Vocabulary Journal Materials and Words for the Year

It's hard to believe, but I've been teaching young kids how to read for about 20 years! In that time I've watched my struggling readers working so hard to get the words off the page only to then look at me with confused little faces.  I can get them to decode the words but if they don't know what those  words mean, it does them no good. 

We use the word "Click" to mean that things are clicking in our brains and we are "getting the text" we are understanding what we read. 

The word "Clunk" means the mind movies are not working. Something is getting in the way of our understanding.  When I investigate further and I begin talking about the text, it becomes clear that often the stumbling block has to do with word meanings. 

For that reason,  I've come to the realization that vocabulary instruction matters in a BIG way.

Implementing a solid vocabulary routine can help give our readers exposure to words they don't always pay attention to in conversation.   Tier two word knowledge is essential if they are to have success reading and understanding third grade text. After all, reading is thinking!

 I will be using a vocabulary plan to aid me in helping my students to expand their limited vocabularies. Without a spare second in the day, I'm working on making this a manageable and workable routine.  We will again refer to these words as our "Word Wiz" words and we will spend time working on these tier two words each week. 

We will record the words, meanings, illustrations, synonyms, antonyms and sentences in our word journals. 

We will add them to lanyards so we can wear our words and interact with them during meaningful and playful practice sessions. 

We'll add words to our Word Wall so that we can refer to them and use them in our speech and writing ALL year long!

I've offered separate sets of the Word Wiz Journal and Resource Set in monthly packs in my TPT store. I've added the last set I use to my TPT store this summer. 

Here is the March set.  I stop after March due to the need to focus on review. 

Click this link to access the final set:

Word Wiz Vocabulary Journal Words and Resources: March Set

I've also now bundled them ALL and am offering them in one set at a discounted price. 

You can check below for the link.  

Word Wiz Bundle: Journal, Words and Resources

How do you handle vocabulary instruction in your classroom? 

Would love to hear!!

Big Thanks and Classroom Decor Give Away!

Hello to all the hardworking classroom decorating divas out there!
I have seen SO many posts of creative, fun and inviting classrooms being put together
You all have inspired me so I'm headed in  to get a start on mine.   

I also appreciate the loyalty and love you all show to this little blog.
Third Grade Thinkers was voted as one of the top 100 Educational Blogs on the web.
How exciting!

As a Thank You I am partnering with Kristen and Jen from the Etsy Shop: Taking it Personally to  host a Back to School Decorating Give Away!

Kristen and Jen, both former teachers themselves, have made the decision to stay home with their young children and open an Etsy shop.  Taking it Personally caters to the needs and wants of teachers. Check out some of their products: 

They specialize in super cute personalized products like these reusable Starbucks cups: 

My favorite product that they sell are their door decals.  How awesome are these??

Our giveaway is this adorable "WELCOME" Door Vinyl Decal and quote.  

Entering to win this for your classroom door is super easy. 

Use the Rafflecopter below to enter. 

All you have to do is follow my Teacher Pay Teacher Store (link is below)

Teacher Pay Teacher Store

a Rafflecopter giveaway

That's it! You are entered!  

We will randomly select one lucky winner one week from today.

The contest will close on August 17. 

In the meantime, check out Kristen and Jen's shop. 

Use the code THINK10 for 10% off with no minimum purchase.

You can also click the link below:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TakingItPersonallyAZ?coupon=THINK10

Poetry in Third Grade: Poems and Questions

Happy Monday!
I have another new picture book to share today.
This one is called, Daniel Finds a Poem by Micha Archer. 

I LOVE using poetry in my classroom. I use poetry across the curriculum in science, social studies and even math. My students keep a poetry journal that they glue all our poems in and they create "mind movie" illustrations or visualizations of the poems. We generally will glue a poem or two into our journals each week so by the end of the year they leave with their own illustrated poetry anthology.

So I was super excited to find a book to help me introduce the poetry genre to my third graders this September.  In this book, a character named Daniel goes to the park and finds this sign: 

He wonders what a poem is and walks around asking the animals in the park.  

They each give their response.

The artwork is also done by Micha Archer. Just beautiful!

At the end, Daniel goes to "Poetry in the Park Day" and recites the poem he put together using all the responses of the animals he asked. 

How fantastic!  

I love that this book hits home the idea that good writers are mindful of their surroundings. These days, kids and adults too, are so distracted....too plugged into devices of all kinds that they miss all that is happening around them. Good writers slow down and pay attention to sights, sounds and feelings. After reading this story, I'm planning on taking my students outdoors to write "Poetry in the Playground".  We'll take our writer's notebooks with us to record short lines that tell what we see,  hear and feel in our school's playground. We'll come back into the classroom to share and compile our lines to write our first class poem together.  

