Showing posts with label Second Grade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Second Grade. Show all posts

Saturday

Powerful Goal Setting in the Classroom with 5 Easy Steps

Student Goal Setting in the Classroom


Back to School is a popular time for setting goals and making resolutions. I always feel fresh and ready to take on the world at the start of the new school year!

Setting goals with elementary students can be particularly tricky though.  They need a lot of guidance, support and suggestions.  It is really important that teachers set students up for success by guiding students to set goals they can achieve but also helping students make a plan for what they will do to reach the goal.  


Setting a goal to work towards is one-way students can take ownership of their learning.

Here are 5 ways to help students set goals and work towards them.



#1- Keep goals simple, attainable and measurable.


When I set goals with my students, we start with everyone having the same type of goal. I usually start with reading level growth because it is huge in my state. (I want to be clear here! I felt very much like this was a necessary evil! I strongly disliked setting reading level goals!) I met with every child one on one and we talked about where they wanted to grow and how many levels they thought they could grow. Then we split it into blocks for the 9 year and set mini-goals for each nine weeks. For example, if a student thought they could grow 4 levels, we would set a goal for one level growth per 9 weeks.



#2- Create an action plan or specific steps students can take to work towards the goal.


After setting each student's goal, we worked together as a class to brainstorm a list of things students could do to help them meet their goal. In the above example, we would list the following steps- read for at least 30 minutes a day at home, complete my comprehension journal homework every week, pay attention and work hard in small groups, listen to my book buddy when they read to me, ask someone to read me a story, etc


#3- Look at, discuss or read the goal regularly- possibly daily.


Each students goal was written down in their data notebook. We looked at the anchor chart with the brainstormed list of steps students could take. Any time they were assessed (🙄) we would conference about where they were in terms of meeting their goal. Every week, I would ask students to pick ONE of the action steps to focus on. In the beginning, I did a lot of leading but after a few weeks, students were able to pick one step for themselves.


#4- Track progress towards the goal.


Students had a sheet in their data notebook where they tracked their progress. For reading levels, my students had a page that looked like a bookshelf. I wrote letters on each book to represent their reading levels. When students passed a level, they would color in the book on their shelf.


#5- Celebrate progress!

Since I really, strongly disliked that students even had to worry about reading levels, we celebrated ALL.THE.THINGS! My favorite ways to celebrate are with impromptu dance parties, reward tags given out during morning meeting and phone calls home to share the good news.

If you find that students are struggling with their confidence in meeting goals, try using positive affirmations to help.

Getting Started with Setting Goals

Are you looking for something to help you get started goal setting? Take a look at this Kindergarten Goal Setting resource in my store.






My favorite part of this resource is the reflection sheet. Since this sheet is designed to be done together, the teacher can write the goal and the student can draw a face to show how they feel about their progress.  Then the teacher and student can work together to set a new goal.  The new goal might be a continuation of the previous goal.  For example, if the goal was to learn 40/52 letters, the new goal could be to learn 45/52 letters.  The important thing is for the teacher to help set realistic goals.

   


The student goal setting page has several main goals listed, but includes a place to write your own goals. Included in the resource is a page of possible literacy goals and a page of possible math goals. These goals were taken from literacy and math standards.





There are two possible tracking sheets. One will allow the teacher to track a whole classes progress towards a certain goal. This can be helpful when tracking goals such as learning letters and sounds. Not everyone in the class will reach the goal at the same time, but everyone needs to reach it eventually!


The other tracking sheet can be used when conferencing with students. The teacher can record the goal, dates and any notes.






There are digital options available for the digitally-inclined! Student goal setting sheets are in Google Slides and a Google Form is available for the teacher to make a copy of and use to type all the data into. Editable PDFs are also available.







If this looks like something that could help you in your classroom, click here or on any of the pictures!

Since making a plan is a BIG part of goal setting, these resources might be useful for helping reach their goals.
  


  


  
 


You can also find other literacy and math activities in my TPT store!

Do you set goals with your students? I would love to hear how it goes for you! Drop me a note in the comments below and let me know!




Sunday

Old Tracks, New Tricks: Introducing Trixie, Tracky and Tinker

Old Tracks, New Tricks is an amusing new book by Jessica Peterson, published by Innovation Press.  The book stars Trixie, Tracky and Tinker as a set of tracks who get purchased and taken home to join a train set.  The three friends are in for a shock when they realize their new life is not what they thought it would be.  In their new home, the trains are in charge and order the tracks around.  Trixie, Tracky and Tinker are used to having fun and doing tricks.

Will they be happy in their new home?  You will have to read it and see!

(Please note, these links are affiliate links which means I may receive some pocket change to help support this blog and fund teaching expenses when you make a purchase. As always, the opinions are my own and I promise to only share what I truly love- cross my teacher's heart!  Also, I received an ARC in exchange for writing a review of this book and creating a free resource to go along.)


Buy Old Tracks, New Tricks here!

I truly enjoyed reading this book.  It is perfect for PK-2 and I'm excited to read it to my class.  The human character is quite a bit younger than 2nd graders, but I think they will enjoy the photograph images. 

Pre-K Teachers can use the book:
-as part of a train unit (especially the activities in the back)
-practice identifying characters
-encouraging creativity when building with tracks

Kindergarten Teachers can use the book:
-as part of a train unit
-recognizing and producing rhyming words
-counting items on each page

First and Second Grade Teachers can use the book:
-recognizing and producing rhyming words
-identify characters, setting, problem and solution
-sequence events in the story


This will be a great book to use when discussing the difference between fiction and nonfiction.  Having photographs is generally an indication of a nonfiction book, but this book uses photographs and is purely fiction.

