Do This! Not That...Back to School Blog Hop

I am teaming up with my Lesson Delicatessen friends to bring you our DO THIS! NOT THAT Back to School Blog Hop!  As teachers we are always reflecting on what works, what bombed, and what needs some tweaking!  I am all about self-reflection.  Read on if you want to find out about a blunder I have made for awhile as a 6th grade teacher...grab a great FREEBIE, and find more valuable ideas and goodies from my buddies as you head through the hop!  The last stop lets you enter to win a $100 TPT Gift Card!

I had the opportunity to go to Las Vegas this summer and meet 1,100 other teachers that are passionate about their work in the classroom, blogging, and creating the best classroom resources.  It was an AMAZING adventure and I was so fortunate to share the experience with my children's kindergarten teacher, Jonelle Bell from A Place Called Kindergarten.  I adore this lady and am so grateful to have had this experience together!

I attended blogger meet-ups and had the chance to learn a great deal in different conference sessions.  What I wasn't prepared for was introducing myself repeatedly and sharing "All About Me."  I was separated from Jonelle due to teaching different grade levels, and it was a bit overwhelming to branch out and talk to so many others I truly wanted to "Get to Know."  I wanted to meet everyone, but the environment was busy, loud, and a bit intimidating, at times.

What I realized is that so is EVERY SINGLE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!  For so many of my students it is busy, loud, and overstimulating.   Add to it a first day activity that I thought was fun for the students, but has potential to be truly uncomfortable for many.  You know the one, students have to get up out of their seat and ask everyone in the class a question, then get all of their peers to sign next to said questions on their paper?!  For a number of years I decided to implement this Class Signature Scavenger Hunt on the first day of school without realizing how it is loud, it is busy, and it is overwhelming to new and introverted students. DON'T DO THAT! I, too, plan to take a break from these intense hunts and I plan to...

DO THIS...(and grab this FREEBIE)

The purpose of this Getting to Know You! Chit Chat Cards resource is to allow students to have the chance to share about themselves and listen to a peer while providing them with a focal point to begin their conversation in order to generate even more thoughtful discussion.  These question cards give students the chance to engage in conversation with a peer or small group without overwhelming them and sending them all over the classroom.   

Simply PRINT, LAMINATE, CUT, and EXPLAIN!  Have students share their thoughts with a partner or in a small group.  These cards will encourage positive peer interactions from that very first day of the school year, while making students feel more comfortable with one another.  That is our ultimate goal, right?! 

Enter my ELA Made Easy Upper Elementary Bundle Giveaway (a $90 value) below.

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Then, head to my friend Amy's blog, Teaching Ideas 4 U, and snag another great tip and FREEBIE!  Best of luck as you and your students tackle the 2015-2016 school year!

Best Books for 6th Grade: A Summer Blog Party and FREEBIE

This week I am linking up with my friends at The Reading Crew to share some of our favorite books to fire up readers at various grade levels.  As a 6th grade teacher, I want to tell you all about my choices of...

First, I truly adore this grade!  I find students at this level are kind of all over the map when it comes to reading.  Some "<3" reading and never want to put their books down, some read because they "HAVE to", and others love to share their "HATRED" for reading! I think I was destined to become a 6th grade reading teacher because I detested reading as a 6th grader!  While I am confessing, I hated playing the piano, too!  I don't remember who helped me resolve my hatred of all things reading, but I can tell you that having a special job stamping check-out books in the school library and finding The Babysitter's Club series, transformed me as a reader!  So-I take it personally if my students have not left me at the end of the school year and found "THE BEST BOOK EVER! 

So-onto my list...I must admit that I am a realistic and historical fiction nut!  I love knowing that stories have or can actually transpire, so my list is full of these genres.  I am actually really honest about books with my students because it helps them understand that even though I am a reading teacher, I can struggle with books, too.  I often share that except for the Hunger Games series and Among the Hidden, science fiction can be a challenge for me to stick with.  Dare I say that I was not a big fan of Harry Potter after the first two novels?!

I have compiled a list of 10 of my favorite books to share with students at this 6th grade level...If you click on the title, you will see that I have created novel units for each of these texts due to my strong LOVE for these books! You will also find a FREEBIE character analysis resource to share with your kiddos...

