What Happens in Vegas...

They say "What Happens in Vegas...Stays in Vegas", but we tend to disagree.  So many friendships were created, rekindled, or continued to grow; so much learning took place and served as a springboard for so much more learning; so much fun was had and the memories will be with us in our hearts; and as we know TPT will continue to grow and spread throughout the world.

So at the end of this post, we want you to finish this statement in your own words.

Where Are You From? 
This was one of the most asked questions during the conference.  We thought we would show you where our homes are.

Learning, Presenting,Volunteering, and More

Several of the members of Primary Chalkboard presented at SDE and/or TPT conferences over this past week.  Some of our members volunteered at other booths and some had their own booths.
 

Fun, Fun, and More Fun!

We had so much fun this week!  Emma even got to have her very first Starbucks!

Paul Swag

 If you remember last year, Heather came up with the idea of Paul on a Stick.  Well, never to be outdone, this year she and Jen were the proud sponsors of "Paul Swag".  Of course, Paul was not to be outdone and seemed to have fun joining in.

and without all of the fun with Jen and Heather, we're pretty sure Paul wouldn't have run to jump in this impromptu picture.

 Anna's Boo-Boo

Sadly, Anna got a little excited about the photo op and jumped up and landed wrong, resulting in this...

Anna assures us she will be healed very soon!

And at least it gave Paul a comfy place to sit.

 A Special Celebration

On Thursday night we gathered together for a group dinner, but it was also a very special celebration.  Last year, our sweet Alyssha was expecting her first child and now our wonderful Naomi is expecting.  We had so much fun celebrating both babies and both mommies.

(and we loved the cake from Carlo's Bakery!)

Plus, we found out that apparently John loves cake!

Keynote

The keynote was filled with tears and laughter.  Rachel Lynette personally moved me to tears and we LOVED celebrating Amy's birthday with her.

We were so honored to receive shout-outs!  Who, didn't get a chuckle at Heather sleeping with her Paul pillow?  AND did you notice our sweet Susanna's clip art of Paul, Adam, and Amy?  She's so talented!

Of course, I absolutely loved being acknowledged by our winner of our "Picture Yourself in Vegas" giveaway, Erika Bell of Inside Bell's Brain.

Our Founder, Paul

All of us are so thankful that Paul had the vision to create Teachers Pay Teachers.  We know that we are better teachers because of it...we are thankful to be able to easily put our hands on amazing resources...and we are thankful to each an ever opportunity that has resulted because of his insight and forethought.   

  

 Friends, Friends, and More Friends

We loved meeting new people and reconnecting with people we met last year.  Being friends and meeting new friends was so.much.fun! 

So Much Fun!

We had an absolute blast in Vegas and are counting down to next year! 

 It's Not Good-bye

If your face looks like this because all of the fun is over, just remember...

Thank you to Educlips, Whimsy Workshop Teaching, and Hello Fonts by Jen Jones for their adorable clipart and fonts.

 

Integrating Technology Into Your Everyday Lessons

Hi friends! It's Leslie from First Grade and Flip Flops and I'm here to share with you some easy ways to incorporate technology into your everyday lessons. I have always loved technology and incorporate it as much as I can! I use it in so many ways:

*supplement my learning targets

*provide a learning hook 

*give exposure to content area

*life skills

*cooperative learning

*literacy/math skills

*research skills

The list goes on! The best part is that your class doesn't have to be a blended learning class or have multiple devices. You could work off your teacher device, your smart phone, BYOT (Bring your own technology), student computers, an iPAD, or any technology you have in the classroom. Of course, it is always best to check on your school and district's computer use policy as I know some are more strict than others. 

Before I begin, let me start off by saying that I am a 1:1 IPAD class. I have 3 computers in my class and at best 2 might work on a good day.  Although some days I feel like they work like one of these:

I have a Promethean board that I LOVE and would die if I couldn't teach with it. I had a Mobi-board but the Promethean board is the best thing ever. I am not a blended learning class though I really have hopes and dreams to become one this year. 

Integrating technology into your every lessons really is simple and just takes some time and resourcefulness on your part. I want to share with you the ways that I use it and how it has been successful in my room. 

I love Sharesafe TV. It is perhaps the best way for me to share videos with my class in a safe way. I use videos as hooks for my lessons and will set these up on my computer the day of my lesson. Sharesafe takes off all the inappropriate ads and such. You could also use Sharesafe on the student computers by placing a short-cut onto the student desktops so that they can view the video to follow up on the lesson, write a review, summary, or whatever you'd like for them to do. I've also found "online" books or songs via youtube and have used them in my listening center. I've used my IPAD as a listening center and placed a Sharesafe shortcut on the screen and my students just click that shortcut and "listen" to the story, video, or song in listening and then do a response sheet there, too.

Sharesafe is free. 

Blendspace is similar to Sharesafe in the fact that you can upload videos in a safe manner. However, it is unique because you can group your lesson into one page. As you can see from my screen shot, this is a lesson I did for short /a/. In blendspace it allows you to search for youtube videos that suit your need or topic (you can view to see if it is appropriate!) and then group them together. You can also link to a game that will follow-up that skill or a follow-up activity. In this case, my students had a make words tub next to the computer that they had to do after they viewed all the videos on short  /a/ words (really it was at, am, and an words). That way there is always application of the skill. You could link to a game, worksheet, or in my case, a center skill. OR you could use Screenchomp (next topic!) for an assessment. You can make a blendspace for anything!!! If you don't want to create a blendspace, there are so many blendspaces already created that you could also search for. It does work on the IPAD as well. Blendspace is free. 

Screenchomp is an app that you can download (free) for your IPAD or tablet. I am sure you could use it for a handheld device but the screen would be just too small. I like it because you can capture the "now" and use it like a whiteboard or activboard without having one.  It also has the feature of students communicating with you at home *in case* they don't quite understand something with the homework. They can snap a picture of it on their phone or IPAD and circle the problem or record their voice and then send it to you. You could also give feedback.

You can then respond back to them in writing or voice recorded message. Kinda neat. I am not sure on how this would work in a primary setting but the applications for upper elementary, middle and high school are fantastic! 

Edmodo is new to me. I have yet to attempt it as a classroom teacher; I have experienced it as a parent. I know many teachers who use it and like it as a forum for their class where they can post assignments, quizzes, post interactive questions, use sharesafe to post videos for lessons. It also tracks data for you.

Plickers is a great tool for assessment. The teacher is the only one who uses the technology-- you use your smart phone, IPAD, or any handheld device. The kids love it. Basically you enter the questions you want to ask; you can choose MC or T/F and the students hold up their "Plicker" card to choose the answer. Each card is unique so you avoid the "he's looking at my answer" agony. 

  You can read how I use it {HERE}. Simple set up and I love the real time data. The students see it, too. It is customizable by you and you can use this data as an alternative to exit tickets. I do recommend using Mozilla to run this website as it doesn't work well in Chrome. The other alternative to Pickers in Kahoot! I love a great Kahoot! You can think of Kahoot as an assessment tool with bells and whistles-- literally. It has fun sounds and is more colorful that Plickers. With Kahoot, each student will need their own handheld device. I just never had enough devices so I never used it. I have used Kahoot with other teachers just not with my own class. Plickers and Kahoot are free. 

Lakeshore is like teacher heaven to me. I could seriously spend lots of money there. One of the best investments I ever bought there were their interactive games. I love them! My favourite is the Interactive Calendar, which I think now they call it Circle Time Software. Mine is waayyy different. I have the interactive calendar part since calendar is still an integral part of our morning meeting where we talk about the days of the week, upcoming events, we talk about number sense, etc... I have other interactive software games that I project onto my board and play, Plinko Non-Fiction and Language Adventures.  I plan on purchasing more math interactive games as I love their graphics and skills. Most games are around $20. I know that I could always pull up math games on the web but these are nice to have without the ads and such! 

I use these technology applications at least once a day if not more. They are constants in my classroom and my kids leave me pretty tech savvy. Like with anything in the technology world, it does take time to research it all to make sure the content is what we want for our students and what our students need. 

Technology will never replace good teaching. EVER. 

Students still need that human connection--a smiling face or warm embrace. They need those teachable moments that only we can give. Technology just gives them that extra push or incentive that we can't because let's face it, today's kids are born with instant screen time. 

I hope you will integrate more technology into your classroom lessons if you've been a little tech-shy or weren't sure where to go! There are TONS of great resources out there! Don't forget that we have a whole month of fantastic topics to help you prepare for the upcoming school year! 

Lots of love,

Leslie

5 Tips for Effective Writing Conferences

Hi! It's Nicole from Mrs. Rios Teaches. I am so happy to be piggybacking off of Randi's excellent post yesterday, about how to make writing your students' favorite time of the day.

