Update!

Hi friends!
I just got my expectations for my own classes, so I am not sure I can update the blog as often. I am so excited to start online learning for my own students, but between the extra support and my own children learning. I may not be able to update as much on this blog. I would love to continue the live quizizz at 11:45 for the masses: Are you smarter than a 5th grader daily. Follow me on FB for the code!

Rain, Rain, and STEM Day

Today was our best day yet. I believe the changes made yesterday really helped. I have one main document with helpful links and downtime websites to view along with a hyperlink to their own list of assignments with as many specifics as I could I also wrote out all materials they needed, so we weren't going back and forth to rooms or drawers. Two other significant changes were an 8AM PE rotation in the garage (family-style) and the ukulele came last night, so Daren had his first music lesson with the kids. I think it went well considering Jake is currently strumming while I am writing.

Because Jake is moving on to middle school next year, I worked with him today on setting up proper note pages in the focused note style. I googled some examples of this so he can also see how the more we interact with them, the more we add (images, labels, definitions). This will be a work-in-progress, but here is his first-day example.

Reading and math were business as usual. I am using workbooks that I had bought for them to do last summer that they never completed (#momfail) as warm-ups or reviews before we begin our focus for the day. I am also reviewing cursive. For language arts, Jake is working on his book from class and Zak is reading his book and we are adding in comprehension and prediction, every few chapters. I am using a math standards book for Zak that my friend Megan accidentally ordered two of (score), so I am doing 5 problems a day from each of the main concepts. 

After lunch, we did our "Mission to Mars" project. We followed the slideshow that I posted yesterday. We use airplay to project the videos to our TV and watched the first video together. After I had them race back to the table to write as much as they could remember, giving only two minutes. Then they each took turns sharing on fact. If they didn't have the fact on their page, they wrote it down on their notes and if they did have it, they would underline the information. Below are the samples. 

 "The cousins" (they live next door) came over and they worked together to engineer a spaghetti rover. They had to work together to see if they could get it to roll down a ramp 3 meters. It was a lot of fun that involved the materials we already had at home (not to mention creativity). There were many ideas that were discussed before decisions were made. Cooperation and critical thinking were the paramount skills used in this lesson! 

Tomorrow we will continue with our routine, but this time I had the kids check what was on the schedule for themselves, so they made a list of their materials needed for the day instead of the responsibility being mine. We will be doing the same language arts and math routine and completing a mystery science lesson titled "Could there be life on other planets?" Friday we will watch Wall-E and connect it back to our science activities for the week. I made this little hyperdoc for Friday, so you can see how the week will culminate. Click HERE

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Day two and I've changed the schedule again. I found it was easier to have a weekly plan for myself with all the assignments listed. I started with what I wanted the boys to know and then worked backward. From there, I hyperlinked a document that was for Jake and another for Zak. On each document was a list of their assignments broken down by subject for the day. We went over how to highlight the items as they finished, which putting action to the word by highlighting it, gave my kids a feeling of accomplishment.

Today the leprechaun brought the boys some Connect Four games and some Lucky Charms. For me, I had special deliveries as well.  My husband and my friend Amy brought me toilet paper! YES!  After breakfast, my kids started the St. Patrick's Day hyperdoc that I posted yesterday. After listening to stories and reading articles, they posted on the interactive padlet.  It was so fun when Elora jumped on and displayed her drawings. The kids were so excited to be able to comment, ask questions, and collaborate with each other. Check it out below!

From the hyperdoc the boys completed grade-level appropriate proofreading activities and lots and lots of reading and math practice. 

Tomorrow our morning will be focused on language arts and math, but the afternoon will be primarily STEM based. I've adapted a lesson to use at home that connects engineering concepts to careers. The day will end with a little career research. Use if you'd like: Mission to Mars Stem Lesson HERE

Happy St. Patrick's Day! 

Today was a ... trial.

School is out early today.

This wasn't the plan.

