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K-5 Resources for Diverse Classrooms

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You are here: Home / Archives for Monday Made It

What day is it? (Mondayyyyyyyy!)

July 30, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 48 Comments

Another Monday! On the upside, I get to spend a good chunk of my Internet time today looking at all of the amazing things bloggy friends have come up with. On the downside, this means I’m running out of time. Eeeeeeek! I know some of you are heading back into the classroom much sooner than I am, so I don’t feel too bad, but I’m starting to get a bit nervous. I even had my first school-related nightmare! (I showed up at the wrong school and wrong classroom on the first day and it. was. a. trainwreck!)
So: word walls. Let’s talk about them.
In some of my practicum experiences, they were just kind of there. They weren’t talked about or used, they just kind of took up space. In some of my practicum experiences, they weren’t there at all. There wasn’t really an alternative, either, so it was a constant struggle of students not being able to have the independence they craved during writing.
There were some awesome word walls I saw, however, and the ones that were awesome were used. Frequently. They weren’t just an “if you don’t know it” reference, either, they were a centerpiece of learning and kind of the pulse of the room. So that’s what I had in my head when I started on this project: something that is, above all, going to be supportive for my kiddos (especially my ELL’s), and something that made sense with what my goals are this year (see the trusty sidebar).
I need a dynamic word wall.
First, I made these:
*sigh* These colors make me happy.
These are my headers for my word wall, which is going to be placed above the windows, here:
I still can’t believe I have a classroom.
While that’s a readily accessible place from anywhere in the room and has plenty of space for lots of words, it doesn’t quite hit the mark for what I want to do alone. Enter this:
You knew it was going to be Oz-related, right?
The idea is this: my students need to experience independent success in their writing, and I want to remove as many obstacles to that as possible. At the same time, I want to support my ELL’s that may need some visual cues, while also encouraging my wordsmiths to expand their vocabulary. This is where my mobile word wall fits in!
Clear plastic pencil pouch, blank color-coded cards, A-Z dividers, and trading card protectors.
Smaller versions of the word wall headers are on each divider to create a visual link.
Students can have the independence they need and can contribute at their own pace, on their own time using this resource. They can encounter a word that they think should be added — perhaps a content area word or fabulous vocabulary word — and select the correct colored card, write the word, and then add a visual or other thought to make a more concrete connection.
Front of the cards; note the color-coding for content areas.

Back of the cards, with a visual or example.
This can be expanded to include a definition, a sentence, etc.

The color-coded cards open up a lot of possibilities; they can be used to denote spelling patterns, level of difficulty, or as I’ve used them — for content areas. I’ll be taking the lead from my content-area binders and using purple for science, green for math, blue for social studies, and then using red, orange, yellow, and black for the various parts of speech.
These are the blank mobile word wall cards for student use.
There are matching larger cards for the full-sized word wall.

I got through all of the words on my district’s list for second grade, and am now working on expanding it to include words that I know will come up during the year for the various units. The full-size words are more of an undertaking since I’m laminating them for durability.
The mobile word wall will not start out the year with us, but will slowly be introduced as we begin to use our word wall and I model a lot about how to use it to my students’ advantage. This will work well with my implementation of Daily 5 and CAFE, as I can see this hanging out in our word work or writing center!
Whew! That was a lot of post. If you’ve made it this far, thank you! I’ve packaged all of my materials and listed this Dynamic Word Wall pack (including editable PPTs for you to customize with your word lists) on my TPT store. Here’s what is included:
I would love to give this word wall set away to three people! Leave me a comment with your e-mail, and I’ll choose three random winners on Wednesday night!
(Speaking of winners, a big congrats to The Meek Moose for winning the Discovery poster — I look forward to seeing it in action in your school!)

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Giveaway Like It's 1999, Monday Made It, Plan-Plan-Plan, Teachers Pay Teachers, Word Wall, Writing

It’s Monday!

July 23, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 11 Comments

Who would’ve thought Monday would become my favorite day of the week? It totally has! I look forward to Monday Made It alllllllll week long — both because I’m excited to share my hard work, but also because I am so inspired by what everyone else creates!

Mr. Plum and I took our little guy on an adventure this weekend to see the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a part of the National Air and Space Museum. William has a *tiny* obsession with space (and by tiny, I mean massive) and we couldn’t resist the opportunity to let him see the shuttle Discovery in person.
Let me just tell you… I teared up. We’ve been over my propensity to tear-up before, but oh my word, y’all. The nerd in me was not prepared for the sight of that spacecraft and the opportunity to see her up close. To see that, no, her surface is not shiny, and oh? that’s a stencil?!
Those types of moments are the moments we want our students to have. Those moments of complete awe and wonder. Those moments of discovery.