Today, I am going to be sharing some general tips about how to hold effective writing conferences.  Now, before I begin, there are no hard and fast rules about how to conference. You are not doing it wrong. I don't feel I am either.  Everyone has to make it work for themselves, and most importantly, their students.  I am just going to share some conferencing practices that have worked for me.

1) CELEBRATE! : I'm going to tell the truth here, and admit that I used to be the kind of writing teacher that would look at a young 2nd grader's writing and focus on all of the grammar, punctuation, and spelling mistakes. Many years, and several professional books later (Thank you Lucy Calkins!), I now place the least amount of emphasis on those things with my young writers.  I use our writing time to develop enthusiasm, stamina, fluency, creativity, and voice.  This is the time to praise, praise, praise!  Getting my students to the point where they look forward to writing workshop has been THE biggest factor in making my students better writers.  It all starts with letting them know they are authors, and making them aware of where they are being successful in their craft.

2) SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO, NOW? :  "if I go there will be trouble, and if I stay it will be double..."  Anyone else remember that song? Ha, ha.

Every time I see a picture of a teacher conferencing, they are crouched down next to the student's desk.  After they finish up, they move on to the next student.  I tried this.  Honestly, I did.  But, I was never able to meet my goal of seeing 5 students per day.  Perhaps if I would have carried a timer with me, I could have accomplished my goal.  But, that just didn't feel respectful or authentic to me.

I have had much greater success with sending 5 students to go begin their writing at our group table, right after our mini-lesson.  Then, for the first 5 minutes of writer's workshop I just wander through and make sure everyone is ok, and on the right track.  Sometimes I am just reminding Juan to put on his glasses, or Stevie to use his Spaceman stick for spacing.  My students also know that this is a good time to have me write words in their personal dictionaries. They raise their dictionaries in the air, open to the first letter in the word.  After about 5 minutes, there is a purposeful, yet quiet hum to the classroom. This is when I head back to my little group.  I almost always get through all 5 students in a session. But, if I don't, I call the ones I missed at a later time, or during our next WW session.

3) HAND OFF!  Pre-LC (before Lucy Calkins) I used to have my trusty red pen ready at all times. (I know.  I was a nightmare.) By the time I had finished reading a student's paper, evidence of my gruesome assault on their writing could be seen from beginning to end.  The result?  My students and I were overwhelmed and defeated.

Respecting students' writing as theirs, is so important.  Now, I do not write on my students' writing.  Any helpful comments or suggestions that I share in written form, are done on post-its. The result?  My students are more invested, and retain greater ownership over their writing.  This has increased their independence as writers, as well as the quality of their writing.  They are proud of their writing, and want to create the best piece that they can.

4) STAY FOCUSED :  When it comes to writing conferencing, less is absolutely, positively, more.  With young writers, there will be a lot to fix.  So much that it may make your eyes burn.  I start my conferences with asking students to share their writing with me, and offering at least 2-3 compliments on things they have done well.  Then, I make one suggestion about how to strengthen their writing piece.

5) DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT :  Keep a record of your conferences with each student,  My individual student form has a place for the date, notes on what the author is doing well, and a space for notes on what I taught them during our conference, or what lesson they might need in the future.  I review the notes on all my students before I plan my next week of writing instruction.  I focus on shared needs, or small groups of students that might need the same lesson.  Sometimes, I will see glaring issues that I will need to address in a whole class mini-lesson.  These notes are like gold, and the more you use them to drive your instruction, the more growth you will see in your students.

Don't forget to check out all of July's informative posts:

Thanks for stopping by.

Easy Tips for Teaching Writing

Hello friends.  This is Randi coming to you from Teach It With Class.  I am going to share with you 4 super easy writing tips that will help make your writing lessons smoother.  

All of my tips are easy-peasy and can be put into practice tomorrow!

First a little background information.  I’m passionate about writing.  I’ve learned so much over the years and I think it’s undeniable that better writers make better readers.  I also think teaching writing to this generation and the generations to come is going to be crucial to our future.  Our children are growing up in a world of selfies and status updates and it’s more important than ever to bring some substance to the table. Below are 4 tips to help your writing lessons flow.

In my classroom I work hard to make writing one of our favorite times of the day.  The goal is to make a relaxing classroom atmosphere where creative juices can flow.  It’s also important to make it a safe atmosphere for students to express themselves without feeling pressure or judged.  You may be amazed what your students will write if you give them enough time and freedom to write.  It’s important they feel safe in your classroom and free to do this.  I play relaxing music as soon as students settle in to write and in my current classroom I dim the lights.  I have 2 light switches and I turn one off and leave one on.  This still gives us plenty of light.  You may simply be able to turn some lamps on/off or open/close the blinds.  

