I love using class call backs and attention grabbers! These are so fun! My class loves them! This freebie is a classroom staple!
A collections of ESL worksheets to teach directions / giving directions in English. Download and use in class today!
Basic vocabulary, like knowing prepositions, is necessary for beginning readers. Teach prepositions with this simple game.
Après avoir étudié le GN de manière générique, mes élèves abordent l’étude de l’adjectif en détail. A l’issue de ces séances, je souhaite qu’ils soient capables : de repérer…
This FREE parallel lines cut by a transversal coloring activity doubles as a colorful reference poster or student notebook reference. Now includes a link to an interactive GOOGLE Slides version for online learning and teaching.
Preschool and Kindergarten positional concepts such as
A person recounts her visit to London. There is a reading passage and some images to talk about. They have to answer the questions and discuss the images. Full key provided. - ESL worksheets
Are student rewards or your treasure box making you go broke? Not anymore! Check out this list of 50 absolutely free student rewards!
We all know and love Kahoot, right? If you do not know about Kahoot then we have a few blog posts with tips and ideas to get you up to sp...
Have you ever thought about using wordless videos in your speech therapy lessons? It increases engagement! Start with these videos...
5 key reasons to teach students to analyze differing perspectives
I use a variety of resources to help me in my journey towards a differentiated classroom, and I've had so many readers ask which resources I find most useful so I thought I would share a few of the things that have been helpful for me. I decided to separate this into two different posts. This post will focus on actual printed resources or guides that I use and later I will show you specific items and tools that I use in my class (including some items I wish I had but haven't acquired yet). Above all, resources that I feel have been most helpful to me are any and all publications by the Differentiated Instruction guru, Carol Ann Tomlinson. She is the queen of D.I. I'd LOVE to meet her someday but until then, I stalk her through her publications and books. My favorites are: This is a super easy read, tons of great 'get right to work' suggestions and ideas. Great resource guide for elementary specifically. Great read for those getting started. Knowing that instruction should focus on core principals, I also reference the following website quite a bit to keep up on the latest Common Core State Standards for Kindergarten. It's a great reference site for everything Common Core. A couple of guides that I have made up myself that help me greatly in my day-to-day planning are: Click on the picture above to get a copy of the explanation. And this template I use (not as much anymore more but quite a bit when I first started out) to remind me of the what process I should use for tiering. You can click on the form to get a copy for yourself. Another chart that I use quite often when I think about differentiating in response to learning profiles and intelligences is I put this in the front of my planner to remind me of all the intelligences I should be considering when planning learning centers and other activities. If you'd like a copy for yourself, just click on the picture above to download it. These are just a few references that I use regularly to keep me on the straight and narrow. If you have any great resources that you use, please drop me a comment. I'd love to hear from you. And come back and check out my favorite tools used for differentiating in the next couple of weeks.
Distinguising between when to use "a" versus "an". Labeling food. - ESL worksheets
Thousands of teachers have used these tried and true GUARANTEED tups to stop students from blurting out. Chatty Class? YOU NEED TO READ THIS!
This is the second part of a mini series about songs for teaching parts of speech. If you missed the first post about nouns and verbs, you can find it here. Click on any picture
We have already covered the use of definite and indefinite articles (a, an, the) in a previous post. Here is a great worksheet to practice a, an and the.
We have prepared a list of worksheets based on “Fill in the blanks with an appropriate preposition”. It contains 4 pages. It includes the key. You can download the PDF below, Download: Fill in the blanks with an appropriate preposition Worksheet
students have to read the text, identify the different parts in the house and correct the false sentences. - ESL worksheets
Describing people #nouns #words #people #adjectives #grammar #inglesfacil #learnenglish #inglés #ESO #ELT #profes https://t.co/Fjee9OrNf6
This is a fresh new worksheet for ESL learners on the present simple test focusing on using do,does,don't and doesn't. Most learners always get them mixed up, so hopefully this worksheet with help them use it correctly. - ESL worksheets
I have a new freebie set ready this week! This set has three puzzles all about bunnies! Not quite in time for Easter, but it's generic enough for any time of the year. One puzzle is a maze in which solvers have to help the mommy bunny gather up her baby bunnies from around the garden. Another puzzle teaches students about bunny related words while they find them in a word search. And the last puzzle challenges students to help a bunny across a river to find her pile of veggies! This puzzle is a new puzzle for me, and I'm excited about it! The solvers has to follow a pattern of shapes, hopping along each shape 'stepping stone', to get to the other side. My kids and I enjoyed doing these! (You can find more of these puzzles in my All About Shapes puzzle pack too!) All About Shapes is available in my TpT store for $4.00 and contains 20 puzzles for young solvers. These puzzles are geared towards kindergarteners and first graders, but pre-schoolers should be able to handle many of these puzzles with help from their parents. This pack contains 3 dot-to-dots, 3 river crossings, 3 mazes, 3 word searches, 4 coloring pages, 2 counting riddles, a sudoku, and a crossword! It's packed with fun ways to practice shape recognition and even learn some new shapes! You can download the Cub Corner or purchase All About Shapes at my TpT store! UPDATE: I no longer have the Cub Corner sets in my store. Just click on the picture to download. Also, the All About Shapes set has been retired, so you can download a free copy by clicking on that picture. Enjoy!
Have students write about and take pride in their culture! -tap into background knowledge -discuss aspects of culture -embrace each child's unique identity...
Modal Verbs : Revision on the Modal Verbs Label especially here and here Read: Modal Verbs Mind Map Modals in songs Complet...
The kids and I have been talking about words with ing added on the end. My youngest has just started coming across these words in his reading and his big sister was showing him how to break the wo…
On A Peach for the Teach on Facebook, I invited people to ask their most challenging behavior questions. We got some great questions, each of which really tied together. Dona asked, I have a student that comes to me from second grade (I teach 1st) for my entire reading block, who likes to shout out talk back and just shuts down when you ask him to do something. He then treats his 2nd teacher with severe disrespect when he goes back to class. Rebecca asked, I have a class of 25 this year. 1 student is below K level (I teach 1st grade), 2 are identified as ADHD, we are working towards another student getting identified as ADHD, and I have 2 students who have really disrespectful attitudes. I have tried talking with parents, I have changed their seating, I have tried encouraging them and pointing out the positive......nothing seems to be working. Ideas? Lindsay asked, I need motivation tips for kids who can do the work but basically refuse to... These are such common issues that teachers face daily. I think they all tie together and have similar interventions, which led me to write this blog post-- How to Help Calling Out and "Class Clown" Behavior. "If you put a kid in the position of choosing between looking bad or looking dumb, he will choose to look bad." - Rick Lavoie, Motivation Breakthrough When a student is performing at a level lower than his peers, he is often aware of that. That could be part of the reason for the acting out. Maybe the child is embarrassed and would rather be seen as a class clown than struggling. It allows the child a sense of control over a situation where he would otherwise feel out of control. Try giving him some control in a positive way. To intervene, start with an informal play meeting. Meet with the student individually when he is calm, to play a preferred, non-academic game at the beginning or end of the day. He may be more likely to open up honestly in that type of setting through informal conversations (e.g., favorite TV shows, games, etc.). Casually ask what he likes and doesn't like about school, and "admit" to him that you always had a hard time with [insert his least preferred subject]. Try not to make it obvious that this is the whole point of your conversation. He might give you some insight into what's causing this. It's also great for establishing rapport, which will help you to get the student on your side. Give him some sort of task with which he can be successful, and give him positive attention for