Getting back into the swing of things

We're in the middle of our back to school planning session and quite frankly, I'm really excited about next year.  It's been a while since I've felt energized about my job, so this is a positive move.  I think the combination of having a long summer (to recharge and meditate) and some changes (co-teaching with the GATE teacher, being a peer coach) have left me feeling empowered and valued.

Our first week plans at a glance:

We're treating our day in two separate parts.  First is ELA, which includes reading, writing, foundational skills, science, social studies, and technology.  We also put procedures and back to school activities in the top box.  Math is very difficult to imbed (because we're following Engage NY's curriculum), so that's a separate entity.

We've got our first week pretty well planned and have the first unit (next 6 weeks) mapped out.  The whole grade level hasn't been involved with the planning, but it was their summer break so #nojudgment.


I had a long, relaxing summer and am ready to get back into a routine.  However, someone in the house feels differently about back to school...

(the poster did say First Week at the top until Waffles found it...)


Mrs. H and I have spoken with our admin about our long range plans (thematic units) and voiced our excitement.  They're both on board and are eager to see the implementation.

I'm working on a new writing sort (coming soon), revising "no way Jose & that's a fact, Jack" (true/false statements, also coming soon), and notebooking activities.  I also made a new welcome banner, with Chloe's help of course:

I'm taking it in tomorrow to laminate and then will post pictures.  I hope to have my bulletin boards finalized tomorrow as well!

Inspired by a fellow TpT creator's project, I made my own thought bubbles for student notebooks:

In addition to reviewing cutting, gluing, and listening to directions, it provides students the chance to brainstorm before sharing their ideas out in table teams.  There are ten different questions and I've made it available {here} for free!

#Year8Can'tWait

House of Hades Teacher Guide and chronological order sorts are now available!

I'm pleased to announce my teacher guide for The House of Hades is now available here!

I've been working on this novel for a while now (considering it's 63 pages!).  I also finalized the corresponding chronological order sort!

Day Three, the frustration continues

My day of frustrating them didn't end with math.

Later in the day, we went over sorts.  They did "no way Jose and that's a fact, Jack!" first.  In this sort, they separated statements about fifth grade into true and false statements. 

They also learned the procedures for gallery walks, where they critique the reasoning of others without touching the other team's sort.  It's a great opportunity for them to also practice using the accountable talk stems that we brainstormed together.

I color coded the stems to help my visual learners.

They also did an editing and revising sort which I used as a formative assessment.  They're still a little fuzzy on the differences between the two, so that's a teachable moment for me in the next few weeks.  We didn't provide any instruction on their writing task this week because we wanted to use it as an informal benchmark.  This week they wrote a letter to their future selves, which they'll get back the last week of school.

They were pretty good with the first two sorts, but then I gave them a syllable sort.

They were completely stumped.  Some groups used their responding cups to ask for help, one group tried to bribe me (both with food and a dollar), some made piles of what they thought they knew and what was confusing, some started sounding out the syllables, and others were on the right track.  They asked for help, but I let them struggle.  Struggle is a good thing.  When we came back together, I had a lot of grumpy students.  I told them that this activity helped me to see where I need to start phonics instruction (with what is a syllable), and showed me that they knew to ask for help, were comfortable asking for help, and could work together.  No groups quit during their struggle time (which was five minutes, I'm not that mean).  

They wanted to know the answers.  I said no, they don't get to know that yet.  We'll start instruction next week, but I'm not just giving you the answers without the practice.  

This was very irritating to many of my students, especially the higher ones.  I told them they won't always get the answers right away.  They won't know everything right away.  Learning is a process and it takes time.  They aren't used to not getting the answers right away and I told them this will be an adjustment.  They'll have to work through things.  They'll struggle. In the end, it will make them stronger thinkers.

I think some of them get it, but it doesn't mean they like it.

Best part of day 3?  This happened:

Oh yes, it happens in real life. 

