Life is just one big game :)

Isn't life just full of games?  Hopefully, the good kinds so that you can have fun every once in a while!!  Well, today was one of those days.  As our quarterly reward (for our school-wide PRIDE reward program), the teachers put on a Minute-To-Win-It game show for all the kids that earned the quarterly reward!! If you are not familiar with the game show, the contestants are asked to do crazy "party tricks" for 1 minute to see who wins.  For example, the most humiliating in my book, is the feat where you are asked to tie an empty tissue box (filled with ping pong balls) to your butt, and then have to shake your tail feather for 1 minute to try and get all of the ping pong balls out of the box before your opponent!  Thank goodness I was not called up to do that one.

Anyways, to play the school-wide game, 3 students were chosen for each "battle."  They then had to choose which teacher they wanted to complete against.  This teacher, of course, was called up to the stage...where she could humiliate herself in front of the whole school - ALL IN GOOD FUN OF COURSE :)  Since I'm a Title I teacher, I thought I was safe from the onstage awkwardness....I WAS WRONG...Of all the students, two of my little Kindergarteners were called to the stage.  After their decision, the microphone rang, "Will Mrs. Hardin please come to the stage?!" Ugh was my thought.  Our task was called "Temper Tantrum."  We had to attach a pedometer to our foot, and throw a temper tantrum for a full minute to see who had the most "steps" on their pedometer.  Below is my "performance:"

I have to say, I don't know how kids do it sometimes...throwing a temper tantrum is hard work - It's safe to say my legs will be sore for days (and I didn't think I was that out of shape)!  The kids had so much fun, and I felt like a celebrity afterwards :)  The perks of being a teacher...

On another note, I wanted to share an awesome activity that can be used for a variety of skills - I use it mostly for phonics and number skills.  FISHING!!  I made magnetic fishing poles by wrapping a string with a magnet on the end of it to a short fence post (looks like a vampire stake lol).  Then, just print, cut, and laminate a set of fish.  After they have been laminated, you can write on them with Visa V wet erase markers to practice a variety of skills!  Today, was NUMBER ID with my Kinders!  I attached a paperclip to each fish to attract the magnetic pole.  The kids took turns fishing for a number, and had to ID the number before they could add it to their fishing bucket.

This is a great way to see individual knowledge of a skill, as well as motivate kids to learn their numbers.  I will definitely use this as a reinforcement station next year in my 1st grade classroom.  This activity also helps with fine motor skills!  The students realized right away that they had to do it "slow and steady" to get the fish (their words, not mine  :)  ). 

Sometimes children surprise you...This little girl brightened my day by her spunk.  We were practicing segmenting words with blends in them (those are always the hardest for them).  They had to roll a blend dice of their choice, then segment the word I gave them with that blend.  If they got it correct, they got to roll a # dice to move their piece on the gameboard.  When it got to this 1st grade girl, this is our how conversation went:

Mrs. Hardin:  Which dice would you like to roll?  

1st grade girl: Hmm....I think I'm going to pick the one with the r's (r-blends).  Because I have a hard time saying my r's. I need to work on them.

Mrs. Hardin: I think that is a great decision.  I love how you want to challenge yourself - that's what makes you smarter!  What a nice decision, don't you think, guys (to the group)?  

Wouldn't you know it, when I saw the little girl later in the day, she asked, "Are you still going to help me with my r's?!"  I told her, "Of course!  I'm not a speech teacher.  I teach you reading, but I will try my hardest!"  She said matter-of-factly, "Well, you learn letters and sounds while your reading, don't you?"  Yes you do....Yes you do. :)  It's amazing to see kids challenge themselves without worrying about prizes or good behavior or bad behavior...Makes me smile :)

Making Connections & Hurricane Sandy!

There has been so much going on lately, and I'd really like to start posting more!  Not enough time in the day, right?...Anyways, we all know the crazy effects of Hurricane Sandy and the impending storms the past 24 hours...I woke up this morning to find my world cold, white, and fluffy outside!  Our newly carved pumpkins have snow hats about 4 inches high, and my pup is loving the mysterious powder that occurred overnight...And because of the big surprise, NO SCHOOL TODAY!  So, this gave me the perfect opportunity to start posting again!

Jaxy decided that the low-hanging bushes would be his fort, and I caught him just in time to see him get spooked by a clump of snow on his butt...Until I have my own kids at home, he is my entertainment, and I love spoiling him with attention!  :)

Anyways, I stated in my previous posts that I have been praying for a classroom job, although I love Title I!  I miss the units, structure, and student/parent relationships that you can grow with in the classroom.  Good news!! A couple weeks ago, I was offered a 1st grade position in a WONDERFUL 1st grade team at Big Elm Elementary!  I don't start until the next school year, but I am overwhelmed with excitement!  So much to do, prepare, and plan for!  I'm hoping over the next couple of months to post my projects that I plan to prepare for next year - As this will be my first "classroom" teaching job, I have so many ideas, and Pinterest is only adding to my obsession.  As a reading specialist, I have tons of activities and experience with small group instruction - So, here are some of my most recent activities - Grades K - 5!

I'm in love with this book called, Comprehension Connections, by Tanny McGregor.

It's a small book that is easy to read and straight to the point...Now, I know as teachers, we are sometimes the WORST students - BUT, this book is totally worth the read!  It helps you create real concrete connections for your students with the basic comprehension strategies, such as metacognition, synthesis, connecting, etc. It uses real objects & scenarios to introduce students to these complex ideas.  They come to the conclusion on their own with these strategies (INQUIRY)!   Anyways, when I saw that I would be teaching a group focused on "Making Connections," I thought this book would be a perfect resource :)

I forgot to take pics of the "Reading Salad" we made to introduce the aspect of thinking and connecting while we read - but below is a picture of another teacher's interpretation.  The kids added "green leaves" (to represent text - every time I read).  Now as I read, I stopped to think-aloud, and share with the students what the text was making me think about - they added "red tomatoes" every they heard me think aloud.  We noticed that "REAL Reading" in not just reading the words, but being aware of what the text is making us think about!  (I used the book, The Man Who Waked Between the Towers" by Mordicai Gerstein for my think-aloud - it was interesting to see how the kids connected to the twin towers, and what they remembered about 9-11.)

 

This was my favorite part - sharing our connections with our "thought bubble!!"  Since we live in WV, I picked the famous book, When I Was Young in the Mountains, by Cynthia Ryland (WV author!).  My kids could really connect to this book, as they have lots of experiences like Cynthia Rylant does in the book!  I assigned a reader, a thinker, and a writer.  The reader read a page out of the book off of the document camera, the thinker shared their connections in the thought bubble (using one of our "thinking stems" we wrote on post-its and added to the bubble), and the writer wrote those connections on our graphic organizer below FREEBIE!!

Our thought bubble!  

Click to download!

The kids LOVED sharing their memories and connections about their lives in the mountains :)  We also did a little mini-lesson on how we use our memories, and things that have happened in our lives, to help us connect.  It was kind of like a "connection race!"  I showed a picture on a powerpoint (FREEBIE download below), and the students had to write down as many things that the picture made them think of in 20 SECONDS.  We shared our thoughts, and expanded on them to connect. HOWEVER, on the last picture, I showed a picture of the Pentagon...they all looked confused, and couldn't write anything down...This facilitated our discussion that if we don't know anything about a topic, we cannot connect with it.  And therefore, we need to go to outside resources to find out more about it!

FREEBIE Connection Powerpoint

After our introductions, modeling, and guided practice, the students moved on to a novel to apply their knowledge of making connections.  Below is a FREEBIE of the thought bubble templates we used to show we wanted to make a connection.  I printed these thought bubbles out on cardstock (pretty colors of course), laminated them, and attached them to a popsicle stick.  As we read, the students held up their thought bubble if they had a connection they wanted to share!  We also used post-its to record these thoughts in their books.  Enjoy!

Click picture to download FREEBIE!

I have so much more to share, but I need to take a break!

My Classroom Debut!

With an unexpected move of schools, came an unexpected change in rooms!  With a room 3x the size of my previous room (and with 20-30 years of teacher "stuff" left to be sorted through), I was more than anxious to get started.  The Before:

And yes, all 50 of those boxes were full of books...

Four weeks later...I've got it somewhat under control.  The After (still a work in progress of course, like any teacher's room):

Welcome to the jungle!

Small Group Area

Equipped with a "Sound Wall," where we post phonics patterns we are learning.  Then we can sort & add words that fit those patterns throughout our journey to read!  This is one of the most useful tools in my classroom!  Thanks, Laura!

Zebra print word wall letters! Thanks to Teaching in Flip Flops! Click photo to go to her blog & download for free!

Jungle Print Number Cards -
these will be available for download soon!

Work Attack Posters

Jungle Print Alphabet Cards -
will be available soon for download!

Everyone needs a little encouragement (especially at the beginning of the year).  This is my ticket system - students earn tickets for displaying good behavior, always participating, being on time, and helping friends!  At the end of the week, we have a lottery!  I pull two tickets, and those children get to pick out of the prize box!  Normally, I  don't prefer to rely on extrinsic rewards.  However, I do think they are part of the process of students understanding intrinsic rewards, and learning respect toward others.  The tickets become harder and harder to earn as students become aware of the expectations, and are expected to go above and beyond them.  

The silver tins (chalkboard in the middle!) were $1 a piece at Target (in the wonderful "little grabs" section).  Ribbon was purchased at Walmart :)  

Prize Day Schedule -
these graphics will be available for download soon!

Since our SPL groups change every couple of weeks, we don't always start on Mondays.  I got tired of the students asking me when prize day was, so I created a little schedule to let them know when to expect it.  Whatever day the sun is on, that is PRIZE DAY!

Whole Group Carpet Area

Library

Reading Buddies

The kids LOVE crate seats!  My friend and fellow teacher, Lauren, showed me this awesome tutorial from Ms. Fultz's Corner, on how to make them!  Click the photo to find out!

Luckily, my handy husband had some extra plywood and foam padding around the house.  So, all we needed was some awesome fabric from Walmart and a staple gun!  The cute flower rug was also from Walmart!  

We use this area to have discussions as a whole group, and get interactive with the SmartBoard!

And just in case we have some down-time at the end of our lesson, we always have BOGGLE!  To play, the kids make as many words by connecting letters on the board.  The person who can make the most words, WINS!  Click the picture to find the downloadable boggle letters from Create, Teach, Share :)

Oh, and with the leftover fabric from the crate seats, I upholstered a plain wooden stool from Target to make a teacher stool for our carpet area.  I also plan to have it double as an Author's Chair! 

Computer Area

Although we use our SmartBoard as a whole-group learning tool for interactive lessons and games, I use individual computers for my Tier 3 students.  Our county uses Waterford Early Learning & SuccessMaker interactive computer software to supplement direct instruction for these students.

Teacher's Corner!

My desk!

If I don't have it posted in sight, I will forget! Of course, the bulletin board is PINK!  The flowered file folder box is my newest addition (Target) - It's a great way to organize papers I need copies, laminated, filed, etc.  And, I'm hoping to fill my frames with pictures of my hubby and my kids (my puppy & kitties, of course)...New additions & the first couple weeks of fun activities are yet to come!

~ Mrs. Hardin