If your third or fourth grader is starting to think about taking up a musical instrument, help him get the basics of reading notes with this handy sheet!
Are you looking for the most effective way to teach children to read? This analogy will change the way you think about teaching phonics - for good!
How to Avoid the Summer Slide! Summer is right around the corner! We all LOVE our summer vacation, but not the "Summer Slide!" The Summer Review Packets
I have always been intrigued by the art of Sashiko, but I have never had a chance to learn more about it. This article from Koekoek was just what I was looking for. It is a nice introduction to th…
I have always assigned nightly reading. Why? I don't assign nightly reading because I want to give students "reading homework." I don't assign nightly reading
Download this FREE Help Your Child Learn to Read reading tips brochure for your students' parents to support their child in learning to read.
One of my students’ favorite activities when I used to be a classroom teacher was Write the Room. With sick kiddos at home, I created a Write the Room Rhyming Words Activity for my preschooler just this week. She loved it! {Be sure to download BOTH Write the Room activity packs. I created one more ... Read More about Write the Room Rhyming Words
Theories are nice to read about, but we all need to have real-life examples of just how things work, don't we? (I know I sure do!) So, how 'bout hearing how we've done things at our house? Here is an example of a relaxed homeschool schedule (although I prefer the word "routine").
Here's how to make a Kindle wallpaper. It's not as straightforward as it should be, but hey, we can get the job done. Just follow the steps!
I can't even believe May is almost here…. time flies in the spring! This might just be my favorite time of year to teach kindergarten.
If you are thinking of starting an Etsy shop, read this first. I'm going to tell you the biggest reason I advise against starting one.
Helping your kids learn to read isn't difficult, expensive or scary. Read on to find out how i've taught my five kids to read. Includes resource links!
Looking for service projects ideas for your group, your family or yourself. I've compiled a list of 60 ideas. Check them out!
Reading novels is a staple in every level in our World Language department. Below are two new approaches I used with reading a novel. 1. Connecting to the character in the story. This year is the first time my students are reading the TPRS Publishing novel, Frida Kahlo, by Kristy Placido. Before we started reading, I gave them the paper below. They read the statements and responded to the scenarios on another paper that had 15 blank squares. The students did NOT know that these statements were events that happened in Frida Kahlo's life or were similar experiences (such as #9 & #10), that we were soon going to read in the novel. I created similar events (#9 & #10) in order to provide examples that are plausible for my students. (Ex: Frida called Diego out on his relationship with an art model when he was painting at her school. The possibility of our school commissioning an artist to paint a mural on our school wall is very unlikely so my example is the student's boss, who is married, has a romantic relationship with another person.) After each chapter that mentioned one, or more, of the examples in the chart, we discussed the students' answers and compared them to Frida Kahlo's actions. If what the student had written was similar to Frida's actions, they circled the square. If it was different than Frida's actions, they drew a bold "X" over the square. After discussing all 15 examples, we were quickly able to identify which students could relate to events in Frida's life. 2. Checking comprehension with Higher Order Thinking There are (a few) times that I assign homework for my students to read a chapter or two from the novel we are reading together in class. A twist on checking their comprehension of the chapter (and also to see if they read the chapter), is to give them the 4-1-1 Comprehension Check. To create a 4-1-1 Comprehension Check, you will need to choose 4 sentences from the chapter(s) that the students read for homework (or that they read in class). Then add a sentence of something that DIDN'T happen in the text, but is something that could have happened. Write another sentence of something that DIDN'T happen and IS NOT a logical option of what could have happened in the chapter. 4-1-1 Comprehension Check - ch6 of Frida Kahlo Type the sentences in random order. The students have to find the 4 sentences with information that occurred in the text they read. (If they are sentences with a clear chronological order, ask students to put them in order.) For the remaining two sentences, students determine which one didn't happen but could have, and which sentence is not a logical choice of a possible event in the book and then they must DEFEND their reason for their choices with information in that particular chapter or previous chapters. The above example is from chapter 6 of "Frida Kahlo". The two sentences that are NOT from the novel are B and E. The book does not mention that Frida told her sister about the rats, but since Frida was closest to her younger sister and they spent a lot of time together, it would be a logical possibility that Frida would tell her sister about the rats. The sentence that is not a logical possibility is E because if students read the chapter they know that Frida was hiding the rats from her mother. Frida would not want to give the rats to her mother as a gift because her mother would not agree to permit Frida to continue caring for them. Another chapter in Frida Kahlo that is perfect for a 4-1-1 Comprehension Check is chapter 7 that lists the mischievous acts of Frida and her friends at la Escuela Nacional Preparatoria. This 4-1-1 Comprehension Check is beneficial in that students have to separate fact from fiction. If they read the chapter and understood what they were reading, it should be a fairly simple task for them to find the two sentences that are not from the text. The higher order thinking skills are needed to determine which sentence is/is not a possibility, and then defend the answer using information already known about the character or the plot. The 4-1-1 Comprehension Check can be used as a formative or summative assessment.
