Welcome to Kindergarten Cafe!

I’m Zeba, and I’m here to help you find the *kindergarten magic* in your classroom. I create resources and share strategies to make your teaching easier, more engaging, and focused on those magical moments of growth with your students. Whether you teach kindergarten, preschool, or first grade, you’ll find ideas and activities to bring that *kindergarten magic* to life. Feel free to reach out—let’s make teaching kindergarten magical again!

recent

A Developmental Approach to Teaching Writing with Melissa from Teaching to Transform ~ Ep. 114

Managing Math Expectations and Math Materials ~ Ep. 113

A Kindergarten Social Studies Year-Long Plan ~ Ep. 112

A Kindergarten Social Studies Unit: Families ~ Ep. 111

Honest Talk on Handling Teacher Burnout and Difficult Students ~ Ep. 110

Literacy

A Developmental Approach to Teaching Writing with Melissa from Teaching to Transform ~ Ep. 114

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music If you don't allow that independent time where they are showing you whether they want to write or not, showing you whether they draw pictures or not, if you don't allow that, you don't know what to teach them. You don't know what they're ready...

Kindergarten Small Groups for Teaching Letter Sounds ~ Ep. 106

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music This is your permission slip to be creative with the way your small groups are and that really small groups should be about targeting the skills your students need and practicing those skills.~ Zeba from Episode 106 of The Kindergarten Cafe Podcast Episode Summary Small groups don’t...

Kindergarten Case Study: Supporting Kindergarteners With No Letter Knowledge ~ Ep. 105

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music Don't panic if they don't know all their letters and sounds when they are first coming to kindergarten. It's okay because you are going to teach everyone letters and sounds.~ Zeba from Episode 105 of The Kindergarten Cafe Podcast Episode Summary It can feel overwhelming when a...

Teaching the Alphabet – 6 Things To Do with Each Letter w/ Droppin’ Knowledge with Heidi ~ Ep. 104

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music There's so much research supporting letter name knowledge and supporting it as also a predictor for later literacy learning.~ Heidi from Episode 104 of The Kindergarten Cafe Podcast Episode Summary If you're deep in the alphabet trenches like I am right now, this episode is for you....

Best Storage Solutions for Centers in Kindergarten ~ Ep. 103

Classroom Design

Apple Spotify Amazon Music I have tried many different ways to organize materials. I feel like I finally found a way that works for me.~ Zeba from Episode 103 of The Kindergarten Cafe Podcast Episode Summary Wondering how to manage all those center materials without creating chaos or drowning in bins...

Here’s How I Introduce Writing ~ Ep. 98

Back to School

Apple Spotify Amazon Music Don't expect them to start writing. When you put those expectations on them and they're not ready for it, that's when behaviors happen. They get disconnected, disengaged, and again, that's when the behaviors happen.~ Zeba from Episode 98 of The Kindergarten Cafe Podcast Episode Summary A common...

Science of Reading 101 With Heidi from Droppin’ Knowledge ~ Ep. 81

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music You don't want to think about the fact that you've been doing things wrong this whole time. But again, it's not your fault. We have to give ourselves grace. And also that, you know, when you're looking into changing these things, it is a journey....

Building Effective Literacy Centers with the Science of Reading ~ Ep. 78

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music If we know better about what helps kids learn to read, I feel like we should want to do that as teachers. Some teachers are holding on firm to outdated methods that aren't really backed in research.~ Zeba McGibbon from Episode 75 of The Kindergarten...

A Weekly Routine for Teaching Sight Words in Kindergarten ~ Ep. 77

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music Make sure to point out what makes the words tricky for students, think about grouping similar words together, and then make sure to find ways for kids to engage with the words frequently. It's not just taught once and done forever. You continually...

Fun and Easy Vocabulary Activities for Kindergarten ~ Ep. 76

Literacy

Apple Spotify Amazon Music Early vocabulary development is a huge predictor of later academic success. The more words that kids know and understand, the better readers they will be when they get older.~ Zeba McGibbon from Episode 76 of The Kindergarten Cafe Podcast Episode Summary This episode is the first of...