With Common Core fully in place in my state, one of the big standards that we teach in fifth grade deals with Greek and Latin roots.   In the past, I wrote a few posts about how I taught them ( you can find the posts here ), but it has been so long, that I thought I would share these ideas with you again.  I figure if *I* have to teach roots, you probably do as well. :) I really don't have a Root Word program.  Basically, I teach my students 4 root words per week.  To introduce the words, I have the students create index cards with the root, the definition, and a picture of the meaning on the front.  The back of the cards has sample words containing the roots, as well as meanings. They keep these flash cards all year long to study, create games, use during writing, etc....   For homework, though, I have actually tried to combine all of what I was doing before.  Now I have them use these AWESOME (yes, I just called one of my resour......

I am sort of on a writing about writing kick lately, huh?  Well, today is no different.  I have just been spending so much time on the subject because, well, let's face it, these kids have to know how to write for THE TEST!  Now that it is on the computer, and pretty much everything requires a written response, it is imperative that I teach the kids the skills they need to adequately convey their thoughts in written form. Today, I thought I would share with you my secret to success when it comes to writing.  Are you ready?  Ok...here it goes. We write every day. Yep, that is it.  We write.  All the time.  Every day.  Even for homework.  The kids are constantly writing and formulating their thoughts coherently and with purpose.   Did you fall out of your chair at that secret revelation?  I thought not.  It really isn't a secret at all.  I read somewhere that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a ......

One of the shifts we have tried to make using Common Core is incorporating real world problems into all aspects of our curriculum.  When I was first introduced to this idea that everything I was teaching needed to be totally different, that it had to be SO much more rigorous and SO much more difficult, I had a mild heart attack.  I thought things were going along pretty good.  And, really, they kind of were.  I just needed to tweak a bit.   Now, what I am about to share with you is probably something you have done many, many times before.  However, what I am finding with my own teaching is that looking at activities that I have done in the past with a new lens is causing me to shift just slightly and make the work a bit more rigorous.  It really isn't taking a lot of work on my part, just a different perspective. In class, we have been working on adding and subtracting decimals.  I wanted to break out my tried and true Book Order Math proje......

Today I settled back into the routine of my classroom, and I have to say, other than me taking a total spill while at my ELMO (I tripped over the cord and fell on my back....ouch!!! Keep those cords wrapped up away from legs!  I am fine now though...) we didn't miss a step. One of the big ideas in the district is "close reading" using the Common Core.   For the past few months, I have been trying to wrap my brain around this idea and gather strategies for doing it.  It really isn't something that is too different from what we have been doing in the past, but the new name scares me ;)  So I have been trying to turn to mentor texts to help me out. Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading is my go to right now, so I decided to start my students off with the first introduction lesson of Contrasts and Contradictions.  Using "Thank You, Ma'am" by Langston Hughes as my reading text, I basically followed the lesson in the book.  Since there were e......