Literacy Anchor Charts

Halloween week just about wiped me out! It started with a parade/party/storyteller combo that could knock any teacher right out. Then I read a post by Kristen from A Teeny Tiny Teacher that totally freaked me out. I've been feeling shocked and sorry for her all week. She really should get an award for sticking with the profession after that spooky Halloween disaster. Love ya, Kristen. I'm the wife of a wood shop teacher, so we count fingers on a regular basis. If you read it, then you'll understand why I was all  freaked out.  To top it all off (as a result of my competitive curse), I've had to spend a lot of time campaigning for votes for the Circle of Moms Top 25 Teacher Mom blog list.  I'm not sure if it was the energy I spent campaigning or the kid who sneezed right in my face at the reading group table this week...but my week ended with a fever.

I'm feeling better today, so on to the teaching stuff... I've been making anchor charts with my students to help them brainstorm for writing activities. Here are two of my favorites from our recent writing projects.

After reading several scarecrow books, we did a scarecrow writing project. The book we read on this particular day was The Little Scarecrow Boy by Margaret Wise Brown.

It's a little hard to see the words the students wrote in the boxes, because I made them use a pencil.  But, as the class thought of words to describe a scarecrow the words were added into the boxes.  When we finished brainstorming, they completed their own writing project about scarecrows.

We also made an anchor chart when we read Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley to work on developing mental images.  I read the book without showing the students the pictures.  The students drew their own big green monster based on their mental images.  The students shared their own monsters as a group.  Then, I reread the story and we made the anchor chart together.  The students drew the picture and added the words on the chart.  Finally, they returned to their desks to label their own monsters.

I glue lines in the boxes sometimes.  I know...big freak.  Doesn't it look nice though?

I'm linking this post to the anchor chart linky party at Tales of Frogs and Cupcakes.  Please stop by to visit to see the other anchor charts.

If you have a minute...please consider voting for my blog to be on the Top 25 Teacher Mom blogs at Circle of Moms.  All of your votes are really helping!!  You can vote 1 time each day until Nov. 8 by clicking on the icon on my sidebar.

List of Mentor Texts for Writer's Workshop

I would like to thank all of the bloggers who linked up to share their fabulous ideas! Here is a list from the linky party I did about mentor texts for writer's workshop.   I put all the submissions into one document. I listed each book with the contributing blogger. You will need to visit their blogs to read a full description of how they used each book in their classroom. I just included the focus for each book from their posts.

You can download the document by clicking on the image below.

You can click on the image below to visit the original linky party and find your way to each of the contributing blogs.

I hope you find this helpful!  My amazon cart filled right up when I read the amazing ideas the other bloggers shared.  Thanks again to the contributors!

Competitive Curse

Recently, my blog was nominated to be on the Top 25 Teacher Mom Blogs list at Circle of Moms. I am honored that my blog was nominated with so many other fabulous teacher/mom blogs. I'm also not sure if the person who nominated my blog knows how extremely competitive I am. I confess... I'm extremely competitive. Earlier this week (when I might have been campaigning for votes in the staff lounge) one of my colleagues asked me when I became so competitive. That's when I spilled my story...

About a million years ago (actually in high school, but that seems like a million years ago) I was nominated for prom queen. That in itself is very funny if you know me. My boyfriend was nominated for prom king. Awwwww...oh wait, not so much. He won. I lost. I was on my high school yearbook committee and had to spend the whole night taking pictures of king & queen for the "prom layout" for the yearbook. I'm so old that I can't remember if I even wanted to be prom queen (no offense to the prom queens out there). But, I do know that taking pictures of my boyfriend dancing around with the "queen" was not pleasant. Yep, that's my prom horror story and it was the beginning of the competitive curse.

Here is the good news... my high school yearbook teacher sent me a message last week to tell me that she is voting for my blog every day! Now that deserves an awwwww... especially considering that she lives in a different state and I haven't seen her since the day I graduated 19 years ago. I think she understands my competitive curse. Love you, Mrs. S!

My amazing staff has been voting for my blog too - thank you ladies (and a few gentlemen)!  Lots of staff members from the building I used to work in are also voting for my blog (super nice).  Thanks ladies!  My husband's staff (he is a teacher too) and our family and friends have also been voting for my blog. Thanks everyone!

If you've already voted for my blog... thank you!!!!!

The voting ends Nov. 8th and you can vote 1 time each day. If you'd like to help my blog make the final Top 25 list, you can vote by clicking on the link below. My blog is in 2nd place currently and I only need about 245 more votes to be in 1st place. Ha! Oh darn it... there's the curse again. Oy vey!

Please considering heading over to vote if you have time!

5 Senses Poetry

My students have been working on writing 5 senses poems. We started with a poem about fall. After working our way through the writing process, my students had their fall 5 senses poems published to hang in the "Gillow Gallery" (which is really just the hallway where we display work outside of my classroom). Each child made a fall tree out of tissue paper to display with their poem. It was great for fine motor practice.  My students (even those who have a hard time with fine motor tasks) LOVED making the tissue paper tree.  The trunk is just random brown fabric that I cut using an old Ellison die cut. Oh, I mean....a parent used the machine to cut out all the trunks for me.   Super helpful parents = super lucky teacher!

Here is a sample of one of the poems and the tree together.

Last week, I posted a Halloween 5 sense poem freebie. You can find that post here.

At my Teachers Notebook and Tpt shops, you can find my Seasonal 5 Senses Poetry Forms for the whole year.  My students love writing poetry and using the 5 senses seems to give them an extra boost, so they can focus on word choice and creativity.

That's all for now!   Oh, how I love comments...

Don't Miss...Teaching Tips Virtual Teaching Blog Expo

You are not going to want to miss the Teaching Tips Virtual Teaching Blog Expo!!!!

I attended the Blogging 101 Teaching Expo in September. It was a super cool virtual experience and I learned a ton! I think I had just as much fun hearing the voices of some of my favorite bloggers as I did learning more about blogging.

I will definitely be attending this expo on November 12th  as well. I can't wait to enjoy another fabulous professional development opportunity in my pj's from my favorite chair at home! I hope you will join me for these 'teaching tips" that will make you want to flip!

You can click on either of the images above to go to the registration site.

It's Holly Bloggy Christmas Time!

I am super excited about Holly Bloggy Christmas! I signed myself up and soon I will find out who my secret Holly Bloggy pal will be. I can't wait! I LOVE Christmas and already started my Christmas crafting and shopping!

You can find all the details you need to sign up by clicking on the Holly Bloggy logo below. It's quick and easy!   Hurry...  you need to sign up before October 31 to participate.




Holly Bloggy Christmas is being hosted by Ms. Preppy and Sarah. They both have fabulous blogs!

The Funny Things Kids Say...

One of things I always suggest to new teachers is to keep a journal of the funny (or just plain outrageous) things kids say. I have a journal of 15 years of those funny quotes from my students. I also have one of quotes from my own two children. I keep the journals in my nightstand.  Every once in a while, I bring them to school and a few of us will read them and laugh (or cry) our way down memory lane.

My journal full of the funny things my students say.

Tonight I will be adding one quote to each journal.

For the journal of student quotes...
One of our secretaries celebrated her 50th birthday today.  We spent some time today brainstorming all the wonderful things about her, so we could make her a classbook for her birthday.  She is AMAZING, so the list was really long.  Finally, I agreed to call on "one more" student.  He said, "Wow, Mrs. S.....   is 5 rows on the 100's chart!!!"    Good golly, Miss Molly - they are listening to me!!!  Yahoo!

For the journal of quotes from my own kids...
Donavon (my 5 year old):  "--------- said she wants to marry me."
Me:  "Did you tell her you are 5 and 5 year olds can't get married?"
Donavon:  "She said she wants to marry me when we grow up."
Me:  "Did you tell her you have to go to college and get a good job first?"
Donavon:  "Mom,  don't worry. I am not going to marry her.  She got her clipped moved once!"

Finally, thank you so much to everyone who has voted for my blog to be on the list of the Top 25 Teacher Mom blogs at Circle of Moms.  I am honored to even be nominated to be on "the list".  The voting ends on Nov. 8 and you can vote 1 time each day.  You can vote by clicking on the Circle of Moms logo on my sidebar.   I appreciate your kind messages and your votes.