Do You Have New Year's Resolutions/Goals for Your Classroom?

This school year has been a year of trying new things and starting over to try to get things working better....

I wrote about some of my upcoming goals for the classroom in my guest blog post here at

I have one more to add after a conversation with another science teacher, and the SIOP training that I went through earlier this year.  I want to try to make the day's agenda and learning objectives more transparent to the students. I do have an agenda board posted, and we spent time on it at the start of school, but I am assuming by now that they know its there.  I think I may be wrong.  I'm going to devote 5 minutes each day on those business parts of class:   -- agenda and objectives   --classroom jobs   --checking in on classdojo points and giving time to cash in for prizes   -- organization (table of contents, attaching things into journal) and making sure they have homework written down I will report back here in a couple weeks and see if it makes a difference....

Giveaway

Are you ready to win some teaching items? Here's your chance! This giveaway combines  2 sites: Teachers Pay Teachers & Pinterest!   This giveaway is put together by Melissa at http://www.teachertreasurehunter.blogspot.com/

Click on the link to go to the Pinterest board with the entries. Just pin items in the giveaway to your teaching boards.  Then click to go to Melissa's site, and cut and paste a link to your pin onto the entry form.  That's it!  Each pin gets you an entry.  Pin every day for even more entries.  Happy pinning and winning! 

Grand Prize Package: 9 TPT items for secondary teachers!

2 Runner-up Prizes: Your choice of 1 item from this giveaway!

Liebster Blog Nominee

Liebster Blog Award

I was nominated by FunintheFours for the Liebster Blog Award.  This is an award to new bloggers  to acknowledge them, encourage them and gain new readers) are:

1. link back to the blog that nominated you  (done up above)
2. post 11 random things about yourself
3. answer the 11 questions posted by the nominator
4. create 11 questions for the people you nominate
5. choose 11 other blogs with less than 200 followers and link to them on this post

1.  Done up above
2. 11 Random things about myself

• 1 have 2 kids
• I live in upstate NY
• I used to do environmental consulting and geology, before I became a teacher
• I am also married to a teacher
• I like to cook, garden, and scrapbook
• I am a creative cook because my son has a lot of food allergies
• I am home sick today, waiting for the dr. to open and see if I have strep throat
• I recently (last year) switched from a high school to a k-8 building and I'm learning so much just by being in an elementary building.
• My older son is in first grade - very interesting to be on the parent end of it.
• Our only pet is 2 betta fish.
• My kids named the fish - "Spikes-a-lot" ('cause he's spiky) and "Darth Eater" (after Darth Vader, and he likes to eat.

3. 11 questions:

• How long have you been teaching and what grade do you currently teach?

I have been teaching officially for 7 years (5 years high school and 2 years middle school).  Before that, I worked as a teaching assistant in special ed for about 2 1/2 years, taught an adjunct class and tutored while I was getting my certification . I currently teach 7th and 8th grade.

• What advice would you give a brand new teacher?

Don't worry about making every lesson creative and unique, but be prepared for anything to happen, be flexible, and work on finding your own style and niche. 

• What made you decide to enter the blogging world?

I have been doing Teacherspayteachers, and gotten interested in reading other teacher's blogs.  It seemed like a good place for me to discuss/share/process some of what goes on in my classroom and the thoughts I have about teaching.

• Which blog do you really love to read?

As far as teaching related....I really like thesciencepenguin.com. It is a little lower grade level than my students, but always a great resource.  

• If you could visit any place in the world where would you go and why?

I would love to go back to Scotland, which I visited once, or I would love to go to Japan, just because it seems so unique and very different from here. 

• What pets do you have? (If you don't have any - what pets would you really LOVE to have?)

Answered up above (sorry!)

• When you were a child what was your favorite book? What is your favorite children's book today?

I loved "The Boxcar Children" series (and many others).  One of my current favorites, to read with my kids is "The Biggest Thing in the ce

• Do you speak any other languages? If so, which ones?

I speak a little French and a little Spanish, but definitely not fluently. 

• What is one item you can't live without?

I am pretty hooked on my cell phone....and a cup of tea.  

• If you look up from your computer right now what do you see?

snow! 

• What is your favorite charity?

Hmm....breast cancer maybe?  
4. 11 other questions for my nominees

• What grades and subject(s) do you teach?

• What made you decide to be a teacher?

• How long have you been teaching?

