Tricks and Treats Blog Hop

Happy Fall!  I don't know about you, but I am so excited for fall.  I think it is so beautiful outside and I love wearing scarves and boots!  Another reason why I love fall is the fact that you get to participate in our tricks and treats blog hop!  What teacher doesn't love a new trick to try in their classroom or a fun treat to have!

Here is my TRICK for you!

I have a problem with my students not wanting to transition from one subject or activity to the next.  It is like pulling teeth to get them to move!  I have tried counting, taking points away, bribing, EVERYTHING!  They could care less.  They continued to work on their assignment or just take their time walking across the classroom as if it were a stroll in the park.  It was driving me crazy! Then, I decided to use music as a transition tool. 

and.. 

WOW!  My kids magically started moving and getting to the next activity in a matter of seconds.  After a couple weeks of using music as a transition, they started getting there BEFORE the song was over!!  It has been simply amazing.

I have picked songs that are current or old.  I just try to choose songs that are upbeat and fun.  I have a mac, so I use Garageband to edit the songs.  If you are not able to edit the songs, you could always start a song and stop it when you want them on the rug.

I also use this to help my students understand time.  Some of the songs I use are 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes, etc.  I have different time frames depending on how much time they need to transition. Then, my students have learned that certain songs are short, as well as others are long.  My students are also understanding how long 10 seconds is compared to 1 minute.  I love this!  I hope this can be useful for you in your classroom. 

Here is your TREAT!

I am not sure how you use word work in your classroom, but I do 4 different stations.  

1.  Spelling words - students use the word work worksheets to practice spelling words for the week.

2.  I have a fluency poem station with phonics questions.  

3.  Fluency phrases - read the cards in 1 minute.  They practice with a partner.  When they have mastered it 3 times, they get tested, and can move on to the next set. 

4.  Students complete special sounds activities.  There are 11 centers.  The students have 3 activities per special sound, then they take a quiz.  Once they pass the quiz - they move on to the next special sound.  Check out this blog post to learn more if you are interested!

This product is on sale during the blog hop!  This is my latest creation.  There are over 200 pages in this packet with 4 weeks of plans for reading and writing.  Each week lists the weeks' lessons, along with the standards and learning objectives.  The lessons are then broken down to describe each day's task using the I do, we do, and you do format.  There are also activities with the lessons where you can check for understanding.

All the activities are apple related!  Check out some pictures below of some of the activities provided!

Thank you for visiting my blog!  I hope you have found something useful.  Please check out all the other blogs to grab your freebies and tricks!  :]

An InLinkz Link-up

Morning Meeting

Each morning my students know our routine like the back of their hand! It is great.  That is one thing I love about consistency- show them a few times and they know what to do!  I also post the directions on a pocket chart so my students can refer to it if necessary.

As you can see, it's nothing fancy-but it gets the job done! 

Students arrive and put their things in the lockers. Then, they put away their agendas, homework folders, and poetry folders. Students are expected to read their card in the morning. 

I only have 9 kids this year, so my chart looks a little bare! I use my morning routine cards to do a quick review.  We are currently using numbers. The students have to read the number and then tell me 10 more, 10 less, 20 more, or 20 less.  It is a great way to differentiate because each student has a number and they read the card placed on their number. Also, I can differentiate while talking to them.  It takes maybe 20 seconds a student! I have a packet that includes various morning cards that can be used. There are sight words, prefixes, suffixes, numbers, special sound words, digraphs, sneaky e words, and more!   I also did this when I taught kindergarten and I have a packet that is more appropriate for that grade level. 

Once they read their word, they then sign in on the class dojo board! I love this feature. I mark all the kids absent and they click on their avatar to show green for present!  Then, my attendance is done for me! If you don't use Dojo - you need to look into it!  It is great!

Students then return their books in our library and check out a new book.  They don't do this everyday because some of them are reading chapter books and need them longer.  However, I can check and see who is reading and how much.  I love this!

We use simple solutions for our grammar, so students then complete a mini lesson from the book and we discuss.  This is a nice, quick review!

