Tried It Tuesday

I'm excited to be linking up with Holly at Fourth Grade Flippers. My Tried It Tuesday is dry erase sleeves From Oriental Trade.

I use these daily in my classroom. They are great for center games and any repetitive skills you want to practice. I got a sample of one at a teachers conference. It had an opening in the side, and I fell in love with it. However, they are really expensive. I recommend trying these first. If you already use whiteboards in your classroom, I'm sure you will love these, too. You can get a dozen for about $12 at Oriental Trade. Go check out other things everyone else has tried!

Engineering Fest

Have you heard of STEM? It stands for Science Technology Engineering and Math. Earlier in the year I set aside an entire day to celebrate the field of engineering. The students rotated through stations. Each station highlighted a different field of engineering and had a lab to showcase the specific field. All of the labs were inquiry based with very little teacher intervention. Each one helped to build critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. One of the labs was a the Windmill Challenge. Students had to make a windmill that would pull as many pennies as possible. They had different designs to choose from and had to figure out how to make it pull pennies. They had to work through the entire Engineer Design Process.

We carried the theme through lunch. Students made a solar oven and cooked their own hot dogs for lunch. This was not an inquiry activity. I walked them through the entire process. You can grab a copy of my solar oven design by clicking on the picture. You could easily turn this into an inquiry activity and also align it with the Next Generation Science Standards by letting the students design and test their own solar ovens. I'm thinking I might try it next year. This one was a super simple version and worked really well.

If you'd like to check out my Engineering Fest that includes 7 STEM activities, an anchor chart, station signs, and student booklets, just click on the picture. 

Common Core Camp-out

When my students got back from Spring Break, I had the room completely transformed into a outdoor camp. I could not believe how excited they were. One of my sweet boys said, "I was really not happy about having to come back to school, but then I walked in and saw the tent, and I knew everything was going to be great." Totally made the three hours I spent decorating worth it:) I also had a big banner outside the classroom welcoming them back.

This was my smoke and mirrors trick for sneaking in some test prep. I disguised it all with a camp theme. They really enjoyed it and it made the test prep tolerable.

I got most of the decorations from Oriental Trade. Since I had to take everything off the wall for testing anyway, I thought I would put up some decorations that could stay up. I put up a mountain backdrop, some pine trees, and camp signs. I even put some camp tablecloths on the tables for a little while. Those didn't last long because they aren't really practical for classroom use.. I also bought little camp journals for taking notes on test taking strategies. They loved them.

I put together a huge unit that covers several Common Core standards all with a camping theme. This product has six math, 5 reading, and 6 writing activities. I included several craftivities that would be great for the hallway. All of them aligned to Common Core standards.These activities are perfect for review, too.  There are enough activities to keep you busy for a full week. If you would like to check it out, click HERE

.Testing is next week for me. I'm feeling really positive going into it. My kids have worked so hard! We are having our Testing Pep Rally on Friday,  and they have a song and dance they are going to perform for the whole school. I even got them neon hats and shades. They are so excited. If you can't tell, I adore this group of kids. I'm already starting to get a little teary eyed thinking about sending them to 5th grade.
Have a great week and good luck with your testing!

Saint Patrick's Day Freebies

First, I have a Saint Patrick's Writing Menu for you. The video prompt for this menu is ANY Lucky Charms commercial. Here is the one I'm using:

Next is the Social Studies St. Patrick's activity. This graphic organizer can be used with any nonfiction book about St. Patrick's Day. I'm using Gail Gibbon's book. I really love her nonfiction titles. You could also have students look up facts about St. Patrick's Day on the computer. Just click on either cover for a copy.

If you still need more St. Patrick's Day ideas, just click on the picture below to check out my other St. Patrick's Day products.

St. Patrick's Day Magic

I've been working on lots of St. Patrick's Day goodies for my kids. I love the magic that goes along with St. Patrick's Day. I'm planning to spend a whole day celebrating and learning with leprechauns. All of these activities are aligned with Common Core, so you can feel really good about having fun while learning. Click on any of the pictures below to check the product out. I'm working on a St. Patrick's Social Studies freebie, and I hope to have that to you by tomorrow.

First, my very favorite St. Patrick's activity, The Case of the Missing Treasures. I love a good mystery. In this packet you get six mysteries for your students to solve using inferring skills. It includes a mini lesson on Evidence Based Terms. This would be perfect for test prep and helping students to answer open response test items.

Next is a charming little writing. I'm in love with this cute leprechaun writing. It includes a mini lesson, graphic organizer planning sheet, and adorable craftivity. Students use Lucky Charms cereal to replace words in their writing. This is one you will want to hang in the hallway.

Leprechaun Brew is my twist on Witches' Brew. We made Witches' Brew during our Halloween celebration, and I know they are going to love this just as much. This packet includes a math graphing activity, grammar activity, and cute picture book writing.

My students are becoming experts at working with factors, prime and composite numbers. One reason is the repeated practice I give them with these holiday factor products. In this one they will read a message left by a sneaky leprechaun and  try to find the hidden clovers and maybe even the lucky prime number. It also includes a math station games that my students have been having fun playing.

