Get Results With This Free Review Strategy

Here is a review activity that I have done with my classes. I find many students want a study guide, but don't know how to use it.  In many cases it gets left on the table at the end of class, or best case read through once or twice, which doesn't really give many benefits. Students needs to active learners, but here is one strategy to get them to be active learners. Hope it helps you in your end of the year review.

Looking For Free Clip Art? Here's An Outstanding Free Clip Art Site

Hi all!

If you are like me you are always looking for new clip art to add to either class activities, or products for teacherspayteachers.

In many cases there are great artists on teachers pay teachers, but there are also some cases where I don't want to spend the money, or just want something small.

My favorite new soure for clipart is www.openclipart.org  (Note: As of March 2019 Open Clip Art has been down and it is unclear if it's coming back).  This site has been working to replace it, and it is also a great resource ClipSafari

There are tons of designs, and some are pretty technical (appropriate for science for example).

Here are the terms of use, and some examples, and they are pretty permissive!   

https://www.clipsafari.com/terms 

Upcoming sale!!

If you haven't heard, now is the time to do you teachers pay teachers shopping!!

There is a sitewide sale going on May 6th and 7th, and my store is on sale on top of that.  You will get 28% off 

If you have resources you are thinking about purchasing to wrap up this year, review, do a summer program, or get a head start on next year, this is the time.  Get organized, and get them at a discount!

The Complete Guide to Introducing a New Topic

When I start a new unit, I like to have some consistency, and I like activate prior knowledge, as well as let students know what is coming up and what the objectives will be.  I have done this for the past two years by setting up a new title page in their notebooks. This title page has two sides (for the two pages of their notebook).

On one side is the objectives listed.  I usually type these and give them a copy to attach.  I like to give them a spot next to each to rate how well they know it, and to make notes as we go through the unit.  I use a certain format for these, and I call them "Keeping Track of Learning."  

On the other side I have the students divide the page into four.  In the center they write the title of the unit (which I give them).  Then in each box they must draw a picture, with a caption, that is related to that topic.  Depending upon the topic of the unit, sometimes I think that they may have some prior knowledge, and I leave it open-ended, except that I usually point them toward the chapter or section in the book where they can find additional pictures and inspiration.  If I think it is a topic for which they won't have much prior knowledge, then I give them a list of maybe 4-8 main idea terms to choose from, and direct them to some resources. 

I like this system because it gets them thinking about what they already know, and previewing the chapter (or other resources), without specifically being directed to do so.  I provides a platform for them to discuss what they already know or what they think the upcoming topics will be about. 

I usually take about 15-20 minutes in class, and I think its time well spent.  Students get a chance to get their heads into what we are learning, and connect to it, and I get a chance to informally assess what they already know.

Here is an example photo:

I have also seen a teacher do a similar activity by creating a word cloud (such as from wordle) to include common vocabulary from the upcoming topic, and use that as a focus point or COVER image for the unit.  

Making Student's Thinking Visible

Sometimes when students are learning a lot of new information, it is difficult for them to organize it, or keep the parts together that go together. They know the terms, and have some of the links, but don't quite have it all straightened out in their heads. 

Also, as a teacher, it can be difficult to sort out where they have misconceptions. Here is one tool that I used to do just that. Concept maps. 

I gave the students a list of 20 terms (with definitions) related to weathering and erosion. I told them they need to use 15. I showed some examples of concept maps on the board and the linking terms.   I had them write the words they chose on post-it notes.  I had them organize the terms on the large paper, then add linking words to explain how they were connected, and then add at least 5 pictures (I had many pictures available for them to choose from).  

For my higher students, this was really an opportunity for them to tie together their knowledge, and organize it.  They felt like they benefited, and caught many of their own misconceptions as they were trying to connect the terms.  

For the lower students, I was able to see their errors or confusion when they laid out the terms, and help correct those, or talk through with them how the concepts could connect, and which didn't make sense.

I think it was a beneficial exercise to wrap up a unit, and they love seeing them on display in the hallway.