I know, I know.  Paper costs money, copies cost money, you have so much of it sitting in the cabinet…I get it. I promise I do.  I have experimented with this for years and the proof is in the student work.  When a student writes on a sheet of paper or in a notebook that they can be proud of they will produce a higher quality piece of work.  So what can you use instead? 1) I always have lined writing paper copied double sided that can be used for any writing lesson.  2) When a lesson calls for it,  I use themed paper with a writing prompt or title already given at the top of the page.  3) I use a writing journal or notebook.  It just depends on the lesson/topic and what works best for you.  I strongly encourage you to throw out the other stuff!

During writing time my students are actively writing and I am buzzing around the room with post it notes and my big pink eraser.  When teaching students to write, my focus is conventions and content.  However, sometimes a student can spend way too long trying to spell carnivore. It’s not that they shouldn’t stretch it out and try to write the sounds they hear, they should…but sometimes those struggling writers will just get stuck and STOP.  I write carnivore on a post it.  Slap it on their desk and just move on. I typically do this for proper nouns and content vocabulary. I don’t do this for sight words, words posted in the room already, or words that can and should be sounded out (with, cheese, blue etc…).  I don’t do it for every word or for every student but it helps build confidence in those strugglers.

This may sound harsh but just hear me out.  As I said during writing time, I’m buzzing around the room.  I am reading what my students are writing out loud next to them as they write.  This helps them hear their own words as we listen together for mistakes.  If a mistake is found, it’s time to erase and fix our words.  Well, have you ever stood next to a student and waited for them to erase their work so they can fix it?  It’s pretty much like watching paint dry.  As an added bonus, students are often not yet sure of their mistake and they erase the wrong part of their writing. Then you have two things to fix which takes up precious time.   The solution is to carry your own teacher eraser (I fancy the big pink ones) and erase it for the student.  Quickly guide the student on how to correct the mistake and move on.   To make sure each writing lesson doesn’t end in tears, I tell students from the beginning I am doing this to save time.  I will be erasing something on everyone's paper at some point.  It’s nothing to be sad about.   Most students accept this explanation with grace.  If you happen to come across a student who doesn’t like it, you don’t have to do it with that student.  Plus, if you’re still using the grayish mystery material teacher paper from the cabinet, you have a better chance of erasing the writing without ripping the paper than your beginning writer does. 

I could write for days about teaching writing but I'll wrap up for now! I hope you enjoyed my tips and are having a fabulous 4th of July weekend!

The Primary Chalkboard authors have a great month planned for you! Read all about it here and mark your calendars!

Back to School Tips and Ideas for New Teachers

Hi there friends, it's Emma from Clever Classroom. 

Recently I asked my Facebook fans what tips they would give a new teacher to help them save some money and get organized for back to school (see post here). 

I wasn't surprised to read that so many of them knew of different ways to save and get organized. 

Here are ten tips for new teachers, well any teachers. 

1. Be prepared to spend money. Most of our Facebook fans mentioned that they spend between $200-$1,000 per year. 

2.  Join Scholastic to get discounted books. Try their Teacher Express store by clicking the image below.

Scholastic Teacher Express

3.  Visit yard sales and second-hand stores to find discounted books and games. You can search Craig's List or your local paper for the ones in your area. 

4.  Visit discount stores like The Dollar Store or The Dollar Tree for storage containers, games, craft, stationery and even furniture.

Try Dollar tree's online store here.

5.  Save your receipts for taxation purposes.  You might like to use the new app; Expensify to scan your receipts. Here's a link to their website.  Here's a link to their FREE app.

6.  Ask your school if they have a budget for teachers to purchase consumables and or resources for the classroom. 

7.  Find a veteran teacher that is willing to help you. You might be able to borrow items. 

8.  Decide on a theme or even a color theme and shop for those items. 

9. Look for sales online and in catalogs. 

10.  Shop on Teachers Pay Teachers, there are so many resources that are bundled to help you save. 

Find 20 more tips over on my blog.

Check out even more tips and ideas from the authors here at the Primary Chalkboard. 

Be sure to follow us here at the Primary Chalkboard to see more tips and tricks from our authors. 

Thanks for dropping by.