Tumblebooks

Did you know that St. Louis County Library has a great resource for you to use in your classrooms and at home?  Click this link and check out Tumblebooks toward the bottom.  Awesome books being read aloud for our younger users.  

Another Close Reading Resource

Check out this blog post for more ideas for close reading (including some that integrate technology/iPads)!

Think Marks for Close Reading

Anyone out there experimenting with using think marks with close reading?  If anyone responds to this post by Friday, I will come read aloud a book to your class.  :)

Student Friendly Objectives

Check out these 3rd grade objectives.  Students clearly know what the learning targets are for the day.

Close Reading

Close reading is all about helping our readers to dig deeper.  Check out this poster and share with your students!

Sharing Apps with Parents

As a parent myself, I am always looking for apps that support learning for Molly and Vince.  I am sure your parents would be equally appreciative of any apps you can suggest.  Check out how Sarah suggested some apps in her weekly newsflash:
Technology Corner... Reading app recommendations… Did you know there is a Kindle app you can get even if you don’t have a Kindle?  There are many great free books on there.  Also, you can get Scholastic’s Storia app.  Upon download you get free books and on occasion they treat you to some more.  You can also purchase additional books through our book order to put on there. Keep up the reading!

Engineering Toys for Girls

I have to say this commercial intrigued me.  After watching this commercial (set to a Beastie Boys tune), I have to say I was curious about this line of toys.  It got me thinking....how to we encourage girls (or boys for that matter) to become interested in problem solving and creating inventions?

Goal Setting

As you walk the halls of Sappington, it is clear to see that many of our students and teachers have been hard at work setting goals for themselves in the new year.  Goal setting is such an important activity because it allows our students to set clear learning targets for the themselves and to establish a plan of action to achieve that goal.

Buddy Sharing

As Mrs. Clancy's class finished their nonfiction writing unit, they shared their stories with Mrs. Mertlufft's buddy class.  They were able to read their book to their friend and celebrate as author's.

In action....making a fun Valentine's day heart!

Making Math Visual

In thinking about our new math adoption next year, I have been reading the book titled Putting Practices Into Action.

It has a ton of great ideas on how our math practices need to shift.   As we encourage our students to "internalize the language of math," they need repeated and meaningful opportunities to explore math words.  Here are just a few ideas:

Word Webs
One idea is to pose a word to your students and have them turn to a partner and share some related words.  As you create a web together, it allows for further exploration of a particular topic and encourages a continued discussion of other key vocab.

Word Boxes
These allow the students to share their understanding of particular topic through definitions, examples, pictures, and related words.  Check out how Sappington 5th grade students used toothpicks to represent their math terms.

Buzzing About Books

Allowing your students to discuss what they are reading during independent reading time can be a powerful incentive for them to keep moving forward in their books.  Some key points about buzzing about books include:

• Talks focused on students' independent reading selections

• Assign students to groups of 4 initially

• Create own discussion groups later in the year

• Meeting time generally about 15 minutes

• Initially, teacher circulates among the groups; ultimately, sit with one group and be a part of the discussion

• Provide a list of focused topics so students can be more active participants

From Igniting a Passion for Reading by Steven Layne
Buzz About Books-Younger Readers (Page 88)
1. Where and when does the story take place?
2. Who are the main characters?
3. What is one of the main characters like?
4. Who is your favorite character and why?
5. Which picture in the book do you like best?
6. Which part of the story do you like best?
7. How do you feel about the end of the story?
8. What do you remember most about the story?
9. Do you think other kids would like to read this book?  Why or why not?
10. Would you read another book by this author?  Why or why not?

Buzz About Books- Older Readers (See pages 88 and 89)

Buzz About Books- Older Readers

1. Identify something about the main character that’s bothering you or something that you really like.  Why do you feel the way you do?
2. What is the major problem in this book so far, or what do you think it is going to be?  How will it likely be solved?
3. Select a minor character in this book and explain why you feel the character was created by the author.  How would the story change if this character were removed?
4. Explain the setting of your book.  Is it really important to the story line?  What would change if you moved the story to another planet, a different country, or a fantasy land?  Would the story still work well?
5. People are motivated by many different things.  For example, some people will do anything for friendship, others for chocolate, others for revenge, others for money.  What is it that you believe motivates the main character of your book? Explain why.
6. Identify the climax of your story.  How did you know when you had reached this point?
7. Does your book seem to have a theme?  In other words, do you think the author is trying to communicate with you, the reader, through this story?  If so, what is the author saying to his or her readers?
8. Describe a character from your book using three descriptive adjectives.  Then, compare the character to yourself or someone in your family.  What are the similarities and/or differences?
9. If your book has chapter titles, identify the most interesting title and explain what makes it so fascinating.  If your book does not have chapter titles, describe some recent events that you’ve read about in the book and ask the group to help you develop a chapter title for that part of the book.   
10. Read aloud for your group the inside flap and/or back cover (if it has information about the book you’re reading-sometimes the back cover contains information on another book).  Discuss whether you feel the publisher has done an effective job of convincing people to read the book based on this information.  What do your group members think?
11. Which of the five key levels of conflict (man vs man, himself, society, nature, supernatural) are present in your book so far?  Which conflict seems to be the main one at this point in the story?
12. If your book were going to be made into a movie, which part would you want to play? Why?  Which would be the most enjoyable scene in the movie?
13. Discuss the book jacket (front and back) of the book you’re reading with your group.  What are people’s opinions about how well the jacket “sells” the book?  Having read some of the book already, can you suggest a better jacket idea?
14. Discuss an example from your book of a specific literary device that the author used well, such as foreshadowing, comic relief, or flashback.
15. If you’ve read any other books by this author, talk about how this one rates in comparison with the others.  Can you tell it’s the same person writing?  What are similarities and differences between this book and others the author has written?
16. Compare one of the main characters in your book to a main character from one of your favorite books.  Which one would make a better friend in real life?
17. Select any character in your book and rate him or her on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 is high) based on each these qualities: dependability, intelligence, and appearance.

Random Mom Thoughts

So today was Molly's first day at ECE.  I cannot tell you how I have stressed about this over break.  My stomach was literally in knots when we went to visit her new classroom to meet her teacher and new friends. This would be such a monumental change for her-to go from her home daycare with Ms. Jolene to a big school with lots of kiddos in a class.

I know this is a normal part of growing up....to go to preschool and have lots of new experiences.  I also know this will be so much fun for her, and she is going to really enjoy of the wonderful things that this great school has to offer.

And after all of that worrying, she went right up to her new teacher (who just happens to be Dana's daughter-Mrs. Therina), sat down, and started playing trains when I left this morning.  Didn't even cry when I walked out the door!  And then to top it off....I get an email from her teacher just about the time in the day when I am starting to wonder how she is doing.

"Molly is having a wonderful first day! She has already come out of her shell and is busy painting, drawing, and building. My absolute favorite Molly quote of the day, 'I'm impressed by her letters!' (About another child working in writing center)

Enjoy!"

BUT....that still doesn't stop my momma bear instincts that want to protect my child and keep in her this little safe bubble forever.  Going out into the big world can be such a scary thing-especially for the moms and dads.

I share this with you all because I imagine it is how many of our parents feel when they send their children to us each day.  While some students may try our patience and push us to our limits, they are someone's world.  I encourage you to remember this post when a certain student (or parent for that matter) may require a little extra attention or a bit of redirection (or may just happen to be driving you absolutely crazy!).

I also share this experience on behalf of all of our parents.  The constant love, energy, and effort you give to our students on a daily basis, while it may not often be said, it does not go unnoticed or unappreciated.  Thank you from the heart for all you do!  Looking forward to seeing you soon~ Angie

Story Me- An iPad Cartoon App

Story Me is a free iPad app for turning your pictures into comic strips. Story Me provides more than a dozen layout options to which you can add pictures from your iPad’s camera roll and or from your Facebook account. Check out this review of the app.