Halloween Party Day

Happy Halloween !

Happy Friday! I hope everyone had a fun filled day at school!

Good luck with all those little ghost and goblins... or as in our school's case.. storybook characters!

Here I am: 

The Mouse was a hit! 

Halloween Read Alouds

It is that time of year for my favorite Halloween books!!! 

Scaredy-Cat, Splat!by: Rob Scotton

First graders love this cat! I love they way they giggle when Splat is a scaredy cat! Here is another clever story about Splat! He wants to be the scariest cat on Halloween, but when the teacher tells a ghost story in the dark, Splat isn't so brave.

We are teaching text to self connections right now. This books lends itself well to talking about what scares kids. It also gets them talking about Halloween and their costumes.

Skeleton Hiccups by Margery Cuyler is a cute story!
A skeleton is bothered by hiccups and his friend Ghost tries to help him get rid of them.

One way I use this book with my students is to go on a word hunt because there are a lot of sight words in this book.

Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson is a cute story about some helpful animals who find "room on the broom" of a generous witch. This clever story has rhyme, repetitive text, the theme of cooperation, and beautiful illustrations.

Happy Reading! 

Back to School!

Happy First Day !

Something to remember as you go through your school day.

The ABC's of Teaching
•Actor. You prepare for each class as if it were a command performance.
•Builder. You build in the wonder and the fascination to inspire tomorrow's teachers, politicians, and parents.
•Caretaker and caregiver. Many students excel because a special person helped them along the way: a teacher.
•Director. You're in charge of your classroom.
•Enforcer. You enforce the classroom rules.
•Fighter. Sometimes you have to take a stand for what you believe is best for a child.
•Giver. You give of your time and of yourself—in and out of the classroom.
•Helper. Perhaps the most important help you give is helping students learn to help themselves.
•Instructor. Truly, this is the heart of teaching.
•Joiner. You need a support network, so you reach out to colleagues.
•Keeper. You keep track of attendance, grades, permission slips, line leaders, library books, mittens, and much more!
•Listener. Every day you listen to your students to find out what their interests are. Then you build these into your lessons.
•Magician. As you teach students to read, write, calculate, and investigate, you unlock the magic for them.
•Nurturer. You care for your students like you would care for blooming flowers.
•Optimist. You see the good things happening in schools.
•Psychologist. You're a keen observer of kids.
•Questioner. You ask your students thought-provoking questions; then you guide them in searching out the answer.
•Role model. You let your students know that you care and that you believe in them.
•Strategist. A well-planned lesson helps you get your students' attention—and keep it.
•Tutor. You give your students individual attention whenever you can. You also find times when they can tutor each other.
•Umpire. You're fair, firm, and consistent.
•Victor. You celebrate your teaching victories, and you congratulate your colleagues on their successes too.
•Writer. When you have an activity or a project that works well, you write it up and submit it to a teaching magazine!
•Xerox specialist. Who else can unjam paper?
•Yourself. Your students know and love you as a person.
•Zealot. You do your job with enthusiasm and energy—it's the most important job in the world!

Back to School Read Alouds

It is that time again! Some teachers are already back in the classroom! I hope their first day was FABULOUS!

Here are some first week read alouds, I have used in the past. Give them a try!

The Teacher from the Black Lagoon by: Mike Thaler 

In 4th grade I read this to my students and we discussed how anxious the main character was to meet his new teacher. We made a chart of character traits that described the teacher. I used this chart as a jumping point for the students to write their own version of story. 

Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes

A great book for kindergarten and first grade. After reading the book, talk about how she worries about school. Have each student draw a picture of what they were worried about before school started. Have them write a sentence to go with the picture. 

Tiffany's Weird. Totally True Summer Vacation 

Tiffany did not do anything exciting during summer vacation. She had a boring summer and is not looking forward to going back to school. When her teacher calls on her to talk about summer, she begins to tell a tall tale.

Amelia Bedelia's First Day of School
by Herman Parish

Amelia confuses a lot of directions on the first day of school. This is a funny story on a favorite character. Make a list after reading this book and save this list for tomorrow's part two of this lesson.



Amelia Bedelia Goes Back to School 
by: Herman Parish 

Compare the cover before the read aloud to yesterday's book. Predict what kinds of things Amelia (the adult) may misunderstand. After the read aloud add to the chart paper from yesterday. 

How I Survived My Summer Vacation 

Thirteen-year-old Jackie wants to write a novel the summer before he starts high school. There's just one problem - he can't get past the first sentence. His friends are no help! Before the summer is over, everything Jackie has counted on to stay the same has changed!



Happy Back to School Reading !!

Favorite Read Alouds

I spent five years in 4th grade and two years in 5th grade. These wee some of my favorites!

Sideways Stories from WaySide School by Louis Sachar

Each chapter is a story about a different student in this school! My 4th graders loved the silly tales of each book so much, I would read the next two in the series.




Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

There are two stories going on in this book. This story is has a mystery, with a friendship theme, and a story about family. My students are hooked every year and always surprised by the ending! I have used this in book club book in grade five and six! 

Absolutely Normal Chaos by Sharon Creech

This book is similar to Walk Two Moons. There are some characters in this book from Walk Two Moons, too, but it is a completely different story.

*** Please note there is some sensitive material in Chaos that I skip over when I read it aloud. ***

I love picture books, too!

I have a slight addiction and I have been resisting the urge to buy them! Here are a few of my favorites I use in the classroom. 

Stellaluna by Janelle Cannon
This is such a sweet story about a baby bat. It teaches us about friendship and family! This illustrations are just as beautiful as the story.





The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
A great first day or first week of school read aloud! It's a story of friendship and sharing. I have used this book in 4th grade on the first day of school with a poetry writing activity.





Click, Clack, MOO: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin
A funny story about cows who go on strike with a surprise ending. The first graders just love it because of the repetitive text and the funny ending!

Lilly's Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
Lilly loves everything about school until her most prized possession is taken by her teacher. This is a cute book that teaches some valuable lessons.








Happy Reading!