Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites, Ah HA!

Hi Everyone!  It's Kimberly from Loving Kinders.  I am so happy to be guest blogging this weekend.  It's my birthday weekend! YAY!

Worksheet’s Don’t Grow Dendrites

AH, HA Moments!

 Book Study-ish

This summer there was a HUGE influx of amazing teacher author/bloggers that used this book for a book study.  So… I thought it would be a good idea to get it and read it!

I read the posts and I read the book.  These are my take-aways and AH HA moments!

1 “You don’t stop playing because you get old.  You get old because you stop playing.”

Play games, use humor, and always remember to have fun.  These simple truths are important and will motivate your children to learn.

2 Think. Pair. Share.

This easy adaptable activity will engage students, promote collaboration, and practice working together.

Pose a question.  Pair students up.  Share their thinking.

3 Artwork and Drawing

Using artwork to front load schema, connect to a text or scaffold concepts will not only boost creativity it will lead to higher level thinking that will transcend into higher level writing.

Never underestimate the power of ART.

These 3 BIG ideas are only snippets of what is inside the book.  These are just the big ideas that I gained from the first couple instructional strategies in the book.  

Until Next Time lovies.

5 Superstitions for Friday 13th!

Hi, I'm Roisin from Little Learner Toolbox and I'm so happy to be guest blogging here today. Happy Friday 13th! Friday 13th is one of those days that is synonymous with bad luck (for some at least). For example, people are less likely to fly or get married on Friday 13th. Where did these superstitions come from?  Are there any truths behind the superstitions?

Here are 5 ‘superstitions’ fun facts to share with your class for Friday 13th!

1)  Is 13 really an unlucky number?

 Triskaidekaphobia is the fear of the number13. Many people believe that the number 13 is unlucky. Some airlines and hotels recognize that people think that the number 13 is unlucky and skip the number when they are numbering their floors and seat rows and skip the 13th floor or number 13. There are some differing opinions as to why the number 13 is considered an unlucky number. Some think it is because there were 13 people at the Last Supper, and others say that it originates in Norse mythology. One of the gods, Loki, was not invited to a dinner for 12 other gods.  Loki, the 13th god, killed another god out of anger. 

2 ) Is it really bad luck to walk under a ladder?

People often believe that it is bad luck to walk under a ladder. Many think that this superstition comes from ancient Egypt. Egyptians believed strongly in the power of the pyramids.  When a ladder leaned up against a wall, the triangle shape it created resembled the triangular shape of a pyramid. Egyptians believed that the power of the pyramid could be broken if someone walked underneath the ladder. There are also those who point out that the obvious explanation for this superstition is that if you bump against a ladder as you pass underneath it, you could dislodge something and end up being bumped on the head by it!
 

3 ) Is it bad luck to open an umbrella indoors?

Many people believe that this superstition comes from Victorian times, when the umbrella was a much more difficult item to open indoors. Opening an umbrella indoors would have been a lot of effort and the spring that opened the spokes often sprang open quite quickly. Opening an umbrella indoors was said to bring death to your home, and you would have to wonder if that superstition came about because the umbrellas themselves were so clumsy to open, were full of pointed spikes,, and could have caused harm if opened indoors. Some believe that the bad luck associated with opening an umbrella indoors actually comes from ancient Egypt, where opening an umbrella indoors could be seen as disrespectful towards the sun god. 

4 ) Is the four leaf clover really lucky?

Only 1 in every 10,000 clovers has 4 leaves, making each 4 leaf clover a special find. Long ago in Ireland the druids believed that the four leaf clover possessed magical powers and could ward off evil spirits. The Celts also believed that four leaf clovers were lucky charms. The four leaves of the clover stand for Faith, hope, love and luck. Children in the middle ages believed that the four leaf clover would help them to see fairies. 

 5 ) Is it bad luck or good luck for a black cat to cross your path?

It hasn't always been the case that black cats have been seen as bad luck if they crossed your path. In ancient Egypt cats were seen as being good luck, and in Europe sailors saw their cat as being a good luck and sailors often brought a black cat with them on their journeys, while the sailors wife may keep a cat at home too for a even more good luck. In Japan the black cat is also seen as possessing good luck. So depending on where you come from the black cat is good or bad luck! 

Close Reading: What, how, and why {FREEBIES TOO!!}

Hello everyone!

This girl over here {Laura from Where the Magic Happens} has been enjoying the beautiful weather and hanging out with the boys… oh yeah… I have also been crazy busy at school and have had a million things going on! That’s the reason I have not blogged in what it seems like forever. 
Anyhow, I have been reading and reflecting A LOT about how to transform my literacy teaching  in this era of higher standards.  For about a year I have been a close reading groupie enthusiast.  There is so much literature out there and so many materials that, I did not know what to read or where to begin. I am so lucky to have my BFF Marie from The Literacy Spot… she always recommends the best reads.   My Amazon wish-list is about to pop!