Fact and Opinion

Differentiating between facts and opinions is a concept some of my students struggle with.  Often times they would claim a statement is a fact because to them, it is true.  Based on many, many conversations and reflecting on these teachable moments, I have my students do a "fact check" before determining if a statement is a fact or an opinion.

To be a fact, the statement must: 
-be correct
-be able to be proven, observed, or measured

To be an opinion, the statement expresses a belief.  Even if the statement is true for an individual or a group, unless it's true for everyone, it's not a fact.

This seemed to help clear up some of the confusion.

One activity I like to use is FCRR's fact and opinion football game.  As extensions, I have students write out their own statements for their teammates to sort.

I used this activity in summer tutoring today with great success until...

My helper showed up. 

I've been having a great time tutoring.  It's teaching, but much more relaxed.  I'm focused on skills and what my student needs.  There are notions of just opening a home school that flutter around in my mind until I realize how much "help" I'd have from my fur children...and that dream quickly vanishes.

New Teacher Guides and Centers (Kane Chronicles)

When I was younger, I was obsessed with Ancient Egypt.  From mummies to scarabs to Nefertiti, I simply couldn't get enough.  I was giddy with excitement when I discovered that one of my favorite authors, Rick Riordan, has a trilogy based on ancient Egypt.

I was fortunate enough to get to read The Red Pyramid with a small group in May but we ran out of time for the sequels...which naturally found their way onto my summer reading list! 

I am pleased to announce two new teacher guides with matching chronological order sorts are now available on TpT!

The first is The Throne of Fire, the second in the Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan.

In this much anticipated sequel, Carter and Sadie Kane are off to save the world again before ancient Egyptian gods and monsters destroy it.  By blending witty commentary with a fast paced story line and amusing characters, Riordan doesn't disappoint!  I can't wait to dive into The Serpent's Shadow next!

This novel guide is 31 pages and includes vocabulary, homework ideas, and comprehension questions (with answers) for each chapter!  Extension ideas are also included. 

To accompany this novel, I created a chronological order sort where students must put 26 events from the novel in order.  This helps students analyze how events build upon one another in the novel and how the author reveals the plot via characters.  (RL 5.5)  An answer key is included to alleviate arguments and this can be used as a summative assessment for comprehension or a collaborative center for students while the teacher pulls small groups. 

Since I loved The Throne of Fire so much, The Serpent's Shadow was a natural next choice.

Things are worse than ever for the Kanes, with Apophis rising and a crafty magician to keep track of!  Rick Riordan does a wonderful job at wrapping up this trilogy while imbedding subtle hints at the world of Greek mythology.

Snag the teacher's guide and the chronological order sort now!

I also created a "who am I" game with 25 characters from the trilogy.  Students guess the character based on the given clues. I also included an answer key.

I was on such a role with analyzing characters that I also made this sort:

Students can independently or collaboratively sort the terms (smaller cards) into the characters that are being described (larger cards).  Snag it here!

Happy reading :)

Chronological Order Sorts!

I'm pleased to announce some new chronological order sorts are available on TpT!  (I now have 120 posted products, all of which have been classroom tested with my own group of fifth graders.)

Since I just finished some new novels with my small groups, I decided to make them chronological order sorts as a quick check for their comprehension.  By placing the events from the novels back into chronological order, they are examining how these events and chapters build upon one another.  (CCSS RL 5.5).  

I have created new sorts for the following novels:

Rick Riordan's The Lost Hero
Rick Riordan's The Red Pyramid
Gennifer Choldenko's Al Capone Does My Shirts
Lemony Snicket's Who Could That Be At This Hour?
Pam Pollack and Meg Beviso's Who Was Steve Jobs?
Suzanne Collin's Mockingjay
Tom Angleberger's The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

These products are available here and great for small groups!

Plenty of Polygons

With our standardized testing right around the corner, we've been doing test prep.  Many of our students are struggling with the geometrical hierarchy of polygons, so we created some sorts and matching activities for them.

