Thumbnail Thursday - E is for Explore!

I came across this blog just yesterday and I am so in awe, I just have to share it with you!  Have you visited

Oh my Oh my!  Blogger Erin Bittman has created a site that is exploding (and I wish I had a better word) with amazing ideas and lessons.  She has collected ideas from bloggers, from books, from any source possible.  Some posts she created lessons based on ideas of others and some she has created her own.

How about a little Fruit Roll Up math for area and perimeter?

There's the Standard Form Name Game.

 

Wanna Play Food Chain Freeze Tag? 

How about a little math and language arts integrated together? 

 

I love this one to get kids thinking about vocabulary....wouldn't it make an awesome bulletin board?

She has categories for all subjects and special days.  Here is a great science and social studies idea.  Timelines using the idea of tree rings.

E is for Explore credits all owners of the original ideas and provides links.  Seriously, you had better set aside some time to wade through all the ideas here.  I really think my brain is going to explode from all the ideas I have floating around now.

I know this was supposed to be thumbnails, but I got a little excited about this resource.  It is so creative and edgy. When we grow up we want to be a blog just like E!

Thumbnail Thursday

Today's thumbnails are a bit random.  Princess always accuses me of taking a theme too far.  Well, today I am all over the place.  As I was planning this post, I started thinking about sites that tend to be my "go to" sites.  Today's thumbnails are from sites that are chock full of useful ideas, images and resources.

Kizclub Story Props

KizClub is a wonderful site with resources for beginning readers.  They have a whole section of story props for all your favorite picture books.  The free printables come in color and black and white.  I use them for story retelling activities and whenever I am making centers with a theme.

Florida Reading Research Center Student Activities

If you only visit one website this year, you need to go here.  FRRC has developed literacy activities by grade level for each of the five pillars of reading.  They didn't just create one or two per pillar or per grade level.  They have pages and pages of activities for each element at each grade level.  Each activity has an instruction page as well as all the printables you need.  They are great for centers.  Print, laminate and get those wonderful mom volunteers to start cutting.

 Technology Integration Matrix

This year I was in charge in a special ed innovation grant involving iPad technology.  What I found out was that our teachers really did not have a lot of ideas for their use beyond drill and practice apps.  Princess piloted 1:1 with iPads in her classroom for a portion of the day.  She was determined to integrate the tablets rather than just use apps for drill and kill.  Both of us did a huge amount of research.  This site has an interactive matrix that identifies the levels of true integration.  It has great resources, suggestions and tools for each level and activity.

Random....maybe.  Useful....definitely.

Thumbnail Thursday

   Hasn't Pinterest and teaching blogs just completely changed your life?!  I began teaching back in the days when a copy machine was simply high tech.  I hand drew verb cards when I was back in college and painstakingly colored each one.  Newbies like the princess have no idea how good they have it.
   Thursdays are the day I share others' wonderful ideas with you.  There are so many great ideas out there.  Once you start clicking, hours will fly by.

InTech Insights Blog

 
 I came across this blog when I was looking for ideas for our teachers to move beyond using technology just for practice and drill.  She has a ton of great ideas for real teachers and they range from tablet to web based technology.  She hasn't posted since March, but what she has on there will get your brain humming.

Picture of the Day - Science Notebooking Blog

 I saw this idea and loved it.  On the blog, she describes a science class where a teacher warms up with a picture such as this.  He has the students make five observations. Then he makes the students make five inferences. Finally he has the students make five predictions.  We turned it into a bulletin board outside the speech room.  We did a weekly picture.  Our students made five observation, five inferences and five connections.  It was great fun...although Lady A (my trusty assistant said finding the pictures to fit all grades was sometimes a challenge.  Since she is my lifeline most of the time, I let her whine now and then.)

Rockabye Butterfly Blog

 
    Rockabye Butterfly is an awesome blog that has great workbox ideas.  In the summer with my wee special ones, I do work baskets (TEACCH style.)  I made the pre-writing practice books like seen above.  I laminated them and had my kids dry erase markers with them.  They were wonderful.

  I know these are three somewhat unrelated thumbnails, but that is what's great about the digital age...there is something for everyone!