Coming Up for Air

Whoa!

I haven't written in three weeks! That should tell you what the beginning of the year has been like for me. I have been SUPER busy with my fantasy football team, TEACHERPROBS10 my plans for my students!

Here's an update on what's going on in my class....

Math: We are slugging through a review of multiplication and introducing how to multiply by three digit and four digit numbers. It's not required that they learn past two digit x two digit in my state because we are not Common Core, but after looking through the sixth grade standards and seventh grade standards, I realized that they NEVER actually learn it. How is that right?!?! It doesn't cost me too much time, and I am PRETTY SURE it's a life skill to be able to multiply large number, so I'm going to teach it!

Science: The Scientific Method is LIFE!! We started an experiment on how to dissolve eggshells using different liquid. Of course, as teachers, we all know that the answer is vinegar. Each year, however, I use vinegar, water (for a control), and one other new substance. Last year we chose apple juice...this year, we chose ginger ale. Holy moly! The ginger ale's carbonation cracked the eggshell and the yoke is now sitting OUTSIDE the shell. It's been an incredible opportunity for observation. They have really risen to the challenge. We have talked about how even though it's cool that the shell cracked, the fact that they can observe the sound of the eggshell still bumping against the jar, they can infer that there hasn't yet been chemical change in the shell itself, just a physical change.

In order from L--> R: Vinegar, Water (control), Ginger Ale (check out that YOKE!!)

History: We are about to jump into a review of the regions of Virginia. Honestly, I'm really hoping the kids remember this well, but when we did water features this week...**Crickets** Here's hoping they at least remember that we live in the Coastal Plains region @ sea level. We shall see...Why are we doing a review? In VA, students don't take a state test in fourth grade, they take it in fifth grade covering TWO SCHOOL YEARS worth of information. Can you say #workcutoutforme ?? We will add to the regions too, so it's not JUST review, they do get some new information in the form of products and industries that make our state economy turn. For this, I usually do sorts and color-coding. Lord knows I love a color-coded key!! :)

Reading: We are finishing up our "First 15 Days" of creating a classroom community. I'm kind of bummed because I really like to use the time to create a classroom community for writing as well, but we've had to put that on hold because of a new performance based task we're taking on this year. A couple years ago, the state took away our fifth grade writing test. They have implemented a new assessment in the form of these tasks. Their first task is to write a fairytale for a first grade audience. It's actually been a lot of fun, but it has been time consuming. I haven't had nearly as much time to use any of my awesome beginning-of-year Six Traits lessons. #merp Meanwhile, in reading, we are getting ready to start our guided reading groups. I'm pretty stoked to use our new reading program with my kids. I'm really hopeful that it's going to provide a little bit of what we've been missing! Only time will tell. I'm working really hard to get my students to start practicing a little metacognition. Do you do this in your classroom? I have taught them how to use sticky notes, and am in the process of reminding them gently to use, USE, USE them. They are responding several times a week whether in their Reading Response journals, or using KidBlog, or in their Reading Response letters. I think they are frustrated with how much they are being forced to talk about their reading, but I know it will pay off in the end!

Do you love finding cool anchor charts on Pinterest? I do...both of these are modeled after anchor charts I found online.

I'll try to add pictures later this week. I find myself forgetting to take them when I'm in the moment.So many of you other bloggers are way better than I am about it. I aspire to be more like you! I can't believe I remembered to take them today, and only ONE DAY after the original post. YESSSS....

Hope you are relaxing my teaching friends,

Brianna

Classroom Reveal 2015!!

I know that this post is late considering that almost everyone is back in school by now, but so be it.

Today is going to be a lot of pictures and just a few words here and there...I apologize in advance if anything is blurry because my phone literally has a 5 megapixel camera. I'm pretty sure a Kodak Disposable from the 90s takes better pictures than this phone!! Also, the lighting in my room is weird for some of the photos because I like to have the lights off most of the day. About halfway through taking pictures, however, I realized that YOU GUYS might not be able to see it all so I flipped them on. I didn't go back and take repeat shots though #aintnobodygotimeforthat!!

Here we go....

The view as you walk in the room. I will say upfront that most of my walls are bare right now. I like to have things open so that when class is in session, we can make anchor charts together and put them up around the room, organized by content area.

