I May Have a Problem...

The first step is admitting it, right? HA!

This was my first week of summer vacation and I spent time working! 

I know. 

What is wrong with me?

I just couldn't help it...

Actually, it started last Friday evening after the last day of school as my family was watching yet another superhero movie. 

You see I had brought home some things, knowing I would be inspired to work this summer at some point. As I was putting things away, there was next year's calendar which is filled with changes. I can't even begin to explain it to you, and I know you don't want to hear it so I'll just skip right over that part. I figured I should just jot out my yearly reading and math plans at least. Not too taxing, and I would feel like I accomplished something big.

Then on Tuesday (I think, the days are already running together without a schedule), my daughter's softball game was postponed (again) and I was putting away more school stuff. 

This time my Reading Wonders samples...

We are getting Wonders for next year.

 I cannot wait!

We had Reading Street from what seems like forever ago--actually I think 9-10 years.

I know some people don't like using a basal series.

I love using a basal series.

And no, I do not follow it religiously.

It is a resource that I use to guide my instruction, and my students love reading stories from what we call the "big books."

So my head is already filling with how I will use all of the wonderful resources...

As I was admiring the samples once again, I realized I would need new "I have...who has...?" games!

Here's how (and why) I use them with a reading series:

I take the high-frequency words from each unit and make a game. Each unit is five weeks long, so I pull out the game in week 1. 

We play the game once or twice a week (usually in small groups during Daily 5) so the students are exposed to the all the words from the beginning of the unit. By the end of the unit, even my lowest readers have those words mastered!

 As you probably guessed, I got busy right away creating my games. 

One new thing I am definitely doing next year is data notebooks, so I also made assessment checklists to go along with the games.

I cannot wait to get them all printed and prepped for my classroom!

If you're interested, you can check them out in our TPT store: 

Buy the bundle and save $10!!!

Set 1

Set 2

Set 3

Set 4

Set 5

Set 6

This week was not all work though!

We celebrated my daughter's 15th birthday...with superheroes!

What else?

 

I've decided her fascination with superheroes--Captain America, especially--is not unlike my fascination with action movies at her age (think Bloodsport, Kickboxer, The Terminator...).

She insisted we take a picture with her cake to prove how dorky I am...what can I say?

13 + 2 =15

And that works when you realize you don't have anymore candles.

:-)

Superspeed 100 in Reading!

This is a new game that we started this week and the kids absolutely love it and beg me to do it!  I found it at Whole Brain Teaching.  They actually use high frequency words in their game, but since we are later in the year, I decided to make up my own and do the words that we are working on for the week.  (I plan to use the high frequency word one at the beginning of next year and I have started using it in my MTSS groups this year).  They have also made a math one, that I would like to incorporate as well. 

 

 

 

To play the game, the students work with their shoulder buddy.  They have to decide who is going to go first.  You time them for one minute and when you tell them to begin one person reads the first word, then the other person reads the next word and so on.  If their partner doesn't know a word, the other partner can help them with the word.  When the timer stops they mark the spot they ended up at and then they do it one more time with the other student starting first.  The goal is for them to try to get past the word they made it to. 

 

My students made the goal to try to reach the end of it by the end of the week.  Many of them made that goal while others went further by the end of the week.  I noticed that when reading our stories for the week, when they came to the word that we were working on, they remembered it, YAY!  It is so easy to do and only takes 2 minutes out of your day and the best thing is that the kids love it! 

 

Hope you have a great week!