A Few Resources for Common Core ELA RL.4

I thought I would share some resources I've found and shared with my faculty over the last few months that would help out with teaching Common Core Standard RL.4.

Idioms & Will Ferrell: Figurative Language Master

Having trouble with idioms? Check out the free English Idioms Illustrated app for iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. The app, gives the user an illustrated example of an idiom with background and an explanation for what the idiom means. If you want your students to practice using idioms, check out this great example of an idioms handout from the blog ReadLearnTeachLife. For the assignment, students illustrate an idiom, then use it in a sentence to show they know how to use it.

Figurative language can also sometimes be a challenge for students. Help them out with this YouTube video: Will Ferrell and Figurative Language. The video is a bit lengthy and may be more appropriate for older viewers; however younger students may appreciate it in smaller doses:)

Identifying Figurative Language

Need a book to review identifying simile, metaphor, hyperbole, idiom, or onomatopoeia? Check out Skippyjon Jones Cirque de Ole by Judy Schachner. You’ll get an added bonus of alliteration in this one as well. With phrases like “They raced like rabbits” , “tiny Trembling Tower of Power”, “low dog on the totem pole” and “speed of a spitball” and words like “Thwapppppp!” This is sure to a book that pleases all ages. (My personal favorite is the Hans and Franz shout out “We will PUMP YOU UP.”)

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon - Meeting all your figurative language needs!

My brother and niece have been bugging me to read Grace Lin’s Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. I finally picked up the audio this week, and it is FANTSASTIC. The imagery, use of figurative language and the folktales make this a Common Core winner. It would easily make for an engaging read aloud in 2nd or 3rd grade and an awesome novel study in 4th or 5th. Did I mention it’s a Newbery Honor book? Come check it out!

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Library Centers for Kindergarten & First Grade

Center Inspiration After much debate at the end of last school year, I was able to get 10 extra minutes added on to each of my classes for this year boosting class library time from 35 minutes a week to 45 minutes a week for my fixed schedule. For me, 35 minutes a week, just wasn't enough to pack in all the awesomeness I wanted to achieve. It seemed like we would just be getting started into something great when it was time to go. I was thrilled to know that this year I was going to have the extra time to work with my classes on research skills and technology projects while working in more time to allow them to browse the shelves and look at books. That being said, truth be told, I was completely freaked out about what to do with my kindergartners for 45 minutes. Did I mention in my former life, I was a high school English teacher? Four years ago, my first two weeks in an elementary library were a complete culture shock to me. I was used to walking into a room and just say

Project Genre-fy the Fiction Section!

After a lot of thinking, I finally decided to take the leap this summer and move the fiction section of my elementary library from the traditional first-three-letters-of-the-last- name organization to a genre based organization. Now that the project is almost complete, I cannot wait to get the kids back in the library so I can show them! Deciding Factors There are many reasons individual teacher librarians might choose to genrefy their library. For me, I was driven to start with the fiction section because I've noticed an alarming drop off in students checking out books by the time they get to fifth grade. This drop off could be for any number of reasons: increased activities after school, loss of interest in the materials they see on the shelf, lack of time, or they could be overwhelmed by book after book organized by letter. I realized, too, that although my 3-5 graders don't ask for "funny" books or "animal" stories, they seem to get stuck on c

Digital Interactive Notebooks: Getting Started

Post appeared also on FtEdTech It's no real secret that I love Digital Interactive Notebooks. I create them every chance I get and encourage teachers to use them for everything from long term Project Based Learning (PBL) projects to weekly unit work with vocabulary . The Interactive Notebook (INB) has long been a staple of the classroom to engage students more directly with their notes. The traditional interactive notebook often includes traditional student notes, questions, and interactives that students cut, fold, color and paste into their notebooks. You might find graphic organizers, pockets with measuring tools, data charts, and foldables that act as study aides. In the NSTA article " Science Interactive Notebooks in the Classroom " Jocelyn Young explains the benefits of INB when she shares that " By using notebooks, students model one of the most vital and enduring functions of scientists in all disciplines—recording information, figures, and data.

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