Reading Nook #1: At the front of my room I have a rug with some cubes that I got for 60% at Michael's last summer #heckyeah

Reading Nook #2: As you can see, this is by my teacher closets. You would think this would be a problem but I never go in those during reading because I am usually in small group or conferencing so it actually works out okay. Those pillows do not stay on the carpet though. You can't tell but my desk is to the left of this area. The kids would be traipsing all over them to get to me during the day and I just CANNOT HAVE THAT!! I store them in a different bin which you'll see in the next photo. The kids are surprisingly good at putting them away if they are trained right from the start #thankyoudaily5

Reading Nook #3: This is my tiniest reading area and my FICTION ONLY library (I forgot to take a picture of my NONFICTION ONLY library # merp). Notice how under the desk on the right is the basket I was talking about in the previous picture. It stores all my pillows from the big carpet AND my collection of MINI PILLOW PETS (given to me by my T.A. Jennifer). The M.P.P.s are used on the tiny carpet only.

This is my personal space at the back of the room. All of my binders are labeled and organized using milk crates (more of these in a moment!). I have my Teacher Toolbox and just out of view on the right are my student mailboxes. Behind my desk I have my Homework Club and my Class Bingo, which is designed for whole class discipline goals. I can't remember if this was an original idea or if I read it somewhere years ago, so if it was your idea, lemme know and you'll get credit, I swear! 

ALSO OF NOTE: don't you love my chalkboard apple??? It was given to me by one of the most challenging students I have EVER had for Christmas last year. I HEART it :)

Homework Zone and While You Were Out. Pretty self-explanatory. This is where they drop off HW in the morning and pick-up WYWO if they were absent. At the end of the day I collect all the foldables, interactive notes, worksheets, etc. on their desk and stick it in a folder with their number on it. When they come back, it's all in there just waiting to be put in their notebooks!

MATTH Rotations Board (T2 not pictured)

Small Group Area with Word Study board in the background. On the left side of that board I usually write different topics for the kids to write about. It normally consists of a list they can make, a What if..." open ended question stem and a "Would You Rather..."

My Writing Process and Six Traits Board (I just love to make thing POP up off the boards!)

Organization is my #favorite! That little yellow sign says "Stealing from Ms. Burch is WRONG!" Care to take a guess what I had an issue with last year??? My favorite thing in this area is definitely my color coded crayon drawers. I give each of my kids a box of crayons each year...but then they take it home for one reason or another and it never comes back. Well, that doesn't help when I do foldables and interactive notes on the daily, now does it?! So, sometimes I'll say, "Choose three colors of your choice," or "Take out a red and a blue." Either way, this allows kids to get ONLY what they need. 

This is part of my Writing and Word Work activity area for Daily 3 + Me. The binders of the left say "Mad Libs" (I store all the mad libs the kids have already written here for inspiration- after I check them for vulgarity of course) and "#NotRight" (This binder is where my kids have the opportunity to write about real things that have happened to them or someone they know that aren't right for one reason or another. It's truly amazing how open they are about it sometimes.) In the green bin are my Class Journals and on the far right are my new Reading Response Letter Journals. In the middle are mostly resources for Writer's Workshop like peer editing checklists, drafting paper, and final copy paper. In the front are my magnetic letters with white boards and behind are my Bananagrams with cork pads for sound muffling.

This is the table at the front of my room. It stores items I use daily including whiteboard, lined paper, staplers, tape, and all the bins that keep my daily math stations materials. You might remember from the MATTH Rotations board the M (math facts), A (at your seat), and H (hands on). I love to you use mild crates to make additional storage! Have you tried this?? To the right is my Power Up area. I have mentioned before that we have a mandatory remediation block each morning. While I am with a small group working on a skill, the rest of my students are rotating stations, one per day. Each one of these bins holds a different activity in the manila folder and when they are done, they stick it in the purple pocket folder behind it. You see that the last bin is already full...that's got my brand spankin' new Comp. Files in them!!

Okay...that's all she wrote on the classroom reveal for 2015. Let me leave you with one last picture...a picture we're all familiar with...

Yep...you too jam pack that cabinet, don't lie!

What did you think??!!

Brianna