Best Book #1:  Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

Best Book #2:  Crash by Jerry Spinelli

Best Book #3:  Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan

Best Book #4:  Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

Best Book #5 and #6:  Stargirl and Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Best Book #7:  Woodsong by Gary Paulsen

Best Book #8: Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Best Book #9:  Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

Best Book #10:  The Lottery Rose by Irene Hunt

I would love to hear more of the texts you LOVE to utilize with your 6th graders...I am always on the hunt for "Best Books"!  Now, race to your library and GRAB these AMAZING works!  Your students will thank you!  Happy Summer Reading! Check out these other perfect book ideas to FIRE UP your readers...

Summer Blog Party Kick-Off

Happy Summer!  I hope this blog hop finds you ready to tackle some summer relaxation and fun!  For my family, we are in the midst of tournament play for baseball, attending various sports camps, spending lots of time at the pool, and enjoying time with friends.  We will be heading to the beach for a week in August, but for now, we bask in the warm weather and minimal schedule.

Despite our busyness, one thing we continue throughout summer is reading.  As a reading teacher, I enforce daily reading time in our house.  I say enforce because grabbing a book and slowing down is NOT a favorite past-time among my kiddos.  My littlest can sit and read book after book, my middle loves to be read to, and my oldest knows that his allowance gets reduced if I have to ask him to complete his daily reading more than once.  If a friend calls for a playdate for my daughter, or a knock comes at the door for my oldest, reading is the last thing on their minds.  Therefore, I have to mandate that it happens. 

I have given up on the idea that my kids should want to read. I want them to want to read, but ideally, if my children could be outside playing every moment of every day, that is what they would prefer to do! And so, before we head outside and grab for any type of technology, reading occurs.  Some might argue with this strategy, but it works for my family.  There are no written rules, no chart to keep track, just the expectation that for 20 minutes a day, we read.  Very manageable.

My heading into 4th grade son has tackled Chocolate Fever and is on to Frindle.  I am offering him the chance to choose the books. I am not making him complete any novel units to accompany his reading, but they are available, just in case.

My heading into 1st grade daughter is tackling Level D books and inspired me to create this FREEBIE text unit for my intervention students.  She loves Young Cam Jansen books.  She struggles a bit to read them independently, but loves when we read them together.  This unit is perfect for reading comprehension for grades 1-3, and an intervention resource for students that might be struggling a bit in grades 4-6.  If you are a teacher in the midst of summer school, or a parent wanting to help your child with comprehension, this text resource is ideal for you! It includes: directions for use, lesson plans, character analysis work, context clue word work, chapter by chapter reader response questions, and post-reading writing prompts for FREE!

It is a forever FREEBIE and I would love to hear how you put it to use at home or in your classroom.  Grab some more HOT resources as you move on to the next stops!  Michelle from Big Time Literacy has a great one!  Grab it at the next stop!  Happy Hopping!

Sailing Into Summer Blog Hop

The end of another school year is quickly arriving and there are still a bazillion and one things to do before your students pack up their belongings and leave your classroom for the final time.  I find this time of year to be a complete blur despite having gone through it for 15 years.  I find that no matter how organized or prepared I am for the last days of school, I am always racing to Starbucks for one last gift card or racking my brain working to find the right words to say to a colleague, parent, or my children's teachers. 

This year, thanks to this blog hop with my secondary buddies, I feel like I have my act together, I am happy to report.  While you may be up to your ears in paperwork and completing final exam grades, here are a few ideas to grab right away, or store on your Pinterest board for next school year to make it easy to show gratitude and say thanks to those co-workers, parent volunteers, cafeteria/maintenance staff, student helpers, etc. 

Classroom Appreciation Printables 

I am BIG on thank you cards and notes.  I feel that it is essential that we take the time to show gratitude toward those that we care about, have given to us, or done some kind gesture.  As adults we must set a good example, so that our children and students learn this important deed.  To help with the task of showing thanks, and making my life as easy as possible throughout the school year, I created this $1 resource.  It is 20-thank you printables that with a simple signature and $1 Spot goodie from Target, are so meaningful.  The person that is on the receiving end of one of these, truly feels appreciated.

Click on the image to grab this appreciation FREEBIE!

Character Pals

I am one of those people that tends to give gift cards to others for all gift giving occasions.  I want the receiver to be able to pick out something that they can truly utilize and not duplicate something they might already have, or have to worry about a return.  Some call it impersonal, I think it is ideal.  I love gift cards!  This end of school, I vowed not to do that.  Instead, I came across this clip artist on Teachers Pay Teachers.  Lauren from Polka Dots & Pals, creates characters in the likeness of people and she is truly GIFTED!  I wasn't sure what I would do with the images, but I had her create my children's teachers.  I sent her a picture, filled out a brief inventory to assist her in creating the image, and VOILA, I had two adorable characters. 

