Teacher Appreciation Week!

If anyone ever needed to be appreciated, it's our teachers!! As teachers ourselves, we all know how touching it is when a student (or past student) says "thank you" for something that you've done for them.

This past weekend, I took the time to hunt down my 8th grade Spanish teacher on FB. She is definitely one of the teachers that ultimately impacted my choice of careers! She is the first Spanish teacher I had, and without the foundation she gave me, I would not have gotten my degree in Spanish, nor would I be able to effectively communicate with the families I work with. I wanted to send her a little note and let her know where I ended up and how much I appreciated her putting up with bratty-8th-grade-me.

So, if you can, take a minute and hunt down a teacher who has impacted you, and take a moment during teacher appreciation week to show some appreciation to those who got you where you are today.

TpT Appreciates You!

TpT appreciates you and so do I!! Today and tomorrow, my store will be 20% off all items over $3.00. You can get an additional 10% off at checkout by using the promo code TAD13. Don't forget to use the code!!

Other Teacher Appreciation Goodies

Chick-Fil-A: I'm not a fan of Chick-Fil-A's politics, but I'll take a free chicken sandwich any day! All you have to do to get a free Classic Chicken Sandwich is show your teacher ID.  Turns out this is a big, fat lie. Most Chick-fil-A are not participating, so don't waste your entire lunch break like I did!!

Chipolte: From 4pm until close, teachers can stop by and by showing a teacher ID, are entitled to buy-one-get-one burrito, bowl, salad or tacos.


Enjoy your week!

The best Pencil Sharpener EVER!!

So.....you know that endless parade to the pencil sharpener that goes on in every classroom? And the loud, loud sound of work-avoidance-sharpening? Well....have I got a solution for you!!

This is THE BEST pencil sharpener EVER!! I love it and so do my students. Here are the best things about it:

1. It attaches to any table, so I can put it ANYWHERE in my classroom that is convenient for me.
2. The removable clear tray makes it easy to empty and the sharpenings do not leak out to fall on the floor and make a mess.
3. QUIET!! It is so quiet!! I can keep teaching even when a student is sharpening.
4. It automatically stops sharpening when the pencil is sharp. The handle just loses tension- so no "all day" sharpening!!
5. This pencil sharpener makes the sharpest pencils I have ever had!! 

I really really really love how sharp the pencils get. The teachers who are in my evening CPD classes were even raving about how sharp they are!!

So, where did I get this AMAZING pencil sharpener? From www.classroomfriendlysupplies.com . I also really like that the website is owned and operated by another teacher!! I'd much rather spend money & help another teacher at the same time!!

You're really missing out if you don't have one of these. Head over today and get yours!! You'll be so happy you did!

School's (Almost) Out Blog Hop & Giveaway

I can't believe that the year is almost over! It has been a busy and exhausting year for me, and I'm really looking forward to some relaxation this summer.


The end of this school year will be a little bittersweet for me, as I will be leaving the classroom for the foreseeable future. No- I'm not leaving education, but I am moving to a position as an Elementary ESOL Coach with my district.

Yup....this looks about right!

I'm very excited because I will have the opportunity to work with both ESOL and mainstream teachers and help them tailor their instruction to really meet the needs of the English language learners in their classes. I will have a focus group for the ESOL teachers where we study The Langauge Rich Classroom by Patricia Himmele. For the mainstream teachers, my focus group will study The SIOP Model. If you're a mainstream teacher who is not familiar with the SIOP model, I highly recommend reading about it this summer. It will enrich the instruction you provide for all your students, not just your ELLs.

I've always loved doing PD and working with teachers to help them improve the instruction they provide to their English language learners, so I'm thrilled at this opportunity to share my knowledge. The part I'm not looking forward to? Boxing up EVERYTHING in my classroom for the move to Central Office. Ugh. I hate moving!

A year is.....

One of the fun things that I've been doing with my kids lately is figuring out different ways that we can describe a year. I wanted to review with them some basic things that they should know, but according to their math teacher, are not familiar with. First, I had students refresh their memories. Each student got a sticky note with a mystery number, and had to place it on the chart correctly: 

Then we began by thinking of things that we do, eat or use throughout the year, and how much time we spend doing it or the amount that we use or eat. This required finding out how much per day, week, month and then year. Lots of multiplying and critical thinking. Here's some of the things that the kids came up with:

So, what is a year to you??

The Blog Hop and Giveaway
So, as the title implies, there is an awesome School's (ALMOST) Out Blog hop and giveaway going on!! It is being hosted by Krystal Mills Lesson from the Middle and Create, Teach, Share.
We'll have one grand prize winner who will win an awesome variety of products! Here's the list of the awesome things you could win!

