February Favorites

Although the month isn't quite over, here are a few of my favorite things that I've been loving and using most everyday of February. What have you been loving in February? Let me know below!

1. First Aid Beauty Fab Faves to Go & Eye Duty Triple Remedy

2. Hourglass Ambient Lightening Powder- Ethereal Light 

3. Your Skin But Better CC Cream with SPF 50+ 

4. Anastasia Brow Wiz 

5. Benefit Gimme Brow 

6. Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer- Brightening Shade

Quick Tip Tuesday: Get all the goo gone

If you've ever been around me while I'm eating, which let's be honest, is often than you know I should be mandated to always wear a bib (no shame in my game). I spill EVERYTHING. Often times, these little mishaps are oil based and leave unfortunate little grease stains on my clothes. WHAT A DOWNER (Am I right?!) However, imagine my happiness and joy when I realized I can get rid of those stains!! This is where I introduce to you: Goo Gone, the handy little tube of liquid that probably has a lot more uses than you ever knew about. For example, as I'm writing this eating my incredible white cheddar ooey gooey grilled cheese I'm thinking about how much I love this sandwich and how much I hate how it leaves my fingers greasy. It's inevitable that before cleaning my hands I'll accidentally touch my shirt and leave a grease stain that I can't get out and then I won't eat my beloved grilled cheese ever again (or at least until I forget that I stained my shirt from the grease). Either way, I digress and want to tell you THIS CAN BE FIXED with the eliminator of all goo, the Goo God, if you will. Even after having shirts that have been stained for, dare I say, months that I couldn't part with, or stains that have already been washed and won't come out... this will save you! Just put some goo gone on as a pre treater before washing your beloved clothing (directly on the stain, rub it in a bit with a clean cloth and let it sit for a minute) and when you pull it out of the wash and it dries... voila! It will be gone. Makeup, or lipstick stained on your clothes? Do the same thing.  (Do I sound like an infomercial yet?) I know it's weird how much I love this trick but it works so well! Basically any oil or grease based stain that you have on carpet, clothing, upholstery, etc. can be cleaned with this lovely bottle of yellow magic. During my 5-year stint as a retail worker, we kept a bottle on hand just in case. I even share this little tip with my mom and was disbelieving until she tried it herself. Take a minute to look at the bottle and see ally the uses this little bottle can give you that you probably did't even know about. This could save your life. Or maybe just your clothes, carpet, sticky situations, and so on. Anyways,  the moral of this story is, go get goo gone and eat all the grilled cheese you want (As long as it's extra cheesy and on sourdough). Until next time, keep it real.

All things Love and Birmingham

Oh Saint Valentine, how we love you. And candy. And school parties. And love. And most importantly, Birmingham. On Friday we went on our last field trip to the Civil Rights Institute. To say it was absolutely amazing is an understatement. You feel all the feels and see the beloved city in such a different way than we know now. In 5th grade, I read The Watson's Go to Birmingham 1963 and this is a real game changer for them. It perfectly intertwines the humor of Kenny and the antics him and his brother Byron find themselves in while in Michigan.They end up being sent to their grandma's (with the rest of the family) in Birmingham and are faced the harsh realities of the Civil Rights movement in the deep south. It had our class laughing, crying, and questioning things that don't have a simple answer. If you are ever in Birmingham, I highly recommend you check out the Civil Rights Institute and take a gander across the street to the 16th St. Baptist Church that got bombed in 1963 killing 4 little girls in Sunday School. It's funny how often we forget to take the time to explore our own city when we're caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life. There is so much to do and experience downtown that forces us to realize how grateful we are, how far people have come, and how much we still need to grow. It was humbling (even for 10 year olds) and seeing the 16th St. Church is something amazing, heartbreaking, historical, and thriving.

[ Statues from the park across the street] 

The love only continued with our Valentine's party where candy grams were sent out from "special friends," notes passed saying "Will you be my girlfriend? Check yes or no," and an illegal amount of sugar was consumed (which was quite alright with me because it was Friday and they had the whole weekend to burn that off.) I mean really, no one needs this much junk, but it was so tasty. Middle schoolers have so much love they want to share and it's so sweet when they think of you, and their thoughts are in the form of candy.

Until next time, keep it real.

