Posts

Showing posts from 2016

Christmas Mystery Word Freebie

Image
Need a fun and fast way to boost your students' vocabulary? Here's a Mystery Word of the Week free download (from my Teachers Pay Teachers store )  you can print and use today! Enjoy! Free Mystery Word of the Week from Hello Mrs Sykes on Teachers Pay Teachers

Veteran's Day Free Word Work, grades 1-3

Image
I love the discussions I have with students about our military. I am married to an Army son, and the military communities in NC are pretty amazing. If you need a fast word work activity for November 11, click the link to download from my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Enjoy! 🇺🇸

How to Teach Phonics Intervention Lessons for Grades 3-5

Image
When you have students who are in upper elementary classrooms reading several years below grade level, your phonics instruction needs to be systematic and focused. Today we will look at several students* reading far below grade level, and we will walk through how to address their needs. * All student names have been changed, in case you were curious.

Word Work for Upper Elementary: Build a Mystery Word

Image
Hello! I'm sharing a secret weapon I use to engage my students in their word work in third, fourth, and fifth grades. Each week I set out a Build a Mystery Word activity, which my kiddos love! This activity allows them to practice phonics, spelling, context clues, and critical thinking. Take a peek: To see it in more depth, please click the picture below to view in my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Enjoy!

Mystery Word of the Week for grades 3-5

Image
Want to boost the vocabulary of your entire class with only a few minutes a day? What if I told you with little prep work! Here's the solution: use the Mystery Word of the Week clues to spark daily discussions of words.

Summer Professional Development Ideas

Image
An effective teacher is always learning, even over the summer break. While you are on vacation, why not catch up on your professional readings? Here are a few suggestions. What did I miss? Be sure to share your ideas in the comments so we can all stay current on best practices in literacy!

Easy Gifts for Your Students - Give Books!

Image
If you're in the US, school is almost over, and gifting is on the brain. Here's a simple gift idea. Investment of time... fifteen minutes. Added bonus? You are about to clear off a shelf (or a box, a sterilite drawer, or whatever!) If you are like me, you collect childrens' books for classroom libraries, etc. Some books may be well loved, or ones that you ordered from your book club catalogs, but forgot to use, or they weren't books that were checked out from your classroom library very often. This makes your shelved cluttered. Today's tip: Let them go... to the students! Here's how it usually goes down for me: set out an old box of books. Say nothing about it, until a sweetheart asks about them. Then tell them to pick one book they are interested in, and see you for a label for their name, because they can keep the book. Forever and ever. Seriously, no Pinterest involved. Grab some old labels and hand-write a little note. These were mine last year! I

Speaking and Writing in Sentences - For Readers Who Struggle

Image
I notice many of my struggling readers in grades 3-5 have a language deficiency. Their teachers are beside themselves as they look at their writing, and come to me asking what do I do? Here's my answer: practice speaking in complete sentences. I bring in photos from magazines or project an interesting picture, and ask students to describe what they see in complete sentences. A small group is a supportive environment for risk-taking, especially for your English Language Learners. I usually spend a couple of 20 minute small group lessons on describing the pictures using complete sentences. Model how to describe the pictures using complete sentences. If you expect elaboration and details from your students, be sure to model that as well.  From there, move on to... Practice Writing Sentences Those pictures you've been practicing talking about? Use them again, and this time have them write their thoughts in sentences. Remind them about the format of a sentence - it needs a

3 Websites Every TPT Seller Needs

Image
If you sell resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, then you *NEED* these websites.

Field Trip to Peru on March 16 ~ Mark Your Calendar

Image
This post is sponsored by WeAreTeachers.com and The Nature Conservancy. Field Trip to Peru If your students are like mine, they haven’t seen much of the world outside their hometown. As a teacher, I am constantly on the lookout for opportunities to integrate the curriculum goals from my state in a meaningful way while opening the world to my students. One exciting (and free) opportunity to explore biodiversity of a coastal ecosystem is an upcoming virtual field trip to Peru! Join www.NatureWorksEverywhere.org on March 16th at Noon EST for a Free Virtual Field Trip to Peru ! Click the image to learn more, see the resources, and register for this free event!