How Do You Create Decimal Super Heroes?

Decimals can often be one skill that makes a lot of  kids cringe. Teaching it sometimes made me cringe too. It seems like they just "get" fractions, then I would need to throw decimals at them. I'm not gonna lie! When it was time to teach decimals, I heaved a heavy sigh.  So, the hunt was on to make it more understandable to all the kids, and more fun for me to teach. What I was looking for was "Pizazz" to give life to my lessons.

It starts with a "Hook".  

I think some of the lessons on-line are pretty darn awesome. They need to be well under ten minutes and to the point to use them as the "hook" for the lesson. What I've found, it a good hook makes all the difference. It wakes everyone up and makes them ready to learn. Check out the ones below:

This is a great one!  It's a freebie from Brainpop!

Reading decimals can get a little tricky. This video is clear, and easy to understand. It is almost seven minutes, but it's worth it. 

To include with your lesson on putting decimals on a number line, don't miss this one! It's fun, and to the point.

          

Some Interesting Lesson plans...We don't always have to reinvent the wheel!

One of my favorite lessons for when it is time to teach how to write a decimal from a fraction, is called "Decimals, Fractions, and Percentages" by Math is Fun. The pictures are very good, and it breaks everything down in easy-to-understand pieces.

Click Here

Be sure to check out the lesson "Rockin' Fractions" if you teach 4th or 5th grade. It is a song plus lesson plan for teaching decimals. Includes worksheets and more.

Education World's "Rockin' Fractions"

When you want a great, easy and fun game to reinforce the concepts, try Decimal War! It can be adapted for any grade teaching decimals. It's a fun activity to either add at the end of a lesson, or even use for game-day. 

Decimal War

I found a few pre-made worksheets that might be helpful.

This site has amazing worksheets for all areas of decimals. Each download includes the grading key.

This site is a treasure!

Click here

This site has a lot of short little practice sheets. Nice and short. Great for a quick check. They start easy and get harder. Great for differentiation.

Click here

One last one that is pretty nice.

Click here

The next step is LOTS of fun practice. Worksheets have their place, but fun learning is learning that lasts!

Fruit splat is like Fruit Ninja and is sure to be a kid-favorite!
LOVE that it has five levels of difficulty. Good for 3rd through 5th grade!

Click Here

This game site has great games for review, plus this game on converting fractions to decimals, don't miss this fun site!

Click here

Now for the great review game! This is a Jeopardy game on decimals, fractions and percents that the whole class can play in teams.

Click here

Kids will love this one! They can play on their own, but are playing against other online players. It's called "Puppy Race".

Click Here

Don't miss this book for teaching fraction, decimals and percents! Get it at your local library, or ask your librarian to order it. 

I hope the lessons, ideas, worksheets and games are just what you need to round out your decimal lessons. After all, decimal Super Heroes don't just happen, sometimes it takes a little "Pizazz"!  If you have more ideas for other teachers, please add them below!

Do you need a fun game to help your students practice those tricky decimals?  Check out: 

For more ideas and freebies, follow me on Pinterest at: https://www.pinterest.com/janbernard10/

Why Reader's Theater Works!

Reader's theater is a little like magic!  It can make even the most reluctant readers come alive. What about that student who hates to read orally?  Well, reader's theater can turn them into a real ham.  Actually, if you're looking for a way to get kids to read aloud, improve expression, grow fluency, and just plain have fun reading, you can't do better than reader's theater!

Why does reader's theater work so well?

1. First of all reader's theater is all about active involvement. You can't just sit or stand there letting the rest of the group do the work when you have a script in your hands. Your turn is going to come!

2.  Reader's theater combines practice with performing.  In short, it makes reading practice fun.

3.  Since there is usually very little in the way of props, the impromptu nature of reader's theater makes it seem less intimidating.  Find a spot in the classroom to be the "stage", hand kids the script, assign parts and off you go!

4.  Reader's theater helps to develop a sense of community in the classroom.

5. Reader's theater gives kids a real reason to read. This is particularly important for reluctant readers!

What to do?

a.  Find scripts that gives each speaker a few lines. Avoid scripts that give one or two speakers most of the lines to read. That makes everyone else wait too long to read.  Find good scripts that are fun to do. A boring script is no better than a boring book.

b.  Allow students to practice their parts so they feel comfortable. This is not memorization, just practice getting the words right.

c.  Encourage students to act out the part

d. Give kids the opportunity to love the story. Allow them to act it out many times. Too often our students are assigned a story, then move on to the next. With reader's theater, they live the story. Every time they act it out, they get more reading practice. Rereading is key to reading fluency!

e. Always go through the script at least twice. The first time there will be mistakes. Explain that the first reading is like rehearsal.  Mistakes? No biggie!

f.  Reader's theater works best in small groups. It's less intimidating. If the group gets really good, and wants to preform for the class, that's great.

g. When you first start reader's theater, be sure to find short, easy scripts with high interest. The first time can be a bit intimidating. Make it fun by making it easy.

With that...how about some great FREE links to reader's theater scripts! Enjoy!!

1. Education World  Scroll down the page to find a list of LOTS of script links that include new takes on old tales, holidays and many more.

2. Dr. Chase Young  TONS of scripts in alphabetical order with the number of parts in parenthesis.

3.  Reader's Theater Scripts and Plays  Lots and lots of great storys, includes a section on tips, evaluation and more.

4.  Reader's Theater Editions  Each scripts gives a short synopsis, the number of readers, age, and approximate length of time to do. There are special features available for some scripts that include color posters, and more. Most scripts are based on books or traditional stories.

5. Readeer's Theater  This site has information on how to do reader's theater with lots of great helpful tips, then goes into great readers theater scripts, most based on books.

6. Whootie Owl's Reader's Theatre Scripts  This site gives the number of roles. I like it because all of the scripts are classic stories/folktales from other countries.

7. Zoom Playhouse  This site has some great scripts, to get the printable version look on the upper left hand side.

6 No-Fail Lessons to Teach Students How to Write Fantasy

Kids love fantasy! So do I! I'm a big urban myth fan myself. But if you ask those same kids to write a fantasy story, they don't know where to begin. Oh yea, it all starts with excitement, but goes quickly downhill into the land of  frustration.  If there isn't an intervention, that student (who could be the next Jim Butcher or J.K. Rowling) never gets the courage to tackle fantasy again. So, my strategy is to take the genre students love, and use the writing process as a scaffold to teach them how to build a good fantacy story. Writing a good fantasy story is like writing any good story. It must have good characters, a plot that makes sense and be entertaining. But fantasy takes even more thought and planning. That really puts an emphasis on the prewriting stage. In my experience, that's the stage most kids want to skip over, or give very little thought to. That's not possible with fantasy!

My favorite way to teach fantasy is in a series of high interest lessons. After 6 short pre-writing  lessons, students are not only proficient in fantasy, but have everything they need to write their own fantasy story!

Over the six days of lessons, students should keep each assignment in a writing notebook, folder, or some other way to keep them handy. Students will be referring back to previous lessons often and building upon them.

Hook: Show this clip from Harry Potter: Harry's First Quidditch Match
Discuss how Harry's world is different from our world. Is there magic? How would you describe the world of Harry Potter? Does the magic have limits? How would you describe the characters in this clip? End by telling students that the Harry Potter books and movies are examples of fantasy. Like all genres, fantasy has certain elements. That's what they are going to learn about over the next few days, and even get the opportunity to write their own fantasy story.

Lesson One: Create a Magical World

1. First we brainstorm elements of magical worlds that the students have seen on TV, movies or read about.
2. List on the board what the world looked like, who lived there and how it was different from the real world.
3. Discuss the rules of magic found, what the limits of that magic was. All magic has limits! Without limits, the story ends before it starts.  An all-powerful wizard fixes all problems. Story over.
4. Next, students write three paragraphs about their own magical word. One paragraph is what it looks like, the second is about the characters that live there, the third is about the magic found there, or how it is different from the real world.
5. Students might enjoy drawing a map of their world if time allows.