Quick Tip Tuesday: Morning Smoothies

I have no qualms admitting I am a morning person. I'm sorry. However, I don't wake up at 5:30 singing "It's a beautiful morning" (But wouldn't that be nice?) I also have a problem because I don't usually leave tons of time to make breakfast before I run out the door, and I want something that will hold me over until lunch. This is where my love of smoothies come in. It's perfect for just about any occasion and so tasty! It's just enough in the morning when paired with a granola bar to get me through to lunch and somewhat exciting to make. My husband and I recently did the Advocare 24 day Challenge (awesome experience) and a smoothie was part of the morning routine in both cleansing your system and keeping yourself full. It's a great source of protein and fiber (depending on what you add) and limits the "bad sugars" that you can get when adding sugar or sweeteners and flavored creams to coffee or other drinks (I still LOVE my Dunkin Donuts Ice Coffee every once in a while!) Here's my go to:

1 Tbsp. Flax seed meal or Chia Seed

1 Tbsp.  Oats

1 scoop vanilla protein 

1 c. frozen berries (whatever tickles your fancy, I like a mix of rasberries, blackberries, and blueberries)

1 c. almond milk 

1 banana

1 handful of spinach leaves or kale

OR if you're feeling chocolate-y:

1 frozen banana (you need to peel it before putting it in the freezer)

1 Tbsp. peanut butter (organic or regular)

1 scoop chocolate protein powder
1 Tbsp. oats and/or chia seeds

1 c. almond milk 

** I like using frozen fruits because then I don't have to use ice (I don't have an ice maker) and it keeps things nice and cool and thickens it up. Until next time, keep it real.

Meet your Savior: Text Based Evidence

Here's a brief glimpse into what unfolds after I explain I want questions to be restated on assignments: "
Me: "Restate your question in your answer"
Them:  "What? What do you mean Mrs. Roberts? How do I do that?" "Did we learn that?"
Me: "Where did this answer come from?" "You have to tell where you found this in the text."
Them: "What do you mean?" "I found it in the story" "I found it here" (while pointing all over)

Clearly, things weren't working! Somewhere between what I said in class and what they were doing at home or during study hall got lost in translation and was causing everyone major frustration because they truly didn't get what I was wanting. This all changed thanks to an awesome product from Ms. Leslie Ann Rowland also a 5th grade teacher in the lovely state of Alabama (Click to see her blog). When she put out here Comprehension pack on TPT I couldn't get my hands on it fast enough because I knew this is what I had been looking for all along and just didn't realize it. I needed something that would require my students to read a text and be able to cite evidence from it and to tell where they got their evidence from. BAM, this is it. So, this brings me to the every other night reading logs I have been using for homework. I have to be honest, they love it and so do I. What a great win-win for everyone. In these folders I put the log on the front and some instructions for them on the back. Each night as they read they are required to:

- Highlight where they found the answer in the text

- Begin each answer with the Evidence Based Text prompt located on their bookmark (corresponds with the bulletin board in the room)

- Highlight where they used the prompt to begin each question

- Make corrections from the previous Reading Log based on what I have highlighted for them

I also started having students go back and correct questions for a couple reasons (see picture below) because I want to make sure they aren't "getting away" with not giving me their best work. Sure, it would be easier to not start with an evidence prompt or highlight the prompt so they know they used it and get points off. But I don't let that happen. Yes, points will be taken off for not following the guidelines, but they better believe they will still be fixing mistakes. Now, they know it's just worth it to put in the effort the first time around rather than have to correct later.

[ I use the yellow highlighter to let students know something needs to be corrected. They use the orange guidelines on the back of their folder to assess what will need correcting. All corrections go directly on the back of this page.]

Not only has this increased the quality of responses on these isolated homework assignments, it has transferred to other work where students are asking "Can I highlight where I found my answer?" "Is it alright if I start my question with an evidence prompt?" UMM, LET ME THINK ABOUT THAT. YES!! As a bonus for the teachers, they're super easy to take up, quickly read through, and let students know where corrections need to be made.

 [ In the folders I keep all past logs stapled together, text based evidence book mark, and a character trait sheet for reference] 

Until next time, keep it real.