They had such a great time figuring out which polygon was being described and I loved that some of my high kids still learned new vocabulary terms (like kite).  Most students are pretty good with matching the polygon to the definition, but when it comes to the classification of quadrilaterals...they get a little stumped.

But these centers really helped them understand not only the individual polygons, but how they interact with each other within the geometrical hierarchy.

I've bundled these centers and they are now available here on TpT!

(On a completely adorable side note, several of them went off on a tangent about how this hierarchy was like the Greek mythology family trees we made in small groups.  Two groups got into it about who would be at the top of the tree: Zeus?  Jupiter? The Titans? Kronos?  They were rather reluctantly wheeled back into the math conversation.  At least they're making connections!)

Text Features Sort

While it was a tad time consuming to create, one of my students' favorite centers is my text features sort.  I cut up a few copies of an old Time for Kids magazine and cut apart the article.  I glued the text features on different colored pieces of paper and laminated them (for durability).

My students had to put the articles back together with their text features (captions, pictures, titles, maps, etc).  It was a challenge and they had to read the informational text to figure out what features went with each article.

Happy reading!

Chronological Order Sorts all up for the Percy Jackson!

I'm pleased to announce that chronological order sorts are now up for all 5 of the Percy Jackson series on TpT!  Answer keys are included and my students love the challenge!  I love hearing my students analyze how characters develop over time and how events build upon one another to provide meaning!

I also learned how to add custom categories on my TpT site:

I'm really excited for being able to organize my products to make it easier for customers :)

Happy reading! 

New Sort! RL 5.7

So we read 90% of The Lightning Thief before winter break and watched the film adaptation on the last day of school for the calendar year.  In a perfect world, we would have finished the novel first but...that didn't happen.  

It was my first time seeing the movie and I must say, I wasn't too impressed. 

Yes, the film was cute but didn't really follow the book.  There were lots of differences and I'm glad my students picked up on these differences.  Comparing & contrasting a film with the text is a great, critical thinking skill to have!

(Plus it corresponds with RL 5.7 in the Common Core State Standards)

So I decided to make this into a sort where students can independently or collaboratively sort the descriptions into the following categories:

1. Just the book

2. Both the book and the film

3. Just the film adaptation

There are over sixty different task cards to sort and an answer key is included!

I'm excited to have my students try this center after winter break!  

You can download a copy here on TpT!

New chronological order sort!

A chronological order sorts for Lois Ruby's Steal Away Home is now available on TpT!  

The sort is 18 pages long with an included answer key. 

My students love these sorts and hopefully yours will too!

Stations

For my intervention part of the day, we've been working on multiplication.

I had students work on two different stations while I pulled individual students to practice fluency or work on math misconceptions.

The first station they worked on was "I have, who has?" place value center.  This great TpT freebie was designed by Quintessential Lessons and is wonderful!

What I love about it (besides that it's free and challenging) is how great of a job it does at having students see the relationships between numbers in our base-10 system.

You can snag a free copy here!

The second station is one I created called "Strategies Sort".

While students can solve the multiplication questions, the point of the center is to discuss which strategy would be most effective as a mathematician.

This station is available here on TpT.  I'd recommend printing on 2 different colors of card stock for convenience.

Our station bucket:

Working on a variety of strategies:

Hooray for math!

Oh Percy!

We are almost done with The Lightning Thief as a grade level, which means my small groups will be starting The Sea of Monsters in January!  I'm so excited to get to continue discussing Greek mythology and watching my students fall in love with Percy's adventures.

We just got some of these great books at our school:

I'm using them as rewards for students who turn in their reading logs :)  They get to check them out for the week!

I've also posted chronological order sorts for the Sea of Monsters and The Titan's Curse on my TpT store!  My students love the other chronological order sorts and will need to finish the novels before playing these ones :)

Snag yours here!

