5 for FRIDAY!

It's Five for Friday time with Doodle Bugs!

It's COUNTDOWN time!! We are in our last quarter of the school year. YAHOO!! We are preparing for our state test and then SUMMER!! I had to download a countdown app to keep track of days until summer and days until my daughter and I visit New York City! She will be attending a week long camp there and her and I are super excited to go back!

We have been working a lot on vocabulary this year. Not just definitions, but the etymology of words, word parts, spelling patterns, etc. It's my hope that understanding the aspects of words will also help students with the spelling of words. I needed something new for them to do at Word Work time during Daily 5 rounds. I came up with a board game called Words by Number. These seasonal game boards can be used with any vocabulary or spelling list. Basically, each student in the class creates their own list of words. These lists can be generated from weekly spelling words, reading vocabulary, content area vocabulary, or seasonal words. It's up to you. Partners exchange lists. When a student lands on a number he or she has to spell or define the word on their list that corresponds with that number. The directions are left open so you are able to meet the needs of your students. I love the fact these games allow for differentiation with spelling/vocabulary words. 

Download the PREVIEW for a FREEBIE and check out my  Winter Spell by Number Freebie (same game different name),

Our state test is drawing nearer. In these last few weeks before the test, I concentrate on test taking strategies.  For reading practice, I explain to the kids that reading test passages are considered a genre. We have to read those passages differently then we read our books for pleasure. During a test, we are reading to answer questions. I suggest to my kids that before reading the passage, they take "mental notes". This is my idea of prereading. I have the students look at the title and any pictures or text features. I tell them to jot quick notes. This gets their brain ready to read. They are doing a good job and I think they actually like it!

I am just LOVING Pop Art from Art by Jenny K. You have to check out her store! Kids need time to stretch their creative muscles. These coloring sheets are perfect. With Pop Art, students have to think about colors and patterns. I shared the work of Romero Britto with the class before they started. I am telling you they LOVE these projects. The end result makes a nice display and students have to think! They worked on these spring pictures during fun Friday time.

She offers freebies and lots of seasonal packs. I had to get this one for all year long.

Our fairy tale study is underway. The kids have fairy tales in their book boxes, I have them displayed around the room, and they are really enjoying them. 

My new favorite addition to my collection is

Princess Tales: Once Upon a Time in Rhyme with Seek-and-Find Pictures

I had to tell my kids that princess stories are not from Disney. They were shocked! LOL! This book is beautifully illustrated!

 It covers many of the favorites and some not-so-common stories.

The book also has a Seek-and-Find at the end of each story. Boys and girls are reading this book!

During this unit study, I will use graphic organizers from my "All About" Genres: Traditional Literature pack. These are great for finding the elements of this genre or has a prewriting form if you have kids write stories in this genre. I also like my kids to write response letters to me referring to the "All About" organizer.

Thanks for stopping by!