Mrs. Bell, my daughter's kindergarten teacher!

Mrs. Chancey, my son's third grade teacher!

I took to Powerpoint and Vistaprint to create these adorable post-its and bags.  Every teacher needs bags for stuff, and post-its are another teacher essential.  Lauren also gave me the go-ahead to send them their jpeg character pal to utilize with resources and blogging fun.  I can't wait to give them these fun end of year surprises.

My friend Lauren will give away one Character Pal to one LUCKY winner, so enter the Rafflecopter for your chance to win.  I can assure you that you will LOVE her creation.

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I would love to hear about any teacher appreciation or end of year gift giving that you do to show your gratitude...I am always on the hunt for fun ideas!  Happy End of Year!  You have almost made it! Check out some more ways to make your life easier these last few weeks by checking out these other amazing bloggers.

An InLinkz Link-up

Spring is Here! Poetry Hop

I have joined up with my AMAZING literacy friends from The Reading Crew and we have put together this Poetry Hop in order to share some poetry ideas, poetry resources, and FREEBIES...

POETRY! 

That one, 6-letter word can send shivers down the spine of an unsuspecting 6th grader.  I have learned that depending on previous experience, it ranks right up there with these other horrors...

HOMEWORK!

DICTIONARY!!

STUDY!!!

My sweet students:

"Mrs. Beers, I hate poetry!"

"Isn't Dr. Seuss a poet?  Dr. Seuss is SO kindergarten!"

"Can I just rhyme a few lines and be done?"

Me: "Sorry to hear that!  Dr. Seuss is actually quite clever, even for adults, but we will not be focusing on his work.  Poetry is not about just rhyming a few lines.  Stick with me, I promise you will LOVE it!"

So I do what I hope every teacher works to do-CHANGE their impressionable minds into LOVING poetry with TRICKERY!  Just kidding, instead of trickery, I utilize two AMAZING novels by Sharon Creech that seamlessly incorporate INCREDIBLE poems that will both challenge and engage students, and I teach them strategies to analyze poems that encourage them to feel more comfortable reading and understanding poems-Love That Dog and Hate That Cat! In addition, I give them the task of becoming the teacher and helping their student, Jack, find his way into accepting poetry and becoming a superstar poet in the process through poetry analysis and journal writing.  You can check out these novel units, and then hop to my FREEBIE below...

If you don't have time for novels, grab this FREEBIE sampler that I created.  The entire We HEART Poetry!  A Poetry Analysis BUNDLE gives your students the tools they need to make poetry analysis successful in 8-LESSONS.  I know that there are years of extra snow and less school days, so I need to get my students where they need to be in the time frame that I am allotted.  This is the ideal poetry resource to connect your students to poetry and make them LOVE it in a snap!  Grab this snippet and let me know what you think!

Enter to win all of my poetry resources below!

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I hope your students learn to HEART poetry as much as mine have!  Now head to my friend, Sandy's blog, Sweet Integrations, to find another FANTASTIC resource.  Happy Poetry Hopping! 

A special thanks to these clip artists for their festive work...
Educlips, Jen Jones, and Epiphanous Owl.

Lucky You! Blog Hop!

The reasons why I am lucky...
I have an AMAZING FAMILY and I have had experiences in my life that have made me the not overly sensitive person I am!  I feel lucky to be able to laugh about things, myself included, and not take myself or others so seriously!

For example...When I think of St. Patrick's Day I have a few memories of this LUCKY & GREEN day...

In elementary school it was a BIG deal to wear green.  I specifically remember in 5th and 6th grade, our teachers would walk around and observe all  of the green we were wearing.  The individual that wore the most green on this particular day always won some prize.  I never won, so I have no idea what the cool prize even was.  Green was NEVER my favorite color!  I believe the only green I ever wore was my Boston Celtics t-shirt.  As I think back, it makes me laugh!  As a 6th grade teacher today, I am just glad my students are dressed appropriately-any sort of seasonal or holiday spirit is a bonus, right?!

My second memory is the cleverness of "Erin Go Braugh!"  The meaning of this phrase is, "Ireland Forever!"  An extra special thanks to all of the thoughtful companies that made t-shirts and buttons with this spirited mantra.  For an elementary and middle schooler with the name Erin, there were so many creative phrases made-up by my kind peers with my name that had nothing to do with Ireland, but more to do with my wearing female undergarments!  AWESOME!

I hope your memories of this Irish holiday make you laugh a bit as well.  I have come around on the color green and I still giggle when I see "Erin Go Braugh!"

Onto my green-inspired FREEBIE!  Growing up in New England we were HUGE Boston Celtics fans.  The Celtics played four games a year at the Hartford Civic Center and we always had those 4-game season tickets.  I have always loved basketball and still think about the AMAZING basketball legends that I got to see in person competing for and against the Celtics: Larry Bird, Danny Ainge, Robert Parrish, Dennis Johnson, Kevin McHale, Charles Barkley, Spud Webb, Minute Boll, Carl Malone, John Stockton, Dominique Wilkins, etc.

So with this GREEN holiday and MARCH MADNESS, I wrote a few CLOSE Reading passages for you to share with your upper elementary students.  My students LOVE to read about athletes, so I try to keep as many of these high-interest passages on hand for test prep, morning work, "I'm finished, now what?", etc.  Grab them below and use them how you see fit!  Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Now head to my friend Ali's blog to find another incredible FREE upper elementary resource.

 

Warm Up and Chill Out Test Prep Blog Hop and $50 Starbucks Gift Card GIVEAWAY!

Are you gearing up for state testing?  We all know it can be THE MOST an especially stressful time of the year, so my Lesson Deli friends and I wanted to make this time as stress-free as possible.  We have put together a blog hop that gives you the chance to snag some TEST PREP FREEBIES as well as have the opportunity to enter to win a $50 Starbucks Gift Card and some other sweet goodies along the way.

To get your students geared up for fiction, I have created these Character Analysis Task Cards.  I have found that while my students tend to LOVE fiction, it can be a real challenge to get them to analyze and respond in writing to the kind of questioning that is expected of them.  They can discuss text verbally all day, but when it comes to getting their ideas down on paper, some struggle to answer multiple step questions, and simply answer only the first portion of what is asked of them.  I need them to be able to support their response with information from the text or by citing textual evidence, so I created these task cards.

For some assistance with helping students navigate this reading literature expectation, snag this FREEBIE:

This FREEBIE includes:

• directions for immediate implementation
• 8-task cards with student answer document
• answer key

I utilize these task cards in a couple of different ways.

• small group to reinforce character analysis with those struggling
• whole class
• in a literacy center

You can grab the whole product here:

The entire product includes:

• clear directions for immediate implementation
• notes for student understanding
• 32-character analysis task cards
• student answer document
• answer key for quick assessing

After entering the Dunkin' Donuts Giveaway below, head to my friend, Caitlin's blog for another great resource to help you and your students continue down the path to most prepared during this test prep time!  Hang in there!

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Jumpstart January Blog Hop and $50 Target Gift Card Giveaway

My Lesson Delicatessen friends and I wanted to make sure that you were set and ready to get back in action with your students, so we are giving you the Jumpstart January Blog Hop and GIVEAWAY.  Follow through each of our 10 posts for an AMAZING FREEBIE, personal blog giveaway, and at our final stop, enter to win our $50 Target gift card giveaway and find the links to all of our $1 deals! 

My January always seems like a bit of a blur...the students come back from the break tired, but excited, and I need to get them right back into the swing of things because we have a TON to accomplish!  In order to meet their needs to share, along with my needs as a persistent teacher, we begin with writing.

Jumpstart your January with Me...in 2015!  This self-relection writing resource will engage your students and encourage them to get right back into the swing of things.
 
When my students return from the winter break inspiring them can be very overwhelming tricky.  They have been out of the school routine for just long enough to need redirection and motivation.
In addition the school year is almost half over, and I want to engage my students and get them thinking about what they are hopeful to accomplish in this New Year, but remaining time of the current school year.  I often refer to my students at this point in time as 6 ½ graders!  So I created this Me…in 2015! resource.

Directions...
This writing resource is a tool I print out for each student, hole-punch, and help them navigate through to complete.  It is a tool that we then place in our writing binders as a reflection of what we hope to accomplish. Grab it here and check out the other great uses...

Here are a few more perfect ELA resources to Jumpstart January in your classroom for only $1...

 

  

Enter my giveaway and then check out another amazing FREEBIE from my Lesson Deli friend, Karen, and the other grab and go resources from my other teacher friends.  Best wishes for 2015!

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