completing it. Avoid patronizing him or making it obviously at a level lower than the other students. Instead, try non-academic leadership positions, like a class helper, teacher's assistant, etc. Maybe give him the opportunity to call on students with questions. "Class, today we are going to try something new." Next, set limits. Start by telling the whole class that today we are going to try something new. Starting today, the teacher will no longer answer any calling out. Explain that we need to practice raising our hands and not calling out. Demonstrate, practice, and ask for volunteers to show you what hand raising looks like. Establish a non-verbal cue (e.g., a cue card with an image of a hand, or simply hold up your hand), and completely ignore calling out. Instruct the class to also ignore calling out. Have students practice calling out while you ignore it. Explain why you're doing this, so the student knows it's not just him being ignored. Ignore the behavior, not the child. You might want to give one verbal cue, such as, "I'd be happy to answer you when you raise your hand." This is your new procedure that will happen every single time a student calls out. You could still say it in a positive tone of voice, but it's all you will say. Give a Little, Get a Little Use positive language to elicit positive language. If a student is using disrespectful language, being threatening will teach the child to talk back with threatening language. Think about your reaction when somebody confronts you with doing something wrong. You initially feel a little attacked, so you want to react. Give the student the opportunity to save face. For example, instead of, "How dare you speak to me that way?" try a, "Whoops, that sounded disrespectful. I know you could ask me using nicer words," and only respond when he uses nicer words. If he doesn't, say, "I'll be over here when you're ready to use nice words to ask me." Dodge the Power Struggle To nip disrespect in the bud, we need to avoid power struggles-- even when a student questions what we're doing. That's the part that really tricks even the most skilled behavior interventionists. We want students to believe in, trust, and respect us. When they question what we're doing, we want to tell them. Please don't. You don't need to justify yourself in this moment. You may be skilled with planned ignoring, but when the child asks, "Why are you ignoring me?" it's too tempting to reply with an explanation, but resist the urge. If you planned and practiced this procedure previously, the child already knows why you're ignoring him. He may try to get you to give him anything other than the ignoring. Stick to the ignoring, and he will eventually try using nice words to get you to reply. It may also be helpful to teach a lesson on the words "disrespect" vs. "respect." Teach the meaning, and explain situations and words that are unacceptable. Teach this with empathy, and practice it. If the child uses negative language in class, prompt with a, "Please use your nice words if you need me to respond to you." Completely ignore anything else. I know that using a firm prompt followed by planned ignoring sometimes feels like you aren't doing anything to stop the behavior, but that's the best thing about it-- doing "nothing" stops the behavior. It completely eliminates the power struggle and argument. The child will be forced to use kind words to get any type of reaction out of you and to gain access to his wants/needs. This also works with whining. I told my little ones that my ears can no longer hear whining, and they all stopped whining. Now if only I could use planned ignoring on messes to make my kitchen clean itself! Words of Caution Sometimes when implementing planned ignoring, the child may initially test the limits and engage in more attention-seeking behavior. This is typical and should pass when he sees that he won't get a reaction. I got a comment on this post that really made me think and add another word of caution about this strategy-- exercise caution when using this for students with bonding and/or attachment needs. We certainly do not want to intensify feelings of abandonment, and we want to be sure that we are responding to their needs. It is vitally important to make sure that we are ignoring the behavior, not the child. Give the child plenty of positive attention for positive behavior. Make giving positive attention during appropriate behavior part of your behavior protocol for this child. When the negative behavior ends and the child begins acting positively, give positive attention. No need for a lecture at that moment. After the Procedure is Learned Once you are sure that the student understands how he will appropriately gain access to wants/needs, you can begin to address the calling out caused by impulsivity and habit. Make a T-chart, and write the positive behavior on the left and negative on the right (e.g., "Called Out" and "Raised My Hand"). Instruct the student to tally when he does each. This alone is often enough to curb the negative behavior. Other times with more severe behavior, it helps if tallies are tied to reinforcement. For example, the student can earn [something preferred] if he has more positive than negative tallies at the end