Mother's Day Books and Projects

Mother's Day is fast approaching!  I love to find fun ways for my students to celebrate the special women in their lives that love and support them.  Today I'm going to share a list of books I'm going to display in my classroom about mother's and families.  We are going to use the books to complete our Mother's Day Craftivity.  I can't wait for the week to begin!

I'll be honest, because as much as I would like to pretend I'm Belle with a vast library at my disposal, my own children would also like to eat more than cereal for dinner, and I don't own every single one of these books.  Some of them came from my school library, others are from my local library. I did link them to Amazon through my affiliate link, so that you can read more about the books. But really friends, check out your local library!

Here are a few from some of my favorite authors:

   

My students are also working on this fun Mother's Day Craftivity for their moms, grandma's or any woman that has been special in their lives.  I love the thoughts they are putting into each petal of the flower.  We have come up with some amazing character trait words through reading some of the Mother's Day books mentioned above, and I love to hear the stories they tell about their mothers and grandmothers.  Some are so funny, and I'm sure their parent would die if they ever knew I knew. Here are a few pictures of my completed model.  You can go {HERE} if you are interested in the project.

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Back to School First Week Fun!

Well friends, I made it!  I just got through my 23rd First Week of School!  I know, I know, you are saying, WWWHHHHHAAAT!! There is no way she is THAT old, LOL.. It's all in the Ponds Moisturizing creme my friends!  Take care of your skin!

But seriously, I'm so excited to be starting a new adventure in a new state, new school, and new grade level.  I've been teaching sixth grade for about 18 years, and in my new school, I'm teaching fourth.  I love that I know right where those middle school teachers want my Smarties to be, and I'm going to do my part to get them ready!!

We had a great first week of school, and I wanted to share a few activities that I did with my class this week that I love.  I hope you can use some of them too!

I have to admit, I don't start the year with one of those Pinterest perfect classrooms.  I LOVE to look at them. I pine over their beauty when I'm wasting time on my phone, but honestly, I can't do it.  My walls are my kids walls, and I want them to create their beauty.  One thing that I do like to put up is a Salutations greeting.  I used Powerpoint, a fun font, and colored paper to print this sign.

My purpose was to give students a word they may be familiar with if they have read Charlotte's Web (our second graders do), but may not know quite the meaning of the word.  I use it as a spring board to discuss 1) Not everyone knows every thing on the first day of school  2) Vocabulary has several deeper shades of meaning.   Vocabulary is a big push for our students this year.  You can go {HERE} and read a blog post I've written about strategies I'm going to implement in my classroom.
I plan to add words to this wall during the year to get my point across about the deeper shades of meaning.

On the first day of school I read a fabulous book called First Day Jitters by Julie Danneberg

(Affiliate Link)

 Have you read it?  I told my students there is a twist in the book, something unexpected happens, and good readers need to be on the look out for it.  They ate it up!  They were so excited to learn that Sarah Jane was the TEACHER and not the STUDENT!  After I read the book I introduced the bottle tree that I have in my reading corner.

 I plan to add a bottle to the tree every time we read and discuss a book in class.  On the back of the bottle we have to add three things:
1) Something important that happened in the book
2) A lesson that was learned or the theme of the book
3) A connection to the book.

At first I expect them to make a personal connection, but as the year progresses, I will be expecting text to text and text to world connections.  My Smarties did such a great job!  I was really impressed with the thoughtful answers they gave me on the first day of school!


Along with reading First Day Jitters, I also used the book to teach my grammar lessons in my writer's block.  I'm using my BBB, Jessica's, Mentor Sentences with my students.  Mentor texts are the way to go my friends, and Jivey made it easy to incorporate grammar skills right into good books.  Reading and discussing good books translates into good writers!  You can go {HERE} and see what Jivey has. If you haven't used mentor sentences before, she has several free lessons that you can download and check out.
Look at what my students accomplished with our mentor sentences this week! They could tell me parts of speech, diagram sentences, revise a sentence, and imitate it.  I chose several of the best sentences to hang on the wall for everyone to read.

We started science with a great idea from one of my teammates.  Since our first reading text is all about a scientist who studies tarantulas, we started our notebooks with drawings of what type of scientist we would like to be.

I had students put up privacy folders while they worked, so that each one would be unique.  They drew themselves in a labcoat, and then decorated the lab coat with what they would want to be a scientist of.  We discuss how scientists ask questions about the world around them, and then complete investigations and make observations to answer those questions.  Everyone was so excited to see all of the different types of scientist we have in our room.

A few other fun activities that you could use to start science or practice problem solving skills include Saving Fred.  You can read about this activity {HERE}.  I'm doing it with my class next week.  I also sometimes do the Index Card Challenge.  You can go {HERE} to find out about this activity (There is a link to a freebie where I wrote down the directions, and a youtube video if you need to see this in action). My class LOVED this once they figured it out.  I think I'll be saving it for a fun Friday activity a in a few weeks.

I am also planning to create a Back to School Dodecagon Ball with my students for Open House.  I don't normally start this project until the second week of school if I can help it.  We have to start to establish some routines first.  Basically my students will be getting 2-3 sections a day throughout the second week of school to complete.  Some I ask them to draw, others I ask for more of a writing component.  I'll use my writing time for this, as I'm still leveling students and trying to see where I have to start my basics at.  When we finish this project I'll have them up for Open House.  I know my parents are going to Love the way they look.  It is a great way to incorporate writing, math and art all in one area.  If you are interested, you can go {HERE} to check them out.

Of course, the first week wouldn't be complete without a guest coming in.. right?
Here is our little Nagini that decided she needed a little extra learning.  This racer snake was in the hallway one morning, and I just about had a heart attack.  I AM NOT A SNAKE PERSON!  Good thing one of my teammates is!  I hope the momma isn't lurking somewhere!

I'd love to know what you are doing for the First Week of School!  Let me know how it went for you! I'm all about gathering a community of teachers to support each other!

Have a great day!

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Using Mentor Texts to Teach Personification: Twighlight Comes Twice

We have been steadily working through a review of figurative language here in Coffee Cups land.  I like to start out my year giving a basic definition of several types of figurative language, and then spending a week or two digging a little deeper into their use.  When I have finished with each type, we spiral through again throughout the year with different activities.   I try to introduce each type with a fun video.  Geico Insurance is a master as personification in their commercials.  Here is the video I use-  It's fun and grabs their attention.

I also like to use one of my favorite mentor texts: Twilight Comes Twice by Ralph Fletcher.  He has such a beautiful way with words.  It is very easy to get caught up in the imagery of the text.

Amazon Link

I mean who would not fall in love with text like this:

Fireflies appear, swimming through the air, writing bright messages in secret code.

I begin by reading and discussing the text with my students.  We talk about the other types of figurative language that are found in the text, and there are tons!  It is a perfect review if you have already done similes, metaphors, onomatopoeia and alliteration.  Then I give each of my students a half sheet of cardstock and a strip of paper.  Each paper strip contains an example of personification from Twilight Comes Twice.  As a class we review the sentences and discuss what the "person" is in each sentence, and then how we could draw a literal example of the image.  Finally, each student spends class time drawing an example of their personifed sentence.
Here are a few examples from my class.

                                    

Don't you LOVE when students take different perspectives of the same topic!  They never cease to amaze me!

There is also a video of Jeff Hardon reading Twilight Comes Twice on Youtube  which has great music added to it.  I use it in my classroom as a reference tool for students because our next step is writing personification poetry.

Have a great day!

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Plot Summary Review using Plenty of Polacco Picture Books!

We are just starting our last novel unit for the year.  To review a few basics, I grabbed books from one of my favorite picture book authors:  Patricia Polacco.  I'm sure you have read many of her books. Don't you just LOVE them!  I really like them for my Smarties because they have depth for sixth graders.  They make them THINK.  They are usually a little more lengthy, which is perfect for a one period class, and helps my struggling readers because of picture clues.

We needed to review Plot Summary, so I used a Erin's Plot Pyramid from her Interactive Notebooks.  First we reviewed the points together using Just Plain Fancy.

This is a great story that has a little bit of foreshadowing in the beginning when we see a bouncing van heading down the road with the back door open, and Naomi wishing she could have something fancy, which goes against her Amish beliefs.  I wanted to read a single story with my whole group so I could use it as a mentor text later when I review Author's Craft.  Next week I will be teaching foreshadowing, so we will have a common text to refer back to.  I also need to practice a little more grammar skills, so I will be using it for Mentor Sentence work as well.  

After reading the story and doing a plot pyramid I gave each of my students a different Polacco book to read and complete a new plot pyramid.  This is another reason I love Patricia Polacco!  SO MANY BOOK CHOICES!  I could challenge my high readers with books like Bully, and still provide my struggling students with books like Thundercake.

Then they had to work in groups and share their Polacco stories using the Plot Pyramid.  It gave them great practice in summarizing the book and getting to the point!  I also had them make text to text or text to world connections with the story and back it up with specific evidence from their stories.  Oh the conversations and comparisons!  Be still my beating heart!

Look how engaged they are.  I promise I did not pose them for these pictures!

This week we will begin to do something similar with our novels.  I chose novels that have Multiple Perspectives.  Stop back soon and check out how it is going.

Last but not least, I have joined Pinterest!  Use the Pinterest link in the sidebar to follow me.   I love sharing ideas.  Hope to hear from you soon.

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Mentor Texts for Math: Using a Stats Book to Write Ratios as Decimals

I've been spending a lot of time with my Smarties talking about ratios and writing ratios as decimals over the past week.  Even before there was Common Core, I always tried to find a way to make our math lessons interesting and fun.  I try to bring in sports as much as possible.  Usually this will keep my class interested.  Today I'm linking up with some of my BBBs, Amanda and Stacia, those Collaboration Cuties for a little Math Mentor Text.

The book I'd like to share is really any sports book that contains Statistics.  I even use the box scores in the newspaper!  Amazon has a great book:

I've also used the media books for basketball and hockey.  With our snow starting to slowly melt, everyone is getting itchy to start baseball and softball practice, so I find baseball or basketball stats (March Madness anyone?) work best.  We use the books to find famous baseball player's batting averages and number of hits compared to at bats.  Of course, what we learn is pretty basic, but it does get my kids talking about math, and that's what I want!  I teach them how to write a ratio in fraction form, and then turn the ratio into a decimal by division.

Then we look up the batting average of a player in a given year, and based on his number of at bats, we find the number of hits that he had. They love to do this for famous players.  

Enjoy your day!

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Mentor Text Sunday: Prime Numbers Anyone?

Today I wanted to share with you a fun math text that I like to use in my classroom with my Smarties.
Amanda and Stacia, those Collaboration Cuties have  mentor text sharing day on Sundays, and I love to read about all of the different books that people use in their classrooms.

Have you read The Librarian Who Measured the Earth by Kathryn Lasky?  This is a great book about an ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician named Eratosthenes.  He did so many wonderful things including measuring the circumference of the Earth using ratios more than 2,000 years before Columbus sailed to America!
I actually use this book when I am reviewing Prime Numbers.  It fits perfectly in my curriculum because we also study Ancient Greece, so I read the book and discuss the connection to social studies as well.  Eratosthenes is responsible for recognizing that all numbers can be factored down to a set of primes.  His philosophy is called the Sieve of Eratosthenes, and when you are teaching your students to make prime factorization trees, you are actually re-creating parts of this "sieve."  After reading the book, I have my students "discover" all of the prime numbers between 1- 100 using a hundreds board.  This is a great way to review divisibility rules.

Because my smarties have to be able to simplify fractions, they must know about common multiples, and factors,  I also use this book as an intro/review to least common multiples, and greatest common factor.

I use an Interactive Notebook for mathematics, and my students love including the hundreds board with divisibility rules in it as a reference tool.  I do have a unit in my TpT store if you need a little bit to help you out with this topic.  The unit includes specifics about the sieve lesson and book, a foldie and directions for showing your students the ladder method of prime factorization, LCM, GCF and even simplifying fractions.  You can go {HERE} if you are interested in checking it out.

You can of course use this book to teach ratio as well, since as I mentioned Eratosthenes measured the circumference of the Earth which mathematically he calculated with only a 1.6% error... AMAZING if you think that this was in about 240 BC!

Stop by and visit the Collaboration Cuties and read more about the math mentor texts that teacher's are using in their classrooms!

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It's Monday What are you Reading? 8/12/13

We have been blessed lately with beautiful weather.  That means LOTS of pool time.  Pool time = LOTS of Reading!  YAY
It's Monday, and I'm linking up with Jen and Kellee to share what I've been reading this week.

This is a Professional Development book by Dave Burgess.  AMAZING!  I'm sure that many of you have read it, and if you have not, please go find it.  It is such a great reminder of what educators SHOULD be doing in their classrooms instead of making themselves crazy over state assessments.  I am going to share this book with my principal.  I'm hoping that others will be interested in reading it during the school year.  I've read it twice, and may go back a third time because I'm always thinking about different hooks.  There are great chats on TWITTER about this book.  Try #tlap to get started.

Here is the AMAZON summary of Legend by Marie Lu.  (The picture is also from them.. click to travel there)

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

This book came from a recommendation of a blogging buddy.  It was amazing.  I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the second book: Prodigy.  I'm going to share the title with my school librarian, and make sure that several copies appear on our library shelves.

The third book I read this week was:

SUMMARY (FROM AMAZON)

A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime

Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel--a café owner with a forgotten past of his own--and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.

This was a great quick read.  Sheila Turnage does a great job of making you like these characters right away.  I mean how can you not love DALE EARNHARDT JOHNSON...   very clever.  I think I will keep this book on hand as a mentor text.  Turnage uses a lot of different types of figurative language, and when I can find examples from chapter books, it makes my smarties feel like grown ups, and not babies.. always important in middle school!

What have you been reading this week?  Leave me a comment or two below and let me know what has kept you up late reading instead of sleeping!  Be sure to visit Jen or Kellee and see what others have to share too!

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