Back to school bulletin boards

Cow Boy boots are also stationary paper

The bees are actually stationary papre

The class pet is a "wild" sting ray they train.

Brown Bag Lunch

Wednesday was brown bag lunch for second grade. \

Brown bag lunch is when parents can bring and enjoy lunch with their children after they attend a 20 minute meeting with the teachers.

In this meeting the teachers remind the parents to read everything in the Friday folders. Teachers put information about what they are doing in school and it is a great way for them to become involved in their education at home. The teachers also talk about language to use with the children when they bring stuff home. For example, when I went to school we used barrowing and carrying over but now we use regrouping. The teachers also discussed how much children benefit from reading with their parents.

Actually a lot of the stuff they talked about in regards to reading we discussed in our monthly class. It was interesting to here how teachers worded and phrased what we read in the book.

Routines

Create an anchor chart for what the morning routine looks like and what dismissal looks like.

Use pictures if needed

What would my morning routine look like?

Dismissal?

"What do I do when I'm finished?"

I was amazed one day last week when my 2nd grade host teacher told the students to have Ms. Boyer check their work when they finished the worksheet.

I was amazed when not one of the students asked me what to do when they were finished.

I asked her how she taught this and she said... she told them when she gave directions that when they finished they were to get their math facts out and practice. Math facts are something she wants the kids to be able to recite really fast. I could always do something like that or if I have seen a "got done choice" chart that the students created.

Colorful Book Tubs

In the past I have seen teachers organize their book tubs by color. So all the kids in the green reading group have a green folder and they shop from the green book tubs which are marked with a green sticker.

My first reaction to that was that's organized.... but what happens when they move up or down in a reading group? Do you change out the folder?? Does that get messy and how much time does that take?
Also, if the kids know what book tubs they can choose out of based on the color of their folder do they every get to find a 'just right book' on their own?

I see

Today I subbed halfday.
As I was browsing through her site found through the school I ran across this cool idea for poetry using a fun book kids like called I SPY as inspiration. They called theirs I SEE


http://www.scribd.com/doc/24279567/Microsoft-Word-Horrell-final

Think aloud. Text-to-Text Connections

Day 1

After they understand text-to-self connection introduce text-to-text connections.

Read  Oliver Button by Tomie dePaola
Talk through the text together, making connections about teasing, bullies, talent shows, and moms and dads.

Day 2

Read Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman

When you get to the part where Raj tells Grace she can't be Peter Pan because she isn't a boy... stop reading and put the book down and think aloud.

Connect it to Oliver Button Is a Sissy
The boys made fun of him because he loved to dance. I'm thinking Grace and Oliver are alike in some ways.
Neither one of the charaters gav up

Explain when readers do what you do and make a connection form a book they are reading to a book they have read before they are making a text-to-text connection.
You use connections from one book to help you understand the new story and making predictions about what may happen based on what you know from the other story

When it gets to the part where the class meets for audtions, put the book down.
Make the prediction that Grace will be Peter Pan in the play, because I remember Oliver Button practiced and practice just like Grace did.

After the book is read, ask the class what they noticed me doing when I stopped to make text-to-text connections

Create a Venn Diagram to compate features (characters) between the text.


*Debbie Miller, Reading with Meaning.

Think aloud. Text-to-self connections

Day 1

What is schema?
Thinking about what you already know- using background knowledge- stuff that is already inside your head, like places you have been, things you have done, books you have read--> All the experiences you have had that make up who you are and what you know and believe to be true

Many ways readers use schema, today we are going to talk about using schema to make connectoins from our reading, or the text, to ourselves-- text-to-self connection. When you make connections when you read, it's kind of like having a conversation in going on in your head.

Read The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant, and tell the students you'll stop and think out loud to show you how I use my schema, or what I already know to make connections from my life to the story. I'm going to let you know what is going on insdie my head while I'm reading the story out loud to you.

Model

"What did you notice?"

Day 2- 6

Model text-to-self connections
Julie Brinkloe's Fireflies
Gloria Houston's My GreatAunt Arizona

Share your connections and allow children to start to share theirs.

Koala Lou  by Mem Fox
The Snowy Day  by Ezra Jack Keats
Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes

Start to script and chart their responses and allow them to put their name by it.

Start to explain how some connections help us better understand the text than others before irrelevent responses get to be the norm.

Day 7

Difference between connections that help us with our reading and the ones that don't.
Do a read aloud and you'll write down connections in a notebook, and after school you'll put them on chart paper, and we'll work with them tomorrow. Tomorrow We'll figure out which ones help us the most.

Read Hazal's Amazing Mother by Rosemary Wells

Day 8

Ask the class how we are going to mark the ones that were helpful, and the responses that did not help us make connectins?

Examine the charted responses. If a child thinks a response should be helpful ask them to explain their thinking.


"What can we learn from all the thinking we just did?"

Day 9

Before reading aloud Ira Sleeps Over by Bernard Waber, tell the kids to keep their connections inside their heads.
Once the story is over they will get into groups, share their connections, and decide on which one helped them make the most connection. They'll use butcher paper on the floor to draw and/or write that connection.


informally assess- Are children makking real connections to the story? Do they understand how these connections help them? What kind of language do they use when they talk to each other in small groups?

30ish minutes later have the students form a circle on the carpet and put the butcher paper in the middle the one on top explains their connections.



Reading with Meaning, Debbie Miller

Teaching Good Sportsmanship

One of my 2nd grade host teachers would load the worksheet (whatever it may be, this happened to be a math game) onto the smart board. The work sheet would have the game directions and at the bottom a snap shots she took of the kids in the gym a previous morning.They would have little talking blurbs coming out of their mouth that said "Nice job!" "That is okay... Try again".

