tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55440709262146583802024-03-13T22:58:43.002-07:00The REAL Teachers of Orange CountyRealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-46184234566804645692015-05-19T18:54:00.000-07:002015-05-19T18:54:12.094-07:00We're Getting Carried Away with Learning! Fun with Open House Themes <br />
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Open House is right around the corner for me... as in next week! To help prepare, I decided to look at some of the pictures I took from last year's open house.<br />
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I've never been one to have a year long classroom theme, but I LOVE creating a theme for open house. I think having an open house theme makes the evening feel like a fun celebration showcasing the students' hard work. In the past, I used to do an elaborate Hollywood themed open house. You can read about that by clicking <a href="http://therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com/2012/06/third-grade-goes-hollywood.html" target="_blank">here</a>. <br />
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Last school year was my first year in a new school and a new district and I felt like a first year teacher all over again. I had to simplify open house. I decided to go with a "We're Getting Carried Away with Learning" theme and use fun balloons as decor. It wasn't quite as a exciting as my Hollywood theme, but it still helped create a fun and festive evening.<br />
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This picture shows a general idea of what the room looked like. My sweet mother-in-law is in the background hanging last minute things to the wall (gotta love family members who are willing to help!). <br />
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One thing that I love to do to help make the room look nice is add inexpensive plastic table cloths to the desks. <br />
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Each year about 2 weeks before open house, I have my students do a compliment project where they write a sincere compliment to each person in the class. The students wrote their compliments on each person's balloon. I hung the balloons from the ceiling. The parents and students love reading about what their classmates said about them. I always write a nice note on the balloon to each child as well.<br />
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As you can see, simple touches can go a long way in making your classroom look fun and inviting for open house or other classroom events. <br />
<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-27533009931760741972014-01-01T21:10:00.000-08:002014-01-01T21:10:17.501-08:00I almost forgot how to log into blogger...<br />
Has it really been that long? So long that I wasn't sure if I remembered how to log into Blogger? I'm not sure we even have followers it's been that long. Is anybody out there? Hello?<br />
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Like all teachers throughout the world, we have been busy. Here's a quick peek at what we've been up to since our last post (which was in July! eek!) <br />
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Our summer consisted of leisure and fun {sigh} . . .<br />
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This is us waiting for a showing of the Tonight Show... </div>
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where we met this guy! </div>
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We even had some time to taste test some of the most popular cupcakes in the Orange County area. Casey's won. </div>
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I also threw a gender reveal party for my brother and sister-in-law. It was so much fun planning and decorating. They welcomed a baby girl in November.<br />
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Then, the fun and games ended with a screeching halt!<br />
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A last minute hire (literally 4 days before school started) in a new district, school, and grade left me feeling like a first year teacher all over again! I am super happy at my new school and love my group of 2nd graders. In addition to this big change, common core and new technology implementation has left us both with no time to blog! We hope to come back once and a while to share what we've been up to in our classrooms.<br />
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Before I sign off, I want to share a holiday gift that my students made for their parents. I know it's late, but if you like the idea, maybe you can pin it and save it for next year! For the last few years, my students have been making their parents snowmen out of fence posts. The parents can use them to stick in their garden or yard as decoration. <br />
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First, I bought wooden fence posts at a local hardware store. They come in all different sizes. I got mine for about a dollar per piece. I used to buy them already painted white. I tried several stores and all they offered were fence posts in natural wood. My students ended up having to paint the posts, which was fun for them, but was an added expense to the project.<br />
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My students spent about 2 days painting each side of their post. Once the paint dried, they decorated their post to look like a snowman. I pre-cut fabric to use as the scarf. The nose is made out of orange foam paper and we stuffed a sock with batting for the hat. The final product turned out really cute.<br />
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We are wishing you and your families much love, joy, health, and peace this new year! </div>
RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-67197423452914368462013-07-08T18:46:00.000-07:002013-07-08T18:46:39.697-07:00Monday Made It...Party Invitations! <br />
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Whew! Summer has been in full force and we have barely sat down! Between traveling and family gatherings, this is the third day since school got out that I have actually been home with nothing planned! <br />
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I am so happy to finally have the chance to link up with <span style="color: orange;"><b><a href="http://www.4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Tara from 4th Grade Frolics</a></b></span> for Monday Made It! I haven't had a chance to make any teaching related things, but I think summer is a great time for teachers to unwind and explore other interests. With that being said, I am exploring my newest interest of party planning! My brother and cute sister-in-law are expecting their first baby. The minute they told me they were expecting, I was already announcing that I would host a gender reveal party. They are going to find out the gender of their baby in front of close family and friends. I am so excited to make this a special experience for them!<br />
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I searched all over for the perfect invitation, but nothing seemed right. I finally decided to make my own invites!<br />
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I first typed and printed the wording for the invitation on nice 4 1/2 x 6 1/4" card stock. </div>
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I also cut this cute grey with white polk a dot scrapbook paper slightly larger than the white card stock to use as the backing. </div>
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Then I got ready to stamp!</div>
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I used these cute mustache and lips to stamp.</div>
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Using embossing powder and an embossing gun, I embossed the stamps to give them a more raised look. </div>
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I then glued the invitation to the polk a dot scrapbook paper. </div>
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But I couldn't stop there! The envelope needed to be cute as well! So, I printed this question mark paper and cut envelope liners. </div>
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<br />I also found these plastic cups in the Dollar Spot at Target. I think I might fill them with candy and use them as some sort of party favor. </div>
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I will be posting more things that I make for this party on our instagram account @therealteachersoforangecounty. We hope to be back soon with some teaching related posts! </div>
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-16785698486376622072013-07-01T22:40:00.000-07:002013-07-01T22:40:06.968-07:00Come follow us on Bloglovin! <br />
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Well... we finally made the switch over the Bloglovin just in time! We hope that you will continue to follow us! :)</div>
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<span style="color: orange;"><b><a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/5107973/?claim=7yjbtrvdmae">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a></b></span></div>
RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-48490401413120751422013-06-10T14:50:00.000-07:002013-06-10T14:53:31.338-07:00Social Thinking (it doesn't stop now that school is out!)<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">The majority of my students have goals for social skills. Practicing those skills in a natural setting is important. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Here are just a few ideas for the summer that my awesome speech teacher gave me...</span></div>
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<li class="MsoNormal">Encourage
a journal, diary, or scrapbook of the summer or a vacation. This is great for summarizing, because
no one wants to spend the effort to record every detail! For a student who doesn’t like to write,
they can provide captions for summer photos.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">The
scrapbook idea can be fun and silly, too, with a regular spiral
notebook. The student can cut out
pictures from magazines and make up captions, either individual
snapshots or an entire story. If
your child tends to be highly literal (“I don’t know why she is sad
because I don’t know her.”), encourage them to guess, because there is no
wrong answer. If your child is
highly imaginative, encourage them to make up a story and stay with the
context of the picture, rather than turning the story to be about their
own interests (volcanoes, snakes, Power Rangers, etc.).</li>
<li class="MsoNormal">Watch a movie your student has seen, so they don’t have to focus on following the plot. Help them notice the emotional reactions—pause the movie and explain it if they don’t get it! You can ask: “How did he/she feel?" "How do you know he/she was happy/angry/etc.?” “Why was she angry/sad/whatever?” or “Why did he say that?”. These tend to be really difficult, so help your student work through them. </li>
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Social thinking goes into everyday life, and it
makes life more interesting. These activities will work best and be most enjoyable when you remember
that the point is to relate to others and understand what’s going on around
us.</div>
RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-23331155071277773172013-05-31T19:21:00.000-07:002013-05-31T19:21:58.960-07:00Five for Friday! <br />
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Oh, <a href="http://www.doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><u><b>Five for Friday</b></u></a>, how we've missed you! I'm so happy that I have an extra few minutes this evening to whip up a little Five for Friday! I hope everyone had a great week!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>My Attempt at Being Creative</b></u></span><br />
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You may remember my sewing disaster from a previous Five For Friday post. Well, I signed up for another sewing class and made these little t-shirts for a friend's daughters. I'm excited to try more projects this summer!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Instagram Fun!</u></b></span></div>
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We recently got an instagram account and we're having a blast! Come follow us @therealteachersoforangecounty. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Face Math!</u></b></span><br />
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I did a fun, simple math activity to help my 2nd grade math intervention group practice addition/subtraction with regrouping. It is called Face Math. If you haven't read the post already, you can check it out <b><a href="http://www.therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com/2013/05/lets-face-it-math-can-be-fun.html" target="_blank">here</a></b>. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Pup-Cakes</u></b></span><br />
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I made these, "pup-cakes" for a friends' birthday. Yum!<br />
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<b><u>The Immature Kid in Me... and no, I didn't do this</u></b><br />
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While walking through a sports store, I came across this. The immature kid in me thought it was hilarious and immediately took a pic.<br />
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Go link up with <a href="http://www.doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><u><b>Doodle Bugs Teaching</b></u></a> for Five For Friday! </div>
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-5555304401172153722013-05-29T19:28:00.002-07:002013-05-29T19:28:38.951-07:00Let's "Face" it- Math Can be Fun! <br />
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There are only 2 weeks left in the school year for me, but I am still working hard with my reading/math intervention groups.<br />
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My 2nd grade math intervention group needed some practice with addition/subtraction with regrouping. Instead of the same old boring worksheets, I whipped up this little activity called, "Face Math." It is a fun activity for them and an easy assessment tool for me.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-027oryCutnk/Uaa3ea-4yJI/AAAAAAAAA-I/Y6nLGIHuOO8/s1600/facemath1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-027oryCutnk/Uaa3ea-4yJI/AAAAAAAAA-I/Y6nLGIHuOO8/s1600/facemath1.jpg" height="640" width="640" /></a></div>
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Basically, I typed up various 3 digit addition and subtraction problems for the students to solve. Once the students were finished working out the problems, they looked at the bottom of the paper to see an answer key and color code. I gave two possible answer choices for each problem. The students colored the blank face according to the answer they got. The blank faces came from <b><a href="https://www.teachersnotebook.com/product/CreativeClips/character-doodle-a-face-clipart-creative-clips-digital-clipart" target="_blank">Creative Clips</a></b>.<br />
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For example, if their answer was 160 for problem 1, they had to draw blue eyes on the face. If they got 150 for problem 1, then they had to draw green eyes.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YBN1WqugmHw/Uaa3fGtm0bI/AAAAAAAAA-Q/XuOtzJgP7Xc/s1600/facemath2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YBN1WqugmHw/Uaa3fGtm0bI/AAAAAAAAA-Q/XuOtzJgP7Xc/s1600/facemath2.jpg" height="640" width="640" /></a></div>
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The coloring of the face/body makes this activity a simple assessment for me. In the picture above, I can see that the student that drew the yellow dots and blue shirt, answered the problem incorrectly as those were not the colors that went along with the right answer. I know that I will need to go back and review some of the problems with her. I made a girl version and a boy version for this activity.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hMr_zNHzZa0/Uaa3f8Ee7nI/AAAAAAAAA-g/tqcIPsywioc/s1600/Slide3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hMr_zNHzZa0/Uaa3f8Ee7nI/AAAAAAAAA-g/tqcIPsywioc/s1600/Slide3.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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The students had a blast with this and I am in the process of making more as they've requested! Even if you teach a different grade level, you can still do something similar with whatever concept you're working on in class.<br />
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You can download this for free right here! </div>
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<a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/144562272/Face-Math" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Face Math on Scribd">Face Math</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_12990" scrolling="no" src="http://www.scribd.com/embeds/144562272/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-61584527089343495102013-05-21T15:22:00.000-07:002013-05-21T15:30:18.534-07:00A Little Late to the Party! <br />
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Ahhh, the story of my life! I'm always just a beat behind everyone else. I was the kid who repeated kindergarten. The high school cheerleader that was clapping when you were supposed to be stomping. The last one to finish a paper in college. The last teacher to turn in important paper work. You get the idea. And now... I'm super late on getting started with this whole Instagram thing. Better late than never, right?! <br />
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When I first read about Instagram on other blogs, I wasn't so sure if it was for me. I finally decided to give it a try and I am in love! I really think that sometimes pictures are worth a thousand words. Instagram gives us the opportunity to view great teaching ideas easily by simply looking at a picture. It is also fun to check out the random and non-teachery things that are going on in our lives too.<br />
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We are definitely on board! We've already started following about forty-something people. Please let us know if you are on Instagram so we don't miss out on your pics!<br />
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Anyway, Teacher Talk Tuesday was started by <b><a href="http://www.whattheteacherwants.blogspot.com/search/label/Instagram" target="_blank">What the Teacher Wants</a></b> and <b><a href="http://applesandabcs.blogspot.com/2013/05/instagram-101.html" target="_blank">Apples and ABCs</a></b>! If you're not on Instagram, I encourage you to give it a try. It was super easy to sign up!<br />
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Please come find us on Instagram and become a follower!</div>
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-27233842561405764982013-05-17T17:06:00.000-07:002013-05-17T17:07:25.407-07:00Teaching Division Strategies<br />
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Whew! We made it! Happy Friday, everyone!<br />
