Writing Checklist

I've found that some of my students need checklists for writing.  I was brainstorming with another teacher and came up with the idea to make these small flipable lists.  I printed them on cardstock, laminated them, and then connected them on rings in the corner.  I have students keep them in their desks and take them out during writing.  They can use Vis-a-Vis or Expo markers to check themselves off, and then they know exactly what needs to be done next.  I'm hopeful that after time, the steps will become a natural part of the writing process.  These checklists are available for free download at my teacher store!

~Kara

Halloween and a World Series

Phew!  Did we really make it through the day?!  Combine Halloween with 23 mini Red Sox fans and you get one CRAZY day in 4th grade.  Somehow we made it and I can only imagine how the rest of my colleagues are feeling right about now (I'm trying to keep my eyes open long enough to hand out candy!).  Wishing all of you a Happy Halloween….and a restful weekend! 

~Kara

Bad, Bad, Blogger!

So it has been over a year since I last posted.  Life with an infant was a challenge, but nothing compared to life with a toddler!  Being a full time teacher and mom is tricky, and at times difficult for me to organize.  Right now there is one organized apple and it's not me!  Our district is trying a balanced literacy approach to meet the common core standards.  So, my time has been spent reorganizing my classroom library.  A few years ago I went from a leveled library to a genre/author based library.  Now it is time to switch back.  If it weren't for Scholastic's Book Wizard I wouldn't have been able to do it.  For those of you that may be switching to a leveled library, have your students do it!  We used on technology time and each child went in with a sleeve of colored dot stickers, a Sharpie and a stack of books.  It worked out great and the kids had fun doing it!  

Jill

CEPA - Results

Ok, so maybe you're a little bored about hearing about the CEPA I tried out in my classroom....but I did say I'd share the results.  Below are photos of the student work.  I'm still in amazement of how well it went and am planning on creating more for my class to tackle.  Enjoy!

~Kara

Explorer Time!

I'm getting ready to start my study of North American Explorers again this year.  I always love this project, but it often takes a bit of review of continents and oceans first.  We've spent the past few weeks going over the continents and are just about ready to begin. 

This project begins with research on 5 explorers - Columbus, Cabot, Cartier, Hudson, and Cortes - focusing on the reasons for exploration and connection between land found and influence of the exploring country.  After the research is done, we begin a project where students work in groups to create an explorer news broadcast.  They write the script, add commercials, and film.  This year, I've decided to read a play with the class ahead of introducing the project in order to give them an idea of how to write the script.  I've also created a script template in hopes that it will clarify expectations.  Each year the students dive into the project and have a lot of fun creating their "news show."  At the end of the unit, I have students reflect on their participation and write a short summary of the explorer they presented on.  I have a very creative group this year, so I'm curious to see what they come up with!  Stay tuned for updates!

The project is available at my teacher store if you're interested!

~Kara

CEPA Update - I'm a Fan!

My students have been working for the past 3 days on their first math CEPA.  This CEPA combines addition, subtraction, rounding, estimation, and problem solving into a real-life situation.  (If you're curious about the contents of the CEPA, see my post from Monday, September 30th.)  I broke my class into groups of 4 - placing my 4 strongest math students together (I was curious to see where they might take it), but mixing the remainder of my students. 

Day 1 started with some minor confusion about how to effectively work in groups and where to start, but about 15 minutes into the project the entire class was focused and working.  Soon they were delegating work and beginning to round/estimate.  At the end of class I pulled the groups together and they shared out.  I had many students share how quickly the class went by and how much they enjoyed working together.  Lastly, I had each group make a plan for the next day.

Day 2 began with students reviewing the work ahead, then jumping in.  Right away students were on task and beginning to figure out strategies to solve the problem.  I rarely had to speak to groups about being on task because they were all so focused!  Again, I pulled the groups together at the end to share strategies they used to get closer to the solution.  It was amazing to see students share who were often hesitant to participate, regardless of their mathematical ability.  Needless to say, I was very excited to finish up on day 3.

Day 3 arrived and groups finished up their projects and checked their work.  We ended class early so that each group could share what they did.   Finally, I had students reflect individually about what they thought about the project and what they learned.  Many reflections included that students learned new math strategies from one another, and that they liked doing a "different" type of math lesson.  

Overall, I was not expecting this first CEPA to go smoothly.  I thought that we would have some tears and distress, but I hoped we could stick with it long enough to get in the routine of the CEPA.  I figured the beginning of the year would make this tough, but I was wrong!  The conversations I heard throughout the project were authentic and focused.  Students collaborated and genuinely seemed excited to get to the solution.  I cannot wait to get into our next unit and try this again.  If any of you have experiences to share, please drop us a line at organizedapples@gmail.com.  I would love to hear your ideas!  

Your CEPA loving blogger,

Kara :)

It Takes 21 Days to Form a Habit - A.K.A. Wake Me Up When September Ends

With September ending and October starting tomorrow, I'm taking time to celebrate the small victories in my classroom.  Like most of you understand, the beginning of the school year is full of new routines and explanations.  I sometimes forget to praise them for the routines they've mastered - how to enter the classroom in the morning, how to sign out for the bathroom, what to do when they hear the bell ring or see the lights flicker, and more.  It's so easy to focus on the things they aren't doing, instead of seeing the progress we've already made.  I hope you're all beginning to feel that the time you spent explaining and practicing routines has paid off!  Happy October!

Math CEPAs - Time to Try It Out!

Like many of you, our school district has been working to realign our curriculum to the Common Core.  Last year, a team of us spent time learning about CEPAs - Common Educational Proficiency Assessments.  In you are familiar, then you know that these assessments have students combining various math skills to complete a real-world task.  The assessments are done over a few days or class periods, and push student's stamina and perserverance to complete the task.   Today is the first time I'm going to do a CEPA in my 4th grade classroom.  Our first math unit is on addition and subtraction, so this CEPA has students estimating, rounding, adding, and subtracting to help a local school district.  I'm both nervous and excited to see how the student's react. We're starting slowly, working in groups with lots of modeling and with 3 other adults in the room to assist.  The CEPA I created is available at my store if you're interested!  Stay tuned to see how it goes...and cross your fingers that we don't get any meltdowns (from teachers or students!)  This is tough stuff!

~Kara

Where Did We Go? Where Does the Time Go??

How has it been so long since we've blogged?!  Between teaching, planning, parent conferences, and then getting ready for the new school year, we somehow lost track of our blog.  But with a new year, come new school resolutions, and mine is to be more consistent with posting!  So keep an eye out for more to come in the next weeks - I'm really going to try and make this resolution last!  Hope you're all off to a great start with your classes!

~Kara

Canada and Mexico

Massachusetts standards require students to learn about Canada and Mexico in 4th grade.  There is some information out there about the countries(I like Enchanted Learning), but our text books and curriculum don't have much in terms of projects or note-taking guides.  I've created a few things, and they are available at my store.  I use them so that students can see the similarities and differences between the countries!

~Kara

'Treasures' Materials

Our district uses the 'Treasures' Reading Program.  Throughout the years, I have made multiple sets of vocabulary cards, supplemental materials, and assessments to match the curriculum.  If you're interested, many are available at my store for grades 4 and 5.  

~Kara

Snowed In

Day two of being stuck in the house and I'm ready to get out!  Therefore, there are lots of updates and new products available at my store...and if this weather keeps up, more will be coming.  There is only so much cleaning and watching the DVR I can do.  Hope you're all warm and safe :) 

~Kara

Holidays and Writing

We've been doing creative and persuasive writing in 4th grade.  Using their persuasive writing skills, students came up with their own holiday and tried to persuade the rest of us to celebrate it.  In addition, they created an informational poster trying to "sell" their new holiday (Ex. Free Ice Cream Day).  It was fun to do, and a great way to get kids writing!  It's available at my store if you're interested.

~Kara

Work Reflection

I've noticed that my class hasn't been working 'up to their potential,' recently.  Therefore, I started passing back all their corrected work on Fridays, and having them choose 1 piece they felt was their best quality -WOW work, and one piece they wanted a second chance with - Work Redo.  By doing this, I've seen an improvement, and the kids are excited to go through their corrected work (something they rarely did before).  Both the templates for the WOW work and Work Redo are available at my store, but you could easily do this without them.  Enjoy!

~Kara

Make Your Own Name Tags

I posted about this activity in August, but I finally took some pictures of the name tags the students in my class made.  Below are how they turned out, and the kids use them all the time as resources.  I used black construction paper as the background. had them laminated, and used Velcro to attach them to their desks.  If you'd like any of the materials for this activity (the quotes, resources, etc.), they are available at Kara's Store!

~Kara