This year will bring about a BIG change for me! I've always been in a self-contained classroom-- until now! I took up a new position this year, and it just happens to be in a departmentalized 3rd grade! There will be 3 of us: Math, Reading, and Science/Social Studies. I decided I better do some quality research-- and go right to other teachers who have been in my shoes! After asking for tips on the All About 3rd Grade Facebook group-- I've come up with a list of my favorite ideas! 1) Assign a color to each group-- and use those colors religiously. So, I will be teaching math, and I purchased a rolling cart, 3 dish buckets from Walmart, and 3 rolls of duct tape. I labeled each bucket with teacher names and used different colors: Navy, teal, and green (I was trying to stay in my classroom theme colors) Also, when I label things for the students (like interactive notebooks), I can quickly put duct tape on the spine and recognize the class color! The students will keep their math notebooks in my room (less traveling = less headache) 2) What if the rotation is super long (90 min)? Keep this in mind: "Make sure you take breaks to get the kids up and moving. We do random dancing. Sometimes we dance going to get our supplies for the following subject" (Katie Elliott) 3) Stay in touch with your teammates all day, every day. Before you begin-- be sure you've talked about the following: How will we discipline? How will we contact parents? What is everyone's routines for cleaning up or rotating? How can we track behavior? What are everyone's classroom rules? Should they be similar? How will students keep track of their materials? What materials should they bring EVERY day? What materials will stay behind? How will we track unfinished work or missing assignments? Will we give homework? 4) Students aren't always the most responsible (say what?) until we teach them to be more mindful-- and many things can be lost in the shuffle between room. Geneva Pemberton recommends, "The less they carry to each class the better it is. Try to store things in the room where they will use them." 5) But how will I know what's happening in other classrooms? I know-- as teachers we hardly get breaks to just talk to each other see how the day is going. Oftentimes I won't see a fellow teacher until the end of the day! I LOVE this idea from Shelly Parker-Finch! "We pass a clip board around with the 3 classes where we write missing homework, bathroom breaks, behavior problems, etc. That way the next teacher/homeroom teacher has an idea of what is going on with each student. Also works as a record for parents to see how many times someone had a missing assignment or behavior." I thought this was such a great idea-- I have this on my TPT page for you to use! I recommend typing student names (instead of writing them every day) and then making several copies of the finished logs for the month (copy them in your class color-- of course!) so you can be ready to go every day! I plan to copy mine on blue and put on a clipboard-- then I'll make sure my "teacher helper" carries it from class to class for me! 6) This last one is very important (in fact, I think every teacher needs to remember this) and comes from Robbie Ann, "Remember they are 'our kids', not 'yours and mine' ". If you have any advice I've missed-- please share in the comments below! I hope you have a great school year!
They are doing it! My kids are actually doing daily five and really enjoying it. My grade level partners and I tried this a few years back, but honestly we
Thanks for all of your sweet comments about my last post! I made most of my geometry unit on my own. I will definitely be sharing some of the things, but I am thinking of finally taking the plunge …
Math Properties Anchor Chart! Teach students about the commutative, associative, distributive and identity properties this this anchor chart!
Get everything you need to make your habitats and organisms unit come alive! Games, videos and more!
Using highlighted paper is one strategy our Occupational Therapists recommend to improve student handwriting. The use of highlighted paper helps students with letter-size differentiation (making tall letters tall, small letters small). You can purchase highlighted paper commerically; however, we haven’t been able to find highlighted paper designed specifically for spelling tests. I created this file ... Read More about Highlighted Spelling Paper
So, you're a new 5th grade teacher... Are you overwhelmed? Excited? Terrified? Maybe you're all of these things! It is my hope that after reading this blog post, you will feel prepared and confident to meet your new
A poster to display as you use Plickers in your classroom.
Kids spend most of their waking hours at school- and we strive to make it a welcoming, encouraging place. However, the most overlooked space in a school is the bathrooms! Yes, that's right, the bathrooms! With this listing you will receive one vinyl decal quote of your choice. There are two size options. Size: Small: 20 inches wide x 13 inches tall Large: 31 inches wide x 20 inches tall ***"Be the best" is an exception since it is a vertical design. It is: Small: 13 inches wide x 20 inches tall Large: 20 inches wide x 31 inches tall The small size is great for the regular bathroom stalls and the large fit great on the handicapped stalls. You also will be given the option to add on a multipack of colored dots to decorate around the quote. The set of dots includes 8 dots - one of each color (as shown on photos). These vinyl decals can be applied directly to your clean door or mirror. These are made using a durable, yet removable (but not reusable) vinyl. With proper care, it is very durable and will last a long time without fading or discoloring. ***CUSTOM ORDERS WILL EXTEND THE SHIP BY DATE ONCE A CONVERSATION HAS OCCURRED BETWEEN THE SELLER AND CUSTOMER.***
When you and someone else don't agree, here are some things you can do to work it out. Spanish Version Included with Download (pg. 2)!
Use these colorful punch cards to motivate students to complete tasks, demonstrate good behavior, and achieve goals. When all of the punches are complete reward their accomplishment with a special treat! 60 per pack.
Why does the author write? To inform, entertain, or persuade. Students will be able to show that they understand why an author writes by choosing persuade, inform, or entertain for a short reading selection. ...
Display these posters in your room to teach students about the Writing Process and keep track of where your writers are up to!Simply print, laminate and hang! *UPDATE* The Writing Process Posters now come in 2 versions.Have a question? Use the Product Q & A or email me at [email protected]...
Have a geoboard, but not sure how to use it? Learn great ideas for hands on math exploration + grab a free set of geoboard activity cards in this post!
What does the research tell us about best practices in teaching vocabulary?
Morning Meaning is morning meeting meets character education! It's the perfect low-maintenance resource to help you sneak character education into your daily routine :) This month of Morning Meaning focuses on perseverance. Each day of the week has one small task so it's quick and easy to implement. The goal is to sneak character education into your routine in just 5-10 minutes per day. Mondays: Analyze the quote of the week Tuesdays: Set and discuss perseverance goals for the week Wednesdays: Cooperative learning activity Thursdays: Discussion Fridays: Shout-outs The interactive bulletin board is the focus of the month. Teachers will change out the mantras daily, weekly or even just once per month. Students will fill out character shout-out slips to recognize their classmates' perseverance, and one student who exemplified perseverance each week will take home the quote of the week on Friday. The Morning Meaning slides are meant to be a backdrop to student-led conversations. They are minimal with purpose and can be easily personalized for your class. Included in this resource: - An interactive bulletin board (monthly character trait - perseverance and grit included, definition, interchangeable mantras, shout-out slips and pockets and 4 quotes of the week) - 4 weeks of Morning Meaning slides, one for each day of the week. - Editable slide templates - Instructions for each day to help you implement Morning Meaning easily - Read aloud suggestions Use the slides and bulletin board alone or together to help you make this resource your own! Need more character education? Check out my kindness, empathy, friendship and teamwork units! More Morning Meaning units coming soon! Want to find out more? Check out my saved story in my highlights on Instagram @cootiesandcuties.
Another anchor chart! This one is inspired by another pin I found on (you guessed it), Pinterest. I love including transition words, bec...
Plan these simple and fun Paper bag STEM challenges for kids! Easy STEM activities that use what's around to encourage invention and design.
Source : http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eixtu_N6NuY/UEoUB1lDvAI/AAAAAAAACY8/3dIXSuP_72I/s1600/bloomwheel3.gif As we were preparing for the 3 Way conference, some of the students realised they needed to deepen their thinking and practice using the unit vocabulary a little bit more. I came across Peter Sanderson 's idea on twitter and loved it. And so did the kids. Next time we will use the Wheel to bring variety to our tasks. Watch the students learn through play! Game board 1 Game board 2 Game board 3 Game board 4 Try it out. Click on this link and make a copy of it and let your student's come up with their own tasks.