I can't wait to hear what they come up with!

I will definitely type it out and give it to them to put into their poetry journals. 

We do a lot of shared writing in my classroom. I feel it really helps my young writers develop their skill in brainstorming, composing, editing and revising. 

I created two poetry related pages to go along with this book.  

This first one is an eye spy page. We will search and find different types of words within this poem. 

This will help my new third graders review past learning and show them how writers use a wide variety of words. 

This page can be used with any poem at all. I will keep copies of it so my students can use it for a "Wise Choice" job or for a reading center or station along with a fun selection of poetry books. 

Here's another page that I will use when we have our "Poetry in the Playground" Day. 

You can find these two forms FREE on my TPT store. 

Click the link below:

Poetry Resources

I'm also super excited to say that I've added a new "Pack of Poems" to my store. This one is the fall edition. It contains autumn themed poems and questions. Virginia teachers know how important it is to expose students to poetry throughout the year. It is included in our reading standards and is assessed on the end of the year SOL tests. I have modeled questions to align with those found on these SOL assessments. 

You can check it out by clicking the link below: 

A Pack of Poems: Fall Edition

I've also bundled ALL my poetry packs and am offering them at a super discounted price!

This set includes over 35 poems and question sets.  It is a compilation of all my seasonal poetry packs.

Check it out by clicking the link below: 

A Pack of Poems: Bundle Pack

How do you use poetry in your classroom? 

I would love to hear!  Email me at youngdor8@gmail.com or comment below. 

I am utilizing Instagram to share ideas and would love to connect with you there!

Please click the link below!

LET'S CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM

First Week of School Back to School Snack: Freebie

Hello All, My 16 year old daughter has convinced me to branch out into other social media sites. 

Please follow me on my Instagram and my Facebook page!

Instagram Page

Facebook Page

Both links are located along the sidebar of this page. 

I really enjoy connecting with other teachers and would love to meet up with you there!

I know some of you are already back at school. I have not even stepped into my classroom since June but I'm hoping you had an amazing start! I know the first day of school is like no other!  By the afternoon, my third graders are beyond tired and hungry. Their brains and their stomachs are still on summer mode and the school schedule can throw them for a loop. By the end of the day they are spent and so am I. 

Here's an afternoon snack idea that gives them a sweet treat to eat and gives me some more valuable information about what kind of learner they are. This is an edible glyph. Students answer questions about themselves first and based on their answers they will make themselves a back to school bus snack.

Here are the food items that you can use to make these. All of them came from Walmart and the Twizzlers were on clearance! You can substitute ingredients. The bus itself is one graham cracker.  

Here is the glyph paper they need to fill out first. I asked some questions to help me get to know them a little better. They read the question and circle their answer. Under the answer is the food item they are to use to make their snack. 

The little bus treats look something like this when finished. 

I'm thinking they can meet with their team mates first and show and tell their buses. Their friends should be able to tell what their favorite kind of book is and how they like to spend recess just by looking at their bus. 

The little red gumdrop here is actually a smiley face gummy. It represents the people on the bus. 

I am sharing this in my TPT store as a free item in case anyone else wants to do this too. 

The file is editable so you can switch out the food items and the questions you want to ask your kids. 

Click the link below if you want to check it out: 

Back on the Bus Glyph

First Week of School: Five Finger Summary Glove

 I intentionally try to pick out fun books to read those first weeks of school. The launch of readers workshop is such an important time. I feel like it sets the tone for the entire year. I want my kids to LOVE spending time with books. We talk about how lucky we are to have reading time because when we read we get to leave our classroom and escape to other places and meet other people. We get to see what the characters in our books see and feel what they feel and go where they go.

 We can get lost in our books!

I really feel that as teachers we have the power to help instill that love of reading by the enthusiasm we bring ourselves when we read aloud to our kids.  I'm having fun scouring the library for new books and characters to introduce my kids to. 

Here's another great new one that I will be reading aloud on that first week of school.  This one will help me to initiate a conversation about rules and consequences. It's a funny read aloud with a ridiculous storyline that I know my new third graders will appreciate. 

It's called: If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, DON'T!

