tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7068666161546009852024-03-14T04:40:30.689-04:00Teaching With a Touch of Pixie DustGina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.comBlogger270125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-13725796513634211632017-11-14T18:04:00.002-05:002017-11-14T18:04:50.518-05:00Teaching Theme part 1Wow it has been forever since I have blogged, and to be honest, I am not even sure if anyone will read this. However, I have decided that I want to get back to sharing ideas as I have time, so here is the first installment in my never predictable, who knows when I will do it, blog.<br />
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I have always struggled with teaching theme. And by always, I mean the past 3 years because up until I taught 4th grade it was never in our curriculum. So... with that, I feel like I finally figured it all out this year! Of course, it was figured out with the resources of many other amazing teachers. But since it worked so well for me, I figured it could work for others as well.<br />
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Let's backtrack for a minute to where I realized that I really had to step up my game on teaching theme. Last year, the 4th grade state test's 4 point essay (the biggest writing piece on the test) was all about theme. Not only did my students completely destroy it (and not in the 'we killed it bc we did so amazing' kinda way) but so did pretty much every other 4th grader whose paper I scored. Almost every single fourth grader wrote about the main idea. And while their writing was great, and their details supported their answer, and they cited evidence... they didn't write about the theme. It pained me to read the papers because as soon as I saw the question I knew it wasn't going to go well. Theme is just a tough concept to teach and even harder for these little kiddos to understand. Until this year...<br />
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Since I knew this was such a hard skill, I decided to devote four full lessons to it. It was well worth the time spent away from a story because we didn't have to rush through mini lessons and they really enjoyed the lessons.<br />
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Day 1:<br />
We started by watching <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTKnoCWK-wc">this short video</a> on theme. I warned the students that the voices sounded like robots but they just needed to pay attention because it was actually a good video. They laughed at the lack of actual arms of the characters.... but in the end, they grasped it and THAT is what matters.<br />
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After watching the video, I asked students to tell me what they learned about theme. We started with the rules for a theme statement (what you see in red/green). Then we talked about how to write a theme statement (blue). And finally talked about how it has to be relatable to other stories and life (purple).<br />
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The next thing we did was listen to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyVzjoj96vs">this song</a> (yes it is from Sesame Street, but it works). The kids actually really got into the song and asked me to play it again today (we ran out of time but I will do it again this week for them). Seriously- go listen to it. It is really catchy. I found myself singing and bopping around the room. Anyways... back to what we did. We listened to the song and the students were told to listen to the words and try to think of what the theme of the song would be. Once it was over, each student wrote what they thought the theme of the song was on a sticky note. Then I played it again and as they were listening, they had to find lyrics from the song that supported their theme. All about the evidence right?! (I didn't think to take a picture of their sticky notes- sorry!)<br />
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After that students discussed with their groups what they came up with for a theme and then as a group decided on a theme statement... but we did this with a twist. I played the song 3 more times. The first time it played they had to all share what they had on their sticky notes. The second time they had to come up with the group theme statement. The third time they had to write down lyrics that matched their group theme.<br />
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Then I wrote down each group's theme statement on the board and we talked about how even though they were all different, they were all correct. We checked the "rules" for writing a theme statement and made sure we had evidence to support each one.<br />
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They left day 1 with all of us feeling like it was a huge success. They knew what theme was and how to write a theme statement.<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-32359480594975586162016-05-01T10:00:00.000-04:002016-05-01T10:00:25.063-04:00A Bright Idea... To Get Kids Reading More Variety... and just MORE! It has been a LONG time since I have blogged... over a year in fact. But for good reason. I went MIA when I found out I was pregnant because I was tired, sick, and... more tired. Then we decided to move while having a newborn and I honestly haven't been 'into' blogging lately. I haven't felt like much of what I have been doing was 'blog worthy'... but I have been implementing this new idea since October and I knew I wanted to blog about it... so when the opportunity came up for a new Bright Idea post, I knew I had to jump in... even if this is the last post I do for a couple months. It is a good one (though admittedly the pics are not the best because they are quick cell phone pics due to deciding at the last minute to take pics).<br />
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So here is my idea...<br />
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You know those kids... the ones who ONLY read Diary of a Wimpy Kid... or ONLY read ONE genre and then either reread those same books or just give up reading when there are no more to read? I have a few of them in my room. Not that rereading is bad, nor is finding an author you love and reading all their books (that is what I do and why I have over 200 unread books)... but I love getting kids to branch out and read... more... different... just read. So here is what I did.<br />
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When my students ordered Scholastic books I would place an order as well. I would use the rewards I got for that month plus pay for some out of pocket. When the box of books comes in I make a HUGE deal about the new books. The first time I did this, I did one book at a time and explained the procedure (which I am going to explain below) but now I have a new way to really get the kids intrigued.<br />
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I read the title of the book and the summary from the back/inside cover. Then I place the book on the marker tray of my board. I do this for every book. Then I write the title of the book and numbers 1, 2, and 3 underneath the title. I draw sticks with student numbers on them and when their number comes up they can come sign up for a book. (pic below of what it looks like before the sign ups begin)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyLtAV8Qix1Q3bpfWnWsDFs-RO8P0leETVEfQ0VEJlXDWX5VD3UBvNMUxXrzbrOPy2oFssuLZ-TYj2IQBJPKFo_mcPVLA5LNgKyjQNdAlzjENQW_TMXDkcpmi6S3sHgFy4FztDaMNa0U8/s1600/BOOKSONTRAY.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyLtAV8Qix1Q3bpfWnWsDFs-RO8P0leETVEfQ0VEJlXDWX5VD3UBvNMUxXrzbrOPy2oFssuLZ-TYj2IQBJPKFo_mcPVLA5LNgKyjQNdAlzjENQW_TMXDkcpmi6S3sHgFy4FztDaMNa0U8/s320/BOOKSONTRAY.png" width="320" /></a></div>
Now, here are the rules... they can have their name under as many books as they want (once everyone gets a turn to sign up, I put the sticks back in and redraw- if there are enough slots still open... if not then I leave the open spots available and kids sign up in their free time). BUT... they can only HAVE one book at a time. So, using fake names here... here is an example of what I mean...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid5hoaIXAVQ1BURHFKMRynPeVKYCcUzTlThQR1vB3_5LMMP_I_m5lMzHo0YUEiOhVSc7u_hiro13i4YUU8UPltUOo4SM1wdjCwLopjlAFrzLrhb8l9JYrrL-y_esJXk7cR4CSsSmItvTQ/s1600/fauxboard1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid5hoaIXAVQ1BURHFKMRynPeVKYCcUzTlThQR1vB3_5LMMP_I_m5lMzHo0YUEiOhVSc7u_hiro13i4YUU8UPltUOo4SM1wdjCwLopjlAFrzLrhb8l9JYrrL-y_esJXk7cR4CSsSmItvTQ/s320/fauxboard1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
In the picture above you can see everyone that has signed up for these three books. Payton has her name on two books and Tim has his on two books. In this picture, Payton has 'Elijah', Ashley has 'Murphy's' and Tim has 'Double Cross'...<br />
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When students finish the book, they bring it back to the board and erase their name, and move everyone else up a spot. Then they bring the book to the next person. So in this example, Ashley finished 'Murphy's' so she went up and erased her name. According to the list, she would hand the book off to Payton,<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlclmN8O6CgRXL8nYwruFZzhLaE5uYBKgfi8zGQ9fCglK366c3e7YN6E4Z-a69ZOBStpR4xpp5Tqr_q0moglqlD3j2iIndfygP4ES1FuIrgmbdPO2QybZCmXgZdwOwnKiEbrC_TJ8v4sA/s1600/fauxboard2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlclmN8O6CgRXL8nYwruFZzhLaE5uYBKgfi8zGQ9fCglK366c3e7YN6E4Z-a69ZOBStpR4xpp5Tqr_q0moglqlD3j2iIndfygP4ES1FuIrgmbdPO2QybZCmXgZdwOwnKiEbrC_TJ8v4sA/s320/fauxboard2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
but Payton hasn't finished 'Elijah' yet. So, since Danielle doesn't have a book, Ashley will rearrange the names on the list for 'Murphy's' and bring the book to Danielle, placing Payton in the number 2 spot and leaving the #3 spot open for someone else to sign up (and believe me... they rush to sign up!)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKH_tHkZqCw7D02G-IxZZaNX6fwrrU8aH3Il8ESmbXPRFJK55fKmNpk3c0TVTazozgd_p3Zgcr6xC4Ya5pnnTn8921khNdZrp7V4AE0ZZr4KabrKcHOMLAuRJeJB5WETd1mP-RJ6lEMtk/s1600/fauxboard3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKH_tHkZqCw7D02G-IxZZaNX6fwrrU8aH3Il8ESmbXPRFJK55fKmNpk3c0TVTazozgd_p3Zgcr6xC4Ya5pnnTn8921khNdZrp7V4AE0ZZr4KabrKcHOMLAuRJeJB5WETd1mP-RJ6lEMtk/s320/fauxboard3.png" width="320" /></a></div>
(My students actually came up with this method... my original plan was the book would sit on the shelf until Payton was 'free' for it but they decided this was fair so that the books don't just 'sit'... and they all agreed that it was ok to get bumped down if they already had a book.)<br />
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Those are pretty much the only rules for this... only 'holding' one book at time... and they have to manage it on their own. The only other 'sometimes rule' is if there is a book series that must be read in order. I do not let them read certain series out of order. There is a series I found in my garage called Kidnapped (it is age appropriate and from Scholastic but I did give them a disclaimer about not reading it if it would scare them) and the books have to be read in order for it to make sense... so they are not allowed to sign up for book 2 unless they read 1 and can't get 3 until they read 2. And they are REALLY good at it. Here is a pic of the board after sign ups... </div>
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You can see almost all the books have waiting lists and one student is up there managing one of the lists. They seriously LOVE this and I can not keep the books on the shelf for the most part. A lot of the times, if books are sitting up there for more than a day, someone will take it just because they want to try it while waiting for another book to open up. Once books are no longer having lists, they come off the shelf and go into our class library. </div>
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And sometimes, just sometimes... books come BACK to the shelf. We had the 'Al Capone does my shirts' book, as well as the other two in the series, a few months ago. They have been moved to the class library, but thanks to the Battle of the Books assembly, the students wanted them back out because they wanted to read them. So we put them back. </div>
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I mentioned above that I do things a little differently now... I put the books on the shelf and have it all set up before the students come in. The buzz that starts from this is crazy. They can not WAIT to get their names on lists. I need book security when they come in! But I don't let them sign up until I read the summaries and pull sticks because I want everyone to have a fair chance. And the really 'popular' books... you should see what happens when someone is about to erase their name because they finished it. There has been a mad rush to be the next one to add their name to the bottom of the list! </div>
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My kids WANT to read... they LOVE the books... LOVE the system... are reading out of their 'norm'... and are READING... I call it a win. And... aside from ordering the books, reading the summaries, and making the original list set up on the board... I do not have to do a thing. </div>