• Editable Teacher Binder 
• Time Flies - End of Year Literacy Activities
• Class Votes Awards Kit
• End-of-the-YearNew-Year-Introduction-Student-Brochure-Project
• Seasonal Demand Writing Prompt Bundled Set
• traditional lit versus fractured fairy tale
• Combining Like Terms - Quick Review
• Alien Text Talk Full Year Daily Language Practice ~ Grammar, Spelling
• Measurement Wars Bundle
• Fun with Probability
• 20 Figurative Language Posters
• Create a SMART Goal Board
• Choice of any 3 items in the hosts' TPT Stores
• $30 Amazon gift card!

I've donated my Fun with Probability Lesson Pack to the giveaway!

To enter the giveaway, head on over to Lessons in the Middle and get started with your entries!! There are a lot of awesome sellers participating in this blog hop and giveaway! Don't miss your chance to get some great stuff!

 

Help! Help! We've Been Robbed!!

Do you want $120 worth of amazing TpT products for $25??

So, as you may have read earlier on my blog, my classroom was robbed earlier this year, not ONCE, but TWICE! When they came, they got ALL of our technology, including the computers for student use. This is tragic because we are already seriously strapped for funds, and our district will not pay to replace it.

Just after it happened, I placed a project for two new computers on DonorsChoose.org. While I've had a several donations, it is not nearly enough to complete the project, and the project will expire in 7 days!

I am absolutely determined to get this project completed so that my students can replace what was stolen from them. Fortunately, the wonderful teacher-authors over at TeachersPayTeachers have banded together with me to do a fund drive!! I'm hoping that in the remaining 6 days that my project is live, I will be able to raise the money needed to complete it so my students can get their computers. Our fund drive, Help! Help! We've Been Robbed! Will be live until Wednesday, April 17th. I hope that we will have met our goal!

For a $25 donation to my poor students, you get $120 worth of products from myself and other amazing TpT authors (click here or on the picture below to see a list and links to all the items you will receive). 100% of the proceeds will go to my DonorsChoose.org project and any leftover will go to buy a printer for the students so they can print out the completion certificates from their language learning programs.

Here's a list of all you'll receive if you donate:

This amazing opportunity is limited and ends on Wedneday, April 17. Here's how it works.

1. Click the "donate" button below. You do not have to have a paypal account to donate.
2. Donate $25. 
3. When you are checking out and making your payment through paypal, be sure to enter your E-MAIL ADDRESS.
4. Within one day of your donation, I will e-mail you the bundle, which is valued at nearly $120!! (That's an 80% discount, by the way!!)

IF you have any questions, or are unable to enter your e-mail address, I can be reached at tools4teachers.mrsj@gmail.com

Thanks so much in advance for your generosity!

Also, much love and thanks to these AMAZING TpT teachers for their generous donations:

Desktop Learning Adventures

Christine Maxwell

All Things Elementary

Darlene Anne

Everyone Deserves to Learn

Betty Sanchez

Dee Ann Moran

Ms. Lindsey

Teacher Addict

Page Protector Printables and More

Saddle up for 2nd Grade

Mary Carr

The Fun Factory

Michaela Almeida

My Breakfast Reading Menu

Lisa Lilenthal

Strategy of the week- Semantic Feature Analysis

Earlier this week, we got through our state testing in reading. Next week is math. With that in the back of my mind, I wanted to give students a fun, hands-on activity to help them review their geometric shapes and vocabulary.

First, I hunted down the one set of solid shape manipulatives at our school, and a set of plane shape manipulatives. Then, I created a semantic feature analysis chart. If you've never used a semantic feature analysis chart, I highly recommend it because it gives students a chance to explore the attributes of a topic or object.

On one side of the chart, I listed several solid and plane shapes that students are familiar with. Across the top of the chart, I listed attributes like "solid shape" or "2-dimensional" or "circular base". Students used the manipulatives to determine the attributes of each shape given and mark the information into their chart. This was a great chance for students to practice their academic vocabulary while refreshing their memories about each shape. It also gives me a very clear picture of where any misconceptions might be.

This semantic feature analysis can be used for a variety of different subject areas and topics. For example, if you are learning about the classes of animals (mammal, amphibian, reptile, etc), then you could list familiar animals down the left side, and have characteristics like "cold blooded" or "gives live birth" or "lays eggs" across the top, and have students use the semantic feature analysis to determine what class the animals belong to.

