No More Book Reports, Introducing...Book Recommendations

That's right- NO MORE BOOK REPORTS.  I have always said that I had some of the greatest teachers when I was growing up, but if there was one thing that I didn't enjoy about their classes was doing book reports.  They were always so boring, and I felt like I was always writing the same thing.

Being a teacher now, I can understand the objectives behind them (kind of), and I appreciate that I did learn some skills like summarizing, distinguishing between main ideas and minor details, and learning about plot.  However, I also remember how boring they were for me, and I can only imagine how boring they would be for my students if I assigned them.  I'm not blaming my teachers at all.  Times were just different.  No big deal.  I'm pretty sure that the ones who are still teaching haven't done a traditional book report in years anyway.

So, in order to keep the objectives in place but to make it a bit more interesting and personal for students, I have created my own version of Student Book Recommendations.  Allowing students to critique and rate books empowers them and gives them ownership of their work.   They love to see their critiques displayed and read by other students.  I like to refer students to the display of Book Recommendations so they can browse them to see if they find something they are interested in.

For the past couple of years, I have designated a specific wall or bulletin board in my classroom to display student recommendations and the materials students need to complete the activity.  Sometimes, I assign them as a literacy center, use them after a group finishes a literature circle book, or allow students to complete them instead of doing their Reader's Workshop Response Log.  

Coming soon will be a picture of the bulletin board with the student recommendations that my students have just finished.  

Here are some values I have found in this activity:
1. Kids are excited about being the expert, or person who gets to critique something.
2. Kids love to see their work displayed.
3. The kids enjoy when other students ask them about the book after reading their recommendation.
4. Kids like being able to choose which books they write about.
5. I learn which books my students are really interested in without having to take a formal poll.
6. This can be a quick assessment.
7. Kids are interactively positively with reading.
8. It makes a great looking bulletin board.

Click here or on any of the images below to get your own set, which includes:

- Teacher Information/Suggestions for Use

- Student Directions

- Student Writing Forms in 8 styles (1 pictured below)

- Student Rubric

- Book Recommendation Cover Page

 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

 



Creative Writing

How the Creature Got its Feature

Creative Writing Project

 

 

 

This creative writing assignment is one that I have really enjoyed doing with my students for the past few years.  I'm always amazed at what they come up with.  This would definitely work in grades 4-8.  Depending on your students' abilities, this could be adjusted and used at other levels too.  It can be used in different ways also when considering writing (shared, writer's workshop, writing centers, etc.)

 

Basically, students choose an animal that has a specific characteristic (ex. a zebra with stripes, a pig's curly tail, or a chameleon's changing colors) and writes a fictional, narrative story that tells "how the animal got its feature." 

 

Included in this set of materials are a lesson plan, an example story that I wrote with my class, student planning organizers, a student rubric, decorative writing paper, and materials to use to put a class book together (cover page, table of contents, about the author page).  I tried to make this collection complete so that you don't have to do anything but read through the materials and copy items that you want to use.  You can click here or on the picture to get the materials.

 

I'd love to hear your experience if you use this so please leave comments below.  Also, if you have any suggestions or ways to use this differently, please share.  Enjoy!

 

 

First Day Activity for Students...Photo Prop Booth

I struggled with coming up with a first day activity for my students this year.  It's looking like I will have 30 students, and I really wanted to do something fun.  It finally struck me during my 2 year-old niece's birthday party.... A PHOTO BOOTH.

So, I thought that I would create a bulletin board that looks like a theater-style stage. Students will choose some props on the first day that represent who they are, and I will take their pictures.  They will do a little writing activity or create a headline for their picture, and I will hang them up.  This will be a fun way for them to introduce themselves to me and their classmates.

So, I spent a lot of time finding FREE photo booth props online (thanks Pinterest and Google).  There were tons of great ones out there.  I was able to download and print them on card stock and laminate them.  Thankfully I have an amazing husband who helped me cut them all out. 

Then, I created the bulletin board, which wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be.  I used the large rolls of paper that come on a cart.  Here is the bulletin board (pre-photos).

Before...

 

 

 

 After...

 

 

 





Back to School Student and Parent Surveys

There's so much to do this time of year if you're a teacher.  Many of you have already gone back to school, and many of us will be heading back very soon.  One thing that is important to every teacher who I've ever met is getting to know their students' interests inside and outside of school and what they like to learn about.  That's what this post will hopefully help with. 

These are back to school surveys for students and parents (separate).  Although the pictures show 5th Grade, the actual product that I created to share includes pages for 3rd-6th grades.  I also took out my name, but left it in the pictures to show you what they look like.  Click here to get the student surveys and here to get parents surveys for FREE!!!!  Please let me know what you think of them.  Happy School Year!

