Anchor Charts Aweigh!

It’s about time, teachers, for anchor charts. 

I’ve been focusing on anchor charts lately.  It’s a love/hate relationship for me.  Let me explain.

  

· I am a visual learner, so anchor charts are a natural fit for my classroom and me.  If I had a photographic memory, such visual reminders would be superfluous.  But, alas, there is no camera in my brain.  I assume the majority of my students also lack an Instagram intellect.  Thus, I ♥ anchor charts for providing the cues.

· In my district, it is permissible to have anchor charts posted in the classroom during standardized testing.  Permissible, that is, if they were hanging prior to the start of testing.  That is a distinct advantage for visual learner students.  Gotta ♥ that!

· Creating anchor charts with my students allows me to model my thinking; a teaching strategy I ♥.  Similarly, I can evaluate their thinking and understanding by observing their reactions and contributions.

· Anchor charts can be dynamic.  As we delve into a subject, we can add to the anchor chart.  It’s another way to scaffold learning.  ♥

· Some of my anchor charts are static.  As such, I introduce the chart to my class, explaining its tenets, and post it at a learning center.  This promotes independence for my students and allows me to conduct small group instruction with minimal disruption.  ♥  These charts can be stored and used year after year.

· Anchor charts  are concise.  Teaching my students to be succinct is also a valuable lesson.  I ♥ bulleted lists!  (In case you couldn’t tell.)

So what’s not to like about anchor charts?

· Charts should be neat and organized, with simple graphics to enhance their meaning.  I can barely draw a straight line with a ruler!  Although my 1^st graders think my stick figures are wonderful, I’m pretty sure my upper grade students are stifling their snickers.  Then I peruse Pinterest and see all the adorable anchor charts with hand drawn graphics and feel utterly inadequate. 

· There can be too much of a good thing.  Like most elementary teachers, I embrace trends with enthusiasm.  So my room began wearing anchor charts everywhere.  I even considered pinning some to the ceiling like my dentist does.  The sad effect is that my students were on visual overload and the anchor charts ceased being helpful.  It can be difficult to find the balance between just right and too much.  Just ask Goldilocks.

 

· As helpful as anchor charts are, they present the age old problem of storage.  Where to keep these instructional aids in an already overcrowded classroom is a perennial problem.  Of course, I could recreate them each year, but for some of them, that seems wasteful.  For example, I have a set of 20 poetry posters that are very helpful when my students are challenged to write a specific form of poetry.  Fortunately, while wandering through Pinterestland, I found a wonderful solution:  an anchor chart binder.  It's perfect for my pre-printed, 1 page, poetry posters.  

I've got an idea for storing and organizing all those large, poster size, anchor charts, too: install a dry cleaner's automated line.

I think my principal will go for it, don't you?

♫♪ Anchors Aweigh, my friends, Anchors Aweigh. 

♫ Send those charts whirling around, ♪

‘Til the perfect one is found. ♫♪

Valentine's Day Hink Pink FREEBIE

Ever since I attended my 1st state conference for Gifted and Talented Education early in my career, I have seen, heard and read about Hink Pinks.  These vocabulary building, problem solving, critical thinking riddles are staples in GATE.  Perhaps my connection with Hink Pinks, et al, is best explained by the fact that my students absolutely love them!  They loved them when I was in the classroom and when I became an enrichment resource teacher, my pull-out students literally begged for more of them.

If you are new to the land of Hink Pinks, here's how they work:

• Hink Pinks are riddles wherein the clues lead you to a 2 word answer.  Each answer word must have just 1 syllable and the 2 answer words must rhyme.
• Hinky Pinkies are riddles seeking answers with 2 syllables in each word.  The 2 words must rhyme.
• Hinkity Pinkities are rhyming answer word pairs with 3 syllables each.

Some teachers like to distribute Hink Pink clues on a work sheet, but I continually strive to eliminate worksheets from my teaching. About 20 years ago, I started putting the clues on 1/4 sheet cards. By doing so, I was able to create a resource that was ready to use year after year, saving me bunches of time and conserving paper big time!  

Armed with my Hink Pink, et al cards, I was able to use them as an anchor activity when students were arriving each morning. They also work well as a sponge activity and are great at a literacy center.  Now, working as a pull-out enrichment specialist, I use these cards as a warm-up activity. Without a doubt, G/T students are enthralled with these riddles.  But, I also found that "average" students were intrigued and set their caps to solve them. 

