Learning is fun!
Posted in character education, displays and deco, fifth grade, poetry, TTESS 1819, and writing
Last week in the Jackson Library, fifth graders researched famous African Americans. They synthesized research information into an acrostic poem highlighting important contributions of the person. Click through to see the people, A to Z!
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Posted in bilingual, first grade, picture book lesson, technology, and TTESS 1819
Last week, I created my first Seesaw activity! (link below) After reading The Wonky Donkey and singing the song, the first graders had to think of a NEW flaw for the donkey. They used Seesaw in pairs to draw their wonkier donkey and they used the microphone to tell about its new flaw. They had a blast!
Posted in picture book lesson, reading skills, third grade, and TTESS 1819
Third grade had fun drawing conclusions, using prefixes, choosing the correct definition from a dictionary excerpt, and using context clues during the story, Hensel and Gretel: Ninja Chicks today in the Jackson Library. Before the story, we discussed important vocabulary words like dojo, wok, and menace, and we watched a video of kids practicing Ninjutsu. After the story, they played a Kahoot game in pairs and then we danced to Kung Fu Fighting. Fun!
The Three Ninja Pigs
Posted in fourth grade, picture book lesson, reading skills, and TTESS 1819
Last week in the Jackson Library, fourth graders used context clues and dictionary excerpts to determine the meaning of unknown words in Mo Willems’ Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs book. During the story, we analyzed Goldi’s character traits based on her actions and dialogue. After reading the book, the kids folded an origami storyteller to continue having fun with the storyline.
Posted in assessment, fifth grade, picture book lesson, reading skills, and TTESS 1819
Fifth grade solved a mystery last week in the Jackson Library! As we read Chris van Allsburg’s The Wreck of the Zephyr, they used inference skills to determine what parts of the boat the story referenced when the water rushed against the hull, the wind whistled in the rigging, and the boom hit the boy in the head during the storm. I gave them a boat diagram to label and then we compared it with a real sailboat diagram after the story. They used context clues to determine the meaning of words like dock and ominous and they connected the theme of the story to “pride goes before a fall and a haughty spirit before destruction.” After reading the story, we took a Quizziz quiz to assess their learning!
Brilliant Star Inference Chart
Posted in apps, picture book lesson, reading skills, third grade, and TTESS 1819
Today in the Jackson Library, third graders used context clues to determine the meaning of unknown ‘alien’ words in the story Baloney (Henry P.). After the story, they played Kahoot! quizzes to assess their learning. Fun!
Round 1
Round 2
Quizizz
Sample class Quizizz data:
Posted in picture book lesson, reading skills, technology, third grade, and TTESS 1819
Before Spring Break, third graders used inference skills to answer questions in the Eric Kraft story, Chocolatina. They used active response cards to answer other types of questions throughout the book. At the computer station, they read Epic! books about chocolate. Finally, we took a Kahoot assessment in pairs before checking out books.
Chocolatina-active-participation-cards
How Chocolate is Made – video
Posted in fourth grade, reading skills, and TTESS 1819
The week before Spring Break, fourth graders had fun finding the main idea of silly news articles. They worked in pairs with Vis-a-Vis markers to write a fresh headline for each article.
(11) Reading/Comprehension of Informational Text/Expository Text: Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about expository text and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to: (A) summarize the main idea… [in a way that that maintains meaning]
Posted in third grade, and TTESS 1819
Third graders enjoyed learning about Egyptian beliefs and customs during the historical fiction story, Mummy Cat. As we read the book, I introduced terms like pharaoh, serene, and hieroglyphics. We analyzed the artwork in the story and how it contributed to the narrative, to the point that there was a second story within the first! After the story and questions, we walked “Like an Egyptian” and wrote our name in hieroglyphics. The story even prompted kids to look for more books about Egypt!
Jean Darnell: Awaken Librarian! website
Jean Darnell: Awaken Librarian! website
2015 dance
Computer Station
Posted in fourth grade, nonfiction lesson, and TTESS 1819
Last week in the Jackson Library, fourth graders used critical reading skills when analyzing a recipe for a Snowball Salad. They worked in pairs to answer TEKS-based questions like inference when asked, “Why do you think an adult is needed for Step 1?”
