Gaming It Up

This is the last week of the Linky Party before the Diggin' Giveaway! This giveaway is going to be GINORMOUS!

Make sure you enter!

As this is the last week of the Linky Party, we get to chose our own topics! We decided to post on our latest Pinterest inspired classroom hack. Instead of doing another frame wall, we created a Game Wall! This way our board games can help decorate our classroom, we can have easy access to them, and they take up less of that precious space in our classroom closets.

Start with some fun boardgames for your classroom. They can be educational or just plain fun! Keep the essentials and recycle the rest. The frames we used are the Nyttja 19.75" x 19.75" black frames from IKEA. They cost only $7.99 each! We chose them because they are light weight, have a nice design, we liked that they are square, they're make with plastic and not glass, and they're cheap! We chose a frame with a plastic inside and not glass just in case it gets dropped. Don't want broken glass everywhere! We wanted the students to be able to take the games off of the wall themselves. The frames were hung with Command Medium Picture Hanging Strips. Easy to hang and won't mess up our walls. Just place the game board inside the frame as you would a picture and attach a zippered pencil case on the back with either more Command Picture Hanging Strips or velcro, we decided to go with velcro as it is much cheaper. Place your boardgames pieces and cards inside the zippered pencil case, hang, and you're ready to start playing! We also placed an "I Can" statement in the frame with each board game.

 

 

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Tech Or Treat!

This week's topic is technology. I absolutely love technology! I love using it in my day to day life and I especially love using it in the classroom! Here are a few tricks that I have used in the past to incorporate iPads into the classroom with a 1:1 iPad to student ratio.

Every morning as a part of the students' morning routine, they would collect their iPads from the secure storage and charging station and place their iPads in their seat sacks on the back of their chairs. This would allow the iPads to be easily accessible throughout the day as well as out of the way in a place where they would be unlikely to be damaged when they were not being used. The students also kept their headphones on their seat sacks. *Side note: I recommend using headphones instead of earbuds as earbuds seemed to constantly be getting tangled up and broken.

As a part of cleaning up at the end of the school day, the students were responsible for returning their iPads to the secure charging cart. Each student was assigned an iPad with the same number as their student number and had a specific slot within the cart so it was very quick to see who's iPad was missing from the cart at the end of the day. I did not have my students plug their iPads in to charge them. They simply placed them in the slot with the charger side facing out. Typically I would only charge the iPads once a week (Thursday nights). I chose to charge them on Thursday nights instead of Friday nights because I didn't want them to be plugged in and potentially charging all weekend long. Most of the time this was all I had to do. Occasionally we would use the iPads more or something else would happen and I would need to charge them again. I also taught the students how to read and monitor their iPads' battery life. They were in charge of letting me know when it got below 10% and needed to be charged. It was great! I love natural consequences. If the students weren't responsible and watching their batteries, then they wouldn't be able to use them when they wanted to.

The uses for the iPad within the classroom are endless! With so many options, you may want to start small. I really enjoyed using them during Daily 5. I created folders on each iPad and labeled them Listen to Reading, Word Work, Work on Writing, etc. Then, when the students made their choice for that session, they could go to apps within that choice's folder. Folders are a great way to organize the apps within the iPads and make it easy to assign subjects or topics but also allow the students' choice.

What are some technology tricks that you use in your classroom?

Check out the other technology posts for this week.

 

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V for Vocabulary

This week's topic is Phonics/Word Study. We all know how important developing an expansive vocabulary is for our students. Vocabulary is a huge emphasis of Common Core and our new state (Illinois) exams, PARCC.

A few months ago we discovered a wonderful new site, Flocabulary. Flocabulary is a great source for building vocabulary. Flocabulary presents vocabulary in fun rap-like video formats that really seem to speak to the students both young and old. They have videos for every grade level building vocabulary in almost every subject area.

We also have some fun Superhero Vocabulary Card Posters available in our store. These bright and cheerful printables help expand students' vocabulary by suggested synonyms for commonly overused words. Download the preview for a free page! * Side note: everything on our Tpt store is at least 20% off!

What do you like to use to teach vocabulary?