After grammar, we gather on the rug for either Poetry or Math Mission.  We alternate days because they are both important  but our time is limited. 

My kiddos especially love math mission! I got this idea from Elementary Shenanigans! I LOVE it! We do four math problems each morning to the theme song mission impossible - she calls it math mission.  The song is so motivating and they get it done in that time frame!  You can find all of her resources on her blog.  :]  Then, we do a journal story problem from my math bundle. You can find that in my tpt store. They are great practice and follow the second grade standards!

For poetry, I have aligned the poems with our spelling skill for the week.  I found poems that match most of the skills from Scholastic. Then, I created about 10 poems to match the rest of the skills.  You can find this here.  However, do not expect much because I am not a poet! 

We read the poems and do an activity from my morning poetry pack. The students also take home the folders to practice fluency. They have to read it 10 times a week and get a signature saying they read in order to move up the poet-tree! We are having a poetry race!

Thanks for stopping by!  I would love to hear what you do in the morning! :) 

An Apple for the Teacher Blog Hop

It's an apple themed blog hop!  You are in for a treat this weekend.  I must say that I have been going all out with apples this year.  We have focused on Johnny Appleseed and apple facts.  It is so much fun when you have a unit that is all thematic.  My kids have really enjoyed it too!

The past couple of weeks we have done ALL things apple.  I have created a HUGE Reading and Writing Workshop apple unit.  You are in for a treat - you can enter to win my new product!  It has 200+ pages, and I haven't even put it in my store yet.  You are going to be the lucky winner if you enter below!  

Check out some things in the product and see what we have done so far to learn about apples!

We practiced making predictions and used these fun apple themed books/worksheets!

We practiced writing facts about Johnny Appleseed.

Then, we made our Johnny Appleseed Fact book!  I am going to place these on our apple tree in the hallway. :) 

We reviewed how to wire a topic sentence and even used the fancy word - thesis!  There are some practice thesis statements in the packet.

We talked about good sentences versus bad sentences.  It is important to know the difference and my students have been struggling with writing incomplete sentences.

We even made apple cider!  This was SO much fun!  I have a juicer, and I brought it in to school.  Each child had a turn pushing the apple into the juicer.  They had a blast.  You can see how much they enjoyed the drink!

Please enter my giveaway to win your own copy of the Writing and Reading Apple Workshop Unit!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have had a great start to your school year.

Here is an ABC apple matching freebie just for YOU!  Click on the image to download today!

Be sure to visit My Fabulous Class next!

Math Workshop

Now that we have things started for the school year, we have dived into Math Workshop! It has been exciting and fun getting these started in our room.  I personally love it because I can teach the math lesson to a small group and I know for sure that each child is listening and learning the lesson.  I can easily redirect them or differentiate right on the spot for students that are struggling or excelling.  I love that!

Here is how it works:

M stands for Math Facts.  Students will practice math facts with their math partner.  They will use the tablets to practice or use flashcards.  I also set students up on Xtramath.com where they can take math timed tests.  I love this because I don't have to take class time to distribute the test or spend time grading! 

A stands for At your seat. This is when students complete math boxes (I use the Everyday Math program).  Math boxes are a review of what we have learned and practice for what we are about to learn.  I
check these and if students do not get them correct, then they must fix them the next day during this center time.  If they finish their math boxes, then they number scroll.  I use Pringles cans to tape their number scrolls to.  One of our second grade math standards is to know numbers 0-1000.  This is a great way to let students get comfortable with the numbers.

T stands for Teacher choice.  During this time I teach the math lesson to a small group.  If we are on a review lesson, then I might have an activity set up for students to complete while I roam the room.  This center is all up to me! 

We practiced patterns on our number grid during this lesson!

H stands for Hands on activities.  This is when students play the math games.  This might be their favorite center.  I love it because students get to really practice the skills in a fun way! 

Here they are playing a money exchange game.  They love it! 

You can find my Math Workshop Ocean posters in my TpT store if you're interested! 

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Math-Workshop-Ocean-Themed-Posters-1385445

Thanks for visiting!  I hope you find this useful! Have a great week!