Five for Friday~Stolen Moments

Hi, Friends! How are ya? It’s been a doozy of a week! We’ve managed to play “catch up” after our snow day off. Yep! You read that right…SNOW day…! And guess what?! Today, it was over 70 degrees! That’s TX weather for ya!


In between switches from jackets to tee shirts, we squeezed in lots of smile worthy moments….



We completed another class book! As we’ve grown as writers, we’ve begun to really enjoy sharing our writing. One way we do this is through creating class books. Our goal is to have one for every student to take home at the end of the year. We’ve created them to practice abc order, sight words and as a way of making connections to our story of the week. I love that they’re writing! They love having personalized books to read. Win/win!



Word work in small groups took on the form of a mini-book of glued sounds. Students recorded the sounds we focused on for the day, listed 3 words and used them in sentences with their friends at the table. I never imagined this simple activity leading to me needing a tissue, but it did.

I have a student that I’ve affectionately nicknamed ‘Halo’. I call him that because he is an angel. He’s the love of Christ personified in a 6 year old…genuinely kind, always thoughtful, hard working and just an all around wonderful person! As busy as our days become and with all that we have to do, sometimes we have moments that completely surprise us and remind us of why we do what we do. This activity led to one of those little moments. When I asked the kids at the table to use one of their words in a sentence, Halo, leaned over his book and began to write. When he was done, he lifted his head with a sweet smile swallowing his face and the entire room lit up! A sunray from the heavens shone down on his face. Then, I looked at his book to read the sentence he had so proudly written….

  Thank you for helping me.

….and my heart skipped a beat because he not only wrote a sentence, he wrote a message. A message that helped me to realize, that yes…we had things to do and to cover to catch up from the previous week’s day off. BUT, more importantly we had moments, messages, and milestones to enjoy, to savor, to completely be in the moment for.

Thank YOU, Little Halo, for helping ME!



When you work in a place where appreciation, uplifting, and positivity is the name of the game, it’s an easy thing to show up each day. Our school is more than just a group of people working together, more than friends…we’re family. A collection of dedicated, talented people with one purpose, supporting one vision. We take the time to enjoy special moments, uplift each other and encourage each other. We’re each blessed with unique talents that compliment each other and share them freely. It’s a blessing to walk into the atmosphere of our campus. Though my kids’ efforts and hard work often move me to tears, these ladies bring on nothing but smiles and sheer joy. They’re simply the best and we make one rockin’ 1DERFUL team!



As we all move toward 100th day celebrations, wrap up mid year assessments, plan for the end of the year while looking ahead to the next….stop, for just a moment. Lift each other up. Exhale. Enjoy the moment. Be silly. Be absolutely, 1DERFULLY, insanely silly…….TOGETHER! It’s a 1DERFUL, blessed life that we live.

 

Seriously! What were YOU thinking?

Have you ever found yourself wondering the answer to that question during the day? Actually saying it out loud? Well, today….I did…out loud….over and over again….



…during math. Shocked?! At me asking that question or by the fact that I taught math, lol?! I don’t share a lot about our math time because my heart belongs to all things literacy, BUT today was one of those days when the lights came on. It was one of those days when through the organized chaos, the chitter chatter, through the rowdiness of it all…they learned. They REALLY learned. They got it!

 After creating a chart to outline the steps for solving a story problem, we reviewed each of the strategies we’ve been discussing and prepared to practice what we’d preached. We’ve been calling these…. “Think” Strategies…



I have some very clever little mathematicians in my class that keep me on my toes, so one strategy that I was sure to incorporate was, “I just know it”! I attended a training recently where one of the instructors expressed how important it is to share with students that “just knowing” the answer is a valuable strategy. By honoring it, the need for acknowledgement is addressed and those students that “just know it” are more receptive to practice the steps of the process because THEY know, YOU know that THEY KNOW the answer, even before beginning the steps of problem solving. =)



Each student received a story problem to solve. Only 5…6? 6, I think, were created. This approach allowed for students to work in pairs and/or small groups to engage in “math talk” to discuss their thinking. It also allowed for differentiation for ability. After students walked through the steps of solving the problem, they had one additional task….explain your thinking. Prove it. Defend why the strategy you chose to use was the BEST strategy to solve your story problem. Here’s a closer look.

