Pool Noodle DIY

One of my "projects" this summer for my classroom was making pool noodle letters for ELA and numbers for Math. I like my kiddos to be up and moving as much as possible, so this will be a way for them to move around the table, stand, or sit on the floor while they are working in Math stations or playing games.

 I saw a picture of pool noodle phonics at Common to the Core. I did mine a little different than hers, but it works the same way.

Click here to see Dana's pool noodle phonics

I made 2 sets of pool noodle letters. The letters are 3 inches wide (and could even be cut smaller if needed). I was able to get 13 chunks out of each noodle and used 4 noodles in all. I am going to have my kids use them to put letters in alphabetical order, spell their names and their friend's names, make sight words and CVC words and practice any spelling words we will have toward the end of the year.  I wrote my letters on each noodle piece. I underlined some of the letters that may cause confusion (b,d,q,p,f,t,m,w) so the kids will be able to tell where the bottom is. They are sitting in a plastic storage basket in our reading and writing games center.

I also did a set of place value pool noodles. Since I didn't take pictures throughout the letter noodles, here are the number noodles!

WHAT DO I NEED?

• 2 pool noodles
• Box Cutter
• Scissors
• Permanent Marker

I measured my pool noodles first to see how long they were so I could make sure my chunks would be the same size. I'm a little anal like that. :) Once I cut the first chunk of pool noodle, I used it as a template to cut the rest of the noodles.

 I found it easier to turn the pool noodle while slicing the box cutter back and forth through it while I turned it.

Once all of the pieces were cut out, I wrote my numbers 0-9 on the side of the noodle.

After all of the letters wee written on my noddles, I took the scissors and cut a line straight across the back of the noodle, opposite the letter I had just written.

There is a slit in the back of the noodle where the kids can slide it on the side of the table.

And that was it! I made 2 different colors. One set is green and the other set is orange. The kids will use one color to represent the ten's place and the other color to represent the one's place. You could also make a set of numbers in one color and a set of dots in another color and have the kids match the numbers and dots. Or numbers and words. There are so many things to do with these!

Happy crafting!