 

 

 

 

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Writing to Write Right

Does anyone else have this problem where they have a million ideas about what they want to write about and have terrific, wonderfully articulated sentences that are both moving and whitty right up until the moment that they actually go to write them down? I feel like that is constantly my problem. Even when it is just me going to write down a few ideas for later. Or when I do manage to write those ideas down, I go to elaborate on them and am stuck. Total brain fart. Can't think of a single word to add. I've attended a plethera of classes and workshops solely focused on writing and I still have this problem. Perhaps it is a battle that I will fight til I write my last word but if I, with all of that formal writing education, still struggle to write, then what must it be like for my young writers? Some of them have no problems starting to write at this point, uninhibited by concerns of perfection and the pressures that are put on themselves by themselves and others. Others seem to struggle with the dreaded white space right from the start. Helping students make that first mark, write that first word, draw that first line, is our job but where do we begin?

Writing prompts are a great way to start. They help writers begin by narrowing down a focus, giving them the safety to write within specific peramiters. Students don't have to come up with the topic, idea about that topic, the words to convey those idea, as well as the grammar and spelling to allow those idea to be received by others. When you think about it, the task of writing while it sounds mundane can really be quite overwhelming! Writing is really pulling together a large variety of skills and knowledge. Here are a few writing prompt collections that we really like.

 

 

 

 

 

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Back to School

Who is it that decided that the second official week of summer would be the perfect time for Back to School sales to begin? I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it probably wasn't a teacher. I know that it seems like every school district is on a completely diffferent schedule from everyone else, but it seems like the magic (a.k.a. dreaded) start date of the Back to School Sales keeps creeping up on the calendar. So, in another ten years, will we be doing our Back to School shopping in February? I don't know about you, but I am definitely not ready to go back to school yet. As of today, I have been out for only a little over 3 weeks. I haven't even reached the halfway point yet. Phew! With my Summer To Do list still bursting at the seams and only one swipe on my shiny, new 2014 pool pass, that is a huge relief. I'm still at that point where my summer feels long and luxurious. Like I have all of the time in the world and will get to do so much! Ask me again in a few weeks and I'm sure my attitude will have changed but for right now I'm loving it! With all of that in mind, this week's post topic is the beginning of the year and everything that goes into it. Here are a few ideas to pin for later.

Parent Surveys: Parent surveys are a great way to get more info on your new students. I recently found questions, new to me, that I plan to include this year. Questions to consider: How does your child prefer to work - in groups or individually? When getting new information, does your child do best getting all the information at once, or step by step, as the concept or project unfolds?

No more "What I did this summer" essays: Stand this periennial back to school assignment on its head by asking kids to tell their best summer stories using the iMovie or Friend Strip Pro app or Comic Life software. Each option lends its own spark to students' writing. iMovie is super user friendly, lets students take charge of their project by storyboarding the plot, shooting the video segments, writing minimal copy and, in return, getting very dynamic results! Friend Strip Pro includes some picture elements that enhance the story, often in funny ways. Comic Life software lets kids drag and drop pictures they choose as well as Pow! star bursts, creating their own comic strip.

Classroom drab? Flip it to fab!

 

* Take advantage of end of summer sales to pick up fun kid-sized furniture for an inviting reading area. Chevron print pillows accent bright teal or orange patio benches. And Marshalls and Homegoods stores carry pint-sized overstuffed chairs that invite readers to enjoy a good book.

* Want a colorful new look quick? Just like recipes that promise dinner in minutes, our TPT store offers classroom decor packs you can download, print, laminate and hang just like that! Packs are packed with printables including welcome banners, different versions of student name plates for desks, schedule cards, group work cards, birthday posters.... lots more. Please check them out!

 

Time for New Year's resolutions? Maybe. It's always fun to try something new and a bright, new beginning always offers new possibilities. What are you hoping to do differently this school year? In the meantime, here's to summer!!!

 

 

 

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Disney Apps on Sale

Disney apps are on sale for $0.99 for a limited time! They have some terrific storybook apps available including Frozen, Brave, Planes, and more! Check them out in the App Store if you're interested.

- Anna & Marti

 

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4th of July Sale

We are having a 4th of July Sale July 4-7 on our Tpt store! Everything is 20% off! Come check out our products new and old!

Happy 4th of July!!! Have a great weekend! Stay safe everyone! :)

~ Anna