It's about time, teachers, to offer you my FREE set of Valentine's Day Hink Pinks, Hinky Pinkies, and Hinkity Pinkities.  Here's a preview:

The answer to this Hink Pink is smart heart.

The answer to this Hinky Pinky is sandy candy.  

The answer to the Hinkity Pinkity below is valentine turpentine.

There are 24 cards in this FREE set.  Naturally, there is an answer key.  Did I mention that it is FREE?  You can retrieve your copy here.

I hope you enjoy Hink Pinks, et al as much as my students and I do.

If you like this product, you may like these, as well:

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Groundhog Day Center Freebie

Scrabble™ and its social networking cousin, Words with Friends™, are jumping off the computer screen and finding their niche in the classroom.  In my classroom, my students love to play SCRATTLE (SCRAbble + baTTLE).

It's always great fun to take a set of letters and challenge your class to make as many words with them as they can.  In Scrattle, I'm upping the ante by adding a math component and competition.  By doing so, I'm ensuring that my students are trying their hardest and I'm getting double duty out of this center.

Here's how it works:

• Give your students the letter set for this edition of Scrattle.

• Students cut out the letters.
• Students find a partner to battle.
• Armed with a recording sheet, the partners record the words they can devise individually.
• Once their recording sheets are filled, the students calculate the values of their words by adding the numbers on their letter pieces.
• Alternatively, older students calculate the value by multiplying the numbers.
• To differentiate for G/T and enrichment students, a combination of operations is available.  (It is possible that this version will create negative numbers.)
• After their calculations are completed, the partners compare their numbers, filling in their opponent's scores on the recording sheet. 
• Students then add >, <, or = to the scores box.
• The student with the most > scores is the winner.

This activity is CCSS aligned.  You can download it on Google Docs.

Enjoy!

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The Best of 2013

The new year is here!  Traditionally, radio stations and television shows prepare a list of the most important news stories and/or best songs of the past year.   In that same vein, Stephanie @ Principal's Principles, has created a linky party of the best pins of 2013.  Fun! 

Here are my top 5 Pinterest pins:

I love Pinterest and it has shown me some love right back.  Such an awesome site!  What are your 5 best pins of 2013?

Happy New Year!  And, happy pinning!

I'd love it if you followed me on Pinterest!  

Winter Break Readiness

Before you start your winter break, though, make it a true break from your teaching duties by planning for January now.  You want to start the new year refreshed and prepared.  I'd like to help you do that. 

For years, I've been creating and utilizing centers for elementary students.  Let my work make your life easier. You need literacy centers.  Check these out:

Whether you teach The Mitten or not, this center is perfect for primary classrooms.  It's foci are initial consonant blends and rhyming words.  Your students will manipulate the 18 mitten cards to find 9 pairs of mittens.  Naturally, you can choose to use fewer cards if that is more appropriate to your class.  This center also has a recording sheet for your convenience.  

 

For older students, try Friendly Frog's Leap Frog Game.  

This center requires students to determine the number of syllables in words that pertain to frogs, bogs, and logs. They move their game pieces as many places as their word has syllables.  The center has a game board, 54 word or action cards, 6 game pieces, file folder labels. 

In the spirit of the season, I am planning several FLASH FREEBIES this week.  The above centers might be among the gifts I offer.  Check my facebook page for announcements of the flash freebies.  

Holiday Ebook from TpT

There’s “snow” time like the present to grab your FREE copies of the 2013 Winter Holidays Tips & Freebies Ebooks from TpT!

For the 3rd year, some of the most wonderful TpT teacher-authors have generously given their time and talents to compiling and editing ebooks filled with tips for teaching during the days of December and providing links to FREE resources.  Each book is composed of gifts for you from 50 teacher-authors.

There are 4 books, delineated by grade levels.  Click on the thumbnails below to get the ebook(s) of your choice. 

A huge thank you goes out to the editors: Krissy Miner, Hilary Lewis, Rachel Lynette, and Addie Williams.

BTW, I am honored to be included in the Grades 3-6 ebook.  I hope you will check out my tip and FREEBIE on page 14 of that book.

Happy holidays everyone!

 Other December resources: