Did You Know...National Geographic Explorer

Did you know that National Geographic Explorer magazines can be accessed for free?  It's true!  Issues from September 2009 are available in projectable editions and also include access to the teacher's guide.  The most exciting thing about the explorer magazine is that it comes in two reading levels.  This way, your struggling upper grade students can have access to the same ideas as your proficient readers.  The Pioneer edition is the lower reading level, probably best suited for later second grade readers or third grade readers and up.  The Pathfinder edition is the upper reading level, probably suited for higher fourth grade readers and up.  Give them both a look here and see which will be best for your students.  You can also print the articles or entire magazine edition from the projectable view.  I subscribed to the two editions when I taught 5th grade and loved that all of the students in my class could access the information, regardless of reading level.  I'd love to know how you use this in your classroom in the comments below or any other resources like this you use in your classroom.

"Spring" Free Poem of the Week

As promised last week, each Thursday I will post a poem pack freebie that directly correlates with the Poem Task Cards (also free).  This week's poem is titles "Spring" and you can get it here.  If you've missed any of the past freebies, be sure to check the featured freebies tab at the top of the blog.  I'd love to hear how these are working out for you. 

Synonym Feelings

A few weeks ago, as a team, we were thinking about what we could do to put in the hall for April.  We like to do an integration art piece as a team each month that hangs in our hall.  So, here's what we came up with.  We used the book My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss as our literature inspiration and the topic of Synonyms.  We read the book to students and discussed the synonyms for traditional feeling words and recorded our lists.  Then, students chose a color and a traditional feeling.  They used a splatter paint technique on white paper and let it dry.  Then with a black marker, they wrote several synonyms around the painted page and glued the traditional feeling word somewhere on the page.  I backed them with black construction paper and laminated them, but you certainly don't have to do that.  One of our teachers made these shades of meaning cards with paint color strips. (She said I could share it with you.)  So, this is a great way to integrate art and language.  I've included a printable of the feelings bubbles here for you to use in your own projects.   I'd love for you to come back and let me know how you use this idea.  How do you teach synonyms in your classroom?

Also, If you're a fellow blogger, check out Charity's challenge to be a 5 star blogger here.  
 

April, Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month (in the U.S.).  I've put together a few things to share with you throughout the month, so be sure to check back often so you don't miss all the fun!  Here's the first one:  This is Set 1 of a 3 part collection of Jump Rope Rhymes.  It seems that spring brings a renewed passion for jump roping on the playground and these rhymes somehow get passed along through the generations.  What fun it might be for you to introduce new poems and rhymes to your students for their jump roping.  You'll get literacy integrated with fun and exercise! The following 2 sets will be coming throughout the month along with several other Poetry Month surprises.

Jump Rope Rhymes for April Fools

Happy April Fools Day!  Aren't you glad it's not on a school day?  I sure am.  Well, last night I was researching jump rope and hand clap rhymes for a little project I'm working on (coming soon) and I found a few that I won't be putting in my project, but thought you might get a good April Fools laugh from.  Here they are:

Birdie, birdie in the sky,
Why'd ya do that in my eye?
Birdie, birdie in the sky,
Gee, I'm glad that cows don't fly.


I know something, 
But I won't tell.
Three little monkeys,
in a peanut shell.
One can read,
And one can dance,
And one has a hole,
in the seat of his pants!


Cinderella
Dressed in yella
Went to meet her handsome fella.
On the way her undies busted
How many people were disgusted?
1! 2! 3! 4! (etc.) 

March Blog Hunt Day 7

Welcome to Day 7 of the St. Patrick's Day Blog Hunt!  I'm so excited to be part of this.  Today, you get the pleasure of two blogs to visit for treasure.  Jana at Thinking Out Loud also has a treasure for you today, so be sure to visit there too.

                                   

I have two great items to share with you.  First, a set of nine St. Patrick's Day bookmarks with riddles and jokes.

St. Patick's Bookmarks Second, a set of three gameboards to practice the -oo- in words.  It includes a bonus sorting sheet.

Oo Game Board Freebie I hope you enjoy these freebies!  I'd love to hear how you like them in the comments below.

Tomorrow, be sure to visit Linda at Kids Reading Activities for another treasure on day 8!



If you've missed the previous treasures, visit this Pinterest Page which contains links to each treasure and will be added to each day!


While you're here, be sure to enter my giveaway that is underway right now. Click here to be taken directly to the entry page!

Enjoy the rest of your hunt!

UCET and Jackie Robinson

I've been busy attending the UCET (Utah Coalition for Educational Technology) Conference this weekend and haven't posted for a few days.  Don't worry, I'll post some of the tidbits I learned while I was away over the next few weeks.

I wanted to share with you what I did (well what I planned and the substitute did) with my class and other students on Friday to celebrate Read Across America Day.  In the morning the entire school was cross grade grouped (K-6) into groups of about 17 students.  Students were given "passports" and they toured the U.S. "Reading Across America."  Every adult in the building represented a state and shared a book and an activity that somehow related to the state.  Students rotated 5 times, to visit 5 different states.  Each rotation lasted 20 minutes.  It's a little crazy, but a lot of fun.  I chose to represent Georgia.  I lived there for 2 years.  I discovered that Jackie Robinson was born in Georgia, so I focused on baseball.  I introduced a few facts about the state and then introduced Jackie.  Then read this great book Teammates   to the students and discussed it.  Then, each student created their own baseball card using this fun template.  Students drew a picture of themselves on the front and then wrote their "stats" on the back such as name, age, grade and hobbies.  I don't have pictures since I wasn't there, but I think it went well.

Remember the giveaway that I currently have going on.  

Go here to enter. 

 

New Word Ladder Books

I was on Amazon and saw these new books from Tim Rasinski.  These are the K-1 books.  I didn't see other levels, but I'm sure they're coming!
This one is for Interactive Whiteboards...Awesome!


And this is the regular print version...

Making Words FREEBIE

In my aforementioned comprehension class, we briefly discussed the importance of increasing vocabulary and word knowledge.  One of the methods we discussed was the activity of "Making Words."  For this activity, students are given several letters and then make as many words as possible.  Then students can sort the words and add words that fit with the pattern of the words they formed using additional letters.  This great book Month-By-Month Phonics for First Gra (Month-By-Month (Scholastic))


contains many suggested letter combinations and a step by step guide to lead students through the activity.  Another way to come up with the letters is to use the letters of any word you choose, put the vowels in alphabetical order followed by the consonants listed in alphabetical order.  For example, you may choose the letters from the word tamale.  You would present the letters like this  a a e l m t.  I think we often do this type of activity with holiday words.  Well, I've put together a set of these making words activities in an easy to use format.  Come get a couple pages FREE in the preview at my TN store here.  The full Making Words Pack can also be found at my TN store.  All items are on sale now through Wednesday!

Common Core K-3 Done and Available

Yeah!!  I now have the Common Core Packs done for K-3 (4-6 coming soon).  As promised, each time I finish a grade, all my Common Core Packs go on sale in my TeachersNotebook shop for 20% off for 3 days.  The sale starts now and will end at the end of Wednesday.  In celebration of Presidents Day, all other items in my TeachersNotebook shop are 15% off.  You can download previews of the packs under my free items in TeachersNotebook and with the Preview button on TeachersPayTeachers.  I'll be adding several new items tomorrow (my kids are begging me to play Guess Who with them right now), so be sure to check back tomorrow for more items.  If you prefer TeachersPayTeachers, my Common Core packs are available and on sale there too, however not all of my other items are there just yet nor are the multi-user common core packs. (maybe by tomorrow ;0) )

We Give Books

This amazing online resource has hundreds of books available in an easy to project format for easy use with your projection system.  They are also easily read on the computer screen for at home viewing.  It is a foundation of the Pearson company and continually give books to new causes.  Currently, they are giving books to schools.  Click here to be taken to the site to sign up, just click on the orange button.  While you're there, check out all of the titles that are available.  They add more titles regularly.  Once the current campaign is over, you can select to read for a new campaign.  Not only is it a great resource for books at school an home, each time you read, you help give books.

Learning about Fluency

I've been a little distracted this week as I was voraciously reading this fabulous book:
 
I'm taking taking classes for my reading endorsement and my current class requires a project in the area of comprehension.  One of the comprehension strands we studied was Fluency, and I figured that was an area I wanted to do more with in my classroom.  The project is to develop at least 6 lessons in the area of focus.  One of the resources I chose to help me was The Fluent Reader (2nd Edition): Oral & Silent Reading Strategies for Building Fluency, Word Recognition & Comprehension.  I got it on Wednesday (thanks to Amazon's great shipping!), and finished it up last night.  It was an easy read and so practical!  I loaned it to my friend and classroom neighbor to read over the weekend.  I'm so excited to get started on my project lessons and thinking through how to better implement Fluency into my classroom next year.  What do you do to promote Fluency in your classrooms?
 

Listening Center

I incorporate a lot of the Daily 5 into my centers, but don't follow it exactly.  Because of that, I don't change the activities in my centers very often.  I'm still trying to figure out how to organize my math games and centers, which I do more traditionally, so I have more of those.  Hopefully I can get some ideas from the linky party at The Lesson Plan Diva.  Here's a picture of my listening center.

(I use the drawers, from IKEA, to organize my math manipulatives and the blue pocket chart is for class jobs.  Posts on these to come later.)

I use inexpensive 1 and 2GB MP3 players and download one story on each player.  Here's one that looks easy to use. 

 

Ease of use is key when the kids are going to be the ones operating them. I have several lessons at the beginning of the year to train students on how to use the players and how to keep the center organized. The player is in a ziplock bag in the pouch with the book and the bag, player and book are all numbered.  The headphones clasp over simple tubs to keep them organized.  Students select a book and headphones and choose a spot in the room to listen.  I love this system for several reasons:

• Students don't fight over the buttons
• Students can go at their own pace, starting and stopping as needed to follow along.
• Students don't have to wait for each other to all be at the center and ready to begin playing the book. 
• Students can listen to books at other times in the day like when work is finished early. 

Here's a picture of the pocket chart up close.  I only change the books about once a month, sometimes less depending on how often we did centers.  Students only have each center once a week, so it can last a long time without changing.  Students love to listen to their favorites several times too.  

I have purchased most of the books on CD from Scholastic and the $20 listening sets they have in the SeeSaw orders.  I have a pretty good collection now.  I also use my Scholastic points for them.  Another way to create listening books is to use a digital recorder and record yourself, the principal, custodian, lunch workers, parents, etc.  reading books that you already have and creating your own listening books.  

Here's a similar pocket chart to the one I have:

And here's a good digital recorder that links right up to your computer to easily save the file.  I use a similar model.  Be careful when purchasing a digital recorder, many do NOT have a USB hook up so files cannot be saved.  

How do you organize your listening centers?