Wordless Wednesday {10/8/14}

Pencils. I would give anything to not have to deal with them! What's the one thing you wish you could get rid of in your classroom? (Or if you have any great pencil management tricks, please share!)

Sunday Scoop 10/4/14

The Sunday Scoop is based on the popular 3-2-1 graphic organizers so many of us use with our students. Tell us three things you HAVE to do, two things you HOPE to do, and one thing you're HAPPY to do (because these days, we could all use a little motivation to find something to be happy about every week!). It's a short and sweet way to connect with each other every Sunday (or Monday... the linky will stay open all week!)

Here's what to do:
1. Just save the image above, add your text to it (we use PowerPoint), and post! You don't even have to explain yourself any further if you don't want to.
2. Include the button above and a link to our  blog on your post.
3. Link our post up here on Sunday morning (or whenever :) )
4. Be a good blog reader, and leave some love for the two posts before yours!

Here's the Scoop on my week...

An InLinkz Link-up

Currently October!

It's October!  Wow!  I am linking up with Oh' Boy 4th Grade for the Currently October linky.

Tech Thursday: Newsla.com Nonfiction Texts

Technology Thursday is a weekly linky dedicated to all things technology related. Our hope is that this linky provides a place for teachers to share and learn new ways to use technology and engage students!

Be a rule follower!
Rule #1: Include the image above and a link to our blog somewhere in your post.
Rule #2: Be a good blog reader...visit the two blogs who link up before you and leave some love on their pages!
Rule #3: This linky is not intended for product promotion. You may include products you've created in your posts, but they should not be the sole focus of the post.

We've decided to make Technology Thursday even easier to link up with by having a weekly theme! You can see them in the graphic above. This is the first Thursday of the month, so we are sharing some of our favorite websites! All you need to do when you link up is tell us what it is, why you love it, and how you use it in your classroom!

My website for this week is chock full of them!

What it is: Newsela.com

Why I love it: I'm always looking for high-interest non-fiction text for students to read, and Newsela delivers! Newsela articles are all based on current events, and are available at 5 different reading levels. (They use Lexile measures and typically range from the 700s-1200s.) There are lots of free features plus a Pro version that I haven't tried yet!

How I use it: Last year, I used their "Binder" feature to assign articles to my students, but I haven't started that yet this year. So far, I am just letting students choose an article to read and take a quiz on.

We hope you'll link up with a quick What-Why-How on one of your favorite websites!

   

    An InLinkz Link-up
   

Wordless Wednesday! What if you ONLY worked 8 hours?

Let's take time out and do a Wordless Wednesday today!  I am linking up with Miss DeCarbo at Sugar and Spice for her oh-so-fab linky.

What would NOT get done if you only worked an 8 hour day?

Whoa....I am still listing in my head....