Passion projects have changed my relationships with my students forever.
As students head back to school, ELA teachers everywhere are considering how they are going to begin the school year, so I wanted to walk you through one of my favorite lesson plans entitled, “Why do we read?” As an educator, there are few things as exciting and rewarding as introducing a young person to […]
Hi everyone! I don’t know about you, but I love to read! Ever since I was little, I have always had a book in hand. I recently got a new kindle for my birthday because I had the original one …
If you're a therapist, here are the books every counsellor in private practice should read about both business and mindset.
How to sell your art and make a living from it. I'm excited to share with you some key insights and tips that I've learned along the way. By the end of this post, you'll have a better understanding for: Art Market, Building Your Brand as an Artist, Pricing Your Art, Selling Your Art Online, Working with Art Galleries
These FREE Printables and Unit Studies for Eric Carle's Books will help you expand on what your kids are learning through these beloved books.
25 suggestions of items you likely have in your home that are easy to declutter today and make your home feel more minimal!
This is a fun way to practice Cause and Effect! Students can learn about this relationship with this free, printable worksheet.
After I bought Marie Kondo's book, I was surprised by some of the things her decluttering list. This post simplifies the list and has a free printable I can use at home!
These FREE Math Folders for K-5 learners are jam-packed FULL of helpful resources to help your struggling learners. Wow! When we think of math and literacy, we think of them as two separate things. I mean numbers are numbers and letters are letters. Right? Well, sort of… This is subscriber freebie. Not a subscriber? Subscribe HERE. ... Read More about Free Math Folders for K-5 Learners
These three icebreakers for teens will make the first class, youth group, or club fun for everyone, even the introverts.
Learn how to start a blog in 2024! Our step-by-step guide covers everything from choosing a niche, setting up hosting, writing your first post, to launching your blog.
I'm proof that you don't necessarily need meds to lower your cholesterol. Find out how I lowered my cholesterol 50 points NATURALLY!
LEARN TO WRITE YOUR NAME It is so exciting when children become curious about how to write their name. I believe teaching them to write their name should be the first word they learn how to spell . It is personal, concrete and helps them realize that putting letters together in writing has me
I really dislike icebreakers. They make me cringe. When I became a teacher, I swore I would spare my students the torture of icebreakers. That being said, I also realize how important it is to buil…
Picking books kids can't put down can be time consuming. Print this list of FUN TO READ printable 4th grade reading list!
While all of our students don’t need ALL of these strategies, I’ve organized a lot of the things mentioned in this series of blog posts into six big categories. I hope that they’ll help you wrap your mind around SIMPLE things that you can do to help your students with some of their biggest learning obstacles in math. Place Holders & Trackers For many of our students, keeping track of their place is HARD. However, I love to have a few tools handy to help them keep track of where they are and what they’re doing. Bingo Markers Desk Pets…
This activity is heavily scaffolded for beginners. Students orally create the word bank and sentences, but I write the words and sentences on the board using
This post breaks down how I teach reading in 5th grade and how my reading block is structured, including the materials needed.
A monthly reset is a chance to start over and give yourself a new focus for the new month. Here are 10 tasks for a successful monthly reset!
