Wish List Wednesday!

This post is dedicated to my favorite product that I’ve created:  

 It’s my Accelerated Reader Flip Book!

After one year of trying out a variety of strategies to make AR effective in my classroom, I had an “Aha” moment! (Don’t you just love those moments?)

I’m sure like your students, mine were struggling with all the forms that AR supplies its users.  It was just too complicated, causing students to lose interest.

Enter my Accelerated Reader Flip Book!

This little baby is packed full of goodness.  It contains all the necessary forms, is student friendly, and is super cute (if I do say so myself)!  It prints back to back making it packed full of goodness, and of course comes with printing/copying directions!

Here’s the breakdown:

Tab 1: Username & Instructions – Hand write or use the text boxes to display each child’s username & password.  Here, students can follow the directions for taking reading and vocabulary quizzes. 
There is also space for you to note each child's AR level each quarter!

  You can see this student's level noted with a yellow bear paw.  Bear paws are how my school labels our books so that students can quickly find a good fit book!  This kiddo used the instruction tab to get started..

Tab 2: Genres – Challenge students to read from a variety of books by using this tab!  It contains genre descriptions AND my second favorite product: The Genre Wheel!  Really, it’s like you’re getting TWO products in ONE!  Students don't mind reading different types of books when it's the wheel that chose the genre!

 

Tab 3: My Goals – Students can track their goals each quarter here using the bar graphs.  Newly created is the flowerpot tracker to help those younger students more accurately track their progress.

Tab 4: Book Reviews – Our AR representative and admin team, and I think you would agree, stressed the importance of AR being a tool to challenge students in their comprehension and love for reading, and not to let it become all about “the points” and who has more.  This tab is in that vein.  Students can write recommendations for the books that they enjoyed and want to encourage their classmates to read.  We squeeze in time to share our recommendations in reading groups.

 Alternate Tab 4: Word Collector - If you'd prefer, you can substitute the book review tab for a word collector tab!
 

Tab 5: Book Log – The star of the show!!  

This page has 38 spaces for students to record their books and corresponding EN numbers.  Train students to check a book off their list when they have completed a quiz or were unable to locate the book in the AR system.

Don't remake the entire book when a student fills up his/her log!  This page is replaceable!  Easily reprint a student’s PERSONALIZED cover page backed with a new log, staple and BOOM! 

My students keep their AR flip books handy in their book bins.

So, use this flip book all year long and help your students maximize their AR experience in your classroom!

You could even win your own copy by commenting below!  I will chose a winner Sunday night!

Snag another one of my AR resources FREE on my Facebook page by becoming a fan!

Once you have your AR flip books up and running in your classroom, let me know how your students like it by hashtagging #justlikevandyk in your Instagram & Facebook posts!

Thank Miss Giraffe!

When lesson planning for phonics, I always go, “Wah wah,”  because it’s so routine.  We use our curriculum flash cards and my PowerPoint presentations, but it’s always the same thing day after day. 

So when I came across Miss Giraffe's Instagram post for sorting the sounds of

/ed/, I HAD to jump on it! 

(You can check out how she uses this sort on her blog at http://missgiraffesclass.blogspot.com/ )

While I supplement my phonics curriculum with fun books and activities here and there, I struggle to jazz up every lesson because of having to fit in and make time for the other portions of the curriculum.

BUT THIS?!  Well, I knew I could make this happen in our phonics lesson for our second go around with suffixes.

We started the usual way: reviewing our special sounds we have already learned and introducing the new ones to our list.  I always like to bring the drama, so here’s what I said:

“Today, the new special sounds we are adding are all spelled the same!” [gasps]  “Isn’t the English language crazy?!  These special sounds also have another name.  Do you remember what they are called? SUFFIXES!”

After reviewing where these sounds come in a word and what makes them suffixes, we got to work.  

First, we read the words chorally and took turns circling the suffixes on the board.  Next, students volunteered to use the words in their own sentences.  After about 5 students, I thought aloud saying, “I noticed that the ending sound of those words all look the same pointing to the board), but sounded differently (pointing to my ear).  Did anyone else notice that?  Let’s listen again.”

Finally, it was time to put Miss Giraffe’s product to work!  

They were so excited to use materials that they don’t normally get to use in phonics lessons like scissors and glue! [For 2nd graders, it’s the little things!]

What is nice about this activity is that it allowed me to circle the room checking in with my little friends who needed some differentiation!   

Students who were not initially hearing the difference between the 3 sounds /ed/ makes now had a new job:  lightly coloring the different sounds to better help them sort the words into the 3 columns.

Because these suffixes LOOK the same, color coding helped students SEE the sounds they are HEARING.  I casually marked their pages with the color code and they were on their way to success!

Don’t think I forgot about those early finishes though!   

While visiting Miss Giraffe’s Teachers Pay Teachers store, I also snagged some of her reading fluency & comprehension passages.  In this FREE passage, students were able to practice reading the /ed/ sounds in context while also letting me concretely monitor their comprehension skills!

Next up!  We’ll practice writing verbs using /ed/…oh and I have a fun little song for those irregular verbs…but that’s a blog post for a later date!

And that was only a single page from Miss Giraffe's $2 Grammar Bundle!  The other pages in this bundle are pictured below and build nicely together!

Thanks Miss Giraffe for the complete package! Xoxo

What are your favorite products from Miss Giraffe’s store?  Leave me a comment below, I’d love to learn how you use her stuff to bring your lessons to life!

If you haven't visited her blog yet, you should definitely check it out!  She has tons of great ideas and resources modeled there!