Next, students used my Elementary Geometry Matching Cards to continue practicing this vocabulary. They took turns asking one another the riddles on the card, and finding the picture of the real-life object that their classmate was describing. Again, it was a great chance for students to practice their academic vocabulary, and get practice speaking and listening. Even better, the matching cards include pictures of real-life objects, so students are able to connect the mathematical shapes they are learning about to real-life items they see everyday.

How are you keeping your students engaged and learning until test time??

Equivalent Fractions, Hands-on Discovery, and Using Academic Language

We are down to the wire for state testing here in Maryland- less than two weeks. Looking back at the last district benchmark test, one of the areas that my students really struggled with was fractions- fractions on number lines and equivalent fractions, so I really wanted to tackle that with my 4th grade ELLs before the big day.

First, we started out last week by writing a definition for fraction, numerator, and denominator. This was a great exercise to introduce students to the academic language that I wanted to hear from them. Then, we did an activity where students used information in Valentine-themed word problems to create fractions. We did the first few problems together, and I really modeled the academic language- "How many roses did Selina receive? So, what is our denominator for our fractions? If three of those roses were red, what is our numerator?" Students really caught onto this, and while they worked to solve the rest of the fractions, I heard them using the words numerator and denominator a lot!

Then, I gave each student a laminated number line, dry erase marker, and napkin. We plotted the fractions we wrote for the word problems on the numberline. Students took turns going up to the board to point out fractions, and then each student plotted on their numberline. When I said it was time to put the numberlines and markers away, one student exclaimed, "But I LOVE doing this!!".

Next, I gave students a worksheet that had fractions plotted on the number lines with a star and asked the students to name the fraction represented. After creating their own number lines and plotting fractions on them, I found that students increased to about a rate of 90% correctness.

We had Friday and Monday off, but today we were able to move on to equivalent fractions. I could see that students were really struggling with this, and I wanted to give them a very hands-on, visual way to understand the equivalent fractions. In this lesson, I even had one of my level 1 ELLs participate. This particular student has very little formal education in her home language. She is 11 in 4th grade, and did not start school in her home country of El Salvador until she was 8 (almost 9).

Again, we began by writing a definition for "equivalent fractions". Then, we drew a picture of two equivalent fractions (1/2 and 2/4) and explained in writing why they were equivalent. Next, I showed students the 1/2 and 2/4 equivalent using fraction tiles on the document camera.

For this activity, I downloaded these FREE fraction strips from Mr. Elementary Math on TpT. I colored each fraction a different color (ie- 1/2= green, 1/4= red, etc). Then I laminated them. His set of fraction strips contains large strips (I like that they are extra large!) and come in whole, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6, 1/8, 1/10, 1/12 and 1/16.

However, instead of leaving them as fraction strips, I cut them all into their individual components so that I had tiles rather than strips. I placed two sets in each bag, and kept one for my use on the document camera. I teach a pull-out ESOL class, so I generally have 6-10 students in my class at a time. For this activity, I had them work in groups of 2-4.

Each student had a chart with common fractions (1/2, 1/4, 1/3, 3/4, 1/5, 1/8). Their mission was to use the fraction tiles to find as many equivalent fractions as possible for each fraction given. Students worked together to use the tiles and discover equivalents, while I walked around and monitored their work. I got to hear excellent discussions and the use of "one fourth" or "one tenth", which is difficult for my students. By the end of the lesson, I even heard my level one say "no, one-third and two-fifths NOT equivalent!" to another student. That made my day!

Students also really enjoyed the hands-on and self-guided discovery nature of the activity. It was also interesting to see how different students approached solving the problem. As you can see below, some made a large array of the fractions, and some individually matched each fraction to an equivalent number of smaller fractions.

Next, they put the information into a six flap foldable with the fraction and a drawing of the fraction on the outside, and a list of the equivalent fractions on the inside.

Students also really enjoyed this activity, and as a result, have a better understanding of equivalent fractions. It was also a great way to keep them engaged and to hear them use the academic language I wanted them to use. If you decide to try this lesson, be sure to use the  FREE fraction strips from Mr. Elementary Math and be sure to give him an awesome rating! These fraction strips really made my lesson and saved me a TON of time!

I've made everything you need to teach these two lessons, including lesson plans, available in my store at TpT for $5. Both lessons are Common Core Aligned! Just click the button below to purchase!

(photos and post with permission from Mr. Elementary Math)

Strategy of the Week

I know I haven't been doing this weekly, but I've been using a strategy lately that I really like. When I shared it with the teachers in the professional development class I'm teaching, the response was good, so I thought I'd share it here.

