Monthly Archives: October 2011

Thinking about writing with Matt Glover: Part 1

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Kristin

Last December my colleagues and I attended a workshop featuring Matt Glover and Katie Wood Ray.  I’ve followed Katie Wood Ray’s work for several years and really love what she does with young writers.  For several years, I’ve used Lucy … Continue reading →

Posted in Professional Books, Professional Development, Writer's Workshop | 6 Comments

An Apple a day, or at least yesterday…

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Kristin

I agree with Katie it has been a busy week!  But..it was a week that was so much FUN! First there was filming on Wednesday.  Then yesterday we had the wonderful folks from Apple out to visit our iPad project!  … Continue reading →

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Best Practice in my Classroom…Literally

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Katie

It’s been a nutty week.  Yesterday we had film crews in our classes doing some taping of various classroom teaching and learning moments.  I’m deeply honored and very excited to a part of this project.  It’s an interesting experience to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Active Literacy With iPads Part 3: Opening up the Backchannel

Posted on October 22, 2011 by Katie

Last week I had my class participate in their first ever back channel discussion.  During our daily read aloud time I usually stop at points to have students turn and talk, answer a few questions, or do an ultra quick … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Sometimes We Find Lessons in the Strangest Places

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Katie

I spotted this flyer while I was waiting for my Pumpkin Latte yesterday morning.  I couldn’t stop staring at it.  It seemed so…. I couldn’t even come up with a word.  So, I casually pulled out my phone and snapped … Continue reading →

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Loving the iPad for Assessment!

Posted on October 18, 2011 by Kristin

Oh how I LOVE the iPad for assessment purposes!  It makes documenting student learning simple and accessible. For the past few days we have identified qualities of fiction and nonfiction text.  We have documented nonfiction features and their purposes and … Continue reading →

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Using Edmodo in Writer’s Workshop

Posted on October 14, 2011 by Katie

We’re at the beginning of a new unit of study in Writer’s Workshop, list articles.  We usually start every unit by delving into a variety of examples in the genre and creating a chart of qualities.  I thought I’d try … Continue reading →

Posted in 2.0 Tools, Collaboration, iPad, Writer's Workshop | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

A Time to Reflect

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Kristin

Columbus Day. It’s always the first real opportunity to step back and reflect on the current school year.  The 3-day weekend serves as a much needed break to think about where we’ve been, what we’ve accomplished and provides time to … Continue reading →

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Active Literacy With iPads (and some other technology too…): Part 2

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Katie

Gradual Release of Responsibility Learning how to really implement a gradual release of responsibility model has been one of the most powerful things in my teaching career.  This model sets up a framework for how instruction gradually moves from teacher … Continue reading →

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Tuesday Debrief

Posted on October 11, 2011 by Katie

I’ve just returned from doing some consulting work in Wisconsin.  What a great two days!  I figured since it was Tuesday still I could get my slice of life in, but how can I capture all that is on my … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Goodbye Steve

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Katie

With all of the iPad talk on this blog lately it only seems fitting that write a post in honor of Steve Jobs.  His ideas and visionary ability to create has touched every part of my life.  I used to … Continue reading →

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Extra practice with ten frames and number sentences

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Kristin

This week my students began using ten frames in math.  Students used math counters and ten frame worksheets to add numbers 1-10.  We did a few math practice pages throughout the week, but by Friday I noticed a few students … Continue reading →

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