Parts of An Argument Poster

I made these hand written notes for my small group of exceptional children that needed a good visual. It warmed my heart this week as we began our debate project in my inclusion class to see one of the students pull those notes out to help her develop a counter claim.

It was so cute to see how she took my hand written copied notes and decorated them. It was even nicer to see her referring back to her small group notes to help her become more successful on a related project. She did it all on her own.

Argumentative Writing and Debate

This is a 2 part project based learning lesson(PBL) packet on argumentative writing and debate.  It encourages the children to work in teams to research, write, and debate on given topics.  This is a comprehensive project that can be spread out over several days.  You can get this packet from my teacher pay teacher store Debate and Argumentative Writing Project.

Student Organization

 The inspiration for this product was one of my 6th graders.  This child is not on my case load as a EC student but my heart went out to them as I saw them struggle to stay organized in one of my inclusion classes.  I sat down with the child and we created this checklist together as a way to help the student stay more on top of things while getting adjusted to middle school life.  The student will start using it today.  I will keep you posted on how it works for them.

This is a free resource that can be found in my teachers pay teachers store.  Please use the link to access it and use it for your students.  Teacher Pay Teacher Store "Elementary Parade"

Adventures in EC Land: Annual Review Meetings, Service Hours, ..............

As the school year begins for EC teachers we also begin to collect data on the children we serve.  The collection process involves many different types of educators throughout the building.  

This data is very important for annual review meetings and catering service to meet students’ needs.  This packet lightens the load with easy to complete collection forms that are attractive and easy to use.  The teams you work with will be happy to get information to you when you use these forms.

The new school year is in full swing and I am starting to schedule EC meetings for the children on my caseload.  Teaching EC this year is new and exciting for me.  I absolutely love every minute of it.  

I am at a really nice school this year.  I feel school culture starts with administration and trickles down to the teachers then ultimately the children.  I can say that I work for a group of highly talented administrators that really care about their staff.  This is quite different from my old school and I am just so thankful!

R.A.C.E.R.S. Writing Strategy

I was introduced to the the R.A.C.E.R.S. strategy for writing this year by my new team.  I have found that if kids use this with fidelity it can help them respond to essay questions and various writing prompts with ease and organization.

I always try to relate new teaching strategies to my own learning journey.  I really wish this had been shown to me when I was a young writer coming up in the world.  As a child I looooooved to write but my writing was slightly scattered and "mildly" unorganized.  My mom struggled to find a way to help me organize my thoughts so that they were more clear and adequately supported with reasons and examples.  Boy oh boy if only she had of known about this!!!!

Flash forward as a new EC teacher I am using this strategy all the time with my kiddos to help them navigate the wild world of written response.  I created a template to help them use R.A.C.E.R.S. in our ELA Resource class.  Please feel free to use it and let me know what you think and what I could add/change to make it better.

For a limited time you can download this at my TPT store using the link below:

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Racer-Graphic-Organizer-1418264

You can also download it from my google docs folder:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5WnOovSnuEtTm1WQzhQNk1lWnM/edit?usp=sharing

First Year Teacher Reflection Journal

    This is an excellent tool for beginning teachers to help document their thoughts and reflect on their instruction all throughout their first year teaching.  It is also a good tool for seasoned teachers to think deeply about what works in their weekly instruction.  Research shows that teachers who reflect on their practice weekly are most successful.

First Year Teacher Reflection Journal Link

Please check out this awesome tool on my TPT site.  I have used a reflection journal every year and it is so beneficial.  I love being able to go back and read journal entries from my first and second years of teaching.  Whenever I feel my drive decreasing or whenever I feel discouraged I go back and read those past entries.  They always renew my hope and spirit as an educator.  

Homework Choice Board

There are so many things to stress about in the beginning of the school year and sometimes homework takes a back burner.  Homework is a integral piece to the home school connection and can be a great tool to grab parents attention and help them develop an after-school routine for their child. 

I created a homework choice board to help take one more task off your plate and make the beginning of the school year a little easier.

 

This is one month worth of homework tailored for a first grade student with a focus on common core skills. It is in a choice-board format to ensure differentiation and has spelling words with activities included also. This is a wonderful packet that can be used during the first month of school or beyond.

Please visit my store to download a copy.  It will serve as a beginning of the year review for 1st and 2nd graders and a rigorous challenge for current and aspiring Kindergarteners.

Click on the link to reach my TPT store!  

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Elementary-Parade