Category Archives: Reading | Writing

Reading, Phonics, Comprehension, Word Work, and Writing

Trick or Treat! Happy October!

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OCTOBER

It’s HERE!

 
I LOVE OCTOBER!
See my other posts about October.
 

Today I am helping YOU get ready for October.

First, It has it ALL!

October Centers for ELA & Math

Includes:
Syllables…Pocket Chart Picture /Words Cards
Printables Color & B/W
Nouns/Verbs… Picture Cards / Sorting Mat
Printables Color & B/W
Let’s Write… Complete sentences / Fragments
Who? Did What?
Interactive Notebook Page
Close Read / Comprehension Questions
October Writing Paper
Graphic Organizers
HFW BOO Bang! game
Math Centers:
Math Mountains…Printables
Number Bonds…Printables / Booklets
Missing Addends… color & B/W
Fact Families..color & B/W
printables

 
 
WOW!
 
Print & GO!
 
 Next, 

56 pages of OCTOBER  GOODIES!

 
 
 
Check it out HERE!
Finally,
 
Happy  OCTOBER!
Phonics and Math Morning Work BUNDLE

Happy Fall, ‘Yall. Surviving September and October. And a FREEBIE!

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Happy FALL, ‘Yall 

This has been a CRAZY Fall month!

We started in August.

We are SO LUCKY to get 2 weeks FALL VACATION

the first two weeks of OCTOBER.

IF you can survive SEPTEMBER!

We just finished Fall multiple

( and I mean MULTIPLE ) assessments.

Some whole class, some one-on-one.   

AND  then TEACH!

Don’t forget… report cards for ALL.

(Make multiple copies and then some!)

Fall Parent Conferences.

I had 100% attendance this year! 

This has NEVER happened to me before!

I can get close… but 100%???   

( Pat on the back ). 

 

Finish 1st quarter lessons & skills.

Introduce 2nd quarter skills.

And… a new student on Thursday

before Fall Break! 

Of course!

 

And so this Fall Break was WELL DESERVED! #tiredteacher

multi task teacher

We have no “BIG” plans.

Family is local ( we are catching up with family).

 

So,  I thought this Fall break,

I would work on my TPT store,

           1stgradefireworks

a “little bit”.

Thank you, Misty Miller and Shelly Rees.

You helped MOTIVATE ME!

1stgradefireworks logo

1stgradefireworks logo

And so the Fall creative juices started flowing.

I kept asking myself, “What do I need this year?”

I asked friends, “What do YOU need this year?”

And here is what WE came up with.

TADA!

Phonics Morning Work BLENDS, Short/Long Vowels, & Digraphs

Math Morning Work Activity Pages 

Phonics and Math Practice Pages

FOR THE WHOLE YEAR!

Happy Teacher

Preview skills. Review skills. Assess. Interventions. Homework. Centers.

Whole Group. Small Group. Independent.

ALL DONE!  WAHOO!

And a FREEBIE for YOU!

Click HERE

Enjoy your FALL.

Take care of yourself.

You can’t pour from an empty cup. 🙂 Take care of yourself.

                                                                Wendy

                                                                                                                                                       

Games for ASSESSMENTS???? REALLY???

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Can I really play a FUN game to ASSESS?
Oh YEAH!
We have been playing ( YES…PLAYING) 
fun games this month!
And guess what?
I can use them for assessments! 
( Do I hear OH YEAH!)
Sorry …my WBT is going to my head!
My new SEPTEMBER game is both.
It’s a game & assessment.
I use the foldable game cards as a
September PREVIEW & REVIEW.

 

 

I start the month with the cards to see what my kiddos know…
DO I HEAR KWL???
Then I can plan for the month depending on what they DON’T KNOW!
At the end of the month..REASSESS!
Use DATA for review in small groups.
(WOW!!! I think I am getting this down…sarcasm)
It’s only taken me 23 years..sarcasm
( Some of us have been teaching this way for years!)
Shhhh…don’t tell anyone
Those “young PHDers in Education” may feel sad. 
They think they have created something new..
The education pendulum has swung again!
Smile, nod your head,…and teach!
Do I hear an “OH YEAH!” 🙂
Bring on FAll

Bring on FALL! We are READY!

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Have I mentioned…

I  LOVE  FALL!

OK…Many times.

