FRIDAY FREEBIE!!!

This is the end to my third week of school, first week that has been a 5 day week.  Whew!  I am beat!  I am looking forward to the days in October/November when routines are in place and they know them well.  I think that freebies are fun, so this year, every Friday, I am going to post a freebie.  They will only be free that day, except for this one, which will always be free.  :)  YEAH!!  If this is something that you like, I'd love to hear the feedback!  I hope your routines are getting into the grove and you are ready to make it a fantastic year!!!


I love Kevin Henkes and his books, so I spend all September opening the year with him, Lilly, Chester, and all the great characters.  There are great lessons to be learned in these stories and the kids LOVE them too!

I hope you enjoy this opportunity to get your kiddos reading his books!  Click HERE for your Freebie!!

WISDOM WEDNESDAY - Student Behavior

Every so often, you get that one student.  That student who makes you go home at night and ask yourself, "What am I going to do with them?"  Here are some things that I have done, or tried to do with those students:

1)  Keep an even voice - never let the student see you're upset.  You want to model for them the behavior you expect from them.  If you flip out when you're upset, what is that saying to them?

2)  Give choices - it isn't always going to be black and white.  Give the student options.  This helps them feel a little freedom.

3) Cut daunting tasks down - take a moment to write, cut...etc. a little for them.  "I'll do this, if you do this..."  Or say, "I'm asking everyone to do this, how about you do this much?"

4)  When you give a direction expect it to be followed.  If they see you waver and not make them do it, they will always seek the out.  You are the boss in the room and unless you've altered the direction for them (or even when you've altered it),  expect completion.

5)  Give wait time.  I always say, I'm going to count down from 10, then you need to make your choice or do....  I count with my hands not my mouth.  The less verbal the better.

It isn't easy.  Some days teaching is CHALLENGING!  Seek advice, help, support.  Good luck with your year!

God Bless,

Rachel Johnson
Thrilled in Third

TUESDAY TRIUMPH - ORGANIZATION in the Classroom

I ended today feeling very overwhelmed with what we do.  There isn't enough time, There isn't enough support...it is all so exhausting sometimes.  Then I sat down to check off my end of the day list....almost never ending.  On it I see that I am to write a Tuesday Triumph blog...this is my new thing.  A blog every day that is specific.  What do I have to be triumphant over today???

I look around my room...I think about my students and so many things come to mind.  That must be triumphant in itself, right?  Here is what I am going to celebrate today:  Organization.  Each year my organization get better.  This is what will get me through what I fear is going to be a challenging year!

I hope it inspires you in some way!

God Bless,

Rachel Johnson
Thrilled in Third

Monday Madness - Top Ten Questions/Thoughts for Intervention

Our first week is under our belt!  Whew!  I feel like I can take a sigh of relief!  I am excited for this new year and the challenges I will be facing!  I have some low kiddos and I am eager to get them to grade level!  I have been thinking about how I am going to set up my guided reading and math to best support the learners in my classroom.  Here are the top 10 things that I think are important when doing intervention:

1.  What is the problem you are facing??

        a. fluency?
        b. comprehension?
        c. phonics?
        d.  phonemic awareness?
        e. vocabulary?
        f.  math facts?
        g. number sense?
        h. specific math concepts?

2. How will you assess the problem?

        a. pre-/post-test?
        b. a specific assessment?

3.  What intervention are you going to give?
         a. Is it specific?
         b.  Is it measurable?

4.  Who will implement the intervention?

Will it be you, another teacher, a para, a parent??  If it is someone other than you, make sure they are well trained on all the procedures.

5.  When will the intervention take place?

A good intervention happens every day for about 10-15 min. (or more depending on time and need).  Be creative...Before school, after school, lunch, recess...when can you grab them for those quick minutes?

6.  How will you track the intervention?

Will you have a graph?  Will you have weekly check ins?  How will you know whether or not the student is making gains or not?

7.  At the end of SIX weeks re-evaluate - Are there any improvements?

Keep at it for SIX weeks!  Consistency is the key.  They may take a few weeks to warm up and understand what it is you want them to do. Be consistent with the intervention and the time you give to the intervention.

8.  Do you need to continue the same intervention or try another?

If you are seeing no growth or improvement....move on.  Find a different intervention that targets the deficit in another way.

9.  Where do you find your resources?  Below are some great sites to visit for GREAT intervention ideas:

- The Savvy Teachers Guide - http://www.jimwrightonline.com/pdfdocs/brouge/rdngManual.PDF
- RTI Toolkit - http://www.fehb.org/CSE/CCSEConference2012/wright_CCSE_Pre_Conference_Tchr_First_Responder_14_Mar_2012.pdf
- Math Interventions - http://www.centeroninstruction.org/mathematics-instruction-for-students-with-learning-disabilities-or-difficulty-learning-mathematics-a-guide-for-teachers
- Intervention Central - http://www.interventioncentral.org/

10.  When do you contact Special Education ?

After you have done 3- six week interventions, then it is time to contact special education teachers and have them take a look at your data, give feedback, suggestions, or bring your data to the child study team in your school.




I hope that gave you some new things to think about and consider as you look at the kiddos coming in and what you will need to do to help them find new levels of success!

Make it a Great Day!!

Rachel Johnson

Thrilled in Third

School's Just Around the Corner

I've been working hard to get ready for the upcoming year. Do you ever feel that the more you accomplish the longer your list becomes?  That's about where I'm at!  😏

I find that it helps to bite the bullet and purchase what others have put together. This year, I'm excited about my new readers notebook. 

I got this from Kristine Nannini's store. It is AWESOME!!  I'm adding a couple things in to help cement all our daily 5 work. 

There use a fluency tab as well, I just need to add an accuracy and expand vocabulary tab. I will be adding a FREEBIE soon, if you'd like to add them to yours as well. Good luck as you start, or prepare to start!

Blessings!

Rachel

Close Reading

So I may be behind the times, but I am finding SO many great ideas for including "Close Reading" in my classroom.  This is something that I want to do much more of next year.  I have just begun this week, as my PLC is focusing on teaching Main Idea in our classrooms.  

I LOVE my PLC this year.  We are a group of 3rd and 4th grade teachers, with 1 special ed teacher, and 1 title teacher.  We take every 2 weeks to focus on a new concept in our classrooms.  We have done inferring, compare and contrast, cause and effect and now we are doing main idea.  We take turns coming up with a pre and a post test for the different concepts.  We discuss student data before and after.  We discuss teaching strategies before and after and we pass along great ideas on delivery.  This has helped me SO much in my teaching!

Ok, that was a side bar...  Back to Close Reading.  J

Here is something I am going to try to incorporate before testing comes upon us.  It is close reading with figurative language. Click here. 

This next resource I used a couple of weeks ago, and I really liked it.  It helped reinforce finding answers in the text and PROVING it!  My students do not always underline, or highlight, where they have found their answers.  This forces them to!

Click here to check it out!

I am excited about this next one, because it is a SPRING FREEBIE!  I am going to download and use it ASAP!  J  I love finding things when I can use them right away instead of having to wait for that time of year to roll around again.  J  Click here to check it out!

MISS NELSON IS MISSING Close Reading FREEBIE!  Enough Said!  J  Check itout here!  J

So….. are you completely unaware of Close Reading?  Maybe you have heard this new BUZZ WORD, but still have some confusion?  Here is agreat resource that lays it out nicely!  J

Here is the initial piece that got me hooked on this concept.  Even though it is in the Common Core Standards, I have not specifically used this type of strategy or lingo in my room.  I am going to now rectify this!  J  So checkout this resource.  It’s SO good!

I am also printing this one off immediately!  I wish I had it a month ago when my focus was on Compare and Contrast!  Check it out! 

Here is another one that needs to be downloaded RIGHT AWAY!  THis will help you in the planning process for small groups.  It "takes all the rocket science out of it".  It's laid out so clearly, it's easy to plan for any small group using the close read strategy!  Check it out here

Well, I could probably add another 10 resources, but I won’t overwhelm you, as I am feeling that way.  Does it ever end, that feeling of being overwhelmed when you’re a teacher?  Yes!  JUNE! JULY! AUGUST!  J

Blessings!

Rachel

Thrilled in Third

SPRING FEVER!!

It is getting closer to April and I am super excited for the nice weather!  We had a taunting of good weather a couple of weeks ago, so getting back down to the 20's has not been fun!  :(

Testing is right around the corner, so I am working feverishly to get my kiddo's ready for that big day!  I found this cool gimmic on TPT.  It's called Game Day Test Prep.  I am going to be starting that in the next couple of weeks to get my students prepared.  I LOVE it!  Totally worth the purchase!

We also have an intervention time that is intentional, purposeful and specific to the needs of the students in our classroom.  We call it W.I.N. time.  I know that I have written about this before, but it is SO powerful for my students!  They get 6-8 days of purposeful practice on concepts that they are struggling on.  Researchers say it takes 6-7 times of practice on the same concept for some of your struggling students to "get it".  This is a way that I am giving them that time in my class. 

This weekend I have finished another unit for our W.I.N. time.  It is on answering word problems.  How fitting for the testing season, right?  :)

It is free for the next 24 HOURS and then it will go to it's regular price.  So stop by and check it out at my TPT store!  :)

We are almost to the counting down stage of the year, I hope it is all going well for you and that you have found some useful tools today!

Blessings,

Rachel

Thrilled in Third

Fractions on my Mind

We are busy getting our kiddos ready for our end of the year exam.  I'm amazed at the progress they've shown through the year, but there are always things that we need work on.  One thing that several of our kiddos need help with fractions of a group.  We have an intervention time that we rotate every 2 weeks.  So this week, fractions of a group is on the menu!  :)

I have created a fun plan for helping them wrap their heads around this concept.  It is set up using a gradual release of responsibility:

Day 1 - Pretest/Teach/Launch/Review

Day 2 - Model

Day 3 - Practice Together

Day 4 - Practice Together

Day 5 - Independent Practice

Day 6 - Independent Practice

Day 7 - Review and Test

Throughout these 7-9 days, I have compiled videos and lessons, pre/post-tests, as well as a Smarties fraction activity and a Froggy Fraction Fun Task Card activity for you to work on with your kiddos.

I hope you'll check it out and find it useful in your room!  Click here for the plans.

Thanks so much!

Rachel,

and as always,

I am Thrilled in Third!  J