Writing Piece of the Month

I am back to school and getting back into the swing of things.  My kiddos have gotten off to a great start.  I will be back to post classroom pics very soon.  Today, I wanted to share my newest writing resource that I can't wait to get going in my classroom.  I spent a large chunk of my summer working on it and it's finally done- YAY!

My goal for this resource was to have a fun writing activity each month that I could compile together at the end of the year to make a writing portfolio.  This is completely separate from the writing pieces we do in Writers' Workshop.  These writing activities are seasonal pieces that go along with popular children's books.

This is a great way to expose children to a variety of writing genres and great literature.  Here is a peek at what is included:

There are 15 different activities included that encompass 11 different genres.  

I can't wait to get started with my students!  I'm going to start this week with the 2 August activities.  It's still early in the year, and they are still getting to know each other better, so it's perfect timing.

These are the books I will be using for this resource, but there are so many other great books that can be used in addition or in lieu of the ones I listed.  Mine are merely suggestions.

If you are interested, you can check it out in my TPT store by clicking here, and I would love to give it for free to the first 2 people that leave a comment.

Monster Theme

I am so excited to finally have a classroom theme. I tried a frog theme once many years ago, and that didn't last!  I went out and bought everything frogs, got it all up, and took it all down by the end of the day.  Nothing against frogs, they just weren't for me.

At the beginning of the summer, I came across JW Illustration's monster clip art and fell in love. Oh my gosh, they are so cute!  It started as just a monster sign and spiraled into this MONSTERpiece.

Here are a few pics of a few of the items in this set:

 

I'm going to use badge holders this year for my hall passes, but there are also large passes in the set.

     If you are a monster fan, then you can check it out in my store by clicking the image below.  

P.S. The first 2 people to comment will get it for free.  Don't forget to leave your e-mail.
Thanks bunches!!!

*** I've added additional items to the set.  Please click here to read more about the additions.
Here is what was added:

Math PODS

In my last post, I briefly mentioned my Daily Math spiraling activity.  I used it last year, and really ended up loving it.  I made a few additions and it's ready to go for this year.

Over the last 10 years, I have tried so many different published spiraling activities.  I liked many of them, but didn't love any of them.  I always felt like there weren't enough of the types of problems I needed for my students.  For instance, I especially need regrouping problems mid to end of the year.  I wanted my spiraling activity to encompass a variety of skills, but I wanted to start very basic and work towards building the level of difficulty.  I simply start with what they should know from first grade.  For instance with money, at the beginning of the year, I'd start with all pennies and gradually increase the level of difficulty.

Using the Math PODS allowed me to make my own problems (within the template) and choose the level of difficulty.  I started with single digit numbers at the beginning of the year and ended the year with 2-3 digit numbers.

There are only 2 pages that I copy front/back.  I give them a blank copy for the week and they keep it in their Math POD folders.  I like to write the answers on a blank copy and then use my document camera to display it on the Smart board.  By doing this, we can discuss the answers interactively.  You could also use an overhead projector.  I simply hand write the problems, and they copy and solve them on their own copies.

Here is an example of the PODS with suggestions:

There are also these additional pages for students to monitor their own progress.  

We complete these each Friday.

 When students score a 100 for the day, they will get a punch on their POD Squad punch card.  I don't actually use them as punch cards.  My students glue them into their folders and I initial them. 

At the end of last year, I was super pleased.  My students were very strong on every skill covered on these Math PODS, and I know the reason had to do with the repetitive review.  They never got bored, because the problems were always different.  They loved to be challenged weekly and looked forward to our MATH POD time.  I was also super excited when I got to money and time, and all my kids already knew how to do it.  YAY!!! When it was time to teach those skills, I was actually just reviewing.

If you are a second grade teacher looking for something a little different as a math review, you can check it out HERE.

Math Pocket Station Signs FREEBIE

I have had math stations on my mind all summer!  Here is my predicament when it comes to math stations---TIME!  By the time I finish everything I need to do during my math block, there is never enough time. 

This is my daily routine:
I always start with Math POD's.  This is my spiraling activity.  I created a page last year that's 2 sided, and I couldn't be happier with how it worked out with my second graders.  Stay tuned....I will post about that next time.  After POD's we move onto Problem Solving.  Then, I teach my lesson for the day, and then there is a follow up activity or assignment.

The only place, I seem to have a gap is during the follow up activity.  They generally finish completing their tasks at different times.  I began thinking that perhaps I could work in some station time while students are finishing their independent work.  I only plan to have them go to one station each day.  Each station will have several activities for them to choose from.  I know most teachers have their students rotate through stations, but I'm going to try the one station and see how it goes. 

I decided to go with the pocket theme.  I really wanted it to be different from my literacy stations.   I also wanted it to sound catchy.  I can just hear myself, what is your pocket for today? 

The idea for using the word MATH as an acronym came from the fabulous Clutter-Free Classroom.  I love her board and acronym.  If you haven't seen it, check it out here.  I would have loved to use her board, but I just knew that I didn't have time for them to rotate though several stations daily.

Then, when I saw the idea below at the adorable blog, Sprinkles to Kindergarten, I knew it was the perfect solution to my problem.  Please check out all of her great tips.  I love that she lets her students pick their station each morning.  I will definitely do the same thing.  I also love that she has boys on one side and girls on the other, so that you don't have a group of all girls or boys.  Great idea!

