Back to School Time Savers

Let me help you save time and energy at this hectic time of year.  

Here are a few items that may help you get ready . . .

• Pick a Pack of Poetry Posters is a collection of 20 posters that provide a quick reference for you and your students about 20 types of poetry.  Each poster is in full color, making them attractive and inviting for display in your classroom. You can see 10 of these posters by checking out my blog series for poetry month.  This 10 part series starts here.

• Back to School Poetry Possibilities contains 19 poems about going back to school and the changes associated with fall.  Each poem has individually tailored activities, skill lessons, and writing prompts to go with it. Have you been considering using poetry anthologies? This unit will get you off to a great start! The poems are copy ready for your students.  

• If you are hesitant about including poetry in your daily teaching or if you are looking for tips to establish a poetry center, please check out my 8 part blog series about using poetry in the classroom.  It starts here.

• Poetry centers can be daunting and time consuming. If that's your fear or experience, then you may wish to try Poetry Task Cards for Elementary Classrooms. There are 52 task cards with skills ranging from simple identification of high frequency words to employing figurative language in writing original poetry.

• Do you need help getting started with poetry anthologies?  I have just the thing for you -- an introductory poem that's FREE! Go here.

• Poetry Possibilities - Fall offers 26 more poems about the season and its holidays and special events.  Like the Back to School unit, each poem has a teaching point, skill lessons, and activity suggestions.

Until next time . . .

No Whine Zone

Lately, life has been a lot more stressful for me as I have been caring for 2 hip replacement patients that are near and dear to me (my mom and my husband).   My calling is teaching, not nursing. However, I don't believe in whining; in fact I post this sign in my classroom.  So, to give myself a little lift, I'm having a sale in my TpT store.  

8/1/13 - 8/5/13 everything in my store is marked down and the vast majority are just 99₵.  I just know those cha-chings are going to put a spring in my step.  Better yet, they will give my husband a grin, as he has put the cha-ching app on his phone, too. 

Won't you help me turn lemons into lemonade?

 

Hink Pinks for Kinders

My followers surely know by now that I'm "the Hink Pink guru," having dozens of units of Hink Pinks, Hinky Pinkies, and Hinkity Pinkities in my teaching repository. I've even invented Hitinkity Pitinkities at the urging of my enrichment students. 

Recently, a lovely kindergarten teacher friend asked if I had resources for pre-readers. Indeed, I did not.   But, I have been inspired by her question. Thus, I take pleasure in . . .

Examine the picture while searching for a 2 word phrase that describes it.  The 2 words must rhyme and they can only have 1 syllable each.  Did you get it?  The answer is PINK DRINK.

Try these:

Obviously, 2 beach balls are pictured.  Note the green arrow.  It points to the smaller of the 2 balls.  Hence, the answer to this one is SMALL BALL.

It should be getting easier now.  After all, experience is the best teacher.  The answer to this one is BLUE SHOE.

Working with Hink Pinks has myriad benefits for students.  They offer fun word play and learning is always best when it's fun.  Hink Pinks challenge children to think critically and creatively.  They increase vocabulary and hone rhymes.  Although they may not know what a synonym is, your kiddos will quickly learn to think of words that mean the same thing.  And, Hink Pinks are even aligned with the CCSS.

I invite you to download my Freebie Hink Pinks for Kinders.   Introduce them to your students by solving ALL of them together, modeling your thinking as you do so. Hink Pinks can be tricky at first.  That's why it is key to work through several together.  Once your students get the hang of it, they will be hooked.  Then you can post a Hink Pink card at a center or use it for fast finishers.  Grab a card for a sponge activity or choose one each morning for an anchor activity.