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(If you want the scoop on those crates in my pictures, check out my former bright idea <a href="http://thirdgradetidbits.blogspot.com/2015/02/a-bright-idea-to-make-sure-no-one.html">here</a>.)</div>
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And for more bright ideas, check out the link up below! </div>
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-49558587400466191452015-03-07T11:37:00.000-05:002015-03-07T11:37:36.563-05:00Slim Down Saturday- March 7<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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How was everyone's week? Health wise- I thought mine was alright. Actually fairly decent. I didn't work out as much as I wanted but I ate pretty healthy all week. And then I stepped on the scale today. It has been 2 full months of this and I have made NO progress. I am at a standstill. I didn't make it to the gym as much as I wanted this week but I DID start the 30 day abs/squat challenge and have stuck to it each day. Which is huge for me- I usually give up after 3 days just because I forget a day or two and don't want to catch up. But I am determined this time. So even though the number isn't budging, I am just not giving up. I am going to revamp things, change my workouts, change some eating (though I am running out of things to change), and keep trying.<br />
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With that, here is my chart for this sad week...<br />
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Like I said, it isn't great. 2 FULL months since starting and not even down 2 pounds. I am not going to sit here and pretend it isn't discouraging because it is. I am just not going to let it stop me. I did have some positives all week. I am weird in that I don't count my weekends when I am thinking about "the week" and "next week" when doing these posts. I'm not really sure why, but it's just how my brain works I guess. So during the work week- I made my step goal 3 out of 5 days. The two days I didn't make it, I was around 8,000 I think and the days I DID make it had so many extra that it averaged to 10k a day. So not terrible.<br />
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I mentioned above that I started the 30 day challenge. And so far, so good. A friend added me to a challenge group on facebook and I truly think that is why I haven't given up. Because it is holding me accountable. And, it helps that my little almost 4 year old likes to do the sit ups and squats with me.<br />
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Next week, I need to work out more, and drink more water. I was doing really great with my water (great for me) but this week, I have no idea what happened. I guess I just wasn't thirsty? I don't know but I didn't even finish half of the water I brought to school and usually I have been finishing it all before the day was over and having to refill when I got to the gym or home.<br />
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My goal- 1-2 pounds. I am going to keep it at a number because all week, I kept saying to myself that I had that goal and it really helped me eat right. I am hoping it will continue to help.<br />
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And my quote- A quick workout is better than no workout. I completely agree with this. If nothing else, situps, squats, and pushups at home are better than nothing. I used to (years ago) do squats while brushing my teeth, wall pushups in the shower, and some other simple leg exercises in the shower. Those things (at that time) were literally the ONLY thing I was doing and it worked. I was losing fat in my legs and toning up my arms. I am going to add all of that back into my daily routine too, so if nothing else, I have done that each day (plus my 30 day challenge).<br />
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It dawned on me I completely forgot to add the blank template last week. SO sorry!! I was in a rush. Here it is. Hopefully I have some friends joining in again! Even if it was a rough week- share something positive!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-76064611343143587402015-03-04T17:30:00.000-05:002015-03-04T17:30:01.234-05:00What I'm Reading WednesdayI am back with another what I'm reading post... and this week is a book by one of my favorite authors...<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0812993861/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0812993861&linkCode=as2&tag=thigratid-20&linkId=ZQ55MV7GDKIZHTAF"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6gWkZ5cEnWyz1YNSmEPfwroI3JkIMoFbhkp-WKHgomk_l8lIEjHzGR9Xsn7m180ZNFy810-VHu8pOi1rhcsXa_6SnqFNiU0Q2qbbG1pYZLHsSsn3vxxnKXnubso0wiAwt6i39GbXjWE/s1600/shopaholic.jpeg" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
The Shopaholic series is one that I have been reading for years. I absolutely love these books and their lighthearted nature. I have laughed through every one of these books. If you haven't figured out yet, I am most definitely a light and fluffy book kinda girl. I like books that don't require me to think too deeply or get too emotional. And these books are just that. So imagine my excitement when I walked into Barnes and Noble to find this book. I had no idea a new one was released! I instantly bought it, even though I own way more books than I have time to read. And this book moved right to the front of the line up.<br />
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In this book, Becky and her family are moving to LA for her husband's job and she can not wait to start living the lifestyle of a star. Except she isn't a star and is having a hard time becoming one. She decides she wants to be a stylist and goes through a few people to get herself there. The should-be easiest route would be to become Sage Seymour's (the actress her husband is in LA doing PR work for) personal stylist through the help of Luke (her husband). But he is not as supportive as she had hoped he would be. Through a twist of fate, Becky is given the opportunity to dress Sage's "enemy" and things take a crazy turn...<br />
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Becky is caught in the middle of a faux feud, her dad and best friend's husband have gone missing, and she has to decide what kind of person she wants to be...<br />
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While I love all of the Shopaholic books, this one I would give a 4 out of 5 stars. I wasn't AS engaged in this book as I usually am and the ending left a lot open, which I assume means there will be another book... at least I hope so anyways! Either way, I would still suggest this book, especially if you have followed Becky's story from the beginning. And if you haven't followed from the beginning, I would definitely recommend the entire series!<br />
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Have you read this book? What were your thoughts? Or if not, is it on your wishlist?<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-25847734557290533062015-02-28T13:55:00.000-05:002015-02-28T13:56:12.593-05:00Slim Down Saturday February 28, 2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Is anyone even still around for this? I realize I kinda gave it up this month. I had posts ready to go but I never got them out. I haven't been the best about working out lately, mainly because I am just tired. Seriously. And cold. I am so sick of the cold! But I am making it my goal, once again, to get my butt back to the gym and work out. I only went once this week and only because my 3 year old dragged me. Literally- SHE wanted to go because she wanted to play in the kids area with the other kids. I dragged my butt there and was glad I did but then one thing after another came up and I never went. I can ONLY go between 430-830 because that is when the child center is open, so I try to stay at work until 4:15 and then go.... because once I am home, I am not going to go back out. I get too relaxed. It's just how I function. Anyways, I am making it my goal to go back to 3 days a week.<br />
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Even with only going once, I did lose a pound, thanks to eating not too bad I guess. I gave up chips and dip for Lent and haven't been drinking pop a lot lately. I drink it less than once a week. I decided that my goal for next week is to lose another pound. I rarely make "weight loss" goals from week to week because I don't like to but I am thinking maybe it will push me to keep going if I put it out there.<br />
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My quote is to be patient. I am the type that gets discouraged when I work out and eat healthy and lose barely anything, if anything at all. And then I get in a funk and give up. I have to be patient and realize that it WILL happen and I WILL like how I look, it just takes time.<br />
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Hopefully next week I will be reporting another pound lost! If anyone is around to link up, feel free to join in!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-72279943174038040822015-02-21T10:00:00.000-05:002015-02-21T10:00:00.173-05:00A Bright Idea... to make sure no one forgets ANYTHINGI know--- you are thinking "this girl can't be serious... there is no way to make sure everyone remembers everything"... But I am here to tell you that there IS a way. There is a way to make sure your students remember what to bring home every day without having to say it 100x or write it on the board. It has only failed me once or twice because of my own chaos during dismissal.<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">(**Disclaimer- a coworker introduced me to this idea but I think it is too good not to share.)</span><br />
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I have been away from the Bright Ideas sharing the past few months because life has just been chaos and I have chosen to enjoy time with my family. I am hoping that my followers understand that sometimes a girl just needs a break. (Proof- My daughter will be 4 in June and I am currently blogging on my mommy blog about our vacation we took when she was TWO... so yeah...that.)<br />
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Anyways, back to this bright idea!<br />
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Have you ever had students forget something they needed for homework? Forget to bring home their entire folder? Forget WHAT they needed to bring home? And then at the end of the day you are repeating the same thing 500x or you are making this list on the board...<br />
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As if we don't have enough going on at the end of the day, we have to add in constant reminders of what to bring home and making lists on the board. And if you are anything like me, you very well might forget yourself!<br />
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Here is a way to make sure that does not happen.<br />
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First- every student needs a crate. You line them up against the wall. I keep mine in number order. This way I know which crate belongs to which student. What you keep in the crates is up to you. We keep all text books and notebooks in there. (Our desks have reading folders and notebooks as well as religion books and folders and writing journals because we use those almost daily.)<br />
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Throughout the day, students place things they will need to take home ON TOP OF their crate. If we finish a science lesson and they need their book for homework, I tell them to put it ON TOP of their crate. This allows me to see at a quick glance who does not have it prepared to go home.<br />
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At the end of the day, I fill out conduct sheets and check planners (these stay in desks too since we use them regularly) and tell students to grab everything off their crate and pack up. Because I check the planners and fill out conduct (which is in their homework folder), it ensures they have both of those things in their hands ready to go home. They quickly walk by their crate and grab their pile and go pack up their belongings for the day. Since my crates are in number order, I can see who forgot to grab something and a quick "hey T you forgot your math notebook" and we are on our way. (Admittedly, I HAVE forgotten to check a couple times because we were rushing to get out the door and I had a student forget something.... twice. Same kid both times. But most days when I check I don't even have to remind anyone.)<br />
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That's it. Simple right?! I couldn't believe the ease of this. My biggest fear was that the crates would become messy- with garbage, pencils, who knows what else. But as you can see, they haven't. I am really impressed!<br />
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And another benefit of this... whenever you get papers you need to pass out, you can put it ON the crate. A lot of times there will be things in my mailbox to give to students after students have already left (because I always forget to check close to the end of the day). And I know me. I KNOW I will forget to give them the papers the next day. So I simply take the papers and place one on each child's crate so they see it in the morning and put it in their folder.<br />
