Freebie: Promotion Brag Tags

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Freebie-Brag-Tags-Promotion-to-1st-thru-6th-Grade-1258001

Gold Rush Series: The Early Days Unit

Problem: LeAnn and I (the teachers behind Thank A Teacher) love the California Gold Rush. That shouldn't be a problem except we have way too much information! Sometimes too much of a good thing leaves us feeling a little overwhelmed. LeAnn does her Gold Rush unit near the end of the school year which means she sometimes has to edit the material to fit the schedule. We wanted to create our own curriculum that covered everything important but was flexible enough to use in a variety of ways. We also wanted each section to be able to stand alone, so we decided related activities should be included.

Solution: We decided to create a comprehensive Gold Rush Series of informational and engaging original texts each focusing on a specific aspect of the California Gold Rush. The first in the series is called "The Early Days" and focuses on the back story and first few months of 1848. We cover John Sutter, Sutter's Fort, James Marshall, Sutter's Mill, Sam Brannan, methods to test gold, and the entry of the U.S. into the territorial picture.  

The rest of the series will cover the following: Gold Fever, Routes to California, Minorities in the Gold Rush, Mining Techniques, and Daily Life as a Miner

Results: Because the text is so visually enticing, I used my Promethean Board to project the PowerPoint slides. We read the text in chunks, as a whole group, then break up into groups to complete the discussion questions.  I also preteach from student copies in my guided reading groups some of the historical vocabulary and text features. I’ve had students beg to do social studies, that’s making history come alive!

 

Easy & Fun Mother's Day Art Projects

Problem: Some years Mother's Day just sneaks up on you and you need a great project fast and with supplies on hand. Other years you want to have the students make a gift that will be kept and remembered.
Solution:
Project 1- No prep, easy doodled handprint with watercolor background for the front of a card. Inside the card is a Report Card on Mom. On the back of the card is babysitter information if mom wants to hang the card on the refrigerator.
Project 2: Same doodle handprint taken to the next level! Shrinky Dink it and make into a keychain for mom! Recreate the famous Picasso flower bouquet with the key chain attached. Inside the card has the Report Card for Mom and the back has babysitter information.
On a year you have time to order the supplies, allow 3-5 days, and the funds (about .30 a child) do the fun keychain! I order enough supplies for at least two years.Other years you have all the templates ready for the handprint card!
My students loved the project! I brought in the toaster over and we had a blast! The key chains turned out great!

Available at Teachers Pay Teachers:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Mothers-Day-Art-Project-2-Projects-in-One-Easy-Fancy-1226828

New Store Name Celebration Freebie: Screen Free Week Brag Tags & Contract

4th Grade 4ever is now Thank a Teacher! We changed our store name to reflect our love of teaching and teachers! Celebrate with us this weekend with our latest Freebie: Screen Free Week Brag tags. Follow us if you liked this freebie!
www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/thank-a-teacher
www.teachersnotesbook.com.shop/thankateacher

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Brag-Tags-Screen-Free-Week-Daily-Tags-and-Contract-1221494

 

http://www.teachersnotebook.com/product/Thankateacher/freebie-screen-free-week-brag-tags
Problem: We all know too much screen time for kids is bad. But screens have invaded every inch of children's lives--from the classroom to the home to the car to the checkout line at the grocery store. Time spent glued to a screen is time NOT interacting with others or the real world around them.  (Of course, we don't have this problem ourselves...)

Solution: Next week is National Screen-Free Week. Thousands of schools are participating in the effort to turn off the electronics...for one whole week. It may feel like a year...but by Friday maybe we will all be weaned a bit from our screens.

We needed accountability and rewards for the kids to make this event succeessful. So we created "Screen-Free" Brag Tags to celebrate each day our students go without their devices and an activity log to track what kids do with their "found" hours.

Results: Results aren't in yet, but we hope our students gain three objectives:

                1) Recognize how much time is sucked away by meaningless screen time.

                2) Recognize that most screen time is meaningless!

                3) Find that the real world is more fun, more interactive, and more meaningful than any virtual world out there...no matter how good the graphics.

Organizing Task Cards

Problem: I love task cards from Teachers Pay Teachers but I am always looking for them, sorting them, or reprinting lost ones.

Soution: Coupon Holders! I got these cute coupon holders from the $1 section at Target. They even have labels. I labeled the outside by subject and each envelope holds about four sets comfortably.

Freebie: Technology Contracts for School and Home

Problem: Kids are fearless with technology. That alone should strike fear in the hearts of teachers and parents alike! As much as we try to monitor their usage, often they are doing things we have never heard of...both good and bad. Often our children are navigating a "smart" new world without concrete guidelines, oversight (they hide stuff!) or a healthy skepticism.

In the classroom, kids may treat equipment carelessly, engage in too-casual communication for academics and even "surf" in dangerous waters.

At home the pitfalls are more extreme. From illegal downloading, to falling for scams, inviting viruses and sharing private information publically, the list grows with technology advances.

Solution: We developed two simple contracts for kids -one for home and one for school. Each point is meant to stimulate discussion. The typical response of "I didn’t know!" will no longer cut it.

For teachers we have also created a "Digital Citizenship I Have...Who Has? Game. This fast paced review covers:
 

Netiquette
Privacy
Copyright
Password Safety
Viruses
Cyber Bullying
Safety Tips
And More!

You can find this game at our Teachers Pay Teachers Store:

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Digital-Citizenship-I-HaveWho-Has-Game-1197682

Result: Classroom tech time is much smoother! You are fulfilling a federal guideline for all districts that receive e-rates for internet, which is pretty much everyone, that teachers teach digital citizenship and at home you could prevent some serious problems by having this conversation.

Freebie-Testing Brag Tags

I love to use brag tags in my classroom to motivate and celebrate my students! I'm offering my Testing Brag Tags as a freebie for the month of April.

If you like my work please follow me at:

www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/4th-grade-4ever