Donors Choose

Woo hoo!!  My first Donors Choose project just got funded!

Inviting, Exciting Activities to Entice Little Learners

 I started writing the project last fall and kept putting on the back burner all year, finally submitting it in the spring.  I'm glad I finally pushed through and did it!

I have so enjoyed all the wonderful ideas I have have seen on teacher blogs, Pinterest, and TPT, but I never had enough printer ink, cardstock, and laminating film to complete all the hands on activities I wanted for my students, not to mention a great space for organizing the materials.  So I wrote up a proposal for it!  Now it's funded and I can't wait to jump right in this fall!

Here's what I got:

Great storage!

cardstock

laminating film

color printer ink

What is DonorsChoose?

If you haven't heard of Donors Choose or are wondering what it's all about, you really must check it out!  Donors Choose is a nonprofit organization that connects teachers with those who would like to donate funds for specific projects.  How does it work?

1. A teacher submits a project idea he or she would like to implement, complete with a list of necessary materials.  The project is priced and posted on the Donors Choose website.
2. Potential donors go to the website, look through the proposals and choose a project they would like to support.
3. Once your project has received enough donations to cover the full cost of the project, Donors Choose sends you the materials.

The Donors Choose website leads you step by step through the process, so it really is easy to submit an idea.  They also have so many helpful resources on their site to help you create a great proposal.



They also have a Facebook page, a newsletter, and a blog to provide more information, tips, and opportunities.

And there's more...

There are a few great funding opportunities around right now.

Laura Candler at Corkboard Connections Blog is such a fan of Donors Choose , she donates to a new project every week.  She also has wonderful advice and a must see webinar.

 

Jennifer at Herding Kats in Kindergarten is having a Donors Choose gift certificate Giveaway!  You have three chances to win:

So, go check it out and get a proposal submitted this summer!

~Nikki

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Newbie Blog Hop

I am linking up with Grade Three is the Place for Me for my first Blog Hop!  To join the fun answer these questions and link up!
If you're just hopping through, check out all the new blogs (see below).  Lots to see and read!

    1.  what state you are in

I am in Richmond, Virginia.

    2.  your current teaching position

I teach first grade in a Title I school.

    3.  your teaching experience

 I have been teaching for 16 years - 14 in first grade.

    4.  when you started blogging

I started my blog exactly one month ago today!

    5.  share a blogging tip / blogging resource

Since I am new at this, I may not have much to offer, but here ya go:

• Remove the word verification from your comment section.  It's so hard to read and there really isn't that much spam anyway.
• Make sure you have a blog button for sharing.  If you don't have one - make one!  And if you don't know how - google it!  There are tons of tutorials.  I used one from The 3AM Teacher.
• And speaking of tutorials, if you don't how to do something you want for your blog, there is probably a tutorial out there somewhere.  Find it, try it, and ask another blogger if you need help.  The good thing about teacher bloggers is teachers are ever so helpful!

I'm off to hop around, read some new blogs and find some new ideas!

~Nikki

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New Teacher Blog Tuesday and a Froggy Freebie

Dana at Fun in 1st Grade has been kind enough to share her forum with others and I am so excited to be featured on New Teacher Blog Tuesday!

To celebrate, I'm sharing a bit of something I've been working on.  Here's a froggy math mat to use when composing/decomposing numbers or telling math stories for addition.

Download the preview file to get the Free  Froggy Math Mat!

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Station Rotation with a Twist and a Turn

Literacy stations, centers, work stations - whatever you call them - are a staple in many elementary classrooms these days.  While they only last an hour or so in most classrooms, they sure can pack a big punch if done well.

Stations include all those independent  literacy activities the kids wreck work on while the teacher meets with small groups for guided reading.  So, all we have to do is place all the kids in the appropriate guided reading groups, set up and stock anywhere from 5 - 10 stations, teach all the procedures (so they don't wreck stuff), and organize a rotation schedule. 

Geez, just writing that made me short of breath.  It's a HUGE task that takes weeks and weeks to get underway and additional time every single day to maintain.  It's got to be organized and well structured in order to be effective for the class and not too time consuming for the teacher.

One way to streamline the process is to have an effective station/group rotation system in place.

My school uses the Debbie Diller model for literacy work stations and I LOVE so much of what she shares.  The one sticking point for me is the stations rotation schedule.  I just don't like to move all those cards around a pocket chart.  I don't know what it is - I always dreaded it.  So I stopped.

But, how to organize all my little critters and keep them on task?   Back to the wheel!

About 10 years ago, we were really jumping into small group guided reading and centers.  We had no guidelines or instruction as to how to make this work, so we just had to dive in and figure it out.  That's when I found this book:

I immediately loved the way she organized group rotations.  All students are in two groups - a guided reading group (homogeneous) and a work station group  (heterogeneous), so guided reading groups do not have the same kids as work station groups.

Here's how it looks in my class.

• I have about 20 students. 
• I like to have 2 students in each work station group so I need to have 10 stations.  
• I pair a 'high' student with a 'middle' student or a 'middle' student with a 'low' student so there is an ability difference but the difference is not too wide.  This way, students can help each other and they get to work with different kids than they work with in guided reading groups.

 I use Pavelka's handy dandy rotation wheel to make it all work.  The outer wheel contains the stations and the inner wheel the names of the students - this wheel is attached with a brad and turns.

CLICK HERE for detailed directions.

After each guided reading group, a student turns the center yellow wheel clockwise one block and the kids move to the next station.  Students will complete 1 to 3 stations each day.
(You can see some of the stations HERE.)

No, not every kid goes to every station a certain number of times every week.  But that's okay.
Everyone is getting either a small group guided reading lesson or focused literacy station activities during the reading hour.  Just because they are not doing the same thing does not mean they are not getting what they need.

