Thursday, May 30, 2013

To the Point Synonyms

I'm loving my newest product,  To the Point Synonyms.
"To the Point" packs for other concepts are already in the works too, so be looking for them.
I've already made other ones for Categories , Guide Words ,  Word Families,  Prefixes and Suffixes, and Analogies  also.

Click picture to take a peek



Getting to the point, this new pack is great for working with synonyms, using a thesaurus and practicing study skills, using detail and varying word choice in writing, and discussing shades of word meaning.

Check it out {HERE}

And since I haven't done a giveaway in way too long I'll be giving 3 lucky winners a copy!
Entries can be earned with Rafflecopter.





a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
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Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Workin It Wednesday

I'm joining in on Corinna's Workin It Wednesday.
My goal this summer is to have a regular walking routine.
One week into my summer and I am pleased to stay I've stayed on track.

My exercise routine is nothing special at all.
I just leash up Harley and walk along this bridle path.
2-3 miles is my average walk.


This path is well traveled by others walkers.
But the most unusual spotting on one of my walks was someone walking their pig on a leash.
Harley knew, spot on, that this was no other dog, and was desperately sniffing the air as we came upon Mr. Pig.
Pigs don't walk very fast so we zipped right on by.
I've also seen a gentleman in his rickshaw pulled by a donkey.
My favorite is to see the horses slow galloping along the path (except for the time my sister and I encountered a scared runaway horse and hid behind one of the trees to get out of its path. That was years ago though, so I think I've recovered)

Now, I really have no excuse for NOT walking, as I can view my walking route right from my front window. But sadly during the school year, even with a front row seat, my routine literally goes out the window.

My window view

Here's Harley today post walk. The coolest spot is the tiled entry way so he's chilling there.


And I grabbed a glass of water with lemon



Tomorrow's another day to ....Walk On.

What did you do to Work It Wednesday?
Link Up


Find more great ideas on my Pinterest page or TPT store

Monday, May 27, 2013

My Best Laid Plans for Next Year

I've been on summer vacation for 5 days and am already thinking about next school year.
Kim at Joy in 6th grade is hosting a fun linky perfect for reflecting.
My top 3 wishes inside and outside the classroom are:







Yay for me, I've walked every day since school got out which makes my dog Harley happy!
Why can't I stick with it when school starts?  I MUST stick with it next year.

Find more great ideas on my Pinterest page or TPT store

Monday, May 20, 2013

Hit the Beach with Relay Learning Fun

Tomorrow is my last day of school and of course my students have summer on their minds already.
So we did the cutest learning relay today from Miss Math Dork, Beach Bum Relay.
I love the versatility of this fun team relay. I used the template provided to program math review questions for each of the ten rounds. Each team task had a question for each team member to correctly solve before having it checked by the teacher. I threw in all kinds of skills we learned this year: long division, decimals, place value, rounding and multi digit multiplication. If the team got all 4 questions right one of the team members was assigned to draw a portion of a beach scene picture. As the rounds progressed, teams ended up being on different rounds based on their team accuracy and time spent on drawing. My class loved it and everyone was engaged. As you can see every teams final beach scene came out uniquely theirs!





Here's a picture of the teams in drawing action




Find more great ideas on my Pinterest page or TPT store

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Mother’s Day Recipe for Mom


My students celebrated their moms by making this flower pot recipe holder craft.
They attached a "Recipe for Mom" card.
The craft came from Oriental Trading, but the exact craft is no longer available on their site.
I had leftovers from years ago when I purchased it. I hope they'll bring it back because I've done this same project every year.  Happy Mother's Day!


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Sunday, May 5, 2013

Error Analysis Activity: Building Critical Thinking

My class tackled multi step math problems with a new strategy I put in place called Right  vs  Wrong.
The purpose of it is to help student verify the answers given by their classmates which is perfect for error analysis and building critical thinking.

First students work in pairs to solve a problem and show their answers in complete detail.

Then, in pairs students rotate and review fellow classmates work.

I placed a simple Right Wrong chart next to each problem to review.

Students read, reviewed and verified if they thought the answer was right or wrong.
If they thought it was wrong they had to give a reason.

Here it is in action

Reading and verifying

Student is marking the Right Wrong chart with their input

Sample chart when we finished

Reasons are given for why classmates thought a given problem was wrong

My students loved this strategy and it required student engagement and accountability.

I've made new Right vs. Wrong printables you can grab for free at my TPT store if you'd like to try this strategy.



~Enjoy

I recently started a Facebook Group for teachers to share ideas, questions, and inspiration. 
Come Join the group!





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