Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Tuesday Tidbit: Creating groups in a quick, fun way!

I used to be guilty of the famous words, "Find a partner to do this assignment"......and the rest of my direction-giving would be lost; as kids frantically tried to make eye contact across the room with their partner of choice. 

I decided that I wanted this transition time to be a little more productive and fun.  As a result, my "partner match cards" were created!  I developed a set of popular "partner foods" and "partner pairs", a set of famous "trios" and a set of cards designed to form groups of 4.  The concept is very simple...each kid gets a random card passed out to them and they have 1 minute to "find" their partner (or group) in the room.

Check it out below!



Partner Cards!

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Tuesday Tidbit: How to Make Blueberry Pancakes and See Ohio! Social Studies in Action!


If you are a primary Social Studies teacher who teaches about natural resources, map skills, economics,  or all three (like in 4th grade!),  I beg you to GET THIS BOOK!  How to Make a Cherry Pie and See the USA  by Marjorie Priceman.  
The story begins with a girl who wants to make a cherry pie for the first time but finds that the local cook shop is closed.  Since she will need to make all of the pie making equipment by hand now, she decides to go on adventure across the country to get the materials herself.  The materials include granite from cliffs in Maine to make a pastry slab, cotton from Louisiana to make pot holders, and oil from Texas to make plastic spoons, just to name a few.  I loved this book and its Social Studies connections SO MUCH that I decided  to develop my own project for my students to work on based on the natural resources found in Ohio.  They LOVED it!  I actually couldn’t believe how much the students enjoyed this activity.  And I loved that it covered so many standards in such a fun, engaging, and meaningful way!  I even created a Google slide template and shared it with my students so that they could attach pictures and publish their adventure!  This has definitely been one of the my top lessons this year and I would love to share it with you!  As a thank you for visiting my blog and taking the time to read my post on this activity, I’ve included it for free below.  I’d love to hear how it goes in your classroom if you try it!



Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Tuesday Tidbit: Use the Season to Make Learning Fun!

I love the holidays!  And, obviously, so do the kids!  Why not combine their excitement for the season with your standards and accomplish learning in a fun and connected way?  I decided to do this for a recent lesson on figurative language.  As I sat one night trying to make a review sheet, I was going through boring examples for similes and metaphors in my mind.  Her hair was as golden as the sun.  Wow, boring, right??!!  As I glanced around the living room recently decorated with my favorite fall decorations, it hit me.  Why not have the girl be "as sweet as a trick or treat bag full of goodies" or the night be "as black as a Halloween cat!"  I immediately brainstormed a bunch of Halloween themed examples for idioms, similes, metaphors, and alliteration with a renewed sense of energy.  I knew my students were going to have just as much fun reading and identifying all of my new, spookier review questions.  To make it even more "fun", I decided to put my examples on individual cards to create an interactive scoot game.  It didn't really take me anymore time but I know it will be so much more meaningful and fun for my students.  Check it out here! (1/2 price for this week only!)

Happy Teaching!   Jen

Halloween Scoot for Figurative Language


Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Tuesday Tidbit: Get and Stay Organized!


By this time of year, I have collected quite a few documents of varying degrees of importance.  Ranging from the most basic (an updated birthday list for my class) to more specific (who is allergic to peanuts or has an inhaler?).   Instead of keeping all of these things in a folder simply called “important papers”,  I decided to be a little more organized this year.  I bought a 3 ring binder (1/2 inch was the perfect size) and made a cute cover page with my name and class on it to slide in the clear plastic cover.  Then I developed a set of dividers to help organize all of my papers and information.  (Feel free to use the set I made below!)

I put these into plastic page protectors and then put them in the order that I use them in my folder.  Finally, I went through all of my documents, records, and papers and put them in my folder, behind the appropriate section.  This has become a lifesaver!  It sits on my desk during the day so, at a glance, I can easily locate a child’s reading level, see who has an upcoming birthday, or verify who is a parent pick up on Friday.  At the end of the day, my binder goes in my bag so I have email addresses, behavior records, and growth charts at my fingertips at home.  In addition, this serves as a GREAT tool for a substitute!  No more frantically trying to remember all of the important “stuff” to tell a sub at the last minute....I just tell them to refer to my binder!  It has worked wonderfully and I just wanted to share in case you have the same pile or folder of “important things” that is quickly growing out of control!  If you are in need of a set of high quality organizational forms, please check out my Beginning of Year Teacher Survival Kit!  It is HALF PRICE for the week!

Happy Teaching!  Jen





Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Tuesday Tidbit: Fall is a great time to try out Reader's Theater!

Every year, I find that after the first few weeks of school I'm looking to try something a little new and different.  By this time, we've read several stories and passages aloud and I have a fairly good grasp on where my kiddos are with oral reading.  However, I'm always, ALWAYS, surprised when I try my first reader's theater script with them.  For some reason, when some students get a script in their hand and are given the chance to step into a "role", they blow me away with their oral expression and fluency!  Plus, it is just SO MUCH FUN to mix it up a little!  Taking a story and presenting it, rather than just reading it, just seems to capture one's attention so much better.  This week, I wanted to share my Reader's Theater of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow with all of you for half off.   Try it!  I promise you will be happy you did!   $4.99   $2.50

Click Here!