The Resource(ful) Room!

Amy over at The Resource(ful) Room awarded me the Sunshine award!  I can't tell you how excited I am to receive this award!  If you haven't been to Amy's blog, make sure you check it out.  She is always sharing a ton of cute ideas/materials!  

The "rules" for the Sunshine award are:

1. Thank the person who gave this award and write a post about it.
2. Answer the following questions below.
3. And pass the award to 10~12 fabulous bloggers, link their blogs and let them know you awarded them.

• Favorite color?  Pink
• Favorite animal?  Dogs & Cats...I can't pick between them!  Below is my Amber (my dog who we almost had to put to sleep on Friday...worst.day.ever but she is doing much better now :) and Waffles and Ally the kittens)

 

• Favorite number?  3
• Favorite drink? Iced Venti Nonfat White Mocha <3 Starbucks!
• Facebook or Twitter? Facebook, I can't stand twitter!
• Your passion? Teaching
• Giving or getting presents? Giving.  I can NEVER wait to give people their presents.
• Favorite day? Saturday...I can sleep in & stay up late.
• Favorite flowers? Dahlias

Now to pass this award on to ten of my favorite bloggers (in random order):

Thank you Amy for the award and Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Wordle

I don't know how many of you know about or use Wordle but it's a great site to use in the classroom!

I recently saw this on Pinterest: 

(Source) 

I immediately made class list wordles which I can't share for confidentiality reasons.

Then I decided to create some with my students for word choice.  I let them each pick a book of their choice.  It could be a picture book or chapter book.  Then I had them search for words the authors used instead of "said".  As they found them, they came up and wrote the words on the board.  Next, I put wordle up on the smartboard and started adding their words.  Here is what we ended up with: 

I will definitely do this again with other "boring" words.  As a bonus, I'm also modeling how to use wordle for future projects like traits that describe the main character of a book or the most important words and concepts in the book OR math vocabulary words for each concept...the possibilities are endless!  Rather than      saving the wordles to the public gallery, I print them to pdf and save the pdf's. 

Assessment Recording Sheets (Freebie)

 I was grading a bunch of assessments and realized that I never made my recording sheets!  I had some from other places but I wanted to use cute fonts so I whipped some up and thought I'd share them with you.

I am required to assess my students on a regular basis.  I like to have a recording sheet that I can quickly look at and see a students progress throughout the year.  For the reading progress sheet, I start with the lowest reading level on the bottom so when I add the students scores, it graphs their progress.  I made a bunch of different reading sheets starting and ending at different levels so there should be one that would work for everyone.  As always, if you want something customized, leave a comment or email me and I will do my best to grant your request! 

I put these on my Teachers Notebook store for you to grab for free!  Click on the pictures to get yours!  

Also - most of the other items in my store are 50% off from now until Thanksgiving.  

Bullying Lesson

I have been having a problem with one student making fun of group-mates.  The students parents are not very involved and typically don't return phone calls from teachers.  I explained to the group that from now on, if any of them make fun of another student, I am calling home - no warnings!  If the behavior continues after I call home, the student has to call home and explain to his or her parents why they are being called.  The mean student thinks that this isn't fair so to show why I think it is fair, I did the paper lesson that I saw on Pinterest: 

I gave them each a piece of paper and told them to crumple it up into a ball.  I put my nice smooth piece on the board.  Then I gave the group 5 minutes to try to make their wrinkled sheets look like mine again.  They tried everything they could think of!  By the 5 minute mark, most of them had given up.  I had them put their papers next to mine when they were done.  We compared them: mine was flat against the board, the others were all bumpy etc.  Then we talked about how our words can hurt people or crumple them and it is impossible to take back what we said.  Once the paper is crumpled up, it will never be smooth and flat again.  No matter how many times we say sorry or try to make it up to them, the damage is done.  This seemed to have some impact on them.  
They were all very serious during the discussion.  I think it had an impact on them.  Hopefully, the naughty student takes the lesson to heart and changes his behavior.  I'm leaving the paper on the board as a reminder to use kind words and think before you speak.  I'll update you and let you know if it makes a difference!   

Exit Slips Freebie!

My school is on a MAJOR paper restriction.  Each teacher was giving 1 ream of paper (500 sheets) to last the rest of the year.  We are allowed to send our copies out to the BOCES print shop (those pages won't count towards our 500 sheets) but the print shop was flooded and they are operating from a remote location.  They are about 3 weeks behind.  That means that you would need to plan a month ahead to have your copies back in time.  That's just not going to happen for me.  I might have an idea of what I want to do in a month but it will probably change.  My solution to this problem is to come up with some generic worksheets that I can use for a variety of different books or topics.  I'm sending those items to BOCES so I know I will always have something in a pinch.  

On a slightly unrelated note, the principals went to a training on what to look for in lessons when observing teachers.  They bought copies for every teacher so we know what they are looking for.  They didn't pass them out yet but said we could pick up our copy if we wanted it early.  I wanted mine early.  I want to know what they will be expecting so I can be ready!  The book talks a lot about closures and assessments.  They HIGHLY recommend exit slips.  So I made a generic exit slip or ticket out to be sent off to BOCES.  Now I will always have a closure & assessment ready!  

This side of the ticket is lined for questions that require a written response.

This side of the ticket is blank for solving math problems or drawing a quick picture (Draw what you visualized while reading today). 

I printed them double sided so I didn't have two different sets.  Grab your free copy from my Teachers Notebook store by clicking the picture.  

Classroom Jobs for the Resource Room (Freebie!)

I like the idea of having classroom jobs for students but until this week, I could not wrap my brain around how to set this up.  I have 37 students, some come to my room everyday but at different times each day, some come 3 x a week, some only come to my room on occasion (I push into their rooms usually) so how do I set up jobs?

This really bothered me my first year because our mentors gave us a bunch of new teacher books to help us set up our rooms and half of it didn't apply to my setting.  That's actually the reason I started this blog, there was no information out there as a guide for resource room teachers (or any non-traditional teachers). 

So here is my solution.  I numbered my chairs 1-5 and came up with 5 jobs.  I chose to number the chairs so that the kids wouldn't pick the tape off the table and it's not distracting.  

I wanted students to be responsible for pencils, materials, chairs, erasing the board, and a helper for odd jobs.  Rather than assigning every kid a specific job and switching them, the chair numbers assign the students the jobs.  If job #1 is the materials manager, whoever sits in chair #1 has that job for the day.  Rather than numbering my job posters, I made numbers that I can move around to avoid having students do the same job every day if they have assigned seats.

Grab your copy for free in my Teachers Notebook store,  

Summarizing & a Freebie

I have spent the last two weeks working on summarizing with my students.  Many of them struggle to write complete sentences so the thought of reading a book, understanding it, picking out the most important details, re-writing them in new words, and writing in complete sentences was more than a little overwhelming for them.  

I started by reading a book together and discussing what a summary is.  Then I asked them to verbally summarize the story for me.  As they spoke, I typed.  As expected, the first attempt lacked details.  That was labeled as a level 1 summary.  I questioned the group to add some more details.  With a little tweaking, the level 1 summary became a level 2 summary.  We continued this until we also had a level 3 and 4 example.  I printed out each summary with room for a picture above it.  We added pictures to match the level of the summary.  

After this activity, the students really had a clear idea of what a level 4 summary looks like, how to write it, and what to include in it.  To help them even further, I gave them a copy of my Somebody wanted...but...so...then organizer (which you can grab for free by clicking on the picture of the organizer below).  I gave the students another book in the same series (a Reading a to z book - The Hoppers) and had them try a summary on their own.  Kids referenced the example summaries while writing.  

Their summaries turned out great!  They were not missing any major details (thanks to the organizer) and they added a few extra details because they really wanted to have a 4 star summary.  

A students independent summary.

Our summary board with the 4 examples and some of the kids finished work.

Editing Checklist

I have searched and searched for an editing checklist that might work for all of my students (2nd -5th graders). Nothing seemed to work so I finally decided to just make my own.  After I made one with a notebook paper background, I got inspiration for another one which I now LOVE (I guess I am a little biased). I posted them up on my Teachers Notebook store.   

    

Click on the picture to get your own!  

 I plan on printing them on card stock, laminating them, and storing them in a file folder attached to the wall like this, only stapled to the wall and editing checklists instead of blank paper: 

As with everything in my store, if you would like something customized for your classroom, email me and I'll see what I can do!  

Daily Objective Posters

At every staff meeting so far this year, we have heard "subtle" suggestions to post our lesson objectives in our rooms.  I finally got around to making them this week and I hung them up today.  Here is how it looks:

After laminating, I hot-glued the sheets to a ribbon and then I glued everything to the wall.  They hang right above the finished work basket, next to the students cubbies.  

Since I was making them anyways, I decided to make a few more and put them on my Teachers Notebook store.  I made 3 different patterns - dots, stripes, and chevron stripes (which isn't uploading right now, I'll try again tomorrow).  Here are some sample pics:  

 

  

Click on the picture to be taken to the items in the store.  If you would like different wording, just email me at lessonplansandlattes@gmail.com and let me know.  I'd be happy to customize it for you.  Enjoy your Friday evening! 

Introduction to Problem Solving

My districts math focus this year is on problem solving.  Students who struggle with math typically REALLY struggle with problem solving.  I have just spent the first 3 weeks of my AIS math groups introducing problem solving.

To make it a little more fun, I created a problem solving bulletin board for my students to use.

Each work mat is a step in the problem solving process. 

I write word problems on sentence strips and students can use dry erase markers to solve the problem right on the laminated work mats.  Together, we solve a bunch of simple word problems on the bulletin board (1 problem a day for a week or 2) before I give them the graphic organizer.

I only change the numbers in the word problem for the students first time using the graphic organizer.  For example, the day before I introduce the organizer, I might give the students the following problem to solve on the bulletin board: 

There are 35 birds in a tree.  There are 7 birds on a roof.  How many birds are there altogether?

The next day, I would show the students the organizer and let them try it out using this problem (I just cover the old numbers with post it notes): 

There are 19 birds in a tree.  There are 12 birds on a roof.  How many birds are there altogether?

All of the work from the first problem is on the bulletin board.  Students only have to change the numbers in the addition problem.  This allows the kids to focus on using the problem solving organizer, rather than focusing on solving a problem AND the organizer.  Once students have internalized the problem solving process, they do not use the organizer for every problem because it is time consuming.  

I made 3 more sets of problem solving bulletin board work mats.  I am using the polka dot one at building #2.

There is something so cheerful about polka dots!  I have uploaded the polka dot mats as well as a striped and chevron striped sets to my Teachers Notebook store.  Don't forget to download the free graphic organizer while you're there! 

5 Minute Drills & a Freebie

The way the new New York State IEP's are, I have to probe (assess) my students progress frequently.  For my students who have a goal of solving # of basic facts in x minutes, I assess every 2 weeks.  Some of the students only need 40 addition facts, some need 100.  I don't want to have to make different probes for every student, especially when I have 37 now!  I figured the easiest thing to do was print 20 different 5 minute drills (100 problems).  Some of my students, however, are overwhelmed by seeing 100 problems at once.  I make a quick template for them that only shows one row of problems at a time.

Sorry, the pictures are not coming out well at all!  Download the free template from my Teachers Notebook store!

Enjoy!

Phonics Comics

I recently found a series of comic books called Phonics Comics.  The books are grouped into 3 levels - 1, 2 and 3.  They are also Fountas and Pinnell leveled.  I ordered 16 books from Amazon (I think I got a little carried away).  The level 1 books I ordered are level F and G.  My level 2 books range from H to J and the level 3 books range from K to M.  Each book has 3 stories in it.  The books are designed to give students phonics and sight word practice.  There is a list of non-decodable or challenging words in the back of each book as well as a list of sight words used in the book.  You can learn more about these books here! 

 Level 3 Books

 Level 2 Books

 Level 1 Books

 Sorry for the sideways pictures - A picture of the inside of a level 1 book

Story words and Sight words page in a level 1 book

I can't wait to use these in my classroom.  My students who are reading at an F in 3rd grade really need books that don't look like "baby books".  

-Becky

Amazing Day!

