"OO" in moon, -ly and -ful Reading Street Unit 4, Week 6 with Freebie!

Hello all! I hope that you are all having a great weekend! I was so ready for the weekend and I had a great one. I needed it after my kiddos were replaced by zoo animals full of energy. Also, I had my final observation this week. I am nervously waiting for the results. I wish that they would flash a score like a judge from the back of the room before they leave lol.



This week we are going to be reading "Henry and Mudge". I have created a packet to go along with the phonics skills this week. There are small group activities that I will use in my guided reading groups. Also, I will place them into workstations for extra practice for the students next week. I have found that the review helps my students keep from forgetting skills that we have learned. Please click download preview to get the Four In A Row game for free.

Day 1- Roll, Read, Keep for -ful and -ly. The cards are color coded for my lower group to remind them of the sound they are looking for.

Day 2- Zoom to the Moon or Blastoff Game

Day 3- Roll, Read, Keep "oo" in moon

Day 4- Alien Invaders Game

Day 5- Four In A Row (like Tic-Tac-Toe)


Slide 1- Intro Slide
Slides 2-3 Gameboards
Slides 4-11 Word cards for gameboards
Slides 12-24 Roll, Read Keep
Slides 25-26 Four in a Row Game
Slides 27-30 Explanation Slides and Closures




I will try to post pictures of the things that we are doing this week. This has been such a busy time of year :)

March Money Madness and FREEBIE!

Oh my! I am so looking forward to Spring Break and I am FINALLY there! It has been a rough couple of weeks. On Friday, we were preparing to have our Dr. Seuss parade at school. I was in the computer lab (I open the computer lab for the kiddos that get there early) with my son putting his whiskers on for the parade. He ended up having a seizure and let me tell you that was the scariest thing I have ever been through. He even stopped breathing and needless to say that is where my heart has been this week. I have just had a lot going on so I am definitely ready to relax and regain my focus at school.

I am getting ready for St. Patrick's Day in my classroom. We are also working on money so I created a little book to put together with the kids so that they can learn to correctly identify coins. Also, I created a leveled math center.
Please check it out!   :)



 
 Please click the link above and download the preview to download the Coin Book Freebie!

Thanks guys for your support. I am really excited about learning to make new products. 

Giveaway at A Cupcake For The Teacher

Hey guys!! I wanted to post to let you know that Teri at A cupcake for the Teacher is having a fabulous giveaway. Please check it out! You could win a $25 Gift Card. :) Good Luck!!! Please check out her blog. She has very cute ideas!

Writing FREEBIE!

I have been working with my first graders on writing. My students were able to write a sentence, but struggled with paragraphs and with staying focused on one topic.
Here is an example of their earlier writing in the year:

Therefore, I made this template. Here is how it works:

Day 1- Pre-writing: 
          * 1st sentence- Introductory Sentence: 
              - In the beginning of the year, we develop this sentence together.
              - In the middle of the year, I will give students a topic to write about.
              - Towards the end of the year, they will write about any topic independently.

          * 2nd, 3rd, and 4th sentence- Students will draw a picture about the topic.
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Day 2- Pre-writing:
                * Students will go back and write one simple sentence to describe their pictures for sentences 2, 3, and 4. 
            
             * 5th sentence- Conclusion sentence:

              - In the beginning of the year, we develop this sentence together.
              - In the middle of the year, I will guide students in writing a conclusion sentence.
              - Towards the end of the year, they will write this sentence independently.

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Day 3- Rough Draft
              * Students will write sentences onto writing paper. Having the paper numbered allows them to write their sentences in order from 1-5.
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Day 4-  Revising:
           * Students will begin revising. I have the students look for two details that they can add. For my students, it tends to be adding more adjectives and descriptive words. They do their revisions with green pens or markers.
           * Editing- Students will edit their work. They are required to go back with a red pen or marker and check their spelling. My students have a "FROG Notebook". Inside their notebook is a Word List that matches our word wall. When we introduce a word to the word wall they also write it in their notebook. I will meet with some students today to check their revisions and discuss their writing.

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Day 5- Final Copy
         * I will meet with any students that I was not able to meet with yesterday to discuss their writing.
         * Students will write their Final Copy in their Writing Journal. I have a Rubric that I use to assess their writing. They understand the standards of what makes great writing.

This is her pre-writing.

This is a rough draft that we edited together.

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* I love this writing method because it allows students to work at their own pace. Some students take a little longer on their writing, but this allows for differentiation in writing. 

* I also have a board where the students track where they are in the writing process. This allows me to see which students may need a little more help or assistance. 


Students are really improving in their writing. Also, by their being no beginning or end, I no longer hear "I'M DONE! What can I do now?" I had a few little kiddos that would rush through writing and not do their best...just so that they could be done. Now, my students are spending more time improving their writing instead of just rushing through. 


PLEASE click here to check out my FREE pre-writing template. I would appreciate if you would follow my blog to download this freebie :). Also, please let me know if this writing works as well for your students. I love that it takes such a hard task and breaks it into smaller steps to make it less overwhelming for my students.