Have you ever used a menu in your classroom for center work or to differentiate learning for students? I first learned about them on this site…Dare to Differentiate. This site alone is worthy of a BLOG post. Be sure to…
FREE Math Center
If any of you have ever been to a training with me that was more than one day in length, we may have played Penny Yahtzee- and we had SO much fun doing it, right? It is one of my…
Writing Partners
Writer’s Workshop consists of a Mini-Lesson, time for kids to WRITE (the best part of it all) and a chance for writers to come back together and share. I’ll be honest, sharing was the hardest part for me to fit…
Writing Brag Board
Managing a Writer’s Workshop is NOT an easy task! So many writers! So many ability levels! And only one teacher! Writer’s Workshop begins with a mini-lesson, followed by time for students to write, and finally a sharing time. I found…
Invented Spelling
FAQ: “Is it OK for student’s to use invented/phonetic spelling? What if we hang it in the hallway or send it home to parents? They can’t read it!” Invented spelling, temporary spelling, and developmental spelling are terms typically used to describe…
“We Already Read That”
** This post is in honor of Thanksgiving… and all the recipes we are all reading today as we cook. Happy Thanksgiving from my recipes to yours!** So one reason (there are many) that we use Shared Reading in our…
Monday’s Currently
Tiny Tidbits
So today I’m thinking of some Tidy Tidbits to share with y’all. Let’s start with Writer’s Workshop. With the requirements of the Common Core and in Texas the new STAAR assessment, stop referring to student writing as stories. We need…
Catch on Fire
A teacher from Texas reminded me this week of one of my favorite quotes. “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” I’ve been working my new (very new) job in DC for…
Sound Off Saturdays
So Write About It Wednesdays are a thing of the past… we are moving to Sound Off Saturdays! Setting a DAY for it and putting it in my calendar has worked, but Wednesdays won’t work any longer. I just got…
Cute Classrooms
One of my favorite things to do in my job is walk around a school when the teachers are at lunch! They leave and I begin to stalk their classrooms! Teachers are so fabulous and we can all get ideas…
Shopping for Books
Reader’s Workshop is a time of day when students are engrossed in reading books of their own choosing. It is a time of day when we are living a REAL READER’S LIFE- rather than a SCHOOL READER’S LIFE. Unfortunately, there…