• What type of district do you teach in (large/small, urban, suburban, rural)?

• What do you think is your strength (or your favorite part) of teaching?

• What part(s) are your weakness or do you dislike?

• What blogs do you really like?

• What are you most proud of?

• What hobby do you enjoy?

• What is the strangest food you have ever eaten?

• Why did you start blogging?

5.  My nominess: 
http://biology-roots.com/ 
http://mrsodonnellsroom.blogspot.com/
http://2peasandadog.blogspot.ca
and more to follow....

Professional Sharing: A Blogging Exchange Around Differentiation

Primary Possibilities is having a Linky Party!  

I am participating in a blogging exchange, or blog circle this week.  Several people are posting on each other's blogs.  If you follow the link at the bottom to the next one, you should go in a circle.

Here is the post from our guest blogger this week:

FUNSHINE: the common core store for kids with special needs

Are you ready to rock? I'm ready to roll! Woohoo!

My name is Maria Angala and I am a special educator/ inclusion specialist/ reading intervention teacher in Washington DC. If your New Year's Resolution is to dive into something rigorous, fun and exciting for your classroom, you must make it a routine to visit FUNSHINE blog! I have tons of lesson plans and teacher-created materials for our exceptional needs students that are aligned with that sneaky common core standards. Of course, I made sure it's proven and tested in my classroom first before sharing them with you. Yep, they are modified and differentiated to target our exceptional needs students' diverse learning styles, and yet still aligned to the learning standard on their grade level.

Here's what I'm talking about:

1. Tiered Activity: MLK Constructed Response Practice & Word Work.Students will love this 14-page full-color constructed response writing practice which uses the RACE stategy to develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples. The Informational Text, "King's Dream Remembered", is presented in 3 different levels for our special needs students; graphic organizers for word work and guided notes for writing activities are also included. And because our valiant hero's very special day is coming up, I am giving away two FREEBIES for you! MLK Memorial Practice Writing RACE Strategy and MLK Quotes Writing Practice: RACE Strategy ...grab it now!

2. College Talk!. Having a strong vocabulary is critical to achieving success in College. I give each these 50- academic vocabulary words to my students for them to use in their everyday conversations in the classroom and in writing. Students will be able to acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases!! Great for Word Walls or for College Prep Centers, this is a big hit!

3. SPED Reading Intervention 300+ Word List A-Z with Menu. This is one of my favorites! This 166 page-packet has 300+ A-Z words which can be used for homework, word wall, spelling practice or reading drills as a supplementary resource to an existing reading intervention program! Included in this awesome packet are intervention suggestions for a student who has a difficulty with phonic skills when reading! Have fun!

Your support during my first month in 2012 has been tremendous and it shows me that we, educators, really do appreciate quality resources created by our peers that cater to the diverse needs of our students. For that, I thank you! Join me as we shape my 2nd month and beyond -- FUNSHINE 2013, to be bigger, better, and brighter than before!

Maria Angala, NBCT

Exceptional Needs Specialist
TpT Store: Teacher Sol's Funshine

Blog: Teacher Sol's Funshine
Twitter: Teacher Sol
Facebook Page: Teacher Sol's Funshine
LinkedIn: Maria Angala
Google +: Maria Angala

Continue to read the next post in our blog circle at 

http://amyalvis.blogspot.com/2013/01/guest-blogger-science-in-city.html

Hope you enjoy and get to check out some new blogs in the process! 

Giveaways and Free Resources

Several other bloggers have hit landmarks recently, or are hosting events such as giveaways, linky parties with free resources, and more over the break.  I want to share a few with you:

I am very excited to be part of the giveaway at Second Grade Nest.  This giveaway has 5 different prize packages, with over 65 products total being given away.



My circulatory system lab (one of my newer products) is part of package 5.  This is a favorite of my students, and could easily be adapted to lower grades as well.

Secondly, in honor of his blogs 1-year anniversary, Hopkins Hoppin' Happenings is doing a series of exclusive freebies (1 per day)....a different one each day. They are a variety of products of different grades and subjects.  Mine is scheduled for 12/31!  New Year's Eve!  Check it out (and check out the other exclusive freebies!

Also, another education blogger does a weekly themed linky.  This week includes paid and free resources.  There are frequently linkys for free resources as well.  This is going on at Educator's Life

And don't forget to keep an eye on the Success in Secondary Linky party. Although not going on right  now, it is recurring and a great place for secondary resources.