of each block. You could also set goals based on baselines. For example, if the student reduces his calling out by ___% or does not exceed ___% incidents of calling out, he can earn [something preferred]. Class Dojo is another fun way to track this! The teacher can track the behaviors throughout the day, or the students can self-monitor behaviors on their T-Charts and plug them into the Dojo at the end of the day. Establish a procedure that students must earn more green (i.e., "positive") than red (i.e., "needs work"), or a certain percentage of green, in order to earn a reinforcer, positive note home, etc. Another helpful strategy is bonus free time. It's often harder for a student with ADHD and/or behavior needs to attend to instruction for a given length of time, so plan three breaks in the day. I call them "five minute free time" to play with something fun, and I end each of my subjects with it. It gives me five minutes to clean up or correct work, and it gives the students five minutes to regroup. If you're strapped for time, you could have students complete exit tickets, assessments, etc., and give the student with ADHD the special free time. It also gives him something to word toward, as he has to earn the free time. If a student engages in negative behavior or work refusal, I ask if he is earning his free time or if he is to make up his work during free time. Never underestimate the power of a question instead of a demand. A simple, "Are you earning your free time?" is often enough to set the behavior back on track. An additional motivational tool is a task chart where students rank their tasks by preference. They earn little reinforcement for easy/preferred tasks and high reinforcement for non-preferred tasks. You can download that chart for free here. What are some ideas you use in your classroom to help calling out and "class clown" behavior? Do you have any questions about behavior challenges? Please share in the comments below! A Peach for the Teach
It amazes me how much class size affects my teaching and my students. I started the year with 31 students. I just lost my second one at the beginning of this week, so I'm down to 29. I've had 2 kids out all week on long vacations and 2 more out sick. So I've had a class of 25 ALL week!! It's been a big difference. Even though the ones gone are little angels and I still have all the hard ones, it really makes a BIG difference!! Our district and researchers keep telling us that class size doesn't make a difference but I have to beg to differ with them. It makes a HUGE difference in first grade. With a smaller class I can spread myself out more- work with more kids, more often, for longer periods of time. We can get more done- 25 kids take less time to finish an assignment than 31. With all the activities we do in first grade through out the day it can really add up. With less kids, fighting for my attention, I can give more attention to those that really need it. During class discussions, there is more participation by more kids. The shyer kids start to open up. It just feels more like a close knit community rather than a big city. I can hardly imagine what it would be like to teach less than 20. What a dream!! Back to reality. Our school has been doing training in SIOP this year. It stands for Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol. You can find out more HERE. It actually is training in teaching English Language Learner but our school does not have a very high percentage of ELLs. We actually have only 3 out of 180 in our grade level. But the SIOP model is really best practices and a great review in how to teach better. With the new common core our principal thought is would be a great help. We've had to do lesson studies and just finished one yesterday. Our team did ours on Synonyms. It's great to collaborate and work together as a team developing and analyzing a lesson. Here's a practice page we used and a cute song we found. I don't know who to give credit for the song but our kiddos really liked it. Click HERE if you'd like to grab a copy. Hey, believe it or not but it's FRIDAY tomorrow- again! Gotta love FRIDAY! I hope you all have a GREAT one.
Do you have parents of students in your classroom asking, "How can I help my child?" I will be sending these printables home at the beginning of the school year. Head on over to my blog to find out how you can downloaded these for FREE!
Back to School is right around the corner for us and I am SUPER excited to kick of this school year with some fun, hands-on and engaging resources for The
Sometimes it feels crazy overwhelming to keep assessing students and know exactly what they do/don’t understand. That’s where these quick and easy formative assessment ideas comes in! M…
Your new favorite teaching strategy: This pared-down version of learning stations keeps the movement, interactivity and variety while minimizing the prep work.
A behavior notebook is a whole-class management technique for recording classroom misbehavior that integrates student reflection & ownership. It can quickly be implemented with any existing rules and discipline plan, and is used as an alternative to other methods such as a clip chart, card system, or writing names on the board. Each student …
