Well…hello there! Today's topic is all about fluency. Reading fluency to be exact. One of my favorite skills to watch my kids develop. Not just the rate of reading, but the expression and voice in which they read! I love watching my kids turn into little storytellers right before my eyes. I’ve had a fluency center in my classroom for several years. Each year I seem to add a little something new to my little back of tricks. We start out the year with sight word rings….tons of poetry…and fun little games. This is my favorite resource for poetry… We’ve progressed into fluency phrases and ... Read More
Reading Comprehension
Today I wanted to touch on comprehension while I'm thinking about it. Sometimes I feel like we're so concerned with moving our kids to the next level that we don't really pay close attention to the skills our kids need to become independent readers who can truly comprehend what they're reading. I feel like this is the most important part of reading! Understanding what we read. How do you fit that into your instruction? First I think it's important to break down the skills and strategies our kids need to learn and practice. This book was recommended to me this past summer by several readers and after ... Read More
Science of April…It’s Here!
I've got a busy day ahead of me...Easter parties and spring cleaning...but I wanted to pop in real quick and let y'all know that Abby & I finished up our newest cross-curricular science resource, The Science of April, and released it yesterday (after many a technical difficulty..oof). Here's just a tiny sample... And here's April's pacing calendar if you're interested! Love having an entire month's view in one organized little space. Definitely helps keep me on track!! If you're interested in adding this to your science resources, just click on the pic below. Four weeks of detailed science lesson plans ... Read More
Last Minute Easter Ideas & FREEBIES!
Believe it or not, Easter is right around the corner! I'm not sure why I thought we had more time, but just in case you missed the memo too, we don't. We don't have much time at all. This SUnday to be exact! I'm in the process of helping the Easter Bunny gather lots of fun treats for the boys. I'm glad I didn't wait to remember that until the night before. Not that I know anything about that ;) I was at Michael's the other day and found these... Of course, I had to have them. Loved that they came 3 to a set. I'm sure they have something similar to this at the Dollar Tree?? ... Read More
Money, Money, Money, Money….MONEY!!!
Did you read that title the way I'm singing it right now? The O'Jays?? Anyone? Bueller?? So let's talk MONEY!!! A few weeks ago I did a standards-based training that centered around teaching financial literacy concepts to our primary babies....first grade to be exact. Our district starts with introducing coins, identifying coins, and determining the value of a set of coins. I felt like I needed to talk a bit about this concept before heading right into financial literacy because they piggyback off each other so beautifully. SO, I wanted to give you some ideas that maybe you can incorporate ... Read More
Leap into March!
If you're anything like me, then you like to plan ahead. With the first day of March being tomorrow, I thought today would be the perfect day to talk about St. Patrick's Day and get a head start on planning...if you haven't already. But before we get to all that, HAPPY LEAP DAY!!!! This couldn't be more true. If you happen to be checking this before your school day starts...or during your lunch/planning break....and you need some Leap Day ideas, you can check out what I shared last week by clicking the pic below. In honor of Leap Day, I'm throwing a sale in my shop. Click the pic below for 20% ... Read More
Let’s Talk Leap Day!
Leap Day is coming up...February 29th, to be exact. Y'know..in case you needed a reminder ;) So HOW do we celebrate and make this day relevant for our kiddos?! Well here are just a few fun ideas!!! This is a GREAT book to read on Leap Day! Leap's Day: February 29th, by Stephanie Bee Simmons. Here's a great Leap Day video geared toward kids, too! And here's another! Of course, no new concept is complete without an anchor chart. Here's the one I did with my first graders four years ago! That year we learned that Leap Year babies are called "leaplings" or "leapers". We did a little ... Read More
Science of March FREEBIES!
Last week I popped in to tell y'all all about the books Abby and I are using for our Science of March resource. We just released it yesterday! WOO HOO!!! Here's a little sample.. Rainbows/Color Science, Clouds, Weather in Spring, and Sun/Moon Stars. That's a mouthful! Here's the pacing calendar for those of you who asked... If you're interested in adding this to your science resources, just click on the pic. Four weeks of detailed science lesson plans plus additional cross-curricular activities, too! We always put our science resources on sale (20%) off for the first 24 hours, so you can ... Read More
The Science of March Book List
Hello all! March is quickly approaching and if y'all are anything like me then I'm sure you like to get a head start on planning. Abby and I have been furiously working on our latest resource...The Science of March...and plan on releasing it it this Sunday, February 21st! We are really excited about this one because Spring themes have us excited about the change in weather and well...the end of the school year, too ;) Last week Abby posted a few of the books we'll be using for our lesson plans and I wanted to quickly pop-in and follow up with the rest of the titles in case you're interested in grabbing them! ... Read More
Dental Health and President’s Day
With President's Day behind us, I figured it would be a great time to take a walk down memory lane to look back in time to what went on in my classroom this time of year. President's Day has always coincided with our study on coins. These bubble maps focusing on both the coins and their attributes really tied in nicely with these concepts! As usual, no unit on President's Day is complete without this darling George Washington craftivity and writing! I think I've been doing this one just as long as I've been teaching! An oldie, but goodie...always a favorite! It took NO time to cut out the hats {steps below} ... Read More
