Week 1-2

Well, I am mid-way through my second week of school.  I am having so much fun with the Common Core Standards in third grade.  I have introduced the students to the works of Arnold Lobel.  I know that these are a little lower readability (400L), but I wanted to introduce the topics of making connections, comparing stories with story elements, and point of view.  I have discovered that these kids don't know words like "text" and "illustrate."
Last week, the highlight for me was teaching the Star Spangled Banner.  In all of my years of teaching, I have figured out that third graders do not know the national anthem.  They also have no idea where it came from.  The kids are always amazed that this song was originally a poem.  When I introduce "Poetry Friday," I have the kids complete several small tasks:
1. Read the poem out loud as a class
2. Copy the poem into their journals
3. Illustrate the poem (this helps to show if they understand the poem)
4. Memorize the poem
5. Recite the poem to an adult
The kids love this!  This is the only time that I put stickers on papers (for correctly memorized poems).  It is only Wednesday and the kids are asking for this week's poem.
I will try to upload my Arnold Lobel unit and PowerPoint soon!
Happy Teaching!

Back to School!

It has been an exhausting and exciting week!  I was so happy to return to work and see all of my friends.  I was not thrilled about the sound of my alarm clock! If you are like me, you are already planned through the end of the month and are looking ahead to the next month.  I only brought my plan book home so that I can write down everything that is on my post-it notes.
Tip #1: When planning ahead, always use post-it notes.  This will help you avoid erasing over and over.  Just remove and re-stick the post-its on the next day.
I love to use different colored post-its for each class. I am a visual learner, so the different colors help me "see" what I am teaching. For lessons using post-it notes, visit: www.post-it.com/teachers.