I live in NORCAL.

We don’t have the  TRADITIONAL

4 seasons.

DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE  4   ????

In NORCAL…

we have

Summer ( 90-100 degrees )

Fall   (  80-90 degrees)

Winter   (  foggy…  60-70 degrees…sometimes cooler )

Spring  ( 70-90 degrees )

It’s OK…I LOVE my HOMETOWN.

Sometimes.

OH…well…  🙂

And so on.

SO now that it’s 80 degrees & FALL..

What’s UP in ROOM 3??

Fall Brings…

BRAG  TAGS!

We use Brag Tags on rings during the month.

They earn BRAG TAGS

for

 following classroom / school rules

AND

Lifeskills

At the end of each month…

They transfer their earned BRAG TAGS  from RINGS…

To string necklaces.

They get to wear their necklaces ALL DAY AT SCHOOL

and then

HOME!

( Parents are told at BTS night to

 REWARD their kids for necklaces

 at the end of the month!)  🙂

Fall Brings…

English   Language   Arts

Word Work

Word  Sorts…NO GLUE!

Pick 3 crayons.

Color the words according to the KEY!

Write!

Back from 2 week vacation.

TEACHER…..CLEAN   YOUR   TABLE!

 I don’t have a teacher desk.           #bestdecisionever

Reading  ROCKERS!    #alternativeseating

Birthday  Books.

On each student’s birthday  ( or close  to ),

We make a class BIRTHDAY  BOOK!

We do these during  MUST DO TIME!

Independent work.

We have a “FRAME” style we use.

Everyone makes a page.

We STAPLE together and VOILA!

CLASS   BIRTHDAY  PRESENT!

We sing and dance as we PRESENT ( haha )  it to the birthday  student!

LAST..( whew..what a  week !)

Fall Brings…

GUIDED MATH

My  newest  &  favorite time of the day!

 We are doing

MATH  MUST  DO’s  &  MAY  Do’s

( Same format as ELA centers in the AM )

KEEP  YOUR  ROUTINES  THE  SAME!

We go the the MATH  Calendar  (  next to ELA  Calendar  )

after  lunch.

Math  Calendar

After  we go through the “math board”…

We NOW ( Quarter 2)  do MATH MUST DO’S.

(  Approx.  45   minutes  )

Must DO’s

#1    MATH    JOURNAL

Story  Problem  with  illustrations &  number  sentence.

#2    Math  Paper

A  Workbook Page FROM  YESTERDAY ( review )

#3    MATH   TUB  (center)  with a PARTNER

I do the whole class MATH lesson  BEFORE  centers.

SOMETIMES we do the workbook page together…sometimes they do.

Depends on the Lesson.  We  have a district curriculum to follow.

( Approx.  time    45  minutes  )

What  am I doing?

GUIDED   MATH   GROUPS!

I meet with 2-3  kids at a time.

We work on a STRATEGY.

NO  worksheets!

They need  to have independent  strategies to do ON THEIR OWN!

I  can’t  take the assessments  FOR THEM!

So…

Here is what’s UP  in room 3 in the FALL?

Need  supplements for ELA  or MATH?

Brag Tags

Balanced Literacy

Check out my store for GOODIES!

1stgradefireworks

Fall, Apples, & Johnny Appleseed

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It’s ALMOST HERE!

FALL

FALL! 
The leaves will be changing, sweaters & boots come out of the closet, & PUMPKIN SPICED LATTE!

The world will be “balanced” again!

To celebrate the 
COMING OF THE NEW SEASON

I have a new apple activity for fall!
I LOVE APPLES!
Apple pie, apple cake, applesauce…apple everything!

September is the MONTH of celebrations!
We celebrate Johnny Appleseed’s birthday too.
We make… APPLESAUCE!

 

 


To add to this year’s celebration..
I have a NEW product.

Apples are the BEST!

 

 

 

 

 

September Literacy Booklets for Apples and Johnny Appleseed.

Booklet style..2 on a page..B/W

21 PAGES of Reading, Graphic organizers, Word Work, Grammar, labeling, & Writing!
All in ONE BOOKLET!
Great for Whole Class, Small groups, Partner Work, Independent practice.

Early Finishers WILL LOVE THIS!

Fall themed. 

If you need more Literacy Products… follow 1stgradefireworks

 
I hope you can enjoy 
APPLES ARE THE BEST!
 
