Just dropping in to share  August's Interactive Read Aloud Lessons  for the following books:  Those Shoes, What Do You Do With a Problem?, The Dot, and The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes.  I love incorporating Interactive R ead Alouds, because they allow us to teach a broad range of standards.  You can't cover an ELA standard once, and expect your students to automatically master it.  These allow you to continue to continually revisit it.  If you would like to learn more about Interactive Read Alouds, this article from Reading Rockets does a great job of explaining its components and the WHY.  You will find that each week’s read aloud below will cover several standards, but I focus more heavily on a specific one each week while also including the others.   Each read aloud is designed to cover five days but can be condensed to four depending on your schedule.    All of my read aloud plans include anchor charts, posters, a daily lesson plan, assessing and advancing questions...
Do you struggle remembering every single component of your lesson?   Does your administration conduct unannounced observations?  In Tennessee, we have unannounced observations as a part of our evaluation model.  So, I feel like I really need to be extra prepared each day to meet each component of our evaluation rubric.  Not only am I thinking about a possible observation, I am also thinking about high-quality, engaging instruction for my students.  The way I now structure my lessons promotes much deeper thinking opportunities, effective partner talk, and meaningful tasks.  To make sure I hit all components necessary for high-quality instruction, I plug everything into PowerPoint lessons .  It's a little extra time up front, but it will save your sanity throughout the week.  I will, however, include some time-saving tips at the end of the post.  I'll take you through a sample lesson of my Interactive Read Aloud, since that is what I plan for my grade level. I always ...
Morning Meeting is one of my favorite parts of the day.  We have to start our day with it, or our day just isn't quite the same.  Morning meeting is the time in which we start our day on a positive note, share with one another, go over what's happening that day, review rules and expectations, complete calendar, sing, and spiral review.  It's packed full of fun! I have morning meeting files for ten months of the year, August through May.  I will take you through the May Morning Meeting just to give you an idea of what we do in my classroom. I get lots of questions about how I display my morning meetings, since they are digital files.  I do not have a SMART board, sadly.  I just have a PC and a projector that projects onto a regular screen.  My files are all PowerPoint files, so they are easily editable.  There are slides that you may want to write on.  So, what you can do is freeze the image with your remote and write on it that way if you have a Mobi like...
I have to share the latest book from Maria Dismondy, The Fruit Salad Friend .  Maria is my go-to author for books that teach friendship, respect, problem-solving, and anti-bullying.   Chloe loves school but is feeling like something has changed.  She begins to notice that those who she believed to be her friends are not treating her with the kindness that she deserves.  Chloe demonstrates how to be a problem solver and how to overcome being mistreated by others.  Throughout the book, she discovers the recipe for true friendship and surrounds herself with others who embody those sweet qualities. Not only is The Fruit Salad Friend great for educators and students, but it is also great for parents.  The author includes before, during, and after reading discussion points, as well as tips for parents on how to boost your child's friendship making skills. Emily Yost from Third in Hollywood has created a free Reader's Guide for educators that I know you will love...
Hello, friends!  We are on snow day #5 today, so I have tried to be productive in my pjs this week.  ;)  I finally wrapped the final unit in my  Growing Comprehension Bundle .  This one might just be my favorite!  Freddy Fact and Olivia Opinion are here to help teach fact vs. opinion to your little ones!  I am all about a craft, and this one is just too cute!  These activities would be perfect for first or second grades, especially if you are just introducing fact and opinion.  Let's take a look at each component! I always open the unit with an anchor chart.  If you know me, I like to prep them ahead of time.  I print the chart using the poster print setting in Adobe on my personal printer.  It prints on 4 sheets of paper, so you can trim and tape the pieces together to form a large poster.  I then laminate it to use year after year. For this particular one, I will write statements that are facts and statements that are opinions on sticky notes and let them sort ...
Valentine's Day will be here before you know it.  I am starting to think about what I want to give my students and what they will use to store their goodies in from their Valentine's Day party.  I love doing Valentine's Day bags with my class!  I have done boxes in the past, and it's just too much.  It's also a lot to ask parents to make, as well.  So, I started using gift bags with my class.  I pick them up at a dollar store or Hobby Lobby;  there are typically several in a pack.  I really like the 8X10 brown craft bags for these particular ones...a cactus and a unicorn.  I also think it's just a really fun way to let students be involved in the creation of their bag.  Plus, it's just something extra fun to do that day! I haven't decided which one I am going to make yet with my class.  They're both so cute and super easy to make!   What do you use in your classroom for student Valentine's Day gifts?  Hopefully, these wil...