Sunday, July 31, 2011

4th Grade Reading Street Goodies for SmartBoard

I am so excited to have a SmartBoard this year (at least I hope to have one!), so I have been scouring the internet for resources and ideas. I found this great website with resources for our reading series, Reading Street.

4th Grade Reading Street

Phases of the Moon Webquest

For the course I was taking this summer, Web Teaching: Design and Development, I had to create an instructional webpage. I chose to make a basic webquest on a topic that was a bit tricky for my students over the years-the phases of the moon. I apologize in advance for the "catchy tune" on the one video. My three-year old son sang it for about a week straight :) However, I figure it was doing its job if a three-year old was learning about the phases of the moon!

Phases of the Moon Webquest

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Hello, my name is Colleen, and I am a Pinterest Addict!

Have you found this site yet? I have found some amazing teaching ideas (and other helpful idea) here! I have spent entirely too much time visiting the various boards and pins posted on my friends' pages. It is wonderful! You can check out the site and follow me by clicking the link below!



Follow Me on Pinterest

Summer is Winding Down!

Where has this summer gone? I returned home to NC after a 2-week trip to Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and realized that I have 3 weeks left until it is time to head back to school. The stress is kicking in! However, the 3-week countdown is not even the scary part! The scary part of it is all is that I don't know when my school will even be open! I was told earlier this week that I was moving to a brand-new building, and construction is not yet complete. Even our principal is not sure when she will get the keys so that we can start moving in. So, needless to say, I am a bit nervous. My plan for now will be to put together as much as I can here at home, then I will work on getting it all up and ready for students when we finally move in.


What is your big stressor at this point in the summer?

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Branching Out!

This blog was previously designed to focus on reading/LA ideas. However, after being motivated by so many fabulous teacher bloggers, I have decided to branch out and share any and all classroom ideas I can think of or find online :)

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Technology in Reading & Language Arts Instruction

How do you use technology in your reading & language arts lessons?


At our school, we currently use Scott Foresman Reading Street. One thing that I really like about this basal is that it comes with a HUGE amount of technology resources. We can give assessments online and collect data more quickly and easily. It includes videos and activities for the students to do to practice skills. We can even view/print leveled readers for our students on a variety of topics. I am excited to FINALLY have a SmartBoard for next school year because many of these resources are perfect for use on interactive whiteboards!