How To...

Before Christmas break I wanted to touch on How-To Writing with my kids. I've used Amy Lemons' and Hope King's Write On units all year long so of course I used their How To unit! I loved the interactive, introductory activity they created; which was How to Make Pie in a Cup. Furthermore, I recently purchased a new Canon DSLR camera and was able to get some action shots while the kids were making their pie. 
This particular activity made the students aware of each step of how to make the pie. It was a perfect activity because it helped the students realize and understand that adding those specific little details is crucial when you are writing a How To..I don't know how many times they just said, "Put the whip cream on." So I would take the whole container and just set it on the cup and they were yelling, "Nooo!!!" It was a perfect opportunity to talk about those smaller details in writing.   We then wrote a short piece on How to Decorate a Christmas Tree and most of the students added more details. They would say, you can't just write put the lights on; you have to say take the lights and wrap them around the tree! 
If you are looking for a supplemental or even a writing curriculum I HIGHLY recommend their units! They have made teaching all of the Writing & Grammar this year 10xs easier, and I love that the activities are colorful, use rigor, but are teaching them as well without pushing worksheets!! 
Here are some pictures from our Pie in A Cup How To... 

We first put all the steps in order for our Pre-Writing... 

Then the Pie Making began! 

We carefully wrote our steps in-between....

Finally we're able to eat it!! 

Here is the link for Amy and Hope's How To unit... 

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Write-On-Unit-3-How-To-WritingProcedural-Writing-2830963

M is for Monster...

So October is one of my favorite months of teaching! There are so many topics you can cover: pumpkins, bats, monsters, spiders etc. Last year I used Amy Lemons' and Katie King's Rooted in Reading unit but since I'm teaching all the writing this year I couldn't use every piece of it.  Instead I decided to create my own Monster Narrative unit. I wanted something to begin Personal Narratives that the students would enjoy. I created two different monster activities. The first one I created had the students create their own monster. They had to brainstorm ideas for its' name, hobbies, characteristics, favorites, family, and lifestyle. It was so funny to read what they came up with! I found a monster coloring book at Walmart that had pre-made monsters or outlines that the students could decorate on their own!!   Below are some pictures of the unit: 

The second part of the unit uses the monster the student created. This part of the writing has the student brainstorm something their monster has done like going on vacation, playing in the snow, helping them with math centers, etc. Any small moment the student can write about! It focuses on using transitional words such as First, Next, Then and Last as well as writing a Topic Sentence and a Concluding Sentence. 

My students really enjoyed this unit! They were so anxious for the part of our day when they were able to write about their monster! I teach the High, On Level and Lower students and these activities were perfect because I could add and take away what I wanted the students to include. My higher thinking students added more specific details while my lower level students worked on writing complete sentences! 

 Click the picture above to view this unit in my TPT store!!! I hope your students enjoy it as much as mine did! 

The Week Ahead....

It feels like it's been forever since I've blogged!! I can't believe it's already OCTOBER; my favorite month of the year!! I went to school yesterday and was somewhat discouraged! Last year, I used Amy Lemons and Katie King's Rooted in Reading: October and loved it! This year since teaching all of the writing, grammar and spelling I didn't think I would get to use their unit! I had already copied everything for the upcoming week and about 10 minutes before leaving school, I changed my plan for the week! 
So this week I am going to use their October unit with the story I Need My Monster...  Monday: My students will brainstorm ideas for their monster. Write facts about what their monster eats, where their monster sleeps, who are their monster friends, etc.  Tuesday:  Students will take their facts and create detailed sentences about their monster as their rough draft.  Wednesday: My students will work on going back and adding strong adjectives to make their description of their monster more detailed.  Thursday: Students will create their own monster by drawing or coloring one they have chosen. They will go back and continue to edit and revise their rough draft looking for capital letters, punctuation, etc.  Friday: Students will publish their final copies!   I chose this outline because I just finished teaching common nouns and their unit had the perfect daily lessons for Proper Nouns and I wanted to make sure I incorporated the book during these lessons. My original plan including using Amy and Hope's Write On -- Personal Narrative unit and begin with their Ouch Story but how can you not teach monsters, bats and spiders in October! I'm hoping this weekly plan works! I'll be updated next week with pictures from our Monster Themed Week!! 
What is your weekly plan this week?!   You can check out Amy & Katie's unit here:  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Rooted-in-Reading-October-Read-Aloud-Lessons-and-Activities-2116229