And here's one more little math activity for teaching line plots. Line plots are another math activity I try to pull in often for repeated practice. I'm confident my students will go to 5th grade with this concept fully mastered. In this activity students must create a line plot of leprechaun heights and solve a mystery.

Summer in the City Book Tour

Click HERE for a complete list of tour dates

I’m so excited to tell you about a new picture book, Summer  In the City by Kathleen Wainwright. But first I want to give you a little background on the author Kathleen. Kathleen is my blogging buddy. We started our blogs around the same time, and we hit it off immediately.  I consider her a dear friend, and I’m so honored to be asked to host one of the stops on the Virtual Book Tour. She is an amazing person with many accomplishments including being a National Board Certified teacher. I’m so proud of her latest accomplishment as a children’s book author.

Now to the book review. Summer in the City is a captivating picture book based on author Kathleen Wainwright’s childhood growing up in the city. She brings back memories of a simpler time before Wiis and IPhones. A time when kids had to invent their own entertainment. Kids and adults alike will be able to make text to self connections with this beloved picture book. The teaching possibilities for this book are endless.  Check out the book trailer. and I know you will fall in love with this book, just as I did.

You will recognize the name of the illustrator, Nancy Devard. She is the illustrator of the Coretta Scott King award winning book, The Secret Olivia Told.  Summer in the City is one of the most beautifully illustrated books I’ve seen in a long time. The illustrations will take your breath away.

There are two ways to purchase this book, and personally I want both. First, the hardback version which includes a pair of jacks and jump rope, when purchased directly from her site. Or the e-book version from TpT which includes a Teacher’s Reading Companion and Comprehension Kit. 

Kathleen is making it so easy for teachers to incorporate this book into their lesson plans.  And just for my readers she has made this great Bio Poem freebie. As a teacher herself, she knows what a teacher wants!

She is generously donating 10 copies of her book in a giveaway. To enter you need to like  the SITC Facebook page. You don’t want to miss out on this giveaway!

Kathleen is going to be Skyping with my class in a few weeks. I’m SO excited! My students don’t get many opportunities to meet real authors. If you order a minimum of 12 paperbacks, you too can have a free Skype visit with your class! Just visit her contact page to request information. 

Be sure to check out all the stops on the Virtual Book Tour. Most importantly you can preorder your copy of Summer In the City!  This book is must have for all teachers!

Tomorrow Rachel Reyna will be sharing a reading comprehension resource that she designed for Summer in the City. This is a test prep resource that can be used all year round.

Be sure to enter the giveaway for your chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Kathleen Wainwright is a dedicated teacher in the School District of Philadelphia. She received her bachelor’s of Science degree in education from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, and her master’s in education with a focus in literacy, from West Chester University, in West Chester, PA. Kathleen also teaches literacy courses to aspiring teachers at Temple University and developmental reading courses to incoming freshman at Delaware County Community College. “This story captures a typical summer’s day for me and my friends growing up in the 80’s! Every time I read it I travel back to some of my favorite childhood memories.” Kathleen recently earned National Board Certification in Literacy: Reading-Language Arts (Early and Middle Childhood). She enjoys sharing her personal teaching experiences and educational resources in her blog, The Diary of a Not So Wimpy Teacher (www.notsowimpyresources.com).

Teaching Figurative Language with Commercials

I don't think advertisement creators know what a blessing they are to teachers. I love the La Quinta and  GEICO commercials. This commercials are PERFECT for teaching figurative language. I've created a freebie for you to go along with the commercials. The Kicking Butt and Taking Note's commercial is not included in my printable because I teach 4th grade, and  the Boss Man would not let me use that one in the classroom. If you teach older students, use it as a model for how to complete the printable. I know the kids would find it hilarious. 

This is how I would use these in the classroom.
Day 1: Idioms
1. Discuss what an idiom is.
2. Write an example on the board. (Draw picture of the literal and write the actual meaning like in the printable.)
3. Show the commercials and have students complete the printable.
4. Go over the answers to the printable.

Day 2: Similes
1. Discuss what makes a smile.
2. Show several GEICO Happier Than commercials. (Will need to change it to Happy As)
3. Assign the Happy As Commercial Challenge
4. Let students share their commercials.

Don't have access to YouTube at school??? NO PROBLEM!!! Drum roll please...... The wonderful amazing Nicole from Teaching With Style has a fantastic tutorial for saving YouTube videos to your flashdrive. Click HERE for the tutorial and be sure to follow that gal because she has some great techie tips for you, and this one is super easy. Thanks Nicole! . I know your students are going to love these figurative language lessons! If your students need more help with figurative language, check out my Writing Aerobics a Yearlong Spiraling Figurative Language Writing Program. Boy, that's a mouth full, but this little gem will have your students begging for figurative language practice. It takes less than 5 minutes a day, and I play a game with it. The kids love it! Ive been using this for more than 5 years in my classroom, and it really works. If you want to grab a copy from my store, just click on the picture.

Let me know what your favorite lesson is for teaching figurative language! Good luck creating magic in your classroom!