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Creating engaging, hands-on materials for early learners can be time-consuming and costly—unless you have the right tools.
Meet Sarah Burdick đź‘‹, former Pre-K teacher turned Education Sales Consultant. In the following video, she takes you through each step of creating a complete, reusable lesson on feelings using the VariQuest Learning Suite.
Her lesson is inspired by the book “Today I Feel Silly” by Jamie Lee Curtis, but it’s the technology behind the scenes that brings it to life.
Here's how each VariQuest tool plays a vital role:
🖨️ Perfecta® Poster Printer
Sarah begins with the Perfecta Poster Printer, which she uses to print a large, full-color Feelings Chart, available on the VariQuest Design Center 2300. The high-resolution visuals help young students identify and label emotions effectively. The Perfecta’s easy-to-use software and pre-designed templates from the Design Center make it simple to create posters that are both educational and attention-grabbing.
🧊 Cold Laminator
Next, she turns to the Cold Laminator—an essential step before using the Cutout Maker. Laminating materials ensures they can be handled repeatedly by small, sticky hands without tearing or smudging. It also allows for dry-erase marker use, adding to the materials' interactivity and reusability. Â
✂️ Cutout Maker 1800
Our Cold Laminated sheets from the previous step go straight into the Cutout Maker, where Sarah selects smiley face emojis from the Design Center to reflect a range of feelings—happy, sad, silly, angry, and more. In just minutes, she has a full classroom set of emotion cutouts ready for role-play, sorting games, or circle-time discussions. The Cutout Maker’s speed and precision eliminate the need for tedious manual cutting, saving prep time.
🖨️ Motiva® 400
To round out this lesson, Sarah uses the Motiva 400 to print mini anchor charts—compact visual aids students can reference during small group work or cooperative activities. These charts serve as individual-sized tools that reinforce emotional vocabulary and support social-emotional learning.
âś… Ready in Less Than 5 Minutes
With just a few tools and a great book, Sarah created a meaningful, interactive lesson that encourages self-awareness and expression, without spending hours prepping or worrying about the wear and tear of her lesson materials!
Whether you’re building a lesson on feelings or any other early childhood topic, VariQuest tools streamline the process, allowing teachers to focus more on teaching and less on lesson prep.
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