And the winner is..

Congrats to Elizabeth of First Grade Frolics who was the winner of my 1st grade Common Core Assessment Pack!!

If you missed my post about this yesterday, click {here}. If want to pick one up for yourself click {HERE} or on the picture below.

By popular request, I am working on sets for the other grades as well.

Reading all your comments totally helped me get through Day 9 of training today. How will I get through my last day tomorrow???

Common Core Assessment

I am dreaming Common Core. That is just wrong on so many levels. Especially since I read Fifty Shades of Grey recently. WOW, that was an eye opener. BIG mistake to read an erotic book while my husband was out of town. HUGE. I was super happy to see him when he got home. :-) Am I over-sharing? My cheeks are pink just typing this.  

Anyway, what kind of lame brain focuses on the Common Core over a Red Room fantasy??  One that has sat through 8 days of training, perhaps?

One of the shifts in the Common Core is the idea that learning will be proven through student explanation. It seems to me that many of these standards will best be assessed through observation. To keep myself organized, I made checklists for each strand (ELA) and domain (math.) 

One set has each standard listed across the top. 

The second set has the cluster headings and space to write in the activity, skill, etc. Many districts break their report card down into similar headings so I thought this would be helpful.

I plan to put one set on a clipboard for me to jot down quick formative assessments. My district uses 3=at grade level standard, 2=approaching standard, and 1=below standard but you could easily use +, ✓, − or your own system.

I plan to hole-punch another set for my grade book to record summative assessments.

I was also thinking these checklists would help me form intervention groups.  As I observe students struggling, I can quickly highlight the standard on their names and voila, small group formed!

 
     As I familiarize myself with these new standards, I thought it also might help to check off each standard as I teach it. This will ensure I hit all of them throughout the year and will illustrate which standards need more attention.

 If you think this might be helpful, click {HERE} to visit my TpT store. 

Would you like to win a FREE copy? Just leave a comment below about anything {Common Core, the kinky book, let me know that you pinned this, a question you have for me, something else you'd like to see me make,  ANYTHING just talk to me peeps} and I'll pick a winner as I sit attentively in day 9 of training tomorrow. ;-)

Anyone interested in me making one of these packs for a different grade level?

Common Core PD & some reviews

I was contacted by Educational Insights and asked to review Classroom Jeopardy.

This electronic version of the classic game is engaging for our high-tech students. My own two sons (4th & 6th grade) couldn't wait to take it home and set it up. They were able to figure out how to hook it up to our T.V. by themselves although they were only able to get two of the scoreboards to work.

The game includes remotes to buzz in and even white board paddles to write down your wager.
It came with a USB stick with sample games on it.

The questions were geared more for upper elementary so my sons had fun but I couldn't see my first graders using it. I understand that you can write your own questions and they even have a site for teachers to share the ones they have made. I so wanted to make questions around our insect unit and use it with my first graders but the end of the year was just too crazy.

My friend Jennifer did me a favor though and tested it in a classroom with her 4th graders. She said they loved it and were even asking to stay in at recess to keep playing!

This game comes in a large, sturdy case so I decided to put it in our staff room and share it.

Maybe you can get your principal or PTO to buy it as a shared resource for your site?

I also wanted to let my upper-grade readers know that my friend Jessica recently posted a TpT item that I think you will want to check out. 

 The idea is similar to my Sight Word Superstars program that I've posted about before in that it gives a systematic way to track and encourage your students to learn their facts.

The upper grade teachers at our school got together and decided that although multiplication is taught in 3rd grade it would be 4th grade where they were expected to master it. The 5th grade passed the Big Blue G (a multiplication competition in which the winning class gets- you guessed it, the coveted Big Blue G) down to 4th grade 2 years ago. The winning class now gets to redecorate the large wooden G and hang it proudly in their classroom (not sure why it is a G, I think it was just a weird thing that was lying around that became a joke.) The bragging rights are HUGE!  Jessica's class has now won 2 years in a row! So if you are looking for a way to improve multiplication mastery just click HERE to go check her ideas out.

I'd like to say I am enjoying my summer but my first week was spent in PD on Common Core ELA. :-( No sun or fun for me. Next week is the same but the focus is math. Since I seem to be promoting others today, I thought I'd share that my fellow 1st grade teachers at the PD loved Anna Brantley's Common Core Essential Questions posters. I haven't bought them yet so I don't have great pics but they look like they would be helpful and are cute so I thought I give her a shout out!

This brought up the world of TpT and blogging and my coach spoke up and outed me!  (Thanks a lot, Carmen!)  :-) I guess it is fine that people in my district know that I blog, it is just new to talk to someone about it face to face! :-) Anyway, I have lots of common core ideas floating around so I will post about some of that next time! Enjoy the sun for me!

Ant and Graduation Art

Yesterday we made these cute graduation kids. I originally got this idea last year from PeaceLoveKindergarten and you can grab the writing paper from my old post HERE. The kids just LOVE the addition of the real tassle!

Cool eye color!

He told me his short hair wouldn't show. TRUE!

Love the curls!

She made braids like her real hair!

We just finished learning about ants and read Hey Little Ant.

 I decided to make a little more detailed version of an idea I saw on  PeaceLoveKindergarten. I emailed them to find out how they would feel about me sharing my templates but I haven't heard back yet.

1.5 more days. Between baseball playoffs and report cards I am seriously behind in my blog reading. 

Is it weird that I am looking forward to summer so I can reconnect with you bloggers??

Metamorphosis Chorus

I hope you all had a terrific 3 day weekend! My son was in a tournament so mine was full of baseball, baseball, and more baseball!

We have been studying insects for 6 weeks. As a culminating activity of our insect unit we put on an event called the Metamorphosis Chorus. We perform 14 songs and poems in front of our parents.

The week before the big day, the students create their own special insect shirt.
1. One of our talented teammates does directed drawings with the kids of Eric Carle inspired insects.
2. The students pick their favorite drawing and parent volunteers trace their pencil lines with black sharpie.
3. Their drawing is taped on a a piece of cardboard and inserted into the shirt. The shirt is pulled tight (so black lines show through) and taped in the back.
4. Students use fabric markers to color in their design and puffy paint to outline, using the black lines as a guide.

Don't they turn out great?

I tried to get a shot of all 120 kids (4 classes) during the performance.

Here is my wild bunch. Don't they look angelic? HA!

 2.5 days to go!