Soaring Through Secondary Blog Hop

Soaring Through Secondary Middle and High School Blog Hop

I am excited to be participating in my first blog hop.  Thank you to the other bloggers who made the logo (liveteachcreate.com), and organized the blog hop (teachinghighschoolmath.blogspot.com).  Next in the hop, after me, is http://www.alessonplanforteachers.blogspot.com/.  To visit the next blog in this blog hop, click on the link at the bottom . 

I am trying a new strategy I am using this year in my classroom with a lot of success.  Many of my students (and perhaps yours too), struggle with 'academic' words that show up often in textbooks and test questions.  These may not be content words, specific to science, math, English, or Social Studies.  They are, however, academic language.  They are  not words that students use in everyday conversation, or probably hear at home, particularly if they are not from well-educated homes.  

These are called "Tier 2" vocabulary words.  They can also have different meanings in different contexts.  These are discussed well here http://www.superduperinc.com/handouts/pdf/182_VocabularyTiers.pdf and I also learned more about them in my ELL Professional Development, discussed here   

I am trying to spend more time explicitly teaching these words.  I am setting expectations for students to use these words in their writing and verbal responses.  One strategy I'm using is to make these words bellwork.  I am then using more traditional bellwork questions as a 'ticket out.'  Each day's bellwork includes a new word, context clues, pictures, or choices to figure out what it means, and use it in a sentence.  Then at the end of a week we have a matching quiz on the words.  Ideally my ticket out has the bellwork question in it!  Most of the time at the end of the week kids say something like "Oh!  These are the words we have been doing!!"  They are doing really well on the short mini-quizzes on these words, and their test scores and confidence reading test questions has gone way up.  I wrote about that when I started this strategy here 

As part of this blog hop, I am offering the following prize: 

                             

Inferring Vocabulary Set 1 or Inferring Vocabulary Set 2 

Leave a comment stating 

• your email address 

• how you would use this product in your classroom, or what strategies you use to teach your students these type of words.  

I will randomly choose a comment to receive either set of your choice free. 

Check out the next blog in our blog hop!!

                      

                                            http://www.alessonplanforteachers.blogspot.com/

How Can Technology Help You With Parent Contact?

How can I get my parents involved in the classroom?

Just like many other teachers, I'm sure, I am trying to raise test scores and achievement, increase homework completion, increase parent contacts, and meet my APPR goals this year.  I am testing out a tool to help increase parent involvement.  It is called Remind101.  I am going to start using it with my classes (students and parents) this week. I'll keep you posted.

I heard about it from a friend of mine who is using it and has great things to say. Remind 101 to message students and parents - free and safe.  The bottom line is that many (if not most) of our parents have cell phones, but may or may not have reliable internet and check/use email.  Text message are a great way to communicate with parents.  One of the best options out is there is Remind101.

Try out Remind101 to communicate with students and parents!

Here is the website Remind101.com

Here are a few teacher blogs that discuss it
http://misslwholebrainteaching.blogspot.com/2012/10/remind-101.html 

A great discussion of the set up and features  A few highlights:

• Your number and the parents' number stays private
• Both students and parents can subscribe to updates
• You can send out announcements to a large group, or to smaller groups, and can schedule ahead of time.
• They cannot reply to the messages (this could be a plus or a drawback).
• You can set up different groups for students and parents, or have them subscribe to the same updates. 

I think most kids want to be successful but are not in the habit of keeping track of multiple classes, doing homework, remembering what they need to do, etc.  Also, let's face it, our kids (and parents) are connected and used to technology.  While it may not always have a place in the classroom we need to connect with them where they are. 

Bloomz is another good option for parent communication

Another good options is Bloomz, however this does NOT send out only text reminders, but has an option for text, email, or smartphone app. This does allow two way messaging, and allows sending photos. It has more options, but also is a bit more complicated to set up. Remind is about as simple and straightforward as you can get!

Remind is free, anonymous, and very easy to set up. You can schedule messages to go out ahead of time.  I think its worth a try.

Anyone used either of these to communicate?  Did you see an increase in parent communication or parent involvement? Do you have feedback or suggestions? 

Giveaway

There is a big giveaway on Realistic Teacher's blog.  It runs Dec 2nd-9th (starts tomorrow)! 

