Check out these related Units: Summary and Reflection Writing Mini Unit Persuasive Writing Mini Unit Report Writing Mini Unit Narrative Writing Mini Unit This is a mini recount writing unit. It begins with a diagnostic worksheet that accounts for what students know about recount writing before commencing the unit. It has three sample recounts. After each sample there is either a follow up worksheet that encourages students to dissect what they have read or a "teacher's notes" sheet that points out important information about the recount they have just read. The final activity prompts students to write their own recount. ** Remember ** You can earn Tpt Credits and save money on future purchases by returning to my store to rate this product! Furthermore, your rating and feedback will help me to continue to create products that suit yours and other teachers’ needs.

Hey, guys! We’ve been having some major fun with factor rainbows this past week! I love using factor rainbows because they really help students not miss any of the factors for a number which often happens if they only try to list factor pairs for a number. Here’s a worksheet freebie in English and Spanish …

**This product is based on the 2007 Ontario Science Curriculum** Before buying this unit, consider saving money and buying it as part of a bundle: Grade 8 Science Worksheet Bundle This product is meant to get students thinking about the fundamental questions that are at the heart of the grade 8 science unit “Fluids.” This product focuses on the following topics: Characteristics of Fluids Characteristics and Forms of Matter Viscosity Buoyancy Compressibility of Fluids Controlling Fluids Fluids, Society & The Environment This product includes: 7 informative articles 7 follow up worksheets 1 Test 2 investigations 1 Project Description and Rubric Answer Keys The product can be used by students independently as an inquiry based unit, or it can be teacher guided, or a combination of the two strategies may be used. Either way, students will be provided with the main questions that they need to answer in order to understand all of the important concepts within this grade 8 science strand. This worksheet booklet is to be used in conjunction with your current textbook provided by your school. Related Units: Cells Systems in Action Water Systems Related Videos: Hydraulic & Pneumatic Systems Video ** Remember ** You can earn Tpt Credits and save money on future purchases by returning to my store to rate this product! Furthermore, your rating and feedback will help me to continue to create products that suit yours and other teachers’ needs.

Check out these related units: Persuasive Writing Mini Unit Summary and Reflection Writing Mini Unit Report Writing Mini Unit Narrative Writing Mini Unit This is a unit that teaches and provides opportunities and examples for students to learn two very important skills: summarizing and reflecting on texts. It starts with a diagnostic worksheet that accounts for where students are at with their knowledge of summarizing and reflecting. A story is then summarized and reflected on and there are notes that point out what a successful summary and reflection contain. The unit ends with an opportunity for students to summarize and reflect on a narrative story. ** Remember ** You can earn Tpt Credits and save money on future purchases by returning to my store to rate this product! Furthermore, your rating and feedback will help me to continue to create products that suit yours and other teachers’ needs.

Before buying this product, consider buying it as part of a bundle: Grade 7 Canadian History Powerpoints: New France, British North America This powerpoint gives a great overview of the key concepts relating to New France. It aligns with the Ontario Grade 7 History Curriculum - NEW FRANCE AND BRITISH NORTH AMERICA, 1713–1800. It can be used at the beginning or end of your unit as an introduction to the unit or a review OR BOTH! The powerpoint includes information on the following: 1. Jacque Cartier 2. Samuel de Champlain 3. Life in New France 4. Seigneurial System 5. Missionaries 6. St. Marie Among the Hurons 7. The Roman Catholic Church 8. French and Aboriginal Relations 9. New France System of Government 10. The Seven Years War 11. Treaty of Paris and Quebec Act Related Products: British North America Powerpoint ** Remember ** You can earn Tpt Credits and save money on future purchases by returning to my store to rate this product! Furthermore, your rating and feedback will help me to continue to create products that suit yours and other teachers’ needs.

How Did This Happen? Never thought I’d append “wiki” to a post, but here we are. Here, approaching the dead center of August, I’m getting Google hits along the lines of R…

Hey guys! How is your Saturday? For most, it is the first weekend off since the holiday break! I hope you are using it to rest rest rest! I...

OK. I was mildly obsessed over meeting Mr Slope Guy for the first time. I was observing two novice teachers, and they were using Mr Slope Guy as a mnemonic for students in analyzing slope. But I think he could be fated for bigger and better adventures. Since my son Xavier is a budding comic book artist, we put together the following (PDF of the whole comic), with some inking support from Ysabela. The problem was whether MSG was a hero or villain, and he wound up needing to be defeated. He is a personification of algebra. Be interested in your feedback. Only one more thing to say: Marvel, please don't sue! Spider-man is a wholly owned trademark of Marvel, created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, and starring in a major motion picture this summer.