Lesson Two: Describing the Magical World

1. Explain that the reason people love reading fantasy is that the writer gives details that help the reader feel like he/she is a part of the story. Fantasy is rich in details.
2. Pass out a number of fantasy books/stories (see the list below) and ask students to partner up and find one really good description of the magical world. Share each description with the class and discuss what makes the descriptions work in the story.
3. Individually, ask students to write one paragraph to describe a small aspect of the magical world from lesson one. Remind students that there should be enough detail in their paragraph  to make the reader feel like he/she can see, hear, and feel what it is like to be there. Note: this paragraph should focus on one particular aspect in the magical world, for example the trees, the clouds, the buildings etc. This will help students write about a small idea well, rather than a big idea badly. It is only one paragraph.

Lesson Three: The Characters

1. Choose a story/book or movie (Harry Potter, Frozen, Alice in Wonderland etc.)
As a class, write a list of the main characters from one or more stories/books/movies. Then list characteristics of each one. What is their strength, weakness, etc. Is this character the hero, villian, sidekick?
2. Next ask students to list three characters that would appear in their magical world from lesson one and two. Under each name, draw a picture and give at least three characteristics. Note: Students often enjoy being creative with names. For example Harold O. Gar might be the name of an ogre.

Lesson Four: The Hero's Quest

1. As a group, list all of the fantasy books/stories/movies the class can brainstorm on the board.
2. Under each write what the hero was required to do. (Lord of the Rings, destroy the ring,  Harry Potter, defeat Voldemort, Alice in Wonderland, get back to her own land etc.)
3. Ask students to go back to the sheet from yesterday with the three characters, and under the hero write his quest.

Lesson Five: Magic

1. The magic in a fantasy story needs to be believable. This is done by giving magic limits. Without limits, the story is over before it begins. Will there be magical objects, animals, people? As a group, think about the stories discussed in earlier lessons, What was the magic? Were there magical objects? Could people or animals do magic?
2. Ask students to decide the magic in their magical land. What are the limits of that magic? Ask students to write a paragraph or two about the magic in their land.

Lesson Six: The Hook

1. Grabbing a reader is the number one task of any writer. Read the first paragaph of a number of fantasy stories.
2. Discuss with the class what makes that first paragraph a great hook (or not). Did that first paragraph throw the reader into the action? Is it a set-up for strange things to come? etc.
3. Next ask students to write the first paragraph of a fantasy story using the magical world that they have created in the last five lessons.

Time to Write!

Prewriting and planning are finsihed at this point. The next step is to set students loose to create their own fantasy stories using the sections they have already created and thought through. When the story is finished, ask students to get with a buddy and read the story aloud. Discuss revisions and changes needed to make the story more clear and flow better. Next ask students to edit their own work, then get with a buddy and edit each other's work.

My favorite part of writing is the publishing process. Kids love the opportunity to draw pictures and turn their work into a real book. There are many ways for kids to make their own books. Check out the site below for a great idea.

The most simple idea is to ask students to draw and color a cover, and important pictures that will help their reader understand the text better. Staple when finished. Simple, but it works.


If you have a great site for book making please note in in the comments section below. There's a lot of good ones out there!

Fantasy books for upper elementary:

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
A wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
James and the Giant Peach by Rohald Dalh
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Septimus Heap by Angie Sage and Mark Zugy
Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
So you want to be a wizard? by Diane Duane
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Rohald Dalh
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

Fantasy Story Starters

Fantasy story starters really ignite the imagination. They are great to use during the days you are teaching the six lessons, maybe as morning work, or homework. 

Write an email to a dragon
Write a help wanted sign for a village that needs a hero to rid them of the Ogre.
Write a story about how your fairy godmother became the queen of the fairies.
You find an egg at the beach. It looks like a dragon egg.
Write a journal entry from a fairy who can't learn to fly.
Harriet receives a shinny stone in the mail with a note that says, "polish me".
Cathy looked carefully at the snowglobe, She was sure the people were moving.
Pete touched the mirror carefully, but his hand went through, and seemed to disappear.
The egg I found started to hatch. Why does it look so much like a dragon?
The man at the door smiled at me. "Do you know you are a wizard?" he said.

