The Daily 5 - Chapter 3

 I'm blog hoppin with Mrs. Freshwater's Class & Thinking Out Loud for Chapter 3 of our book study.

This chapter has really helped me look at my teaching practices and how I can improve Daily 5 in my class.  In this chapter we read about the establishing a gathering place, good fit books, anchor charts, setting up book boxes, short intervals of repeated practice, signals and check-in, and correct model/incorrect model.  WOW, this chapter covers so many important pieces of Daily 5.  Here are my thoughts on a couple of the sections they covered.   

GOOD FIT BOOKS
When teaching Good Fit Books I have always used the shoes and books lessons "the sisters"  share  in their book.  These are great concrete activities that allow children to grasp the concept.  Last year I also read The Best Book to Read.  This year I plan to revisit these lessons throughout the year to help students continue to make smart book selections.  Click below to download my I PICK poster to use in your classroom.



Click Here to Download I PICK Poster

 ANCHOR CHARTS
Along with Daily 5 I have also been reading Reading with Meaning and Comprehension Connections this summer.  These 3 books have really brought home the importance of anchor charts.  I then went to a math workshop for the common core and yes they used anchor charts too.  It looks like I may need a lot of chart paper this year.  When introducing each choice I plan to make an I chart with the class and post them at my group area.  I will post my anchor charts at my guided reading area to refer to as needed.  I remade my I charts to match my new anchor charts.  Click below if you would like to download my I Charts and Anchor Charts.
   

Click Here to Download Anchor Charts

Click Here to Download I Charts (Legal Size)

CHECK-IN
After reading this sections I wanted to make some changed to allow my students to have more opportunity to discuss how they did.  I don't want it to be all about me cheering them on.  I definitely plan to have my students do the Thumb check in.  I loved how they had students give a thumbs up in front of their heart to signal they new in their heart they were independent and successful with behaviors.  I also liked the sideways thumb to show they could do better and no thumbs down because everyone has some good behaviors.  This will be great to use with some of the whole brain teaching strategies I plan to implement.

Check out the other posts for Chapter 3 at Mrs. Freshwater's Class & Thinking Out Loud.

The Daily 5 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2 is all about the foundational principles of Daily 5:

1  Trust...The Sisters talk about building trust with our students and taking time to show we care.  That's why we teach, but sometimes it is easy to get caught up in the lessons.  By teaching, modeling and practicing behaviors our students can be independent learners.  When we trust our students to be independent learners we can teach our guided reading groups. 

2  Choice...The students in my class love choosing where & how they work during Daily 5.  I allow them to make their choices as long as they work their way through all the Daily 5 activities.  What I need to work on is having students ask themselves what their goals are and then plan their day using the questions on page 20.  I love the posters all the bloggers made for Getting Started.  This has just been added to my to do list.  I'll work on posting one soon.

Purpose + Choice = Motivation

3  Community...I love how every year my class is unique.  They come together with their different personalities and experience and always blow me away. 

4  Sense of Urgency...Prior to Daily 5 did I ever tell my students why we read???  It makes sense.  Urgency comes from understanding that reading everyday will help you become a better reader.

5  Stamina...The Sisters compare building stamina for reading to building stamina for exercise.  What an awesome analogy.  For the past 3 years I have used a plain old graph to chart my class' stamina and it is a great motivator.  I may have to change this year and use the thermometer on Teaching with Style.  I love this idea.  Check out the link to download the stamina graph.

Teaching with Style

6  Stay Out Of The Way...Okay, this makes sense.  If I'm not going to walk around the room checking in all year I shouldn't do it in the beginning.

Looking forward to chapter 3!

The Daily 5 - Chapter 1

I am so excited to join this book study and reread the Daily 5.  I have already downloaded a ton of freebies and can't wait to contribute my thoughts and yes more freebies. 

I first read the Daily 5 three years ago and vividly remember working all summer to prepare my classroom.  I am happy to report that three years later I am close to having all of my books labeled.  Thanks to Scholastic book orders my bins are full and I am now looking for ways to improve each component.  As I was working in my classroom library, I decided to make new labels for the leveled book tub.  Download them to use in your class.  I just laminate and hot glue them to the front of my tubs.  I'll snap some pictures of the library and post them soon.  