If you are looking for complete vocabulary lists, and concept lists for Earth Science, a good place to look is in this product, or your district curriculum.

Update

You may be wondering why I haven't been posting much here.  I still hope and plan to get back to posting regularly, but I got invited to be part of a collaborative secondary blog, and have been posting there.  Its a bit too much right now to do both.  But once things settle down, I promise I will be back to posting regularly here!

In the meantime, check out the collaborative blog.  I am really excited about it.  We have an excellent group of secondary teachers, in diverse subject areas that are posting about strategies and projects useful across many subject areas.

Use Socrative For Colorful and Innovative Analysis and Test Prep

I don't  know if you are in a state that has Regents exams, or if you are in a state that has other state exams instead.

Here in NY, we have Regents exams.  They are exams given at the end of the course, in most high school courses, and passing a certain number of them in each content area is a graduation requirement.

I teach in an urban district, where the passing rates are fairly low.  I am always looking for ways to help students be successful on those tests.  I have tried many other things (which I may write about in other posts).

A colleague and I are trying a new strategy now.  Here is our plan (really, it was my colleague's plan first, and then I have adpated to my class):

 - Analyze the past few years Regents exams, correlate them to the NYS standards, to determine which topics are the most heavily tests, and what those test questions look like.  In other words, which standards are emphasized on the exams, and how are those standards translated into test questions. 

- Starting about now, give students weekly 10 question quizzes.  The quizzes will be made out of the most commonly tested standards.  

- As students get questions right, the quizzes will adapt to include the next most commonly asked questions.

- The quizzes are being done on www.socrative.com.  This allows me to add an explanation to the questions.  Students can take the quiz, know immediately how they did, and as they see their answer, see an explanation of why the correct answer is correct.  I am encouraging them to take  notes, and study those notes.  If they are getting questions wrong, there is a good chance that they will see the same questions next week.

- As I see a question that the class as a whole is not progressing on, I can go back and target that for a quick 'intervention.' 

So far, students are enthusiastic.  One of my top students even said "So we are starting review now?!"  

Me: "Yes, a little bit of review"

Student: "That's a good idea, then when we get to June it won't be so overwhelming!"

That's the idea.  Those students who advance faster through, will get more review, but those who advance slower will still review and hopefully "get" the most commonly tested concepts.

Free Gift for You With Surprising Results

I don't know about you, but I am SOOOO sick of winter, and a little stir crazy.  And my students are too.  If you are tired of hammering on routines and expectations, this might be one way to break up the monotony.

They can help monitor themselves and each other.  I have had really good, honest, team-building responses by using this teamwork checklist

Upcoming Sale!!

In case you didn't hear -- Teachers Pay Teachers is having a giant site-wide sale Thursday and Friday February 27th and 28th.  Everything in my store, and many things site-wide will be up to 28% off!

Get your wishlists ready, and plan ahead. This is your chance to make the upcoming stretch of the school year easier on yourself.

Click on the banner above to go directly to my store.

Teaching with Poverty in Mind Chapter 3

I have shared my previous book circle discussions for Chapter 1 and 2.  Here is my discussion for Chapter 3.

As the book progresses, it gets more specific on suggestions that teachers can implement, or schools as a whole can implement to improve success rates for students.

This chapter was about IQ being fluid, rather than static, which is dramatic if you really think about it.  It also talked about other factors that are critical such as self-discipline, and teaching problem-solving skills and social interaction skills.

I went to a PD recently that dove-tailed with this.  It was actually on classroom management, but the presenter touched on research by John Hattie, as well.  If you have never heard of John Hattie (as I haven't), he is an educational research who did a meta-analysis of thousands of other research studies to look into what practices actually have a positive effect on student achievement.

He found that some of the most important factors are feedback, and student-teacher relationships (rather than many of the other things of which we constantly hear discussion.

If you are interested in more details on his research, look at this link  or simply google John Hattie or Visible Learning.

New Secondary Resource to Share With You

I wanted to share a resource with you!  I am honored to be part of a group of secondary teachers who are creating a group collaborative blog on a variety of secondary topics.

