I am linking up with The Teaching Tribune for Monday Meet Up. This week is about 3 things I am thankful for.

I can't believe it's June 25th already!  What better way to celebrate than 20% off everything in my Teacher's Pay Teachers store.  Tell your friends and enjoy some summer savings June 25th-June 26th!

BONUS!  Sign up and follow my blog and I'll send you any product you choose for FREE!  Just let me know what product you'd like and it's yours ~ FREE!

Click HERE to visit my TPT store

Check out this blog: Diary of a Not So Wimpy Teacher  You'll find multiple blogs who are participating in the sale.  Happy shopping!

Book Bin Labels

My teacher friends and I have talked quite a bit about how to label our book boxes. Do we label the boxes by Guided Reading levels or genre? I've tried both and I've found that a combination of the two is what has worked best for me.

Here's what happened in my classroom this year. I was a 4th grade special education inclusion teacher. (Now I'm a 5th grade gen. ed inclusion teacher.)  The kids on my caseload were reading well below grade level. At the beginning of the year they ranged from a level F for my two lowest to a level J for my highest. By the end of December they had made very little growth even though I was individually conferring with them daily as well as meeting with level groups and strategy groups daily. Something had to changes! I started book box inspections to reward the kids who were reading "good fit" books.

Parent Letter

Get it here!  Freebie: Parent Letter

The students were required to read 20 minutes each night and complete a brief reader's response sheet but I found that they were not reading good fit books at home. So, I started sending home books on their level to read each night. I communicated with the parents to let them know what level their child was reading on as well as the grade level equivalent. I also included ideas on how they could help their child at home with the reading accuracy and comprehension. That's when BIG changes started to happen. The kids began to make HUGE strides in their reading progress.

Get the labels HERE!

By the end of the year my lowest readers were reading on a level M! Each time the kids would move up a level, I'd pull out the boxes on their level and let them select new books. The excitement spread as the kids would see their friends move up and get new books to put in their boxes. Usually within a few minutes I would have several students asking me if they could read for me because they thought they were ready to move up. Their enthusiasm was contagious! So next year I plan to keep my book boxes labeled by level. I also have a large collection of books that cannot be leveled and those are sorted by genre. I also usually let my kids go up or down a level from where they are when they're choosing books if they're really excited about attempting a more challenging book or have a real interest with an easier book.

Guided Reading

Goal Setting!  It's a powerful, ongoing process for teachers and students alike. 

12 Guided Reading Templates and Student Goal Cards

All of my reading groups or individual conferences begin with the same questions:
1.  What is your goal?
2.  How do you think you're doing with that goal?
Each student has their individual laminated goal card to keep in their book boxes.  I remind them to look at it and work purposefully toward their goal each time they read.  

Front of Student Goal Cards

One day I approached one of my lowest readers (level F in 4th grade) and showed him his progress on a graph where we'd been tracking his reading since first grade.  It was an eye-opening experience for both of us.  He saw how his reading had gone up and down over the years with very little real growth considering how he would slip back over the summer.  Finally - he was motivated.  "I was a K in 2nd grade?  How come no one ever told me I was a K?"  Of course, I'm sure his previous teachers had told him his level but for some reason he became very focused on the levels.  

Guided Reading Level Tracking Graph

He started setting goals as he looked at the chart and asked questions about where his peers were reading.  We set a goal for a level K and he wrote it down on his goal card.  He started moving up levels within a few weeks.  He would constantly ask me if he could read again for me and move up another level.  After a few months I called him up for an informal running record.  He was at a level J and was working towards a level K.  Before he started reading, he asked if he could go get his goal card.  I had totally forgotten that he had written down "K" as his goal....but he had not forgotten.  This was so powerful ~ he did it and moved up to a J.  When he finished the year he had gone from a level F to a level N.  He had never had that kind of growth before with this student.  That's when I decided we needed both short term and long term goals. 

Back of Student Goal Card

Click HERE to get a copy of my Guided Reading Level Graph and Informal Running Record Template from my Teacher's Pay Teachers store.  

Informal Running Record Template

Another issue is that I'm always short on time.  It's all I can do to get each of my guided reading groups in each day along with individually conferring with my below grade level readers.  I needed to simplify!  I just included all of the specific standards for fiction and non-fiction books ~ all I need to do is circle the skills we need to touch on.  

Guided Reading Lesson Plan Template for Fiction

I've been using a template for my guided reading groups for the past year and I've tweaked it a bit to encourage myself to be more purposeful in my instruction.  I want to make sure that during my guided reading groups I'm touching on the specific standards that we're working on in our focus lessons.  I customized it for fiction and non-fiction books since the focus can be very different.  I'm looking forward to this new format next year.  Please share your ideas and successes by adding a comment!

Guided Reading Lesson Plan Template for Non-Fiction

Ready, Set, Read! 

Click HERE to get a copy of my Guided Reading Lesson Plan Template and Student Goal Cards from my Teacher's Pay Teachers store!

Homework Help

Tired of the homework hassle? Here's an idea worth trying.  I've created a printable to send home to parents who have this struggle at home.  It has tons of ideas on how to ease the frustrations of nightly homework.  

Here's how I plan to use this next year.  I'll hand out the printable to parents at Open House along with copies of the home incentive charts.  The classroom incentive charts will be laminated and located on the desks of students. I also have a class checklist to track weekly points for rewards.  

Incentive ideas are included for both home and school.  Let's hope this can provide some extra motivation for those students who continuously struggle with this issue.  

Click Here to get your copy today.  Hope your homework hassles are reduced tremendously! 

Reading Strategies for Beginning Readers

How to Help Beginning Readers
 
Several strategies may be used when decoding unknown words. Below are just a few that you can use to help your beginning reader find success while reading. Click here for a copy of this FREEBIE! 

1. Tell the child to look at the picture.  You may tell the child that the word is something that can be seen in the picture, if that's the case. 

2. Tell the child to look for chunks in the word, such as /it/ in sit, /at/ in mat, or /and/  and /ing/ in standing.

3. Ask the child to get his/her mouth ready to say the word by shaping the mouth for the for the beginning letter.  Then have them start making the sound of that letter as they attempt to read the word. 

4. Ask the child to flip the sound.  Example: flip from a long vowel sound to a short sound , or flip c from the /k/ sound to the /s/ sound.

5. Read~Skip~Read.  Ask the child to skip the word and read to the end of the sentence.  Often by reading the other words in context, the child can figure out the unknown word.

6. If the child says the wrong word while reading, have the child practice cross checking.  (Does it look right? Does it sound right? Does it make sense?)

      

The Wonderful World of Blogging

        

Creating this website has been a learning process for me that has been very challenging but very rewarding. Just when I think I've got it all figured out, something else happens and the search for new information begins again. It can be very frustrating when we think we understand something but it just doesn't work. I think that's how most kids feel who struggle when learning something new. I can't tell you how many time I wanted to give up.... it was too frustrating.... it’s not worth it! Perseverance paid off and I was finally able to get everything working correctly.  Don't ask me how it finally happened, I never figured that part out. I just know that I was so excited when it finally worked. 


It's funny how kids think that as soon as they get out of school they can finally stop learning. Then they become adults and begin to realize that the learning has just begun. We're constantly learning new things to help us along the way. With our current technology we have access to instant information where we can research and learn new things at the touch of a button. I find myself searching the Internet on a daily basis to
 find new information. The truth is, learning is a life long experience that should be sought after, welcomed and embraced!


That's when it hit me! This is how kids feel when they're stuck on a particular subject, task or skill. They attempt to learn something new and find themselves running into a brick wall. Things just aren't working for them. It seems so easy to all the other kids around them. They begin to doubt themselves and their abilities. "What's wrong with me? I must be stupid! How come every one else can do this so easily and it's so hard for me? It's just not fair!" Sound familiar? Sometimes all it takes is perseverance and a little help from someone else. Once we get past the frustration and break through the brick wall we find success! The recordings in our head can begin to be replaced with new messages. “I did it! I finally figured it out. This really isn’t so hard now that I understand it. I guess I’m pretty smart after all!”

My goal is to help children find joy in the learning process itself.  When they find success, I want to hear them say, “I love to learn!” 

Teachers Pay Teachers

Teachers Pay Teachers is another new endeavor I began this year.  I've really enjoyed taking my creativity to the next level and being able to share it with other teachers. I love the idea of a site where teachers can share their products and ideas with others. Feel free to share an ideas you have.  I welcome your feedback on any of my products.  Check it out here at my Teachers Pay Teachers store! http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/I-Love-To-Learn

I Love to Learn!

LEARNING! When you hear that word, what's your first reaction? If there is one thing I have learned in all my years of living, teaching, and learning.....I still need and LOVE TO LEARN! If you are a teacher and you think differently, you've got another think coming. I believe that the willingness and desire to learn new things is one of the primary factors in keeping  a teacher fresh and on top of their game. When we stop learning we become stagnant, grow weary, and we lose the joy of teaching. 

Unfortunately, I've discovered that not everyone shares my feelings toward the learning process. We were born with an innate desire to learn. Babies and young children are learning constantly and every new thing fills them with wonder. They are constantly seeking new experiences and asking questions. So what happens to the joy and wonder? Somewhere along the line, many children will lose that love of learning.

My goal is to help every person I work with find success in the learning process and gain confidence in their ability to learn. This success and confidence will eventually grow into a true love of learning!