WHAT?!?!? I am linking up with some pretty fan-tab-ulous teacher bloggers to bring you SmAsHiNg StRaTeGiEs!! This is a monthly link-up that we are bringing you for helping in teaching guided reading! I hope you are as excited as I am!! Special shout-out to Allison from Partyin' with Primaries for organizing this!

Predicting. Why is predicting important in guided reading? Well, it helps students to build that comprehension piece. Predicting helps them to think about what they know, what they see, and what makes sense. Predicting leads to inferring in later grades. While predicting, students are constantly thinking and perhaps changing what they think is going to happen in the text.

You probably teach predicting within your classroom, without even realizing that you are teaching predicting. 

I plan teaching predicting over the course of a few day. The first day I teach predicting is bringing in one of my boxes I receive in the mail.

I ask the students to think about what could be in this box? I have them share with a neighbor and then we share out our ideas. For each student that shares what they think will be in the box, I will also ask them, why do you think that will be in the box? Helping them think through their predictions, I'll add, "ohhh that makes sense, I have four kids so maybe it is legos..." or "well, I have ordered new books for our class before, that could be right...."

I open up the box and show my students what is inside. I had velcro dots, Wixi Stix and Astrobrights paper. I then asked my students what could I need these items for? Most of my students will come up with logical uses for my items---like the Wixi Stix for them for word work, the astrobrights paper for foldables (because that's what we have used bright paper before in the past), and the velcro dots for our retelling story board (again, because that's where they have seen it in my room). 

The next day, I will read a pretty predictable text, such as Don't let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, Don't let the Pigeon Stay up Late or another text by Mo Williams.

Many of my students have read a Pigeon book before, so they have some experience with him and his shenanigans :) Before reading, I ask them what they think is going to happen? We share out some responses, and then I hit them with the WHY IS IT IMPORTANT to make predictions before reading. I tell them that readers make predictions before reading, and then during reading as well. I also tell them that making predictions throughout a story shows that you are thinking about and understanding what is happening. 

Then during work on writing for our rotations, I give my students "I predict" sheets. Each sheet has a sentence, and the students are to draw a picture of what they think is going to happen, as well as write about it. This gives me some idea who is getting it, and who maybe needs some reteaching. You can find the entire pack of I predict sheets by clicking the image below.

A good linky isn't complete without a giveaway! Today I am giving away $10 to Teachers Pay Teachers, you can spend it ANYWHERE! :) This giveaway will run from February 22nd through February 29th. I will announce the winner on here--my blog. Please enter below for your chance to win!


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An InLinkz Link-up

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Momma with a Teaching Mission

I am linking up with some super SAVVVY tech teachers for Digital Learning Day!!

I teach 1st grade literacy with like level learners. My students are grouped by ability and as they grow (or don't grow) they are moved to the appropriate placement to take the steps needed to help them continue to flourish or get them the interventions needed.

This past year, my school was awarded a grant and received about 300 MAC books. Our district even sent in a tech person to teach us about MAC books and the different things they could do. After attending a few different trainings, I had learned nothing new that I didn't already know. I knew about google classroom and the ability for students to work within that. But for my young friends, I wasn't sure these MAC books would be life changing.

Of course, there's primary websites like Razz-kids, starfall, abcya, but they can do that at home.  Dance Mat Typing is also helpful to help students work on their keyboarding skills. Don't get me wrong, I still use these websites, BUT I was looking for something to get students engaged and still be meaningful instruction. And of course I kept going back to, but my students are so inexperienced, lacking experiences other students have had, and unable to read.

So upon different searches, I found Danielle Knight's product Google Drive Toolkit. It has helped me create engaging, digital lessons for my early learners. The lessons I've done with them, they absolutely love!

I actually made this product for my teammate is teaches STEM to my students. My friends needed work with counting and identifying numbers, so this was created for her so our students could work in google classroom on it! You can find it here

My students wrapped up opinion writing at the end of January. They really enjoyed moving the pieces to sequence the order of what they liked or wanted to do. This is also a text box for students to explain why these chose the one they liked or wanted to do the most. You can find this product here!

This product was actually a no prep printable passages product turned into an interactive version! One of the biggest standards to foster comprehension in the common core is describing characters, setting and major events. In this set, there are 20 interactive passages that students read, and answer comprehension questions. You can find it here.

Adding technology to my lessons has helped to increase my students engagement, as well as the pride in their work. Some of my lowest achieving students previously have really loved working in our online classroom. To find all my interactive products, you can check out my teachers pay teachers store under Momma with a Teaching Mission.

Hop along to read about how these other MAGNIFICENT bloggers are digitally rockin their classrooms!!

Digital Learning Day 2016--Why Should You Try Something New? Because Your Students Will Thank You.

My students thank me all the time for the new “stuff” we are doing this year. Go ahead--take the plunge! Believe me, if you have access to any sort of technology (even one device), then do it. That one tablet or laptop can open up a window to a universe of instructional opportunities. Your students will want to get to that tech center. 

Digital Learning Day, February 17, 2016, is ultimately about bringing equal opportunity to our classrooms, regardless of location or socioeconomic status. It is about the importance of having access to Wi-Fi and up-to-date technology in our schools. Many schools have technology that is not working or that is out-of-date. State and local governments are now focusing on getting it all fixed so that our school children can succeed in the 21^st century.

Here's the challenge--On February 17, 2016, try a new lesson that focuses on discovery, analysis, and exploration. Give your students the gift of a new opportunity by using Google Classroom, MS OneDrive, or an App. And don’t forget to share what you are doing in your classroom on social media to celebrate Digital Learning Day with #futureready. To help you get started, we’ve teamed up to share an amazing selection of blog posts and classroom activities that are designed to propel you and your students into your digital learning adventure.

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Momma with a Teaching Mission