Monday Made It

I've been busily working at preparing all those things that are needed in a classroom each year: signs, bulletin board elements, instructional materials, classroom management pieces, etc.


so I think it's time to join Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics for...

I am launching a new theme this year... SCRABBLE! The colors (brown, black, and the primaries) are more in keeping with the classroom I moved into last year. One of the first things that I made was a cursive alphabet pennant banner. Also in this line are a welcome banner and brag tag starter set.

Speaking of brag tags... I've been working on several new sets (a growing bundle of glittery emojis) and one set that I started two years ago, used in my own classes, yet never uploaded to my TpT Store (spelling tags for the entire school year). Here you see my assistants providing suggestions as I create my emoji tags.

I printed out all my tags and signs and ran them through the laminator, while binging on "Penny Dreadful" on Netflix.

Here is the next step in my Made It saga... cutting out EVERYTHING!

The final Made It this week is the punch cards that I use in conjunction with all those brag tags. Punch cards are the means for tracking the targeted behaviors I observe and reward. In this case, homework. For each homework assignment that is competed on time, a student receives a punch on his/her card. Every five punches, a student earns a brag tag, and when the entire card has been punched, a student earns a no homework coupon. My kiddos LOVE no homework!

Be sure to hop over to this week's Monday Made It to see all the terrific things that teacher bloggers have made. I know you'll find something there that you'll just have to make, too!

And if you're reading this and it's still Monday, hop on over to TpT to check out all the #mondaymadness deals being offered. Just search using #mondaymadness to find loads of great deals. Teacher sellers mark down favorite teaching items to one dollar for this day only. If you visit my store, you can pick up FOUR sets of brag tags suitable for bigger kids for just one dollar each. Hurry though, #mondaymadness last only for today, Monday!

Impromptu Monday Made It

I really hadn't planned on joining #MondayMadeIt this week. I really hadn't made anything teachery. Heck, I really hadn't made anything! Until this morning. I am so proud of myself (and I think my mom would be, too)! So Tara@4th Grade Frolics and all the rest of you crafty bloggers, here I am for my first(and hopefully not the last) of the summer...

This past Saturday my niece and I ran up to the West Side Market in Cleveland. We try to go every few weeks... the produce is out of this world! If you live within an hour of this place it is WELL WORTH THE TRIP!

We arrived JUST as the vendors were unpacking and setting-up. There are some terrific bargains to be had for us early birds, and I'm not talking worms! One of our favorite stands had every kind of vegetable that I LOVE at such ridiculously low prices that I bought a TON of stuff, among them a bunch of beets. I LOVE, LOVE fresh beets, especially pickled, but I have NEVER made FRESH beets. That was my mother's domain. I would buy them and she would prepare them. I use canned beets when I make them. Ah well, for a dollar for the bunch, if I ruined them I couldn't feel too bad!

This morning I braved the beets... threw them in a pot of water and set them on the stove to cook while I went off and did laundry and talked on the phone. I occasionally checked on them as they simmered away filling the house with their beety smell.

About thirty minutes later, they seemed soft enough so I took them off the flame, drained the water (reserved some as an afterthought), took them out of the pot to cool, and made the pickling juice (hot water, sugar, vinegar...taste 'til just so). When the beets cooled enough to handle, I peeled and sliced them and a Vidalia onion, and placed them in a storage container. So far, everything looked just like what it looked like when my mother made pickled beets.

The final step was to pour the pickling juice over the beets and onions. I added a little of the reserved beet water (for a bit of color), mixed them up, covered the container, and placed them in the fridge to cool and set to flavor.

Alas, I could only wait 90 minutes. I have NEVER been good at being patient! Oh my, were they good! I was pretty proud of myself, and I think mom would be proud also!

Be sure to hop on over to Tara's blog to read many more #MondayMadeIt posts. You just can't BEET #MondayMadeIt for great ideas and inspiration! Sorry, I couldn't resist... LOL!

Monday Made It... Oh So Simple, Oh So Cute...and a gift.

I am almost embarrassed to add this made-it to Tara's great weekly linky over at 4th Grade Frolics. ALMOST! 

When you are finished reading this blog post, be sure to hop over to Tara's blog for loads of fun Made-It's!

Start with...

2 bottles of hand sanitizer from the Dollar Tree
2 cute linen bags with handwriting lines from Target
1 slightly used black Sharpie marker

End with...

2 really cute and useful bathroom passes.

Something else really useful at this time of the year might be a TpT gift certificate (HINT: There is normally a BIG back-to-school sale in early August). Would you like $25 to spend on TpT? Fill out the Rafflecopter below and help me celebrate Merry Christmas in July to snag some TpT bucks or some products from my TpT Store.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Since you've read this entire blog post and since it's Christmas (in July), I have a little gift for you that you can use as a gift for your students. You can download your set of no-cost gift coupons HERE.

