MIA

MIA- BIG TIME!!!!!

SORRY! folks for the long absence! I’ve been crazy busy as I‘m sure many of you are too! Honestly there isn’t enough time for me to get everything done on my “To Do List”.

I guess part of the reason I’ve been so behind is football games, house building and SHOPPING! HA! 

Hook 'EM \m/

Meanwhile progress is being made on our casita! 

We hope to be in our new home late November or early December...we'll see how that goes! STRESSFUL building a house! I rather it be when we go on Christmas VACAY!

SO let's do a little rewind...a bit of a modge podge of things because this is all I have seem to have captured on my iphone! BOO! 

I LOVE the Even & Odd activity that I borrowed from that sweet Mrs. Genius over at The Teacher Wife....I just heart her to death! Super cute activity! You can check it out here! 

A quick way I like to do an informal assessment with my mixed groups is to do a class Thinking Map and have each students come up with there individual contributions to our maps!

For example: (Circle Map below) Even and Odd numbers each student had to tell me their number before placing it on the map so I could see who was getting the concept or not. No help from their partners.

WE are crazy for Circle Maps...here are some examples of Circle Maps we have done earlier this year! I also have examples of what our Spanish students are doing in their L1.

I do want to share that we also take the information off the maps and turn it into a writing piece. I will make sure I capture more of our final writing products to share with y'all in the future. 

Here are some examples of our "Math About Me" Circle Maps...my math groups are mixed with English and Spanish students.

My homeroom students love to play "Maps Around The World"! 

It's like "Musical Chairs" except for I have some sort of "THINKING MAP" they must fill in with the skill we are learning. 

You could also do this activity with other subject areas. 

I use it TONS in Math!

 My homeroom class was learning about short a families. I used Circle Maps for each word family (5 short a families). 

They walked around the room in a circle (as I played music) and when I stopped the music they had to fill in the map they were closes to with a word that belonged in that particular short a family. 

They must also write down their name by the word they chose. It was a quick way for me to see who was still needing more guidance.

My Firsties LOVE this game! 

Here are some great examples of our Spanish students doing some writing in their L1-Spanish...beautiful handwriting! 

Christopher Columbus Brace Map:

I really love using the Brace Map for vocabulary...Whole to Part relationship...we did this craftivity during our 

Oral Language develepment block.

Vocabulary is key in any language so this is a great way to show how some words have different meanings based on the 

context they are used in. 

Example "BOW" I was so impressed with how much they knew about how many different meanings this word could have depending on how I pronounced it...AMAZING!!! 

In this case BOW- the front end of a boat or to BOW in the presence of a King or Queen (greatness)! 

SMARTIES I tell you!

I absolutley LOVE Kim Adsit's Hooray for Columbus Day! 

She is soooo AMAZING!! I truly love all her activities! 

I used her "Parts of the Santa Maria" for this activity. 

My bilingual pairs really enjoyed this craftivity!

Check out her blog over at Kinder-Gals!

Brace Map: Parts of an Apple

Bilingual pairs created their own brace map for this activity. 

Here is an example of each L1-English on the left. 

L2-English on the right. 

Okay so I had to share some of my homeroom activities because it is just so darn caaaute! Brace Maps for practicing their spelling words!

They have to come up with some of their own words that have the same phonics rule...check out "AFLACK"! Love it!!! 

They must also illustrate their words if possible... love the suitcase! 

They seriously MELT.MY.HEART!!!!!!!

How can you not keep a HUGE smile on your face day in and day out! I feel so very blessed to be a teacher...the rewards are endless!

Oral Language Development:

I thought I would post some activities that our students have done in Spanish and English oral language development. My dual-language partner and I have our homeroom class (L1) for 2 hours in the morning, this is the time when we do our ELA in their home language. Then we have 30 minutes of "Oral Language Development" which was built into our schedule for our mixed groups. We switch classes at 10:00 where we have a BLUE & RED group. They alternate every other day between the two of us. 

Each group is mixed with English and Spanish speakers and we spend the rest of our day mixed groups with both of us teaching Math. I teach Science (English) and my partner teachers Social Studies (Spanish). So those subjects are taught in that language only. I do expose both groups to Social Studies (English) during "Oral Language" development because the group I have for 3 days that week do a read aloud and a writing craftivity. I usually plan lessons according to what my 1st grade team is doing in Social Studies. 

Vocabulary is KEY so I really do try to incorporate as much as I can during this time. The group I have 2x that week do what we call "Bilingual Buddy Centers" we pair the students with a buddy (1-English & 1-Spanish pair) that way there is support provided and students get the opportunity to be the "EXPERT" when they are in their native language of the day. I am ESL Certified, but I do have the privilege of speaking, reading and writing some Spanish...I believe it helps with communication with my students and their parents. So, I really have "40 students" each year, that I have the privilege to have a part in their educational journey. I just LOVE our dual group! 

Here is a walk through last semester's activities that we have done in our "Oral Language Block". These are products from both groups mixed. If anything I post was your original idea please let me know & I will surely give you the credit you deserve!

Apple Unit: 

I could kick myself now...we had some great craftivities for this unit BUT I didn't get pictures. I thought about getting a blog together after I took my stuff down...my partner had her stuff up on her wall, so I happen to get a picture of what they did in her room. I change my displays VERY OFTEN! YES, I forget to take pictures.... but not NO MORE (:! This sequencing activity came from the FABULOUS Deanna Jump over at Mrs. Jump's Class blog...LOVE her! Her units are super fun.... you can purchase her Apples! Math and Literacy Activities here! 

This was done during Oral Language Development (Mixed Group) each pair created a Flow Map

English & Spanish pairs Flow Map writing

I can't remember where the original idea came from...but I do know this was PINTEREST inspired! This craftivity was created in Spanish Oral Language development. If this cute idea is yours PLEASE let me know!

Christopher Columbus Craftivity-L1(English) writing in L2 (Spanish)

L1-English writing in L2-Spanish

October Oral Language Activities:

We totally jumped on this cuuuute bottom portion of the little "Witch Skirt" that was blowing it up on PINTEREST during October. We decided to teach adjectives in oral language development and this was the perfect project for us to use. 

I borrowed the adjective idea from a DARLIN' lil’ blog over at Step into 2nd Grade with Mrs. Lemons.... another one of my FAVS!!! You should totally check her blog out if you haven't yet! My partner did this activity during oral language development. Check it out! 

Some cool happenings in DUAL...my homeroom writing in Spanish!

We are a "Thinking Map" school...Bubble Map (adjectives that describe a Witch-La Bruja!)

Our kiddos wrote a sentence in Spanish using adjectives about their witch

Spanish Bulletin Board Display

In my neck of the woods we loved the craftivity in Deanna Jump's Halloween Math and Literacy Activities. Super cool "Frankie Glyph" from her unit...she always has the cutest glyphs!

 I also BORROWED from another blog that I just HEART over at Kinderglynn . She has an ADORABLE “Bride of Frankenstein” glyph that I used with this activity. A MUST stalk blog!

We created a Bubble and Double Bubble Map describing and compare & contrasting Frankie and his bride. Great fun...they also decided, as a class that the name “Frankie” was not gender specific... so I went with it! HA! Made good sense to me...these cuties are SMARTIES I tell ya!

 Frankenstein Glyphs

L1-Spanish writing in L2 English (fill in adjectives)

Bride of Frankenstein (Frankie) L1-Spanish writing in L2-English

English Dual Project Wall

50th Day Celebration

God Bless that BEAUTIFUL woman over at that life changing blog "The First Grade Parade"! Geezzzz that girlie can CREATE! 

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE.... did I mention I LOVE her 50th Day Mini Unit {Math & Literacy Activities}...GO and buy your copy! It's a MUST have! 

We were the only grade level that celebrated the 50th day of school! It was a big hit with our kiddos. I received so MANY complements from my colleagues about all the cute craftivities my Firsties made! So THANK YOU Cara!

We made root beer floats- I have the SWEETest parents ever!

We wrote a "How To" on making a root beer float

L1-Spanish writing in L2-English

Display outside my room...My Homeroom did the other writing activity in this awesome unit in ELA

Display inside my room :)

Homeroom writings...my FAVS!

Super CUUUTE!

They ALWAYS seem to keep me smiling!

FINALLY! Just some of my FAVS that we did before Christmas break...which seems so LONG ago. The snow globe art writing activity and the snow globe anchor chart belongs to 2 different sources that I HEART. 

Deanna Jump's unit Snowman Math and Literacy Fun is another MUST have get yours here! 

I borrowed the CUTE snow globe anchor chart from Abby over at another life changing blog The Inspired Apple.... a MUST check out RoCkIn' BLOG! Here is another FABULOUS woman with a GIFT to create! 

I'm pretty sure the "Christmas Tree" measurement was something I saw on Pinterest. My sweeties LOVED it! Not sure where exactly it came from because there were so many floating around. Just let me know if it was your brainchild so I can give you the credit you deserve! Thanks for all your wonderful ideas ladies! You ROCK!!

Tree Map -Shapes

Christmas Tree Measurement

Snow Globe Anchor Chart-After we read "The Snow Globe Family"

Art Writing Activity by Deanna Jump

I PROMISE my post will NEVER be this long AGAIN!!! Geezzzzz...it took me forever...please let me know if anything on here was your original idea! I am all about giving credit when credit is due!