little beads with letters on them and then mixing in some solid colored beads for making words:)

    4th Grade Frolics

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  5. I have several ideas for your little altoid boxes.
    1) Small jewelry / knick knack box covered in clay with 4 clay balls on the bottom of each corner (can make as gifts or use to hold classroom paper clips)

    2) Class mini scrapbook - Scrapbook Album Altoid Tin - a Mini Album

    3) Poetry Center - each box would hold sticker / magnet words that students could use to create sentences, poems, etc. Each box is one center / workstation. Depending on what you are focusing on at the time. The outside of the box could be painted black (or other color) and used by the students to put the words on to form their sentences. If you have enough for each student, you could also have students work individually.

    4) Last one - Game box/ Work station. Cards are attached. Check out the website Dabbled for the game cards. You can change the cards to ABC/abc match or to a pattern game. http://dabbled.org/2009/12/the-little-game-box.html

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  6. 1. I'm being certified in Literacy Lessons and have been looking for small metal tins to store magnetic letters for my students to take home and practice. I bet the large boxes would be just the right size.

    2. Also, you could make sets of "partner cards" and store them in the tins. For example, you could write antonyms on the cards, pass them out to the class, and have the students find the person with their match, who then becomes their partner for whatever activity. I've also done synonyms, contraction, abbreviations, etc.

    3. Something I would use them for may be to pass out materials. If you have enough for a class set, and you are doing a craft for project that requires passing out little pieces, you could prepare each tin ahead of time (or have a parent volunteer do it). I'm picturing each kid getting a tin with a cotton ball, piece of yarn, google eyes, and macaroni noodles for some project. I use little tupperware containers from the dollar store for the same purpose.
    Flamingo Fabulous in Second Grade

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  7. Well......I have seen lots of ideas on the internet about making "Book Treasures" for the kids. These are a small token treasure that correlates to a piece of children's literature and the kids take them home to help with retelling. Everything I have seen says to use film canisters to send them home but heck who has film canisters anymore? I have been thinking about doing them and wondering what I could use instead. Your little boxes might be perfect. You can read about them on Shari Sloane's amazing site at www.kidscount1234.com
    Heather
    Kinder By Golly

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  8. Some ideas I came across, take your pick they all are adorable

    1) crayon holder http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B7O2-RHTyLc/TCGehPzslfI/AAAAAAAAAe0/nT3m2K0Ny-c/s1600/Altoid+Tin+Ideas+6.jpg (you could use these also to help students learn their color words)

    2). A watercolor box (I thought this was super awesome) http://www.instructables.com/id/Altoids-Tin-Pocket-Sized-Watercolor-Box/

    3) Paint and decorate them, then use them to hold paper clips, business cards, magnets, push pins, https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-b9L0cl8KwrE/TWy9iVetniI/AAAAAAAAAK4/bIh4A0h7NYg/s1600/upcycledaltoids+all+4+BLOG.jpg

    4) you can make dollhouses or mini "scenes" http://myhomespunthreads.blogspot.com/2011/05/day-9-travel-tin-dollhouses-with.html for story starters for shared writing

    5) use scrabble tiles to focus on a high frequency word/pop corn word (or any spelling word)that students need to work on. Create fun activities that you can send home for the child to work on to reinforce and strengthen the word. (that will be printed on small cards that fit in the tin with the scrabble tiles)

    Mrs. Hawk
    http://mrshawksnest.blogspot.com/

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  9. I saw this on Pinterest and it is a SUPER cute idea! A Boo-Boo Box.

    http://pinterest.com/pin/63663306/

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  10. My idea is to make Miniature Retelling Boxes!! If the lid is flipped open, it will act as the "stage". Then shrink the storytelling characters so they will fit inside, laminate, and add magnets to the back.

    A medium label can be attached to the front--with a stage/curtain motif and to the back--with the title of the story (and graphic cue). Since the stories are compact, you could easily create many class favorites and they would be simple to store! (Now I'm going to have to go try this idea with the Altoid containers I've been collecting!! LOL!)
    Karen :o)
    Mrs. Stamp's Kindergarten

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  11. Jill,
    I LOVE all these ideas. I can't wait to "borrow" them from you.

