Content Specific Alphabet

This year, I changed schools. I was bummed that I left my math Alphabet at my old school. Ok, all I had to do was print another one, but you how it is at the beginning of school ---There is a million and one things to do. So this is how this idea was born. I decided to let my students create a math alphabet for my classroom. I gave each student a letter and asked them to find a math word beginning with their letter. Then, I told them to to illustrate the word they selected. I was so pleased with how this activity turned out, I plan to do this every year.

If you would like to do this activity in your classroom, You can print the letters or write them by hand. If you want to have it done for you, you may purchase my Blank Alphabet set I created in TpT store.
 

Think About It!

We started school on Monday and I have to say ----I am so excited about this school year!! In addition to meeting all my new kiddos, I am excited about our classroom management plan. Since we are departmentalized, I teach in a pod with three fabulous 4th grade teachers. This year we want to help students learn to take responsibility for their actions. We decided on a few questions we would like our students to think about when they don't make a good choice. I created two posters using the questions we created. Click here to get your FREE poster set. We each designated a spot in our classroom to place the posters. As a part of our beginning of the year procedures, we taught our new students how to walk to the designated spot and how to answer the questions.

Back to School Sale

It is time for a Back to School Sale!! Every item in my TpT store will be 20% off on August 18-19. Use coupon code BTS13 to save a total of 28%. Click here to visit my TpT store. I also have 14 freebies you might want to checkout--just click the custom category link on the left side of my store.

This cute sign was created by Ink N Little Things

 

 Lollipop Buddies

 

Line Plot Common Core

 

 Common Core Fraction Centers

 

Dividing Decimals Printables

Classroom Reveal

I LOVE my red kidney table!! My computer table is behind the white shelves.





I do a lot of cooperative learning in my classroom. I really liked the idea of assigning each desk at a table a number and a letter. In my classroom, I have groups of 4 and groups of 6, so I needed a table mats for both types of groups. Since I couldn't find any mats to meet my needs, I created my own (see above picture).  Like my Facebook page to get your FREE set of table mats!!

I use these four covered crates to hold the math journals (composition notebooks) for each class.  Since I teach four classes of math each day, I have assigned each class a specific color (blue, green, red, and yellow). Notice the crate covers have colored buttons attached to the front. At the end of class during clean up, each table combines all the journals from their table in a heavy duty plastic bag, and then places the bag in their class crate. Next, they look inside the next class's crate for their table number. Once they find the bag of journals, they take it back to their table. This allows the next class to go straight to their seats and get busy. I found the crate cover directions on pinterst. Click here to learn how to make your own crate covers.

I stole this idea from my friend Kelly. I bought a popcorn tub and some black beans. I already had the scrapbook stickers. This is perfect for holding scissors because the kids and easily get to them.

I like having my math manipulative assessable to my students. I have more covered crates in which I keep bulky math manipulatives such as Unifix cubes and Cuisenaire rods. I also have many red baskets in which I keep smaller math resources such as protractors and dice. Two years ago I received a grant to purchase the red bins for my math manipulatives. Available for purchase from Really Good Stuff. Above my read bins is my Visual Decimal Number Line. On my door, I have my Think Math posters. Click here to download your FREE copy of the 1-35 number cards.  Click here to download your FREE copy of Polk-a-dot numbers. On the bulletin board I have photos of arrays with a title "Arrays in the Real World."

On this bulletin board, I put kid friendly "I can.." statements for a unit in the pocket chart. Each day, I write the daily objective on the picture frame with the red background. Stapled to the board I have conversation starters that I got from Hello Literacy. I use the numbers on the wall to take my lunch count each day. Click here to read about my lunch count procedures.

Think Math

I decided this year I was going to try to incorporate Think Math in my classroom. I first learned about Think Math from Scholastic.com. For more information on Think Math click here. In a nutshell, the teacher gives the students an answer and they generate a problem that would produce that answer. Their problems may be equations or word problems. I can envision all of the critical thinking skills that will take place as my students create their own problems. Since I am departmentalized I decided I wanted to put a poster on my door so that my kiddos could place their sticky note with their problem on their number when we changed classes. I went to the teacher store to get a blank calendar and some calendar numbers to create a poster to put on my door. The calendar numbers were picked over and I couldn’t find anything I really liked, so I decided to create my own numbers instead. These numbers are perfect for my board because they have tiny numbers going around each green circle.  Click here to get my Freebie Number Cards 1-35.

How I created my Think Math poster

1.    I purchased a poster calendar from my local teacher store, and then cut off all the words so that only the grid remained.

