I'm throwing it back to my second-grade days today! One of my favorite field trips was our visit to the local zoo. In preparation for this trip, my students would research an animal and become an "expert" on that animal. They would then write a non-fiction book to add to our classroom … [Read more...] about Animal Research Projects
Reading
Reader’s Notebook
If you've been a blog reader for a while, you know that I've read and re-read Donalyn Miller's book The Book Whisperer many times. I've utilized her ideas in my reading classroom in a variety of ways. You can check out some of the ways here. This year, I decided to implement a … [Read more...] about Reader’s Notebook
Making Anchor Charts Interactive!
In my classroom, anchor charts are a crucial part of the learning process. We create them together and leave them hanging in the room as a reference tool for students to use throughout the year. One way that we create the charts together is by making them interactive. Here's … [Read more...] about Making Anchor Charts Interactive!
Make-Over Madness: Detective Style
I am on a make-over roll, people! My latest victim is The Detectives Book Club. I created this item a few years ago when I resided in second grade. I had a high group of readers that always went above and beyond what I asked. I really wanted to challenge them, but reward them … [Read more...] about Make-Over Madness: Detective Style
Make-Over Time!
After all that snow, summer has finally arrived! My students tried to tell me that it was "illegal" to go to school past June 20th. Can't say that I've ever heard of such a law, but luckily we were out before then anyways. Since I'm not teaching, but my daughter still has a few days … [Read more...] about Make-Over Time!
The Cricket in Times Square
Do you ever think that your students are having fun without you? That you're missing out? I certainly was! I implemented Status of the Class this year, thanks to Donalyn Miller's book, Reading in the Wild. My students were sharing what they were reading, but I wasn't participating in it. I … [Read more...] about The Cricket in Times Square