Great site for Spanish resources!

I just came across this fantastic site with some great Spanish resources. Enjoy!!!

Borrowing a borrowed a idea!!!

Tomorrow I have to teach inference (YIKES!!!). It is such a hard skill, especially for struggling readers. I am going to try a great "trashy reading idea" from Miss Khlon @ the adventures of a 6th grade teacher. As I type, my hubby is helping me gather some "trash" to begin my lesson. I'm going to begin with the trashy reading lesson, then I'm going to have my students make a 3-tab foldable (evidence + schema= inference). I am excited about this lesson!!! I think I'm going to follow that lesson with having my students make inferences using simple sentences (Example: She blew out the birthday candles. I can tell it's her birthday because people normally blow out candles on their birthday.), and then practice with our read aloud. Wish me luck :)

It's been a while....

I've been gone for a looooong time! I am finally feeling like I can catch my breath. I worked really hard this summer reading books and many teacher blogs to learn how to improve my instruction and (this is my 5th year teaching-2nd year self-contained) I finally feel like things are truly off to a great start. I have put into practice and reviewing routines and expectations for behavior on a daily basis and this has truly made a huge difference in my classroom. I have also implemented lots of GLAD strategies in my classroom and I am already seeing the benefits for all my students, especially in language acquisition.

I've also been using thinking maps and foldables in my classroom. I am really enjoying language arts because I am trying to follow the word study, mini lesson, practice & guided reading model (kind of like reader's workshop). In math, I am incorporating many hands-on activities and stations. In science, I am loving all the activities we have done so far to learn about the scientific method.
It hasn't all been smooth sailing- we have TONS of documentation to do, sooooo many meetings to attend and we hear ACCOUNTABILITY EVERY DAY, but I am not letting it rule my life. I am going to put my knowledge to practice and enjoy every day with my students. I hope this feeling of accomplishment never goes away!!!