Sorry for the lack of updates lately.  Life has been crazy to say the least.  Today was such a great day though that I had to share.  I finally got some of my assessments done...I made a few pocket games...Two of my students who really struggle with reading moved up a reading level today! And one student had a MAJOR light bulb moment.  After over a year, yes a YEAR, of working on subtraction with regrouping, he got it!  I've never been so happy for a student in my life! This little boy has autism and he really didn't understand my excitement.  His response to me was (in a matter of fact tone) "Well, you taught me how to do it."

It's 11:40 so this is going to be a short post but it was such a good day, I had to share.  I know I promised a literature circles rubric and possibly a mini-unit on Bunnicula and they are coming, I promise.  Grad school and work have been wearing me down so I'm a little...okay a lot behind!  Hopefully after this week I can post more regularly.

-Becky

Teacher Shoes

I'm joining in on the teacher shoes linky party hosted by Cardigans and Curriculum!  This is a fantastic idea because who doesn't love shoes?!  I'm a flats girl...I love the idea of wearing heals but, let's face it, they are not practical for our profession.  Here are some of the shoes I wear at work:

Flats for typical school days and Uggs during fall and winter dress down days. I can't wait to see what everyone else is wearing!

-Becky

Literature Circles

As of right now, I have 35 students!  I have a group of fifth grade boys who need to work on comprehension so I immediately thought of doing literature circles.  I had no packets that were appropriate for them so I decided to make my own.  My rules and behavior chart are in a space theme so I made the packet in a space theme as well.

I chose roles that require students to write summaries, make predictions, infer character traits, determine important ideas, and ask open-ended questions.  The packet includes question starters to help students with questions and a list of character traits, two versions of the cover page, and role descriptions.  I have added the packet to my Teachers Notebook store.  If you want a literature circle in a different theme, please let me know and I'll do my best to make one!  

Enjoy your Friday night, 

Becky

PS - I'm working on a literature circle scoring rubric this weekend.

Closure, Assessments, and Management Oh My!

This year, my principals have made it clear that our lesson plans must have:

1. A clear objective

2. Details on how the students will reach that objective and

3. An assessment that matches the objective

When observing lessons they want to see:

1. A hook

2. Modeling

3. Guided Practice

4. Independent Practice

5. Closure

6. Assessment

and obviously, a caring learning environment with good classroom management. 

Personally, I don't think this is too much to ask for but with that being said I often do not have a closure to my lessons.  My "closure" sounds like "Okay, throw any finished work into the finished work bin, if you are still working put your work in your cubbie, put pencils away and quietly go back to your class - and please hurry because your late!"  There is never enough time to fit everything into a 30 minute block of time.  Add in fire drills, late students, and ADHD and we are down to about 20 minutes each day.  I also have NO time between groups (one leaves at 12:30, the next one starts at 12:30) which means groups of 4 - 5 chatty children get to walk the halls unsupervised to and from class.  This drives me nuts! 

Yesterday, I tried something new and I love it!  While students were cleaning up, I walked to the door.  Each student had to answer a different yet similar question about the lesson before he or she could go back to class.  It took 60 seconds and covered my closure, assessment, and the hallway management problem!  That is definitely going to become a tradition in my room. 

Feel free to share your closure & assessment tips with me!

-Becky

PS. I love fall but not when it is 35 degrees in the morning!

Rounding & Teachers Notebook Store

My students were struggling with the concept of rounding last week.  I created a rounding roller coaster sheet to help the kids visualize the rounding process.  The roller coaster has spots for students to write their numbers on it to see if they are rounding up or down.  I liked the sheet so much, I ran to Target on Sunday and bought a laminator so I could use it today.  It was a huge success!  My students loved it.  After doing a few problems with the roller coaster, they "got it".  They all begged me for their own copies they can take home.  I just finished making a set of 5 so they can each use them during class.

I've been thinking about opening a Teachers Notebook or TPT store for a while now.  Before I started, I wanted to make sure I had all the proper permissions to use the graphics and fonts.  I do not want to sell (or give away) any items that I have not tried in my classroom (with success) first.  The rounding roller coaster was so successful in my room, I decided to open my store and use it as my first item!  You can visit my new Teachers Notebook store here!  I have never used paypal before so please let me know if there are any glitches or if you have suggestions.  It's been a long day so I'm off to relax before tomorrow!

-Beckyhttp://teachersnotebook.com/product/fireflies/rounding-roller-coaster