Student Survey

 

 

Parent Survey

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Road Trip

So, most of my summer road trip has nothing to do with school or work (except for the historical sites that we will see in Boston- yay, Revolutionary War), but many of my students asked me to post pictures so they could see them. So, that's the main purpose of this. Kiddos, if you're checking these out feel free to leave a comment. I hope everyone's summer has been great so far!

First stop- Vermont

We aren't actually staying or doing anything in Vermont, but we were driving through a cute little town with a cute little bridge and had to stop for a quick picture. It is the first time either of us has been in Vermont. 

The sunglasses were a must. We drove straight through from IL. 

Second stop.... New Hampshire 

This was the view of the mountains from our ground level patio.

While we were in NH, the weather stunk so we did a day trip to Maine, and it has been the hilight of our trip so far. So, I will get to that right now. 

With the weather being so horrible we did what anyone visiting the area would do- visit lighthouses and eat (and eat and eat). 

Here are a few photos of Portland Head Light in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. It was amazing. It was originally constructed by George Washington in the 1700's and the entire monument/ area was rededicated in 1982 by George Bush when he was Vice President. The crashing waves and boats in the distance was like nothing I've ever seen. Really, really breathtaking...

Now for the food. First of all, if I ever HAD to move out-of-state, I'd be in Maine in no time. The gluten free choices were endless, the seafood was outstanding, and every place we went had their own personalized flair on things. 

Here I am in front of Bam Bam- a 100% GF Bakery. The lemon bars and chocolatey/peanut buttery/crispy bars were out-of-this-world!  

Here's Tony at Gritty's. Neither of us knows why he looked at the menu. We knew he would want the fish and chips, which he said were delicious. Really fun, oceanside atmosphere. 

Stop 3.... Boston

This was definitely the most historical part of our trip. It was awesome. We spent several hours one morning traveling along Freedom Trail (on foot).  It pretty much hilights the events leading up to the Revolutionary War, which laid the path to our freedom as Americans. Pay attention, kids. Most of these pictures are things that we learned about this year. 

Here I am in front of Patriot, Paul Revere's, house. It's the oldest standing (non-government) building in Boston and the only one left that was built in the 1700's.  We toured it but couldn't take pictures inside. (Don't worry, I bought some postcards with photos.). The photos that follow show other things outside of Revere's house. 

One of the many bells Paul made.

Here's a mall called Paul Revere Mall. There's a school there, a large statue of Paul on a horse, and the Old North Church, where Paul ordered two lanterns to be hung in the steeple to signal to the colonists that the British were invading by sea. 

There was a huge memorial cemetery called Granary Burying Groung right in downtown Boston that has the burial sites and tombstones of several American Patriots and their family members. 

Samuel Adams

Paul Revere

The tombstone for the men and one boy who died during the Boston Massacre. 

You can see that it's a pretty large

cemetery. The large tombstone in the middle is for Benjamin Franklin's parents. Ben Franklin is not burried there. 

Next is the location (which is not 100% for sure but what historians think) of the famous Boston Tea Party. The ship is just a replica, but you can go on and actually dump tea into the harbor just like the colonists did!

Next is The Old State House, which is where the colonists started throwing sticks and snowballs at the British Sentries on guard there. This led to the Boston Massacre. There's a memorial circle built into the ground to mark the spot where the dead fell and to honor those men.

Old brick streets

 

Next are some pictures of the current Boston Common. It's a huge park now with several memorials. 

I'd definitely recommend this experience to anyone who visits Boston.  

Of course, the other experience we just HAD to have was going to a Red Sox game at Fenway. Here are a couple pictures. Oh, and the craziest thing happened- one fan caught 2, yes that's a 2, home run balls during the game. 

 Yes, that's gluten-free pizza and was so tasty!

I might as well continue with sports. We left Boston and stopped in Foxboro, Massachusetts on the way to Cape Cod. Mr. Kruse was so excited. This is where the New England Patriots (football team) play.  It was a really cool area with restaurants, a hotel, shopping, a museum, and Gillette Stadium all on campus. The area is called Patriot Place. 

As you can see, it hasn't stopped raining. 

I think Paul Revere is the ultimate Patriot, but Mr. Kruse thinks Tom Brady is. 

Vince Lombardi (Super Bowl) trophies. 

Mr. Kruse is giving the guys a few tips

for the upcoming season. Think they'll listen???

Up next...Falmouth, Mass in Cape Cod...