Greek and Latin Root Center

This product is truly a labor of love, and I am so looking forward to sharing it with you! I have been working on it all school year, adding to it as I've been using it. It is finally prepped and ready for all of you to check out!

This product includes root posters, vocabulary maps, worksheets, and flash cards for 37 of the most common Greek and Latin roots. It is meant to aid in introducing and enforcing a root per week in a mid/upper elementary classroom. This worked really well for me in an gifted/talented third grade classroom, so the target audience would probably be third through fifth grade. However, if you have a group of well above level learners in second grade, they would enjoy this, too. It can also be adapted for middle school review. The roots vary in difficulty, so you could give younger students the most common roots, such as aqua, multi, or phon. You don't have to go in alphabetical order, so you can go in any order that you think will work for your students!

Here is a closer look at what is included in the download.

Not pictured, but also included, is an editable document so that you may add additional roots that are not in the 37 that I included. I only tried to include roots that had 5-6 developmentally appropriate words that corresponded, but I'm sure there are more that you teach in your classroom!

Full disclosure, I'm SO sad that I won't be using this product next year due to accepting my new position as the school counselor. My kids l-o-v-e-d this center, and it really motivated them to break apart words to decipher their meanings. It also made them "feel like big kids!"

This product is on sale for 20% off for the time being. That is only $8 for a routine/center that will last you the ENTIRE year! Click one of the pictures or HERE to check it out. Let me know what you think if you download! I also put the rest of my store on sale, too.

What I Bought!

Did you take advantage of the Teachers Pay Teachers sale? I put my store (my tiny store!) on sale for the event, and I want to say thank you to anyone who purchased any of my items. Please let me know how they work for you!

Now, what did I buy? I'm glad you asked because I made a snazzy graphic.

I mentioned that I will be teaching the accelerated class in third grade this year. In other words, I have the highest achieving students in my room. Aside from literally "accelerating," I clearly want to up the rigor and introduce higher level skills and concepts. To do that, I purchased:

Blogging Literature Circles by Where the Wild Things Learn
Mentor Sentences by Jivey
Root of the Week by The Brown Bag Teacher
Morphology Dictionary by Ladybugs Teacher Files

My room doesn't have a theme, just a color scheme. I love brights on black. To update my decor, I purchased:

Desire to Inspire Subway Art by Hope King
Simple Iconic Library Labels by Ladybugs Teacher Files

I also purchased Math Homework Card Games by Teachers Clubhouse. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to use them yet. I may use them as a choice during math centers. I might also have the students keep the games in their binders (as Amanda suggests in this blog post) for extra practice.

The last item I purchased was the Editable Desk Tags by The Brown Bag Teacher. I'm always looking for ways to streamline transitions. I do a ton of partner work, so I'm going to give this Kagan strategy a shot.

Link up with Blog Hoppin'!

Did you buy/create anything that you think would help me accelerate and really push my above level third graders? Leave me a comment so I can check it out!

Free Career Research Resource!

Did you download my Researching Careers Writing Project?

Or, do you do some kind of career project with your students?

Or, are you a school counselor who teaches lessons about career choices?

If so, you need to visit Educents, like NOW!

There is a free resource that would really enhance the project! Not sure how long it will be offered, so run over now!

It is a set of 11 e-books all about different careers. The books look to be written at an upper elementary grade level. They are offered through The Old Schoolhouse and are regularly priced at almost $100 dollars. The careers included are a chef, doctor, farmer, firefighter, police office, military, pilot, veterinarian, video game designer, artist, and a missionary. There are also activities included with the books!

Because this looks to be a religious publication, I will need to blank out some of the religious speak throughout some of the interviews, but the rest is a perfect fit for my project!

     

Because this resource fits SO well with my product, I'll be marking down my research project product to $4! I'll be setting it back to regular price Friday after school. Click above to check it out. Even if you don't grab my product, these free career ebooks are definitely a steal!

TPT BTS! [so.many.acronyms]

Hey all! I don't know about you, but I've been waiting to hear about the TPT back to school sale. There are definitely a few items that have been sitting on my wish list this summer, so this will be a great time to scoop them up!

I thought this linky looked fun! Here are my two most wishlisted [is that a word? blogger doesn't think so.] items!

My area/perimeter cards are my most popular set of task cards! They are common core aligned & geared toward third grade, but there are definitely some challenging questions. They could be used in 4th or 5th grade as review, as well!