Click (here) to Download!

Prior to Daily 5 my class completed centers while I worked with guided reading groups.  Yes, it was loud and chaotic.  I was constantly having to leave my group to check students and everyone finished their centers at different times.  I definitely do not miss those days.  The structure of Daily 5 has made a huge impact on my instruction. 

No papers to grade + No centers to prepare = Time to focus on comprehension & reading strategies.


Come and Join the Daily 5 Linky Party at Lory's Page.

Sundays at Staples

Today I remembered what I love about Sundays during the summer...checking out the deals at Staples.  I always go in with the intention of purchasing only the penny deals and end up finding way too many other "deals."  Today was no exception.  Staples has outsmarted me by spreading their Extreme Deals all over the store.  By the time I found everything I was looking for I ended going up and down each isle several times.  Luckily, I also came up with a couple of new ideas as I walked all over the store.  I am really excited about my new mini magnetic clipboard.  I plan to hang it on the side of my desk for students to leave me notes.  They love to tape their art work to my desk already and I hope this is a new way I can get them writing more.  I made a cute sign to hang with the clipboard and posted it on Google docs for everyone to download.  I'm still working on what to do with my mini storage containers but what teacher doesn't need more containers!

Staples Purchase

Mini Magnetic Clipbaord

Click (Here) to Download!

Race to Addition!

Mental Math Differentiation

The race is on!  I finally finished the activities for my new keychains.  It grew from simple flashcards into a unit.  I'm really excited to begin using this next year.  I am hopeful that these key cards will allow my students to work their way through the strategies without being left behind.  I have tried several different approaches to differentiate instruction and I always feel overwhelmed trying to keep up with who has mastered what and then planning activities.  I plan to continue to use my addition strategy lessons and then use this unit and games to practice strategies.  In this unit each strategy has a set of cards to go on a keychain.  There are pit stops (assessments) and awards for each addition strategy.  I started with the seven strategies; plus zero, counting on one, counting on two, doubles, near doubles, make ten, and the last six.  I also included combinations of 5, combinations of 10 and ten & some more facts.  I'm giving away the Plus Zero activities and you can check out the rest of the Race to Addition unit at TPT. 



RACE TO ADDITION UNIT!

PLUS ZERO FREEBIE!



 

Happy Father's Day
This year for Father's Day our whole family went on an excursion.  My husband has been wanting to go to Harbor Freight Tools for a long time and we surprised him with breakfast out and a shopping spree.  We browsed every isle with all three children, a cart, and a double stroller.  To top off the trip I even found a couple items for my class.  Check out this paper cutter I got for $7.99 and 12 key chains for $0.99!  I'm already brainstorming ideas for the key chains.  I'm thinking addition strategies.  Each strategy can have it's own color.  I'll post the cards I make for the key chains soon.

Half Day Planning

It never seems like there is enough time to plan so last year our school implemented 1/2 day planning at the end of each quarter. It is amazing how much we can accomplish when we work together and are given a big chunk of time. We spend most of our day looking at math for the next quarter and ways we can improve lessons. To make our data unit more hands-on we planned some new line plot lessons. Check them out and let me know how you like them.

Beginning My Blog & Doubles Game

I am so excited to finally have a blog. This is my first and I can't wait to start sharing ideas and activities that I use in my first grade class. I have always loved using Publisher to create new activities and through blogs I have discovered the endless fonts, borders, and clipart out there. It is amazing how many ideas are out there and how much easier they make my job. I hope this blog helps other teachers as much as I have benefited from the incredible blogs already sharing.

Our first graders have been working hard to master addition strategies. Right now they play a lot of Doubles and Near Doubles games. To celebrate this first post I am sharing one of their favorite games...Double Dare. Do you remember this game show from the 80's? In this card game students have to answer double addition problems or complete a challenge. The physical challenges in this game are not messy like the TV show but the kids had a blast trying to do the challenges.