Once your students are hooked, you may want to try these Hink Pink units for Kinders:

 

HP for Kinders I                             HP for Kinders II

Pinteresting Boards for 2nd Grade Teachers

If you teach second grade, you should check out these collaborative boards on Pinterest:

• 2nd Grade Blogs
• 2nd Grade -- $5 & Under
• Math for Second Grade
• Grades 1-2: TPT
• Super Second Grade
• Sailin' in Second
• Common Core Math K-2
• Common Core Literacy K-2
• Second Grade Free Stuff
• *Kinder, First, and Second Grade Common Core Math
• 2nd Grade Specific
• Second Grade Materials under $3
• K-2nd Worksheet Free Zone
• SecondGradeSquad
• 2nd Grade Collaboration
• K-3rd Freebie Round-Up!
• Super 2nd Grade
• TLAP in 2nd Grade
• Teaching Resources to Share K-2
• Teaching Resources to Share K-2 Math
• 2nd Grade Classroom
• 2nd Gr. Common Core
• 2nd Gr. Common Core - Collaborative
• 2nd Grade :)
• Back to School K-2

If you have a favorite 2nd grade collaborative board on Pinterest that isn't listed, please put the address in a comment. I'll gladly add more to the list.

Happy pinning!

G/T and Enrichment Differentiation

Do you find it taxing, daunting even, to provide challenges for your gifted and talented students?  Is differentiation difficult?  Do enrichment opportunities elude you?

If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions, then I have many gifts for you.

Because I am passionate about G/T, differentiation, and enrichment, I've been creating materials for these areas for more decades then I care to admit.  My experience with G/T and enrichment students ranges from teaching multi-age gifted students in a private school -- to creating district-wide programs for pull-out enrichment -- to providing differentiated instruction in my heterogeneous classroom -- to instructing university students in graduate level gifted education courses.

Among the materials I create are language arts curricula combined with critical thinking and problem solving.  One of the most popular categories is Hink Pinks, Hinky Pinkies, Hinkity Pinkities, and Hitinkity Pitinkities.  Kiddos love them because they are learning disguised as fun. Teachers can't get enough of them because they really make students think.

You can unwrap a FREE gift of these ridiculously fun and addictive word riddles by clicking here.  Currently, there are 3 more FREE Hink Pink, et al. products that you can grab by going here.  Try them; I think you'll like them.

99¢ Store on TpT

I'm pleased to announce the launch of my 99¢ store on TPT.  There are dozens of products listed there for just 99¢.  The inventory will change often, so stop in frequently for incredible bargains.  Go here!

I've spent years creating and refining products so that you can save your TIME for family, friends, and fun.  

Birthday Sale on TN

Sale starts 6/27/13.

Shop here.

Birthday Sale on TpT

June 23 - June 24, 2013

Shop here.

What the Teacher Said

Having been a teacher for more than 30 years, I've said a lot.  But that's not what this post is about.  This post is about what teachers have said about my products.

My teaching passions are many, but chief among them are materials that promote critical thinking and problem solving.  My appetite for this was first whetted wwwaaaaayyyyy back in my second year of teaching when I attended a state conference on gifted education.  It was there that I was first introduced to the  critical thinking activity, Hink Pinks, and their cousins, Hinky Pinkies and Hinkity Pinkities.  

 My enthusiasm for Hink Pinks et al. has never waned.  Indeed, I have used them with every class from 1st grade to 5th. It takes a little more prompting to get 1st graders to combine syllable constraints with synonyms, but there is nothing more rewarding than seeing that "lightbulb moment" when a little one gets it.

You can see examples of my Hink Pinks et al. by going here.  Several of them are free! If you try them, I think you will like them. But, you don't have to take my word for it.  Here's what the teachers said:

If you would like to check out my Hink Pink et al. products, click here.  By the way, they are CCSS aligned.

FREEBIES!

(To the tune of A Bicycle Built for Two)

Freebies, freebies  ♪ ♫ 
Everyone loves freebies.  ♫
They are sublime!        ♪ ♫
They save you oh so much time! ♪
So go to my TpT store  ♪ ♫
Where you'll find freebies galore!  ♪ ♫   
'Cause if you do    ♫ ♪ ♫
I promise you    ♪ ♫ ♪
Will find freebies that you adore.  ♫ ♪ ♪

Click here.

Common Core Alignment

I've been busy aligning my products to the CCSS.  Although it is taking quite a bit of my time, I hope that it will save YOU time!  Still have lots of products to go, but summer is here...

Click here to check out the products I have finished aligning.  Come back often as I continue to add more aligned products.  Then, take some time to enjoy your summer!

Do You Speak Reading Recovery?

While going through my files, organizing for the end of the year, ...