You can get to it by clicking on the picture below to go to her blog.  

She is raffling off prizes split by age groups.  There are three bundles for age groups K-2, a 3-5 grade bundle, and a grades 6-8 bundle. 

You have the chance to get a bunch of different freebies and check out some excellent teachers.

Check it out and enter any age groups you are interested in.  You can directly enter the grades 6-8 age groups below. :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

An Amazing Holiday Gift for You

A holiday gift from the secondary teachers at TpT to you!  Even though in secondary grades we may not have as much time to spend on holiday and seasonal activities as the lower grades, there are ways to do it!  Here are some great tips for ways to integrate some holiday cheer into your classroom, and help maintain student focus around this time of year.  There are teaching tips and holiday-related freebies from secondary teachers in each subject area on TpT.  

Check it out (click on the image) and HAPPY HOLIDAYS

And if you are not a secondary teacher, there are editions for grades Prek-K, 1-2, and 3-6 as well.  

        

Teacherspayteachers Big Sale!!

Have you thought about checking out www.Teacherspayteachers.com but haven't yet?


Are there certain units coming up that you want to improve on or revise? Add a little spice?


Is there a day you know you will be out and you need some sub plans?


Do you want better organization and reading strategies? classroom management? Recordkeeping? Integrate common core?


These are all reasons to go to www.teacherspayteachers.com  There are both paid and free resources that are really excellent.  Created for teachers and by teachers. 

TpT is having a CyberMonday and Tuesday sale! Get up to 28% off! This is your chance to browse, fill up your wish list and your shopping cart. Plan ahead!

Go directly to www.teacherspayteachers.com, or click on the banner above.  Use the promo code on the banner (CMT12) to receive your discount.

Enjoy!! 

Blog Giveaway

Interested in a Thanksgiving Giveaway?!  Go here to check it out, enter, see the prizes, and try to win one.  It will run from Monday through Saturday! There will be 4 winners and you must know that each winner will receive a fantastic prize!

http://learning-4-keeps.blogspot.com/

Misconceptions About the Reasons for the Seasons? Try This

Do your students have a lot of misconceptions about the causes for the seasons?   Try this. 

Need a seasonal science activity?

Do you do a seasonal/winter/holiday activity with your classes?  Sometimes I find it hard to work into an overly busy curriculum, especially with older students. I also am never sure if its better to add to the excitement and chaos, or if its better to maintain as much normalcy as possible.  I don't want to 'throw a party' on the day before break, but we also need some recognition of it being a special day.  It is not only a day before the break, and perhaps near Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, spring break, or summer vacation, but it is probably also near the Winter Solstice, Spring Equinox, or Summer Solstice.

This is how I teach about seasons, and celebrate a holiday in science class

Here is a compromise I have worked out.  The day before winter break (or somewhere right around there) is usually the winter solstice.   Its a great opportunity to talk about why and how the seasons change, how the solstice is celebrated around the world, and to review/introduce a key concept in Earth Science.

Now, thanks to technology, we can use a website such as www.daylightmap.com to look at the sunlight on that day all around the world. We can see which areas of the world are experiencing different amounts of sunlight.  We can then either set it to different times and dates to see the changes, or we can do this several times of year and see the changes.  I like to re-introduce it, since this is an area where there are so many misconceptions and confusions, and its so commonly tested.

We do an activity near the start of school (fall equinox), winter solstice (before winter break), summer solstice (end of school)---you get the idea.  Here is the activity that I use for the Winter Solstice

Or, go to www.daylightmap.com and see what creative things you can come up with on your own to help your students understand the real reasons behind the seasons! Please leave a comment with ideas you have :)

Free Resources and Giveaways

There are lots of resources right now free.....

One of the best is Success in Secondary, which is grouped by grade level and topic.  A great collection of free and paid resources

Another great giveaway going on at Scienceteacherresources.blogspot.com.  These are all science freebies.

And finally a giveaway for a great inclusion book.  Check it out and enter.

I will post more as I find them...

Giveaway!

I am participating in my first blog giveaway!  As I am very new to blogging, this is brand new to me.  A colleague and fellow teacher/blogger is  hosting a giveaway for reaching 200 followers. I participated and am raffling off a product of your choice from my store to a winner.  There are MANY other teachers who are also raffling off materials of various topics, grade levels, and subjects.

If you are interested in entering, click on the link: