Groovy Educator

YouTube Video Teaching Writing Skills and Vocabulary Through Conversation In this relatively short video, I model how you can use conversations to build your child's vocabulary.  Through questioning and rephrasing, you are modeling appropriate language skills.  This in turn improves your child's ability to write because usually if a child can say it, he/she can write it (even if words are sounded out). In the video, I begin by asking what my daughter wants to talk about and she replies "fans."  Then she goes on to say "So today we will be talking about fans."  She automatically went into an introduction without even realizing she was stating the topic (probably because her mom's a teacher).  By giving her a choice on the topic, she is more interested in the conversation.  This builds engagement. A little while later in the video, I state "Apparently my daughter is a fan of fans."  I am intentionally modeling another way to use ...

                       Click here to see Pickles on YouTube! Pickles is one of my rescue animals.  I absolutely love my pets.  They are a perfect topic during modeled writing lessons, especially narratives.  I use them to demonstrate how to think about writing.  The kids are engaged when I write about Pickles, Sparky, Cali, Alice, Sadie, Rosie, or Zeus.  They ask a lot of questions and that lead to more detailed writing infused with adjectives and descriptive language. The writing is much more rich in vocabulary and not just "safe writing."     I made a little thirty second video featuring Pickles the cat.  He was a stray that we saved from under a friend's car while visiting an out of town relative.  My husband didn't want to keep him at first because we had too many animals already (3 cats and 2 dogs).  Somehow Pickles found a way into his heart and now they are bo...

I almost didn't write this post because I don't know what is going to happen yet... That's probably why I am up at 3:28 in the morning.  My mind won't shut off. Last summer, I finally sat down and wrote a children's book.  (Right now I am keeping it secret because I am hoping it will be published.)   Publishing a children's book has been a dream since fifth grade after my teacher had us write a book in class.  Why did it take so long to actually write the story?  I think it really comes down to it just wasn't my time. Right now I have a darling daughter who is so dear to me in so many ways.  The idea of being able to pass on a little piece of me after I am gone is so important to me. Last March I was in the hospital for a week and it just made me realize how fragile life truly is... I'm fine now.  Thank God! Also, five years ago, my dearest dad passed away unexpectedly.  Losing him was devastating.  Recently my dad's aunt and...

It has been an eternity since I've blogged or made a product for Teachers Pay Teachers.  This morning I got up extremely early and just could not rest.  My mind was racing about school in the middle of summer vacation.  I am a first grade teacher and I starting thinking about teaching writing.  The spelling dictionary I've been using needed to be updated and I decided to make my own using the Dolch High Frequency Words.  I did add it one word "question" so there would be a word for the letter "q" and because it is an important word.  Every year I use a spelling dictionary to reinforce alphabetical order.  I also teach the children to use it while editing.  I don't like for them to have it out during drafting as I have found some become too reliant on it and use safe writing.  Every week we add our new sight words to the spelling dictionary.  If they are already in the dictionary, I teach the children to highlight them.  If not, t...

I am so excited to link up with  Doodle Bugs Teaching  for another Five for Friday! A couple of my items are more personal and not school related this time. 1.  My baby girl WALKED!  I mean she took five steps carefully and didn't fall.  She is almost 11 months old.  I am so excited.  She has done this a few times this week.  It never ceases to amaze me how much she has learned in such a short time. 2.  In my quest to get healthy, I attempted jogging!  It felt good to do more than I thought I could.  Whenever I undertake something challenging, I try to look at it from a kid's perspective so I can be empathetic to their struggle at times. 3.  On a sad note, a friend's cancer came back full force.  She is in the hospital.  Please pray for peace and relief from the pain.  Life is a gift and circumstances can change quickly in either direction.  Times like these make me realize that life is unpredicta...

 Decodable texts can be boring but they can also be very useful.  My district uses the SRA Imagine It! reading program.  First grade students have two workbooks filled with decodable texts that can be ripped, folded, stapled, and taken home to practice.  By the end of the year the children have over 100 decodable books to add to their home library. Here is a list of ways that decodable texts can be used... Practice telling a story through the pictures (picture walk). Echo read with someone (take turns reading the same page) Buddy read with a partner (one person listens, one reads and switch) Read it to a stuffed animal Read it using silly voices Be a word detective and look for words that contain a certain letter or spelling pattern. Practice retelling the story. Add descriptive words to the book. Look for end marks (periods, question marks, and exclamation points).  Copy sentences under appropriate heading (statement, question, command). Pra...

Sorting Rings  Venn Diagrams are a useful tool in just about every subject area.  This tool enables children to compare and contrast objects or concepts.  Graphic organizers help children visualize concepts.  I have a set of the sorting rings pictured above that I absolutely love.  I use them to teach whole group lessons as well as place them in a center for the children to apply what they learned.  I have children either sort objects or words/phrases written on index cards. Suggestions: Reading Compare/Contrast two characters Compare/Contrast two versions of the same story (e.g. The Gingerbread Man) Sort by number of syllables Sort by word endings Math Sort objects by color, size, shape Sort solids by roll, stack, slide Sort numbers by number of digits Sort addition and subtraction problems Science Compare/Contrast two animals (e.g. bird and bat) Compare/Contrast two habitats Compare/Contrast two seasons Social Studies Compare/C...

Daily 5  the2sisters - Boushey and Moser are the 2 sisters that created the Daily 5. If you have not read this book I highly recommend it.  You can purchase it on Amazon ( click here ).  During the reading block, the Daily 5 system simplifies centers by getting back to the basics:  read to self (independently), read with a buddy, listen to reading, writing, and word work. The "I Love First Grade" Blogger has some useful resources on her Teachers Pay Teachers website.  Click here to check out her resources. I absolutely love this idea on the "first grade Fanatics" blog.  They incorporate new technology into the listening center by using iPod shuffles.  Check out their page! I was so inspired by their post that I went to DonorsChoose.org to request funding in order to implement this idea in my classroom next year.  Please read over my project request at http://www.donorschoose.org/MrsLowery . On Mrs.Shannon's First Grade Class ' web...