If you would like to read my other post that focuses on using magic in writing, check out:  

Click Here

If you are looking for just the right resource to help you test and evaluate your students' writing using Common Core Standards, check out: 

Making Simple Machines Simple

Kids love learning how things work! That means the simple machines unit is perfect for them. The best thing about it is, they have to use reading, often math, and critical thinking skills as they learn about each of the six simple machines. 

What are the simple machines?

1.  Pulley

2.  Lever

3.  Wedge

4.  Wheel and Axle

5.  Inclined Plane

6.  Screw

A great way to introduce simple machines is through great teaching web-sites and then lots of hands-on activities.  Here are a few of my favorites sites:

Ed Helper

This site has tons of worksheets, reading material for kids about simple machines.

Simple Machines from COSI

You can NOT do better than COSI for simple machines. This is a great site for kids to use to learn how each of the machines work. It's perfect for getting them ready to make their own machines!

Click Here

Neo k12  Simple Machines

14 short videos that are really good are on this site!

Click Here

From Super Teacheer Worksheets

You can get this free mini-book. For most things on this site (and there are tons) you need to be a member, but the mini-book is free.

Click Here

Explorit

This is a real find! It's an entire teaching unit with everything you need, plus investigations kids can do to learn about simple machines. Don't miss this one! 

Click Here

Aspire

This is a terrific site for kids to explor how simple machines work, with teacher lesson plans.

Click Here

I'd like to give a shout-out to a STEAM Club member who sent me some GREAT links you are sure to LOVE!  Enjoy, and many thanks to a fellow science nerd!!!!

If you want to see the simple machines that help your car run, don't miss this site!

Teachers!  Don't miss this great site filled with worksheets, games and activities!

If you want to see a great video on simple machines, don't miss this one!

If you need resources to teach your simple machine unit, don't miss these task card and PowerPoint resources in my store:

I hope these sites help out with lesson plans, computer activities and hands-on activities! Enjoy!!

If you want TONS of great ideas and freebies be sure to follow my Pinterest page at:

Dragons Den Curriculum on Pinterest

End Word Problem Panic!

If there is one thing that can tie kids in a knot, it's word problems. You know there's a problem when you mention the term "word problem" and everyone in your class gets that "deer in headlights" look. It doesn't have to be that way. With some easy to follow steps, and a little practice, you can help your students cut word problems down to size.

The first thing to do is calm their fear. I told my students that a word problem is like a puzzle. All it takes is a few simple steps to cut them down to size, and solve the puzzle. Let's look at steps that can make those word problems super simple.

Steps for Making Word Problems Make Sense: 

1. Read the problem twice: don't skimp on this one! Many times people think they know what to do after reading it once, but when they read it again they find out they are mistaken. If students can restate the problem in their own words, that helps too.
    Teaching hint: I like to have students get into pairs once they have read the problem twice and discuss how to say it in their own words together. It only take a couple of minutes.

2. Dicide which sentence tells what the problem is asking you to figure out. Underline that sentence.

3. Decide what information in the problem will help you figure out the answer.
    Teaching hint: It's import for students to know how to disregard information that is thrown in there to trick them. It's also a necessary skill when taking standardized tests.

4. Dicide on a strategy to help you visualize the problem using only the needed information. Some strategies to consider are:  make a picture, make a table, guess and check, use logical reasoning, work backwards, find a pattern.
     Teaching hint: This is the step that doesn't use an equation. Instead it encourages students to see the problem in a different way to help them make sense of what is going on. There is a worksheet to use with your students below in google.drive.

5.  Write the word problem equation.  Are there any key words in the question that give you a clue what operation to use?
      Teaching hint: This is a good time to display an anchor chart with key math phrases that give students a clud about what to do. Include words such as:
a.  addition: combine, together, total, plus, altogether, increase
b. subtraction: difference, decrease, left, more than, less than, remain
c. multiplication: times, each, product
d. division: quotient, share something equally, each, separate

6. Solve the problems showing your work. It is a word problem, so be sure to label it.

7. Check your answer. Don't skip this one! Using the reverse operation is always a great way to check your answer. The goal is to have a fact family that works. For example, for an addition problem use subtraction to check:  3 + 4 = 7   check: 7 - 4 = 3     For multiplication use division to check

There are two freebies to print and put in the math notebook to help students remember the steps below, as well as a visualization worksheet.

