AuburnChick's Adventures

Boy, it sure was hard to get up after going to bed at…um…well, it was late.  Trust me.

Of course, just as I was about to get out of bed, Molly decided to roll over and snuggle against my feet…

Regardless, I’d worked hard on my lesson plans, so off to school I went.

I told you about one of the centers I had planned, and let me tell you…it was a HUGE hit!

The center involved students writing about these…

Of course, to make it more fun, I’d purchased three boxes of them at Sam’s.

In order to write the author’s purpose paragraphs, they would have to taste the snacks.

They were tickled pink and were very productive!

There’s nothing like a little bit of food to motivate students!

The fortune teller foldable was a hit…with the girls, that is, but the guys played along because I encouraged them to.

😉

All-in-all, it was such a fun day!

I’ve gotta tell you that before I started guided reading centers, I was DREADING them!

Now, I must admit that they are actually…

Hold on to your horses…

FUN!!!!!!!

Yes, I did.  I admitted it.

Teaching intensive reading can actually be fun!!!

Most people look at the students I teach and think, “discipline problems” or other worse things.  I’ve seen the looks of sympathy in their eyes when I tell them what subject I’m teaching.

I’m getting the last laugh, though, because I ENJOY spending my days helping my students navigate their way through the crazy activities I’ve planned.

Wanna know the trick?

Keep the kids engaged in learning.

Have the students DO THE WORK!

Over the last few school days, and especially today, I’ve heard several students tell me directly or to their peers, “Class went by so fast!  I didn’t even notice the time go by.”

That, my friends, is a very good thing indeed.

I hope my students enjoy what I have planned for tomorrow…an intro to our next unit…inference…

I can’t wait!

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: guided reading, teaching | 3 Comments »

I’m not a procrastinator…honest, I’m not.

I always have good intentions to work on my lesson plans on Saturday and not put things off until Sunday.

Then…I find myself sleeping in…until 11am or so.

Those of you with young children, drool if you wish.  I was once in your shoes…getting up early to fix Cheerios and turn on the cartoons.

I’ve paid my dues.

Plus, I’m a former SAHM who is back in the workforce.

But I digress.

My students could, hopefully, tell you what that word means.  It was one of their vocabulary words.

Anyhoo…

Saturdays come, and I find myself e-x-h-a-u-s-t-e-d, unable to even get out of my jammies once I do get out of bed.

Before I know it, Sunday has arrived.

Lately, I’ve been sleeping in on Sundays too.

Shame on me, I know.

Sigh.

Alas, though, once I do get up, I do the Sunday Scramble.

There’s nothing like a deadline…i.e. classes full of children who need to be educated…to call me into action.

That is why, all of a sudden, I found this in front of me…

Oh, it was u-g-l-y, let me tell you.

I had a folder full of activities and, quite honestly, I just could not decide which ones I was going to have my students do.

It all went back to my objectives for the week.

I am going to finish up Author’s Purpose with my students, and we are also working on “sed,” “sess,” and “sid” affixes.

I thought and thought and thought.

I copied, scanned, and copied again.

I typed center instructions and placed them into clear sleeves.

I remembered my lesson from last week…when I did not number the stations and had no clue which group had worked on which station, so I created this hand-done sheet…

It’s all shorthand that I understand.

First off, I decided to copy another teacher and create two sets of three stations…hence the two columns of numbers.  The goal is to allow students two opportunities to complete each station.  Last week, I discovered that we simply cannot get three rotations done each day, so I’m just doing the best I can.  I figure that Fridays can be catch-up days.  Students tend to finish some activities quicker than others, and I can always use the computers and magazine activities for fill-ins if needed.

Going back to my picture above…

The AP stands for Author’s Purpose.  My students will be writing paragraphs that inform, persuade, and entertain…using trail mix packages that I’m going to give them to eat and write about.

It should be a fun activity.

They’re also going to be making fortune tellers to help them review their vocabulary words.

Do you remember these from school?

Here’s a “how-to” I found on Google…

It’s a handy little foldable that can be used for multitudes of purposes and any content area.  Shoot.  You could even use them to help children learn Bible verses!

Anyhoo, I think my students will enjoy making these.  They will write their vocabulary words on the outside flaps.  On the insides, they will create questions and write the answers under those flaps.  I’m going to have them draw pictures on the inside to illustrate their vocabulary words…for those who are visual learners.

My last center is an Author’s Purpose packet.  It’s a packet of reading passages with comprehension questions.  Two of the passages are “Must Do,” and they can select one of the “Choice” passages to complete as the third component of this assignment.  I’m planning on sitting with each group as they work on these for differentiated instruction time.

With all of that said and done, my stuff is now in bags in the car, and my table looks a lot better…

I’m hoping that with my stations for the week complete, I might just be able to knit a round or two on the project you see on the table.  It’s been a few weeks since I’ve knit, and my hands are beginning to itch with anticipation.

Or, I might just do the Sunday Scramble this week so next weekend I can relax and really enjoy my days off.

Oh, who am I kidding.  I fear that I’ll be doing the Sunday Scramble for a few more years…until I fill my filing cabinet and binders with loads of lesson plans that I can pull from.

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: guided reading, teaching | 1 Comment »

Whew!  What a whirlwind of a week this has been!

On Monday, I finally took the plunge and, with my friend, Barb’s, help, I began training my students on how to work in their guided reading stations.

If you’ve worked in or volunteered at an elementary school, you will probably be familiar with the “centers” that students rotate through.  This allows the teacher to work with small groups of students, targeting specific learning abilities in reading and math instruction.

Intensive reading students in middle and high school also go through rotations.

I’d never taught this way before, so that’s why this week has been such a huge thing for me.

I worked all weekend to get my baskets ready…

I worked with each class to develop expectations and rules that will, once everyone is trained, serve the purpose that the reading framework is intended to accomplish…

Another teacher suggested the roles that you see on the poster.  Brilliant idea, don’t you think?!  I just love collaborating with other teachers!!!

Barbara began coming into my third period class to assist me.  This class is my largest and rowdiest.

Monday afternoon, we had a sit-down, and she shared some observations.

Two things had stood out immediately:

1)  Two-thirds of my class are males
2)  Students had to sit for over an hour before we began stations

It’s no wonder I’ve been having so many problems with this class!  They’re boys, and they can’t sit for long periods of time.

Yeah, I was feeling a little dumb at that point.

We decided to change the order of items on my daily agenda.  Rather than having students sit through bellwork, independent reading, read aloud, then whole group instruction, they would be sitting through the first two things, a very short instructional time, and then stations.  I moved the read aloud to the last five minutes of class.

This is what students saw when they walked in on Tuesday…

So far, I’ve taught three days with this new schedule, and things seem to be going a little better.

Typically, reading teachers pull students to the kidney-shaped tables in their rooms to work on individual skills.  Although I’m not pulling students yet, I’ve been working my way around the room, providing training/instruction as I go…readying my students for when I release more of the control to them.

Even in the midst of my going from group to group, Barbara suggested that I am, in fact, providing the differentiated instruction…just in a different way.  I’m going TO my students rather than calling THEM to ME.

Hey.  Whatever works, eh?

Although I’ve been a bit self-conscious about having Barbara in the room while I actually conduct my lesson (she and I are close friends, and she even won teacher of the year for our school district a few years ago), I’ve found her to be an excellent sounding board.  She gives me suggestions while being positive.  She’s helping me keep my instructional time focused on the goal…helping my students improve their overall reading skills while weeding out unnecessary or tedious lessons.

This is such a humbling experience, let me tell you.

Once again, I’m reminded of how much fine-tuning this profession requires.

I will say, though, that watching my students finally be engaged during the ENTIRE class period has both encouraged and inspired me.  Sometimes the things that look most difficult can, in fact, be the things that are the most fun and rewarding.

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: guided reading, teaching | 1 Comment »

As an intensive reading teacher, I am tasked with the responsibility of working with my students individually to help them strengthen weak reading comprehension skills.

Studies have proven that the more individualized instruction a student receives, the more that student improves.

Hence, guided reading centers…

A frightening prospect for someone who likes a routine and concrete order.

Today will be my first day training my students, although, in reality, I’ve been training them to work on group activities so I can spend quality time with individual students.

I present to you my whiteboard…busy as it is…with the agenda for the day…

I’ll provide whole group instruction with paired partner practice work.

Then, the big moment, when we start passing baskets of activities.

It’s going to take some getting used to, and the timing will be challenging at first.

I’m confident, though, that with the assistance of my friend (who happens to be the school’s literacy coach) as well as the other more experienced reading teachers, I’ll do much better than had I would have had I been left to my own devices.

Please say a prayer for me and my students.

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: guided reading, teaching | 1 Comment »