Answering the questions in the back of the book is rarely a fun endeavor for the students, but today that wasn't the case in class!  Just adding a little twist really made it exciting for the kids.  Let me explain. You see, we are just starting our unit on Circulation and Respiration and the students really did need to read the science text and answer the questions about their reading (as that information is what they will be tested on when taking our major TEST)  So, after a discussion about how the circulatory system is the transportation system for our body, I gave the students a foldable that I had pre-printed the questions from the end of the article on.  Instantly, their interest was peaked (what is it about foldables that makes things so much better???!!)  For 20 minutes, they were to silently read the article and find the answer to the questions, recording them on the foldable. Then, I asked them to work for about 10 minutes as a group.  I wanted them to compar...
With February fast approaching, that means Valentine's Day is just around the corner.  I know that many people are gearing up for parties and celebrations but, eh, that just isn't me.  I shared with you last year that I really don't make too big a deal out of this day of love, but I do like to do two little things that the kids really enjoy.  These are the same activities I shared with you last year, but I know that there are many more people joining me along on this journey and I wanted to share them again :) Of course, the students will pass out valentines to their classmates.  I am not into spending a ton, so I made these Valentine's Day Homework passes.  I know my kids will love them, and they didn't cost me a dime :)  Win-win!   Feel free to print out a copy for yourself .  The download includes a "Love, Your Teacher" AND a blank one for you to sign, or just keep as is! Another thing we will be doing is in math. You see, just like last year...
We have been looking at subject verb agreement in class as of late and I just wanted to show you what we have been doing as far as showing "evidence".  It sort of came out naturally as I was teaching and really, I am surprised I never thought to do this before. Most of the time, when I ask my students why a sentence is correct, or a word fits in where it does, the standard response is "It just makes sense".  Well, that just isn't jiving with me anymore.  I mean, there has to be a reason WHY it makes sense and for our subject verb agreement statements, I have finally found a way to show it! So here is what we did.  After learning all about how a singular subject needs a singular verb and a plural subject needs a plural verb, we went to the task of dissecting sentences using our workbook.  Yep, we used the workbook.  First the students had to decide upon the subject.  What is it and is it singular or plural? Then, the verb was identified as singular or plu...
This week we took a small departure from our main basal story to focus on something I haven't done in YEARS....Core Lit.  The look on the students' faces, the twinkle in their eyes, when I handed them an actual book and told them we were going to read it in class was priceless.  This, I think, is going to be a great adventure for us. So, with that, I wanted to share with you what we have done so far.  First off, I chose to use Bridge to Terabithia for our first novel.  Partially because that is what we have available and partially because I know it centers around a 5th grade boy, friendships, and feelings of being on the outs....all things I would like us to explore in class.   I found this AWESOME and super teacher friendly unit from Scholastic free online here.   I am using it as a springboard for my discussion of the book (as well as my basal, overlapping skills so that I can be sure to cover everything.)  Since this was the beginning of our reading, we did some brow...
I was over reading the latest post from my dear friend Kim at Finding Joy in 6th Grade and had an epiphany.  Funny how that can happen sometimes..and always when you least expect it. You see, Kim was writing about how she, at times, feels unworthy to blog about her mundane routine at school.  That sometimes, what she is doing just seems, well..unblogworthy.  And, I gotta tell you, sometimes I do too.  I read other blogs and think, "Man, those people know what they are doing!  They have amazing classes and amazing things going on all.the.time." Then I thought about my blog.....and I thought about you.  Do you think that about MY blog??  Do you walk away thinking that I am doing amazing things all.the.time with my amazing class?  That's when it hit me.  You probably do. Well, I am here to set the record straight.  It is not always sunshine and lollipops in my classroom with major learning and fabulous lessons going on.  Sometimes, we are doing the mundane everyday st...
Right before Winter Break, we began to touch upon our study of the elements and the Periodic Table.  Now, in 5th grade we deal mostly with chemical equations and how reactions produce products made from the same materials that they started with.  So my students are spending a great deal of time looking at chemical reactions, writing equations, and moving molecules around. But mixed in there, the students ALSO need to learn about the elements themselves.  So, I wanted to take a little time and show you some of the stuff we have been doing in our room. First, my teammate Susie ( The Panicked Teacher. ...you must visit her site!  She has some great things there)  got me this AWESOME book for the holidays.  The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe It really is fantastic.  It shows all of the elements and the various materials that they make up.  The photos are breathtaking and it is PERFECT for a study on the elements.  What's more, my students love...
For years, I have used math journals as a way for the students to copy what I was writing on the board and have a place to do some math problems that they couldn't do in the book (because, well, you can't write in text book!)  But this summer, that all changed.  I got my hands on Jen Runde's Interactive Math Journal , and how I use these journals has been turned upside down. You see, this 166 page document isn't just a source for some great lesson plans in math but rather a book that shows you how to USE a STRATEGY in your room that will directly benefit not only the students, but you as a teacher. Sounds amazing, huh?  It is. How has it benefited me?  Well, let me count the ways. 1.  My teaching has become more focused.   During math instruction, I ALWAYS start with the learning goals for the students.  We look at the standard together, and discuss what it is that we are expected to learn after our lesson for the day.  My students understand what it is I want ...
It's been a long time since I have written a Test Prep 180 post....but here we are again, back in the "testing" mode.  Today, during my small group, we did something I found useful, so I thought I would share...just in case you could use it in your room too. We have been looking at the released questions, specifically the questions that ask about writing strategies.  They are different than the comprehension questions, and require different thinking skills, so we created this little chart in our notebooks.  Sorry for the terrible picture.  I did this on my easel white board. Basically, the students told me what made comprehension sections different than writing sections, and then told me the different types of questions they may encounter.  This isn't all encompassing, but it is a start and it really helped my students to see that these two sections are, indeed, different. We then looked at one released passage with three questions.  We literally took 30 minu...
Nothing mind blowing today.  We went back to school after a 3 week break and spent a lot of time reviewing.   It is amazing how much knowledge can leak out of a brain after 3 weeks of vacation.  Anyway, we set out to tackle fractions....simplifying fractions to be specific.  I thought I would share with you the little "trick" I use to teach the kids how to do it.  You see, when *I* was in school, the teacher just said to find the number that they both had in common and divide.  If it could be divided again, do it again.  So I was stuck with dividing my fraction by 2/2 several times before it was as reduced as possible (oh yeah, they called it reducing back then too) Now, I am pretty good at math (which, incidentally, is why I REALLY, REALLY hate teaching math...I was good at it and can't understand why *they* aren't....)  And even with me being pretty good at it, I spent a great deal of time as a youngster trying to find the perfect number that would reduce the fr...
As most of you know, I am all about getting the most "bang for my buck" when it comes to teaching.  I really want the kids to be doing most of the work, while I just "impart the knowledge".  So when I plan, I try to use every resource I have that will enable me to do as much as I possibly can with them. And, as most of you also know, when it comes to math I SWEAR by Calendar Math and Math Homework .  Using my time to do the computation stuff in a spiral way really, truly frees me up to do more math thinking in class (which really, isn't that what math is???)  I can honestly say that after implementing these two programs in my room, I never, ever, ever worry about math instruction.  Ever.  I don't worry that I won't get to everything before the state test.  I don't worry that the kids won't "get it". Because, you know what?  They always do.  I really can't shout this from the rooftops enough.  Calendar and HW have saved my sani...
One of my least favorite parts of teaching upper grades are multiplication tables.  SO much of what I teach in 5th grade is dependent upon the fact that my students are fluent in multiplication.  If, for example, they don't know what 3 times 4 is, it is really hard to ask them to find Least Common Multiples or Greatest Common Factors.  Finding the percent of a fraction, division in general...all really, really hard if you are struggling with your multiplication facts. So what to do?  I can't take out gobs and gobs of time to work on the tables.  We simply don't have gobs and gobs of time.  However, I do one thing that seems to have worked for my students over the past 14 years....timed tests. Did I hear an audible gasp???  I know it is SO very old school.  But sometimes, old school works.  I use a program that I got while student teaching in San Diego called Lightning Rod.  It is no longer in print (such a shame) but I did find one teacher who put his pages up online ...
I was browsing TpT the other day and I came across something that stopped me in my tracks.  Someone (who shall remain nameless) took my Calendar Math template ...which you all know I LOVE and have used for YEARS...moved a few things around and was selling it as her own.  I really, honestly, could not believe it.  It made me sad and mad all at the same time. So, what did I do?  Well, I contacted her.  I asked her to please remove the product from her store as that is essentially MY product.  She responded that she was looking on Pinterest and had seen several pictures of Calendar and "adapted it" then put it up. (she was apologetic, did take it down for now, but she did say that when she tweaks it a bit more she will put it up again... :\) And here I am at my point.  What you see on Pinterest comes from PEOPLE.  Actual, real people who have put their hard work online to share with you for your own classroom.  Most of what you see, especially education related pins, comes f...