Reading Is My Jam (A reading journal like no other)

Keep reading...

engaging

fun 

relevant

student centered

inspiration

awesome

I feel like each school year I go in with a goal to build my readers UP! Whether they are voracious readers or readers that aren't too sure that they really are readers. Isn't that what we all want? 

To lift up and build our readers?

YES!!!

I really can never contain my excitement but this has been a little project/brainchild of mine for the past few months that I've gotten to work on in-between moving and unpacking boxes. When I was in school I kept a notebook of quotes I loved, authors I couldn't get enough of, and thanks to one of my favorite teachers ever I kept track of all the pages I read. I adored this notebook.

Enter---READING IS MY JAM--A JOURNAL FOR READERS 

((made by a reader))

Chalk full of quotes about reading/books/libraries and unique pages for students to record and journal in...with a little bit...okay...a lot of flair and fun! 

Over 15 journal pages are included and 15 quotes to keep readers inspired throughout the entire school year.

UNPUTDOWNABLE. YUP. Because those books exist. What would be on your list? 

Mine would definitely include Wonder, The Wild Robot, and The One and Only Ivan. 

Sprinkled throughout the journal you can put in fun quotes that students can tailor to their tastes but doodling our making them colorful...also there are black and bold prints included.

In love with the dinosaur...because dinosaurs are awesome!

Anyways! I'm so excited to get this in the hands of so many teachers and readers. You can find this in my TPT shop.

Be sure to click the green star when you hop on over to my TPT shop and follow me!

Get your read on!

Over and out!

Shelfies and Snapshots Update

I added some SHELFIES and SNAPSHOTS to my product this past week. There are TEN book shelfies, hashtag snapshots, and now a few picture books shelfies. Coming soon are genre shelfies too. I've had thiiiiiiisssssss much fun adding shelfies and snapshots this summer

I have loved getting requests and adding to this!

I am a **little** bit stoked about this setup--scratch that SUPER OUT OF THIS WORLD EXCITED about this setup and the shelfies--talk about the ultimate accountability. 

Have you caught any of the tutorials for printing posters at office max for about 3 dollars? 

Click on this link and then scroll to "blueprints" and I printed an 24x36 poster and it came out beautifully! Be sure to click the fit to size box! Always look for a discount code too.

As you read picture books students write in the titles and authors. There are 20 books for shooting for a goal of reading a picture book a day.

Also added as a request was a genre shelfie for my fellow upper elementary and middle school friends!

I AM SO SO SO excited about this!

Talk about the coolest way to document your reading

I love that each student can make their shelfies reflect their reading!

If you already own this be sure to download the update under "my purchases on tpt. And if not, what are you waiting for? It's perfect if you love celebrating reading all year!

Here's a link to check out!

Hope y'all are gearing up for another great year!

Over and out!

Thinking Up! Growth Mindset Quotes!

Ah! I am so excited about this! I feel like there are a lot of people in the #keepthequote club...and I am one of them. It's gotta be a teachery thing too. We just love quotes.

I've always been inspired by words that are put together to have the most profound meaning AND using them in my classroom but I've always wanted to do MORE than just keep the quote...I want my students to apply and analyze the quote and make it come to life.

So here is Thinking Up! 10 awesome quotes with 10 unique reflection pages. Each quote is made so students can add their own flair and personality to it. Like each quote, the reflection sheets are totally tailored to each quote. 

AND since we are all about growth mindset the quotes follow themes of staying motivated, persevering, trying, not letting failure get to ya, and taking chances.

I think these are the perfect pick me up for students and teachers--and not to mention the discussions that each quote can lead to--endless possibilities.

Included are bold and black and white versions--just for you--and me! Because I love a bold black and white quote...on astrobrights ;)

Take a peek below at all of the quotes.

And here are the reflection sheets!

Ah! I can't wait to grow with this during the school year! You can find these in my tpt shop!

And be sure to click the green star--it's the best way to stay in the loop!

Best of luck prepping for the best school year ever!

#picturebooksforbigkids

#picturebooksareforbigkids #picturebooksformiddleschool

Are you always on the hunt for books that your kids will be obsessed with? 

This series is something that you NEED in your classroom...at least one book from the series.

Not only am I obsessed with this How Big Is It? Book but students are too! Here are a few ways to use it in your classroom...and of course you should enjoy reading this book just for fun!

Writing
Just flipping through the beginning paragraphs you can't miss how catchy they begin! 15 different and quality introductions in one place...yes please!  So I love to use this to teach drawing the reader in with awesome first lines/introductory paragraphs. Defineitly shows that nonfiction is awesome and there's no excuse for a dry beginning.

Math
In math we cover metric measurement to customary measurement conversions. YIKES. Definitely not my strength so I used this as a fun review to convert measurements between the two systems--and since the answers are included...it doesn't get any better. I just washi taped over the measurements for students to figure them out!

Science
We all know that outer space never gets old. Olympus Mons, Eta Carinae, Valles Marineris, Arecibo Radio Telescope...all have ties to outer space! And it's a little cooler to read about them out of this book.

I love using this text across subjects. If we want our students to revisit texts then we have to revisit them too! Rinse, reuse, and repeat with this awesome book!

I picked up my loved copy from Thirftbooks and I've also seen them on Amazon and eBay.

What are some of your favorite books? I'm excited to share some more of mine!

Over and out!

3 Takeaways From Disrupting Thinking

Hello! How is summer treating y'all? In the midst of a huge move this summer I found a little bit of time to read  Disrupting Thinking by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst. Have you seen it? Have you read it?

I feel like tons of my favorite instagram reading teachers were reading this book this summer.

Holy guacamole! 

At the beginning of the book this totally caught my attention:
"Seriously, as you finished the book you most recently enjoyed, did you pause, hold the book gently in your hands and say to yourself, ‘This time, this time, I think I’ll make a diorama’?…Do you write summaries of what you read, make new book jackets, rewrite the ending, take tests over every text? Any text? Do you want your reading level put on a bulletin board for all to see. Do you even know your damn reading level?"

I knew I'd get along great with this book. ;) 

After I read this my brain was on fire thinking of all sorts of ways to ignite passion and do exactly what the title says...disrupt their thinking. So many thoughts, so many quotes, so many things I can't wait to try.

I resisted from highlighting it all..and took a few notes and underlined those things that SUPER jumped out at me.

It's easy to say I am obsessed with this book and you will be too!

The premise of the book is to disrupt our students thinking and get them actually caring about what they are reading. FIRST as teacher though we need to make sure it is relevant to them. There are several strategies shared in the book about HOW to get students to think more! Check it out on Amazon here!

CREATING A COMMUNITY OF READERS
 One of my favorite quotes from disrupting thinking says, "Reading gives us an opportunity to have an intimate conversation with the text, with the author, with oneself, and then ultimately with others." (p.43) Isn't this so true!?

 I really want to give my readers more time to talk and to become connected with what they are reading. So many thoughts and emotions swirl around when I read a book---so my students are having those experiences too. Talking and sharing is vital to reading...and scaffolding a reading community is totally necessary.

RELEVANCE REIGNS
Our students want something that MOVES them. It's easy to want to capture kids attention with the funny books or exciting books but I've found once May rolls around the books like Wonder", "Out of My Mind", "Al Capone Does My Shirts", and "Mockingbird" are wildly hailed as the best books that we read all year.

Over the ghost stories, adventures, mysteries....these are the books that my students take to heart. So I'm looking for more stories that move my students and stories that center around what they want to know rather than just entertain them. Keeping in mind that relevance trumps interest.

FOCUSED SILENT READING
I feel like we all have some time set apart for silent reading but I am OBSESSED with the notion of calling it FOCUSED Silent Reading.

 There are no centers or activities to be done, vocabulary activities, or options to work on writing assignments...just pure FOCUSED reading. I feel like I could totally focus more on reading if that was the WHOLE point. Assessment of how that reading is done with just a few simple questions...and I can't wait to implement it with my emoji status of the class as well! I think the quote below says it all.

I had SO many takeaways and these three are just a snippet of everything that I learned. TONS of awesome graphics and charts are in the book which I loved to mix up all of the reading. AND studies. There were so many studies to back up the importance of reading. If you are looking for a quick reading PD to finish out the summer or boost your love for reading anytime during the school year Disrupting Thinking will for sure hit the spot!

Over and out!

Don't Let Composite Figures Eat Your Lunch

Don't let composite shapes eat your lunch! I was skimming through instagram a few weeks ago and everyone was teaching composite shapes...and complaining about how hard they are. 

Ummm...it's because they are totally hard!!!! 

So many steps, lots of specifics, and lots of room for error makes it so difficult for us to help students to  navigate how to solve for area and perimeter. 

Here's how to not let composite shapes {{and}} finding their area and perimeter eat your lunch!

Divide up the shapes

I have seen this look of fear when students have to divide up composite shapes to find the area. It's like they don't know where to begin. Sides, area, numbers, units...forget about it! Just practice dividing up shapes sans measurements. 

Also it's important to talk about strategy of dividing up the shapes. While there really isn't a wrong way to divide up a shape there are defineitly ways to divide up shapes to reduce room for error. 

You know that the few divisions there are the fewer smaller areas to add up. But sometimes it's best to divide the shape up a little more. It's dependent on each composite shape but it's so important to talk about why we are dividing the shape up and how to do it with the least possible mistakes to find the area. 

ABC123 ALL OF THE SIDES

You allll know that students get lost in perimeter in these composite shapes and what's the best way to hone in on that? ABC123 THE SIDES. 

We assign each side a letter and write down the measurement in a quick made table. That way students know if there are any missing measurements. Thennnn they count the side to double check they've all been assigned. 

Some students prefer vertical tables and other horizontals...it's really up to them and how they ever feel organized. 

BUILD SHAPES

I think this is my favorite part because it's so hands on and lends itself to so much discovery and light bulb moments. You know when you bring into "toys and treats" that your students interest and engagement is like EVERYTHING. SO BUILD. Make. Create.

I love bringing out the magformers, starbursts, saltines, cheese it's, post it's and any square shapes manipulatives and snacks. Target has some great small post-its that are square shaped. They are all perfect for finding area and perimeter. I am especially fond of startbursts because students can color code how they partition up the composite shape to find the area like in the picture below    

Just a heads up to get at least three bags for enough of all of the colors...one isn't enough to build with or to snack on after ;)

CREATE AND PRACTICE

Like any math standard it's important that your students take ownership. I have students create their own...whether grids or tiles and find the area and perimeter of composite shapes. It's worth all of the work!!! I love this activity above because it is simple, it shows each students understanding.

What are your tips for teaching composite shapes? I'd love to hear them! Because....ummm...they are hard!

You can find all of these fun shapes in my store and the task cards here. ((This is my composite shape will be posted this week!))

Be sure to follow me by clicking the green star so you get my updates! I am posting some more composite shape fun stuff in the near future...that I am so excited about!

Over and Out!

Emoji Equations

Talk about an emoji equation pick-me-up! 

We needed to jazz up some equation practice so I threw in a few emoji's to mix things up!

Isn't this fun? One-step equations with all the emoji's. Plus it's a self checking activity with emoji answer cards--win win for you and your students. Ummm...and your students will totally love this.

Simply print, cut fold, and go. The self checking answer cards with the emoji's on the front have the answer inside. To assemble or fold hamburger and the hamburger again...doesn't that make sense? Ha! Is there a better way to describe folding paper than hamburger and hot dog? I think not.

As long as students don't get tired of emoji's...neither will teachers! They score automatic cool points Every. Time. I'm super stoked about the answer key because there are black and white emoji's to keep students on track with solving problems...I need to grab a picture of that!

You can find these fun emoji's in my teacherspayteacher store and be sure to follow along for fun updates!

We are watching "Lion" this weekend! What are you up to?

Over and out!

You've gotta read this!

Do you ever have a book that you've had for a while and then you FINALLY read it and it is EVERYTHING?!?!

I just finished "Scar Island" and I cannot stop thinking about it. If you teach 5th or 6th grade I cannot imagine a single students not liking it. It's suspenseful, fun, mysterious, adventurous, and full of so many things that make a book perfect.


You should read it! Really and truly.

I am sending apologies out to the Universe and patrons of the Palm Beach library because I've held onto this book for so long...but I'm returning it ASAP because someone else needs to read. this. book. stat.

Here's a link to the book. And I really loved this review from nerdybookclub here. If you are looking for a good book blog to follow this is theeeeee best. You're welcome. ;)

What have you read recently??? I need more books to add to my TBR list!

Over and out!

Angles All the Way

I'm back...sooner than I thought...and it's all because of complementary and supplementary angles!

I overhauled this resource and added some new things that are absolutely loved by students.

No matter what time of the year it is...and especially at the end of the year...I am desperate for review games. Are you? This angles matching game is perfect to show off angle sizes and dust off the cobwebs...even if you taught geometry/angles/complementary/supplementary stuff a few weeks prior ;)

We have a few tricks for remembering complementary and supplementary angles but I love these I can flips...students solve and it's perfect to add to their notebooks for a quick reference and reminder.

Ah! I cannot get enough of these!

AND math bands...they are back! Students loosely tape it around their wrists to reference when working on activities...we've also added these as a book in our math notebooks...it's a win win and everyONE loves them and benefits.

You can find all of these resources in my shop...here!

Happy almost Friday!

Over and Out!

Any Angle You Take

Eeeeeks! Angles are so awesome and I am soon beyond glad that this is posted.

I'll be posting for about it soon in detail but I literally just have to share this with you.

Seriously...anything complementary and supplementary angles...it's covered!

True and False Complementary and Supplementary Angle soooooort 

and Matching Cards...because we gotta mix things up every once in a while, right?!!

Ummmm...and a math band...because I can't tell you how many problems I was messing up because supplementary angles tallied up to 190 degrees in my mind. Should have been wearing my math band and I would have been a-ok!

Do you teach complementary and supplementary angles??? Let me know!

You can find this Complementary and Supplementary Angles Bundle/activity pack/angle awesomeness here! All of this in one happy download! It doesn't get any better!

Over and out!

Fraction Fanatic

Hi! If you scroll around, you will see that lately my life has been consumed by fractions! 

Why are they so darn trick sometimes? 

Bueller?

Anyways....

I'm sharing some of my fraction foundation activities with you! AND I'll be popping in with some of my students favorite things to ensure that they've got fractions down!

If you haven't checked out my free WHAT'S MY MIXED NUMBER? activity you can get it for 

free here!

              

         

Fraction puzzles! I created these for some students that needed some strengthening with their fraction foundation but found that they were the perfect review (and even a tad tricky) for students who were fraction masters. 

The puzzles have students piecing together fraction information in

WORD FORM

FRACTION REPRESENTATIONS

MIXED NUMBERS

IMPROPER FRACTIONS

I just printed these two to a page (they are full page puzzles) and laminated them and store them in a page protector to pull out when we are doing fractions and also reviewing at the end of the year because....#testing #dontremindme #youaremorethanascore

ANNNNND I really just need to do a big ol' part blogpost about task mats proclaiming my love for them...but I think it will have to wait until summer

SO HERE'S a short version! ;)

Task Mats are my favorite....they are full page problems. I love them for small groups, scoots, stations, reviews, sample problems and so much more. 

I've found when I work with my small groups or grabbing a group of students struggling that having one problem in front of them with lots of room to work and show their thinking can make all the difference in the world. So I love them and you will too!

          

Because I'm focusing on foundations the task mats cover

Writing and drawing fractions

Fractions on a number line

Simplifying fractions

Equivalent fractions

Mixed Numbers and Improper fractions

There are 10 of each category and really reveal where students stand as to what they understand about fractions.

So make fractions less trickier. You can find these posted in my TPT shop. 

I love followers like you and feedback!

So follow along!

  

Over and Out!