C.U.P.S. and A.R.M.S.

I am new to teaching Writing in sixth grade.  It was a subject previously taught by one of my team members, but now I am on my own.  I really wanted to use something simple for my kids to use for revising and editing and it seemed like the C.U.P.S. and A.R.M.S. revising and editing was a simple enough place to start.  I also wanted to make something that they could glue into their notebooks for a quick reference.  Of course, I quickly hopped over to PicMonkey to create something fast and cute.

So far, I am still getting my feet wet when it comes to teaching writing, but the kids liked this and seemed to catch on quickly.  Thought I would share my little poster with you.

UPDATE WITH FREEBIE!!!
Turns out, this little poster has become very popular on Pinterest and has received quite a few hits here on my blog.  So, for those of you that would like a free, printable version, I have it linked here on my Teachers Pay Teachers store.  Enjoy!

Book Jacket Redesign

As I was going through my stacks of stuff, getting my classroom ready, I found some laminating to be cut.  I realized that it was something that I had intended to blog about, but had completely forgot.

In my classroom library, I have rings that hold book jackets that were created by sixth graders.  They choose the book that they most enjoyed reading throughout the year and redesign its book jacket.  I do this at the end of the year, so I choose my favorites.  I have quite a collection as I have done this a few times and on average, I have about 100 sixth graders each year.

We start by analyzing current book jackets.  I put a pile of books out for each table group and they brainstorm a list of things that they have in common.  I ask them to note what they look like and important elements that they all have.  Then, we make a master list to use as a rubric.  Usually it includes things like

• a bold title 
• author name
• quotes and reviews by authors or publications
• great use of graphics and colors (no white space)

My sixth graders this last year were awesome.  I could brag about them for paragraphs.  Each and every one of them was and is wonderful. I have so many awesome book jackets this year, I didn't know how to only share a few, but here they are:

I punch a hole in the corner and put them on rings.  Then I hang them up in the classroom library (pictures soon to come).  So when kids have free time they can take a set of jackets on a ring to their desk and see if there are any books that they are interested in reading.  Many of the reviews on the jacket are quotes from other sixth graders that also read the book.  This year, my new sixth graders will get to read jackets from the last two years of sixth graders; they are often kids they have looked up to at school.

A great way to get kids interested in literature because it isn't coming from you, but from their peers.

Class of 2014 Quote

So, I admit it.  I snuck over to work today and spent some time working on my room.  If I ever get it back together again, I will post pictures.  I am SUPPOSED to be on vacation, but... Well, if you are a teacher, you know.  As I was putting together a to-do list I realized that my team and I had not yet decided on a quote for this year's sixth grade class.

Let me explain...
A few years ago, one of my team members in 6th grade thought it would be a good idea to choose a quote for the year.  Something that brings all of the sixth graders together and is sort of their "motto" for the year.  Then, we design "Class Of" t-shirts with the quote on the back and we post the quote up in all of the sixth grade classrooms.  Here are a few of the tshirts we have had in the past few years...

t-shirt designs for 6th grade

We all wear our 6th grade tshirts on Spirit Days at school and important events (like camp and playing dodgeball with the Airforce).  So, here are the quotes we have used since we have started this great sixth grade tradition:

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." -Gandhi
"Be true to your work, your word, and your friend." -Thoreau
"The time is always right to do what is right." -M.L.K.
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think." -Christopher Robin

And as I said, I am in search for this year's quote.  I have a Pinterest board just for quotes and I keep an eye out everywhere.  I feel like when I find it, I will know.  I am a HUGE fan of Robby Novak, so I am on the lookout for great Kid President quotes.  He is so fun.  I found these great posters from Shane Read Creative and I would love to design a tshirt that was a little more hip this year, like this...

Anybody out there have some good quote suggestions for the class of 2014?  I would love to hear them!

Interactive Notebook Posters

This is a work in progress but I thought I would share now as people are making plans for next year already (really?).  After years of doing interactive notebooks, I wanted to make a series of posters that I could put up in the classroom as a reference for the kids.  They have a rubric in their notebook to guide them, but sometimes having them on the wall is much better for those who need the visual reminder.  Notebooks are more effective for you and your students if you have a clear rubric and set of requirements laying out what you expect.

Interactive notebook - organization

Interactive notebook - table of contents

Interactive notebook - headings and titles

My goal is to get them into dollar store frames and hang them right above the white board.  I did them in Powerpoint so that I can use it as a presentation for next year (on my new IPAD and Apple TV system!).  I am also working on something to send home to parents as well.  Of course, interactive notebook requirements are different for everyone, but I would say pick and choose what works for you and incorporate what you like for your class.

Westing Game Character Chart

If you are reading The Westing Game or any other book with a large number of characters to keep track of, a large, wall-sized character chart may be just right for your students.

One of my favorite books to teach (obviously) is The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin.  You may have seen my other posts on the wanted posters or the way I use interactive notebooks to teach the book.  Because there are 16 characters, the kids always have trouble getting started and keeping them straight.  Then, as we progress through the book we are always trying to figure out who is the most mysterious character or who would have had a reason to kill Sam Westing.  We keep 4 x 4 charts in our interactive notebooks four times throughout the book where we keep track of what we learned about each character in those particular set of chapters.  We also keep a large interactive character chart in the classroom.  Each time we do a character chart, I also have students get into groups of three and I randomly assign them a character to report on.  They write all that they know on the sticky note that I give them in bullet points. Then, they stick them up on the wall for everyone to see.

Westing Game Character Chart

It becomes a giant reference wall. Each set of chapters has its own color of sticky note. It is especially popular when the students are making their Wanted Posters and are trying to gather as much information for their posters as they can.  It is also helpful when they are studying for their quizzes and final test.

If you are interested in getting the whole book unit check it out here.

Roald Dahl Quote Poster

My goal for next year is to create, print, and frame my favorite quotes for the classroom.  I decided to start today, since it seems all of my great ideas lack time in the end.  Seems like 6 months should be enough time. Anyhow, my favorite author of all time is Roald Dahl, so of course I have started with him.  Plus it was something shorter to play around with.  If you are wondering where I made this happen, I used PicMonkey for this.  BUT, I'm thinking that I'll try other formats to see which I like best.  So far, so good.

Making Posters - PDF style

Here is my latest poster for my unit in the Redwood Forest.  I have taken this beautiful drawing of the layers of the redwood forest by Cynthia Linsenbardt and enlarged it for this poster.  Now I have a big version for the wall and the kids have their own little version in their notebooks.  I am totally behind the curve, but for those of you that are there with me, here are the directions.

I rarely have time to even go to pee during the day, much less take a file over to the local copy place to be enlarged into a poster.  Plus, my posters usually occur on a whim and I am not patient enough to wait around for my poster to be made when I can make it myself.  So, I finally googled how to enlarge stuff and this is what I found...

STEP ONE:  convert your picture to a PDF, if it isn't already

STEP TWO:  open your PDF and select "print" from the File Menu

STEP THREE:  go down to "page scaling" and use the drop down menu, choose to "tile" your pages

STEP FOUR:  decide how much bigger you want it to be and change the tile scale percentage, if you play around a little with different numbers, it will show you how big/ how many pages it will be

STEP FIVE: print, cut, and glue your pages together

This is great for classroom mural projects, making things larger for anchor charts or walls, or just making your own posters!

Picture credit:  Cynthia Linsenbardt, and the field notebook used by http://outdoorscience.com/