... I came upon the following poem.  At the end of my training year in Reading Recovery, I wrote it for our "graduation" program.  Hopefully, it will give you a grin. 

Do You Speak Reading Recovery®?

by Barb Evans

Many fields, as it’s well known,

Have alphabets all their own.

A lawyer earns a J.D.

Doctors review a C.T.,

While in football the QB

Will try to score a TD.

Now in this, my training year,

I’ve developed a new ear

For the RR alphabet.

How many of these can you get?

We teach RR (letters tall).

We take rr-s (letters small).

Each day we must M-S-V,

Decide what made them SC,

Then conduct some M & B,

And pray we’re not O-O-T.

And much to our grief and woe

It’s B. T. G. we must go.                        

We started with the O.S.S. 

Which consists of all of these tests:  

L.I.D., O.W.T.,

C.A.P., and W.V. 

Then of our students we ask

To complete the Dictation task.

They must wonder, “What could be next?”

Why, then they must read leveled text!

After that it’s R.A.T.K.

Then F.A.R.T. for one day.

Our job is to closely observe,

Then record so we can preserve

The things that the child does well.

That’s the programme – Oops!  S.O.L.

The prompts that were written by Clay

Are the things we must learn to say.

One prompt is N.R. T.T.A.

Another:  Can we say it that way?

My favorite prompt is, I confess—

G.Y.M.R.F.T.F.S. –

It really is in the Guide Book –

In italics!  It’s there, just look!

“Take your G.B. with you to bed,”

So our T.L. has often said.

And so with our spouses we plead,

“Just go to sleep, dear.  I must read!”

Teacher Appreciation Sales

Shop here.

Shop here.

Pinteresting Boards for G/T & HOTS

Collaborative Pinterest boards for Gifted & Talented,  Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS), enrichment, and differentiated instruction!

If you follow my blog, you know that these topics are near and dear to my heart.  You also know that I have been posting lists of collaborative boards on specific topics; kindergarten and 1st grade, to date.  But when I tried to compile a list of Pinterest boards for G/T, HOTS, enrichment, and differentiation, I did not get very far.  Here's what I have been able to find:

• Teaching Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
• Critical Thinking Skills
• Creative & Critical Thinking Activities & Ideas
• Brain Teasers & Twisters
• Differentiation Ideas & Resources
• Gifted Education Ideas & Products
• Gifted Ed Resources & Info
• Gifted on TpT - K - 8
• Gifted on TpT - High School
• Gifted & Talented Teaching Resources
• Activities for Gifted & Talented Students
• Gifted and Talented teaching ideas K-8

So, I'm asking for your help.  If you know of any collaborative boards for G/T, enrichment, HOTS, and/or differentiation, will you please post the link in a comment?  Then I can expand this list to make it more comprehensive.   

Thanks!

Poetry Month Resources

Take time to celebrate National Poetry Month by checking out these resources:

• It's About Time for Poetry (in the classroom)
• Poetry Teaching Resources from TpT
• Poetry for Kids
• Teaching Poetry  
• Texting Poetry
• Poetry Teaching Resources   
• Simile Poetry
• 20 Terrific Ways to Celebrate National Poetry Month 
• 5 New Twists on Poetry Month  
• 10 Poetry Month Resources for Busy Teachers  
• Shel Silverstein 
• Poetry Anthologies
• Jack Prelutsky
• Hello National Poetry Month
• Poet-tree  
• Blackout Poetry  
• Scholastic Poetry  
• April is National Poetry Month
• National Poetry Month: Useful Resources for Teachers  
• The Poetry Party  
• Grades 6-8: Poetry Workshop 
• National Poetry Month Kidlitosphere Events
• Phone Number Poetry  
• Hands-on Poetry Projects  
• Poetically Speaking  
• Reading Rockets National Poetry Month
• Poetry Literacy Centers - Pt. 1  
• Poetry Literacy Centers - Pt. 2  
• National Poetry Month

                                                        

You may also be interested in a blog series I have written about poetry.  It is an 8 part series called "Using Poetry in the Classroom."  It starts here and goes forward.  

Finally, just a quick reminder that I'm having a National Poetry Month sale through April 30. You can save 20% on ALL of my poetry products on TpT.