Step 1: (30 minutes)
If you are new to Every Day Counts, read the front matter (p. 5-9) in the Every Day Counts teacher’s guide and August/September (p. 16-17). This will help you get to know the EDC elements and how to set up for the start of school.

If you possess an older HMH EDC Kit in a yellow box, you may already have many of the items mentioned below. The suggested times are for teams creating new materials or replacements to display at the start of the year.

Step 2: (5 – ? minutes)

Examine your room set-up to find the best place to display Every Day Counts so that all students can see all the elements. A bulletin board is handy for pinning up the materials, but if such a board is not present or not in a good location for viewing, many teachers have been able to place the calendar and other elements on a wall, whiteboard, or chalkboard using tape or magnets. Some have even placed a science display board or sheet of foam core in the chalk tray to tape, or pin elements to using T pins. If possible, it is nice to place Every Day Counts where you can gather the children up close to view the Calendar and other elements.

Step 3: (25 min. prep) Begin 1st day of school or catch up to present Day of School

See T. Guide, p. 24-27 or preview with a click on Samples – Photos & Questions 1 at edconline.net

To create the Counting Tape:

1. Unroll and put up at least 15 feet of a blank Adding Machine Tape or sentence strips. The Counting Tape needn’t be in the same part of the room as the other elements on the board as long as everyone can see it.

2. Collect 2 sheets of 9” x 12” construction paper in each of 10 colors. Use three colors for now to cut into 3” squares. You will be attaching squares of the same color on each of the first ten days of school. Then you will change the color after every ten days up to Day 100.

3. Locate a blue, red and white Ten Grids poster if you have inherited Every Day Counts® materials or assemble using a 6″x 12″ blue, a 12″ x 12″ red, and a 6″ x 12″ white piece of construction paper or cardstock. Use rolled pieces of tape, or make slits to insert paper clips to hold the ten grids. (See photo)

4. Copy 3 sheets of Ten Grids (TR 9) from the back of the EDC Teacher Guide. Use blue dots in the top row and red dots in the bottom row of the Ten Grid to match the number appearing on the Days of School Counting Tape. See Teacher’s guide, page 25.

Step 4: (5 min. prep) Begin early in the school year.

See T. Guide, p. 24-27 and click on Samples – Photos & Questions 1 at edconline.net

1. Pull the Clock from an inherited set of Every Day Counts materials or print a Clock (TR 8) from the back of T. Guide. Place it inside a sheet protector.

2. Punch through all the layers using scissors point or an exacto knife to attach one long minute hand to the outside of the Clock with a brass paper fastener.

3. To make a short and a long hand, cut them out of cardstock or a file folder. Color them black.

4. Use dry erase to fill in one minute for each Day of School, alternating the color every five minutes. Add the numbers 1 to 12 each time a group of 5 minutes has been colored in.

Step 5: (25 minutes prep) No lamination needed. Begin the 1st of September or catch it up to present day in September.

Note: If you begin school in August or are year round, you may choose to use the August pattern pieces for your first month of school. August and September reveal the same basic pattern.

See T. Guide, p. 18-20 and and click on Samples – Photos & Questions 1 at edconline.net

Prepare Calendar by creating slits on slit marks using an Exacto knife, box cutter, or sharp pair of scissors, and placing standard or large-size metal paper clips in each slit. Some teachers tape the rows of clips down on the backside of the calendar to keep them from popping out during the year. Many teachers prefer using a nylon calendar with clear pockets. Vendors ANZORG and EAMAY offer them for $15.

Pull out ONLY the first three sheets of Calendar pieces for August or September. The month is printed at the bottom of each sheet. Leave the other sheets of calendar pieces undisturbed at this time!

Pull apart or cut out the pieces and display them face up on the Calendar from the first of the month up to the present day of the month. After the present date, place each piece face down to be turned over and revealed on each new day of the month.

Prepare Birthday Package Tags by copying Birthday Package and Tags (TR 14) from the back of the EDC T. Guide. Place the August or September month’s birthdays on the Calendar. Color one Birthday Package for this month to display near the Calendar. See T. Guide, p. 30-31.

By October 1st, prepare all the Packages and display them in order from January to December. See T. Guide, p. 32.

Step 6: (10 min. prep) Begin early in September.

See T. Guide, p. 21-23, and click on Samples – Photos & Questions 1 at edconline.net

1. Use a sheet of 12 x 18 construction paper or tape together two 11 x 8 1/2 sheets of cardstock with the horizontal dimension as the longer side. (Laminate, if available.)

2. See photos to cut slits about each 3.5 inches apart to create 3 rows of 4 places to insert 12 paper clips. Secure them on the backside with tape.

3. For September, attach two clear pockets or two snack-size Ziplocs on the left side of the mat to hold counters. See T. Guide, p. 21.

4. Print and cut apart 2 sheets of cardstock Domino Halves (TR 5) from back of T Guide.

You are done!

This is everything you will need to begin sharing the September elements with your students. September requires the greatest preparation time. Next month you will continue to use these materials and add in a couple of new items. By November all the elements will be introduced reducing preparation time for the remaining months.

To see Question Starter Cards click on Gr. 1 – EDC Photos & Question Cards at edconline.net

The note cards you see accompanying each photo with starter questions can be printed as PDF files, cut apart, and mounted on 5×7 note cards for your easy reference during Every Day Counts discussions. During the month, please add to your cards questions of your own design or questions from your reading that you want to remember to try out. Some questions should aim at simply having students examine the data and describe what they see. Others questions should require students to engage in higher level thinking, requiring them to reason, analyze, make predictions, and form generalizations about concepts being explored each month.

Every Day Counts® is a registered trademark of Gillespie Kanter Group, LLC

To purchase teacher guides, calendar pieces, and other display items, visit: payhip.com/everydaycounts