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Simple. Genius. I love it!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-71647832495144383392015-02-11T15:30:00.000-05:002015-02-11T15:30:02.918-05:00What I'm Reading WednesdayI am going to try to bring this weekly post back because I know I am always looking for a new book (even though I own over 250 that I have yet to read)... yes I am a book hoarder. Lucky for my husband MOST of those 250+ books are on my ereader so I don't have to worry about how much space my books take up. However, our house did come with a little built in book shelf which made me so happy! I have wanted a built in shelf for as long as I can remember. And my husband actually thought I was going to use it for decorations... UM NO! The only time my books come down is Christmas because I have a LOT of decorations and they fit in the shelf perfectly. I mean, just looking at this makes me happy!<br />
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The shelf above holds only books that I have not read yet. Once I read a book it doesn't go back on that shelf because, well, I have a bad memory. I don't want to have to look at my goodreads account to see if I have read a book that I already own. I use goodreads to keep track of the books so I don't double buy (I have done it more than once).<br />
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I have read quite a bit recently (more so over summer than now) and I want to share the books with you. My goal has always been a book a week but some books are taking me longer due to all my other hobbies and such. But it's ok because I have plenty of books to share! I am definitely not going to be posting these in the order I read them because I never kept track of when I finished a book until this year.<br />
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So with all that said... the first book I want to share with you is...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743496736/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0743496736&linkCode=as2&tag=thigratid-20&linkId=KGTOWAC5VXRKWF7J" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35kwR2jjR-BMMKBkYYKDhYuAzyuiMYjgmcZDS83TfKJp_yOaNK_5IdiSnLzTdoFfD2ffgFWhq4jc_SeNgPVxxMJ6AXGFQIdIFIKJgaA6xDSXXSfzzfl7CtX2KWr1d__-0WLrwBwqJehY/s1600/nineteen.jpeg" height="320" width="207" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Clicking the image will take you to the book on amazon)</td></tr>
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This is the first book I read by Jodi Picoult. The only book I have of hers on my wishlist is House Rules, and I have yet to read it. But there are a ton of books in our faculty room for us to borrow and I saw this one so I decided to give it a whirl.<br />
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Honesty- it took me over a week (maybe two) to really get into it. I read the first 30-40 pages 3 times I think. There are a lot of characters that get introduced right away and I was just not remembering them all and who each person was because I was reading for a short amount of time then taking a few days away due to exhaustion and being busy. But once I got into the book, I had to keep going. Now, I don't usually read "deep" books. I read fluff. I read brainless books. Books that make you laugh, smile, and saw aww.... chick lit. So when I finished this one, I had to take time away from the serious stuff. It is intense.<br />
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This book is about Sterling High School- a completely normal school, until one day there is a shooting that turns everyone's world upside down. Even the people in the town. Friendships are strained. Victims are plenty. And the one student who would be the best witness for the state, can't seem to remember anything from that day. And the shooter has issues of his own that we find out more and more about through the story.<br />
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This book makes you stop and think about what it is like to be different, what goes through the shooter's mind, what causes these events, and if anyone is really how they seem to be.<br />
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I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars, mainly because it took me a while to truly get into it. I did like reading it but it took too long for me to get going with it. It is very 'heavy' in terms of the types of books I read, but I did enjoy reading it and seeing the story develop and getting a look into each character's life and what events shaped them into the people they came to be at the time of the incident. <br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-70813881225719619052015-02-07T12:38:00.001-05:002015-02-07T15:01:32.867-05:00Slim Down Saturday Feb. 7, 2015Confession- I don't even want to post this week. It was a BAD week for me. I ate awful. I didn't make it to the gym. I had no ambition. I did however buy some weights for at home...<br />
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I decided to not weigh myself this week. I know it was a bad week and I don't want to discourage myself by seeing a bad number. See, that is how I get. If I see that things are not going good, instead of becoming more motivated, I just give up. And I don't want to give up. So I made the smart choice to not bother looking today. And just start over and get my act together this week...<br />
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Seriously- one point since the year started. Probably actually a gain at this point. I have to get my act together. I looked into things like Whole 30 and cleanses and everything else people do. But, I know they won't work for me because of my sheer pickiness. I just don't want to get my hopes up and dive into something that I fail at because I give up. So instead I have to be better about what I eat and get myself to the gym regularly. I swear I say the same thing each week and I am just failing.<br />
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The one good thing is that I bought some weights to use at home. So at least on days I don't make it to the gym I can get some strength done. I usually use 7.5lbs each at the gym but I decided to get the 10lbs (yes I know that is not a lot to some) because I want to push myself and know that I will be stronger for it.<br />
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I also plan to make a meal plan for next week. I don't necessarily eat "whole foods" or "clean" or any other style of food. But just having a meal plan and knowing what I plan to cook and buying all the ingredients makes it a guarantee that I will cook instead of eating crap or ordering food. I already know what foods I want to make, I just have to get a grocery list ready so we can shop tomorrow.<br />
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So how was your week? Grab the blank chart below and link up! I am about to make a workout plan...<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-70299407781317699472015-02-03T16:30:00.000-05:002015-02-03T17:56:04.382-05:00Measuring Matter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I know it has been a LONG time since I have been around with a content post. But I have been taking a break from spending all my time working/related to working. And honestly, it has been a wonderful thing. I am enjoying time with my husband and daughter, spending time with friends, and enjoying my hobbies. But I did want to share with you all something I did with my students. My class (as I am sure ANY other class) loves to do hands on activities. Especially in science. They have loved doing STEM activities. We are currently learning about matter and I felt like the best way for them to fully grasp mass and volume and measuring matter was for them to actually measure. And they LOVED it. I tried to find something that would incorporate the basics of measuring but I just couldn't find exactly what I wanted, so I quickly made something and gathered some classroom supplies for the students to measure. </div>
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<a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Measuring-Matter-Hands-On-Activities-1658197"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_uKyggD51wa8B-Nu1JDLRt3MMZ5f_2Wv9SaFo57KTXQHl_BI6P5rUtU9lYp3h0siV2obEitn0zeGAy5xxjDvGZvkZ9WPdAOVeD1HZV9K8D9Qk2lHrb2uPLYJHq70I37jLEZOu5N9QP0/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-02-01+at+10.19.41+AM.png" height="320" width="246" /></a></div>
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This little packet includes three basic activities for students to practice measuring mass, volume, and length/diameter. I wanted to get the students familiar with terms and tools used. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMW4W0tLPx34EyL9hk2XmwmgiQDyfhmdxx5v3US2BLvTaHITpupol3Oj6QG8FiyV_sqSxMcD8xOCTWFgJxL5pCT31ZHg_5ARQWCJWA3yX6ZnoOJ6RvUAFIF0cJ83Ggk5rBXajcejbeqY/s1600/length+label.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMW4W0tLPx34EyL9hk2XmwmgiQDyfhmdxx5v3US2BLvTaHITpupol3Oj6QG8FiyV_sqSxMcD8xOCTWFgJxL5pCT31ZHg_5ARQWCJWA3yX6ZnoOJ6RvUAFIF0cJ83Ggk5rBXajcejbeqY/s1600/length+label.png" height="153" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruZDpwtWIcpyXSM18YS1T9daoUa2IAi_avmjOpKSPJMQuM3BGbtt21eh7NcQh14GwVqoKyjmJ0HEOS7HmXMZrwSAC_L9F45zmebOPKQ6dpoFkdH8_zJevA-Ifv5OrI3zDwk9ziBW4EWE/s1600/length.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruZDpwtWIcpyXSM18YS1T9daoUa2IAi_avmjOpKSPJMQuM3BGbtt21eh7NcQh14GwVqoKyjmJ0HEOS7HmXMZrwSAC_L9F45zmebOPKQ6dpoFkdH8_zJevA-Ifv5OrI3zDwk9ziBW4EWE/s1600/length.png" height="320" width="319" /></a>One of the stations that students participate in is measuring length. The main point of this station is to make sure students are using the correct side of the ruler. One of the biggest mistakes I have seen children make is to use inches when they are supposed to be measuring in centimeters. The students measured the height inside an empty cup, how many centimeters of water are in another cup (think rain gauge type measuring), the diameter of a roll of tape and then the diameter of the inner circle (the cardboard) of the tape. This one was pretty simple at surface level. But a mini math lesson was also included. Students had to measure to the nearest centimeter and HALF centimeter. I found that some of my students weren't really aware that when measuring to the nearest half you could still end up with a whole number. </div>
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Another activity included is the measuring mass station. This, I would say, was the fan favorite! Students first had to practice finding the mass of common classroom items using a balance scale and gram stackers. They measured a glue stick, a bar magnet, and some stacking cubes. They loved being able to measure mass of items and try to figure out what needed to be adjusted to find the correct mass. Once students had enough practice measuring mass they had to apply their skills to finding the mass of a liquid in a container. They were given a full Capri Sun and an empty Capri Sun pouch. The students had to find the mass of the full and empty pouches. They then had to figure out how they could use those two measurements to find the mass of JUST the liquid that is in the full pouch. I loved watching them try to figure out how they could do this and make the realization of WHY they were doing what they were doing.</div>
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The last activity we did was to practice measuring volume of irregularly shaped objects by using water and graduated cylinders. The first thing students had to do was practice pouring given amounts of water. I made them call me over after each amount they were to practice pouring so that I could check and sign off on it. The point of this was to teach students that they need to get eye level with the graduated cylinder in order to make sure they have the right amount. After they mastered the measuring of just the water, students had to find the volume of pencil top erasers by putting them in the water and seeing how much the water level increased. They put in one eraser, then two, then predicted what the volume of three erasers would be.<br />
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I would have to say that these activities were a huge hit. I originally planned for it to only be a one period lesson but I wanted to make sure to FULLY explain each station and what was expected of them so it ended up taking us two periods. Which I was fine with it because they were fully engaged in their learning and genuinely excited.<br />
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This week was not a good one for me. I think I only made it to the gym once or twice. I don't even remember. It was a VERY long week... It was Catholic Schools Week, which in itself is fun but so exhausting! Our kids had so much fun (and so did I) but it tired me out. Not to mention I had an appointment with a new doctor and I disliked him so much that it caused me entirely too much stress. But I am determined to have a better week.<br />