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  12. I am in LOVE with the story retelling kit! I also saw on pinterest that you could use them to grow a mini garden!
    http://pinterest.com/pin/32289924/

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  13. At the beginning of the year you could have the kids each decorate one. They could put letter tiles matching all the letter of the first and last name in them. One of the first things they need to do in them morning is take the letters out and make their name. As the year goes on, you could have a word of the day written on the white board, they could spell out the word of the day each day. This would mean they need more letters during the year to add to their boxes.

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  14. I'm thinking that they could become something musical that you could use to shake out rhythms, patterns, numbers . . . put different items inside to make different pitches and sounds. Do you have enough for every student? I wonder if you could actually figure out how to make the pitches match the notes on the scale so that not only would they shake, but you could label them by note and tap them in certain sequences to play a song for a special day, like Happy Birthday.

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  15. Okay, so after reading these great ideas, mine doesn't seem all that wonderful, but here it goes:
    I have one and it is my magic box. I decorate it and make it pretty with a big question mark on the top.
    The first time I use it I put all of my kids names in it and do this chant to "pick" my helper of the day (which is the name on top):
    Magic Box, magic box, who will it be?
    Magic box, magic box, will it be YOU, or will it be ME?
    Once I have gone through the whole class for that, the magic box turns into a word box (could be letter box)to introduce new high frequency words that we will be focussing on. We chant: m.b., mb, what word will it be?
    m.b., m.b, what word will we see?
    The students LOVE the magic box and our magic box chant. krissyldavis@hotmail.com
    Krissy
    Mrs.Miner’s Monkey Business

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  16. p.s. I actually recently save a mini altoid box to use for just the letters we will be focussing on during our weekly units. They will be perfect for both an uppercase and a lowercase!
    Krissy
    Mrs.Miner’s Monkey Business

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  17. I have 2 ideas:

    1.) Use them to create a coin sorting game - paste a picture of a penny, nickel, dime and quarter on 4 of the tins. Give students a handful of coins (real or plastic) to sort into the proper tin. As they progress you can remove the coin picture and instead put the cents (nickels going into the 5¢ tin etc). If you want to make it even harder, you can put different amounts on the tins like 14¢ or 33¢. The tins are small enough that you should be able to see at a glance if the've sorted correctly :)

    2)Use them as Writing Boxes. In each of the larger ones put a cute small notepad and a small pencil. Make up a list of happy sentences using sight words ("You are my friend" "I like you" etc), laminate it and place by the tins. Students can go pick a tin when they have free time and write a message to their family or a friend in class.

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  18. http://www.makingbooks.com/accordion.shtml

    Make an accordion book to glue inside your tin. I can see everyone making - All about me- books.

    Penny
    mrswaddingham.blogspot.com

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  19. How about banks for some kind of incentive? Pennies could be dropped in for behavior? Just cut a hole in the top of each one. Great if you already have a classroom store set up.

    How about you use them to give hints to upcoming lessons. For example if you are teaching shapes, you could drop in a cheerio, a starburst, and other shaped things before they arrive. Then you have the big reveal and have them guess what the next theme/idea will be and what they already know about it.

    Print characters from stories you read on to magnetic paper and you have an instant magnetic retelling board.

    Give each student a set of magnetic numbers, do a math problem, and have them put the answer in the box and close it. Then say, "Kaboom" and they open it together to show their answer. Great every pupil response to see who knows the answer and who needs help.

    Of course I'd decorate the outside of the box in some cute way too!

    Monica
    happymommyhappykids @gmail.com

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  20. Tape or glue a picture on the inside of the lid. Place some vocab words relating to the picture in the tin that the kids may not know. Have this be a partner game to practice giving descriptions and to practice listening. One partner (A) opens the tin and describes the picture inside, using details. The other partner (B) draws a picture based on the description. Then partner A shows the picture in the tin to partner B and they discuss how the picture in the tin is similar to the one partner B drew, as well as how they are different. Then they can switch roles and partner B can pick a new tin and describe the picture for partner A.

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