I decided to go with the acronym MATH instead of NUMBER.  I have soooo many literacy stations, I really wanted to keep math stations simple.  But, there will be plenty for students to do in each of the pockets.  If you like the NUMBER acronym in the pic above, you can get it as a freebie at her blog.  Just click the image above.

After merging the two great ideas from my fellow bloggers, this is what I came up with.

My plan is to use the red clothespins, you see in the image above.  I am going to write their numbers on them, so I don't have to get a new set every year.  They will place their clothespins in one of the grey spots on the pocket.  There are enough spots for 6 students to go to each station.

But, I also like the idea of using numbered magnets and hanging it on my front magnetic dry erase board (see below).  I am torn, I'll have to see which idea works out better.

The magnets fit perfectly in the grey dots where the clothespins go.

Here are the 4 Pockets:

M- Math Facts

This is self explanatory, it will be all about practicing those math facts.

A- A Flashback

All the activities in this station will review concepts we have already covered.  I always have extra activities that I never got around to in class, now they will be a perfect addition to this station.

T- Teach Time

Either Teacher Time or Buddy Time

H- Hands-On

Anything that involves students exploring and actively engaged with their math tools.

In order to keep up with who I am meeting with daily, I will use the printable below.   I'm going to select which 6 students will work with me before they arrive in the morning.  I decided to go with Teach Time instead of TEACHER, because I wanted to have the option of it being a buddy time, also.  I may choose 3 students that really understand a concept well, to buddy with 3 students that are struggling with a particular concept.  Most of the time students will be working with me, but I wanted to have options. 

This resource also includes the pages below that I will attach to file folders, so students know what their choices are in a particular station.  Even though they aren't rotating daily, I plan on having more than enough activities to keep them engaged. 

 

I plan to laminate each file folder with the pages above blank, so I can use a sharpie to write in the activities, Then, if I want to change something, I can easily erase it and make any additions or changes for the week.

This resource is a FREEBIE.  If there is a station activity that you love, I'd love to hear your ideas.

 

Decoding Strategy Posters

This summer I have been working through my to-do list which doesn't seem to be getting any smaller.  I think I'm adding more than I am actually finishing.  One of the projects that I've had on my to-do list for a VERY long time is updating my decoding posters. You can click here to see the original post from last year.  Many people asked for these, but I wasn't completely satisfied with them, so I never added them to my store.  I had made them so long ago that many of the fonts wouldn't embed in a pfd and the image quality wasn't great.  I just never seemed to find the time to update them.

Well,  I had another sweet teacher ask about them, so I thought it was time to get those puppies finished.  I am officially done. Checked off my list.   I did change some of the images from the original post last year.  I will add pics from my classroom when I get them up at the beginning of the year.

Here is the finished product:

There are NOT colored borders on the posters themselves.  Here is why. . . I am super OCD.  I change my mind a million times.  One day I might like polka dots, then chevron, then stripes, or whatever else I come across.  So, I didn't want to commit to a particular border.   So to create a border that matches my classroom, I simply find super cute scrapbook paper, attach with double stick tape, and laminate.  If I change my mind a month later, then I reprint them and swap them out.  I also wanted other teachers to be able to choose borders colors and prints they love.

Included you will also find this mini version below called- Decoding Dots.  This little handy dandy tool is great for guided reading.  Each of my students have a copy and they refer to it while they are reading.  There is also a one page reference page, like the one above, that is a great handout to keep in their Daily Folders (Homework Folders).  This will help parents know what strategies you use in the classroom, and they can support their children while reading at home.

 

You can click the here to head straight to my store to check out this resource.

***Update- I've added a bulletin board title and lined borders for the posters.

FREEBIES...Tooth Fairy Clip Art and Tooth Tracker

So, in my last post I kinda said I was going to leave the clip art to the professionals.  Well, it looks like that turned out to be a fib.  I was looking over my mile long to-do list and saw I still needed a new tooth chart in my classroom.  So,  I decided to create my own clip art for my tooth chart.  But the good news is...you get to benefit from it, because the clip art I used is also a freebie. 
This is my newest set of clip art...

 Click the image to head to TPT for the freebie.

Below is the tooth chart I made for next year.  I plan to just attach it to a pretty clipboard and then whenever a student loses a tooth, they can add their name to the correct month.  You could also do tallies instead of names.  I just like to do names, because they like to look back at when they lost their teeth.  My last tooth chart was actually on the Smart Board, but it just didn't work out for me.  My Smart Board wasn't exactly reliable, and it seemed that every time we needed to add a name to the chart, the Smart Board wasn't working- uggg.  So, back to old fashioned pencil and paper for this job.  Losing teeth is a big deal, they are super proud of those little chompers.

 Click below for the freebie.

Clip Art Cuties FREEBIE

I wanted to share with you my first try at clip art.  I'm thinking that I will leave the clip art to the professionals in the future,  but I am obsessed with stick figures and had to make just a few.  I have them in my store as a freebie.  Please feel free to use them in your freebies or commercial products.  Just a shout out will work if you decide to use them!

Here are my little clip art cuties.  Click the pic to head to my store, it's a FREEBIE.

Year at a Glance Calendars

Happy Fourth of July.  In honor of the fourth, I thought I'd post a freebie for you!  This little goodie is a must in my lesson plan book and grade book.

There are 12 versions to choose from.  I will continue to update it yearly.