I'm Back!

Blogging world, I'm back!

I have finally gotten back into the swing of things!  After a long (and very restful) summer, it is time to think about school again.  For my school, teachers don't have to report back for another two weeks, and school starts a week or so after that.

This week I attended a three-day conference about implementing Core Knowledge into your classroom instruction.  My teaching partner and I got some great ideas and were able to map out our year's curriculum!  What I like about our map is that we are using our language arts block to teach science and social studies content.  It should be (fingers crossed!) a very nicely integrated time of the day.  If you want to know more about Core Knowledge, visit their website here.  I am excited to challenge my students this year!

The conference ended yesterday, and now I am just PUMPED to get back into the classroom and implement all of these new ideas I have.  So.... I spent my day at school today!  My partner and I got a lot done!

First, we copied, cut, and bound 65 of these lovely spelling dictionaries.  It was quite the undertaking!  This is one of my favorite purchases from TpT... check it out here!  

What I liked about this dictionary is that, along with the a-z pages, it included pages for special categories of words, like "family", "pets", and "friends".  I think this book will be awesome for my ELL lovelies to ensure that they are spelling common words correctly.

We also looked at each of our classroom libraries and labeled our books using the Accelerated Reading scale.  I just used a sticky note for now.  Later, I will go back and add colored circle labels that the students will look at to find their "just right" book.

It's been quite a day!  I am excited to start re-arranging and decorating my classroom... but, there is a small chance 3rd grade might be moving to different classrooms.  Crossing my fingers that that's not the case... I don't want to move all of my stuff!

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

WONDERFUL Student Illustrations

Here are some wonderful illustrations created during our Eric Carle Author Study!

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

I did not take pictures of this student's entire book, but I was so impressed with his collage illustrations that I just had to share them!  He was one of the last ones to finish his book, and it really shows that he took his time.  I kept telling him that he could be a book illustrator when he grows up!

Don't his animals look so realistic?

This author study and book-making project was quite the complex project, but I am SO proud at how all of the books turned out.  What do you think of the Final Products?

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

Final Product- "The Lonely Fish"

Here is another book created during our Eric Carle Author Study!

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

In Mister Seahorse, Eric Carle uses clear pages printed with seaweed and rocks, to "hide" fish illustrations behind it.  This student wanted to recreate that feature, so I provided her with transparency pages and permanent markers.  During the writing process, she really thought out how she wanted to incorporate these clear pages.  I love how her story turned out!  Enjoy!

The Lonely Fish

"One summer, the fish was very lonely.  He wanted to see what was behind the seaweed."

"It was a fish! "Hi fish, can you play with me?" said the fish.  "No," said the other."

"Next, he saw a big rock.  And he wanted to see what was behind the rock."

"It was a crab! "Hi crab, can you play with me?" said the fish.  "No," said the crab."

"Then, he saw some coral.  He wanted to see what was behind the coral."

"It was a seahorse.  "Hi seahorse, can you play with me?" said the fish.  "Yes," said the seahorse."

"The seahorse played with the fish.  They saw a shark."

"Then they quickly swam behind a rock to hide."

"They saw beautiful coral and seaweed."

"The fish and seahorse heard their moms calling their names.  So they went back home."

"When the fish went home, he told his mom and dad about his adventure, and he wasn't lonely anymore."

This student has struggled with English proficiency all year, so it was great to see her write this story with little assistance.  I also love how the illustrations with the clear pages turned out!

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

Final Product- "The Lonely Elephant"

Here is another book created during our Eric Carle Author Study!

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

This student was the only one who included a dedication page.  Her 6th page is missing because she did not like how her badger illustration turned out...

"In the world, in a zoo, there was a lonely elephant named Niij." (pronounced Neege)

"So, he went to find some friends.  First, he found a ladybug behind a leaf.  The ladybug was too grouchy."

"So he went to find another friend.  Next, he found a spider, but it was too busy."

"Then, he found a woodpecker that was pecking on wood.  Niij said,"You want to be my friend?" The woodpecker was too busy pecking."

"Next, he saw a snake slithering on the sand.  Niij said, "You want to be my friend?" but it scared away Niij."

"Then, he met a tall tall giraffe, but it was too tall to hear Niij."

So Niij saw a rhino, but the rhino was too strong for him."

"Later, he saw a big fat hippo behind a tree.  But the hippo was too big."

"He was getting tired of finding a friend.  But then he saw......."

"....an elephant!  Niij was so happy to see an elephant."

"the elephant was happy to see Niij too.  The elephant's name was Niijo.  They were friends forever."

I just loved how this student brought in some of Eric Carle's characters (The Busy Spider and The Grouchy Ladybug).  One more fantastic story to show you!  Stay tuned!

Until next time, 

-Miss Woodward

Final Product- "The Strong Ant"

I am excited to show you some of the final books we created in our Eric Carle Author Study project!  This was a project we had been working on for about a month before school ended.

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

I laminated the front and back covers, and used the book binder to bind them.  I wanted my students to have a keepsake; something they would have for years.  I wanted them to look back and say, "I made this in third grade!"  Before I gave the books back to the students, I snapped a few photos of my favorite books.

The Strong Ant

"An ant was hungry, so he went to find some food.  He knew that if something is heavy then its bigger."

"He went to find some food.  He found a leaf, the leaf was too light."

"He went on.  He found a bean but it was too light."

"So he went on.  He saw a berry, the berry was too light so he went on."

"Then he found a little orange, but it was still too light."

"After that he found a strawberry, but it was still too light."

"Before he found the heaviest thing, he found a tomato, but the tomato was still too light."

"Finally, he found the biggest thing, it was a pumpkin."

"Then he ate the pumpkin, and the pumpkin was scrumptious."

Don't you just love how it turned out? Stay tuned for two more of my favorites!

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

Book Binder, My New Best Friend...

I have spent the last few days binding countless books to wrap up the year.....

I have to admit that I kind of actually like binding books!

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward