These show my kids this year, and to protect their privacy I am leaving the picture and file I made as private as possible. I assure you though...they are precious!! I wrote "I can" summaries of directions with each picture and placed each in a sheet protector AKA cheapo lamination. These will be taped near each station as visual reminders.

I was graciously sent the Hot Dot Pens by Educational Insights to test them out with the many old Hot Dot Cards I inherited with my classroom. They have been in use for 3 weeks now and the batteries are going strong. The kids love the dog and cat characters and the happy noises. The pens also buzz when the child has correctly answered a few questions in the row - and that little buzz is a good incentive to get the answers right! The only downside is that my kids hold the pens around the animal's collar where volume control is at, so they keep changing the volume! That's ok though really, because even at maximum volume the pens are pretty quiet and do not disturb nearby workstations at all!

I am currently using Letter (cap to lowercase) Matching and Rhyming Cards, but as the year goes on I will just by swapping out the cards in this center. I love that although the content will change, the way this activity works never will. In my opinion, these Hot Dot Pens make a great center that is self-checking and easy to differentiate!

Now, don't you want to win a pair of Hot Dot Jr. Pens?!? Enter my giveaway!