Gifts from Students

Earlier this week I was FINALLY putting up my Christmas tree (yep, 15 days before Christmas - WHOOPS!), and I came across two ornaments that I received as gifts from some students a few years ago.  These two students were part of a very memorable class - one that we referred to as family.  

I co-taught that year with my friend Sarah.  She is so fabulous at building a community within a classroom, and I was lucky enough to be a part of it!  We often talked to the students about how, for the rest of our lives, we are like a family.  They can call on either of us at any time, and we will be here for them.  Forever.  

There were two girls that were particularly blown away by this concept, and they have both reached out to me over the years.  Family.  For life.  (And if you're wondering if I'm crying right now, I am.  It's fine.  I'm totally fine......)

I always remember them at Christmas time when I decorate our tree.  Those ornaments.  Best gifts ever.  (Yep, still crying....)

What's been a memorable gift from your students?

Pam




Thanks to Jennifer Hier Designs and Educlips for the great clipart!!

 

Super Teacher!

It's a bird!  It's a plane!  It's Super Teacher!!

You guys, our classrooms are so quickly overflowing with students - less money in the schools = less teachers = more kids in a class!  It's a lot to keep up with!  Grading papers, parent communication, meeting the needs of all of our kids - do you ever stop moving?  Do you even get to go to the bathroom during the day?!?  

We all want all of our kids to learn the most they can without wasting student learning time, but that is so challenging to do when students have such a wide range of skills, and you are only one person!  


I've had the pleasure of working in a variety of settings in my position as a special education teacher.  Co-teaching, station work, pull-out, small groups, one-on-one.  There are so many ways to do it!  But in a class of 30+ kids, it's so hard to not feel pulled in a million directions. 

My most successful times co-teaching, where I felt like the kids were all working at their individual levels and I wasn't drowning in the students' immediate needs was doing differentiated stations.  The general education teacher and I both knew the overarching skills that were to be taught, and students worked on those skills at the highest level that they could.  

For example, in math.  The 5th grade classroom might be working on multiplying larger numbers.  Some kids are ready to practice that skill using word problems, and some kids are still learning the concept of multiplication all together.  But you know, no big deal.  I'm just one teacher.  And apparently I'm a super hero, so I can totally pull that off.  

What would I do??

After giving a mini-lesson to the whole class, I would provide practice materials for the students.  Around the room, I would place a variety of multiplication materials for practicing the skill.  Some materials will be used to practice the basics of what it means to multiply.  Some materials will provide practice for reading word problems that involve multiplying large numbers.  Then there will be a variety of materials for levels in between.  Now, the key to all of it is that none of the work REQUIRES an adult to sit at the table.  The work should have answer keys available, self-correction built in, or use a digital resource (computer, tablet, smart board, etc.) that will guide the students.  The work should have typed out, clear directions for students, so again, you do not HAVE to sit there.

Then your job is to just walk around and monitor.  Use a checklist of kids names and skills, write the date when you see a kid has successfully and independently completed a skill.  Encourage struggling kids to practice a skill more at their level.  Encourage kids who are flying through the work to try something more challenging.  

Here's a sample type of chart that
I would use to track student progress.

Kids want to complete work that they can do on their own successfully.  Kids want to feel that confidence in their abilities.  Kids will build that inner confidence and will learn to listen to their inner guide.

Now, how do you find the time to set all of this up?  Again, you are just ONE TINY PERSON in ONE TINY CLASSROOM!  

In an ideal world, you have shelf space available to leave each work in it's own individual tray or tub, with all the materials perfectly prepared and ready for students to grab.  In the real world, that shelf space doesn't exist in your classroom.  


This does take some preparation ahead of time.  I recommend that you have each individual work separated into tubs or trays (whatever organization tool you love). 

I just LOVE the stack and carry trays!  They fit regular copy paper, they are shallow
enough for kids to work directly out of, and they stack easily in a cabinet out of the way.  

Have the work you want to use put away in a cabinet, ready to quickly grab.  After you've given the mini lesson, give students a quick check to see what they know.  This could be an exit ticket type of card, a problem on the overhead that students work on a white board, or any other way that students are asked to complete a quiet, independent task.  While the students are working, place one material at each work area or on each shelf for students to grab.  By the time students are done with their quick check work, the classroom has been transformed into stations.    

Differentiated stations are also a great time for parent volunteers!!  Parents can come to help kids with questions they have about the stations, help keep kids on track, set up and tear down the station work, etc. As a parent, I LOVE to help my son's teachers in any way that I can!  I know how hard they work, and I want to be there!  This is a great opportunity!