Strategy of the Week-

Round Table

For this strategy, you need to have several questions that you want to use to assess students' understanding. This activity works best with higher level questions that require more thought and extended answers. 

1. Type up (or write) your questions, putting each question at the top of its own sheet of paper.
2. Divide students into groups based on the number of questions you have. If you have 4 questions, your groups will have four members each. 
3. Make sure each student has a question sheet to start with.
4. Set a timer for 5 minutes, and have students write their response to the question.
5. After 5 minutes, have students pass the paper to the group member on the right. 
6. Give students 1 minute to read the response of the student before them, and then give them 5 minutes to write their own response.
7. Repeat until all students have had a chance to answer each question, and the papers are back in the hand of the original responder.
8. Give students a chance to read over the responses written to each question and come to a consensus on the best response for each one. The "best" response could be one single response, or two or three responses pieced together into a better response.
9. Finally, discuss as a class and give each group a chance to share their responses to the question.

This strategy is great for any student but especially for English language learners. For starters, it gets students working in all four domains of language- they start with writing, read each other's responses, speak to discuss, and listen to their classmates. For another thing, it helps to lower the affective filter by giving students plenty of time to respond, and by allowing students to share their ideas aloud in a lower pressure, small-group setting. Teachers can take up the individual sheets for informal assessment. Additionally, the round-table nature allows students to build on one another's ideas.

Let me know how it goes if you try it out in your classroom!

Chinese & Lunar New Year Linky Party

I really love to celebrate diversity in my classroom. One of the ways I try to do this is to provide lots of skills-based activities featuring readings on other cultures and holidays. With that in mind, I created my FREE Chinese New Year Read-and-Retell Activity. This year the Lunar New Year falls on February 10. This fun activity is ideal for grades 3-5. It helps your students to learn a little about how the Lunar New Year is celebrated in China and the way this activity is constructed scaffolds your students' retelling and summary of what they learned through the use of key vocabulary words. This download contains the read-and-retell activity at 3 different reading levels to address the needs of all the students in your class.

This activity gets students reading, writing, speaking and listening all in one activity. This activity is aligned with Common Core State Standards and WiDA ELD standards.
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I invite other TpT teacher-authors to share both their FREE and paid products for the Chinese and Lunar New Year.

All TpT Teacher-Authors are welcome to submit their products! Here are the rules:
1. Link directly to the product, not to your blog.
2. Post a link to this page on your blog or Facebook. This allows even more folks to see your products and the other products that are being shared.
3. Where it says "name" please put the name of the product. If it is a free product, please put "FREE" before the title. If it is a paid product, please put the price at the end of the title.

Product Swap: Little Match Girl

I participated in the product swap!

I swapped products with Jen over at Teaching, Life, and Everything in Between.

The first thing I want to say is that I am disappointed I don't have any pictures to share. I had planned to take some from the finished products this week, but ended up being out ALL WEEK because of the flu, so I am very sad I don't have pictures to share.

My students really enjoyed the story of the Little Match girl. and found it very touching. First off, I really love this product because Jen provides two versions of the story at different reading levels, with vocabulary activities designed around each one. This is perfect because I work with 4th grade ESOL students, and have 6 different groups that I work with, all at varied reading levels and language levels. The differentiated nature of this product was a HUGE bonus for me, as was the connection to the Common Core.

Jen also provided very thorough instructions throughout, especially for the Turn-and-Talks. I really liked the inclusion of the turn and talks, because my students need a chance to speak out loud about what they've read and what they're thinking. The mainstream teachers that work with my students don't always give them this opportunity, so I try to have plenty of "talk time" in my class. Another reason this product was so great for my students.

Next, Jen includes some activities for visualizing. We used the charts she included, which gave passages from the story, a box for "what I see" and a box for "what I think it means". I then shook it up a  little bit by having students draw their own picture for one of the passages, and writing a caption or quote from the story to go with the picture.

With one of my groups, we used the discussion cards to help us facilitate a mini Socratic Seminar about the story. The discussion cards were a great addition to the format of a Socratic Seminar, and I was very surprised by some of the insights and thoughts my students shared during the discussion.

Finally, I also really loved Jen's inclusion of writing extension activities. My students really need a lot of practice on this because they are very similar to the BCRs that my students do on the state test in March. Jen's prompts were perfect because they were related to the story, gave students a chance to make additional connections, and required them to pull information and evidence from the text to answer the question.

There are even some more activities included that I didn't have time to get to before the students went home for break. I wish I had more time so I could get them all in!

All-in-all, this is a great product and I can't wait to see more from Jen!!