Upcoming Products

I'm in the process of reformatting some centers based on my students' feedback and they should be available on TpT by the end of the year!

Chronological Order Sorts:
The Miserable Mill (#4 in the Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket)
Gossamer by Lois Lowry (posted 12/08)
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordian (posted 12/10)
The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordian (posted 12/10)
Steal Away Home by Lois Ruby

Novel Units:
Harry Potter novels (1-6)

Quote Sorts:
Suzanne Collin's The Hunger Games trilogy

Other various stations:
Tuck Everlasting character analysis 

Be sure to follow me on TpT to see the latest products and check out sales!

Tiger Rising Chronological Order Sort

I've just posted another chronological order sort to my TpT page!  This is product # 84 :)

This one is for Kate DiCamillo's novel The Tiger Rising.  It includes twenty six events and an answer key for students to check their work.

In doing this, students will see how Rob, Willie Mae and Sistene develop over time (aligning with RL 5.5 of text structure with the Common Core state standards). 

My students play this center as a culminating activity when they're done with the novel (because the center reveals events that end at at book).  They usually play it once or twice before moving on to another novel but I have 12 groups, so another group reads the novel soon and I can reuse the center the whole year!

As a challenge, I like to have my students create additional events to put into the sort or choose an event to write about.  They love the challenge!

My students love these sorts and you can snag one for your students too!

chronological order sorts! (products # 75, 76, 77, 78!)

I've been re-reading The Series of Unfortunate Events because three of my twelve groups are on those novels.  Two groups have read the Bad Beginning, the Reptile Room and are currently half way through The Wide Window while another group stopped after the Bad Beginning. 

I'm pleased to announce that I've posted the chronological order sorts for these three novels on TpT! The first 2 have 22 events each and the Wide Window has 26!

My students had a great time with them and yours can too :)

You can purchase them separately for $4 each (16-18 pgs) or as a bundle (50 pgs) for $10!

Each includes an answer key and twenty two or more events for students to put into chronological order.  

If you purchase the 50 page bundle, I recommend printing each on a separate color to make for easy clean up!

Happy reading :)

More sorts!

I'm pleased to announce that two more centers have joined my classroom and TpT store!

Both are chronological order sorts, one based on Lois Lowry's The Giver and the other based on our current read aloud, Rick Riordian's The Lightning Thief.  My students have a lot of fun with these challenging centers and yours can too!

Answer keys are included and I recommend laminating the centers for durability.  As a spoiler alert, the centers do include events that happen at the end of the novels, so I'd use this as a comprehension activity when they're done reading the book.  Grab yours now!

Percy Jackson sort

We are in the middle of the Lightning Thief, so I had my students complete one of our sorts:

They aren't done with the novel so they weren't able to fully complete the sort (since it was made for all 5 books) but they still loved the challenge!

Your students can too, grab yours here :)

(It's also on sale for Black Friday!)

Text structures

We spent last week and this upcoming week working on text structures with our students.

We used this great resource from FCRR.org on text structures where students had to sort paragprahs into the categories of informational text.

We also looked at the five types: description, compare & contrast, cause & effect, sequence/chronology, and problem & solution.

Since my students mix up problem & solution with cause & effect, I used a little help from my iPad to clarify the difference: 

I have a clear cause (the angry birds) and then the effect(s) are when the structure falls down and the pigs die because of the birds.

In candy crush, I have a problem and if I'm stumped, the game gives me recommended solutions (game hints).

We're still working on text structure next week with reading different informational articles and analyze them for their purpose and text structure, but they're doing a good job with it :)

Harry Potter

My students were working on the Harry Potter sort:

Since I made the sort for all the novels, I included an "I'm not sure yet" category for students!

They try to do this sort every 2 weeks or so and are pleased when they figure out a new piece of information about a character that they can add!  

Snag yours here!

(I do have a chronological sort freebie that you can also try out to see if you like my products!)