It's a super fast read but has enough of  a storyline so that you can review the elements of fiction, in this case fantasy. I'm thinking I will pull out my 5 Finger Story Summary Glove before the reading and we will review the structure of this genre of book. My third graders should have worked on elements of a fictional story somewhat in second grade but it's important for my readers to know what to anticipate when they pick up a particular kind of book. I like going over this again before we launch readers workshop.

My old story glove was pretty worn out so I'm making new ones this summer. 

I also made one with a hand clapper!

It is one of my most used items in my classroom.  

We refer to it before reading most fictional stories!

This book is perfect for reviewing story structure. It has very definite main characters and settings. The problem is straightforward, the events are easy to follow and the solution is clearly stated. I think all my students will be able to have success using the 5 Finger Story Summary Glove to discuss the important story elements of this book. 

Later in the week, I may pull out this Story Summary Street page and some small play cars. I'll have the students use this with another book I will read aloud.  This is a post reading partner activity that encourages kids to verbalize a summary of what they read. 

 The partners will move the car, stopping at each sign to take turns talking about who the characters were, where the story took place, what the problem of the story was, and what important events led to the solution. Discussions about books are SO important and help our readers develop important comprehension skills.  I like giving my readers lots of opportunities to talk about books before I expect them to write about them. I have found my kids are so much more successful when I allow them this time. 

Eventually, my kids will begin recording their thinking about books in writing.

I have several templates that I like to use because they correlate well with the story glove and summary street. 

This first one is a foldable. Students cut on the lines to create doors that open. They can write and draw pictures about each story element.

This one is a one page sheet that allows my students to write/draw about the book they read. 

I'll have my students add this note sheet on the 5 Finger Summary to their reading journals. 

I also like to send a copy home in a newsletter to parents so they can use it when their children read at home. 

I have added these resources to my Teacher Pay Teacher Store if you are interested in making and using these materials with your students. 

Just click the link below: 

Teaching with Props: The 5 Finger Summary Glove

I love using books as springboards for other activities in other subject areas. 

This book is also a great one to use when launching a discussion about why we have rules. 

I wrote a post about how I do this.  

You can read about it here: 

Rules and Consequences

You can find resources to go along with it here: 

The Reason for Rules: A lesson in cause and effect

What are some of the books you plan on using this September? 

Would love to hear!  Email me at youngdor8@gmail.com or comment below.

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 I continue to share my teaching journey on a weekly basis!

I appreciate and love my followers!

Developing Grit: A Graphing Unit

Albert Einstein had grit.

The standards we teach are SO rigorous these days that if we want our students to be successful they need it too. 

I like this acronym using the word GRIT: 

Image from: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhGLrdpr29FEFbkqd4r_dbEBBo350rV-RFOJPLTsM6NHUn5XmH8p1fyXlQ_Q287lAXn2YgERG7R7YUI1l-jgXjv8vhJQnr7rA7eyZBBk3Hnzg4aRVkCDE8VT8rUZew1DHJQRjOsiw0fWg/s1600/GRIT+Poster.JPG

 Learning experiences that cause students to struggle help them develop resilience and tenacity. I  believe I can help my students by using direct, systematic teaching and scaffolding my instruction so that the learning tasks I put in front of them are challenging, yet not completely overwhelming. I owe it to my kids to set them up with the skills needed to face and ultimately conquer the toughest of tasks.

I'm creating math packets that will help my students as they work towards mastering the very challenging third grade SOL math objectives. We usually begin the year with a graphing unit so this will be the set I use first.

Through the use of these materials, I will systematically teach each type of graph. Students will gain practice in asking survey questions, gathering data and creating tally charts, picture graphs, bar graphs and line plots.

I've increased the rigor of some of my questioning and included multistep problems similar to those my students will confront on their end of the year SOL test. 

The teaching pages are on what we call "Slice and Stick" note sheets that we glue in their math journals. That way they will have them there for the year and we can refer back to them as we go along. 

That

These pages begin with "I Can" statements that helps to focus on what it is that we need to learn through the lesson.  At the end, we reflect back on the "I Can" statements and students indicate their confidence level for each one. I find that my third graders are super honest. They will let me know if they just aren't getting it. That then helps me plan my next teaching move. 

After the teaching pages, I made up some question sheets that mimic those that students will need to solve on the end of the year SOL test. They are difficult and will give students  the practice they need in using their grit and not giving up. 

If you are interested in using these yourself, you can find them in my TPT store. 

Click the link below: 

Data Detectives

What do you think about the rigor of the standards we now teach and how are you dealing with it? 

Please share your thoughts... email at youngdor8@gmail.com or comment below. 

I love to hear from you!