Check out these strong narrative writing anchor charts. From introductions to conclusions, these 6 anchor charts will engage your students.
Discover the importance of bedtime reading and why you should make it a part of your kid’s routine.
Do you need an effective behavior management plan? I recently posted on my blog about how to create a behavior management plan with measurable goals and progress monitoring forms. I also share an I-Message template that can be used in your class to help de-escalate student conflicts and promote positive social interaction. Check out this post for some great free forms! Read this blog post! Don't forget to follow to stay updated with great classroom resources! Enjoy!
This post breaks down how I teach reading in 5th grade and how my reading block is structured, including the materials needed.
Steal these for your writing unit!
Help your students master identifying the author's purpose with these fun and interactive Author's Purpose Activities for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-grade students. Students will determine if the author is trying to Persuade, Inform or Entertain by reading the short passage on the task card. These Author's Purpose task cards are perfect for a whole class game of Scoot, a small group activity, a partner or an independent center activity. Also included in this resource is a cut and paste author's purpose worksheet for review or reinforcement. Engage students with these interactive activities instead of another reading passage or just more author's purpose worksheets. Your students will love working on identifying the author's purpose with these fun and engaging author's purpose activities. Get the Author's Purpose Bundle here>>> AUTHOR'S PURPOSE BUNDLE Author's Purpose Task Card Activities includes: 12 Author's Purpose Task Cards Student Response Sheet Answer Key Cut and Paste Author's Purpose Worksheet See What Teachers Are Saying: This was a fun hands-on visual activity that allowed students to think about the author's purpose. It was also a great and quick way to assess student understanding of the author's purpose. My students were struggling with Author's Purpose and this resource made it so easy for them to understand the concept. Students were engaged and loved the activities. This helped students determine the author's purpose. I always prefer interactive activities and this was so helpful! More Fun and Engaging Author's Purpose Activities: AUTHOR'S PURPOSE AUTHOR'S PURPOSE (THANKSGIVING) AUTHOR'S PURPOSE (CHRISTMAS) AUTHOR'S PURPOSE (WINTER) AUTHOR'S PURPOSE (FEBRUARY) ⭐ LET’S GET CONNECTED! ⭐ TEACHING SECOND GRADE BLOG TEACHING SECOND GRADE FACEBOOK TEACHING SECOND GRADE PINTEREST TEACHING SECOND GRADE INSTAGRAM HOW TO GET CREDIT TOWARDS FUTURE PURCHASES! Go to your My Purchases page. Next to each purchase, you will see a "Provide Feedback" button. Click on that button and it will take you to a page where you can leave a rating and a comment about the product. Every time you provide feedback, you will earn TPT credits. These can be applied to future purchases to save you money! Yay! FOLLOW MY TPT STORE Click the green star beside my name at the top of this page or Click Here. By doing this, you will see when I add a new product or have upcoming sales! >>> TERMS OF USE <<< All rights reserved. Purchase of this item entitles only the purchaser the right to reproduce the pages for classroom use only. Duplication for an entire school (system) or commercial purposes is strictly forbidden without written permission from the author. Copying any part of this product and placing it on the internet, in any form (not even on a personal / classroom website) is strictly forbidden. This is a violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright ACT or DMCA. These items can and will be traced back to the publishing site.
Ikea has something for everyone, and teachers are no exception!
Are you looking for ways to help your students revise their narrative essay? This post is one of several mini lessons on using the acronym D.A.R.E. (Delete, Add, Rearrange, Exchange) to revise and will focus on the A- ADD more details and ADD transition words in narrative writing. It
We are starting to use the CHAMPS behavior system in our district. I put this PDF together so I could have a quick reference for myself about the different situations. I also have printables in my shop that I have printed out and made a large section of my wall so students can see it easily and I ca...