123 Write!

I am so excited about this new product! I recently found out that I will be teaching all the writing, grammar and spelling for our 2nd graders. I started brainstorming about activities that the students could do if they finished early. I was browsing on Pinterest and came across a pin called ELA BINGO from Musings from the Middle School but I wanted to make it my own. I was in the car riding home from my wonderful beach vacation and decided to create this 123 Write!  In previous years, my students have always complained "How many sentences do we have to write, Miss Strong?" As I was riding in the car I thought well if I make these simple writing cards and label my bulletin board 123 WRITE, my students will know that they have to AT LEAST write 3 sentences. Of course they can always write more, but that is the minimum requirement. I also didn't want to stress them out by making them write a whole lot towards the beginning of the year as well it wouldn't take them very long to answer these writing prompts.  I'm hoping to display the cards on the bulletin board and have the students pick which card they want to write about. This way it's not me telling them you must write about...... it give them more independence. I also wanted something easy they could go and grab rather than having to rummage around in their notebooks so I created writing prompt pages that coordinated with the cards. These pages can be used as a journal book, for homework, or with the cards. Once the students have written at least 5 of these extras they will receive some sort of reward (I haven't thought that far yet.) I'm hoping that these cards will help the students get excited about writing and they will have some independence about what they want to write about. There are topics from Back to School, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Silly Story prompts. The link below takes you to my TPT store where they will be on sale for 24 hours!!  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/123-Write-Fall-Edition-2650197

Daily Activity Cards

Hello All!  It's been awhile since I've last written a post. My life has slowed down some and I'm going to make it a goal this school year to blog more about what goes on in my classroom! I've recently found out that I will be teaching all the grammar, spelling and writing to our second graders. It was quite a surprise, as I was used to teaching both Math and ELA, but now I'm really excited about it.  I've created these Daily Activity Cards that I plan on using on my new cart, which I'll post a picture and the TPT link below. One of my biggest pet peeves is organization. I feel like I CAN'T function unless I'm organized. Luckily, we have amazing aides that will run our copies for us as long as we get everything ready. These activity cards help me keep my sanity as I will use them on my new cart as well as folders for each block since I will now have 3 classes that are using similar resources.  I can't believe summer is almost over! :((( I've throughly enjoyed my time off! My mom and family friends of ours just spent a week at Jekyll Island in Georgia, and I will definitely say I could get used to living near a beach. It's so peaceful and relaxing! Now it's time to start thinking about how I want to arrange my classroom, what lessons I want to use in the beginning of the year, and decide last minute trips for the summer.  I hope all of you have had a wonderful summer! I'm anxious to see everyone's back to school posts with their classroom reveals! I will be posting mine soon!  Link to 5 drawer cart:  http://www.michaels.com/recollections-5-drawer-letterpress-cube/10311357.html Link to Daily Activity Card Freebie:  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Daily-Activity-Banners-2645662

Rejuvenating Weekend!

This weekend I traveled back to my college town of Beavercreek, Ohio to visit some friends! I hadn't been back since 4th of July & let me tell you it was so nice to be back! I left all the normal teaching stress back at home and truly just let myself have fun! I had recently started a semi-clean diet and I just allowed myself to eat whatever! We went and saw the movie Sisters, and it was hysterical; I highly recommend if! We did a lot of shopping and just took our time and browsed! And of course, we had awesome food; we ate at a Tex Mex place called Chuy's...OMG it was delicious, and we also ate another favorite Olive Garden! On the other hand, we just relaxed and watched tv and reminisced! It's crazy how sometimes the best medicine is to allow yourself to just let loose!

The girls I visited this weekend are friends I will have for a lifetime! We share so many memories and experiences we can look back and laugh about! This trip was definitely much needed not only emotionally but physically! Definitely helped me recharge! 

On another note, my blogs name is Styling and Profiling in 2nd and I've yet to share any pictures of some of my favorite outfits so here are some from this past month :) 

Getting Cozy with Math!

I can't believe tomorrow I have to go back to school after having TWO full weeks off! I'll never get up tomorrow morning; I so have enjoyed sleeping in!! When I left school right before Christmas break I noticed my math students, which I teach the low group, were still really struggling with basic math facts. Having time to think, I decided to create some math centers that reinforced those skills they were struggling in. I'm hoping these will help them review their skills while still learning newer ones as well.  My math class this year has been a struggle because it's hard getting them to care about their work! While they work in centers, they tend to argue and complain about one another which is totally different than the group I had last year. That's another reason why I created these centers because I'm hoping they will boost their confidence because they will think they are easy!  You can check out my new centers below (click the picture) & feel free to let me know how they work in your classroom, or what you are struggling with this year!!