Six Sentence Conversation -- practicing dialogue

Click here to download "Six Sentence Conversation."

Do you need a structured writing activity that isn't necessarily Halloween related?  I originally created this one page freebie to go with Conversation with a Gingerbread House.  I decided to make it less seasonally dependent.

Students choose two characters that could have a conversation and write the dialogue.  In this sentence frame, the tags and punctuation is already written for them.  Once they have it correctly in this format, they could copy it onto a new sheet (or using the computer) once again practicing the correct placement of tags and punctuation.

You can purchase all ten forms I use for creative writing assignments and bulletin boards here in my Teachers Pay Teachers store and here in my Teachers Notebook store.  I have included at least two suggestions for each form that are not here on my blog.

Pumpkin Math -- Last Minute Freebie

 

 

Earlier today, I decided I didn't like what I was teaching for math tomorrow so I created this freebie.  I thought I would share it with all of you.  I still plan to share my usual Friday free lesson tomorrow.

 



 To download Pumpkin Math, click here.

May your class be peaceful tomorrow and every day until winter break.

 

The Whatever After Series by Sarah Mlynowski

The Whatever After series by Sarah Mlynowski begins with a brother and sister discovering Snow White's stepmother's mirror in their basement.  The mirror transports them into Snow White's story where they save her from the poisoned apple.  If she doesn't eat the poisoned apple, then she doesn't meet the prince.  Abby and Jonah must figure out how to get the story back on track.

Fractured fairy tales are popular right now.  I know several of my students who would read the entire series. 

For an explanation of my rating scale, click here.
Find me at Goodreads.

Bringing My Own Fun

I was helping my 19-year-old gather items for her first dorm room.  We started at Big Lots. 

One of the employees was very helpful.  Even though he was about to go on break he helped us find items.  After his break, he continued to help us and was joking around with us.  He seemed to enjoy his job.

I turned to my stepdaughter as we were leaving and commented about how this employee was bringing his own fun to the job.  I don't know if Big Lots is a fun job in and of itself.  I don't know if the management of this store is easy to work with.  What do I know is this gentleman chose his attitude toward work.

I know my stepdaughter may have to have a job to pay the bills that may not be in line with her interests.  It is important to find opportunities to have fun no matter what you are doing.

Quote of the Week -- October 26, 2014

"The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities." Stephen Covey Have a great week,

Poems of Silliness Turns Three

I've been writing poetry most of my life, but three years ago I started a blog called Poems of Silliness to share with others.  If you are a teacher looking for a poem, you can search by topic in the toolbar, or you can search by poetry form by clicking the tags on the right hand side.

To celebrate this personal milestone, I created Square Poems a freebie in my Teachers Pay Teachers store and also my Teacher's Notebook store.  A square poem is one which has the same number of syllables in each line as the number of lines.  This product has a sorting sheet, directions, and fourteen original examples.

Chomp by Carl Hiaasen

Wahoo Cray lives with his animal handler father in the Florida Everglades.  A survivalist show hires Wahoo's dad to provide animals for Derek Badger, the show's arrogant star to handle for "Reality TV." Wahoo accompanies his dad on the shoot to keep things under control.  They are joined by Tuna who is trying to escape a violent father who decides he doesn't want to let her go.

Carl Hiassen's books are typically filled with over-the-top characters in wild situations.  He pokes fun at "Reality TV" and specifically survivalist shows.  It was an entertaining read.
            
For an explanation of my rating scale, click here.
Find me at Goodreads.

So Called Efficiency Experts

One of my jobs to pay for college was working in a pizza shop.  One afternoon I showed up for work and the store had been taken over by three "efficiency experts".  During my shift they reorganized the topping station and demonstrated how to make pizzas more quickly.  The problem was no one was ordering the pizzas they were making. What a waste!

This is what happens when outsiders come in and don't consult with the people actually doing the job.  They don't listen and they make policies based on their superior position that have unintended consequences.  Many of them still don't listen at this point and the people doing the job have to clean up the mess.

I bet the teachers reading this can think of a situation or two.

Quote of the Week -- October 19, 2014

If you ask what is the single most important key to longevity, I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress and tension.  And if you didn't ask me, I'd still have to say it. ~ George Burns

Have a good week,

Point of View Graphic Organizer & Giveaway

I created this graphic organizer to be used with any book.  I want my students to consider how different characters in the story respond to the same event.  I have a space for them to list the evidence that supports their ideas.

This lesson aligns with CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.6

Compare and contrast the point of view from which different stories are narrated, including the difference between first- and third-person narrations.

 

I will use it as an anchor chart with books I read aloud or part of a student's reading notebook for independent and partner work.

 

How might you use this organizer?

 

 

I'm giving away a copy of Coded Messages: Order of Operations from my Teacher's Notebook Store.  Enter to win October 17-20.

 

 

Bomb by Steve Sheinkin

I mentioned in a previous post how much I enjoyed reading Steve Sheinkin's history books this summer.  He focuses on the personalities and the narrative of the events and makes it interesting.  Bomb: The Race to Build -- and Steal -- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon reads like a spy thriller. 
Sheinkin does not assume his readers know all about World War II, but he shares enough background information to make the development of the atomic bomb relevant.  He doesn't lecture his students, but presents the urgency that the scientists felt.
Every year I have students who are interested in World War II.  I know they will enjoy this book.

For an explanation of my rating scale, click here.
Find me at Goodreads.

Amusement Park Lines without the Fun

Since last spring I have spent so much time in doctor's waiting rooms, I started creating a rubric to rate them. (Only a teacher would think this way.) No one had anything life-threatening, so I've had a little time to observe the medical system.

It reminds me of those amusement park lines that go through a maze of fences for hours to get to the ride.  You have to follow the maze regardless the size of the crowd.  It is designed to keep large groups of people in order for long periods of time.

My husband was hurt at work and he has to go through a bureaucracy regardless of how he responds to the check list of treatment some administrator in an office somewhere has prescribed. 

My mom told me that her last appointment was a checklist for Medicare.  If she had a question that wasn't on the list, she had to make another appointment.

Just as the efficiency is designed for the system not for the patients,  the education system seems to serve the system not the students and their families.

It's just so frustrating.

Quote of the Week -- October 12, 2014

Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams.  Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential.  Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do. ~ Pope John XXIII

Have a good week,

The Case of the Missing Goldfish

I came home from school today and my goldfish had disappeared.  Above is a photo of the crime scene. 

What happened here?  What clues in this photo lead you to believe that?

Click here for a free printable police report form to write up this incident.
Click here for a free printable Missing Poster.

You can purchase all ten forms I use for creative writing assignments and bulletin boards here in my Teachers Pay Teachers store and here in my Teachers Notebook store.  I have included at least two suggestions for each form that are not here on my blog.

 

Update:  I found an incriminating photo of my most likely suspect.  She says she was framed.