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Kindergarten Cafe, LLC

Welcome to Kindergarten Cafe - your home for teaching ideas, activities, and strategies to support you in teaching the whole child! I’m Zeba McGibbon, founder of Kindergarten Cafe, and current early childhood educator. I support early childhood teachers with classroom-tested strategies and materials that help take stress off our plates and support our students better from arrival to dismissal. My proudest moments as a teacher have been seeing my students using the strategies I’ve taught them to calm down, work with others, or stay on task with their work—and you can have this feeling too!

thekindergartencafe@gmail.com

Favorite Blog Posts

Favorite Blog Posts

8 Easy Impulse Control Activities for Kids

Zeba McGibbon
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Kids don’t automatically learn impulse control and self-regulation – you have to teach them strategies to use! I have 8 impulse control...
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Favorite Blog Posts

Sub Tub for a Smooth and Easy Absence

Zeba McGibbon
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Most teachers will tell you that it is easier to come to work sick than make sub plans… enter the Sub Tub!...
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Classroom Design

Ideas for classroom jobs and why they are important

Zeba McGibbon
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Classroom jobs are a critical part of the classroom community. They teach students responsibility, independence and teamwork. Not all classroom jobs are...
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Distance and Digital Teaching

5 Steps to Making an Interactive Seesaw Activity

Zeba McGibbon
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Are you using Seesaw this year or considering it for any hybrid or remote learning? It is a wonderful website and app...
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Distance and Digital Teaching

Quick and Easy Movement Breaks for Distance Learning

Zeba McGibbon
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No matter if you are teaching in a classroom or on a computer, your students will need movement beaks and your normal...
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Distance and Digital Teaching

Easy Morning Meeting Greetings and Activities for Digital and Socially Distant Classrooms!

Zeba McGibbon
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Looking for easy interactive morning meeting greetings and activities that can work on a computer and/or in a socially distanced classroom? I’ve...
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Favorite Blog Posts

2019-20 Favorite #1: Establishing Math Routines and Expectations

Zeba McGibbon
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As we finish up a school year, and prepare for the next one, I wanted to re-share my top 5 favorite blog...
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Favorite Blog Posts

2019-20 Favorite #2: Teaching the Alphabet

Zeba McGibbon
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As we finish up a school year, and prepare for the next one, I wanted to re-share my top 5 favorite blog...
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Favorite Blog Posts

2019-20 Favorite #3: Authentic and Meaningful High-Frequency Word Practice

Zeba McGibbon
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As we finish up a school year, and prepare for the next one, I wanted to re-share my top 5 favorite blog...
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Favorite Blog Posts

2019-20 Favorite #4: Kindergarten Phonics 101

Zeba McGibbon
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As we finish up a school year, and prepare for the next one, I wanted to re-share my top 5 favorite blog...
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Recent Blog Posts

Fun and Easy Activities in Springtime for Kindergarten

Classroom Activities and Lessons Zeba McGibbon
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Springtime for kindergarten is a special time of year. The children are much more mature and independent and have built a strong foundation of academic skills. They are ready to take the foundational skills they have learned and apply them to deeper learning. Additionally, the weather is getting nicer, and Mother Nature has a lot of natural...
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What High Frequency Words Should I Teach in Kindergarten?

Literacy Zeba McGibbon
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What is High Frequency Word and Why Should I Teach Them? A high frequency word is known by a lot of names (sight words, snap words, trick words, heart words, etc.) but they are words that are used a lot in the texts that the students are reading and...
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Answering All Your Questions About Kindergarten Decodable Books

Literacy Zeba McGibbon
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Learning more about the science of reading and how children really learn to read, I know now how important decodable books are for young readers. This blog post is all about kindergarten decodable books, how to use them, and where to find them. Why Use Kindergarten Decodable Books?
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Decomposing Numbers in Kindergarten

Math Zeba McGibbon
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There are many important math skills for children to learn in kindergarten, but a key foundational skill they need to learn is number decomposition. Teaching decomposing numbers in kindergarten can sometimes be overlooked. But, it should be embedded into whole group and small group activities all year long. What is Number Decomposition and Why...
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Supporting Kids at Recess Kindergarten and First Grade

Social Emotional Learning and Supports Zeba McGibbon
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While it pains me to say it, children struggle with recess. What should be a fun and easy time of day has recently become a time of day with constant struggles and ever-increasing recess problems. Children are more over-booked with activities and reliant on technology and so they don’t have experience with unstructured time. They don’t know...
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Activities for kindergarten writing sentences in small groups

Literacy Zeba McGibbon
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It’s around mid-year of kindergarten when students writing really starts to take off. At this point, they have enough letter-sound knowledge and can write some simple high-frequency words. They are reading simple sentences and are writing several words on a page. Students are ready to start writing sentences! But how do you teach kindergarten writing sentences? I...
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5 No-Prep Kindergarten Valentines Day Activities

Holidays Zeba McGibbon
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Valentine’s Day always seems to sneak up on me. January feels so long and then all of a sudden… boom! It’s half-way through February and Valentine’s Day is next week. So, no-prep kindergarten Valentines day activities is a must have, and today I have my top 5 kindergarten Valentine’s day activities! Kindergarten Valentines Day...
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How to Set Up a Calm Corner in Your Classroom or Home

Social Emotional Learning and Supports Zeba McGibbon
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Children need a space in the classroom, and at home, where they can go when they are upset, frustrated, worried, dysregulated, etc. This calm corner in classroom or home is a safe space children can go to regulate their emotions. How do you set up a cozy corner, or calm corner in the classroom or at home?...
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5 Ways to Blend Phonemes in Kindergarten

Literacy Zeba McGibbon
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One of the most important skills to support kindergarten reading words is blending phonemes. When children blend phonemes, they are literally reading the word by putting together it’s individual sounds. As children are learning their letter sounds, they are ready to start to blend phonemes, and these 5 activities can help! Blending Phonemes Progression
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Strategies for ADHD Students

Social Emotional Learning and Supports Zeba McGibbon
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Every classroom has students who struggle with staying focused in school, whether or not students have a diagnosis of ADHD. The focusing strategies for students with ADHD will help all students who struggle with staying on task and working, regardless of a diagnosis. The goal for teaching strategies for ADHD students is to teach students to identify...
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