New TPT Products

School starts for me with Institute on Thursday and Friday.  The students come on Monday.  I can't believe another year is going to be on its way soon...where is the summer???

I spent this summer redoing a lot of my classroom.  I'm obsessed, I mean I LOVE Melonheadz Kids.  I buy every one that comes out.  I find myself looking at those kids and smiling.  So...I redid most everything using her kid graphics.  I will slowly but surely start downloading them into my TPT store. 

Here are 2 I put on there just today:

This one I use outside my classroom door so everyone can see where we are at if we are not in our classroom.  I use an EZ Clip on the oval and then clip where we are (actually I have a student do it).  I've included 10 different specials and 2 blank so that you can write some in if you have different names.

 

 

 

This one was original my Super Reading Strategy Posters with Super Kitty from Scappindoodles.  I switched it over to the kids and I LOVE it.  You should see how cute this looks on my reading bulletin board!

 

 

I will be participating in the one day TPT sale on August 20, so if you would like to - you can pick these up then.  And in case you were wondering - - - I will be posting my classroom reveal soon (with all those adorable Melonheadz kids). 

 

 

 



Hello Again

WOW!  Has it really been over 3 months since I had a post?  O...M...G...

Well I just wanted to say hello...I'm still alive.  My summer goal is to start blogging again...I hope!

Do you guys ever feel like you don't know if anyone really wants to read what is on your blog?  I've have a slump I think. 

But I feel like I have so much to share from a new principal (again - 4th one in 4 years), a new math curriculum (Go Math), and so much with common core.  So fingers crossed...I'll try and make it a point to start this old blog up again.

Happy Fourth of July!!

Common Core Daily Reading Comprehension

If you read my Common Core Math Review blog post the other day, you will see that a friend introduced me to a few new resources.  Here is one I'm using for reading:

Once again, my students LOVE getting their packet each Monday.  I like this because it teaches all the important common core strategies and uses some interesting articles.  For example:  in week 24 the comprehension skills are nonfiction text features and visual information.  The comprehension strategies are determine important information and organization.  So the daily stories is a nonfiction story on great white sharks, reading a table of contents, reading a time line, and another nonfiction on an ant colony.

It is nice that each day's comprehension story is short and sweet.  I use another book with this one to give them more exposure to longer passages. 

This book has different passages and then an extended response that correlates with the theme of the other stories.  I have been using this one a lot before ISAT to give my kiddos exposure to writing those fun extended response questions.

By utilizing both resources (and all the items I buy from TPT), I feel like I'm covering a whole bunch of different reading comprehension stories in different ways.  Until we get guidance from our administration on where our district is going with common core...this is what I'm doing.

Is anyone else having fun implementing common core WITHOUT resources given to you from your administration???? 

Common Core Math Review

A friend introduced me to a book to help my students with common core math.  If you don't know this, my district is implementing common core this year WITHOUT supplying us with materials!

I was using this book:

My students liked it, but it seemed to be kind of hodge podged.  All types of skills all over the place.


A friend introduced me to this one:

This one is broken down to a different common core skill each day.  For example:  Monday is Patterning and Algebra, Tuesday is Number Sense and Operations, Wednesday is Geometry, Thursday is Measurement, and Friday is Data Management. 

My students REALLY like this book better than the last one.  Each week they can't wait until Monday so they can get their new weekly sheets.  They know to work on today's section and then put it into their desk folder until the next day.  If there are skills that I know my students will need help on, I will teach that skill while going over the day's questions.

Next year I will start with the second book for the first part of the year and maybe finish the year by utilizing the second book.  Don't know yet...will have to see how things go with our district's math pilot!

Math Pilot

Hi Everyone!  I know...it's been awhile.  This year has been a handful.  With implementing Common Core without materials, ISAT testing without knowing what is on the test, PARCC piloting, etc...UGG!

Oh yeah, another thing to add to the craziness.  I am on the math committee in my district and we are going to be piloting a new math series.  Our current math series is over 10 years old, not exactly common core ready.

So we narrowed our 3 choices (yes we were given 3, we did not get to pick the 3 we wanted to see) from our administration to 2:  My Math and Go Math.  Catching titles huh? 

Some of the teachers have noticed quite a few mistakes with My Math,

either with the teacher's guide or with student pages.

We are leaning towards Go Math.  It just seems like it follows Common Core the best and it seems to have a nice online component.

Does anyone use either of these two math series?  If so, is one better than the other???