After she went over the directions she then would ask the students who those kidos were and she would read to them what each kid was saying.
She did this to help the students learn each others names and to also encourage them to be good sports.

Small things make big differences!

This morning I was looking over the complied list of community building activities and I realized that they were mostly all activities. I know activities are a great way to help build community but the classroom community should not be soley built on activities. The students should have respect for one another and value what each student brings to the classroom. \

A great way to do this is do point out things students do without even knowing it. For example the community building activity the students do in one first grade class involves them all sitting on the carpet and sharing something. My host teacher saw that one student was especially good at turning his body slightly and making sure his eyes were on the person talking, so after the person talking was finished she said, "Thank you Shay for turning your body and making sure your eyes are on the speaker. This shows you care about what your friend is saying. And it is a good way to show respect."

From then on more students turned their bodies and looked engaged in what was being said.

Farmer Brown, developing a character

Thanks one extra degree!

Then, I had the kiddos re-read previously read books from my classroom library to get reacquainted with characters.  They were armed with Post-It notes to jot down what they noticed about the characters' actions and character traits.  I gave them ten minutes to think and jot... then I asked them to find a partner.  The partners shared what they found about their characters, decided which character would help them create the most descriptive character description, and then worked together to practice writing one.  Each student was responsible for recording the description in their Writer's Notebook to refer back to in the future.  Dare I say it?  Even though I am missing UofS right now, I actually enjoyed the lesson! 

Have you filled a bucket today?

I don't think I have posted my reflection on rewards yet... but I like this idea of rewards. It's just a random way to say hey you are doing a great job. Keep up the good work.

Last year my second grade teacher did something similar only she had one beach bucket for the entire class. Next to the bucket was a small piece of paper and it said something like, "I'm filling __________'s bucket because __________________!" and there was room to put his/her name at the bottom of the slip. I wish I would have asked her what she did with the slips but for whatever reason I didn't. I'm trying to think how I would do it? Maybe once every two weeks or once a week we could empty out the bucket and give recognition to our friends who got "Diggs" (little slips of paper).

How would I teach them what kind of stuff to put in there? I could model it by saying, "I'm filling Joe's bucket because he held the door for me when he saw I was coming and my hands were full!" It would also be modeling it when we give recognition at the end of the time period.

In our Tuesday night class we talked about how the teacher's daughter felt like she was doing things right all the time but was not getting a note sent home saying what a good job she was doing. I should probably keep a little list so I can check people off that get their bucket filled. That way I can look for good things or guide them to doing the right thing so they can feel appreciated.

Writing with 5 senses

Thank you Create*Teach*Share

Read

Bring pancakes to school. Before they eat brainstorm adjectives to describe how they looked, smelled, and sounded. Then I let them eat them with their fingers. While they ate they called out adjectives that described how the pancakes felt and tasted. I kept a chart on the board with the 5 senses and the adjectives that my students came up with.

Explaining Writers Workshop

Play-Dough Writing Process
Lesson

  Materials needed:

• A section of Play-Dough for every student
• Pencils
• Post-its
Introduction:
Don’t tell the students yet that they are going to be learning about writing. Give each student a piece of Play-Dough and a post-it note. Pick a category, such as food, school, etc. Tell the students the category and ask them to think of an object that would fit into that category. For example, if the category was food the students could pick an apple, or a piece of pizza. Ask the students to give you a thumbs up when they have their item chosen.
Middle:
After the students have them item chosen, ask them to write down, on the post-it, words to describe the object. They need to write what it looks like, what shape it is, what it has on it, etc. Give them a few minutes to write some descriptions down.
When that is over, allow the students to make their item with their play-do. They can only use that one color (unless you as the teacher have enough for the students to mix colors). Give them enough time to make their object. Remind them to use the descriptions they just made from their post-it note.
When all of the students are done making their Play-Dough object, then pass out to everyone another post-it note. Have the students switch places with someone, leaving their play-dough piece where it is. They are going to evaluate their partner’s item while their partner does the same to them. Tell the students to, on the post-it note, write down two strengths of the item and one way the item could be improved.
When this is done, switch back and allow the students to read what their partner wrote. At this time they will then make any changes to their item that are necessary from what their partner suggested.

Finally, give the students one last chance to make any additions or changes. Tell them to look for small cracks that shouldn’t be there or if they need to create any small lines to do so now. This is their last chance.

*

Allow a few students to present their item. Explain what it is and to show it from the document camera.
End:
When all of this is over, explain to the students that all of the ‘steps’ that we just took are the same steps that a writer takes when he/she writes. All of those steps have names. Ask the students if they can remember what the first step was.
1. Choosing their item and writing descriptive words down to get the juices
flowing = brainstorming or prewriting
Explain the meaning and why we prewriting to the students at this time
2. Making their object = drafting
Explain the meaning of drafting and what a writer can and cannot do during this stage
3. Switching with a partner and commenting = Sharing
Explain this as well…
4. Making the changes suggested by partner = revising
Explain this as well…. (writers make choices)
5. Making any last minute changes, looking for ‘cracks’ and drawing any
last minute lines = editing
Explain this too..
6. Showing your item to the class = presenting
Explain..
Basically the last part of this lesson you are connecting each step of what you just did to the writing process. Take what you know about the process and explain it. This is a great way for the students to take part in the process and learn about each piece. Let me know if you have any questions!!





Thank you Adventures of Room 129

What good writers do?

Thanks, Life is Better Messy Anyway!

once you establish what writers write and you work on those things post them. (thank you cullter-free classroom)