My Reading Response card set fosters discussion among a small or whole group of students after they are finished reading a text. A set of fiction and a set of nonfiction cards are included in the set, and there is a recording sheet included in case you'd like the students to write their responses as well. These can be used with high functioning firsties and all the way up through elementary school!

Um, yeah. I can't pick just one! Here are my top four items on my wish list!

*NOTE: Please do not pin the items below from my blog. Click the picture, follow the link, and pin the product! =) *

1. Snapshots of our Year Timeline: That's So Second Grade! 

2. Math Action Cards: The Lesson Plan Diva

3. Standards Based Assessments: Miss Nannini

4. Desire to Inspire Subway Art: Hope King

Are my area/perimeter task cards or reading response cards on YOUR wish list? If they are [or if you were about to put them there! ;) ], leave a comment with which item you'd like. I'll randomly choose one winner in 24 hours [10pm, Friday, EST] to receive the item for free! =)

Writing about Math [New Product & Freebie!]

How important is writing in your school?

Last year, I would go so far to say is was THE most important thing in our building. Our principal made it a building wide initiative to integrate quality writing opportunities wherever possible. I already used math journals, reading journals, and of course writing journals, but I never took a grade on anything we put in there. Those were always informal formative assessment that served as learning experiences and practice. The second most important initiative implemented last year was building academic vocabulary in our students. I've always believed in this and have been using strategies based on this since I started teaching, especially in math.

Anyway, I've always informally assessed those two things, but last year, I worked towards really integrating writing into math and using it in assessment. I began developing written assessments. These assessments align to the common core standards and help to address the standards for mathematical practice. I made sure most of the questions were deep, involved higher order thinking, and used vocabulary straight from the standards. In some assessments, I include tools [number lines, circles, models] that I want the students to use, but in others they need to develop their own strategy. I like to include number lines and fraction shapes for the students, because I do not want their inability to draw a straight number line or a perfect circle to get in the way of proving their ultimate understanding of a concept.

I also wanted to include a checklist to make sure that the students were actively thinking about their response. It can be used as a 'rubric' for the students to know what is expected. To get full credit, students are required to use academic vocabulary. In my room, if it is on the math word wall, it is fair game.

Enough chit-chat. Here's my product and an idea of what you'll get!

In the pack, you'll get 66 of these bad boys. There are two for every common core standard. Great for differentiation or to account for personal preference! 

Also included are a cover, strand dividers, and vocabulary recording sheets. If you'd like to bind the prompts in a booklet/journal for your students, these are great additions! Personally, I print them off as I need them, but I know everyone is different! All prompts are in black and white, and the cover and dividers are in color.

These assignments really helped my students with understanding the process of problem solving, as well as using academic vocabulary while explaining that process. Because of that, I'm offering a sizable forever freebie in the preview! If you download the preview, you'll get four prompts for free. That way, you can test it out on your kids and see if it works for you!

Ready to try it out? Click the cover below to find it on TPT!

[It will normally be priced at $8.00, but will be on sale for $6.00 for one day only!]

If you download the preview, come back and let me know what you think!

Birthday Sale!

Hey everyone! I'm about to go and celebrate my birthday at the Jersey Shore tomorrow! I am in a completely different place this year than I was last year, and in a very good way! So to celebrate and thank my readers, I'm revisiting an old freebie and having a sale!

frame & image: 3am Teacher

My store [which is only 7 paid products, but that's okay!] is being marked down 20%! See what I did there? Decomposed 27. See, I even do some math in the sweet summer time! Click the image above to visit my store, where you can find these products! And check out some free products, too! The sale will run until Wednesday!

And as a freebie, feel free to download my birthday balloons that I created! Click the picture below for the template or revisit my post here! If you download, I'd really appreciate if you followed my blog! =)

It's Back to School We Go! [NOOOOO!]

School supplies in Walmart and Target. My living room full of bags. The return of that creative itch.

All signs that back to school is coming.

Have you ever heard of the book "It's Back to School We Go!: First Day Stories from Around the World" by Ellen Jackson?

Neither had I until I stopped in Becker's for some school shopping on my way home from a doctors appointment! While I was in there, I picked up a bunch of borders that I don't need, along with a few other things. [Post on that coming soon!] One of which was this book.

It is a book that describes the "back to school experience" of children around the world. Each account includes a personal narrative, beautiful pictures, and a fact box that describes children from that particular country. The accounts are based on real individuals. Click the image above to preview it. I really like this book!

