FREEBIE Rounding Poster

When I teach rounding to my class, I show them how we can round numbers to the 10 the number has or the next 10. I use a 0-99 board to show how it works. It makes sense to my class because we generally use a 0-99 chart and not 1-100 charts when we work on counting and place value. 

As you can see from looking at the two boards, it is easier to see that we round numbers with a 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 to the 10 the number has, and 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 to the next 10.

Rounding on a 1-100 board. The 0 and the rest of the numbers that round 'down' are separated. If you split each 1-10 row in half (half to round down, half to round up - see my very straight red line!), than 5 will round down. This has confused my kids in the past.

I find rounding on a 0-99 board to be easier. The board is split in half vertically. 0-4 you round to the 10 the number has, 5-9 you round to the next 10. For example, 66 can be rounded to the ten the number has (60) or the next 10 (70). I ask my kids which one is closer and they can visually see that it is closer to the next 10 or 70. This way of talking reinforces places value too.

 

The same thinking can be applied to rounding to the nearest 100. This is part of the rounding board for my Monster Rounding game. It shows how you can round to the 10s (vertical line) and 100s (horizontal line). For example, if I had to round 782 to the nearest 10 or 100, I can look at this and it shows me.

Ok, so here's the freebie. I've done up a poster that shows how to round for 10s and 100s. 

 Click on the link or either pic to download. 

I also have my Monster Rounding board game for sale on TpT if you are interested.

Hopefully you can use the freebie.

Favorite Science Books

Can I narrow it down??? I LOOVVE teaching science because of it's hands-on nature and just because it is just so darn interesting!

One of my favorite picture books for teaching science is That Magnetic Dog by Bruce Whatley. You can see my post about how I used it in my class by clicking on the book.

 

But where do I turn when I'm needing some help choosing the perfect picture book for the content I need to teach? I bought More Picture-Perfect Science Lessons after I did my lessons for That Magnetic Dog, and they are very similar. There are some things I would add now that I've got this book!

It features 20 different fiction and non-fiction picture books that lead into science inquiry for Grades 1-4. So each of the 20 lessons uses two books - one fiction and one non-fiction (usually during the explain and/or elaborate phase). Each of the lessons (I take them over 2-3 days) follows the 5Es instructional model - engage, explore, explain, elaborate and evaluate. Even better is that the lessons incorporate comprehension skills and strategies like making text to self connections, inferring, determining importance and visualising as well as the features of non-fiction texts. It includes science journals for some topics, and other worksheets like Anticipation Guides, rubrics, data charts etc. I love it!

Link up with TBA and share your favorite science books!

Wind Socks

Last week (before our Spring holidays - yeah!), my class finished up their study of weather/the seasons and the water cycle. This is one little craft project we did when we were learning about wind. 

We just halved a piece of white card and used a range of materials to decorate it with anything to do with wind. Some used pastels, markers, cotton balls, scrunched up pieces of crepe paper to add to their trees etc. We then just folded the two ends together and stapled. Each student then cut out some streamers from a crepe paper roll (from the party section) and stapled them on. It was so easy to make!

We took them outside at various times and days so that we could determine which way the wind was blowing and estimated the strength of the wind. We hung them up across a clothes lines in our room and when the windows were open they would move in the breeze - it looked great!

Here's the only picture of have of them :(

One more week of Spring Holidays left! I can't believe we only have 10 weeks of the school year to go!

What have you done in your class in the past week? Link up at the Clutter-Free Classroom

Literacy Activites, Games and Freebies

If you have been reading my posts for a little while now, you'll know that I've been having heaps of trouble uploading new things to TpT and Teachers Notebook. I'm glad to say that half of that problem has now gone! I can upload to TpT with no problems from my school laptop! I WAS able to upload to Teachers Notebook earlier today, but now it isn't - something about undefined error/syntax error - using the same files that loaded successfully to TpT! 

So here are some things I made about a month ago, but couldn't upload. The first three people to comment will get one each! These are all Autumn/Fall themed.

The first two people to comment with their email address will get the first three products for free! Everyone can have the last two - just click on the picture to download them for free from TpT!

Crow Crisis

Studets make their way through the pumpkin patch to scare away the crows. Good news - they are also practising reading (Level 1 and 2 cards) and spelling (Level 3) words with or, ore, oar, air, are and ar spellings/sounds. Easy differentiation!

Parts of Speech Leaf Sort

Students sort nouns, verbs and adjectives onto the correct mat and record on the recording sheet. 

 

 Spin a Suffix - er, est, ly, less

Students choose a card and read it. They then spin the spinner below and add the suffix onto the end of the word. If it makes a real word, they record it on the recording sheet. The first to fill their sheet (4 for each suffix) first wins. An answer card for each suffix (included) can be cut and lamiated and put together with a metal ring for students to check their answers. 

 Freebies available at TpT (I've only bought a TpT licence for freebies by Scrappin Doodles so far). Are we still allowed to post a link to TpT here? If we're not, can you please let me know so I can take this down! Click the picture to grab them!