Ho, ho, ho, Merry Christmas in July!

Monday Made It: Another kind of TPT

At the beginning of summer I mentioned that I was reading several professional development books, among them Total Participation Techniques (TPT, for short) by Persidea and William Himmele.

One of my BBB's, Lisa from Mrs. Spangler in the Middle, wrote to me and said that she was VERY interested in hearing more about this book and its contents. Lisa inspired me to do this book talk. Thanks for the great idea, Lisa!

About this book...

Providing easy-to-use alternatives to the stand and deliver approach to teaching that causes so many students to tune out--or even drop out--Total Participation Techniques presents dozens of ways to engage K 12 students in active learning and allow them to demonstrate the depth of their knowledge and understanding. The authors, Persida Himmele and William Himmele, explain both the why and the how of Total Participation Techniques (TPTs) as they explore the high cost of student disengagement, place TPTs in the context of higher-order thinking and formative assessments, and demonstrate how to create a TPT-conducive classroom.  

Readers will learn how to implement field-tested techniques they can use on the spot (e.g., Quick-Draws, Quick-Writes, Chalkboard Splash); with Hold-Up cards (e.g., True/Not True, Selected Response); with movement (e.g., Bounce Cards, Line-Ups, Simulations); and to guide note-taking and concept analysis (e.g., Picture Notes, 3-Sentence Wrap-Up, Debate Team Carousel).

Filled with examples from real classrooms, Total Participation Techniques is an essential toolkit for teachers at all levels and for administrators who want a model for analyzing lessons to ensure that they are relevant, engaging, and cognitively challenging... from Amazon.com

As I read through the book, I recognized many things that I already did in my classroom that were TPT's; I just didn't call them that. I've been using exit tickets and quick writes for some time, as well as Pair-Share or Turn and Teach; Thumbs-up, Thumbs-down; and using sign language to indicate multiple choice answers.

What I like about the book is that there is a plethora of activities, MANY more than what I was already familiar with, described IN DETAIL...

Each TPT is presented in four parts:* A descriptive overview * How It Works--step-by-step instructions for implementation* How to Ensure Higher-Order Thinking--ideas for advancing students beyond surface-level thinking* Pause to Apply--suggestions for how to adapt and personalize the technique for specific contexts and content areas... from Amazon.com

Have any of you read this book? I'd love to hear your thoughts about the techniques presented. Has anyone implemented the techniques?

This now brings me to...

As I read through all the techniques, I decided to implement a few in my instruction this coming year. I have to select just a FEW to not overwhelm myself. Too many and I will forget what is what! Total Participation Cards referred to as HOLD-UPS (there's a HUGE variety mentioned in the book) are something so close to what I'm doing already that I knew I could implement them well. I made two sets: Mastery Cards and Choice Cards.

Mastery Cards are meant to be used by students while they are working. Students select the level of understanding where they are during discussions and work sessions to inform the teacher who then can concentrate on those who are "still working at it." Simple to make and use, you can grab your forever freebie set HERE.

Choice Cards are designed to engage EVERY student in a discussion or question/answer session. You can grab your set (including four options) of this forever freebie HERE.

Be sure you stop by 4th Grade Frolics to check out OODLES of Monday Made Its. Betcha find something there you just can't resist making!

Monday Made It: I Have, Who Has How-to

I am FINALLY getting somewhere with making things! I can join 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It where you will find LOADS of great ideas for things to make.

It seems like my creativity (what there is of it) has been on hold for the past month or two. Actually, all those end of the school year activities and responsibilities took precedent, plus I needed to do some MEGA reading for next year's classes. Now that all that is finished I have some time to create and of course what I'm making is for school. I've been working on a several I HAVE, WHO HAS activities. Are you familiar with this fun, engaging, game-like activity?

Sometimes called a looping activity, I HAVE, WHO HAS provides students practice with not only content area information but also with listening skills. Students are given a card on which is written an answer (the I HAVE part) followed by a question (the WHO HAS part). Students must listen to the questions so they can provide the particular answer they have. Play continues around the room until all the cards have been read. If done correctly, the last question leads back to the first card.

It sounds a lot more complicated than what it is. Take a peek at this video of my sixers from a few years ago as they complete an I HAVE, WHO HAS for the Stations of the Cross. You'll notice a few students have more than one card, one student who makes a mistake and the class corrects him, and students encouraging their classmates.


I HAVE, WHO HAS lends itself to multiple readings thus improving reading fluency, bolstering listening skills, and reinforcing content area skills. LOVE it!