So really what in the world is close reading?

According to Fisher and Frey, close reading is:

“an instructional routine in which students are guided in their understanding of complex texts.”  Basically, close reading is a component of dynamic reading instruction where students:

• Read strategically
• Interact with the text
• Reread to uncover layers of meaning that lead to deeper understanding
• Analyze multiple component of the text and illustrations
• Focus on the author’s message

These are some of the most important things that I have learned about close reading:

• Not all texts deserve a close reading
• Close reading is also not necessary when the text is fairly accessible. In other words,  when choosing texts for close reading… you want to pick a text that do not give up their meaning easily or quickly.
• Close reading is MORE than a worksheet!!! Our students need to interact with their peers and their teachers using academic language and  argumentation skills as they discuss the text.
• Close reading is not one-and-done reading! Rather, it is purposeful, careful, and thoughtful.

And honestly, I could go on and on…

I really could give you a million reasons.

Close reading is not to be confused with guided reading. They are two extremely important instructional approaches that must be part of your balanced literacy.  Close reading  is not exclusively about eyes on print or reading accurately. In close reading we seek to explore the comprehension of ideas and structures more deeply. In other words, there will be times (especially during the first read) that my students will read, but some texts demand to be heard  and read aloud – poems are a good example.
These are some of the benefits of close reading:

• It leads students on a cognitive path that begins with discovering the literal meaning of a text and ends with the exploration of deeper meaning and  a plan of what should occur as a result of the reading.
• Close reading will help our students understand the mechanics of a text, especially vocabulary, text structure, and the author’s craft.
• Close reading will require that all students cite textual evidence in their products. {Hello, mCLASS?}

These are some of the differences between close reading in the primary and upper elementary grades:









If you are thinking that a close read is an easy task for the teacher… then you might be like Santa Claus in the month of August.
Close reads are divided into four different phases:

• What does the text say? (general understanding and key details)
• How does the text work? (vocabulary, structure, author’s craft)
• What does the text mean? (author’s purpose)
• What does the text inspire you to do? (extended thinking)

These four phases provide our students to explore, practice, review, and navigate through literary and informational text-dependent questions. {Hello again mCLASS!} Text-dependent questions drive close reading!

You go right ahead and download this evidence based terminology poster to use during your close reading time! {click on picture!!}
 

And just in case you are wondering, this is what Fisher & Frey recommend as the best think marks for close reading based on their research.



Classroom Materials? No problem, I got you covered! Check out these great close reading materials from my TPT store! Click on the pictures to be directed to my store.

Until next time!

Happy Holidays

     I know it is only November but the December holidays will be here before you know it.  This is the perfect time to get your teaching ideas together!  One thing I love to do and have been doing for many years is to wrap all of my holidays books for read alouds in wrapping paper.  And then every day a student gets to rip open a "gift" to see what book we will read that day!

Here is an idea of what it could look like...

     If you want some fun activities for you classroom this Rudolph one is a favorite of mine!  First I read the story Olive the Other Reindeer.  Then we brainstorm ideas of what makes a great reindeer and write a persuasive letter to Santa to convince him to hire them as a new reindeer.  Students come up with great ideas such as; they can see great at night, their nose smells things from far away, they are small enough to slide down a small chimney, etc.  Then they get to pick the color of their "nose."  Plus they look so cute hanging up for all to see!  Here are some ideas.

     To get this pack click here.  

And since this is my favorite time of the year I have a freebie for you too!

To get it click here!

Happy Holidays!
Jennifer Wiggins

Stay Organized with Bins, Baskets and Trays - Part 1

Happy Monday, everyone! It's Lisa from over at Second Grade Stories. I have a confession to make. I am obsessed with bins. And trays. And baskets.  The Dollar Tree... Big Lots... Target... all very dangerous places for me. I have WAY more containers than I will ever need - and I always seem to buy more.  But that's good, because I use my containers to stay organized in so many ways!

I thought I would give you a tour of my classroom - container style! This is a  picture-heavy post (who knew how many different baskets and bins I used!), but it's filled with ways to stay organized in your classroom.  I discovered I had so many different ways of using containers, I had to break this post up into 2 parts!

My number 1 rule is: Everything needs to have a home!  I find that things start to pile up when I don't have a -- place to put them. Give everything a home and you'll be organized and tidy in no time! Rule number 2: Keep things that you use all the time out and accessible. There is nothing more frustrating that having to look for what you need two or three times a week. If you use it, give it a home out in the open! On with the tour!