It's also a great book for character lessons such as being kind, playing with others, taking responsible risks and being yourself.

My favorite part of the book is at the very end.  There are 2 special sections, the first is called How to Invent Your Own Track Tricks and is a great way to teach the engineering process.  The next section is called Track-tivities and has 20 activities you can do with a train set such as Painting Tracks, Train Bell Shaker and Track-tastrophe!  

You can also use these FREE word problems based on the antics of Trixie, Tracky and Tinker.  Click here to download them!




Thursday

5 Fun Phonemic Awareness Songs Your Students Will Love

Phonemic awareness songs are one of the best ways to give students fun and engaging practice with phonemic awareness.Without a solid basis of phonemic awareness, students will struggle to master reading and spelling skills.  Here are 5 of my favorite phonemic awareness songs!


(Please note, these links are affiliate links which means I may receive some pocket change to help support this blog and fund teaching expenses when you make a purchase. As always, the opinions are my own and I promise to only share what I truly love- cross my teacher's heart!)


1- Party in the Jungle by Jack Hartmann.  This is a great song for Pre-K or Kindergarten students because it uses animal sounds and incorporates fun movements!



2- Apples & Bananas by The Learning Station.
I sang this with my Kindergarten and First grade students long before the age of showing a video on a large display board came about.  It's fun, it's catchy and it's educational!



3- Beginning Sounds by Jack Hartmann
When I go looking for high-quality, education songs, Jack Hartmann is one of the first artists I look for.  This song has students practicing beginning sounds in a 'repeat after me' format.



4- Make a Rhyme, Make a Move by Jack Hartmann.
Another great Jack Hartmann song.  This one has great urban dance beat and has students practice identifying rhyming words.



5- Alphabet Animals Song Video by Have Fun Teaching
When I teach alliteration to my Second Graders, we read Some Smug Slug and sing this song.  Students write their own alliterative sentence using the first sound of their first name!  It's lots of fun and makes a great hallway display.



I would love to know what other songs you use for phonemic awareness instruction and practice.  Drop me a comment down below!

2nd Grade Math Centers

As a Kindergarten teacher, Math center time was a valuable and constant part of my day.  Learning how to move through centers and work independently was one of the first things students learned.
When I moved to 2nd grade, I desperately wanted to bring center time with me.  It didn’t happen my first year.  I was overwhelmed and unprepared.  The curriculum was different and I was lost.  I really struggled to find the perfect fit for 2nd grade.

My 2nd year in 2nd grade was better.  I was familiar with the curriculum and developmental levels of students, but I still struggled with math centers.  There were some great weeks of math centers… but more weeks without.

I spent some time in deep reflection over centers and developed a plan.  Part of my problem was time.  So I decided to tackle Back to School season first.  This meant creating, printing, laminating, cutting and organizing 17 math centers.

The creation part was simple.  I enjoy making activities for my class. 
Here came the problem.  I had 160 pages to print for the first few weeks of school!  I started doing a little research and discovered the HP Instant Ink program.  My first step was buying a new printer.  Mine was old and wasn’t one of the printers on the list.  You can find all the details, including printers and plans, here.


This is my HP OfficeJet 4652 All in One.  My favorite feature is the hassle-free 2 sided printing!


After buying the printer, I went to the website to set up my account.  It was pretty easy and just required some basic information. 

HP Instant Ink made my math center dreams come true!  After printing a large chunk of centers over the span of a couple days, I got an email that I had ink on the way.  WHAT?  Yes, that’s right.  My printer ordered its own ink and told me it was on its way!


If you’re interested in checking out the HP Instant Ink program, you can use my referral link.  Click here or enter fvcRw in the referral box. 

My friend Kayla from K’s Classroom Kreations shared a tip with me that made a HUGE difference.  You can sign up initially for the 300 page package.  It costs $9.99 and sounds like a lot of printing BUT you can use the code FREEINK to get a free month.  If you use a referral link, you can get even more free months!

The HP Instant Ink program has a lot of features that make it a win in my book!
·         You can change your plan at any time.  Need more prints one month? Less?
·         Color prints are treated the same as black/white.  No paying extra!
·         If you go over your plan, it’s only $1.00 for 25 print outs- much cheaper than a print center.
·         Signing into your account lets you check your print count.
·         Did I mention the PRINTER orders the ink? Usually before you even know you need it!
·         Roll over prints!  You can roll over as many pages as there are in your plan.

One thing I want to point out is that I had to wait for my welcome kit with official HP Instant Ink to start the program.  I bought my printer at WalMart and then enrolled in the program.  If you buy a new printer through the website you may not have to wait.


If you would like to check out the math centers I created for August and September, you can find them by clicking on the pictures below.  You can also find other math activities I have created here.






Friday

Currently December 2014 *FREEBIE*


Today I'm joining Farley at Oh' boy 4th Grade for Currently!




Ahhh... Legos... such a quiet click clack- that ends in such a huge, painful mess!  I have a love/hate affair with Lego bricks.  I love that my son engages in such an open-ended, creative toy.  However, I hate that there are Legos EVERYWHERE!  I even find them in the shower!

Loving... that it's December and 60 degrees!

Thinking... oh, the baking!  Parties, parties, parties mean baking, baking, baking!

Wanting/Needing... a little elf to take care of my house!

Giving... today I took my 2nd graders on a field trip.  We went to a local resource center.  We took canned foods we had collected to donate.  Our kids got a chance to help stock the shelves,   Our students really learned about giving back and helping our community!

And I'm going to do some GIVING of my own!  
I whipped up this Christmas TIME activity to help your students practice telling time.




Merry Christmas!

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