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My little second grade math intervention group has been working on division strategies. I thought I would share a few ways in which I helped my kiddos grasp this concept.<br />
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Since I work with the intervention group, my students tend to have difficulty understanding math vocabulary. Before we dove into this concept, I needed to make sure that they understood the difference between equal and unequal groups. Rather than coming out and simply telling my students what an equal group is, I made a little chart and put pictures with examples of equal groups and unequal groups. I had my students look at the examples and share with an elbow partner about what they thought an equal/unequal group was. They were definitely able to explain this in their own words after seeing this chart. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZIxZ0iUXz5w/UZa-FLnkbII/AAAAAAAAA9E/DGqkOjtQRLk/s1600/division1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZIxZ0iUXz5w/UZa-FLnkbII/AAAAAAAAA9E/DGqkOjtQRLk/s1600/division1.jpg" height="640" width="464" /></a></div>
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We worked a lot with manipulatives to practice division concepts. The kiddos loved when I pulled out my stuffed animal friends to help us divide. Using the stuffed animals was a great way to help explain the concept of remainders. I had the students help me pass out manipulatives to the different stuffed animals. Sometimes there wouldn't be enough for them all to have an equal amount. That's when I would explain the idea of remainders.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jvLSUgA5Zxg/UZa-UkEtqTI/AAAAAAAAA9c/kuQle2nqNGs/s1600/photo%252813%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jvLSUgA5Zxg/UZa-UkEtqTI/AAAAAAAAA9c/kuQle2nqNGs/s1600/photo%252813%2529.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Once the students got the hang of using manipulatives to help them divide, I made this simple little division mat to help students draw equal groups. Now when working out a division problem, they quickly draw little dots in the circles. Before using this, I had them draw circles and make the dots using a small whiteboard. Big mistake! Some kids drew their circles too small and couldn't fit all the dots inside. Some kids weren't very neat with their drawing and miscounted due to sloppiness. I whipped up this little baby in five minutes and it has saved a lot of time! I slipped them into page protectors and it's ready to go! <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eXK6No8sZDw/UZa-RMrBfVI/AAAAAAAAA9U/uGxJJTV0TQg/s1600/division3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eXK6No8sZDw/UZa-RMrBfVI/AAAAAAAAA9U/uGxJJTV0TQg/s1600/division3.jpg" height="494" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now that we are really getting the hang of division and what it means to divide, I have been working with my little friends on division word problems. I created this Scoot game to help them practice the concept. They took the above division mat around the room with them to help them with the word problems. This Scoot game may even be helpful to third or fourth graders who are struggling with division. You can download the game for free! Enjoy!<br />
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I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B__7jbaUK7Q/UZa-NUAgHGI/AAAAAAAAA9M/Xh7MGnACkYY/s1600/division2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B__7jbaUK7Q/UZa-NUAgHGI/AAAAAAAAA9M/Xh7MGnACkYY/s1600/division2.jpg" height="468" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/142123224/Division-Scoot" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Division Scoot on Scribd">Division Scoot</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_68562" scrolling="no" src="http://www.scribd.com/embeds/142123224/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll" width="100%"></iframe>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-88708402977107848812013-05-08T18:39:00.001-07:002013-05-08T18:39:45.645-07:00Motivating Writers <br />
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Happy Wednesday!!<br />
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Jivey, from the blog, <b><a href="http://ideasbyjivey.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Ideas By Jivey</a><u> </u></b>has the coolest link up. Every Wednesday she has a series called "Workshop Wednesday" where she posts a new topic. I have been wanting to link up to this for awhile, but have not found the time until today. I have read other blogger's posts from this link up in the past, and have gained some great ideas from this! I hope you will also head over to her blog to link up!<br />
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This week's topic focuses on motivating writers. This topic spoke to me, as once upon a time, I had the most UN-motivated writers in the history of teaching!! In fact, I was pretty unmotivated to teach writing myself. I actually enjoy writing for pleasure, but teaching it, well, that's another story! Part of the problem was that my past school district had a very scripted writing program which made teaching writing<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>BOR-ING! </b></span></div>
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Everyday when I asked my students to take out their writing notebooks, all I would hear were sighs and groans -- a teacher's worst nightmare, right?! <br />
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I decided that I would make it my own even though I didn't care for the writing program. Since then, my students actually enjoy writing and I actually enjoy <i>teaching </i>it too. Here are a few ways I motivated my students:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>1. Celebrate Student Writing S<span style="font-size: large;">uccess</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">When students are writing, I walk around the classroom and look for <span style="font-size: small;">strong examp<span style="font-size: small;">l<span style="font-size: small;">es to share with the rest of the class. Perhaps it was the use of transition words that <span style="font-size: small;">I w<span style="font-size: small;">ant to point out. Maybe it was the use of figurat<span style="font-size: small;">ive la<span style="font-size: small;">n<span style="font-size: small;">guage I <span style="font-size: small;">want to highlight.<span style="font-size: small;"> Whatever <span style="font-size: small;">the reason, if I like a students' writing, I simply stick a little post<span style="font-size: small;">-it note on the paper. The students know that if they r<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">receive</span> a post-it, then they get to <span style="font-size: small;">share t<span style="font-size: small;">heir wri<span style="font-size: small;">ting to the class. And let me tell you, the LOVE sharing! </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R9Gh4ygC7UE/UYr4M2PNCoI/AAAAAAAAA8Q/TzcPNjpE7js/s1600/photo%252811%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R9Gh4ygC7UE/UYr4M2PNCoI/AAAAAAAAA8Q/TzcPNjpE7js/s1600/photo%252811%2529.JPG" height="640" width="480" /></a></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I <span style="font-size: small;">also have students <span style="font-size: small;">read<span style="font-size: small;"> their writing to the class by sit<span style="font-size: small;">ting in the A<span style="font-size: small;">uthor's C<span style="font-size: small;">hair. I know this isn't really a new idea, but it defi<span style="font-size: small;">nitely motivates them. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RyEwozc1xPA/UYr30gh1S-I/AAAAAAAAA7g/4DFafweYUeE/s1600/motivatingwriters4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RyEwozc1xPA/UYr30gh1S-I/AAAAAAAAA7g/4DFafweYUeE/s1600/motivatingwriters4.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">My author's chair <span style="font-size: small;">is</span> pretty plain, but <span style="font-size: small;">I found some cute decorated one's on <span style="font-size: small;">Pinterest t<span style="font-size: small;">hat wou<span style="font-size: small;">ld make a great summer project!</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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Source: <a href="http://ftfeverything.blogspot.com/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">ftfeverything.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/as420310/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Amanda</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/zeacXyF7dgPvtHr9_Fq0PT8vZQu4aNatY4yIRu7RbUAPuZLOawoqpoTdjBbwtxJrgAoTvZ_6hml9Vn6GX_4DYvLgW70ADg_UDCWcICG1sh0m8QyjhuATHGBsSmidilBmVJfvVaveO4U" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://media-cache-is0.pinimg.com/550x/5a/83/1a/5a831a6fd2c41766817d8fe0dfaf38c4.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b> </b></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/5629568256208914/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank">Source: </a><a href="http://inspiredwritingteacher.blogspot.com/2011/08/slowly-but-surely-my-classroom-takes.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">inspiredwritingteacher.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/teg10a/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Taylor</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>2. Find Fun Ways to Publish</b></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Letting students use creati<span style="font-size: small;">ve ways to publish their writing is another great motivat<span style="font-size: small;">or. Here are some pictures of <span style="font-size: small;">our published writing. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2LwhZg08XY4/UYr4GL7Jn_I/AAAAAAAAA8A/kDtuEhj5GSs/s1600/motivatingwriters9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2LwhZg08XY4/UYr4GL7Jn_I/AAAAAAAAA8A/kDtuEhj5GSs/s1600/motivatingwriters9.jpg" height="498" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Each year my<span style="font-size: small;"> students get to publish life-like books that <span style="font-size: small;">I order from a company called, <a href="http://www.barebooks.com/" target="_blank"><u>Bare Books.</u></a></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QSLxHiM1z9E/UYr3sSB4clI/AAAAAAAAA7A/FxoPjpjq5Vg/s1600/motivatingwriters10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QSLxHiM1z9E/UYr3sSB4clI/AAAAAAAAA7A/FxoPjpjq5Vg/s1600/motivatingwriters10.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Idea inspired by<a href="http://lessonplansos.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"> Lesson Plan SOS</a></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qr-VcM1YWcg/UYr36y4HjII/AAAAAAAAA7w/04edOOnCqK0/s1600/motivatingwriters6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qr-VcM1YWcg/UYr36y4HjII/AAAAAAAAA7w/04edOOnCqK0/s1600/motivatingwriters6.jpg" height="640" width="446" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KYzmETag9oQ/UYr4ApTxs9I/AAAAAAAAA74/MtKeeirZ51o/s1600/motivatingwriters8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KYzmETag9oQ/UYr4ApTxs9I/AAAAAAAAA74/MtKeeirZ51o/s1600/motivatingwriters8.jpg" height="640" width="528" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tm9dX3GkZVY/UYr3yytMtEI/AAAAAAAAA7Q/9SeyNPR-ojA/s1600/motivatingwriters5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tm9dX3GkZVY/UYr3yytMtEI/AAAAAAAAA7Q/9SeyNPR-ojA/s1600/motivatingwriters5.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">3. <span style="font-size: large;">Peer-t<span style="font-size: large;">o<span style="font-size: large;">-Peer Reading <span style="font-size: large;">& Editing </span></span></span></span></span></b></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">My students <span style="font-size: small;">love having the <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">opportunity</span> to share their <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">writing</span> with a <span style="font-size: small;">partner. I usually give them the l<span style="font-size: small;">ast few mintue<span style="font-size: small;">s of our wri<span style="font-size: small;">ting perio<span style="font-size: small;">d to <span style="font-size: small;">read t<span style="font-size: small;">heir writing to a partner. The students also <span style="font-size: small;">he<span style="font-size: small;">lp edit each other's work with an editing check list that <span style="font-size: small;">I prov<span style="font-size: small;">ide them. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iyLWN_DuukI/UYr4LknIbTI/AAAAAAAAA8I/5PKWXOadfig/s1600/motiviatingwriters1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iyLWN_DuukI/UYr4LknIbTI/AAAAAAAAA8I/5PKWXOadfig/s1600/motiviatingwriters1.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Couldn't find an actual picture of students reading writing/editing- but you get the idea! </td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">4. Collaborative<span style="font-size: large;"> Writing</span></span></b></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Sometimes I would have my students collabor<span style="font-size: small;">ate in small groups <span style="font-size: small;">to<span style="font-size: small;"> write<span style="font-size: small;">. In<span style="font-size: small;"> the picture below, <span style="font-size: small;">each group wr<span style="font-size: small;">ote <span style="font-size: small;">a small portion of a summary for the book, <u><span style="font-size: small;">Skeleton</span> Hiccups</u>. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size: small;">Once t<span style="font-size: small;">he groups finished t<span style="font-size: small;">heir portion of the sum<span style="font-size: small;">ma<span style="font-size: small;">ry, I put each groups' piece in a pocket chart and we read the entire summary together as a whole g<span style="font-size: small;">roup. T<span style="font-size: small;">he student<span style="font-size: small;">s al<span style="font-size: small;">so helped edit the summary. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-avYXY2rzZMI/UYr3x2JwYLI/AAAAAAAAA7I/LN90qOF8giw/s1600/motivatingwriters11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-avYXY2rzZMI/UYr3x2JwYLI/AAAAAAAAA7I/LN90qOF8giw/s1600/motivatingwriters11.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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Last school year, one of my students told me that he used to hate writing until he had me for a teacher. Music to my ears after the groans I heard a few years prior! It's amazing how some simple changes can spark motivation in student writers!<br />
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Don't forget to link up with <b><a href="http://ideasbyjivey.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jivey!</a></b></div>
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OK, friends, who pressed the fast forward button on April? Where did it go?! I can't believe that it's May already. State testing starts next week and the school year is winding down. It is over 90 degrees today, so I am really starting to feel ready for summer to get here! Go link up with <a href="http://ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/2013/05/may-currently.html" target="_blank">Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade</a> to join in on the fun! <br />
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<b><span style="color: orange;">Listening-</span></b> to absolutely nothing! I feel like I always say this for the listening portion of Currently, but I guess I always type these things when nobody is around.<br />
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<b><span style="color: orange;">Loving-</span></b> The weekend is just about here and I am excited because the hubby and I have no plans! I love when this happens. It seems like we've had something going on every weekend for the past month and this weekend we can actually relax and enjoy the nice weather.<br />
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<b><span style="color: orange;">Thinking-</span></b> I think this was one of the fastest school years of my teaching career. It seems like the year goes by faster and faster with every new school year. Does this mean that I'm getting old?!<br />
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<b><span style="color: orange;">Wanting-</span></b> I am an overly ambitious person. I have way too many goals, both personal and classroom related. I know making goals is a good thing, but I seem to have so many that they are unable to be reached. At least not all at once as I would like! Because of this, I feel like I hardly get anything accomplished at all! I guess it's the ADD and OCD in me! :)<br />
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<b><span style="color: orange;">Needing-</span></b> Hey, I love food. What else can I say???<br />
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<span style="color: orange;"><b>Summer Bucket List-</b></span><br />
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1. Cupcake Challenge: so, there are a few popular cupcake places around here and I've enjoyed cupcakes at each of them, but I can't seem to decided which place has the best. I have decided that I want to buy the same flavor of cupcakes from all three places and do a blind taste test on each cupcake to determine which place makes the best. Kind of like my own personal Cupcake Wars. Stacy, the co-author of this blog, will be joining me in this feat! Maybe we'll post about it once we finish- haha!<br />
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2. Create Units: ok, well, I'm the nerd that wants to work on school stuff over the summer. I have too many things that I've created over the years that need to be spruced up and uploaded to TPT! I've been wanting to do this for a long time, but it is so, so time consuming! I just don't understand how so many of you get it all done!<br />
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3. Beach- enough said. <br />
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Well, I'm off to go find some new blogs to stalk. Hey, do you think that maybe by blog stalking might have something to do with my inability to get stuff done? Perhaps all this blog reading takes up some time (hehehe!). Oh well, I love reading and learning from all of you. Don't forget to link up with <a href="http://ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/2013/05/may-currently.html" target="_blank">Farley</a> to participate in this month's Currently! <br />
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-48856933030703049272013-05-01T17:40:00.001-07:002013-05-28T10:38:26.389-07:00Wiggly kids?...Show me "Whole Body Listening"! <span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Do you have those kids who just can't sit still, whose eyes are looking somewhere else, making you think they're not listening to you? </span><br />