What are your favorite ways to run stations?


Pam

Check out these great shops for the graphics used in this post!

Special thanks to The Traveling Classroom
for the great graphics!

Special thanks to From the Pond for
 fun fonts and graphics!

The Fab Five

People often ask me if I plan to go back to teaching in the classroom again when my kids are in school.  I go back and forth about it, and my answer has changed back and forth over the past 2 1/2 years.  




On the one hand, showering is optional right now.  My kids don't even notice when I look like absolute garbage.  They still do their work just the same.  I can wear yoga pants every day, and no one cares.  Or if they do, they don't say anything.  If we have a sick kid and I'm up all night, no big deal.  I can totally take a nap when they do in the afternoon.  




But then I think about my students.  Just this week, some of my 5th grade students, who are now in high school, were featured in a local news article about a work study program.  These kids, who we called the Fabulous 5 (because they are FABULOUS kids) are now WORKING!!  And I helped get them there!  That's such an incredible feeling.  I literally cried while reading it.  I'm just so proud.  

Teaching is a hard gig, if you ask me.  There's a lot to juggle.  And doing it with grace and joy can be difficult sometimes.  And meeting the needs of all of the students can seem like an impossible task.  But wow.  The rewards are really unbeatable.  Helping to shape who a person becomes and their career path is such a huge responsibility.  It's a responsibility that I need in my life.  

What keeps you in the game?  What keeps you coming back and trying again every day, even when it's hard?

DECEMBER!!!

Well, you made it.  You made it to December. Are you pulling your hair out yet??  

Coming back from Thanksgiving break is sooooooo hard!  You JUST get a taste of time with your family, time to catch up, time to ...  clean your house??  Aaaaannnndd...  then back to school.  Where the children haven't been outside for days because it's freezing, so they are all super energetic.  And they are all excited about the next break that's in just a few weeks, so their attention span is nonexistent.  But no big deal, right?  

Anyway, I'm just thinking of all of my teacher friends and my son's teacher!  Happy last month of the semester!

Until next time!
Pam

Differentiated I Have, Who Has for Math

I just LOVE using games with students!  It give students a social break, they have fun, AND they practice their academic skills at the same time!  But sometimes whole class can be difficult in a group of students with a wide range of abilities and skills.  

I have provided some accommodations to the I Have, Who Has games to give you differentiated options!

"Let's play some games!"

I Have, Who Has Directions

• Distribute cards to students as evenly as you can
• Choose a student to read any card first (these sets have no designated start card)
• Each card ends with a question.  Each card begins with an answer.  Students will listen to the card read aloud and will read their cards to look for the correct answer.  
• The student who has the answer card will read his/her card aloud.
• This continues until all cards have been read aloud.

Modifications

Modified Cards

A second set of cards is provided with key words or numbers underlined to help struggling students.  

💡When using this game with mixed ability groups, give struggling students their cards from the modified set. A set of cards in the Open Dyslexic font is also provided for students with Dyslexia.  Give students with Dyslexia cards from that set.  

You can have these set aside ahead of time, with specific kids in mind for the modified cards.  But often you won't have time to do that in advance, and you'll just be passing them all out from the regular set.  That's ok!  There's ways around that, too!

Now, in my experience with this task, there are often kids who view this as being "Not fair!  Why does that student get the EASY cards."  Right?   I've gone 2 directions with this.  

The first is to discuss what fair REALLY means - everyone gets what they NEED, not that everyone gets the SAME.  It takes time to build this sort of family community in a classroom and for all kids to truly respect one another in this way.  But over time, it works.  

The second way I've handled this is to discreetly exchange cards with the necessary students, without explaining or discussing.  If anyone notices, say something like "Oh, I just gave him/her the wrong card!  Whoops!  Silly me!" and move on.  If you use this tactic, over time kids will catch on that it's ALWAYS the same kids.  So, about half the time, pass out the modified set to all students, and exchange cards with the students who do NOT need the modified set.  Then all students are having their cards exchanged sometimes.  Or give some other kids the modified set, even if they don't need it.  
    

💡Create multiple groups for the game, one (or more) who would benefit from the modifications, and one (or more) who are ready for the challenge of no prompts.  The groups can play the game simultaneously, giving all students more of an opportunity for practice since all students will have more cards.  

Seat Work

Also provided with these games are 2 versions of seat work.  

The first seat work page uses the exact same questions and numbers from the I Have, Who Has cards.  This is great for students who need repetition.  Students will see, read, and answer questions during the game and will see those same questions on the seat work page.