Which led me to this:

I took more than 150 photos while we were at the Hazy Center, and when I got to this one while reviewing them on my computer I just stopped. And then I thought, “this has to be in my classroom.” I jokingly turned to my husband and said, “hey — Discovery: it’s not just for astronauts.”
As soon as the words left my mouth my eyes got all wide and my brain did that thing where I just had to make this poster before I did anything else. And then I thought of all of you — and thought maybe, just maybe, there’d be someone out there that would want this in their classroom too.
This file is large enough to print as a 16×20 poster (I’m picking mine up at Costco this afternoon!!!), and comes with a release in the .zip file for you to do so without any hassle. I’ve uploaded it to my TPT store; you can either click here or on the image to go and download it!
To sweeten this Monday Made It, I would like to giveaway a printed 16×20 poster of this to one lucky follower. Simply enter the Rafflecopter below, and I’ll choose a winner on Friday!
I’m also planning on participating in TBA’s Freebie Friday this week in which I’m going to put together a pack of images of the space shuttle and other Smithsonian highlights I took that you can utilize for classroom use. (I actually went to art school briefly for photography, but that’s a story for another day!) So follow me and check back so that you don’t miss it!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Freebie, Giveaway Like It's 1999, It's science., Monday Made It

It’s Monday (So Of Course I Made It)

July 16, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 39 Comments

… and I’ve been dying all weekend to show you. Really. I’ve been working on these off and on since I decided on my classroom theme. They’ve gone through a few different iterations, but I’m settled. Finally.
When I chose the Wizard of Oz as my theme, I did so because I felt like I could really use it to my advantage when it comes to classroom management — and starting off the year. I plan to read (an appropriate version of) the book to my kiddos on day one, and do some community-building and foundational activities surrounding it.
So, then, the first thing I have to do is decide what I want my kiddos to focus on. In Room 108, what are the most important things? This was the answer:

I want my students to embody the journey through Oz — I want them to use their hearts, their brains, and their courage each and every day, and I want them to do it together.
While I’m still working on more in-depth “first week” activities, I did fashion-up the anchor charts to go along with these “rules to live by” and vision statements. I’m going to project the color version on my SmartBoard to discuss and write about as a class, and distribute a reproducible version to each table group to complete together prior to our whole-group discussion.
  
Because I want these “rules to live by” to really stick with my students throughout the year, I also made some bookmarks that they can utilize during Daily 5 or at home, and plan on making sticker versions that they can put on their journals or whatever my team ends up utilizing.
If you think you could utilize my Oz-Inspired “Rules to Live By” in your classroom, head on over to my TPT store (or click the preview below) — it’s on sale for $2.50 until I remember to put it back to non-sale price sometime on Wednesday!
And don’t forget to enter my giveaway — it ends tonight, a minute after midnight! If you win (remember, FIVE winners!!!), you’ll not only get my Oz-Inspired Binder Set and “Rules to Live By,” but ALL future products in my TPT store! I’m excited to find out who I’ll be e-mailing attachments to until the end of my teaching career (and then some)!

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Monday Made It, Teachers Pay Teachers, The Wizard of Oz

Oh, Target. You had me at $1.00.

July 10, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 19 Comments

Our local Target turned over their Dollar Spot today to the back-to-school teacher goodies, so I was able to pick up a few more lightbulb stress-relievers for my classroom, and my husband was able to get some globe stress-relievers for his kiddos. (We also got some wipe-off sleeves, but those aren’t as exciting… clearly.)

I decided that I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to create something surrounding the globe stress-relievers, so I added-on to the lightbulb packet I posted this morning to include a “world of possibilities” version for your kiddos. (Even if your local Target lacks either of these stress-relievers, you can find cheap globe stress-relievers online! Yay, Internet!)


So if you have already downloaded the packet, head back on over to my TPT store to re-download! (Or just click the picture below!)

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Freebie, I (heart) Target, Monday Made It

Monday Made It + a Freebie!

July 9, 2012 by Sarah Plum(itallo) 63 Comments

I’m excited about today’s Monday Made It, because it’s something I saw on Pinterest and then had no choice but to complete after finding the perfect materials on my Michaels trip.

Moment of silence y’all, for Dorothy-gingham plates — 12 for $1. Perfect for my bulletin board headers (no purchasing of expensive letters!) and my word wall.
I thought that was going to be my only Monday Made It… but then I found these in the Target Dollar Spot:

What is it? A stress-reliever. And so this was born:
I’ve used stress-relievers before in the classroom to give kiddos a little brain-break and some tactile input, but these were begging to be used as a focal point for kiddos that are stuck.
So I created a little packet with a projectable anchor chart, a reproducible anchor chart, the labels, and some guidance on how I utilize stress-relievers in the classroom and plan on using these. You can find it by clicking on the cover below (it’ll take you to it on TPT)!
I would love to know what you’ve utilized in your classroom to get students “unstuck” and on the path to a lightbulb moment — share in the comments!
So there you have it, my Monday Made Its! I’ll be back later today or tomorrow to share a few things I’ve been working on for my classroom, as well as my plan to tackle creating my language arts curriculum for the first few weeks.
Update: Head on over to this post to see what I added to my “encouraging lightbulb moments” packet and re-download it at my TPT store!

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Classroom Decor, Freebie, Monday Made It, Teachers Pay Teachers, The Wizard of Oz

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About the Author

Sarah Plum(itallo) is a teacher of emerging multilinguals and 21st Century Grant coordinator in Virginia. She writes curriculum for inclusive classrooms and presents professional development on a variety of topics.

Read more about Sarah and her background in education here.

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