I've most recently begun making I HAVE, WHO HAS sets for books my students are reading for class assignments. My junior high English students participate in a countywide English Festival each spring wherein they are required to read six novels. See this post and this one for more information about this event. I HAVE, WHO HAS will be a great way to review the details of each of the novels prior to participating in the festival.

So, how do I make one of these activities?

First I decide on the size/format of the cards. I like to use a 3 x 3 table in Power Point for this type of activity. It leaves enough room for graphics and provides space for plenty of information. I choose colors that coordinate with the book's cover, and select two pieces of clip art that represent key elements in the story. Here's what the Power Point slide looks like for the most recent IHWH that I made (Counting by 7's by Holly Goldberg Sloan). The main character, Willow Chance, is obsessed with counting by 7's and loves plants so I chose clip art to represent these characteristics. These two items are offered free for teacher use by My Cute Graphics.

Next, I plan on the text, the questions and answers, for each card. This part ain't pretty, folks. I simply draft the information (with novel in hand) on unlined paper in my clipboard. Here's what one of my planning pages looks like. I'm almost embarrassed to show you.

I start with creating the list of all of the answers (answer key). This helps me keep organized as I enter the information on the cards. If I do it correctly, the last answer will lead back to the first card.

Then I fill in all of the information (in order to help keep me organized) on all of the cards. Here's what the actual Power Point slide for the above planning page looks like when it's completed, sooooo much neater and clear!

And there you have it, an I HAVE, WHO HAS for Counting by 7's by Holly Goldberg Sloan!

I recently made one for HOOT by Carl Hiassen, as well.

Both are available in my TpT Store by clicking on the links provided above. Soon also will be available  I HAVE, WHO HAS for the following four books, completing this year's English Festival titles. Look for them in the coming weeks.

Get Ready, Get Set...FREEBIE

GOOOOOOOO! 

If you are like me, you are already making plans for the return to classes after the holiday break.

The lessons take care of themselves, or so it seems after 35 years of teaching. However, the students do not. Those first few moments of that first day back are so important: Students WANT/need to catch-up with each other while you still want/NEED to get the classroom management things completed (attendance, lunch count, notes, etc.). So, what's a teacher to do to meet both of these wants/needs? It can be mind-BOGGLE-ing!

My solution is going to be to have my students play a round of Boggle. They can be social while still practicing language arts skills and quietly organized in order for me to get required tasks completed.

Here's a board that I created in no time flat using Microsoft Power Point, digital papers from Cutesy Clickables, glittery frames from Glitter Meets Glue, and fonts from I'm Lovin' Lit. The BEST part of this board is that it is editable; I can change the letters as I see fit.

I plan on projecting the board onto my interactive whiteboard so that the entire class can play Boggle at once while I do my "THING". Afterwards we can hunt for words together, circle them and even make a list of words found on the board.

I really like how the board turned out, so much so that I decided to make it available to you as a forever freebie. You can download your own copy HERE or by clicking on the pic above.

To customize your BOGGLE board once you've downloaded it, simply open it in Power Point, then click on each letter. Change the letter, font, size, color as you choose. Display the board on an interactive whiteboard or large screen television and instruct your students to find as many hidden words as possible (see traditional BOGGLE rules online if you are unsure of how to play). Tailor your directions and rules as you see fit. ENJOY!

I'm linking up this idea with Tara's Monday Made It over at 4th Grade Frolics! Be sure to stop by her blog for more great classroom ideas that you can make also.

Sights and Sounds of the Season

For me Christmas is all about the sights and sounds, the songs and the traditions. Teaching in a Catholic school allows me to focus on the religious aspect of the holiday more than my peers who teach in a public school, but we also include the secular side of the holiday in our activities.

For instance, this week before break my sixth graders will play this fun, engaging ZAP game that focuses on Language Arts skills combined with the story of the Nativity. You can read more about and download it HERE.

For those of you who don't know how to play ZAP, here's a quick run down. The game consists of playing cards in a container (generally a Pringle's can). The cards focus on a particular skill.

1. Divide your class into several teams depending on the number of students. Determine how long you will play or how many rounds you will complete. 
2. Have a student draw a strip from the container without looking inside. 
3. The team should read the words on the strip, then confer to determine the answer.
4. If the team answers correctly, it keeps the strip. If it answers incorrectly the strip is returned to the container.
5. Teams take turns drawing/collecting the strips. However, there is a twist. If a team draws a ZAP! card, it must return ALL of its strips to the container. 
6. The winner is the team that collects the most strips. You may want to award them with a simple prize such as a treat, bonus points on an upcoming quiz/test, 5 minutes of free time, etc.

During this last hectic holiday week, we will also play this ZAP game, a brand new addition to my TpT store! This ZAP! game requires students to identify which of four words is NOT a synonym of the other three. It, too, is available in my TpT Store.

I've included two sizes of playing cards in this product. The smaller size is suitable for use with the 2 to 2.5 ounce Pringle's cans while the larger size works well with the standard to large sized Pringle's cans.

All of the cards carry a QR code, making the game perfect for use as a self-checking literacy center.

Finally, I added something new to this ZAP! game: two additional cards. You'll notice that besides the ZAP! cards there are cards marked ZIP and ZOP. These are optional cards and add a great twist to the typical ZAP! game. My kiddos love to play ZAP! but they went wild for this variation, even my junior highers!

If a team draws a ZIP card, the team draws two cards to answer. If it draws a ZOP card, the team may steal a card from another team. Return the ZIP, ZAP, ZOP cards to the container after each turn and continue playing.

This ZAP! game as well as many more holiday themed games and activities can be found in my TpT Store. All of them are perfect for the last, hectic week before the holiday break.

Since I made a brand new version of an old favorite, I'm linking up this post with Tara over at 4th Grade Frolics for Monday Made It. Be sure to stop by her blog for lots of other great ideas by teacher bloggers.

Remember I did say that the sounds of the seasons are important to me? Although I don't teach music, per se, I do incorporate music into all areas of the curriculum and even teach my sixth graders to play the choir chimes so they can lead the singing at many of our school prayer services and masses. It's a great way to emphasize reading for a purpose and paying very close attention to the text. Throw in listening skills and general music playing skills and you've got a learning activity packed with punch.


Excuse my loud humming (the camera is close to my mouth). By humming, we are able to play together without me actually directing them. During Mass or a prayer service they need to be as independent as possible so that there is no distraction to the others present. My sixers had just learned to play this song. It had taken them three days of copying the music from the board, learning the chords and notes, rehearsing section by section, and following my direction.  Notice how engaged they all are? A teacher can't ask for more. We will be sharing this piece at our final Advent prayer service held directly before dismissal on our final day, the last thing that every K-6 student will experience before they leave for home,  a beautiful and peaceful ending to a tremendously hectic week.

Monday Made It: Voice-o-Meter

I'm happy to be joining Tara once again for...

This week's Made It was another quick and simple one that I whipped up on Sunday afternoon. I had planned on having this done before school started but I ran out of time (and steam). 

Here's my Voice-o-Meter! 

You've probably seen the Noise Level Charts all over Pinterest, and if you are a proponent of Whole Brain Teaching then you are familiar with the Volume-o-Meter and how it works. My Voice-O-Meter is similar. There are six levels of voices that my class identifies from Jackpot (REALLY LOUD and FRENZIED) to BARELY THERE (quietest whisper imaginable). This clip chart is meant to be prominently displayed in a classroom. The teacher can mark the acceptable voice level for each activity throughout the school day with a clothespin or clip. Students can view the chart and be constantly reminded of their expected noise level.

I can't wait to put it to use this coming week! If you'd like a copy of my Voice-o-Meter you can download it HERE; it's a forever FREEBIE!

Don't forget to hop over to Tara's blog for more Monday Made It's! Make sure you also stop by Classroom Freebies where you can find loads of terrific FREE teaching items.

Monday Made It Corny Treat Labels

I had every intention of writing this blog post on Saturday (I went to see Cirque du Soleil), then again on Sunday evening (I spent a longer day than I thought with special friends)... you see that my intentions didn't make it until now when Monday is nearly over. However, it is still Monday so I made it for...

This week's Made It is a quicky and oh so simple one! I was looking for a clever, cute treat that I could share with my sixers on the first day of school. I didn't want the SODA-lighted pop cans from last year or the survival bags of previous years. I wanted REALLY quick and simple! While I was walking through Big Lots I spied these and grabbed a couple of boxes.

My incoming sixers LOVE corny puns so I thought of this little greeting and made some labels which if you like, you can download HERE.

I cut out the labels using a giant, scalloped hole punch and stapled them to the fruit pouches. Here's what the finished treat looks like!

Not too bad for a quicky!

Be sure to stop by Tara's blog 4th Grade Frolics for more Monday Made It's!

Please also stop by my dear, bloggy friend Jessica's blog, Joy in the Journey. Her husband and friends from church are traveling to Southeast Asia this fall to help improve the living conditions for Cambodian villagers.

To help defray the cost of the trip, Jessica (along with a little help from some of her bloggy friends) has put together a wonderful back-to-school package of teaching products that she is offering in her TpT store at a very low price. All of the proceeds from this package are going toward the trip.

Please consider purchasing this bundle for a great cause!