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February 20, 2015

Five for Friday!


I’m linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for the infamous Five for Friday! (For the FIRST time! Woo!!)

http://doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com/2015/02/five-for-friday-linky-party-february_20.html

I think the first things I have to mention is obviously my BRAND NEW BLOG! (Isn’t it cute??) Designed by the lovely Alexis at Laugh EatLearn. I’m a new blogger and I’m excited to start this adventure!

http://joyfulrigorwithmsjones.blogspot.com/

I just bought this book: Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites: 20Instructional Strategies that Engage the Brain! I’ve been struggling lately with how boring our curriculum is. (NOT a statement about my colleagues who plan other subjects for our team! They are wonderful! Our curriculum is just so BLAH.) I have been looking for ways to spice up the activities (worksheets) we always use to make them more engaging for my students. It hasn’t gotten here yet, but I’m excited to read and find some inspiration!
I started pairing my students up as Reading Buddies this week. They get to share their favorite book with their partner, and then they switch and the other partner gets to share their favorite book. They absolutely LOVE it! They were SO excited to read out loud with their buddy, that even my most reluctant reader was itching for his turn! (Score!!!)

With the idea of switching up our learning activities, I also started letting students use a clipboard and sit anywhere around the room to complete their work. You would think I gave them candy or a new puppy...they were thrilled to get to move around and lounge while they worked. It was the quietest my classroom has been in a long time! Guess this will be a new staple for us!(Please ignore the rest of the messy room...)

Last, my principal was sweet enough to cater in lunch for us today! We had kind of a crazy week with unexpected things last minute, fire alarms, lots of subs in the building, etc etc. So, she bought us lunch! YUM!

Now I’m off to get firewood  so we don’t freeze tonight!
 
 
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5 comments:

  1. JaymeFebruary 20, 2015 at 3:58 PM

    Welcome to the blogging world, your new design is beautiful! I'm a new blogger myself and I'm having so much fun connecting with teachers from across the country. I have that book on my Amazon wish list and I'm so excited to start it. I have the same problem with my reading curriculum and I'm hoping this book reenergizes and recharges. Are you participating in the book study for it? A lot of bloggers are hosting and I can't wait for it!

    Jayme
    Teach Talk Inspire

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BrookeFebruary 22, 2015 at 5:50 AM

      Hi Jayme!! I saw that there are a bunch of bloggers hosting a book study, and I was hoping it was open for anyone who wants to join. If so, I'm totally in!! I need some inspiration. That's one of my favorite parts of the online teacher community...all the collaboration and sharing of ideas! I hope we can both get some new strategies to try out in our classrooms! Good luck!!

      Delete
  2. DonnaFebruary 21, 2015 at 4:51 AM

    Your blog is adorable! Looks like you had a great week...especially nice to get lunch from your principal!

    Learning at the Teacher Table

    ReplyDelete
  3. BrandiFebruary 22, 2015 at 10:33 PM

    Love your design! I heard Dr. Tate speak about 8 years ago and it was awesome! Thanks for sharing this book. Will have to pick it up!

    Brandi
    Swinging for Success

    ReplyDelete

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