This basket is right on a small shelf by my door. If it's finished, it gets put in the finished work basket. I've tried other systems - file folders with student numbers, trays for each subject... they never worked for me. Everything goes in here and my kiddos who have later buses love taking out the papers at the end of the day and organizing them so all the same ones are in one pile, they're all facing the same way, etc. Then I decide if it's going in my folder to be graded and entered into my gradebook, or in a different pile to be checked off and sent home.

These are our mailboxes for things that go home. I LOVE these mailboxes. A friend made them for me a few years ago. They are wooden and very sturdy and are going to last forever. WELL worth the cost of the materials! I put the name tags on the sides with Velcro so I can change them easily every year without scraping off the old nametag. Finished work that we have done together, notices, Friday folders, it all goes here to go home.
TIP: If you have Friday folders or something where all papers go home on a certain day, try this - sort everything into mailboxes FIRST, THEN pull out each pile and put it into the student's folder. This works so much better for me than spreading everything on the floor and trying to sort that way.

Which brings me to this tray. I have two of them on top of my mailboxes. One is for papers to go home later in the week (like I said, we do Friday folders) and the other is for notices. (I put those in a separate pile so they go on top of all the work.) Oftentimes I'll have student put papers directly in this tray if we've done it together and I don't need to look at it again. It stops the monster paper file from growing and streamlines my grading. I make notes on sticky notes about students who might have needed help so I have that information.

We have four ipads in our room. I grabbed these trays from the staff lounge over the summer and spray painted them blue. They work perfectly and are easy for my kiddos to slide the ipads in and out. Can't say as much for the mess of cords behind the trays. I'm still working on that one. (The cases are from Amazon - here's the link.)

I keep some of my classroom library books in these bins from The Dollar Tree. These are the books my kiddos choose from for reading workshop. I have other displays in different places in the room for themes, holidays etc. I switch out books every month or so. I've found keeping books in bins like this allows students to browse more easily. The labels keep everything organized. (The label holders are from Really Good Stuff. They are expensive, but well worth it. I make my own paper labels and just slide them in. You can see them here.)

We use clipboards all the time, so it's important for me to have an easy way to store them. (We have alternative seating, so my kiddos often choose to work on the floor - you can read more about that {HERE}) I went the easy route - two labeled bins that sit on the counter. I had to make rules last year for getting clipboards - you take the first clipboard that's on the top - no "fishing" for the one you want. You can switch with someone later. This year it's not really an issue. The water bottle basket came out of necessity. I hate sweaty bottles that leak (or spill) on the tables and papers. Grab and go. (We did have to have a conversation that this was not the water cooler and you can't stand there sipping and chatting all day :-)

Looking at this picture, I'm not sure how proud I am of it. But it's real - and it really is organized. I am blessed to have a double closet in my room (tow of them actually) to store things. This one stores school supplies, construction paper, art materials, etc. Those shelves are really deep and I was always losing things behind everything. I decide one summer to purchase Sterilite 3-drawer bins from WalMart and stick them in the closet.  Ta-dah! It may not LOOK beautiful, but I know where every kind of pencil, marker, sticky note, etc. is ... and I don't have to take out half the closet to find it. Use bins and drawers to store all those little things and you'll find you have so much more room for other stuff! Now if only I could do the same for my other closet with the Ziploc bags, paper plates, etc. Ugh.

This "toolkit" sits on our back counter. It has the things we always need to replace - and my kiddos know if they need something they can just come and get it. It's from the hardware section at Home Depot and the drawers tip forward when they open. A simple idea that has really helped. (And you can see the plastic bag with the glue sticks with no caps. We seem to lose the caps. Keeping them in the plastic bag keeps them from drying out and when a lone cap shows up we can just find it's mate!)

We use dice almost every day during our math time. I have - or can come up with - a dice game for just about any math concept. And we use them for reading, vocab and spelling games, too. These drawers contain the most-used dice: foam 6-sided dice (so quiet! link here), plastic 10-sided dice (also from Amazon - link here) and regular 6-sided dice. Since we use them so much, they needed their own place. TIP: If you use something a lot, keep it out somewhere in the classroom. It makes it much easier than digging through a closet or drawer three times a week! The dice mats on the top are just pieces of felt. My kiddos bring one to wherever they are working and roll the dice on it. It not only keeps things quieter when 20+ kids are rolling dice, but it helps them keep the dice somewhat ON the dice mat.






That's it for Part 1! We've only made it halfway around my room and I've already showed you nine different ways to stay organized using bins and baskets! Now head on over to my my blog for Part 2 and see even more ways I keep things organized! In the meantime, leave a comment and share your thoughts - how do you use bins and baskets to stay organized?