The best part?  I don't have to change any cards in a pocket chart, the kids can rotate the wheel, and everyone knows what to do so no time is lost.  The center wheel is easily changed if necessary and the outer wheel stations are attached with sticky tape so they can easily be changed, too.

For an editable copy of the name wheel click here

I have found work groups of two kids to be very successful, but the number of stations and size of the work groups are up to you.  Here is a page from the book that shows other wheel configurations using a different number of stations:

I brought my wheel home this summer to pretty it up a bit and possibly make the outer part round - we'll see!
Let me know if any of you use this method and have any suggestions!

Join in with this blog hop to get lots more guided reading ideas!

~Nikki

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Pete the Cat and Scaredy Squirrel

Sometimes it doesn't take much to get an elementary school teacher all excited and twitchy.  The coolest item ever in the dollar bin at Target, chocolate at a faculty meeting, no line at the copy machine, THAT kid is absent.  But more often than not, it's a book.  We get all crazy about our favorite books.

I have a ton of favorites, but my most favoritest FAVORITE books are Pete the Cat and Scaredy Squirrel.  I love them so much, I don't just use them for one unit, I use them throughout the entire year.  ( I've gotten so many kids hooked on these books, I should get roylaties.)

I think it comes down to the fact that I can relate to these fabulous little characters.  I can identify with Pete because he doesn't sweat the small stuff.  Teachers would never make it through the day with a sane thought in our heads if we freaked out over every little thing.  That being said, I can really identify with Scaredy Squirrel,too.  OCD is too mild a label for him.  I can relate.
I guess Pete and Scaredy are my yin and yang.

Fortunately, there are a million and one things to do with these books and a whole host of skills to teach with them.  I usually start the year with Pete since he's so good at teaching that all important "go with the flow" skill.  Pete helps me teach social skills, color words, voice, text features, sight words, sequencing,  and making connections to name just a few.

When October rolls around, it's time for Scaredy Squirrel.  He fits nicely with autumn.  At the beginning of the year, I try to get those kids to write something - anything.  A sentence is often too daunting for many of my friends, so we start with lists, labels, and sequencing.  Right up ol' Scaredy Squirrels's alley.  I am spending my summer making some materials for the Scaredy Squirrel books because I just haven't found much out there and, of course, there's no time during the school year to do it!

Which leads me to a freebie.  This is an uppercase/lowercase letter match I made for my literacy stations during our Scaredy Squirrel unit.

  It is part of this larger 35 page writing and comprehension set.

Don't forget to check out lots of other fun freebies!

Enjoy and have a terrific week!
~Nikki

15

What's Your Magic Number?

Math instruction has come a long way since the timed drills, flash cards, and memorization of facts of my childhood.  Sadly, many children did not have a true understanding of the underlying math and number concepts, only the ability to repeat the procedures or memorize facts.  They appeared to learn math, but in reality, did not have a deep understanding of number and number relationships.

Well, not anymore!  We know so much about how kids learn and understand math now and are so much better at teaching math developmentally!   Here are a couple of my favorite math authors:

So, what about that magic number?  If you ask any first grader at my school, they would proudly tell you their magic number.  Briefly, it is the highest number they can compose and decompose quickly without counting.  That means knowing and understanding number and number relationships (to 10).

Really KNOWING, not just memorizing.

Knowing that a group of 5 is 5 no matter the configuration, recognizing a group of 5 in a larger group, being able to recognize the parts of 5, even with one part missing.

Now, how do we get them there?

Well, in the beginning of the year, we really dive into number concepts - counting and grouping and  subitizing, oh my!  We really work on that Magic Number a little later in the year, around December or January.

I start by assessing which numbers the kids already know.  This is an individual assessment from Kathy Richardson (see pic/link above).  You show the student a given number of counters, then hide some under your hand.  The student should look at the remaining counters and tell you how many are hiding.  They should do this fairly quickly without having to count.  Do this with all the combinations of the number.

Then, when I know what numbers they have really well and which number they almost have , but not quite - that's where we start.  The kids practice composing, decomposing, and finding the missing parts of their number. For example, if the number the student is working on is 5, then he will only work with 5 of the same manipulative..  He will work to find all the combinations of 5 either by separating the manipulatives into parts or having a partner show one part and determining the missing part.

I love the activities we use to do this!  Here are a few examples and their sources:

I saw these adorable math mats at

Me and Marie Learning. 

I laminated each mat and placed it with the necessary manipulatives into a labeled zip loc bag.  Then the kids grab a bag labeled with the number they should be working on and head to their work space to get started.  Students record the combinations on recording sheets (early on), scrap paper, or dry erase boards.

Real birthday candles in a little 'gift' box

Plastic bugs!

Pasta shells, but real shells would be great

 

Pompom 'cherries' on top!

A ladybug shake and spill mat:

Here's the updated version!

 Get the freebie HERE.

Here is another great magic number activity from Kindergarten Crayons:

 

 I was inspired by these:

 to make these:

(I don't know why this silly picture is still upside down, but I'm tired of trying to fix it.)

 

 You can get the recording sheets here from Little Minds at Work.

I love these missing number cards from Kindergarten Rhode.  And they were so easy to make!

There are really too many ideas to post here - check out my Magic Number Pinterest board for lots of wonderful ideas from other teachers!

And lastly, I'm late to the party, but I linked up anyway!  I love looking at other teachers' classrooms so I linked up here for International Blog Hopping Day!  (It's linked to my previous post about my class.)  Go check out the fun!

And go check out all the other freebies out there!

Have a wonderful Friday!  (Although everyday is Saturday in the summertime:)

~Nikki

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