I think I may have teacher's block, similar to writer's block, although the block is just the enormous amount of change at school this year. It seems as if everything that was once acceptable has now been deemed unacceptable. I'm managing but by blogging has taken a back seat. Tomorrow I have another "new" teacher observation....I have been considered a "new" teacher for all of my 7 years in this wonderful state of Florida. Bring it on! Now that most of the nation has adopted common student standards I say we also have common teacher observations and that they be held on a database that every school can access them no matter the state. I guess that would only work if you wanted your past to follow you :) I think I have shared before that our units vacililate back and forth from fiction to nonfiction. We have just switched from Fiction into our second Nonfiction unit. I thought that my love for stories would never be beat but I think informational texts are winning. I claim to be a nerd and I love to learn....so when given the opportunity to be immersed in inquiry daily I am just about as happy as can be. Nonfiction Text Features Scavenger Hunt Asking and Answering Questions (Nonfiction) Rubrics for Nonfiction I have a couple of things to show you from our fiction unit...and a freebie! Understanding the Story and Characters OK on another note for those of you that have an iPad...I have the greatest app!! It is called Record of Reading. It allows you to track running records, score miscues, record students, and much more. It even does all the math for you! Then you can save and send in an email (even in pdf format). No more paper for me....yippee!! Record of Reading Version: 1.0.2 By Clemson University In Education Compatible