Follow my PINTEREST boards for
MORE
FALL  FUN

PLANTS…Do You Want to Grow A Garden? and a FREEBIE

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In Northern CA it is supposed to be 90 degrees
this  Thursday!

My Sunflower Seeds are growing!

We went from Spring to Summer..overnight!

So..it’s time to get out the sunflower seeds, get the other seeds out, & start planting that garden!

My kiddos LOVE this one!
Click Below

Sunflower Seeds

A 24-page plant unit including…

Plant Needs / Wants

Plant Parts We Eat (Sorting / Writing)

How To Grow Plants with Writing

Plant Problems..discussion starters

Vocabulary Work

Poetry Work
 
Just to add some fun…
 
Vocabulary Word cards for Plant  Unit!

 

 

 
Happy  SPRING!

Are your students ready for CENTERS?

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How to add games for independent centers!

We have been in school for 4 weeks. I know…we began JULY 31! I spend 3-4 weeks working on whole class routines & schedules. Then we spend a week or two working on centers ( without me actually taking reading groups) so I can monitor HOW they are doing during independent centers. AND THEN????

We begin INDEPENDENT CENTERS without the teacher!!!  WHAT???  Yes!! 

Release the KRACKEN!

Release the Kracken

Release the Kracken

And yes..we begin small group reading.

I used to call it GUIDED READING.

But I have added Guided Reading Skills & Strategies.

Sometimes, we work on words. Sometimes we work on skills. 

Sometimes we read. Sometimes we write. 

I use my assessments to guide my instruction. 

I know WHO needs WHAT.

So what are the other kids doing?

MUST DO’s & May Do’s.

And this week..enter their FAVORITE CENTER SO FAR!

( Yes…in their WHOLE LIFE…as they say!)

Here is the FUN game for centers!

And they are LEARNING!    WIN!  WIN!

 

 

SHORT VOWEL DOMINOES 

294 CARDS! WOWZA! 

294 domino cards for short vowel practice. Domino games can be differentiated by vowel sounds, picture cards, or word cards. Fun activities for student learning. Games help students stay engaged while practicing short vowel CVC word families.

They LOVE THIS! They beg for more time! Get your WORK done so you can PLAY!

YES!  I love it when a plan works!

And so here we go!

Small groups for me..independent centers for them.

WIN! WIN!  All around. Check out the video!

Helping FIRSTIES become Better Writers

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Can First Graders become BETTER WRITERS?

Hello everyone!

My name is Wendy McCarty.

I am the creator behind…

1stgradefireworks

I create classroom and homeschool materials

that engage young minds and help the teacher to support instruction.

You can see my products in my TPT Store:

1stgradefireworks

Today’s Topic…

Writing in First Grade

Now… I wish I was PERFECT.

I wish my kiddos were PERFECT.

There are NO Perfect PEOPLE!

NO Perfect KIDDOS.

No  Perfect.

Now that we have gone there…how do we get close?

We get  BETTER!

Better Readers.

Better Speakers.

Better Writers.

Better..Better…Better

( My Mantra )

HOW?

We write EVERY DAY.

Usually..more than once.

We write about our day in school

…things we like

…stories we have read

…new words we have learned

…new thoughts we have had

etc.etc.etc.

I try to do a mini-lesson on a strategy.

I add new vocabulary.  In CONTEXT.

We make connections.

We expand our thinking.

We TALK!

And it can be noisy.

It’s OK.

Sometimes LEARNING is messy.

And loud. And busy.

It’s OK!

We do writer’s workshop.

My kids write.

AND they LOVE IT!

HOW?

Give them paper, pencils, markers, colored pencils, etc…

Give them…TIME!

And … LET THEM TALK!

My classroom is NEVER quiet!

Talking

about writing,

 during writing,

and after writing.

TALK, Write,  Create!

Are they perfect?

NO.

Is that OK?

YES!

*(Update)

I have added new

VOCABULARY BANNERS

to my

Writing Center.

Fall Vocabulary Banners for WRITING

Fall Vocabulary Banners for WRITING

The banners

help my

 beginning writers

( HOW DO YOU SPELL…..??? )

and my

EL students

(LOTS of VISUALS )

See how I use the

VOCABULARY BANNERS

Here.