The freebies below can be downloaded in google.drive by clicking the link below the picture.

Click Here

Thank you Dancing Crayon for the terrific shape on this sheet. 

www.DancingCrayon.com

Below are a couple of sheets that can be added to the math notebook. There are two on each sheet to save on printing.

Click Here

Hope your students loose that "deer in headlights" look with these hints.

Do you need a few Word Problem Resources to help end the "Panic"?  Check out:

     

What's the Deal With Tiered Activities in Social Studies?

Meeting the needs of all learners in a classroom can be enough to rattle the brain of any teacher. It gets a LOT easier using tiered activities. Each group of students comes at an assignment from a different direction, offering more learning for everyone! It's a differentiated instruction strategy that really works!

What is Tiered Instruction?

Tiered activities are parallel tasks that vary in difficulty, and abstractness and use different levels of support and direction. Basically, it allows students of different levels of readiness to work towards the same goal (understanding) in a way that is most useful for them. Below is a quick and easy way to understand how to construct a tiered activity for your classroom.

Why use Tiered Instruction?

It's the Goldilocks idea: Students work on assignments that are neither too hard, nor too easy, but instead are just right.

Keep in mind:

1. When dividing students into tier groups, students are NOT put into ability groups. Students are clustered according to their readiness and comprehension of the particular material being presented. They may be in a group that needs more support for one activity, and a group that needs less support for another area that interests them more.

2.  Tier groups do different assignments as teachers using Bloom's Taxonomy as a guide to building the assignments.  One group who needs reinforcement will do an activity that builds understanding, another group that understands the material will do an activity to extend what they already know. All groups use different assignments to achieve understanding of the same material.

3. If you know your group's multiple intelligences, you can also use that information to form groups. One group would use bodily/kinesthetic to make a short skit, another visual group might make a poster.

4.  Make sure to make each tier activity interesting and engaging. The more flexible you are in grouping students each time, the more students will accept a variety of assignments as the norm. In other words, if students see the grouping as "the smart kids" and "the dumb kids" they will not take kindly to tiered grouping.

5. Start with key concepts, skills and ideas you want all students to know. Make sure each activity meets those goals.

5. Students share what they have learned or done with the class.

Let's take a look at a tiered activity for government:

Group one: Ask students to use the text book to make a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting the executive branch to the legislative branch of government. Include a sketch that would represent each branch with the diagram.

Group two: Ask student to use at least two resources to compare and contrast the judcial branch of government to the legislative branch. Students will construct a poster to show what they have learned.

Group three: Students will choose another country in the world and research its governmental structure. Ask students to construct a short skit that shows the similarities and differences between our country and the one they have chosen.

Group four: Ask students to use what they have learned about the United States governmental structure to create their own country. They must include a governmental structure, a constitution and symbols of the country.

You can tell from reading each tier, that it goes from easiers to more challenging. In sharing with the class what they have learned, all students benefit from the activities of the other.

Have you used tiered activities in your classroom? If so, tell about them below!

Why Does Cooperative Note-taking Work So Well?

If you want an activity that boosts learning for learning disabled, struggling students, English language learners as well as every other kid in your class, try cooperative note-taking! It's simple to do, and taps into every student's need to be social. It's a win-win!

Why does it work?

1. It allows for a quick turnaround of what is being learned. Knowledge has to be communicated to another person as soon as it is read.
2. It gives students an immediate way to rehearse and deeply process the information they are learning.
3. Long term memory requires rehearsal, reorganization, and elaboration of information. This is something kids don't usually get while it is fresh in their minds. With cooperative note-taking, it's required!
4. Students must go through the material a number of times, which means they are cognitively processing the information as they do the assignment.
5. Kids love it!

That, my friends, is the key that boosts learning!

With that, I have included a freebie to keep tucked away in your lesson plan book. When you have material that your students MUST learn, give it a try. I'm guessing you will use it often. All the steps you need are included in the freebie, plus evaluation ideas. Click on the link below the picture.

Click Here

Thanks to Graphics From the Pond for the dividers!!

http://frompond.blogspot.com