Scratch Off Rewards!

Are you the Queen of Pinterest Fails but the teacher next door is truly Pinterest Perfection?  Not to fret, with these scratch off rewards you will be trading in your Queen of Pinterest Fails crown for a Pinterest Perfection Pin in no time!

1.  Print your reward.
2.  Mix equal parts of dishwashing soap and silver craft paint.
3.  Cover your reward with clear tape.
4.  Paint the tape and let dry.
You are finished!  
SEE?  I told you it was EASY!

                                          My students LOVE the scratch offs!

TpT Tuesday: Math Treasure Hunts!

If you asked my students what was their favorite part of math class, many of them would tell you treasure hunts.

I designed treasure hunts for groups of 3 or 4.  The groups solve the math problems and the correct answers will spell out where a treasure is hidden in the classroom!  The first team to get the treasure (a picture of a treasure chest) gets to turn it in for a REAL TREASURE of teacher choosing!

I have several different things for the winners of the treasure hunts.  Sometimes I give them a few bonus points, sometimes they win a few minutes of "free time", or they may win a chance to "sit with a friend in class."  There are lots of ways you can reward your treasure hunt winners!

You can check out the treasure hunts in my TpT store Math Treasure Hunts!

I love to find unique ways to practice math skills with my students.  If you enjoy group work, unique fun experiences, and a memorable class--- try out the treasure hunts!!!

"I'm Done!" Anchor Chart

If you are like me, there's a phrase that you'd love to NEVER hear again....and it is, "I'm done!"

Usually the student who hollers this phrase has quickly raced through the assignment, careless mistakes trailing their way across what could have been a successful assignment.  But alas, careless mistakes became the weeds that ruined the mathematical garden.

Well, I have an anchor chart for this issue!  I talk to my students from Day One about what to do when they THINK that they are done.

1.  Ask yourself, "Does my answer make sense?"
In math class, there are SO MANY TIMES that students realize what they've done wrong if they will just stop and ask themselves, "Does this answer make any sense with this problem?"  You'd be surprised how many students can quickly figure out, "This HAS to be wrong!  She can't suddenly have 500 cupcakes!"  And they figure out that they multiplied instead of dividing.

2.  Ask yourself, "Did I solve each problem at least TWICE?"
Students love to race through math problems.  Asking them to solve a problem twice is akin to asking them to forgo watching their favorite show for a year.  You'll be met with "why?" and "are you kidding?"  But alas, I require it of my students.  It teaches them to work carefully and to take pride in knowing when they turn something in to be graded, it is their very best work.

3.  Ask yourself, "Did I go ABOVE and BEYOND?"
Oh how students love to do the bare minimum.  They want to finish, get a grade, and move on.  With this question, I am encouraging them to do more than expected.  If it needs sentence answers, write more than one sentence.  If the assignment asks for showing all your division steps, then show your division steps neatly and in an organized fashion.  There are so many ways to go above and beyond.

This anchor chart is very helpful in my fifth grade math classes!  I hope it can help in yours as well!  Praying you have a successful school year!

Rowing A Boat to School?!

I'm just returning from the awesome Anaheim Teachers Pay Teachers conference.  Yes, this southern gal left the south for Sunny Cali to learn amazing tips and tricks from other teachers pay teachers sellers.  But this post isn't about that....

This is about the episodes I watched on the airplane.  (While we are talking about airplanes, I must ask---why in the world can't the back of the plane load first instead of last?  Wouldn't it make sense to work from the back to the front; wouldn't it save time in the line of people trying to put their carry-on bags in the overhead storage?)

Alas, I digress.

While I was on my flight, I watched episodes of a documentary of the most dangerous ways students get to school.  I saw kids, bundled up in multiple layers of clothing, leaving their homes in Siberia to walk to the bus stop---only to have their little eyelashes covered with ice.

I watched as little girls rowed a boat to school for an hour, stopping only to eat some reeds.

