It's a zoo in here!

 

My students are studying area and perimeter this week in math.  This is a really good skill to apply to real life.  I created this adorable packet for area and perimeter.  The kids really enjoyed designing their own zoo in anticipation of our upcoming field trip. 

 

 

Here is a look at my area and perimeter zoo!

 



 

The packet includes a set of task cards for practice, the activity, and an extension activity for your higher level learners. 

 

Here are some of my students' work. 

 

 

 

Be sure to go to my teachers pay teachers store and grab a copy!

 

Anchors Away

It's Anchors Away Wednesday and I'm here to share my latest anchor charts. 

This week in reading we were studying personification.  The students picked up on it really well.  I purchased this fabulous packet at Teachers Pay Teachers by
<center><a href="http://peanutgallery19.blogspot.ca/"><img border="0" src="http://i1230.photobucket.com/albums/ee496/ellenleyne/PeanutButton-2.png"/></a></center>

The kids LOVED the activities in the packet and it inspired our anchor chart. 

We were also studying area and perimeter.  To hook our students my co-teacher and I used the bread analysis.  We gave them a slice of bread and asked them where they butter it.  It definitely stuck!

What are some anchors in your class?

Masterpiece Mondays

Today will be my first post in my series of posts called,  "Masterpiece Mondays."

I LOVE art and I always find time in my day to teach it to my students.  Now let me preface this by saying I am not a professional artist and I don't claim to be.  I've just always had a passion for art and we teach what we love.

This week we were working on 2 and 3 dimensional solids in math.  I saw this art on Pintrest and was inspired to try it in my class. 

To start the activity off I reviewed with the kids our previous lessons on lines and angles.  They loved saying "acute little angle" in a girly voice and "obtuse angle" in a fat monster voice. 

Then I had the kids divide up their papers with the rulers.  We then sketched the 3d shapes and erased our inside lines. 

We used oil pastels and construction paper.  The kids have really enjoyed using them this year. 

Here are some of my kids hard at work. 



I forgot to take more pictures of their finished products, but I shall leave you with this lesson.....

When drawing solids, always check your students cylinders. 

 

Can you name the solids in this picture?

Sharing the Goods

So I'm finally putting my stuff out there.  I've been purchasing some fabulous teacher made activities for over a year now on teachers pay teachers.  I just find that I don't always have enough time to make my own things, but there isn't always an activity that matches what I need.  I figured I've just got to make time now.  With all of the changes in our curriculum and my new baby (interactive notebooks), I need to be able to reach my students in rigorous and relevant ways. 

My first download if for FREE!! So go and grab it.  It's a foldable I used in my students interactive notebooks.  If you haven't heard of interactive notebooks before check out my pinterest pages on reading and math.  They are AMAZING!   At the start of every new lesson my kids and I take notes in our notebooks.  These aren't your boring everyday notes.  No siree!  They have color and action.  I plan on featuring a section out of our notebooks every week.  I will show your pictures and student examples.  I swear you're going to love it!  

So go grab my foldable at my TeachersPayTeachers store and get to writing! 

“I can't go back to yesterday because I was a different person then.”
― Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

Let's talk Anchor Charts!

One of the big things I've been doing in my room the past 2 years is using anchor charts.  I must admit I never used anchors until I moved to 3rd grade.  It was my fabulous co-teacher Stephanie who persuaded me to ditch the store bought and get creative.  She was the one that showed me the light.  (AAAAAHHHH, angel's singing)

So now with every new skill we introduce the kids and I create an anchor.  My room is now plastered with posters of all the things we have learned so far this year.  If you haven't tried anchors yet in your room you should give it a go.  It really helps the kids "anchor"  their learning.  When I would post my store bought products around my room the kids would never read them.  They just became fancy decorations.  I don't see that anymore with our class anchor charts.  Our kids are constantly referring to our anchors everyday and its so cool to see them making the connections.  

Now I do get some criticism for my obsession with things being pretty and not letting the kids write one them, but in my defense we do create them together and I let them color them.  Okay when I say on here it looks pretty bad, but they do the trick. 

So in honor of my anchor obsession I will post my weekly anchors on Fridays. ( I'm sure I'll come up with a catchy name for it later.)  I hope that you will find my examples helpful.  I find alot of my stuff on Pintrest and then I make it my own.  Here are a few of my anchors from this year. 

Do you use anchors in your classroom?  How do they work for you?  

"If you don't know where you want to go, then it doesn't matter which path you take." - Alice in Wonderland

Down the rabbit hole we go......

I've been an education blog looker and a blog stalker for quite sometime and I always find myself saying, "That teacher must have too much time on her hands!"  or  "I could NEVER do what she does."

Well.....  I'm going to try.  

I want to be Super Teacher. (insert theme song here)

I'm tired of the stress of our new rubric and evaluation systems making me feel like I'm a failure.

I'M NOT!  Now I'm going to prove it!

I may not be the greatest speller or great with punctuation, but I can be very creative and crafty.

I've been teaching for 6 years now and I love every minute of it (okay that's an exaggeration).
I currently teach 3rd grade self contained.  I think my students and I have a really good time and do some amazing things.

Now its my time to share with the educational blog-a-sphere. 

Please join me in my creative journey in the crazy world that is education. 

"There is no use trying," said Alice; "One can't believe impossible things."
"I dare say you haven't had much practice," said the Queen.  "When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day.  Why, sometimes I believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." -Lewis Carroll