At the beginning of the year, I like to give students a lot of opportunities to write, partially so that I can see what they are capable of doing independently. Will they use proper grammar? Will they structure their writing into paragraphs? Will they even follow the prompt? All of these questions can be answered by giving students motivating writing activities.

So, I created a freebie to correlate with the book! The document is supposed to be the 30th and 31st pages in the book, and students are asked to write about their own back to school experience in the same format as the text.

Also included in the freebie are a 30th page customized for a Delaware student and 31st page customized for children in the US. Click either image above to download the freebie. I'd love it if you left feedback, followed my store, and/or follow my blog if you decide to download!

Also, about 35 people took advantage of my overnight flash freebie. [Thank you to the four people who left feedback!] Check out my newest product, a research project, if you're interested. But, my birthday is next week, so save it in your cart. I may or may not be having a sale coming up soon! =)

Flash Freebie!: Research Writing Pack

Head over to my Teachers Pay Teachers store and grab my newest product...

[click above!]

while it's free!

It includes lesson plans, activating activities, graphic organizers, paper, and four extension activities/rubrics. I'd really appreciate it if you followed my store & left feedback if you download! =)

It will go back to regular price [$5.00] tomorrow around 8am EST when I wake up for class. I'm suddenly regretting taking a modular class, which is Friday, Saturday, Sunday for two weekends.

When it goes back to regular price, there will still be a freebie in the preview. It is a brainstorming worksheet.

Talk soon!

Researching Careers

Good morning, all!

Last year, I wrote a post about how I conducted an animal research project in room 144. This year, my third graders conducted another research project, inspired by my current pursuit of a graduate degree in school counseling!

Let me reiterate that I love research projects. I seriously can't get enough. I'd do them all day long if I could. They are so engaging, and they really motivate kids to just write!

Anyway, this year, I guided my students through interest inventories, class discussions, graphic organizers, and the writing process, all in hopes of writing an informational essay on their potential future career! 

Like teachers, school counselors have standards that they must meet. Career development is a huge chunk [a third, actually] of those standards. If you're interested, here is a PDF of ASCA's counseling standards.

My students loved every minute of it, and their final products were out of this world. I made their essays into a class book to send home with them at the end of the year. I don't know if any of my babies will be pilots, lawyers, teachers, or journalists, but now they have a better idea of what it takes to attain careers, along with specific information about them.

With that being said, I compiled all of the aspects of my project into a TPT product for you, if you are interested.  For just $5.00, you will receive a 26 pg. writing project that can be used from grades 3 [with support!] up to grades 5-6 [independently!]. As you can see in the graphic, it is aligned with third grade, common core writing standards, and it includes lesson plans, activating activities, tons of graphic organizers, final draft paper, and optional extension activities with rubrics.

Before I put it on flash freebie (!!) and sale, I'd love it if one or two of my upper elementary [3-5ish] or even middle school friends could look it over for me. I originally had all of this in Word when I used it in my classroom, and I did lots of copy/pasting into Powerpoint for TPT. I want to make sure nothing was lost in the process! 

The first two people who comment with their email address can look it over, then receive a free copy if there are any changes that need to be made. I'd really appreciate any volunteers! =)

Update: Thank you Ursula, Kathy, and Melinda! They are currently looking over my product, and I hope to have it ready to go soon! =)

Have We Met?

Oh my. Hello to those of you who still follow me in my tiny corner of the teacher blogging world. It has been a five month absence. I alluded to the fact that I was feeling less than inspired to blog in my last few posts, but now that spring break is here, maybe this will be the jump start that I need to get going.

Fingers crossed!

Here's the agenda!

1. Currently linky

2. New products I've created recently

Listen closely, you'll be quizzed at the end!

It has been so long since I've partaken in this linky!

Listening: Sports Final is a Sunday night thing on NBC just recapping Philly sports. Usually I am snugging solo in bed at this time on a Sunday, tossing and turning no doubt. But boys and girls, I am on spring break! Grown up appropriate bed time!

Loving: Well, without kids of my own, spring break is just a reaaaally long weekend for me. I usually don't have many things planned. And then I sleep the whole break away. Not this time, though. Boyfriend's birthday was yesterday, so we went to Atlantic City for the night. Today, I went out to the Cheesecake Factory [first timer here!] for Easter dinner [don't judge!] with my dad and sister. Now, I have a couple days of downtime, so I'm catching up on school and grad class work. On Wednesday, I'm off to Colorado for some family time until Saturday.