I was observing a little guy in preschool who had just entered school the other day. He was still working on basic skills like following directions and had limited things that he could do to engage himself independently. The teacher was working on having him do a simple put-in task of putting cards in a coffee can, but because his skills were so limited, he was completing this task repeatedly throughout his day. This wasn't the only thing he was doing and there was time in the day when he was working on discrete trials for learning readiness skills, learning to wait his turn, and working on communication through a number of activities in his day. However, one way that he was working on communicating was to use the coffee can task, that he seemed to enjoy, to have him request the cards to put in from other students. That got me thinking about one of my pet subjects over the years--creating put-in tasks that are age-appropriate and have some variety for learners who are just starting to gain other skills. These are typically the types of tasks that we start work systems with because they are easy for students to do independently. You can see from the picture a variety of types of tasks and materials you can use. I particularly like the seasonal tasks like the jack-o-lanterns that the students is putting in for 1-1 correspondence (a little more advance than just putting in).

I never would have thought I would be tracking data digitally, I am really not that savvy when it comes to tech, however, when someone pointed out how easy it was, I had to try it. You guys, its sooo much easier than my typical paper and pencil tracking system. I had data sheets EVERYWHERE!! […]

4-5 Step Sequencing!! These Sequencing Mats are a fun way to practice sequencing 4 and 5-step tasks and they target numerous skills. Plus, you'll love the organization...no more missing or little pieces to keep track of! There are a total of 12 mats; four 4-step sequencing and eight 5-step sequencing. Each mat includes step-by-step sentences that use transitional words to help students sequence the events. These mats provide students practice with transitional words, sequencing, how-to tasks, following directions, life skills, and language skills. You will velcro the corresponding pictures to the first row on the mat, out of order, and then students will move them down to place them in the correct order on the second row. This allows all of the pieces to be stored right on each mat, making organization a breeze!! These mats include: Beth washes the dog Let's make a sundae Lin bakes a cake Ted stays dry Kate makes a sandwich Tom paints a sun Jane needs to clean Let's build a snowman Let's plant a flower Jon eats an apple Time to cut and glue Tina brushes her teeth THIS RESOURCE IS ALSO AVAILABLE IN A DIGITAL BOOM CARDS SET HERE. Check out all of my other sequencing mat sets HERE! Be sure to follow me HERE and on Instagram @thebenderbunch to be the first to know about new resources! :)

A thorough look at how Zeezok Music Appreciation Curriculum teaches many subjects at once, as well as fun tips for using it to explore math through music.

Getting students to think flexibly can be hard in both understanding and practicing the skill. Incorporating some fun games like...

As part of our twilight INSET programme this year I am delivering a CPD session on marking. It’s a great opportunity to bring together lots of ideas from lots of superb bloggers, teachers and…