The second seat work page uses different numbers.  This page is great for students who are ready to practice the skill independently.  

Seat work pages are great for students who struggle with group games, intro work, homework, and station work.  

Thanks!!!

Thanks for checking out my I Have, Who Has activities!  I hope you find this FREEBIE useful!

If you like it, check out these products in my shop!

Rounding

Ones, Tens, Hundreds

Thousands

Millions

Decimals

Place Value

Ones, Tens, Hundreds

Thousands

Millions & Billions

Decimals

Differentiated Task Cards - Top 5 Uses

Task cards are SOOO versatile!  Hooray for a product that can be used over and over!  Bring out the laminator!!!

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Task cards are a great tool to use for practicing skills.  These cards are easy to set up and take minimal time to prepare (something we all need!!).  They are ready to print and use!  Here are some suggested uses for the different levels of differentiation offered for these task cards.

The differentiated task card sets include word problems, word problems with important/helpful words bolded and underlined, and computation only sets.  Each set of cards uses the exact same computation problem, just presented in different ways to accommodate the differing needs of your students.  

Stations

At a workspace, place the desired set of task cards and answer sheets.  Create one station per type of card.  Students can visit the station to complete as many task cards as they can during the allotted time.  Designate certain tables for certain students, depending on their level of need, OR allow students to challenge themselves to the cards that they feel motivated to try.  

This can be a tricky balance, depending on the number of students you have and their levels of self-motivation.  But I believe that students want to feel successful and want to feel proud of their hard work.  Most of the time, students will choose the cards that are right for them!  Some just MIGHT need your guidance.  :)

Board Games

Use with literally ANY simple board game.  Before students take a turn, they will complete a task card.  Get a correct answer (with as many retries as needed, especially for those who struggle!), and get to move ahead on the board, add a piece on connect-4, etc.  

Around the Room

Students have so many needs, outside of simply learning a skill!  It's so challenging to accommodate for all of those needs at once!  An around the room game helps with a student's need for movement and control.  

Hang the cards around the room or even in the hallway, using any number of sets and any number of cards you prefer.  Students will walk from card to card, which gives them the movement they crave. 

Allow students to choose any card they want in any order they want.  The point is that they are practicing the skill, not that they can walk in a clockwise circle.  Giving them choice in this area will help them to feel in control and give them a sense of power in their education. Then, maybe they will feel like battling you over EVERY OTHER DETAIL of the day...  just a little less!  

And like in the stations, as is appropriate for your group, allow students to choose which level of difficulty they are ready for on the task cards. 

Christyna, with Inspired in 4th, has a great way that she uses task cards around her classroom!  Check out her Instagram post!

Whole Class Check

Display a task card on the overhead using a document camera for paper cards or using a projector using the digital product.  Students complete their work on dry erase boards and show their answers when finished.  You can look around the room quickly to see who understands and who needs extra help.  

For this, start with the easiest level of task card and move up to the most complex.  Students will build confidence when they are able to complete the first few, even if the more difficult cards are too hard. 

Morning Work / Exit Tickets

Even though most of my products include exit tickets, you can use any card as a morning work exercise or as an exit ticket.  Have a basket of cards set out for students to grab.  
Students complete a card while waiting for the day to begin or to end a lesson. 

Optional Supports

Answer Card Sheet: The answer card sheets have answers in a random order, not in the order of the questions.  Leave a sheet of potential answers at the table OR give students a copy of the answer cards.  Students can then determine if their answer is in fact one of the possible answers and can check them off as they use them.  This adds a level of self-correction, without giving the answer to them completely.  If a student gets an answer that isn't on a card, they know to check their work again.

Answer Cards: Cut out the answer cards.  Place answer cards on the table.  Students can then match the answer cards with the task card, using a process of elimination to determine their answers,

Limited Answer Cards: If students are easily overwhelmed by large amounts of work, limit the number of task cards and answer cards at a station.  Maybe 4 is enough for one student.  Leave only 4 cards and only 4 answer options.  This will increase chances for student success!  And really, if a student shuts down when overwhelmed, completing 4 task cards with success and confidence is better than the self-esteem blow that comes with competing none!  

Answer Key: Leave an answer key on the table for students to check their answers.  They will need to have paper to show their work (even though, of course, NO student ever would just copy the answers....).  This just takes some of the pressure off of students who might get easily frustrated.  

Answer Key Take 2: Leave the answer key with a trusted student.  Some students will really understand a skill well and might make great teachers for students who are struggling.  These students could help students who are struggling to understand a skill.  

Answer Key - Parent Volunteer: Ask a parent volunteer to come in an man the answer key area.  Parents love to help when they can, and this keep some accountability on the students if they know an adult is watching.  The parent can also be available to help students who are struggling with a task card.  Yay for Parents!!!  


Thanks and a FREEBIE!

Thanks for checking out the great uses for Task Cards!  Use this FREEBIE to get started!

Check out these task cards available for purchase!

Subtracting to the Hundred Thousands Place
Adding to the Hundred Thousands Place
Multiplying 3 x 1 and 4 x 1 Digits
2 Digit Multiplication
3 Digit Multiplication
Dividing 3 or 4 by 1 Digit
Dividing 3 or 4 by 1 Digit, Interpret Remainders
2 Digit Division, 1 Digit Quotient, No Remainders
2 Digit Division, 1 Digit Quotient, Interpret Remainders
2 Digit Division, 2 Digit Quotient, Interpret Remainders
Multi-Step Problems / Order of Operations
Decimal Division
Decimal Multiplication
Decimal Addition
Decimal Subtraction

Word Sorts

I just love word sorts!!  We have some great ways for you to differentiate word sorts using the SAME word cards for all groups!  This means less prep for you!  Which means more TIME for you!  

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Word sorts are a great tool for students to use when practicing a new phonetic skill.  Using one set of cards (Yes! ONE SET!!), several center activities can be created in varying levels of difficulty.  I LOVE getting many uses out of one material!!

Set-up Suggestions

For smooth transitions during work time, have the materials cut and prepared at the station location.  Print out station directions to have available at the center.  

**I often ask for parent volunteers to cut out cards at home and send them back to school with their child.  Parents LOVE to help, and many cannot come into the classroom during the school day.  This is a great way to get everyone involved who is interested!  Remember to do this a few weeks before you need the cards - parents are PRETTY busy... you know...  parenting.**

Presentation

Provide students with a designated work space, like a rug, a mat, or a desk.  This will help students respect each other's work space.  

Beginning Level

This is best for students who are new to a skill and students who are struggling.







Provide students with the answer key for checking work.  









Give students the header cards that determine the sort categories for them.  




Students will then sort the words into those categories, checking their answers with the answer sheet provided.

Practice Level

This is best for students with some level of understanding on the skill, but not yet total mastery.




During this stage, students are still given the header cards that determine the sort categories for them, but no answer key for checking.  




Students will then sort the words into those categories.  

Students will write the words on the word sort page with the categories listed.

Mastery Level

This is best for students with a solid understanding of the skill.  

At this station, students are only provided with word cards.  Students will determine the categories on their own and will then sort the words.  

Provide students with a blank word sort sheet with no categories listed.

Important Notes

     After the word sort has been presented to the students, make it available for the student to choose during appropriate times (not, you know, in the middle of the math lesson they are trying to avoid) to continually practice.  

     When presenting the work, it is best to lay the cards out from left to right.  This reinforces basic reading concepts.  

     During the presentation, use as few words and movements as possible, allowing the student to simply view the work.

     Make the expectation known that students are to complete as many words as they can, not necessarily ALL of the cards.  This will take away the pressure of rushing through work for students who struggle and need more time.  

Rationale

     Multi-Sensory

Using a multi-sensory approach to learning is beneficial for student mastery.  When students manipulate their materials, they engage different parts of their brain.  The scaffolded options allow for students to progress through and engage with different parts of the material at their own pace.  

    Active Participants

Students who activity engage in the process of analyzing the words are more likely to correctly read and spell the words later than if they were to simply practice copying the words.  

    Easy Differentiation

Your classrooms are filled with many students at many instructional levels, all expected to learn the same materials.  This is no easy task.  Using word sorts allows students to work on the same skills while moving at their own pace.  

Final Thoughts

I hope these ideas help you in your classroom as they've helped me!  

Here are some word sorts that are available for purchase.

Vowels
•Short Vowels
•Long Vowel: Silent e 
•R-controlled Vowels

Consonants
•Consonant Digraphs
•ch vs tch

Endings
•Plural Spellings
•Inflected Endings

Multi-Syllable Words
•VC/CCV and VCC/CV Syllable Splits
•VC/CV Syllable Splits

Affixes
•Prefixes pre- and re-
•Suffixes -able vs -ible

And of course, this great Word Sort FREEBIE!




I'd LOVE to know how you use word sorts in your classroom!!