Thinking: That I miss this whole blogging thing!

Wanting: I gotta get back on my healthy eating kick. In the beginning of the school year, I lost about 15 pounds. Then, its been downhill since Thanksgiving. =(

Needing: Colorado is coming. Might want to bring clothes with me.

Advice: Be you! If you're outgoing, own it. If you're reserved [like me], own it. I've recently gone through some things where I feel like people are questioning my quietness. After some soul searching, it really isn't worth my energy to go against my natural personality, which is to be a listener and speak up when I'm passionate about my opinion. To connect that to TPT, blogging, etc, I would say not to compare yourself to others. I didn't feel like blogging for five months, so I didn't. At present, I only make products that I use myself in my classroom. Don't worry about what other people think, just be you. 

Because, well, you're great.

Like I need to remind you, but go link up!

-------------

So, although I've been slacking on the old blog lately, I've still been creating some products that I've used in my classroom. Maybe they'd be useful to you as well?

I've made another task card/recording sheet product. They go along with 2nd-4th grade Common Core measurement [linear, mass, and liquid volume] math standards. Here's a preview. Click the link to head to my TPT store to check them out! [If you want an idea of how they look, download my free set of multiplication and division task cards while you're there!]

I also created a product that can be used to accelerate your upper elementary students, or it can be used in your middle school math classroom. It included placemats, both black/white for reproducing or in color for laminating, as well as a recording sheet, student/teacher directions, and playing cards. Students draw an expression and a variable. They evaluate the expression based on the value of the unknown. My kids loved it, and they were very engaged! =)

Right now, I'm working on a pack the is all about research! 

As I've mentioned, I'm currently in graduate school for my degree in School Counseling. I was inspired to meet some of the ASCA standards through my research unit that is coming up in writing. Right now, the pack includes lesson plans, graphic organizers, final draft paper, a brochure template, and a rubric. Anything else you'd like to see in the pack that would meet your classroom needs? If you post a suggestion that I end up using [and include your email!], I'll send you the pack for free when it is finished, which should be in the next couple days!

Before I go, sorry that I had to put the capsha code thingy back on the comments. The spam comments were out of control! Anyone have a better, blog commenter-friendly way to solve that problem?

My Darling, Sandra Dee..

Welp, I'm coming to you live from where Hurricane Sandy is expected to make a direct hit in the next few days. I got the call a few hours ago that I do not have school tomorrow or Tuesday. My first grad class of the block is cancelled tomorrow night. According to the news, it is pretty much inevitable that the power is going to go out, and I am petrified! I'm on the second story of an apartment, so I'm not worried about the rain. I'm a little scared of the wind, but it's not even that! Just worried about having to sit in the dark. I was thinking about traveling home to PA to stay at my dad's until Tuesday, but decided against it. Kind of regretting that now due to the newscasters scaring me!

I know. I am pathetic!

Anyway, I wanted to quickly post [again] about a new product that I posted in my TPT store last week. 

[Is it obvious that I'm trying to keep my mind off of the impending doom?]

In my classroom, we do reading centers. It is kind of like the daily 5, but not really. Each day, the students visit two centers that we have scheduled for them. One of the centers is "Read to Someone." This just involves the group of 3-4 students going to the carpet and reading an assigned story from the reading anthology. [This is really the only way we are integrating the weekly stories this year, and it is for pure convenience purposes.] By the end of the week, each student is assigned to each center once, with the exception of "meet with teacher" centers for the below level groups.

After the students are finished reading, they are expected to discuss what they have read. Last year, I wrote these questions on index cards and put them together with a binder ring. This year, I had to make them a little cuter!

This product includes a set of fiction cards and a set of nonfiction cards. It also includes a few blanks, in case there are more specific questions that you would like your students to discuss. I've also included an optional response sheet, where the students are to choose three of the cards and write their responses. I do not use this in my classroom, but I thought it might be helpful. I plan on splitting the fiction and nonfiction sets in my TPT store in case you'd only like one or the other. 

Maybe tomorrow if I don't end up powerless?

Click HERE to see the product in my TPT store! 

[Clip art is by MareeTrueLove. Loooove her stuff!]

Would you like a free set? Leave me a comment with your email address [I'd really appreciate it if you were a follower!], and let me know how you'd use these cards in your classroom. I'll choose a winner or two sometime tomorrow, pending the power situation! =)

Are any of you being affected by Sandy?

If so, stay safe!