Tried it Tuesday: Creating a Donors Choose Project

I'm linking up with one of my BBBs today, Holly, at Fourth Grade Flipper, to talk about something new for me: a Donors Choose project.

Have you heard of Donors Choose?  It is an online charity that connects teachers who need items for their classrooms with donors who want to help children in need.  It is very simple and easy to set up.  If you are looking to have a project funded, you set up an account and Donors Choose walks you through the process of creating a project.  You choose the materials that are needed from various vendor sites, write about why you need the items for your room, and submit.  The project gets reviewed, and when it is approved, you have about four months for the project to be funded through donations.

My library in my classroom is basically nonexistent.  Don't get me wrong, I have books for my students, lots and lots of books that I have collected from Scholastic points, library sales, yard sales, donations, all kinds of things.  But I literally have one rickety book shelf.  When I came to my new school I had to put my books in plastic crates, or keep them in the boxes.  I was so disappointed because I knew that great books weren't getting chosen.  With the "brown box" system, books were also getting thrown into the nearest open box, causing pages to get lost, or covers to be ripped.  When I read about Donors Choose, I knew I had to give it a try.

I mean seriously, look at this space!

So when I heard about Donors Choose, I knew that I needed to ask for some books shelves and a rug to define the space.  I want my students to be readers, and they need a place to find interesting books, and then be able to relax and enjoy a good book.  For the time being, my library looks like this:

Hopefully, my project will get funded soon, and I will have the new shelves before the school year starts.  If you are interested, I would love for you to check out the project.  You can go {HERE} to read about it.  Until Saturday, August 1st any donations made are doubled using the code SPARK.  It's a great tax donation if you are looking for something, and even donating $5.00 helps out a fellow teacher!!  Or, if you are on social media and are willing to share the link, that would be amazing too! 

Thanks to Holly for hosting this!  

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Tried it Tuesday: QR Codes in the Classroom

I'm linking up with Holly today over at Fourth Grade Flipper to share something "new to me:" QR Codes.

I know there are a lot of people around the country that use technology and QR codes almost daily in their classrooms.  Some of you may reading this may also, and be thinking what?  Coffee Cups, surely you are behind the times.  And indeed my friends, I feel a little like that.  But, old dog.. new tricks, I think it is important, and here I am.

We are finishing up a unit on Rates.  Within this unit I had to teach: Unit Rate, Unit Price, Constant Rate of Speed, Rates in Measurement and Choosing an Appropriate Rate.  Fun Fun!  I wanted a new way to review because.. well... it's March. March is a long, long, long, long, long, month for us in the NorthEast.  We get snow, wind, rain, and sometimes sunshine. We don't usually get any days off, and we don't see spring break until the end of April.  One of my BBBs, AMC just wrote about using QR codes in her classroom to help with math facts, and I thought...you know, we need to perk things up a bit.  So I gave them a try. 

I found a great website that will convert my answers into a scannable QR code.  I'm sure there are many out there, but you can go {HERE} to see the one I used.  I created a set of 20 questions that reviewed Rate.  On each one, I set up a scannable QR code.  In class on Monday we used the review packet.  I loaded my Iphone and Ipad with a scannable app for free to use.  Then I used my group table as a checking station.  Students came to me to scan and check using one of the devices.  It allowed me to check on the work they had to show since I am big on Constructive Response at this point, and it allowed me to watch them use the devices.  BINGO!  So MUCH FUN!

Even my most reluctant math students were using their notebooks and working through problems to get to scan the code.

Students worked together, and helped each other.  They were patient in line, and used kind words of encouragement while waiting.

I was so happy to see this technology being used!  The codes were really pretty easy to make, and I'm sure there will be more of this in my future.

If you teach Rates and happen to be looking for a little something to perk up your review, you can go {HERE} to check out my packet.  Let me know if it was helpful for your class as well!

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Hop Right Up and Practice those Fractions and Mixed Numbers on Tried it Tuesday!

Happy Tuesday friends!  I'm linking up with my friend Holly at Fourth Grade Flipper for Tried it Tuesday!

Three times a year we benchmark our students in Reading and Math.  We then create a "golf score," to determine which Tiered levels our students are placed in.  Classroom teachers are responsible for Tier 1 intervention.  This past week we received the data after our January benchmarking.  I have a few students I need to keep track of, and I personally added a couple more to make sure that they did not sip below our achievement line.
I meet with these smarties during our ECL time, which as I explained before is a team study hall.  Last week I began a review of fractions.  I know this concept is always difficult for my students, so we went right back to the basics of simplifying fractions and changing fractions between mixed and improper.

One of the items that I used after we did a basic review were a set of Froggy Task Cards from Emily at I Love My Classroom.  The cards are an awesome formative assessment for me.  In middle school, I don't have a ton of time for center work in math, so I have to use my task cards in different ways.  Because I was meeting with two different RTI groups having different needs, I used these cards in two different ways.  My first group still needs a little bit of help and prompting.  They are also my wiggle worms, so I like to get them moving.  I put the task cards up in the hallway and had them work through a set of 8 at time.  I don't keep the groups for the entire period, so I grab them for quick 10 minute intervals 2-4 times a week depending on what else is going on.  Remember, these aren't my rock bottoms, these are my students that are wavering on the dip.

The second group I was ready to give a formative to this week, so I had them practice using a scantron as well.  Again I used the task cards to help me.  I mean who doesn't love task cards that can serve more than one task... and FROGS.. Don't get me started!  This group sat individually with 15 cards and used them to take a "test" on the fractions.  I love the scantrons too because 1, they are easy to zip through the scanner, and 2) I can see analyze data right away and see if there are any specific questions they may have.  LOVE IT!

Interested in these task cards or a few other awesome items to help with tricky math or RTI?  Check out this bundle from EDUCENTS to help you out!  It is only $10.99 which is 70% off of what the total would be for separate purchases!  An awesome deal when we all know testing is right around the corner!  If this is your first time purchase and you use my {REFERRAL LINK} then you can get an extra 20% off.  Check it out if you are interested in adding some differentiation to your lessons or RTI.

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Tried it Tuesday: Using Dropbox from Your Ipad or Iphone

Today I'm linking up with Holly over at Fourth Grade Flipper to talk about something I learned this week.  Honestly, this one has nothing to do with actually teaching my smarties.  It's 100% about what I learned from my awesome BBB's Erin and Jessica.  

We were talking about seeing a ton of great freebies out there on TpT and I was whining...because I always see an awesome flash freebie while I'm out and not near my computer.  Erin was totally kind and pointed me to a post Jivey had written about using Dropbox.  You can go {HERE} and check out all of the details, I won't steal her great post by rewriting it.  But I will tell you to go out and download that app!  I have used Dropbox frequently since the summer to send things to school as I have needed them, but duh!  I never realized it would work via my phone.  It makes me so thankful for blogging buddies like Erin and Jess who point me in the right direction when my head is spinning. <hee-- hee> 

And, speaking of being thankful for great BBBS, stop by and visit Holly.  She and I bonded over being Buffalo Bills fans, and even with their loss on Sunday, we BILLIEVE!

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Tried it Tuesday: Mentor Sentences in Middle School

Today I'm linking up with Holly to share something I've been dabbling in the past two week with my smarties:  Mentor Sentences.  Jessica Ivey over at Ideas by Jivey has been such a great help in this area. She answered a million questions for me when I got started.  Good thing she is one of my BBBs or I'm sure she would be tired of me!

Jessica has a great product for upper elementary students on Mentor Sentences, but I needed a little bit more complex text.  I decided to use my read aloud:  The Watson's Go to Birmingham and take text sentences from there.  My students are really pretty decent about being able to produce the parts of a sentence, so I am focusing more on using them to review and teach figurative language.

We complete each of the parts:  Invitation to Notice, Invitation to Re-read, Invitation to Revise, Invitation to Imitate, and Invitation to  Edit through a 5-10 day span depending on what else we have going on.  Throughout the week I use the mentor sentence to review a specific piece of figurative language.  So far we have done similes, alliteration and onomatopoeia.  I continue in my Word Work notebook with lessons, foldable and activities that practice that particular piece of figurative language. The picture above shows my mentor sentences on one side, and then similes practice which I got from Erin at I'm Lovin' Lit.

My smarties really like doing this.  On the Invitation to Imitate day they hope they are selected to go up on the Wall of Fame.   I am beginning to see the work we put in to this in the writing we have been producing.  That's what it's all about, right!

Stop by and visit Holly and see what everyone else has Tried on this Tuesday!

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Tried it Tuesday: Quiet Classroom Pencil Sharpener.. Where Have You Been All My Life?

So.. there is this pencil sharpener that many... many..... many of my bloggy buddies have been raving about all over the internet.  I'm a middle school teacher... and a MATH teacher at that.. I mangle  destroy, obliterate at least 4-5 pencil sharpeners a year.  With 90 kids sharpening pencils and colored pencils almost every day.. I could build a sculpture with pencil shavings.  I'll be honest.. I wasn't sure, but my friend Gina at Beach Sand and Lesson Plans convinced me this summer I needed to try this new one.

Please people... LISTEN TO YOUR TEACHER FRIENDS when they tell you how awesome this sharpener is.. LISTEN TO THEM!  This little piece of technology is really amazing!  Who would have thought that someone could be so excited about a pencil sharpener!  I know as a middle school teacher we are sometimes viewed as being weird, and we do get excited and still giggle at inappropriate times, but really, this sharpener was SUPER COOL!

Check out this video:

I showed this video to my students when we first opened the package, and now EVERYONE wants to sharpen their pencils.  Regular pencils, pencils found in the hallway, pencils from other teachers...It is so funny!  I won't have to worry about finding my students without pencils for a LONG time!

If you don't have one of these already, head over to Classroom Friendly Supplies and check them out.  Be sure to check back here next week because I'll be hosting a sharpener giveaway too! 

Stop by and visit Holly too at Fourth Grade Flippers and check out all of the new things people have been trying for Tried it Tuesday!

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