I had this Making Words activity posted earlier but have just put it up again now that I've bought a Scrappin Doodles licence for TpT.

 Original artwork from Scrappin' Doodles.

Freebie: Start of School and Behaviour Diamond

Sorry I have been MIA recently. I have been SUPER busy with school (counting down to the end of term - YAY! I need a break and I am so over assessment and marking!) and organising a bridal shower for my friend for this weekend. WOW, I never thought it would be such a HUGE job! There's also been wedding rehearsals, shoe shopping and my son came home so sick after a week at school camp so I've been nursing him back to health!

So, I'll still be not posting very often until at least this weekend. Once the bridal shower is over I'll have a little more free time to devote to blogging.
 
I was ever so shocked to see that I had been listed as a Top 10 blog by Mechele over Barrow's Hodgepodge - heart - you should definately check out her blog if you haven't already. Thank you so much!

And I've been meaning to post this for those of you starting new year. I got my kiddos to do it earlier this year. In the plain box, they glue in a photo I take on the first day. It gives me an indication of how well they can read, spell, listen to and follow instructions etc. They color in the whole page and they end up looking very cute. I put them up on the inside of or door so they can be seen when the door is open. The font I used is our handwriting font, so it probably won't come up for your properly - just change it to whatever font you want (it's a word document). Get it by clicking on the photo.

Another idea I used when I taught Grade 6 is for students to create a wordle about themselves - words to describe themselves and their interests. I took a screen print of the wordle, pasted it in Word and then inserted a text box. I added a photo of each student in the text book before printing. I added a sign (Meet 6D) and pegged them to a clothes line I had running across the room. They looked much better than what it does here in the pic which was the best one I could find.

We were learning about sustainable house design that term, so you can see heaps of materials hanging on the wall on one side and our Behaviour Diamond on the other. Students moved up or down the diamond and collected or lost class cash along the way (e.g. move up once, get $5, up twice $10 + the $5 already earned etc. Same on the way down the chart). We kept a spreadsheet to keep track of money earned, lost and spent in the class store. I also had it so that once they went down the diamond, they couldn't go back up that day, only control their behaviour and not go further down. It taught them to monitor their behaviour and that not all misbehaviours can be made up by deciding to be 'good' later - there were consequences for their choices. The next day, they started in the middle again with a fresh start. It worked really well for this bunch of kids. You can see that about 5 kids went down this day! That was probably the most that ever went down. Most days I didn't have any but if they were late to come back from lunch they went straight down! If you want to know more let me know!

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Daily 5 Math Headers

By request I have made up these Daily 5 Math headers (though the person only requested 4):

If you would like different words on the signs I'd be happy to make them up. If you want a different background, just let me know - I'll have to see whether I've got one that suits what you want (as I've only purchased a couple of licences for the ones I've used).

You've only got a few more hours to enter my giveaway for a $20 TpT or Amazon voucher!

I've got a couple of othe requests in the works - if you are waiting, please be patient, I'm working on them as fast as I can!

Classroom Library and Freebie Sign

When it comes to the classroom library, I have to admit that I don't have one anymore. I used to use the 3 small bookcases we get in our rooms for book baskets, but that left me with no other storage at all (I am sooo envious of all the cupboards and storage in some classrooms! I can't believe they take up a wall in some rooms!). Since those book cases are all we get, I had nowhere to put word work materials, math manipulatives, student book boxes etc. My room is small as well, so it didn't leave me many options to bring in my own things. So, my library is really all throughout the room and not in one designated spot.

This is where most of my books are. It was a bargain on ebay. This is one side, it's th same on the other. It holds hundreds of books, even it if doesn't look like it! I got the book stand for $20 on ebay too. I've used Kristen's labels  (Ladybug's Teacher Files link).

This is a little table I brought in. Some chapter books are here. There's a little rocking chair right next to the table the kids like sitting at.

Here are some of our book boxes. Kids can have 7 books in them at any one time. I just bought some cheap magazine holders for them.

I do have some themed baskets as well, just not enough to take up all my book cases! They are also placed around the room. This one is with all the math manipulatives (not sure where I got the label from).

 This one is near the couch.                        

 

These two in the science area.  We are learning about weather/seasons, so I've got a Fiction Book/Poetry box and a Non-Fiction box.

 

Student made books. 

  

Some more chapter books. 

 One of the two new book displays I bought recently. This one holds new books. 

This is a new box I made today to hold our big books. I just taped construction paper to a sturdy box some of my new things got delivered in!  Sorry about the pic - I took it today and it was already dark outside so the light is not the best.

Here's a sign I made to stick on the front of the box tomorrow. Download it by clicking on the image. 

 

Circle thing(?) by JustSo Scrappy 2.

Font: Pass the Chex by Kevinand Amanda.

If you own any of the labels I've used, please let me know so I can give you credit!