<span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">I first heard of "Whole Body Listening" (WBL) from </span><span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Michelle Garcia Winner</span><span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">. In my class, we start the year breaking down the components of WBL, and now we just give a verbal or visual prompt to remind students to show us "Whole Body Listening"...it works like MAGIC! Thank you Michelle Garcia Winner! </span><a href="http://www.socialthinking.com/" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 31px;" target="_blank">Check out her website, Social Thinking, for more information on WBL and sooooooo many other really important skills!</a><br />
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<span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Here are the components of WBL:</span><br />
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<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Eyes: look at the person talking to you</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Ears: both ears ready to hear</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Mouth: quiet-no talking, humming, or making sounds</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Hands: quiet in lap, pockets, or by your side</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Feet: quiet on the floor</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Body: facing the speaker</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Brain: thinking about what is being said</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; line-height: 31px;">Heart: caring about what the other person is saying</span></li>
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<span style="color: #1e1e1e; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 31px;">You can use posters as visuals, which are great. I prefer to use pictures of my actual students...boy do they love seeing themselves! Here's one of my cuties! You may be able to tell he's sitting on a "move-n-sit"/"disc-o-sit" (aka-wiggle cushion) to help him maintain adequate postural control during instruction. </span></span></div>
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RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-67510094473152055392013-04-12T17:13:00.002-07:002013-04-12T17:13:42.230-07:00Five For Friday Part 2!<br />
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We are thrilled that we can link up with <a href="http://doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Doodle Bugs Teaching</a> for another edition of Five For Friday! Last week we found some awesome new blogs to stalk and gathered some new friends/followers of our own. Thanks for reading!<br />
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Here we go...<br />
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<u><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: large;">I Fought the Law and the Law Won</span></span></b></u><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Okay, well, <span style="font-size: small;">I didn't exactly fight the law, but I sure had my <span style="font-size: small;">run-ins</span> with the law this week! On Tuesday I received a ticket, and today, I <span style="font-size: small;">left the <span style="font-size: small;">parking meter a little to<span style="font-size: small;">o long and came back to a parking violat<span style="font-size: small;">ion<span style="font-size: small;">! </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Getting Organized!</span></u></b></span><br />
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I started this project last week while I was on Spring Break and finally finished. I have always kept important documents in a small file box and lately it has been difficult to find necessary papers. I decided to organize my files into separate binders. Now it is easy for me to find important documents! <br />
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<u><b><span style="font-size: large;">Getting Carried Array!</span></b></u><br />
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My intervention math group has started beginning multiplication strategies. As you can see, we have been making a lot of arrays. We played a game that I created called, "Roll an Array," where the students roll the die to form a multiplication sentence and draw the array in the grid. We also used Cheeze-Its to create arrays (doesn't food always make math more fun?!). My students even created arrays on this sloppy grid paper that I drew and put post-it notes in the squares to create different arrays. </div>
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Prayers Please</span></u></b> </div>
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You may remember us mentioning that a good friend of ours was recently diagnosed with<a href="http://therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com/2013/03/putting-it-all-in-perspective.html" target="_blank"> breast cancer</a>. This came as quite a shock as she is only 31-years-old. Today she was supposed to start chemo, but a CAT Scan revealed some sort of spot on her liver. She had more testing today and should have the results by Monday. Please pray that it is nothing. She and her family has been through so much over the past 2 months. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Las<span style="font-size: large;">tly, I leave you with this</span></u></b></span></div>
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I saw this sign today as I was browsing in a store (right around the time I was being issued that parking ticket!). </div>
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Happy Friday and have a great weekend! Don't forget to link up with <a href="http://doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Doodle Bugs Teaching</a> and share your week! </div>
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-42611722554132448002013-04-09T18:37:00.000-07:002013-04-09T18:37:59.707-07:00A Little Frog & Toad Freebie <br />
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Happy Tuesday! For those of you that went back to school this week, I hope it is off to a great start. I was having a good day until I got pulled over by a cop on my way home from work (ugh!). One of the first things that came to my mind was, "I should take a picture of this for my next Five For Friday post!" Is there a support group or something for people like me?! <br />
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Anyway... I am reading the book, <u>Frog and Toad are Friend</u>s by Arnold Lobel with my 2nd grade reading intervention group. I thought I would share a few activities with you.<br />
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To go along with the book, I created these little journals in which the students will write from the perspective of either Frog or Toad (they get to choose).<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VQM5Y7MEvJw/UWS-cXqXMSI/AAAAAAAAA2w/-Vk2L8AQEwg/s1600/journals_edited-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VQM5Y7MEvJw/UWS-cXqXMSI/AAAAAAAAA2w/-Vk2L8AQEwg/s1600/journals_edited-1.jpg" height="488" width="640" /></a></div>
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The journals have little prompts to start the students off and they complete the writing by adding details from the story. This is a great way for me to monitor their comprehension and helps them with understanding the character's point of view. The students also get to draw a little illustration to go with the chapter. I made a different journal page to go along with each chapter in the book.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AR7InkOhFIw/UWS-gNJTRpI/AAAAAAAAA24/Obi8NF3AIPk/s1600/journal+inside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AR7InkOhFIw/UWS-gNJTRpI/AAAAAAAAA24/Obi8NF3AIPk/s1600/journal+inside.jpg" height="640" width="640" /></a></div>
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In addition to the journal, I created this double bubble map where the students will compare and contrast the personalities of Frog and Toad. This is a great way to get them thinking about character traits.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4lAX5QUq5q0/UWS-WPwUeKI/AAAAAAAAA2o/xCghsnkR-gg/s1600/compare+and+contrast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4lAX5QUq5q0/UWS-WPwUeKI/AAAAAAAAA2o/xCghsnkR-gg/s1600/compare+and+contrast.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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And... here are these things for you to download! Enjoy!<br />
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<a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/135034116/Frog-and-Toad-Comparison" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Frog and Toad Comparison on Scribd">Frog and Toad Comparison</a></div>
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<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_76070" scrolling="no" src="http://www.scribd.com/embeds/135034116/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll" width="100%"></iframe>
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<a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/135034590/Frog-and-Toad-Journal" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Frog and Toad Journal on Scribd">Frog and Toad Journal</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_98734" scrolling="no" src="http://www.scribd.com/embeds/135034590/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll" width="100%"></iframe>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-11810767330463848592013-04-05T16:50:00.001-07:002013-04-05T17:20:37.642-07:00Our Very FIRST Five For Friday! <br />
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I am actually embarrassed to admit that this is our first time linking up with <u><b><a href="http://doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/2013/04/five-for-friday-linky-party-april-4th.html" target="_blank">Doodle Bugs Teaching</a> </b></u>for Five For Friday. We have been reading other Five For Friday posts in the past and are thrilled that we can finally join the fun! Being on Spring Break this week has definitely helped with giving us time to link up. We are looking forward to meeting new blogging friends through this link up. Thanks for stopping by!<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><b>Mini Eggs</b></u> </span><br />
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Oh. My. Word. This is my addiction come every Spring. Right after Valentine's Day I start seeing these babies at the grocery store. This year, I decided to give up ALL sweets for Lent. That means that I have not had one piece of candy, treat, ice cream, you name it, for 40 days. Let's just say that at 8:45 on Easter morning I ripped into my first bag and haven't stopped eating them since. <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><u>Puppy Cuddles</u></b></span><br />
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My husband and I went up to Northern California to visit my family for Easter... and look who I woke up to! I wish I had a dog of my own, but it just isn't practical for my husband and me to own a dog right now. So, I did the next best thing and bought this little guy for my mom about two years ago. He is a long haired dachshund and is not only precious, but FULL of personality! <br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">My Attempt at Being Crafty</span></u></b><br />
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Before I became addicted to teaching blogs, I frequently stalked craft blogs. Well, between the craft blogs and Pinterest, I decided that I was going to learn how to sew. I love the idea of giving homemade gifts, and with many of my friends having babies now, I thought that homemade burp cloths, bibs, and blankets would be the perfect gift. I would also love to make things for my own kids someday! So, got this sewing machine for Christmas and recently took my first class. Well, after two hours of learning how to thread the needle and wind the bobbin, I finally felt confident enough to start a project. I decided to get started right away so that I would not forget what I had learned. When I got home, I could not remember a thing. Nothing! I wish I had a completed project to show you guys, but this is all I have. Needless to say, I am retaking the class in two weeks {sigh}. <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><b>Y<span style="font-size: x-large;">ummy Food</span></b></u></span><br />
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I stopped at one of my favorite restaurants, Zinc for a quick breakfast. I love the outdoor seating and overall atmosphere of this place. Plus the food is fresh, healthy, and delicious! I was by myself and all the tables were in use. Suddenly a sweet elderly woman invited me to sit with her and her grandson. It was so kind of her to offer! I had a wonderful breakfast and great conversation with perfect strangers.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><b>Polk<span style="font-size: x-large;">a dot Baggies</span></b></u></span><br />
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No week is complete with out a Target run! I found these adorable plastic bags in the dollar section at Target. I will be using them to store game cards for my math stations!<br />
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Don't forget to link up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five For Friday! Have great weekend! :) <br />
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-91816000291598133092013-03-22T17:56:00.002-07:002013-03-22T17:56:53.896-07:00Geometry Here, Geometry There! Geometry, Geometry EVERYWHERE! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy Friday!! I hope everyone had a great week. For our fellow Southern California bloggers- we are sorry that we cannot make the meet up this weekend. We are participating in a breast cancer walk tomorrow.</div>
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I think geometry is one of my favorite sections in math to teach, mostly because it lends itself to many different hands-on activities. You may have read about some of my geometry activities from last school year, but if not, you can check them out by clicking <a href="http://www.therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com/search/label/Geometry" target="_blank">here</a>. Today, I bring you some new ideas that I used when I taught third grade.<br />
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I love incorporating movement into my lessons as much as possible. I believe that getting students up and out of their seats delivers oxygen to the brain and keeps them focused and engaged in the lesson. One way that I reinforced polygons, lines, and angles was through a simple activity where I had my students work in pairs to create shapes or figures with their bodies. Sometimes I would call out different shape attributes that I was looking for and the students would be given a short amount of time to put themselves in position. My class loved this activity and thought they were taking a "brain break" rather than learning math. I took pictures of each group in their positions. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tgWjDnWWYtM/UUz1BQSisiI/AAAAAAAAA0g/vEQFcn1qdxk/s1600/geoemtry4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tgWjDnWWYtM/UUz1BQSisiI/AAAAAAAAA0g/vEQFcn1qdxk/s1600/geoemtry4.jpg" height="484" width="640" /></a></div>
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The following day, the students were given the pictures and used markers to highlight and identify various angles, lines, and shapes within their picture. It was a great way to get them to use the geometry terms and reinforce these concepts without using a worksheet.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LrRqKfXclcA/UUznsA3tbuI/AAAAAAAAA0M/1sP_r9rsLrE/s1600/geometry2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LrRqKfXclcA/UUznsA3tbuI/AAAAAAAAA0M/1sP_r9rsLrE/s1600/geometry2.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></div>
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I also did another geometry activity using pictures of famous world monuments. <br />
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During our language arts block, my students and I enjoyed the story <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bens-Dream-Chris-Van-Allsburg/dp/0395320844/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1363998175&sr=8-18&keywords=chris+van+allsburg" target="_blank">Ben's Dream</a> by Chris Van Allsburg.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fd3THOZRf0w/UUz2j8AjTlI/AAAAAAAAA0o/N6KafNhMw4k/s1600/bensdream.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fd3THOZRf0w/UUz2j8AjTlI/AAAAAAAAA0o/N6KafNhMw4k/s1600/bensdream.jpeg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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In this story, a boy has a dream that he floats by many different world monuments. <br />
This triggered an idea to use the theme from this book as a geometry lesson. Why not find pictures of the monuments mentioned in this book and have the students look for examples of polygons, solid figures, angles, and lines?!? I hopped onto google, printed the pictures, and slid them into page protectors. I paired up my students and had them use a dry-erase marker to highlight the various shapes, angles, lines, etc.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1lnW0BQHjVg/UUznukC5IcI/AAAAAAAAA0U/rnICVa09X04/s1600/geometry3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1lnW0BQHjVg/UUznukC5IcI/AAAAAAAAA0U/rnICVa09X04/s1600/geometry3.jpg" height="580" width="640" /></a></div>
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I placed the pictures around the room and the students "traveled" from picture to picture and recorded their findings using the chart below. Using the whiteboard marker made it easy to quickly erase their marks so that the next pair of students could have a turn identifying geometric figures. The font used in the chart came from <a href="http://www.miss-kindergarten.com/" target="_blank">Miss Kindergarten. </a><br />
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What fun ideas do you have when teaching geometry? <br />
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<a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/131906095/Geometry-in-Our-World" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Geometry in Our World on Scribd">Geometry in Our World</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_98124" scrolling="no" src="http://www.scribd.com/embeds/131906095/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll" width="100%"></iframe>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-34732246650230527902013-03-05T16:01:00.001-08:002013-03-05T16:01:11.432-08:00Putting it all in Perspective <br />
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My problems for the week:</div>
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<li>I'm running late for work</li>
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<li>I don't know what to cook for dinner</li>
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<li>I didn't finish my lesson plans and I'm unprepared for school</li>
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<li>Two students won't stop arguing</li>
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<li>I had no time time make anything "cutesy" for my students and had to settle with Comic Sans and Microsoft clip art</li>
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I consider myself to be one very BLESSED girl! <br />
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Okay, well, maybe I didn't think of it that way about a week ago, but then I got a very unexpected wake-up call. A friend of ours (she also lived with us in the dorms) notified us that she has breast cancer. It still doesn't seem real as I type this blog post. How can this be? She is 31 years old with two young daughters. This isn't supposed to happen. Unfortunately it is happening and she just underwent a mastectomy yesterday afternoon. Through this entire ordeal our friend has exhibited so much strength, courage, and faith. I am proud and truly inspired by what a remarkable woman she is. Instead of saying, "Why me?" or wallowing in self pity, she puts God first and places all of her trust in Him. She takes the time to care for her family and is genuinely concerned about how other people are doing rather than being wrapped up in her own ordeal.<br />
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I now consider my trivial problems to be a blessing. To do lists, time pressures, lesson plans, meetings, distractions, and unnecessary stresses tend to get the better of us, however, in the grand scheme of things, they are insignificant. <br />
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I hope that this post will serve as a reminder to be grateful for all that you have in your life. <br />
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-39276982456941055032013-02-15T15:30:00.002-08:002013-02-15T15:30:32.056-08:00100 Days Smarter! :)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Today was our 100th day of school! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">All of our kindergarten classes get together for this fun day to celebrate that we are 100 days smarter. We set up several stations, and students are allowed to roam freely between them to accomplish the activities they would like to and have time for. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Here are just a few pictures from our celebration...</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGeFCGqDNh8/UR6_e7bVyYI/AAAAAAAAAyw/AJLhgJHzt5Y/s1600/IMG_5006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGeFCGqDNh8/UR6_e7bVyYI/AAAAAAAAAyw/AJLhgJHzt5Y/s320/IMG_5006.JPG" width="288" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">100 finger prints</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-b1mOYVGNPZ4/UR7AebXi-KI/AAAAAAAAAy4/hICGP5oa64Q/s1600/IMG_5012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-b1mOYVGNPZ4/UR7AebXi-KI/AAAAAAAAAy4/hICGP5oa64Q/s320/IMG_5012.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">100 snacks (10 different snacks in groups of 10)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AGKDEamzJCI/UR7BMXWAoiI/AAAAAAAAAzY/x5_G2SPKLWc/s1600/IMG_5022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AGKDEamzJCI/UR7BMXWAoiI/AAAAAAAAAzY/x5_G2SPKLWc/s320/IMG_5022.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">100 Kellogg's Froot Loops to make a necklace</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8UEH4TCZTe8/UR7AjujgP1I/AAAAAAAAAzI/j0nnX9W38Ms/s1600/IMG_5025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8UEH4TCZTe8/UR7AjujgP1I/AAAAAAAAAzI/j0nnX9W38Ms/s320/IMG_5025.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Our 100th day crown (the strip of 100 tally marks for the back)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Some other stations included:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"> volunteers reading books about the 100th day of school,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">filling in the missing numbers on a hundreds chart, </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">and watching a DVD about the number 100!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We had a great day! I hope your 100th day was, or will be, just as special!</span></div>
<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-343785985757685022013-02-12T17:12:00.000-08:002013-02-12T17:12:41.702-08:00Sweet Valentines Without the Sugar <br />
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We just finished making Valentines for our students and thought we would post pictures of them in case any of you are in need of some last minute Valentine ideas. Enjoy!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aQ2q2yOEOc4/URrm2t58qHI/AAAAAAAAAyQ/w8ErYVRSC-Q/s1600/yoyo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aQ2q2yOEOc4/URrm2t58qHI/AAAAAAAAAyQ/w8ErYVRSC-Q/s1600/yoyo.jpg" height="496" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yo-Yos from Target </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hiqVtqjkhDs/URrm2eSKICI/AAAAAAAAAyI/8r2h4MpF2SY/s1600/highfive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hiqVtqjkhDs/URrm2eSKICI/AAAAAAAAAyI/8r2h4MpF2SY/s1600/highfive.jpg" height="634" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sticky hands from Target </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PtLg6Zhj_zM/URrm1lxDp8I/AAAAAAAAAyA/2uf3yqpzin4/s1600/pencil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PtLg6Zhj_zM/URrm1lxDp8I/AAAAAAAAAyA/2uf3yqpzin4/s1600/pencil.jpg" height="640" width="628" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Valentine Pencil: The heart was made from our school's dye cut machine. Super easy! </td></tr>
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-52884176790368595362013-02-06T18:48:00.000-08:002013-02-15T15:50:52.842-08:00Around we go the Vocabulary Carousel <br />
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Vocabulary. The word alone can bring instant boredom to any student. But, research (<a href="http://www.marzanoresearch.com/products/catalog.aspx?group=6" target="_blank">Marzano</a>) has proven that the more opportunities students have to interact with words, the better they retain the meaning and acquire a richer vocabulary. So, put away those dictionaries and try a vocabulary carousel during your next vocabulary instruction! The best part about this activity is that you can use it for just about any subject <i>and </i>it's <b><u>fun</u></b>!<br />
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Before introducing new words for a story or unit, I first type out the words and find a picture to represent the word. <br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-78C6a9NLEFY/URMO18rQVQI/AAAAAAAAAxQ/wB7CLwNXrNQ/s1600/vocab4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-78C6a9NLEFY/URMO18rQVQI/AAAAAAAAAxQ/wB7CLwNXrNQ/s1600/vocab4.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
I also type the definitions to the words and place it under the document camera for the students to see.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2EFgDSQzH8w/URMO18F9PfI/AAAAAAAAAxM/_I3l6NIVN1U/s1600/vocabpic1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2EFgDSQzH8w/URMO18F9PfI/AAAAAAAAAxM/_I3l6NIVN1U/s1600/vocabpic1.jpg" width="498" /></a></div>
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I then scatter the vocabulary cards around the student desks. My student desks are arranged in groups, so my students travel to each table group and read the vocabulary card that is on that table group. The students' goal is to see if they can figure out the meaning of the word on their own. Notice that the vocabulary words are not included with the definitions above? The students look at the picture on the vocabulary card along with the part of speech and try to figure out the meaning of the word by using the definitions I typed to help them.<br />
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My students then record their guesses on the paper I provided below. They record the word from the vocabulary card and write which definition number they think belongs to that word. The students work in teams of four and I give them about 2 minutes at each table group. Once time is up, they travel to the next table group and so on until they've made it around to each word. I love the discussion the students have when trying to figure out the meaning of the vocabulary terms! </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v7YJmZrDtwY/URMO4DHzY0I/AAAAAAAAAxg/FEDMWWM2W1U/s1600/vocabpic2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="500" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v7YJmZrDtwY/URMO4DHzY0I/AAAAAAAAAxg/FEDMWWM2W1U/s1600/vocabpic2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Once they are finished, we discuss the words and what the actual definitions are. I definitely see my students grasp the vocabulary words with this activity much more than they would if I were to simply tell them the meanings on my own.<br />
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What do you do to introduce or teach new vocabulary terms in your classroom?<br />
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-38696859553573014922013-02-01T18:48:00.001-08:002013-02-15T15:49:54.097-08:00Currently! Happy Friday!<br />
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Before I show you this month's currently, I must announce that we had some, ahem, "work done." A little <i>nip tuck</i> if you will. That's how we do it here in the OC! Hehee... well, we may not have gone "under the knife" ourselves, but we <i>did</i> give our blog a little makeover! What do you think?! <br />
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The nerd in me wanted to figure out how to make my own blog layout, so here you have it! It's still a work in progress, but at least it's in a more presentable state. I would like to thank bloggers such as <a href="http://www.teachingsuperpower.blogspot.com/p/blog-baby-blog.html" target="_blank">I Teach. What's Your Super Power?</a> and <a href="http://spendadayinsecondgrade.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2012-07-19T21:36:00-05:00&max-results=7&start=7&by-date=false" target="_blank">Mrs. Prince & Co. </a>for sharing their tutorials and blog design insight. I also found some great tutorials on <a href="http://thecutestblogontheblock.com/" target="_blank">The Cutest Blog on The Block</a>. <br />
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Designing our own look was so much fun and frustrating at the same time. :) The papers used in our blog design came from the fabulous <a href="http://www.erinbradleydesigns.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Erin Bradley.</a> I just love her papers! <br />
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Now, on to February's (is it <i>really </i>February?!) currently thanks to <a href="http://www.ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/2013/02/currently-february.html#comment-form" target="_blank">Farley from Oh' Boy 4th Grade</a>. If you haven't been to her blog yet, go check it out!<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R2FCzTzSHf0/UQx5OGa0nEI/AAAAAAAAAvY/hkRaJoE1t8M/s1600/currently.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R2FCzTzSHf0/UQx5OGa0nEI/AAAAAAAAAvY/hkRaJoE1t8M/s1600/currently.jpg" width="488" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G6DxbFM0z3A/UQx7rcasi7I/AAAAAAAAAv4/KwYlHV8HmyU/s1600/sunsetoutsidebeach_edited-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="337" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G6DxbFM0z3A/UQx7rcasi7I/AAAAAAAAAv4/KwYlHV8HmyU/s1600/sunsetoutsidebeach_edited-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I can't wait to take advantage of this nice weather and do something outdoors this weekend! <br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sCYk9mw4Zuc/UQx7rkQYtuI/AAAAAAAAAv8/dyXWyojiawY/s1600/innout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sCYk9mw4Zuc/UQx7rkQYtuI/AAAAAAAAAv8/dyXWyojiawY/s1600/innout.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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In-N-Out Burger. 'Nuff said. <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1SqJcVpd9fI/UQx8lYxNMjI/AAAAAAAAAwM/ubpX4_gr83M/s1600/laziness.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1SqJcVpd9fI/UQx8lYxNMjI/AAAAAAAAAwM/ubpX4_gr83M/s1600/laziness.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Laziness is a big pet peeve of mine whether it is from students or adults. Not to say I haven't ever been lazy myself, but it just bugs me when people do the bare minimum in life.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-67y5iQ6ZMj0/UQx9IczRNCI/AAAAAAAAAwo/xaKFr8q1LN0/s1600/filename-img-1783-jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-67y5iQ6ZMj0/UQx9IczRNCI/AAAAAAAAAwo/xaKFr8q1LN0/s1600/filename-img-1783-jpg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Rude drivers are another pet peeve of mine. One time a driver yelled some words at my husband, which I will not repeat on this blog, because he accidentally drove through a stop in a parking lot. He actually helped this same woman load groceries in her car about 5 minutes before. Geez... <br />
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Whether you are a new or regular visitor to our blog, thanks for stopping by! Have a fabulous weekend!<br />
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-89045233060844325782013-01-28T14:07:00.000-08:002013-01-31T17:17:24.812-08:00All About Snow - Step Up to Writing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5544070926214658380" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8z30t9HREVM/UQbzjIFI3QI/AAAAAAAAAm0/S6ZWBipcDpE/s400/IMG_5000.JPG" width="400" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Every January I head up to our local mountains for some fun, and I bring back snow for my kinders. This is one of my favorite activities every year. I pour snow into a little tray-one for every kid. (This year when I was pouring it, I had a kid ask me why I was pouring marshmallows into a tray! Haha!) I read a book about snow, show them some pictures I took, and then let the kids play with the snow in their own tray. Often times, they'll make a baby snowman! We talk about how it feels and what we learned about snow from our book and experience. We complete a graphic organizer, with snow as our topic, and then jot down our 3 ideas (a picture and a word or two). When we write our topic, we trace the box with a green crayon (Step Up to Writing), and say "topic, topic, topic, topic"--as we trace each line. When we write our three ideas, we trace those boxes with a yellow crayon (Step Up to Writing), and say "idea, idea, idea, idea"--as we trace each line. Then we write one sentence using at least one idea. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I'd love to hear about some fun writing activities that you do in your classroom! </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xFuDB_eOHb0/UQbzk6dU_bI/AAAAAAAAAm8/qx4xXyx2sCQ/s1600/IMG_5001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xFuDB_eOHb0/UQbzk6dU_bI/AAAAAAAAAm8/qx4xXyx2sCQ/s1600/IMG_5001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xFuDB_eOHb0/UQbzk6dU_bI/AAAAAAAAAm8/qx4xXyx2sCQ/s1600/IMG_5001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xFuDB_eOHb0/UQbzk6dU_bI/AAAAAAAAAm8/qx4xXyx2sCQ/s400/IMG_5001.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com&media=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com" class="pin-it-button" count-layout="horizontal"><img border="0" src="//assets.pinterest.com/images/PinExt.png" title="Pin It" /></a><script type="text/javascript" src="//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js"></script>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-81163588908959740412013-01-09T14:04:00.000-08:002013-01-09T14:04:43.089-08:00Addition with Regrouping Freebie <div style="display: block; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">Hello there! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">We had the opportunity to guest blog the other day for Chrissy over at <a href="http://read-write-sing.blogspot.com/2013/01/v-behaviorurldefaultvmlo.html" target="_blank">Read, Write, Sing!</a> You can <a href="http://read-write-sing.blogspot.com/2013/01/v-behaviorurldefaultvmlo.html" target="_blank">read more</a> about the two addition with regrouping freebies we posted below over at her blog. Be sure to stop by and say "hello" to Chrissy! We participated in a blog hop thanks to the ladies over at <a href="http://primarypossibilities.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Primary Possibilities</a>! Be sure to stop by their blog as well! </span></span><br />
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<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_79001" scrolling="no" src="http://www.scribd.com/embeds/119569303/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll" width="100%"></iframe>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-24950263476566825432012-12-22T08:53:00.000-08:002012-12-22T08:53:02.122-08:00Happy Holidays! It has been hard to think about blogging after the tragic events that occurred last week. Our prayers go out to the families. We were hoping to share this holiday idea earlier, but our hearts just weren't into it. Although you may not have time to complete these activities this year, we hope it is something you can use for the next holiday season. <br />
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One thing that I love to do each year is send a holiday card from my class. The students mail the card home to their families and I also give a card to classroom volunteers, the principal, the librarian, and other staff members around the school. My husband and I do not have children (yet) to take holiday pictures of, so instead, I enjoy taking a holiday picture of my school children each year. <br />
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I posted about this gift idea<a href="http://www.therealteachersoforangecounty.blogspot.com/2012_01_01_archive.html" target="_blank"> last year</a>, but since it was one of our first posts, I figured most of you did not see it! We wish you and your families a wonderful Christmas! <br />
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<br />RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5544070926214658380.post-23064379859806037642012-12-03T13:36:00.000-08:002012-12-03T13:36:16.414-08:00Currently... <span style="color: #444444;">Hey everyone! I'm so excited that I actually had time to link up with Farley's December currently. It seems like by the time I can get around to it, the month is nearly over. Well, I'm heading back over to Farley's page over at <i>Oh Boy 4th Grade</i> to find some more blogs to stalk. <a href="http://www.ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Be sure to link up! </a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;">RAK- for my 30th birthday I decided to complete 30 random acts of kindness. Although some of the activities were planned in advance, I still think that this was a nice way to give back to others. I invited a few friends to help me out and we delivered flowers to the elderly, cleaned up around my church, left coins at a laundry mat for others to use, and helped people load their groceries into their cars. I also celebrated my friends by providing them with a homemade lunch. It was so rewarding to think about others rather than myself on my birthday! </span>RealOCteachershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10666018721012946556noreply@blogger.com14