Hi guys! Today I'm sharing my subtraction lesson plans & activities from this year. I hope this can give you some ideas for planning your subtraction unit! Day 1: On the first day we introduce the word "subtraction" and define it as "when you take away from a number and get a smaller number". I also introduce these 2 subtraction sentences: ___ take away ___ is ___ & ___ - ___ = ___ Then we watched the "5 Little Monkeys" video on BusSongs.com: and we practiced the ___ take away ___ is ___ subtraction sentence by acting the song out and writing a subtraction sentence as we sang and acted out the song. I had the kids sit on the edge of the carpet and laid down a mat to act as out bed. Then I chose 5 kids to wear these number necklaces and stand on the mat. We sang the song and the kids acted it out by jumping on the "bed". At "one fell off and bumped his head" the kids hopped off the "bed" and just lightly tapped their head with their hands. Then they went and sat back in their original carpet spot or chair. We wrote a subtraction sentence on the whiteboard each time a monkey "fell off the bed". The number necklaces helped them remember who was falling off the bed. 5 is first, 4 is second etc. They loved this activity and begged to do it again the next day! Day 2: We reviewed the anchor chart from day 1 and practiced subtraction with 5 Little Monkeys again. We sang and acted the song out like Day 1 but I also put this file up on the SMARTBoard and we practiced crossing out a monkey on each slide and completing the subtraction sentences as well. Day 3: On Day 3 we introduced the learning goal and success criteria. Learning Goal: We are learning to solve subtraction number sentences and story problems. Success Criteria: I know I can do this when... - I can complete one of these sentences to solve a subtraction problem ____ take away ____ is ____ ____ - ____ = ____ I also showed them how to solve subtraction sentences with fingers and then we practiced this strategy as we read Pete the Cat & His Four Groovy Buttons. This is my FAVOURITE book to read during our subtraction unit! It is great for teaching the subtraction symbols in the context of a fun story! Day 4: We started by adding "I know I can do this when I can use subtraction strategies to solve subtraction sentences." to our success criteria. Then I introduced the subtraction strategies: and we practiced the strategy "use your fingers" again while watching the video "When You Subtract with a Pirate" on YouTube. Day 6: I review the subtraction strategies and tell the kids that today we will be focusing on the strategy "use manipulative". I use this subtraction mat to demonstrate: I put a couple stacks of the subtraction flash cards and pick students to choose a subtraction card and read the equation. I demonstrate how to read the first number and put that many counters in the rectangle. Then we read the second number and take that many away and put them in the cup. Then we count how many counters are left in the rectangle, find the answer card and place it on the mat. Then I leave this out for the kids to try at centres as well. Day 7: On Day 7 we start working on subtraction stories and the strategy draw a picture. I put this subtraction story on the SMARTBoard: Then I had the special helper pick a friend from the class and pick how many cookies that person ate. We filled in the blanks together, read the question again and wrote the subtraction sentence. Then we drew 10 cookies and crossed out the number the they picked to practice the "draw a picture" strategy. We repeated this several times and then I set it out as a centre for the kids to try on their own. Day 8: We quickly talked about "count back" as a strategy and showed them how to put the first number in your head, put fingers up for the second number and then count back as you put fingers down. This is a tricky strategy though so I don't focus on it much! Then I move on to use a number line. We review how numbers get bigger when you go right on a number line and smaller when you go left on a number line so when we subtract we go left. Then I get a student to pick a subtraction sentence card and read it to me. We use this mat to practice using a number line: I put this mat up on the SMARTBoard and we write the question, use the number line to solve the question and write in the answer. I also leave these laminated sheets out as a centre choice for the kids to practice with independently. Here are some other subtraction centres that are out during out subtraction unit! SUBTRACTION CENTRES: 1. 5 Little Monkey's Spin & Subtract Students spin the two spinners and create a subtraction sentence. Then they use the monkeys as manipulative to solve the question and place the answer in the third box. We used toothpicks and paper clips to make the spinners! The kids just hold the paper clip in the middle of the spinner and flick the paper clip with the other hand. 2. Bowling Subtraction This one is always a huge hit! In the past I've just used water bottles and a tennis ball but this year I found this plastic bowling pin set at Michaels and bought them since they were on sale! We set up a bowling alley with our wooden blocks (arranged in the shape of a U) and 2 kids took turns rolling and recording how may pins they knocked down and how many pins they have left. You can grab the recording sheet you see above for free by clicking on the image below! 4. Play Dough Subtraction SMASH! This was another big hit! The students pick a subtraction sentence card, make play dough balls for the first number and smash (or smush) the second number with their first or thumb. Then they count how many play dough balls they have left to get the answer. 5. My Animal Subtraction Book We used these in guided math groups for students who needed some more practice with subtraction. The kids got to pick how many animals they wanted to take away, cross them out and write a corresponding subtraction sentence. 6. Stamp/Dot & Subtract Yes, these stamps again! #obsessed. For both activities they stamped or dotted first and then they crossed out however many they wanted and wrote a subtraction sentence to match their picture. The "teacher bingo dabbers" only come out once in a while so the kids are always excited when they get to use them! You can grab these recording sheets for free as well by clicking on the image below: All of the other printables you see in this blog post can be found in my subtraction pack on TPT "Take It Away! A Kindergarten Subtraction Unit". If you are interested, you can check it out by clicking on any of the images below! I hope you were able to gain some new ideas for teaching subtraction! What are your favourite lessons and activities for teaching subtraction?

To stand before children is a rare privilege. In every minute we spend together, they will learn something. Whatever it is we put before them, they will learn from it.

Genius ideas that make these last days manageable and fun.

It is hard to compete with cell phones, video games, Facebook, and television when you are a teacher. Students’ attention spans seem about as short as a snapchat photo. What can teachers do? Is there

Creative ideas to get kids excited about reading deeper.

IEP goals, IEP goal banks, special education, sped goals, writing sped goals

These are the top 10 most popular posts from Teach for the Heart. Teachers, you've got to check these out!

If your child likes to color outside the lines, give her creative control over her next work of art with this cute and comical "Finish the Drawing" activity.

Who doesn't love a good science experiment? Especially one that is so easy and amazes little learners. My kiddos love to do this Liquid Rainbow science experiment together to explore liquids and the differences in their density.ObservationsTo help learners understand this experiment and give a little background to why the results happen I have them

End of Term Reflection This activity is perfect for students to complete at the end of term! There is a space for them to reflect on what they have learnt across the term. It also includes two different copies where you can choose whether you want students to colour in a picture or draw their own. Size: A4 document

I posted a picture of this volume control chart on Instagram today (even though it is a little blurry! I need to work on taking better p...

Children can learn about the continents with this free printable set that makes learning fun and interactive. After our Solar System Activities I figured we needed...