I've always known that other places in the world have it much harder than most American schools when it comes to transportation to school.  I know that my sponsor girl in Honduras walks home alone at dark (high schoolers go to school in the evening in her area of Honduras) and the thought of her walking in the dark terrifies me.

But she does it because education is that important to her.
Those Peruvian girls on that TV show rowed over an hour each day because education was THAT IMPORTANT.
The little boy with the frozen eyelashes battles the cold because learning is the deepest well he wants to drink from.

I wish we could bottle whatever intrinsic desire these children have for education and let everyone drink from it.  But that type of love for learning cannot be bottled and sold (wouldn't I make millions if it could be?).  It is the truest yearning of the soul.

The teachers in those shows I watched were so understanding of the plight of the students.  Hot meals were given to the freezing Siberian students.  Understanding was given to the tired Peruvian students who had rowed for hours.

Your American students may not have those plights--but they have plights.  Some of them are coming to us hungry, some are coming with deep wounds in their soul.  Are we understanding?  Are we accomodating?  Are we meeting them where they are?

Deep thoughts from what was merely supposed to be my "in-flight entertainment."

The First Few Scary Days of Middle School...(it's not so scary!)

As a fifth grade teacher in a grades 5-8 middle school, I am well-accustomed to the fears that come with going to middle school for the first time.

First of all, parents---usually you have more fears than your kids do!  Many times the kids are looking forward to feeling "older" and not so "elementary" anymore, but it is Mom and Dad who are worried about how middle school will go.

Here are my tips for surviving the first few days of middle school:

1.  Practice locker ahead of time.  Each school is different.  My school has a "Survivor Camp" where our new fifth graders come early to meet their teachers, practice their lockers, and tour the school.  If your school doesn't have an orientation, see if it is acceptable for you to come by early with your child to work on their locker.  The locker is a HUGE FEAR of many new middle schoolers!  For your child to walk in on the first day confident with the tricky combination to that highly-desired locker---well, that would alleviate a lot of pressure off of him!

2.  Know that the teachers are there to help you.  The teachers really want what's best for you (or your child).  Trust that they will assist in any way they can and that they are cognizant of the fears that come with the first few days of middle school.

3.  You are starting fresh!  Remind your child that change can be good.  I always tell my students on the first day of school, "You can be anyone you want to be here!  I don't know how you behaved last year.  You don't have to be the same person you were last year.  If you didn't do your homework last year, you can do it this year, and I'll assume that you always have done it!  If you got in trouble last year, work on following the directions this year, and I'll assume you always have been a rule-follower!"  As scary as a new school can be, there is a benefit in being able to "start fresh."

4.  You are not alone.  If your child is feeling nervous, know that the other 130 (or however many are in the grade) students feel the same way.  There's always a little nervousness about the unknown, but within a few days this place will feel as comfortable as your former school.  Explain to them that EVERYONE is feeling anxious/nervous/antsy.

5.  Try new things.  Encourage your child to sign up for a new club or try out for a sport.  Get involved.  The best way to feel at home at a school is to be involved in it.  Try something new!

6.  Make copies.  Make copies of your child's schedule so if they lose the original, they can still know where to go.  They can keep a copy in each of their folders/notebooks until they feel comfortable with the new schedule. That is another big fear---not being in the right room at the right time!

7.  Laugh it off.  Something WILL happen that embarrasses you.  It's middle school.  It happens to everybody.  Have the attitude of "I'm going to laugh this off.  It's not the end of the world.  This is still going to be an awesome day."

8.  Talk to someone new.  You can still be friends with your elementary school friends, but you may find out that you can widen your circle and get to know a lot more people with different students in your different classes.  Don't be afraid to get to know someone new!


There's probably a lot more I could say, but those 8 tips can help you (or your child) survive the first few days in their new middle school.  And before you know it, that scary new place won't be scary at all anymore!