2.    I turned the calendar on its side because rows of 5 fit better on my door than row of 7.

3.    I printed and cut out the numbers I created, and then glued them to the board. I glued 35 numbers on my board, but you could cut off the bottom row of 5 if you wanted to stop at 30.

Lunch Count Procedures

I have used the same Lunch Count System for about 10 years ago because it is quick and easy. I have not had to replace any of the materials I used to create it.

Materials: I went to my local teacher store and purchased a blank calendar from the poster section; a tub of plastic chips which included red, blue, yellow, green and orange chips; a pack of calendar numbers; and a pack of Stikki clips. I went to Walmart and purchased three small red baskets to hold my chips. I went to my local office supply store to purchase Velcro circles for the back of the chips.

Setup: To create my Lunch Choice Poster, I trimmed the calendar so that only the grid remained. Next, I turned the trimmed calendar on its side, glued the calendar numbers inside each square on the grid, and then laminated the poster. Next, I put a Velcro circle on each number. I also place a Velro circle on the back of each of my red, yellow and blue chips. I created a Lunch Choice Key, laminated it, and put Velcro on each choice. I hung the Lunch Count Poster and the Lunch Choice Key with hot glue. Then, I place two Skikki clips under the Key to hang the paper lunch choice calendar our school gives us each month. Finally, I placed the three red baskets containing the Velcro Chips on a table under the Lunch Count Poster.

Each afternoon, my helpers write the lunch choices on the board for the following day. At the beginning of the year I assign each student a number. When students come in the morning, they unpack then they make their lunch choice by selecting a colored chip and placing it on their number. Afterward, my helpers count each choice and record them on a slip a paper. On the table under the Lunch Count Poster is another basket containing slips of paper and envelopes for lunch money. I also use this system to figure out who is absent by looking to see which numbers do not have a lunch choice. At the end of the day, my helpers remove the chips and place them back in the correct basket. I have them wait until the end of the day so that students do not change their lunch choice when they go through the lunch line.

Restroom Procedures

I teach at a 3-5 school and last year we departmentalized our 4th and 5th grade. We thought it was more important than ever to exam how we could maximize our instructional time. We estimated that an average class trip to the bathroom took 8-10 minutes. If teachers takes two trips to the rest room a day, that uses 16-20 minutes of instructional time. The math teacher in me says, “20 minutes a day times 5 days in a week is 1 hour and 40 minutes, spent at the bathroom in one week.” We decided to reclaim some of this time by allowing students to go to the bathroom individually on a timer instead as a whole class. We figured that if a student asked to go to the restroom once in each of his 4 classes, he would miss a total of 12 minutes of instructional time daily and 1 hour weekly compared to 1 hour and 40 minute lost by every student when we all went to the restroom at the same time. Each teacher in our school received a little timer like the one pictured. I stuck three pieces of sticky wax on the back of mine and hung it in my classroom above the light switch. My students signaled they needed to go the restroom by raising their hand and crossing their fingers to form the sign language letter “R”. I granted them permission to get up and go to the restroom my nodding my head. They would walk over to the timer, press the start button, clip the bathroom pass to their shirt (painted clothes pin), and then walk to the restroom. More often than not the students were back before the timer went off. If they weren’t, I sent someone to check on them. When my students got back, I had them stand by the timer until it beeped so they could press stop. My timer would automatically go back to the set time after it went off, but not if it was interrupted. We started the year off at 3 minutes per trip, but rapidly decreased our time to 2 minutes because they were so quick. Believe it or not, my students could go to the restroom and back in less than 2 minutes almost every time. At the beginning of the year when we were going over our procedures, I taught them when it was appropriate an inappropriate to signal. I did not let them go during direct instruction.

Lollipop Buddies

I brought home my school candy stash for the summer and my son has had a field day eating the lollipops. This made me think of something I do every year on the first day of school and I have to share. I know is a little soon to be thinking about back to school, but I wanted to tell you about it before I forgot. Before school starts, I buy a huge bag of lollipops, Dum-Dums® work well for this because they have so many different flavors. I sort the lollipops by flavor, finding two of each flavor. On the first day of school, I place exactly enough pairs of lollipops into a bowl so that there will be one lollipop for each student without any leftover. If there are an odd number of students, I add one more lollipop of one of the flavors I already placed in the bowl so that there are three of that flavor instead of two. After passing out the lollipops, I tell my students to find the person with the same flavor as them and complete a getting to know you sheet. The kids really enjoy this activity. As they complete the sheet, I walk around taking pictures of all the new buddies to put on a bulletin board. Click Here to Download my Lollipop Buddies Pack for $1.00