Ok, so I'm a day late. But as promised I've uploaded my little Complete Sentence Buddy freebie!! [Click the picture you grab your copy ]We spend a lot of time at the beginning of the year talking about the parts of a complete sentence. Well I wrote the silly song below and my kiddos chanted along like champs! I'd over hear them singing the song to themselves later in the day during centers and recess and then even while they were writing....which got me thinking. I've always thought of sentence horizontally. I never really thought of it from a top...

500 science activities for each month of the year, with season themes, for kids from preschool kindergarten to high school. Making teaching STEM easy.

Hi guys! I wanted to show you a new, exciting, educational tool that I am now using in my classroom. It's called OSMO and turns an iPad...

After teaching middle school math for almost five years, I have found that one of the biggest hurdles and misconceptions for students is their attitude and confidence in their own math abilities. As a math teacher, one huge challenge is changing the "I'm bad at math" attitude that some students enter the year with. Of course, not all students carry this attitude with them. Many students are confident in their math skills. However, I think that making a dent in the attitude of students who lack that confidence might be the most important, and challenging, part of teaching math. Here are a few classroom routines and ideas that I have found to help repair and change the "I'm bad at math" mindset. (1) Make Math Fun After reflecting on my first year of teaching 6th grade math, I found out very quickly that I needed to make math fun and engaging. I think the first step in changing the attitude of students who have struggled in math is making math class a place they enjoy coming to. One of the classroom routines I started is the Math Joke of the Week. It takes about 10 minutes per week to look up a fun (or corny) math joke and get it up on the board. Students love it when the joke is something they can try to guess, and I always hear about it quickly when I forget to get a new joke up. Incorporating some random fun routines and things around the classroom can also start to get these students to enjoy coming into math class. Last year, I blogged about some of the fun things around my classroom. Although a lot of these aren't math related, I think they can help the general attitude of the students who come into the class! I also have tried to make the learning process more fun for my students. In 6th grade math, we play a lot of math games that reinforce the concepts we are learning about. I've created many of these, but have also found a ton of awesome ideas floating around as well. My students love playing this Kaboom (also called Zap) game, which I adapted to practice solving equations. One of the other favorites are the Connect Four games that I created for various topics. My Connect Four: Multiplying Decimals is a freebie in my TpT store! As much as possible, I have tried to make learning and practicing our math concepts into some sort of game or engaging activity. (2) Get Kids Moving Many of my lessons during my first year of teaching involved me at the overhead projector (yes, I was still using an old-school overhead projector) and students at their seats watching me do examples. Reflecting on that first year, I discovered a few things. Number one, I probably damaged my eyesight by looking into that dang projector all day. Two, I was doing most of the work while students sat and watched. And three, a lot of the time students weren't sitting and watching... they were doing something they weren't supposed to be doing, not paying attention, or just flat out bored (and looking back I don't blame them). This structure made it difficult for me to reach the students who felt they were bad at math. I switched to a math workshop structure, where students rotate around the room to different stations each class period. This structure allows me to meet in a small group with all students, which helps me reach the students that normally struggle. Whether it's math workshop, or some other structure, I feel like it is important to get students out of their seats. Of course that's not to say we never have stretches where we are taking notes, watching me do problems, etc., but I have tried to limit the length and amount of these. More details about how I run the math workshop are at the tab at the top of my blog! (3) Challenge Students All students enjoy a challenge and some competition... at least if there is a prize involved! Although my Challenge of the Week problems are often completed by my students who are very confident and strong in math, I was pleasantly surprised by the number of students who try these problems. There is nothing more rewarding than when a student who usually finds math difficult, gets the challenge problem. I put up a new problem every Monday. Students have until Thursday to enter (it's optional). On Friday, we go over and discuss the answer as a class - any correct answers get a mint! This is another routine that is pretty easy to set up, takes minimal time each week, and is a great way to stretch students thinking! If you are looking for some 5th/6th grade level problems, a full-year set is free in my store. The optional, low-risk, nature of the Challenge of the Week really encourages everybody to try it since there isn't any penalty for getting it wrong. An InLinkz Link-up

This post and video explores ways to make giving feedback to staff members in the classroom a positive experience for both you and the staff member.

What could possibly be a better combination than FREE and STEM?! Ok, maybe there are a few, but It’s a pretty amazing paring. I’d love to send you 2 low-prep STEM Activities for kids! E…

Do you want to work on life skills in your classroom? Are you looking for hands-on special education life skills activities that your students will love? If so, you've come to the right place. Because today, I'm sharing my top 10 life skills activities that you can do in your classroom. 1. Washing Hands One

Target "size of the problem" by describing and solving problems for emotional regulation. Activities, visuals, social story and goals!

If you have a child or student who plays Minecraft, then you're going to love these free Educational Minecraft Activities!