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As you can see from my chart, I made no progress. I didn't even have any real positives. I stayed away from pop again all week, which is a plus. I didn't gain so that is another plus. But I also didn't lose. I didn't expect to lose anything being that I didn't workout hardly and that I didn't eat the best. OH but I DID have one positive that just happened that I didn't add to my chart- during our Friday events for Catholic Schools Week, a picture was taken of me from behind (not OF me, I just happened to be IN the picture) and, I didn't HATE the way I looked. I wasn't disgusted. And THAT is a HUGE step!<br />
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My goal for this week is to do some type of workout every day. Even if I don't get to the gym each day I am going to try to do some workout at home. I am going to make myself a schedule of what area I want to focus on each day so at least I have something to follow. I was going to buy myself some weights yesterday to use at home on days I don't get to the gym, but I didn't. However, I think I am going to go back today to get them.<br />
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I am also debating ONLY tracking my weight at the beginning of each month. I used to do this and it helped make me less discouraged because then the +/- of .2 doesn't phase me as much. I am HOPING that I will have more than a few tenths of a pound each week from now on, but who knows.<br />
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If you want to link up, grab the image below and join in. Again, sorry I am a day late this week!!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-63869090311802294272015-01-24T11:50:00.000-05:002015-01-24T11:50:43.601-05:00Slim Down Saturday Jan. 24, 2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It has been a pretty rough week for me. Nothing drastically terrible happened, just a bunch of little things adding up. Luckily it didn't affect my habits TOO much. I did have a cheat meal once this week, but I didn't kick myself for it. I enjoyed it and ate everything else healthy. And I am back to where I was 2 weeks ago.<br />
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So I lost 2 pounds, which is great. It brought me back to where I was 2 weeks ago. Thankfully! I tracked my food this week to see if maybe even though what I was eating was healthy, it was too much. I, for the most part, ate identical this week to how I ate last week and wasn't over on calories, so I know the weight gain wasn't from that.<br />
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I only made it to the gym twice this week but twice is better than no times. And, like I mentioned, I had a cheat meal. After we went to our 3 year old's FIRST parent teacher conference (people, I almost cried because my baby is old enough for parent teacher conferences and report cards) I really wanted a sub. So instead of depriving myself, I got it and split it in half instead of eating the whole thing like I may have in the past.<br />
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I managed to stay away from pop all week and at the store yesterday when we were buying pop for our basement fridge, I decided against buying Dr. Pepper (the only kind I drink anymore) so that I don't even have the option to drink it. I have been drinking water 90% of the time and every now and again have snapple. But I want to drink a little more water since I still am not drinking as much as I should be. I am also still hoping to run longer on the treadmill. Some days I have really good days and some days are awful. This week I couldn't last longer than a minute at a time for some reason, when last week I was going 3-4 minutes. But I am going to keep pushing myself this week and see how it goes.<br />
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I hope everyone had a great week and enjoys your weekend! If you want to link up, grab the button at the top and the blank template below and join in!<br />
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PS- I actually have some educational content posts planned to go... I just have to finish everything on my to do list and I will start them. Hopefully sooner or later! <br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-24983208851727401062015-01-17T11:00:00.000-05:002015-01-17T11:00:04.637-05:00Slim Down Saturday Jan 17, 2015It's time for another Slim Down Saturday... and it is taking all my will power to not throw in the towel...<br />
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My chart below will explain why I want to throw in the towel...<br />
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See that gain/loss for the week. Yeah, I gained TWO pounds. For a total for the year of PLUS one pound. After doing everything right this week! I didn't eat junk at all, went to the gym 3x (which is my goal for now), had NO pop all week, AND made my step goal 4 out of the past 6 days. Yet I still GAINED weight. This is when I would typically give up and binge. I am doing everything I can to not break down. I am HOPING that the gain is compliments of PMS... if not, I have no explanation for it.<br />
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My something to do better next week is to be able to run for a longer stretch on the treadmill. I do a fast walk for a few minutes, then run for the length of one song, then back to walking, then run, and so on. I am an awful runner. But I want to be able to run longer than one song.<br />
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My goal- um, lose weight agin.... I want to lose the 2 I gained this week and at least one more so that I am back in the negatives.<br />
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My one word, quote, song is from Finding Nemo- Just keep swimming- because I REALLY wanted to give up when I stepped on the scale. But I can't. I know this is a process and that I didn't gain it all in a couple weeks and I am sure not going to LOSE it all in a couple weeks. (Though I don't want to keep gaining that's for sure!)<br />
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If you want to link up, the image is below for you to add your information to. Grab the image and button and link up!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-82821961733491687702015-01-10T11:00:00.000-05:002015-01-10T11:00:00.668-05:00Slim Down Saturdays Jan. 10, 2015It is time for the Slim Down Saturday linkup. This week has NOT been a good one for me. But I am not giving up!<br />
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This week started BAD. I wanted it to start good and I even bought a fitbit on Friday to help keep me motivated. Except then we spent 8 hours in the car driving Friday, sitting around, hanging out with family Saturday, and then another 8 hours in the car Sunday. Needless to say, those days were not good with steps. Then school started.... here are my results...<br />
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So, not AWFUL like I thought it would be. Not a gain. I somehow lost a pound. I say somehow because on Monday and Tuesday I binged. I felt like a bottomless pit. I could not get enough food in me. I also wasn't working out so it was bad. Wednesday we made a decently healthy dinner which I then used leftovers for as lunch on Thursday and Friday. I asked my husband to buy lots of fruits and veggies for me to snack on, which he did. So that helped. Thank goodness for the 2nd half of the week, because the first half was a doozy!<br />
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The other good thing from this week was that I definitely drank more water. So much so that I had to go to the bathroom at work. I definitely have a teacher bladder and rarely use the bathroom at work. I just never have to. Until I drank the amount of water I was drinking! But that is a good thing.<br />
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Things to do better: Don't binge... whew that was bad. Keep drinking water. No set amount yet, just keep doing it. And make the step goal. I have yet to make the 10k steps.<br />
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My goal- I need to get back to the gym. I haven't been since before winter break. I got sick, then I got busy, then this week was just a disaster being back at work. I was exhausted and it was FREEZING... and I just didn't want to drag Payton out in the cold to go to the gym. I have to get back next week.<br />
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My word is meals- because I am making it my goal to eat better meals. I am not saying I will eat the best all the time. Or that I will plan a ton in advance (though I am working on meal planning). But I want to at least have meals that are not full of bad food. Little bit at a time here.<br />
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If you want to link up, grab the image below and join in. (Anyone that doesn't know how- grab the image and save it. Open it up in powerpoint. Make a text box for each section of the chart and type your information in. Group everything together. Save as a picture.)<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-49504050241502850422015-01-03T11:00:00.000-05:002015-01-09T21:27:59.492-05:00Slim Down Saturdays Jan. 3, 2015It's time for our first Slim Down Saturday of 2015! I am hoping to keep this going every week. Make sure to grab the button and the blank image and join in if you want some accountability to your new (or continuing) healthy lifestyle!<br />
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I decided to <strike>start</strike> restart this journey last week. I have been going to the gym a couple times a week, for the most part, since moving home (except over break... the first week I was completely out sick and this week I have been a crazy person). But I need to make it more consistent and I need to eat to match it! So here we are... week one. I am counting this as my starting week so there isn't progress.<br />
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Ultimate goal: My ultimate goal is to look like I did when we got married. Which is 25lbs less than I am now. If I don't lose the 25lbs but still look like I did then... fine by me! (A tip, for those of you tracking the total weight lost... I save my blank template in powerpoint and edit it each week. On the slide, I keep a running record of what I weighed each week so that I can easily remember/see what progress I have or have not made. Like this:)</div>
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Gain/loss for this week: NA</div>
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Total since starting: NA</div>
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Positives from the week: I decided to start this up and am making it my goal to stick to it. Even if I blog about nothing else (as you can see I am rarely blogging lately), I want to make sure I stick to this one.</div>
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Something to do better: Drink less pop. This is pretty self explanatory. I was doing great staying away from it but lately have been drinking it too much. I need to drink less this week. </div>
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Goal for next week: Drink more water. I hate water. I need to make it my goal to drink more. I am not giving myself a number of glasses or ounces. At this point, I just want to drink more than I usually do.</div>
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Word, quote, or song- "Never let a bad day be enough, to go and talk you in to giving up." This is from a Carrie Underwood song- Crazy Dreams. It has been a lyric I have always referred to, in so many aspects of life. Everyone has bad days. Especially in this get fit journey. And I know that I am going to have some really good ones, and some really bad ones. But it is important to remember that a bad day doesn't mean you should give up! </div>
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There you have it. Week one. Join in! Even if you are just deciding today to start this journey with us. Link up with your goals. Fill in the chart the best you can. You have to start somewhere! Don't wait until tomorrow! Anyone who wants to join in, here is the blank template for you to use!</div>
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If you link up, remember to comment on the 2 people before you and the 1 after you. Everyone could use some support!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-77092814859864229852014-12-27T13:09:00.001-05:002015-01-09T21:27:59.496-05:00Slim Down Saturdays are coming back!I hope everyone is enjoying their holidays and break! I know we have been very busy and I can't pry my 3 year old away from all her new toys. But it is that time where people start thinking about getting healthier. Last year, I started Slim Down Saturdays, but then life got in the way and the link up got away from me. I have been thinking about bringing it back because I know a few people really enjoyed the accountability (myself included), and after receiving an email about it, decided I should just bring it back. Since moving, I have joined a gym and have one of my very best friends as a gym buddy, but life sometimes gets the better of us too and we don't make it as often as we would like. I am hoping that by bringing back this blog series (well, I guess it isn't a series... I am not sure what to call it) I will hold myself a little more accountable. I want to get back to what I weighed before I got pregnant... ideally I would like to look like I did at our wedding. That has always been my goal.<br />
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So here is how this is going to work. It is going to be pretty much identical to how it was done last year.<br />
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If you want to join, I am including a template that you can copy and paste to your post, or you can post whatever you want to share about your fitness/weight loss/healthy lifestyle journey. I am being very transparent and open about this. You, of course, can share as much or as little as you want. I just need to hold myself accountable.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ZY9uZy8Sc2FtBtgHze7i8qCezDBN2lmLWHwzqJaYtuKTLXqBw6HxbQyJxXdjwISzGDtNbgOEPT3tlB3DNR1XV6poUuzSGVWCEjzvQcLWp1NkK1nxYsyL9T8Wj3YLHbSS7QFxbtNB-Es/s1600/slimdownbutton.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ZY9uZy8Sc2FtBtgHze7i8qCezDBN2lmLWHwzqJaYtuKTLXqBw6HxbQyJxXdjwISzGDtNbgOEPT3tlB3DNR1XV6poUuzSGVWCEjzvQcLWp1NkK1nxYsyL9T8Wj3YLHbSS7QFxbtNB-Es/s1600/slimdownbutton.png" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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Anyone that wants to join in on this fun, can copy the button above and the image below and insert their own information. I would appreciate you linking back to my blog but it is not mandatory. (To add your information to the template, copy the image, paste it into powerpoint, and add text boxes in the blank spaces to add your information. Save the entire image with your text boxes as a picture (I do a screen shot of mine but you could group all the text and the image and right click to save as a picture). Put the image into your own blog post and share as much or as little as you want. (I put the date underneath the title on the image below when I do my weekly posts as well.)<br />
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Explanation: I didn't include starting weight because I am guessing many of us don't want to share that number. If you feel inclined, you can add it to your blog post.<br />
<u>Ultimate goal</u>: Here is where you can put your final goal. Do you want to lose x amount of lbs? Be a certain weight? Have more energy? Like the way you look? Wear size 'z'? Put that here.<br />
<u>Gain/Loss for the week</u>: +/- and a number (easy enough right?)<br />
<u>Total since starting</u>: here is where you will put your total loss (hopefully, though a pound of muscle IS different than a pound of fat!) since starting<br />
<u>Positives from the week</u>: Share at least one thing that you are proud of yourself for from this week. (You can share if you met your goal from the last week-see below- here.)<br />
<u>Something to do better</u>: Share one thing that you want to improve on- maybe cut out x, y, or z. Drink more water. Workout extra 10 min a day. Etc.<br />
<u>Goal for next week</u>: This could be a weight loss goal or an eating goal. For example: eat fruit every day. Or- lose 2 lbs. Or- drink 8 glasses of water a day. Etc.<br />
<u>One word, song, or quote</u>: Choose one word, song, or quote that is motivating you to keep going. Or maybe your workout song of the week (ya know, that one that really gets you pumped up). Or a quote you heard that made you keep going. Anything. No rules.<br />
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Other things you might want to share: how you worked out, recipes that were good (or even bad), tricks and tips, things that worked for you. There are no rules about what you share, as long as it is about your new (or continuing) healthy lifestyle, I say go for it! The only thing I ask is that you leave some love on the 2 blogs linked up before you and the 1 that links up after you (Farley's rule of 3). People are putting a lot out there by sharing all of this and we could ALL use the encouragement every now and again!<br />
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If you plan on joining in, add your blog info to the linkup below so we can all make sure we are following each other in our journeys to a healthier 2015! The linkup will officially begin next week!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-56051527314555298772014-11-21T14:08:00.000-05:002014-11-21T14:08:56.296-05:00The Marshmallow ChallengeFrom September...<br />
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I know this is old. But, I don't want to not share it just because it is from the beginning of the year. These activities are things that can be done at any time throughout the year. My students loved the <a href="http://thirdgradetidbits.blogspot.com/2014/10/have-you-ever-saved-fred-before.html">Fred activity</a>, and this one that I am about to share so much, that I have instituted STEM Fridays in our classroom.<br />
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While looking for fun back to school ideas, I came across the marshmallow challenge. But everything I was finding had pictures but not an actual description. So I took to google to find the details and finally found the details. And this one is super easy...<br />
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Materials: (per group)<br />
20 pieces of uncooked spaghetti<br />
1 yard of masking tape<br />
1 yard of string (I used yarn)<br />
1 marshmallow<br />
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I passed out the supplies, and gave the students 18 minutes to build the tallest free standing tower that could support a marshmallow. That was all I told them. Well that and "don't eat the materials!"<br />
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It was really fun to see the different strategies that the groups came up with. Some students focused on being the tallest, which resulted in them failing to succeed because their structure couldn't hold the marshmallow without falling over. Other groups took out paper and pencil and sketched an idea. While others built, took apart, then built a new structure.<br />
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This next picture, I did NOT think their group was going to make it. I didn't expect their structure to hold the marshmallow. But it worked.<br />
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In the end, I think only one group's tower fell and one group didn't finish (though after the time was up I let them keep working and their tower DID eventually hold the marshmallow). The group that did not finish learned a valuable lesson in team work and listening. The reason they didn't finish is because they all had their own ideas and wouldn't listen to each other and come to an agreement.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbR2llkjdvaZZVGZo2upEywVcFVHLr2TR8xJcD8jbiYdnsSxqJ0WScA9TL-7s6x7Gvpp6PRfBaklMGtc1eWhCU2ksDGlRGKEtG-gJEMj_lF5TZtF4csGkJaGxPc76smCwJFI7zmJrV8Cw/s1600/marsh4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbR2llkjdvaZZVGZo2upEywVcFVHLr2TR8xJcD8jbiYdnsSxqJ0WScA9TL-7s6x7Gvpp6PRfBaklMGtc1eWhCU2ksDGlRGKEtG-gJEMj_lF5TZtF4csGkJaGxPc76smCwJFI7zmJrV8Cw/s1600/marsh4.png" height="422" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the group that went for height first, before realizing that was not going to work. You can see based on the yarn they really had no method and were just hoping for the best. Their tower barely held on!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5MXABDMeWkdatZ8fKZHO39d94c5IZUn4mDpR3FPqnepCBtSRkUuHOz8PvW5jnUOFlJd1Z94kwiGmN1bZCHq4BdSs6g22fSimPKYAJdaCVA-dJndFDeBwPJw4Iqoif6aEEpYUTEM7M8SU/s1600/marsh5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5MXABDMeWkdatZ8fKZHO39d94c5IZUn4mDpR3FPqnepCBtSRkUuHOz8PvW5jnUOFlJd1Z94kwiGmN1bZCHq4BdSs6g22fSimPKYAJdaCVA-dJndFDeBwPJw4Iqoif6aEEpYUTEM7M8SU/s1600/marsh5.png" height="392" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And this is the group that did not listen to each other. You can see in the left picture, those two students threw something together in the first 4 minutes. They realized, after looking around, that other groups were doing much better and making taller towers. The group finally decided to listen to each other and combine their ideas.</td></tr>
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-51752083553723893022014-11-08T14:19:00.000-05:002014-11-08T14:19:00.120-05:00Find me at the Grapevine!I am over at Elementary Grapevine sharing about our October book reports today. Stop on by, read about them, and grab the freebie by clicking the image below!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-78836720748369056682014-11-06T16:53:00.000-05:002014-11-06T16:53:26.465-05:00The current "curse word" in education... Common Core.. <span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Fair warning- this is a long one... but I promise you it is worth the read.</span><br />
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It seems that way doesn't it? That common core is the worst word someone can say these days? It is quite a hot topic, and you will notice I hardly, if ever, write about hot topics on this blog. But this past week a debate that came from an acquaintance's Facebook post triggered feelings in me that, honestly, I didn't even know I had. Now, let me start by saying that I am not for or against the common core. There are parts of it that I agree with and parts of it that I don't agree with. But this post is NOT about whether the common core is "right" or "wrong".<br />
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What really worked my nerve, was that in trying to defend the question students were asked to do (which was one of those "gone viral" things, not even belonging to the person who started the thread on Facebook), seen here,<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://universalfreepress.com/kids-perfectly-logical-answer-smacked-down-by-common-core-teacher/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga9ls1DQWTPhJV-BgHAUJEB1t1eUC100guKTLAexgaRrECfj70EsZWQbFf902aTsyPhrWjDHaZG7Xj0Cx9E2M6fu4rWK57dD2i8CAX27nw2Luh2pdJkj3QkdDrlJU4jMTSirt4_Lbsduk/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-11-06+at+4.32.59+PM.png" height="320" width="302" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Because this is not my picture, I linked the picture to the article. </td></tr>
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someone told me that I must be making money off the common core to have such strong feelings. I can assure you that I am not, nor have I EVER made money off the common core. I teach, like the rest of us. And quite frankly, am just sick of parents passing the blame for everything onto us. We didn't choose the common core. We are professionals, and whether we like it or not, this is what we are teaching. And in the grand scheme of things, it isn't so awful. And even more so grand, (especially with all the debate relating to the common core and teachers being "bad"), if we don't defend ourselves, who will?<br />
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Back to that image that went viral. The first problem that parents have is that 8+5 does not, and never will, equal 10. And of course, we all know that is correct. But what many people don't see is that the question is not asking the child to miraculously make 8 and 5 equal 10. They are asking the child to explain how to make a 10 when adding those two numbers. The child is expected to know how to decompose numbers to make the math easier. An example is shown below.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOqehbYY9pWvnPIbEvozQqKThOyIVFlGCsIiKO2wyTnrXcwU7MNNPHBnmyS5MX0PBlT5sE2SP8Lr-YVHm6qMO54bpzwdwwuvpQzs_sZxLblWDt6oF8_PCTk57eSK0DS-c6d2TEecrL9E/s1600/cc1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOqehbYY9pWvnPIbEvozQqKThOyIVFlGCsIiKO2wyTnrXcwU7MNNPHBnmyS5MX0PBlT5sE2SP8Lr-YVHm6qMO54bpzwdwwuvpQzs_sZxLblWDt6oF8_PCTk57eSK0DS-c6d2TEecrL9E/s1600/cc1.png" height="320" width="289" /></a></div>
Now, I have never taught the younger grades, so this may not be exactly how it is written at that age. But this is what the children need to be able to do. They need to know all the sums to 10. (4+6, 3+7, 8+2, etc). Then they use those sums to find larger sums. And here's the thing. At some point in our lives, we all figured that strategy out if we ever did mental math. It was never taught to me. I distinctly remember as a child realizing that adding things to 9 was easy because I could easily make a 10. 9+7 in my head was the same as 10+6. Making a 10 makes math easier. Not harder.<br />
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So, I tried to explain this to the naysayers on this thread. They didn't believe me that students would be able to do harder math if they had the background knowledge of making a 10 and place value. They asked me to give an example. Ask and you shall receive...<br />
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Now, your child is required to add 28+15. (No mental math here, stack it up.) In elementary school, we were taught that 8+5 is 13 and you "carry the one"... NEVER was I EVER taught why. The teacher said so, and so we did it. End of story. We never questioned why. We just did what we were told to do. I never learned why we did that until I started teaching and had to explain it to children myself. The first time I, as an educated professional, had to explain the WHY, even I stumbled. But now I can easily tell you why. Just like our children will stumble the first time or two (or even three) that they are learning something new. But they will master it. Have faith! And, for the record, to this day, I have to be careful to call it regrouping instead of carrying the one. And do you know why? Because we aren't just carrying a one. We are literally regrouping a 10! That same 10 that parents are so adamant that their child doesn't need to know how to make. Why should our children just sit and accept that it is what it is because the teacher said so? If we want children to justify themselves then we better be able to do the same. And teachers, be prepared for your students to challenge you. Because with this new way of thinking that we are developing in our children, they WILL challenge us. Accept it! It means you are doing an amazing job making your children think deeper.<br />
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Another tidbit that I pointed out on this never ending thread, is that if anything, the standards have decreased in quantity and increased in quality. Don't we always say quality over quantity? Most of the standards we teach did not change. The wording changed. We got rid of some standards in certain grades. The reason for moving some standards out of one grade and into another? So that we can really dig deeper into the standards that are age appropriate. So that we can have our students truly gain some depth of understanding. We increased the rigor, not the content. Rigor is not scary. It is new. We don't run away from a new type of technology... let's not run away from a new type of thinking. A new type of thinking that is making our children think deeper, become self starters, and guide their own learning! Amazing if you ask me...<br />
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Here is an example from reading this year. And full disclosure, the first time I thought about teaching it, I was nervous. "How am I going to get the kids to do this? Will they ever fully get it? Will they be able to justify themselves in words at the age of 9?" Guess what- they can... AND MORE!<br />
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In reading, students are expected to cite evidence from the text to support their answer. Even on questions where they infer, students should have evidence stating just how they came to that conclusion. A coworker of mine taught me the acronym RAP to get students to do this every single time. And so, we RAP in reading.<br />
<br />R- restate the question- this eliminates the incomplete sentences and overusing of pronouns<br />
A- answer the question- usually the answer will be right in the same sentence as restating the question.<br />
P- provide evidence (or prove it!)- students use a sentence starter in order to prove they found their answer in the text. Some examples they use are: On page ___, The author states____, I know this because _____, For example _____, and so on.<br />
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The first time I gave the expectations, those students GROANED. I mean you would have thought I was pulling their hair out. It was pure torture to them. Until we did a couple together and they saw just how easy it was. Sure it is a little more writing. Sure it takes an extra minute or two. BUT- look at the difference in answers-<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMPYujt0s_Fyg48hXczMwy9MVSEqGRbVDDj-OdzQtfPYFpbGedhciKzOaLGN0jOrwKUUceL6T0Dyb46AxJ67TR5McCiI-mukk7UUNfeHjjFBJUfD7l6dOPPoj0LqawVjY8TKx7Z0CdwpM/s1600/cc2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMPYujt0s_Fyg48hXczMwy9MVSEqGRbVDDj-OdzQtfPYFpbGedhciKzOaLGN0jOrwKUUceL6T0Dyb46AxJ67TR5McCiI-mukk7UUNfeHjjFBJUfD7l6dOPPoj0LqawVjY8TKx7Z0CdwpM/s1600/cc2.png" height="94" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what their answers looked like just 3 weeks ago. Correct answer, but NOT quality.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgtZUCIldLa4DMWS2dezuisPvanL0fWe6sJyCh0mH0KyKdMYMnEi7daCsgUhFjRqc7ohjGl3_PEdcAFiEaRdlolYqVDsBQU12WK8ifebrE5cBm3whnFHD7PNNUw80iZmx1OrJFqgod6CQ/s1600/cc3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgtZUCIldLa4DMWS2dezuisPvanL0fWe6sJyCh0mH0KyKdMYMnEi7daCsgUhFjRqc7ohjGl3_PEdcAFiEaRdlolYqVDsBQU12WK8ifebrE5cBm3whnFHD7PNNUw80iZmx1OrJFqgod6CQ/s1600/cc3.png" height="142" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And this is how we are writing now. This one is from last week. </td></tr>
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Wouldn't you rather your child write the second way? And guess what? If they are answering short answer questions in this way, it improves their writing abilities, causing them to naturally become better writers!<br />
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My students' response to this went from "What is RAP?" to "Do we <i>have</i> to RAP?" to "Don't forget to RAP!" and "You didn't restate the question!" and "No pronouns! We don't know who you are talking about!"<br />
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And for good measure, here is an image from today's reading questions. All done independently, without groaning, and it did not take them long at all. Students who used to HATE anything that involved writing. Students who would just give me short, quick, garbage answers. LOOK at this quality!<br />
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No, it isn't perfect... but you have to admit it is WAY better than that first "attempt" shown from before we learned to RAP.<br />
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Whether you are a parent or educator, common core is here for now. Here to stay? I don't know. But for now it is what we have. You can embrace it and be open to learning new things yourself and make the best of it. Or you can resist it and push it away. Option one will lead to you seeing your children soar. Option two- if your child sees your resistance, they will pick up on it, act in the same way, and you may just see them shut down. Because whether you or they like it or not, they have to learn it. Resisting it isn't helping anyone. A lot of parents argue that they can't help their children with homework anymore. And their kids don't get it. First of all, teachers don't just send homework on something they haven't taught. It has been taught, most likely a few times. If your child still doesn't get it, let the teacher know they are struggling. He/she may know, but if your child is the shy, quiet type, it may take a little longer for the teacher to see that the child doesn't "get it". Second- if you don't get it and you want to help your child... instead of taking to Facebook or other social media to gripe... put out a call for help! Don't be ashamed. We are all in the same boat. It is new to all of us. Post the question on Facebook and see if anyone can help you out! Chances are everyone knows someone who is or knows a teacher that can help you. And we all will... because that is our nature. Or, if you don't want to post it on social media... we are fortunate enough to live in an age where we can google just about anything. Google it. In under 2 minutes you will find an explanation, a tutorial, or even a video. And I am sure there are parents that will say "but I shouldn't HAVE to" and that is fine- as an adult, that is your right to feel that way. But please don't hate the teacher for sending home the homework on a strategy/skill that she taught and for doing her job.<br />
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For what it is worth- I commented a lot of this on the thread, and another parent replied thanking me. Saying she loved it. And that looking at it from this perspective changes things. It changes how she thought. She is excited for her son to be able to learn in a different way than we did. She also said it is great that students are given the opportunity to learn and engage in their education in a more critical thinking way because it opens so many more doors for them. I love that even just one person is willing to look at it from a different perspective and realize it really WILL benefit our children.<br />
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So thank you, to the person who started this debate on their Facebook page. As some of you may or may not know, the past few years in my teaching career were very rough. And I was losing some of my passion for teaching. This person's post (along with being in an amazing school) made me realize that I do still have that passion and I will keep on doing what I know is best for my students.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Please note- this blog post is not a place for you to let out your hatred comments for the common core. For that reason, I will be monitoring comments. I welcome opinions, however I do not welcome bashing of myself, my opinions, or other educators. </span><br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-68449549517248963012014-10-16T18:37:00.000-04:002014-10-16T18:37:00.322-04:00Have you ever saved Fred before?Oh my goodness.... look out the window! Are pigs flying?! Because I thought for sure I wouldn't be blogging until pigs were flying. I have just been so busy this year. BUT I finally am caught up kinda sorta... enough that I can sit down to blog for a few minutes. And I wanted to start back at the beginning of the school year. If you remember, I got a new job very last minute and am teaching 4th grade now. Let's first acknowledge the fact that I LOVE my job again. FINALLY. I have waited a LONG time to be happy where I work and I am so glad to have ended up where I am. And as an added perk I only have 12 students, all of which are super sweet.<br />
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Now, back to the beginning of the year. The other 4th grade teacher and I decided to team teach... she teaches all the math and I teach the science and social studies (alternating units). So we started the year off with some fun STEM activities. And the first one was saving Fred. I saw a few people post about this and/or pin the idea. I knew I had to do it. And I am so glad I did. Not only did the students LOVE it but it gave me an idea of how they work together in groups. I found that some of them are very weak "group workers"... they had to learn HOW to work in groups. I am proud to say we are finally getting there.<br />
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If you have no idea what this Fred activity is, the picture collage below has a description of it. I recreated a lab sheet for my students that I will share down below if you would like to use it.<br />
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My students really enjoyed it... just look at their faces when they FINALLY got Fred in the life preserver...<br />
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A couple things we found:<br />
~At first, every group killed Fred. I obviously wasn't going to have them just sitting there doing nothing.... so we invented Fred's cousin, Fredina... just so they would keep trying.<br />
~At first the students thought Fred's head just had to be "in" the preserver... so they got him placed on the ring and thought they were done. I quickly grabbed an extra gummy worm and life saver and showed them what the end result should look like (I obviously did it with my hands).<br />
~I made my students analyze their materials and try to come up with a plan before jumping in to solve the problem. All but one group's plan failed at first.<br />
~Have fun and let them be loud! Just close the door and enjoy!<br />
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Here is a copy of the lab sheet I used. This is not my original creation, it is just formatted better for my students and in better fonts for me. If it is something you want to use, feel free to download and enjoy. Even though it is not the beginning of the year this is still something you can do!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-7906761246921197012014-10-15T19:54:00.000-04:002014-10-15T19:54:21.249-04:00Semi Wordless Wednesday- very overdue postAnd by overdue, I mean it is a classroom reveal...<br />
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Whew, looking back at these pictures reminds me I REALLY need to straighten up my room some. My desk does not look that good anymore and that back shelf has gained a lot more "stuff".<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-42555951109338979342014-09-10T22:16:00.000-04:002014-09-10T22:16:15.409-04:00A little bit of a big change... Did you notice that I have a new design... and a new blog name?! Ever since I made my blog I was a little unsure of the title because I knew I wouldn't be in third grade forever. Since I got a new job I decided to change it up and make it less grade specific and a lot more "me". And since we all know I love Disney, I went with pixie dust. And the FABULOUS Megan from <a href="http://www.abirdinhanddesigns.com/">A Bird in a Hand Designs</a> got me all set up and ready to go. Let me just say, this girl is AMAZING. Seriously, I don't even know if I filled out the forms right, added too much detail, too little detail, but she took exactly what I had imagined in my head and came up with this beautiful design.<br />
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I promise you I have a whole list of blog posts planned. It is just a matter of having the time to sit down and write them and add pictures. I just wanted to make sure all of my awesome readers know that "Third Grade Tidbits" is now "Teaching With a Touch of Pixie Dust". Same person... new super cute (if I do say so myself) blog design and name!<br />
