Monday, April 22, 2013

It's State Testing Time!

From http://learninglaffs.blogspot.com/, from the blog This Week's Education Humor
 
State Test Time with Braindon and Dimmy
 
Braindon has a nutritious breakfast of cereal, toast, fresh fruit, and juice.
Dimmy has some Flamin’ Hot Cheetos and a Red Bull.

Braindon makes sure to bring a #2 pencil with him for test day. 
Dimmy either brings two #1 pencils or half of a #4 pencil.

Braindon remembers to take advantage of the process of elimination when he is not sure about an answer. 
Dimmy likes c’s for a while, then switches to b’s for some time, and then goes back to the c’s.

Braindon uses the scratch paper provided to figure out the most difficult math problems. 
Dimmy uses the scratch paper provided to create a funny drawing of the test proctor.

Braindon reminds himself to slow down and take deep breaths when he is feeling stressed by the test. 
Dimmy reminds himself of the joke he heard on the bus today and laughs quietly to himself.

Braindon marks the questions about which he’s not sure so that he can go back later and reconsider his answers.  
Dimmy crosses out the questions that bug him.

Braindon appreciates the content knowledge, skill, and cunning that went into creating each test item.  
Dimmy passive-aggressively expresses his disdain for the test through incidents of noxious flatulence.

Braindon uses break times to drill himself on the mathematical formulas he has committed to memory. 
Dimmy uses break times to drill himself on the excuses he’ll use when his parents see his state test scores.

Braindon – if he finishes a section before the allotted time expires – rechecks all of his answers. 
Dimmy – if he finishes a section before the allotted time expires – runs around the room collecting high fives.

Braindon can’t believe – after all of his worrying – how easy the test really was.  
Dimmy can’t believe how time flies when you are working really hard on a funny drawing of the test proctor.


 
 
 
 

Monday, April 1, 2013

STEM websites for teachers

Many school districts are moving middle and high schools towards a STEM model to prepare students for the future.  STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math.  This interdisciplinary problem-based inquiry learning can be confusing for parents, students, and educators who have never faced it before.  I would like to share some websites that can give additional information about this topic.

National Council for Teachers of Mathematics:  www.nctm.org
National Science Teachers Association:  www.nsta.org
International Society of Technology in Education:  www.iste.org
STEM Education Resource Center:  www.pbs.org/teachers/stem
PhET (free simulations):  http://phet.colorado.edu
CAST Science Writer for lab report writing:  http://sciencewriter.cast.org/welcome
Khan Academy:  www.khanacademy.org
Nobel Peace Prize:  www.nobelprize.org/educational

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Looking for some grammar help? Head over to ChompChomp!

My oldest child has long had difficulty naming parts of speech.  He just finds that type of work boring.  Well now I have found a great website that offers videos, downloads, games and more!  Theses free resources all revolve around the topic of grammar.  So head on over to ChompChomp and give it a try. Just click on the link at the bottom of the page and then dive into all of the resources available. :)


Monday, February 18, 2013

Here's a great Math freebie for March!

As usual, I was scrolling through Pinterest and found a great March math activity for free.  Head on over to this link for a Bit o Math Balarney-true/false equations.  It is a free download on the TeachersPayTeachers website.


Sunday, February 17, 2013

Dibels freebie using word search!


Head on over to Simply Kinder for a fantastic free Valentines and Kinder DIBELS word search freebie.  I know Valentines is over, but it is never too soon to start putting stuff aside for next year.  

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Fractions, Fractions, Who can add or subtract fractions?


My 4th grader is drowning in the world of fractions lately.  Denominators, reduce to the lowest form; he doesn't know which way to turn.  I spent some time looking on Teachers Notebook and found this great FREE resource!  Click on the link and it will take you to a free set of items to help students practice adding and subtracting fractions.  If you aren't a member (have to in order to download!) then it is easy to sign up.  It is free to register for the site.  You can even search the site for just free items.  I've been looking for two days and still haven't gotten through it all.  So head on over and download your free Adding and Subtracting Fractions item and let me know what you think about it.

Monday, February 11, 2013

Blogs to check out...

I have been haunting Pinterest and have found all types of new blogs to check out that offer items for free for educators to download.  I thought I would share one here.

If you are looking for a literacy freebie, then head on over to Speechie Freebies.  There you can find a great freebie to go with the book "There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Chick".