There will be daily (or almost daily) topical posts.  Most will be education related.  There will be monthly themes, such as formative assessment, technology, etc.

I hope you will stop in and check it out! I think you'll like what you find!

Earth Science of the Olympics Freebie

Another Freebie!! 
Similar to last week, but that one was a big success, so hopefully some people will enjoy this.
Last week I posted a "Science of Football and Olympics" in honor of the Superbowl.  It was focused on biology and life science topics.  
Here is one for this week focused on the Olympics, but focused more on Earth Science topics.  I hope you enjoy!  This is a great way to work in Common Core, relevancy, and grab students' interest
Science of the Olympics Hope you are having fun watching the Olympics.
And I promise some posts of more substance coming soon....some things are in the works here! 

Science of the Olympics and Football Freebie

I am trying to link up more frequently with Charity Preston's "Manic Monday" which is a huge resource of K-12 free resources.

I want to share with you some of the small things that I'm doing in my classroom.

This week we had a lot of state testing, and I needed something to "fill" at a time when kids were finishing, but some kids were absent.

I created this "Science of the Olympics and Football." Kids loved it!  Mine is focused on life science, but it could easily be modified for a different class.

The activity could also be given for homework or extra credit, and is very timely right now.

It is based on this resource from NBC.

Also, it is a great common core connection.  The videos have transcripts, if you want students to be able to read the transcript.  Text does not have to be only written text in a book.  This is another great tool to build in relevancy, and text analysis skills.

Get This Valuable Exit Ticket 4-Pack Free

Two sources of freebies for you!   1)  Here is a freebie of a few exit tickets. I am working on a product with a much greater selection of exit tickets, but in the meantime here is a freebie, with four exit tickets.  They are set to print four to a page.  Here is the link.  Enjoy!  

Facebook Free-For-All  Lots of Freebies for All Grade Levels.  Only through tomorrow. 

Teaching with Poverty in Mind Chapter 2

If you would like to read my second chapter journal entry, it is available at this link https://www.dropbox.com/s/ho5u8wgtbt8af2g/journal2.pdf

The second chapter got much more in depth about how a student's brain is affected by poverty, and specifically their behavior and emotional responses. We had a great discussion at my school after reading this chapter. 

Some of the most striking discussions, to me, were about how behavior and emotional responses are learned, and how our role as teachers, even high school level content teachers, is to help teach those emotional and behavioral responses. 

In addition, we discussed how many students come with emotional baggage, and part of our job, in order to make them successful, is to help build up their emotional 'bank account.'  We can do this through building relationships. 

This is a very very short reflection and summary on the second chapter. The second chapter can be seen at the same link that the first chapter was available (see previous post). 

I'd love to hear specific strategies that you use to teach problem solving and to build up emotional responses and teach behaviors, particularly in a high school setting. I think, as high school teachers, we don't do as much of this as elementary teachers do, but it's still important. 

The school culture makes a huge difference, but we as individual teachers can change the climate within our classrooms, and can play a role in the overall school climate. 

Printable Free Testing Sign For Your Classroom

I know that many of you may have testing coming up (we have midterms and state tests coming up).

It can be handy to have a nice-looking sign to put on the door.  I made two versions, ready to print.  One for "do not enter" and the other for "quiet please"

Both can be downloaded here:

How to Clarify Photosynthesis & Cellular Respiration: A Free Foldable

Teaching Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration

Here is freebie for you.  I don't know if anyone else is enjoying a snow day, but I'm using it to get a few things done (one is getting this photosynthesis and cellular respiration resource polished up and posted).  

A free resource

Here is a FREE FOLDABLE that compares cellular respiration and photosynthesis.  Students so often get confused, but it really can help to clear up misconceptions when they see the two processes next to each other, and compare them. This foldable has students break down both processes into categories such as where they happen, what are the products, what are the reactants, and more.  
It really helps students to visualize, and to see how the two processes fit together.    This freebie gives you the basic directions to make the foldable.  