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<br />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-84503976126017726782014-09-03T22:25:00.001-04:002014-09-03T22:25:29.254-04:00It's September!!September means my extra long summer vacation is over. (I got an extra hmm 6 weeks because I moved from the south where they end in May to the north where they don't start until Sept.) And I know I am crazy late to the party here, but I want to join in the fun with <a href="http://ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/2014/08/currently-september-2014.html">Farley</a> anyways! So...here it is!<br />
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So most of this is pretty self explanatory...<br />
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Big Brother! I love this show. What's even better is that my husband loves it too. And the reason why that makes it even better is because 9 years ago when we started dating, his mom and I were talking about the show and he was saying how stupid it was and he would never watch. Now.... now he loves it and reads up on things that happen.<br />
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Loving- my new school! Seriously the amount of stress I had been feeling the past couple years made me really feel awful. I was not a happy person in general. Being back home and now getting a job in my new school has been amazing! Seriously the stress levels are way down (of course there is still typical daily stress but NOTHING near as major as the past couple years) and I work with some amazing people.<br />
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Thinking- oh my goodness friends. My little girl is growing up. She is starting pre-k3 next week and tonight we converted her toddler bed into a full bed. FULL bed folks. I can't believe it. She was so excited to have her big big bed (the toddler bed was her big bed) and her new sheets and comforter. She even brought her baby doll and monkey to bed with her.<br />
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Wanting- I want to lose some pounds. Well more than some...<br />
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And in order for that to happen I NEED to get back into a routine and get back to the gym!<br />
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3 trips I would love to take... this one was tough because I want to go a lot of places. I would love to go to Hawaii (my dad's been trying to convince me for years to go). I want to go to a LOT of places in Europe but especially Italy. And finally, I never thought I would want to visit Alaska but I have seen so many amazing pictures. Except I would prefer to take a cruise there.<br />
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If you want to join in the fun and are late to the party like me, click below!<br />
<center>
<a href="http://ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i593.photobucket.com/albums/tt15/04fallingstar/Custom%20Blog%20Design/Meghan%20Farley/3am_MF_button2_zps7f6923d7.png" height="auto" width="200" /></a></center>
<img src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u378/designbychristi/gina/sig.png" />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-11068110898771042772014-08-30T17:29:00.000-04:002014-08-30T17:29:17.970-04:00A Few of My Favorite ThingsImagine it: May rolls around and I know I am moving. And not teaching (so I thought). With limited space to store all my prized possessions (6 years worth of classroom "stuff") I had to make some cuts. I gave a ton of stuff to my friends thinking I wouldn't be needing it for a few years. Well here I am, needing just those things...and more.<br />
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Not many people understand that amount of time and money teachers spend in their classrooms making things go smoothly for their students (unless of course you are a teacher or know one). <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/content/school/teachers/">Office Depot</a> gets it. They launched a program called Teachers Change Lives to highlight classroom successes of educators. As teachers, we know that we don't just have what we need when we need it. And a lot of times it is up to us to get it or we don't have it at all.<br />
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Now being that I left a ton of stuff (or lost it in the move... I am convinced there is still a bin of "stuff" missing) I was ecstatic when <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/content/school/teachers/">Office Depot</a> contacted me to see if I would be interested in sharing how I use these materials in my classroom. Now, I don't know one teacher who doesn't love some school supplies. And the ones I received are high up there on my list of favorites!<br />
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The first thing I took out was the <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/925531/Sharpie-Permanent-Fine-Point-Markers-Assorted/">Sharpie markers</a>. I had a lot of labeling to do once I got my class list and I LOVE the vibrant colors and how easily they write. </div>
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I also labeled some paper bags for extra supplies. Each student will put all their extra pencils, erasers, crayons, etc in a lunch bag. This way when they need something, they can walk over to the shelf and get it out of the bag. Hopefully 4th graders can handle this!</div>
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The next thing I HAD to try was the <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/755245/Sharpie-Clear-View-Highlighters-Assorted-Pack/">Sharpie Clear View Highlighters</a>. How many times have you been highlighting and this happens...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrNQ_3RvMgeCvtlkVxEWlEzdn07RjOH0uZfGzzPZiIuQl3fo9QgnxtjNi3xMKvcYtgOgDU4BwYOF5s3-gCVjyy28WmMQ0gKVc1RIYZpYmGyGuwyr7Fi6Syr-X-PxeY8_EOJlMv_FpSLwc/s1600/odhigh1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrNQ_3RvMgeCvtlkVxEWlEzdn07RjOH0uZfGzzPZiIuQl3fo9QgnxtjNi3xMKvcYtgOgDU4BwYOF5s3-gCVjyy28WmMQ0gKVc1RIYZpYmGyGuwyr7Fi6Syr-X-PxeY8_EOJlMv_FpSLwc/s1600/odhigh1.png" height="187" width="320" /></a></div>
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You highlighted too far. It happens to me ALL. THE. TIME. Seriously. And almost always when I am trying to highlight which standards or parts of a standard I have covered. And then I have to get out a pencil and circle the part I haven't covered yet so that I can remember that I have no done it yet. These highlighters are not only fun... but they solved that problem for me!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGrtz_7wkH2ld5NXqFPOb3zQ2MkN2GL-f1jgQLfx-d-GZ8_XONb2L8eCDkMqeme179vITFiMJHdolsgkrD9MybzzLqtPqXKgv52OJ8XluYfIBBXG8UrGObXq9-kxKqX4oJn4LkCqK3RMs/s1600/odhigh2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGrtz_7wkH2ld5NXqFPOb3zQ2MkN2GL-f1jgQLfx-d-GZ8_XONb2L8eCDkMqeme179vITFiMJHdolsgkrD9MybzzLqtPqXKgv52OJ8XluYfIBBXG8UrGObXq9-kxKqX4oJn4LkCqK3RMs/s1600/odhigh2.png" height="300" width="320" /></a></div>
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You can see THROUGH the tip of the marker to see where to stop highlighting. Genius idea!</div>
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The last thing I want to show you is the <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/645126/Paper-Mate-InkJoy-300-RT-Retractable/">inkjoy pens</a>. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0O9nvIF3x9gge_O84y1cXXYgy9F4XEeA18flh2eA65esntF_5bo4svd1V1qSD2H1kWRAr5J1PJgkmBHjlsV4cK1LrUzw6kSlTuOq2a_7DIqbbmW-oOXkXVifBBS1fQbjp5una9LB6W6Y/s1600/odpens1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0O9nvIF3x9gge_O84y1cXXYgy9F4XEeA18flh2eA65esntF_5bo4svd1V1qSD2H1kWRAr5J1PJgkmBHjlsV4cK1LrUzw6kSlTuOq2a_7DIqbbmW-oOXkXVifBBS1fQbjp5una9LB6W6Y/s1600/odpens1.png" height="320" width="221" /></a></div>
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Now, I am sure most of you know about these pens. And if not, I highly suggest them. They are very affordable, write nice, and are such pretty colors. I am a sucker for a good pen and this one is on my list of favorites for sure. I don't ever grade papers in the same color. What I mean by that is, I don't ALWAYS use pink, or purple, or red. I don't want to associate one color with "bad" marks (in college we were told kids associate red as bad because teachers always marked up papers with red... even if the markings weren't always bad.) So I use different colors. And I love these pens for grading. But I also love to use them in my gradebook. I write the grades that are a C or better in purple and anything below a C in red. This helps me to see at a quick glance who is having a hard time. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwzSfWgIaIHVKnsm4NHr_AKqwTXOlN5Qb0GCwjaRzTKPMosgycaCLnyp0kkP-bCPs3CZbIMdSgeHJ86w8JT1DQ5GC6mckQRTxl8umOJxs41gV2MDiDTZOLzPtmc9eUwq3J3hGzUKOai_o/s1600/odpens2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwzSfWgIaIHVKnsm4NHr_AKqwTXOlN5Qb0GCwjaRzTKPMosgycaCLnyp0kkP-bCPs3CZbIMdSgeHJ86w8JT1DQ5GC6mckQRTxl8umOJxs41gV2MDiDTZOLzPtmc9eUwq3J3hGzUKOai_o/s1600/odpens2.png" height="320" width="187" /></a></div>
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So what does one do with ALL of these supplies? Well, put them in a teacher toolbox of course! I just made a new one for my new classroom (so I could keep my old one at home) and was so excited to fill it with brand new supplies! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv5QIzE5S809AbgAaf80q0HGsGiqKw6eUXutXJaAZxBThDjpygZUDqxOV0uAUzeUopLuOcSGpD7x0GfvWrMenG0heUa9AL7nJ04BLk9bWhG2xi22-lDTEO5tUIkLEHrcPiwufatDPDfJ8/s1600/drawers.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv5QIzE5S809AbgAaf80q0HGsGiqKw6eUXutXJaAZxBThDjpygZUDqxOV0uAUzeUopLuOcSGpD7x0GfvWrMenG0heUa9AL7nJ04BLk9bWhG2xi22-lDTEO5tUIkLEHrcPiwufatDPDfJ8/s1600/drawers.png" height="188" width="320" /></a></div>
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I didn't feature a couple things but want to make sure you know how amazing they are too. <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/268571/EXPO-Low-Odor-Dry-Erase-Markers/">Expo dry erase markers</a> I am sure every teacher with a white board knows about. I LOVE using colors on my board and am always buying these markers. I love being able to draw attention to certain things I am writing and will often grab a color to circle or underline on the board... I have been known to draw a thing or two on the board for my lesson too... even with my awful art skills. I also use the <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/838805/Paper-Mate-Flair-Porous-Point-Pens/">Paper Mate Flairs</a> for grading papers but I left those at school and forgot to take pictures. </div>
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Thank you so much Office Depot for supplying me with these AMAZING products. Make sure you check out the special offers on the deals I received in the mail. You can click the image below to be taken to the offer. </div>
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<a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/content/school/teachers/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXPskSpuWehcxzcvkF7w095lReoJ6oW0LJVHyuzJsWQP1AjcKCMiLmbkJn2eLEjb_TaGJszduJBAlSF9MDQF6YZyajx-PDcOzZihwUPs0V80Xj0ZfbY-YaWH6lgkINWh1OQh_ewXzB-yQ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-08-10+at+1.57.17+PM.png" height="111" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*I received these items from Office Depot to help facilitate this review. For more information about these products, please visit <a href="http://www.officedepot.com/a/content/school/teachers/">Office Depot</a>.* </span></div>
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<img src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u378/designbychristi/gina/sig.png" />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-31351690612871591142014-08-18T11:50:00.000-04:002014-08-18T11:54:20.798-04:00Monday Made It- and a BIG announcement So all summer I wasn't doing <a href="http://4thgradefrolics.blogspot.com/2014/08/monday-made-it-go-time.html">Monday Made It</a>. And I was sad, because linking up with Tara is so much fun! But I had nothing to make. I wasn't going back into the classroom and I was doing so much organizing in our new house that I sure wasn't making anything for my house. But that all changed on Friday....<br />
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Because I GOT A JOB!!!! I will be teaching 4th grade this year! And since I got rid of a lot of stuff before we moved (remember, I didn't think I would be teaching for a while so I got rid of it) I had to get to remaking. I also had one home project I was planning on doing (before I even interviewed for this job) so I will share that too.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh45lQXi1bcQk3w4h8k4th1VArgcgGUxNMrlaQxLoAZGMy_PUNM6Mva2Z8qN1elfgAurc46rqLmyxW3ncNiQNIKhqsS3HIUXm8TmQTSLj9syqg3Ko9McqjO75BsuxfsErF5OoQmGsV_1L4/s1600/Monday+Made+It+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh45lQXi1bcQk3w4h8k4th1VArgcgGUxNMrlaQxLoAZGMy_PUNM6Mva2Z8qN1elfgAurc46rqLmyxW3ncNiQNIKhqsS3HIUXm8TmQTSLj9syqg3Ko9McqjO75BsuxfsErF5OoQmGsV_1L4/s1600/Monday+Made+It+1.png" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga7iVIW7IrauvtbaNOxMHcimUsdOqP2jto3KOCcGuocBXiec8FbjZ2CuDfm4_bjdSDrd44gRrRWDaujmYN3y20bAdBGy5sJDF6RgSaU5zCPvuzM1vVUrf5EjJvN9qYucOjV2C7GQovfOM/s1600/Button+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga7iVIW7IrauvtbaNOxMHcimUsdOqP2jto3KOCcGuocBXiec8FbjZ2CuDfm4_bjdSDrd44gRrRWDaujmYN3y20bAdBGy5sJDF6RgSaU5zCPvuzM1vVUrf5EjJvN9qYucOjV2C7GQovfOM/s1600/Button+1.png" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