Quick Tip Tuesday

Happy Tuesday! Hopefully I'm not alone in saying my sweet students are ALWAYS losing pens or pencils and seem to ask for them at the most inopportune times. After letting them borrow (keep forever) a pen or pencil here and there I realized one day I didn't have any left! When you're the one buying the supplies, this is a huge bummer and can get expensive. So, here's what I've started doing:

In this cute recycling bin one of my students got me I went out and bough a bunch of regular pencils (maybe I'll upgrade to mechanical soon but who knows). If  a student needs a pencil, they can buy one from me for 25 cents and it is theirs to keep. You'd be surprised how much spare change these kids have hanging out in their pockets and how willing they are to buy pencils. Then, with the money I make I just restock my supply of pencils.

If it's something quick and a pen or a pencil is needed briefly I've added this pretty tape to my pens and pencils so should it go missing and turn up 3 days later in the lunch room (specific example) all the students know to return it to me because of my tape. 

Hope this can help you if you have a case of the missing pencils! Until next time, keep it real. 

Have no fear, paper writing just became easy

Let me start by saying, if you dread teaching paper writing because you don't know where to start or an easy way to implement it, I totally felt your pain. It's such a daunting task because you know you want the final product to be organized and cohesive, well written and revised and this and that with the list going on an on. Those qualities should be expected in a paper and finally there is a way that won't stress you out to the max. After going to professional development at the beginning of the year I signed up for a writing session because I was feeling very uneasy about my writing implementation and this was probably one of the best decisions I have ever made in regards to PD. Here we go:

1. Expectations, guidelines, and organization of papers need to be clearly and explicitly stated.

2. Make it simple! Chunk the paper into manageable writing sections

3. Give students all the tools they need to succeed. This may include packets, anchor charts, videos, etc. at the very beginning before they begin writing.

This is now what paper or essay writing implementation looks like in my room:

 1. First, I present students with a packet full of everything they need to know about their paper. The packet includes:
      - An essay schedule of lessons and all due dates for their paper
      - Essay topic/ guidelines
      - Essay rubric (so they know expectations and what they will be evaluated on)
      - Essay outline guidelines
      - Thesis statement writing help
      - Hook/ lead writing help
      - Conclusion writing help 

We go over this whole packet and any other helpful anchor charts I have during the first class period. I don't do anything else because this can be overwhelming. I let them soak in what we talked about, what their paper will be on, and begin thinking about what they are going to write about. Day 1 is just to present the information very clearly and let it sink in.

2. I then spend one whole class period going over how to write a thesis and how to create a paper outline. We write a few sample thesis, watch a video on writing them, and look at the sheet I attached below and discuss as a class.  I make sure all students are clear on how to write a paper outline and I show them how I expect it to be set up. If their outline isn't set up correctly or doesn't have all the necessary information, there is no way they can succeed in their paper. It is really important they are responsible for drawing and filling in their own essay outline. Don't just give them a blank template and have them fill in the necessary information. I give them a reference sheet but they create their own to turn in. They will be expected to do this in high school and on standardized tests- so start now by making them responsible thinkers and planners. The day following this lesson is spent working on their outlines in class so if they have questions I am here to help (This is the basis of their whole paper so I want to make sure it is solid). That is the only in class work day they will get for the paper. 

* Outline layout example* Student written outline

3. I use brightly colored sentence strips to help write the paper drafts. THIS. IS. LIFE CHANGING. I always go over this in class and use a different paper as an example that we can mark up together to show what their paper should look like. These sentence strips stay up during the whole paper writing process but are interchanged based on the section we are at. I also upload this to their homework website so they can see it at home. Before each part of a paper is due, they are to highlight the corresponding section of their paper to the sentence strips so we can clearly and quickly see all parts of that particular section of the paper are present (that's why you need colored sentence strips). In the body paragraphs, I also make sure they included one quote from the text. This will lead into the last part of the implementation.

4. The whole paper needs to be split up into manageable sections. Only when the final paper is due, do I want it turned in as a whole. For example, the introduction is one part, body paragraph 1 is another part, and so on (You can see this in the above paper schedule). Each part is due on a given day and the next day it is returned to students with meaningful comments the next day so it is almost immediate. This part is crucial so students can self revise and edit.Then, the next section is due. 

Although it will day 2-3 class days to set students up, after these days they can do their paper independently. It is amazing to see how well they can take information from a book or whatever their essay source is and put it to paper when the directions are so clear and simple. I hope this can help you in your room! Let me know your thoughts. Until next time, keep it real.