    Enjoy!      If you are looking for a more polished version, that includes a printable template and more complete directions that is available here

For more information on how I use foldables, and why they are a great strategy for your students, you may want to check out this link on reasons to use foldables with your students.

If you have never used foldables, this article is a good explanation of why they can be really beneficial.

Other Photosynthesis and Respiration Resources

If you are teaching photosynthesis and respiration, they can be confusing for students.  It often helps to sort the terms and components into categories: photosynthesis, respiration, or both.  I have my students do this digital version, and they really get into it!  Students can move the words and sort them into the correct category.

Depending upon the class, sometimes we do it together on the board, or in a 1:1 setting they can do it on their device. It can also be a great station as part of a review activity.

These topics can be confusing, but even some of my struggling students were able to learn them successfully when the processes were broken down, compared, and they were allowed to practice with them.  How else do you help your students understand photosynthesis and cellular respiration?

Looking for Task Cards That Will Make Your Students Study?

I don't  know if you have used task cards yet in your classroom.  I had never heard of them until I started hanging around the Teachers Pay Teachers forums, and reading some of the other blogs.  Even after I heard about them, I was afraid they were too elementary.  It seems like the elementary teachers are often the ones talking about task cards.  Boy.....I was missing out.  I haven't used a few sets, in a couple of different ways, and plan to use them more often (I am teaching all high school this year). 

If you haven't used task cards in your classroom yet, they can be used a lot of different ways.  They could be a warm-up or closure activity that is used with a projector (in my set I created a full-size version and a 4 per page, card version).   They could also be used for review activities such as "scoot," "roam the room," or put a few at each station.  Another one of my favorite things about task cards is that they are easy to differentiate.  In my set there are 5 different levels of questions on each topic.  You can certainly pick and choose which cards you use, or which cards are used by each student (you can even assign them card numbers to work on).   

For more information on task cards, click here or here. 

I created my first set to post on Teachers Pay Teachers.  See the picture preview below.  

They are human body systems task cards.  This is a topic that is commonly taught in 4th grade, again in middle school, and again in high school (at least here in NY).  These cards go from a basic level to more complex.  They include a total of 50 cards, where 5 of the cards on the human body systems in general, or together, and then there are 5 cards on each body system.  

Here is my first bit of feedback!   That makes my day!! 

 Do you  have particular topics on which you would like to see task cards?  What tips do you have for using them?

These are also part of a larger bundle of human body activities, which include labs and foldables on the respiratory system, digestive system, circulatory system, skeletal and muscular system, and nervous and endocrine systems

What happens when you are on vacation?

What do you to to be able to rest and relax over vacation?  I have often times used vacation, and school breaks, as a time to catch up/clean up/get ahead/get organized.

I also have a bad habit of procrastinating.  Not usually, but over vacations.  When I know I have a long time to get work done, I still find myself finishing up grades on Sunday night.

This vacation I did something different, and it may be the best decision that I've made in a long time.  I did my school work at the beginning of break, and pushed hard to get ahead on some before school ended.  I am not doing anything except what I need to do (grading, lesson plans for when we go back).  I'm not using the break to work on any projects. I literally put my schoolwork back in the car so I wouldn't see it in the house during vacation.

I'm making a conscious choice to use the break to relax.  I have read 3 novels so far (granted 2 were while I was sick on the couch one day).  I have played several board games with my kids.  I got together with a friend I haven't seen in a while.  My plans for the rest of vacation look similar.  I've been to the gym several times.  I hope to go a couple more.

I think it will make the transition back to school a little tough, but I also think I will be healthier, more relaxed, and more prepared, mentally and emotionally for the rest of the year.

Despite what everyone says, teaching is a draining job.  It requires long days, on your feet, being "on" and being emotionally involved with a lot of needy kids, and a lot of political pressure.

I know I don't always do the best job during school of maintaining balance and making sure that my stress doesn't flow over onto my family.  I'm trying to make up some of it now.

How do you use your vacation time?  Do you get ahead?  Or do you focus on other things?  What do you do to keep some balance for yourself and your family?