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My first project was to make new dry erase boards. Mine were 6 years old and I was limited on space so I gave them to my students. (Cue excitement from every single one of them!) I needed new ones so I went to Lowes (I needed something else there but Home Depot carries the same material) and got some of their white panel board (also called Thrifty White Panel Board or Shower Board). I think it was around $12 for a sheet. I had them cut it into rectangles (I was going to do 12x12 squares but I wanted a little extra room this year) and got 24 boards out of the $12.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj77WWpakLjFIINSMqe8qiO07xXTtQIgST4Sgnttc4p4hRDy1mA48Bcca1E4gC0T_rmOmTgJ9GX9h57pnitkZL_ecpLLMwVjKc-2lEp246LPGhiGrbKYVC0RGE1zqsWZK2syz2vVbJtCA/s1600/boardscut.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj77WWpakLjFIINSMqe8qiO07xXTtQIgST4Sgnttc4p4hRDy1mA48Bcca1E4gC0T_rmOmTgJ9GX9h57pnitkZL_ecpLLMwVjKc-2lEp246LPGhiGrbKYVC0RGE1zqsWZK2syz2vVbJtCA/s1600/boardscut.png" height="319" width="320" /></a></div>
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I also bought some duct tape to put around the edges for around $3 a roll. After cutting the tape by hand for a couple boards I decided to use my cutter instead (warning- the blade WILL get gunky from the tape, but nothing a little elbow grease won't take care of). </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8mopyhtH68pX-9df1Zb5BsVkA6gbIw8WQMJ6ntSrV5noe00Okx9XnLB5W0hNc_fJ-OQj_Mz-864fa_HbYr4xJXDS_U7-CwOYJ5KKZKuQ1mdHGaU3Wb9QkqppEC5zXmzGv3yWvzrSLx8/s1600/boardstape.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8mopyhtH68pX-9df1Zb5BsVkA6gbIw8WQMJ6ntSrV5noe00Okx9XnLB5W0hNc_fJ-OQj_Mz-864fa_HbYr4xJXDS_U7-CwOYJ5KKZKuQ1mdHGaU3Wb9QkqppEC5zXmzGv3yWvzrSLx8/s1600/boardstape.png" height="320" width="319" /></a></div>
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And I ended up with some pretty nice boards for under $20. (Please excuse the few boards with different tape, I ran out of the pink and didn't want to go back out, so I just used what I had at home.)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYaPOhkYsWaQwlHnisbfhsw7sMCvkOQcgHPoAuNDk0qiwt7WxtLidDxU49TF9AYWukwYRZFAaS7D1c66d_v0GkMxQeOB3GT91Qct4h0c-W7IDy__Kml1TKxQ49sR1JanGSNO9cTlTfTc/s1600/boardsfinished.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYaPOhkYsWaQwlHnisbfhsw7sMCvkOQcgHPoAuNDk0qiwt7WxtLidDxU49TF9AYWukwYRZFAaS7D1c66d_v0GkMxQeOB3GT91Qct4h0c-W7IDy__Kml1TKxQ49sR1JanGSNO9cTlTfTc/s1600/boardsfinished.png" height="320" width="318" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLE7L3WRATuoXL78VtvQB0Y9E3TvaK7pltRd9cr9HnV32Qu93vlvbUjDMOweYMzit-zJH7m8EVj7d_gxyQDnHTUtAWGRlaZl5GQYZ7-WdGjtuICSiHRUXIFkLXQ0upkhNTDpT1ajVLIlk/s1600/boardsfinished2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLE7L3WRATuoXL78VtvQB0Y9E3TvaK7pltRd9cr9HnV32Qu93vlvbUjDMOweYMzit-zJH7m8EVj7d_gxyQDnHTUtAWGRlaZl5GQYZ7-WdGjtuICSiHRUXIFkLXQ0upkhNTDpT1ajVLIlk/s1600/boardsfinished2.png" height="262" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRi86IZQ_W2_P2Q862zSMrZqWmzAJHb_n90yYBHVprW0LA0M6cKsYbcFzkwNrj8imy77teUzCdXcta5NdB2gC0x1ujecpSmRGjqTn00AkiNoPMef6-SYH75Xvl7JzVgNqaJ_5fpVa0J8o/s1600/Button+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRi86IZQ_W2_P2Q862zSMrZqWmzAJHb_n90yYBHVprW0LA0M6cKsYbcFzkwNrj8imy77teUzCdXcta5NdB2gC0x1ujecpSmRGjqTn00AkiNoPMef6-SYH75Xvl7JzVgNqaJ_5fpVa0J8o/s1600/Button+2.png" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
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The second thing I needed to make was a new teacher toolbox. I didn't leave mine in Memphis but I got so used to having it on my desk in my office that I had to make a new one for my class. Plus, I wanted one that would match my colors anyways. So I got the <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_354713-941-DSB-22-3_0__?productId=3381356&Ntt=22+drawer&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3D22%2Bdrawer&facetInfo=">22 compartment storage container</a> from Lowes (my home depot didn't have them so check before you go) and some black spray paint (for plastic). I made my new labels (which you can find under my freebies tab here- the first thing I am loading on my freebies tab!) and got to working. I decided to arrange the labels on my computer before deciding on colors so I knew I liked the way it would look in the drawers. Once I got that done, I printed and cut them out. I used double sided tape to tape the labels to the inside of the drawers (rookie mistake on my first set a couple years ago- I have the labels on the outside and they are a mess now). I just stuck a strip down each side of the label and stuck it to the drawer. You can't even see the tape!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFoQGNj5L1ienF5p3C3WFxo7569dHuBRp2daBSgZelVWqafbn1a5hZYZebKEL9kiZBBa7J9rw3io8BDN6BjvTFO68zZzAJ_hv-ntKgpmcE24Y5x21GWaLk5erbtgX6lN0JMvceEuZGdEs/s1600/labels.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFoQGNj5L1ienF5p3C3WFxo7569dHuBRp2daBSgZelVWqafbn1a5hZYZebKEL9kiZBBa7J9rw3io8BDN6BjvTFO68zZzAJ_hv-ntKgpmcE24Y5x21GWaLk5erbtgX6lN0JMvceEuZGdEs/s1600/labels.png" height="262" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMuC9lvSuGTsk-Yzw3s4F_CjFHaWUcpiUeDoIamNrGOAF6vdZfS9vy_gOUPuCTETtIgLCQZBzzE-b2ezqdG_aJIdE2jn4ZilsSOZ7HeyH4wYwb9ItwVAdB-ECQKNWxuujkXhiG479CQAg/s1600/drawers.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMuC9lvSuGTsk-Yzw3s4F_CjFHaWUcpiUeDoIamNrGOAF6vdZfS9vy_gOUPuCTETtIgLCQZBzzE-b2ezqdG_aJIdE2jn4ZilsSOZ7HeyH4wYwb9ItwVAdB-ECQKNWxuujkXhiG479CQAg/s1600/drawers.png" height="188" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXVBva4oXbX74VogAfmHYuPcl0sqq3kAjYMQGcNHTiatCg9sKIaarZidCSUM41zo0m-RGzuVZ-B7mM_y3XZBr_PA3stYR281lr39b1DWwrwYvDuKhDRadAERP4OEpRwj6uy6lYuVDILw/s1600/Button+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXVBva4oXbX74VogAfmHYuPcl0sqq3kAjYMQGcNHTiatCg9sKIaarZidCSUM41zo0m-RGzuVZ-B7mM_y3XZBr_PA3stYR281lr39b1DWwrwYvDuKhDRadAERP4OEpRwj6uy6lYuVDILw/s1600/Button+3.png" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
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My final craft was a home craft. I have wanted a white desk for my office but I couldn't justify buying a new one when the one we had is in perfect condition (despite being really old- it was my parents'). So I finally got the courage to paint it white. Here is what I needed for this project...</div>
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<a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_45661-90-2004_0__?productId=3610418&Ntt=zinnser+primer&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dzinnser%2Bprimer&facetInfo=">Zinnser Primer </a></div>
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Paint Samples (I used Valspar white) and paint brushes</div>
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and some <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_45887-24-65555444_0__?productId=3098873&Ntt=polycrilic&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dpolycrilic&facetInfo=">Polycrilic</a></div>
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I started with the primer. After that dried I painted the desk white. Once paint was dry I added the polycrilic finish. No sanding needed. Super easy (minus the fact that I kept stepping in paint splatters and had paint all over me).</div>
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Here is the before and after...</div>
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(disclaimer- the desk before is a picture from our old house when we first moved in)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmMI1D1kycNe2-ah_E3TMjPYfxhkI65mT_urGAiSzIy4nWjbNQYi4QkULjgAU5PSXABDfosJ07hjYgbS-XeTTHW3G2DHZnpl2cp5rsd5oriM3zGA0_EhJV9-15sJ9CjWiq6Fa0GOfGGk/s1600/desk+before.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmMI1D1kycNe2-ah_E3TMjPYfxhkI65mT_urGAiSzIy4nWjbNQYi4QkULjgAU5PSXABDfosJ07hjYgbS-XeTTHW3G2DHZnpl2cp5rsd5oriM3zGA0_EhJV9-15sJ9CjWiq6Fa0GOfGGk/s1600/desk+before.png" height="318" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQWgQhKPFRIJOsytHLmfIqtTJTKFIGZ1gifNu0_046YV0_5xZ7ogs_v_1RCQjwww-pYrO0UdPipB7r2DBEfoerx8j6BKPr1-JQCrQOuRsi8uITPn_oXP1UwAp8O5muxkQUTgxKf2H_8M/s1600/desk+now.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQWgQhKPFRIJOsytHLmfIqtTJTKFIGZ1gifNu0_046YV0_5xZ7ogs_v_1RCQjwww-pYrO0UdPipB7r2DBEfoerx8j6BKPr1-JQCrQOuRsi8uITPn_oXP1UwAp8O5muxkQUTgxKf2H_8M/s1600/desk+now.png" height="261" width="320" /></a></div>
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With the new job, and being a different grade, I have decided to change my blog name. Be on the lookout for a new look and name with the same great content later this year (once I make a final decision on the design anyways.) Now, if you will excuse me, I have a LOT to do to get ready for a new grade in a new school!!!<br />
<img src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u378/designbychristi/gina/sig.png" />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-706866616154600985.post-7789409325357192182014-08-11T08:00:00.000-04:002014-08-11T08:00:00.057-04:00Take a bite out of shark week! All teachers know that kids learn more when they’re excited and engaged. Today a team of bloggers have come together to help your students take a BITE out of learning with a theme your students are sure to love!<br />
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<a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-rrxSC3PkE5M/U-WezA9vexI/AAAAAAAAMAk/k6XNxvkFLjM/s1600-h/Slide5%25255B6%25255D.png"><img alt="Slide5" border="0" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-BATFqyLtFBo/U-We0QIke3I/AAAAAAAAMAs/ETR7rnIvkH8/Slide5_thumb%25255B4%25255D.png?imgmax=800" height="358" style="background-image: none; border: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Slide5" width="450" /></a></div>
One way that I keep my students engaged is to allow them to have choice (when appropriate) and explore their interests (again when appropriate). For example, last year, we were outside for recess and I noticed a few of my boys digging into some hole with a stick. I got a little worried and called for them to come over to me. They told me that they had thought there was an animal burrowed in that hole and they wanted to what it was. After me warning them not to put their hands ANYWHERE near that hole (hey- I am not about to be responsible if something jumps out!), I told them they could investigate with a LARGE stick. When we got back inside, this group of boys decided to form their own research group. They even came up with a name for themselves (but for the life of me, I can not remember what it was now). Every single day when they had free time and/or finished work early, they were rushing to the computers to research animals that live underground. They even checked books out of the library. Did it have anything to do with what I was teaching?! Absolutely not. But, they were engaged and working on researching skills, which made me happy.<br />
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And while we are talking about topics students are interested in... how about a shark week<br />
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<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-DRrS3j5WOEU/U-We155SthI/AAAAAAAAMA0/dLjSkx8S4wc/s1600-h/Slide%25252010.png%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img alt="Slide 10.png" border="0" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-7H6Hwk0jowM/U-We3AurHeI/AAAAAAAAMA8/eygE94e_zts/Slide%25252010.png_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" height="103" style="background-image: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="Slide 10.png" width="563" /></a></div>
For some reason, kids love sharks. (Me, not so much..) and because of that one of the first passages I wrote for my compare and contrast passages was about sharks. If you haven't seen this product, it includes 6 original nonfiction passages that students can use to compare and contrast. And it just so happens that the shark one is FREE!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL0fa0ShNsrq7m7TbkZzHDOc_4AwEGic6kZHZBqNIhnTdHUTAPA0-ktLF3nmd4xkJohDGOwl5B4CjwerKFjYzcZT7UUq8V20STkTzglNXgNHeWCffsTZt1fNonUbhYtsr3TRjCy7z3n0M/s1600/sharks.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL0fa0ShNsrq7m7TbkZzHDOc_4AwEGic6kZHZBqNIhnTdHUTAPA0-ktLF3nmd4xkJohDGOwl5B4CjwerKFjYzcZT7UUq8V20STkTzglNXgNHeWCffsTZt1fNonUbhYtsr3TRjCy7z3n0M/s1600/sharks.png" height="320" width="317" /></a></div>
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Click <a href="http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Comparing-and-Contrasting-Nonfiction-Passages-FREEBIE-sample-1170248">HERE</a> to try it out!<br />
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Now- Just keep swimming, just keep swimming... right through the rest of this blog hop! Every blog in the Shark Week Blog Hop features a fishy freebie for you and your students- but hurry! Shark Week only lasts until Sunday, August 17th :)<!-- start InLinkz script --><br />
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<img src="http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/u378/designbychristi/gina/sig.png" />Gina S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04555650347021038332noreply@blogger.com3