Their choice of the "BEST" strategy is named on the green sticky note.



….and now that we can better verbalize the “why” of what we did, the pesky worksheet has become a “think” sheet. Want your kiddos to show what they know? Great! But make ‘em tell you why! Seriously! Ask ‘em…… “What were YOU thinking”?!



See ya later! =)

 

Five for Friday~SNOW DAY!!!

Hey, ya’ll! It’s SNOW DAY Friday!



We woke up to SNOW! Real……SNOW!  My friends that live a little further north of the Texas state line will most certainly get a real giggle out of the frenzy we went into over a couple inches of the frozen stuff. We didn’t dare venture any further than our yards today because we have no idea how to get around in this stuff! My son didn’t even make it out the front door before he was flat on his butt!!!



Now, here’s the real kicker! On Monday, we had on shorts! The forecast for tomorrow…70! Yes, that’s how drastic our weather can be, but we wouldn’t have it any other way! We live in the only state where we experience EVERY season of the year…….weekly! Ha!!!



With only 3 days of school this week, getting a chance to snap a pic or two was tough. These first two weeks back have been used to complete mid-year assessments. They’re D.O.N.E and now we can move on to the fun of teaching and learning again! Yahooooo!!!

Things are getting a little harder, moving a little faster….expectations are, dare I say {more rigorous}. One of the little changes we’ve made is switching the dice on our fact family slide from 6 sided dice to 10 sided dice. By doing this, we’ll practice adding and subtracting to 20 rather than to 12. Each day, our fact family is randomly selected by clicking the dice to name our addends, adding to find the sum, then writing the 4 equations for the fact family. This also meets the guidelines for our new TEKS (state standards) update that rolls out next school year. This is one part of our daily calendar routine.



Because my kiddos did such a great job working like little church mice during testing and running records, math time was a little more hands on and active. Well, um…if I’m completely honest……….math time in our classroom is ALWAYS hands on, active, and loud! I believe in structure, but I also believe in balance. We start our day quietly….reading requires thinking, concentration…., math gets a little rowdy with music, games, manipulatives….then we end the day with writer’s workshop that goes back to quiet. Balance. It’s key!

Also, having a class that’s made up of mostly [the cutest] firstie boys….I have got to keep them moving or they will move on their own! One of the ways I use that energy rather than fight it, is by completing write the room activities. One way we ‘write the room’ is to review math skills, work in pairs to share “thinking” strategies, and to encourage “math talk”.



Cards with review problems are printed, cut apart and hung around the room. Student pairs…….each with a response sheet, pencil, and whiteboard (to write on the back of) in hand scoot around the room solving problems and recording their answers. I get total engagement, they get to move, talk, and learn…..all at the same time! Win/win! While students are working, I float around the room checking in, questioning, and {smiling}.



Want to really see their little faces light up? Write story problems that include their names! They go totally bonkers every time I tell them we’re working on story problems because they want to see who’s name is going to be in them! It makes a tough skill a LOT more fun to learn. When I’m reading stories that connect well with our classroom community, I do the same thing. I wish I could’ve recorded us sharing Don’t Squeal Unless It’s a Big Deal! There were laughs and cheers and screams of encore! I would’ve read it again, but YOU KNOW, I didn’t remember who’s name was read where, LOL! Couldn’t give myself away! Try it sometime and watch your kids' faces light up like a Christmas tree!



Prepping for the week? Snowed in too? Click the pic to grab the little set we used to review telling time to the hour and half hour. Enjoy and I’ll see ya on Sunday with lesson plans! Have a great weekend! =)