New Spelling and Vocabulary Tool

We have some exciting news!  We will be using VocabularySpellingCity for word study in our classroom and at home.  VocabularlySpelling Ctiy is an educational website and app that allows students to practice their spelling and vocabulary words through engaging activities.

You can Access VocabularlySpellingCity online at www.spellingcity.com or by downloading the SpellingCity app from iTunes, the Google Play Store, or the Amazon Appstore.

You can find our class' vocabulary and spelling lists by going to directly to my homepage at https://www.spellingcity.com/ASpazianto/ .

Bookmark this web address on your computer to make it easy for your child to access the class' word lists.  Our class' word lists will appear on the left side of the page below my welcome message.  If there is a homework assignment for that day, you can find it right here in the welcome message.

Students can select a list by clicking on their group name list.  They can then complete a number of free activities that I have assigned for that evening.  The Spelling Test button allows them to quiz themselves on their words and help them prepare for any upcoming tests.

On the app, students can search for our class' word lists by clicking the More Lists button on the home screen and searching by Teacher Name.  Once the lists have been loaded, they can select a list, then select the assigned activity to practice their words.

VocabularySpellingCity's activities and games make word study fun, while helping students build confidence and learn independently.

Using the Hunger Games to Spark Literature Discussions

In addition to the skills we work on in small reading groups, I want our students to experience the joys of literature as a whole class.  

A goal I have this school year is for the students to experience the fun that comes along with tracking plot structure, analyzing themes, discussing how characters can grow and change, etc...

Enter, The Hunger Games.

I ordered a class set of books through Scholastic, along with the audio CD.  The goal was to simply have the students relax and enjoy the captivating story (no pressure to have to read the story independently).

Well, the kids are LOVING the book and ask all the time for us to listen. Wahoo!!

To get the kids pumped for the novel, I had our door decorated and The Hunger Games soundtrack playing when they arrived to class.

We also watched the trailer to give a little visual background of the story.

 

Tracking Plot Structure

As we progress through the story, the kiddos move the main characters across the plot structure diagram.  This is an excellent visual to help the students grasp the idea of plot.

Making Connections and Comparing and Contrasting using Different forms of Media

I love that The Hunger Games movie so closely depicts the novel and that we are able to use the movie as an extra resource for making connections.  We discuss the similarities and differences between the book and movie and the reasoning behind the differences (i.e., how the movie needs to show character thought differently than the book).

Rather then waiting until the end of the book to watch the movie, we watch a little bit at a time.  I find this keeps the kiddos really engaged and motivated to continue reading.  They love seeing the story come to life.

Tracking Themes and Citing Textual Evidence

To assess that the students are comprehending and tracking themes properly throughout the novel, I have them jot down one or two examples of themes throughout the book/movie as an exit ticket each day after class. I love how simple, yet effective these interactive theme charts are.

We have a number of other activities lined up for this great read.  To stay up to date on our happenings, be sure to follow us on Instagram!

Hello, parents and guardians. Happy holiday season.  There are a lot of exciting things that have been happening in our classroom.

Here is a peek into some of the activities we have been up to these past few weeks.

We have been working on opinion/persuasive writing for the past two weeks.

The students absolutely love debating with one another...perhaps it's the pre-teen just itching to come out early?  Regardless of the reason, they love opinion writing...and I'll take it!

To add some seasonal fun to this writing unit, here are some of the activities I have lined up for the next few weeks.

Would You Rather - Christmas Opinion Writing
These Would You Rather writing cards are intended to be used for quick opinion writing, but I use them as practice for our speaking and listening standards.  These are great little brain breaks to squeeze in throughout the day.

I keep them in a pail at the front of the classroom next to our opinion writing anchor chart.  A student is asked to come up and select a prompt and read it to the class.

Next, that student, along with another, have to argue which they would rather do while using the opinion writing format.



Convince Em' - Winter Edition
These little writing prompts are part of a yearly writing unit I have been working on this year.  They include 17 creative writing journal prompts for students to complete.  Some are Christmas themed, but most are centered around winter in general, making these a great resource to use when the kiddos return from break.

These are hung in my writing center and are an excellent early finisher activity that students can grab and bring to their seats.





Elf for Hire - A Persuasive Writing Project
I love this adorable writing activity.  It comes complete with final draft writing pages, graphic organizers, planning pages, and a little drawing activity.  Since the students are still working up to writing essays, I plan to save this guy as the last bit of practice before we head out on break.



In class, the kiddos have been playing around with my little equivalent fraction snowmen puzzles.  Let me tell ya', these are some real cuties.

On each snowman's nose, I put a fraction in its simplest form.  Next, I cut and labeled each little snowman body piece with larger equivalent fractions to pair with the snowman noses.

The kids worked in small groups to solve each of the puzzles.

What I liked about this activity was that students could work at their own pace.  They could also build different size snowmen depending on their skill levels.  Some students build larger snowmen than others.

"My Brain Might be Different Than Yours, But it's Still Amazing"

Happy, Sunday, folks!  I am here to share a little inspirational video that I stumbled across while sipping my tea this morning.

We need to listen to what our children are saying.  Best take home from this video?  "My brain might be different than yours, but it's still amazing" I just love all these little children and the messages they provide.

There is so much we can learn from our children.

Here's to a good start of the week.

Dear Teacher
With a new school year starting, over 60 Brain Highways kids collaborated to write a “Dear Teacher” letter—which they then turned into a short (under two minutes) “Dear Teacher” video. School does greatly influence how kids are viewed by others and how they view themselves. So, while it may take years to change laws or how health care addresses mental health issues, these kids hope their message will be shared with as many educators as possible—knowing that teachers can truly make a huge difference, starting TODAY. www.facebook.com/kidswhynotcampaign
Posted by Brain Highways on Monday, August 24, 2015

New Motivation System for Learning Sight Words

As you already know, our students LOVE video games.  For sight word practice, I decided to create a prize system that has different levels to beat, much like a video game.  Here's how it works. 
Each sight word list is broken down by grade level.  Within that grade, there are five different levels of words.  Students never receive more than 12 words at a time.  They are given their word list on a ring.
The word lists are specifically targeted to each student's ability level, and the children never know what level another student is learning.  This helps keep everyone differentiated and motivated. 

The lists are kept in little pockets in the writing center.  Students know they can always grab their list throughout the day.
Next, I created my themed prize boards.  Students all begin at the bottom with level one, regardless of which sight word list they are working on.
When a child masters his or her list, that student receives the prize for that level, then proceeds to move up to the next level.  Once the entire class masters all five levels on the board, the entire class gets the grand prize for that motivation board.

For this movie themed board, the students will win a movie afternoon once the whole class masters all five levels on their list.

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