For WRITER’S WORKSHOP

 If you need a starting point...

Monthly Writing Pages

WITH

VOCABULARY Helpers

at the

bottom of EVERY PAGE!

I LOVE TEACHING!

I am currently headed into my 27th year teaching…ALL of them in first grade!

My kiddos ask me “WHY don’t YOU ever GRADUATE to Second Grade?”

I tell them

“First Grade is IN my HEART!”

You can follow me at:

https://1stgradefireworks.net

https://www.facebook.com/1stgradefireworks

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/1stgradefireworks

https://www.Instagram.com/1stgradefireworks

https://www.pinterest.com/1stgradefirewor

Follow me:   TPT    FB   IG   Pinterest

1stgradefireworks

Young children love to read during Reading Workshop

How to Prepare for a Successful Reading Workshop in First Grade

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Reading Workshop

“Creating a Community of Readers”

When I teach reading, I don’t want my students to stop and ask for help.

I want them to have the skills to be independent readers.

I want them to be problem-solvers.

So, I am…

Making a Community of Readers

How to create a community of readers

Keep reading for a FUN FREEBIE

Free for Followers

Freebie for Followers

 How?

Before reading, take a sneak peek!

What do you do BEFORE reading?

*Frontload any vocabulary that may change thinking, distort comprehension, or is unfamiliar to them.

Take a picture walk. Cover the words.

Make them use visual cues in the story.

Have them make predictions

PRIOR to reading.

After reading, check their predictions.

After reading, think about it!

When you finish reading, do something!

 I LOVE this!

After reading..then what?

DO SOMETHING!

Reread it for NEW information.

Retell it to yourself or a friend.

We use our 3 fingers to retell.

I love this part…DIGEST IT!

Just as a good meal…when you are finished, appreciate it.

Think about it.

 ENJOY IT!

When you finish readin,g read it AGAIN!

Read MORE!

 You are NEVER done!

When you finish…read more!

My kiddos love to stack ALL of their books on the left..

as they finish reading a book…

place it in a pile on their right.

Keep reading!

Their goal is to

read more every day!

STAMINA!

Reading MATS are used to make goals.

Our goals are to read MORE!

Read with your eyes. No need for fingers.

Use your eyes to read…not your fingers.

 We want kids to quit using

their fingers to read.

Good readers use
their EYES!

“SCOOP” up words (phrases)

with your eyes.

When reading, put 3-4 words together

and read the phrases!

*GREAT time to teach

prepositions & prepositional phrases!

When reading, always reread the text for comprehension.

Always reread text

 Always, always…reread!

You will see more, read more, and understand more when you reread a story.

Read it to a partner, a

parent, or a friend.

The same book can sound new

when you are reading it

for the second or third time!



So there you are…


GET  READING!


Remember…


When in doubt…


ALWAYS make it


BALANCED  LITERACY


What part of a Balanced Literacy Classroom is reading?


For more early literacy


 reading and writing resources


Check out


  1stgradefireworks


Click HERE for 


FUN FREEBIE


Free for Followers
Freebie for Followers


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				Nibits for Newbies Write ON!
			

										

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NIBITS FOR NEWBIES!






This week’s theme…


Writing in First Grade


Now… I wish I was PERFECT.


I wish my kiddos were PERFECT.


There are NO Perfect PEOPLE!


NO Perfect KIDDOS.


No  Perfect.


Now that we have gone there…how do we get close?


We get  BETTER!


Better…Better…Better


( My Mantra )


We write EVERY DAY.


Usually…more than once.


We write about our day in school…things we


 like…stories we have read..etc.


I try to do a mini-lesson on a strategy.


We change our focus depending on our curriculum.


We do a writer’s workshop.


My kids write.


AND they LOVE IT!














HOW?


Give them paper, pencils, markers, colored pencils, etc…


Give them…TIME!


And … LET THEM TALK!


My classroom is NEVER quiet!


Discussion about writing, during writing, and after writing.


TALK, Write, Create!


Are they perfect?


NO.


Is that OK?


YES!


Write ON!


( If you need a starting point)


Here you go!  Have FUN!


https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/WRITE-ON-12-Months-of-Journal-Wrting-Papers-1837369








ENJOY!


PS. It’s OK to NOT BE PERFECT 


– Just be BETTER! 


Wendy