All joking inside, overall, learning this temporary system will take some time but I am happy with how everyone tried to have a good attitude.  Daren (my husband) made homemade bread with kids, so students had a practical lesson in science, math, and precision. We used the recipe linked here. It is something that we usually make in the fall and winter, but we figured now is as good as time as any. The kids had a great time and were able to gobble it down during "recess."  (Pics are coming!)

Jake (5th grade) completed a lesson on Think Central on math, continued reading his book and completed comprehension questions and vocabulary practice. If parents out there are wondering how to support their child in reading comprehension any quick search on Quizlet will yield tons of results. You do not need an account, neither does your child, you can search for free and use for free! For social studies, Jake started his movie scroll on the American Revolution. I will admit this was not a hard project for him to buy into because he loves history and Star Wars, so it was a win-win. Today was his first attempt and he had some mishaps. Here is his project as of today (click HERE). Tomorrow I am going to have him add diverse perspectives into his scroll to include women and Native Americans (to be continued). We used https://www.classtools.net/movietext/  to make this scroll. Tip: type this on a document before putting it in the scroll, just because if you click one wrong button, you lose it all. I used directions from one of my assignments I do in my class and we just adapted them. Take a listen here if you'd like. I would have a tab open with the directions, hit pause, then go step by step.

Zak picked one of the books we had at home because when we to the library on Saturday it was closed. He read three chapters and then created a google slideshow. He wrote the title of his book, introduced characters, setting, a short one-sentence summary, and a prediction. He learned how to change the background of the slides, font color and how to add an image. Additionally, during his creative time, he opted to draw a picture of two of the characters. I showed him how to take a picture and insert into the slideshow. For math, we went through division and multiplication and played games on this site.

We ended the day, with the kids making a fort (good times)! 

Tomorrow, I will add in some fun with this hyperdoc on St. Patrick's Day! Check it out if you'd like! St Patrick's Day Hyperdoc I will also be posting a STEM activity we will be completing in the next few days. If you have any questions, let me know in the comments.

If I was teaching 7th Graders this week...

Oh, my sweet 7th graders! Students are experts at sourcing and evaluating sources for credibility. Fake news has nothing on them! We have been learning about how the Renaissance leading figures impacted the time period then and now. One of these leading figures is Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the printing press. The printing press was a way for the "common people" to get communication quickly and efficiently much like our internet/ news system today. However, just like our internet and social media, it can be dripped in bias or propaganda. The printing press also played a part in bias and propaganda in the early modern period 1500s. Inspired by History Labs, students are asked to determine the most important impact of the printing press while analyzing sources. The investigative question is: Which was the printing press's greatest impact? They will choose between: the greatest impact was literacy, the greatest impact was knowledge, the greatest impact was religion, or the greatest impact was exploration.
Students will be asked to analyze each source and evaluate if the source is promoting which impact. Usually, in class, we would do a Socratic seminar, but other options include discussion posts, screencasts, and argumentative writing. If students can provide evidence with an analysis of how the evidence proves their position on the greatest impact- they are good to go! There is no right or wrong answer as long as there is thoughtful consideration to all points and the students can prove how society has been impacted throughout time.
Why do they need to trace it to through time? If there was a lasting impact there should be connections they can make today and think of modern-day examples. CONNECTION is CRUCIAL.  Sorry, I was yelling there. Memorizing facts is so 1980! History is about understanding patterns, context, and perspectives. Making connections is creating relevance and gives the why. The "Why are we learning this?" becomes answered by each individual's understanding of how history shapes future events. As citizens, we are an active part of history. History is yesterday, history is today!
Oops got a soapbox there!
Happy learning!
Resource activity HERE

If I were teaching 8th grade this week...

I just loved my 8th graders so much last year. They truly were such a wonderful group that continued to raise the bar. Each day I had to ask myself how can I extend their learning? They truly kept me on my toes and kept me accountable for the highest level of instruction. I LOVED IT! Additionally, what is so amazing about teaching history now is it is much more than just memorization, it is putting it into context, validating sources, and looking at diverse perspectives. There is so much more to gain when teaching it this way. Students can thread together patterns from the past and connect it to the future.
At the end of the year, my students did a "Top 8 of 8th." Hearing their takeaways was a highlight of my year. One of the memories most cherished by the students was our simulations, class games, hyperdocs, projects, and conversations. Because we are out of the classroom right now, we cannot do some of those things (wahhhh). However, something we did do in the classroom are hyperdocs. Hyperdocs are an essential component because it allows teachers to differentiate instruction for students and students can work at their own pace. I love the website here which is all about "teachers giving to teachers." Yes! Giving!
I love this military hyperdoc here that focused on the Civil War, however, students should have a strong grasp of the causes of the Civil War. We do several class activities leading up to this point, but a good refresher is this Khan Academy link here and review on quizlet here.
Okay, so back to the hyperdoc. Students simply make a copy of the here and then they are able to build up their knowledge on the Civil War guided by the investigative question to further research how the tactics and strategies used in the Civil War affected later wars. After they are well-versed in the Civil War, this is a great time for students to talk to relatives who may have knowledge of military history or personal experience as a service member. This "eye witness" to history will help students really understand an additional layer and personalize history. Once students see the impact that history still has on us today, they understand the significance of knowing it.
A few resources to share:  I love this book as a reference. The icons, images, and note style make the content matter approachable to students. Chapters to reference would be chapter 22, 30,32, 35, and 43.
Of course, my students know how cheesy I am and how I love to play music, songs, and games to help make history FUN! Flocabulary has a great song here and also a fun review game here. Below is a picture of me (dressed as Grant) during one of our simulations.

Check the ratings for parent preference, but I enjoy the following movies to help solidify understanding of the Civil War. 

Glory link here

Gettysburg here

America: Story of Us Episode 5 here

Ken Burns: The Civil War here

I know, I know. I am Type A.

So here it is, Saturday. Not even day one of school closures, however, I am not one to stay idle for long. I need a plan first before I was able to enjoy the weekend. Constant thoughts were running through my head, "How am I going to organize the day for my boys and have individual time to work with each one?" Luckily, my husband and I are home and we can divide our time up with our boys. So he will absolutely bringing back woodshop! Ha! 

How else can we organize learning throughout the day without us all losing our minds? Inspired by the "COVID-19 Daily Schedule" that is circulating social media, I've generated a personalized outline below. 

To structure the day, I spent my time searching the internet for companies who are graciously allowing free subscriptions due to the outbreak. How awesome is that? They could have easily charged more money because of the current demand for online learning, but they didn't. # greatergood#blessthem

I found this great music website here and ordered this instrument on amazon (click here). They had it in stock and it will be here by Monday (no luck on toilet paper though). 

My oldest son is in 5th grade and was sent home with some materials (#ninjaskills) so I was able to gauge where he was in math and in language arts. I was able to find supportive materials on YouTube from passionate educators who have recorded their lessons online and he will continue his path in learning.  Albeit, I know he won't get the "best" instruction that his teacher would be able to give him in live time, but this will have to do.  

My youngest son is in 3rd grade. We are off to the library in a few to get a book to read for our novel study. In math, the first week home, we are going to do a review of time, regrouping, and division. For science and social studies, each of my children will rotate the subjects and go in depth on a topic. Jake chose social studies (above) and Zak chose science. 

Although I can seamlessly manage a class of 34 students, my own children go rogue and are resistent to learning with me, so how can I manage their learning and be able to focus on each child's needs? I created this chart which staggered the "academic time" so I can be available to them. Please take note of how I put "fresh air" after each one. I think we are all going to need it. LOL.

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Here is the plan so far, but as you know, things change at a drop of the hat. I will keep you posted on daily happenings, revisions, and of course what I WOULD have been teaching in my history classes next week.