Academic Fair (aka Open House)

My school had our Academic Fair a few weeks ago.  I wanted to share some of the fab learning and projects my students showcased.

Our central theme was SOLAR SYSTEM.  I was blown away by how much my students learned.  They did such a great job of showing their parents around.  I'm a proud teacher!!!

 My students grabbed an iPad when they entered our class and began their tours of our classroom.

* QR Code Scavenger Hunt - I had these posted around the room.  Each QR code linked to a question or task for my students to complete.  "What causes the Earth's seasons?"  "Describe the phases of the moon."  My students and their families had a great time with this interactive activity.

 * Tellagami - I know I've mentioned this awesome app before .... but I'm going to mention it again.  This app lets students design their own avatar and record their own voice.  They can choose any background (i.e. image from the web, picture from photo library).  Each of my students shared important details about the solar system.  This was a huge hit!! Many parents requested to have their child's Tellagami emailed to them.

* Student Work - We were working on narrative writing.  My students had to write about a spaceship landing in their backyard.  They did a great job with figurative language.

 New Planet Discovery - My students created their own planet.  They had to describe their planet's size, temperature, surface (atmosphere), and location.  They also designed their own planet and brought it to life with the ColAR Mix app.  Awesome!

* Earth Day connection - My students wrote down important details about Earth and ways they can take care of our planet.  Click here for a FREEBIE.  We used pointillism for the Earth. 

 * Constellations - My students designed their own constellations.  Here are a few of my faves!

 * Solar System Lapbook - My coworker found this gem from Amber Polk on TPT.  It's amazing!!

* Powerpoint presentation - I had this showing on my smartboard.

* Charts, charts, and more charts!!

* Decorated classroom - Voila! Here are some pics of my entire classroom and some cute decorations. 

May the force be with you,

Professional Goals ... Linky Party!

2014!! Is anyone else excited that it's an even number year?! 2014 has a better ring to it than 2013! With that being said .... it's going to be a GREAT year!

PROFESSIONAL GOALS:

#1) Create a new GLAD unit

GLAD stands for Guided Language Acquisition Design.  It involves many teaching strategies that benefit ALL learners, but it is especially beneficial for English Language Learners.  The strategies make challenging content and vocabulary accessible to all students.  Here are some pictures from the Government Unit I did with my students throughout November. 

GLAD units also place an emphasis on students taking ownership over their own learning.  They help and teach each other.  It's amazing!  

As a teacher, it makes teaching fun! Any learning that can be done through visuals, movement, and chants ... I'm all for it.  When the teacher is having fun, the students are having fun!!! This leads to some POWERFUL learning time.

#2) Create more 
Common Core Resources

I know MOST  of my fellow bloggers have already transitioned to Common Core.  My school is in California.  We will be making the BIG switch next year.  I have been creating some resources with my fabulous third grade team, but it's a process.

I'm so thankful for TPT and my fellow blogging community for times like this.  I'm a VISUAL learner ... HANDS DOWN!! Without a visual, I'm lost.  TPT and ALL the amazing blogs out there are my GO TO when I need a starting place.  

Here's a FREEBIE of some questioning posters my team and I came up with for CCSS RL3.3.  This standard involves character traits and description.

My goal this year is to create more common core products on TPT.

3) More 
laughter & dancing

Ask anyone at my school, I love music and I love to dance with my students.  Maybe that's why I love the Ellen Show so much.  Dancing with her audience ... AWESOME!!!  

Usually if I'm having a stressful day, I turn on music.  It's amazing how music can change the mood of the class ....  ESPECIALLY ME! No joke! I need to do this more often.  When all else fails, take a breath and turn on some music.  

Enjoy the New Year with your students!!!




Fondly,