WORDO

We played WORDO today to review spelling words.  It was SO much fun!  I use the Rebecca Sitton Spelling Program so the words came from our first 11 lessons.  I print the 5 weekly core words on colored cardstock, cut them out and use them for various activities in the classroom.  I have a set that I post on my Word Wall, and a set that I keep handy.  Today, I used the rectangular words to call out the words.  Yesterday, I had a stack for students to put in alphabetical order.

The game was a success.  If you click on the WORDO at the top it will take you to my TPT store where you can download a free copy. If you are interested in a set of the rectangular core words click on the picture below.  The link will take you to the second grade collection.  There is also a collection available for third grade.

What I loved most about the review today was that I was able to have one of my struggling students "hold" the cards for me on his desk as I called out the words.  I told my class how I had mixed them up the last time I played and this would help me stay organized.  When the WORDO boards were complete, I collected the cards from his desk and we started playing.  He was able to practice spelling each word correctly and had repeated practice with the words as we played the game.  I was so happy!!

Thanks and have a great weekend!
Ann

Hundreds Chart, dice and surviving Halloween...

I teach enVision Math and our lessons have involved using the Hundreds Chart a lot lately. 
I have also recently switched from third grade to second grade and I know how important number sense is as the students move through elementary school.
I also noticed that my class has been a little more active this week, maybe it has something to do with a full moon AND Halloween??  I wanted to think of a fun math activity for the morning.  I have a Hundreds Chart and I have lots of dice so I decided to combine the two and see what happened.  It was amazing! 
I grouped my students into groups - 2, 3 or 4 to a group.  I had each group member choose a different color marker.  One Hundreds Chart per group and two die.  I have many types - 6 sided, 8 sided, 12 sided and 20 sided.  My group chose a 6 and 12, and as you can see from the pictures we came up with many combinations.  We eventually switched the 12 to a 20 sided die.  When it is your turn you can add, subtract, multiply and divide if possible.  You cross out all possible combinations.  It is so much fun to see how they think and what they come up with.  I have to say all groups were engaged.   We haven't learned multiplication yet but I noticed that some of my students have some familiarity with it and were able to count out the correct answer using the chart.  We played for about 15 minutes and it was an effective use of time.  The chart isn't perfect as some combinations come up more often and others not so much but I liked it and will use it again in my classroom.
I have some pictures below and a link to my free Hundreds Chart on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Enjoy and Happy Halloween!
Ann

Conferences...

I spent most of this past weekend getting ready for conferences.  That really means I spent a lot of time on pinterest, facebook and basically just searching interesting topics online.  I click on one picture on pinterest and I just keep going.  I feel like the book "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie"  except my version (and I'm including a lot of you in this) is called "If You Give a Teacher a Computer..."
I did find a new game for my classroom though!  I love playing games, especially in the morning before the school day "actually" begins.  I think it looks like a lot of fun and will be a classroom hit in no time.  The game is Mobi Numerical Tile Game. 

Okay, let's get back to the actual topic of this post!  At least you all know I am telling the truth about getting distracted!

When I prepare for conferences I usually write up a page about each student.  On the sheet, I include all the scores I have to date.  We administer AIMSWeb and I have the results from the first round.  I list their Spelling Test scores, math tests and reading information.  I also include the parent's goals from our before school meeting.  I like to have all of that information handy so that if I need to refer to it I can. One thing I tried last year, which worked out well, was a Student Progress Report that I had each student fill out and take home prior to conference day.  I'm not sure if I will do the same thing this year but you can see what it looked like.

I still have time to shop online, I mean think about it!!  I did find some great options available at Teachers Pay Teachers that are free and may work for me this year.

Options:
http://www.fernsmithsclassroomideas.com/2013/10/ferns-freebie-friday-parent-conference.html

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Back-to-School-Parent-Input-Form-Freebie-1910385

I'll keep you posted as to what I decide to create for my conferences this year!
Thanks!
Ann

 

 

So today, I tried to get creative with my math lesson.  We have been studying adding two-digit numbers - adding the tens and then the ones and today's lesson wanted them to practice using the Hundreds Chart.  I decided to put it all together and use greater than and less than, too.  Why not, right?  To sweeten the deal we used candy corn as the greater than/less than sign - it is almost Halloween, so why not?!
It worked out really well.  I printed the number cards you see below from my TPT Store (they are free right now) and used only the numbers 9-99.  I printed a few different colored sets on cardstock so they were ready to go.  I know I will use them for many activities this year.
I also have Hundreds Charts ready to go as we use them often.
So, to get ready you can print the Number Cards and the Hundreds Chart.  Print on colored cardstock or print and laminate.  Did I mention that both products are free??  I love free!
I think the lesson was effective.  I could hear them talking about adding the numbers and checking their answers.  A few teams decided that one partner would use the white board to add the numbers and the other partner would add them using the Hundreds Chart.
In the bottom photo you can see how we reviewed and practiced adding the numbers on the chart all together.
Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions!  I would love to hear from you.
Thanks,
Ann

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If your school is anything like my school, we are frantically getting ready for conferences!  It is always a little nerve wracking to meet with the parents in the fall.  You have spent many, many hours getting to know their children, but you don't really know the parents all that well.  I tend to over prepare and always feel such a sense of relief when they are over!!  When I am preparing (I mean avoiding) I like to update the classroom and hallway bulletin boards.  I try to make them super cute, inviting and easy to create.  I like my classroom to feel inviting and hopefully the parents feel that when we are meeting.
The teacher next door created a super cute bulletin board and I wanted to share it.  What teacher doesn't love paint chips?   I love it and am definitely copying!  Hope this has provided an inspirational idea.  Good luck! Ann