Tall Tales Story Mapping & Literature Circles


This is going to be short and sweet tonight, because I am trying to get my hubby ready for a three day field trip to Charleston {no fair}! :) However, I did want to quickly share what we have been working on this week from
my newest unit during our reading mini lessons. 


TALL TALES! We are having a ball learning about some famous American Tall Tale Heroes.  Since testing is just around the corner, I needed to tie in some practice with narrative elements as well. So, we have been working on these skills through literature circles and story mapping.  



We begin our lesson each day with a little close reading practice. During the initial reading, the students read to become familiar with the passage. Then, they are assigned a focus/purpose {one of the four elements we are working on} for their reading that they will take back to their literature circles later on. During their second reading, they highlight evidence or clues that will help them describe their element. Then, on the final reading, the students write details to support their story element.

Once the reading is complete, I allow the students to form groups of four {one from each element} and together, they collaborate to create a story map of the tale. 





Then, we meet as a class to create a final story map where we add details or important events that we "overlooked" during our group meeting. 



This has been such an engaging and very short study of tall tales. The kids have not only learned about some pretty cool American Tall Tales, but they have been getting practice in some pretty important reading skills along the way. 

If you need a little extra boost to your tall tale study, you can check out my newest unit on TPT. It will be on sale for $5.00 until tomorrow night! 

Click {HERE} to check it out! 

Hope y'all are having a great week! Xoxo

Similes, Metaphors, & Poetry...Plus a Color Run!!!

Seriously, y'all! I feel like I never *ever* had a spring break. I keep thinking...surely spring break is around the corner! When in fact, that bad boy is gone! Long gone! So, now I have to get focused and help my kiddos get ready for our second round of state testing...in 19 days to be exact! 

This week, we have been into all things poetry and we. are. LOVING it! It's our little poetry picnic {as we call it}. During our picnic, we have been working our way though poetic devices. On Monday, we reviewed similes and really began stretching our thinking past "My shirt is as blue as the sky" and tried to think deeper to create more complex similes. We also reviewed acrostic poems. So, I decided to mesh the two together with Reagan Tunstall's all too cute Rainbow Name-bows. Rather than writing a basic acrostic, the students had to write a simile with each letter of their name! 




If you want to check out Regan's cute little get-up...click right {HERE!}

On Tuesday, metaphors were on the menu. We made metaphor kites {because you fly kites on a picnic...of course}. 


On the metaphor kites, the students wrote four separate metaphors. Then on the bows, they wrote the word "metaphor", the definition, and key words that help us find metaphors in our reading. 

Today, we mixed it up a little and studied both similes and metaphors in the context of music. I found this amazing resource on YouTube, and I was immediately ub-SESSED! I used it to have the students analyze some of today's current hits to find and understand the meaning. Talk about higher level thinking. They really had to dig deep, find similes and metaphors, and identify what message the artist was trying to convey to their audience.
Did I mention that I am obsessed with this video?!?


Along with poetic devices, we have also been reading, analyzing, and writing different types of poems. Last year we made iPods with my iPoetry unit, but same kids = new idea! So, I found this idea for a book on Pinterest and have been dying to use it, but couldn't figure out the perfect time. Well, welcome perfect time. What better time to use these way too cute paper bag books than during our poetry picnic? 


Original source for paper bag booklets: Rosy~Posy

I will post more about our booklets towards the end of the week as we finish up our poetry picnic. 

So, tonight I will leave you with some pictures from my weekend getaway to Atlanta with some of my favorite ladies. We ran in the Color Run and had way too much fun! Love these girls! 




Hope y'all are having a great week! XOXO

Shenanigans on Instagram....

Amy Lemons made me do it... ;) 


You can now follow all of my classroom happenings on Instagram {secondgradeshenanigans}! 

Now I am off to lesson plan since my spring break ends in T-minus 10 hours! Have a great week, y'all! 

That's Amore Pizzeria {Cross-Curricular Unit}

Around Valentine's Day {way back when ;)} I posted about a little cross-curricular unit that I had brought into the classroom to give my kiddos lots of practice with real world application skills. I had lots of interest for those resources to be put into a unit so that I could share it with all of you. So I give you...That's Amore Pizzeria. This will be perfect for the last nine weeks of school as those kiddos start to get crazy out of control ready for summer! In fact, I may need to do it all again! ;) Check it out...


Spice up your math and writing time with this cross-curricular pizza study! This 87 page unit is packed with five lesson outlines and all of the resources that you need to bring a lot of pizza fun and learning into the classroom. If you are looking for a way to bring real world scenarios into your room, this is the perfect unit to help you do just that. During these five lessons, students will be fully engaged in activities that require them to apply knowledge of money when placing orders, fractions when dividing and creating pizzas, and descriptive writing to give directions. Did I mention that they may also be practicing a little cooking as well? Master chefs perhaps? Here is a look at all of the fun that is found inside this unit...

Counting Money, Making Change, and Taking Orders!




Cooking Up Fractions! 




Small Pizza Puzzles for Student Practice and Application...





Pizzeria Fraction Craft


Look at those mater chefs! 

Pizza Baking...Chefs for a Day! 



How to...Descriptive Writing




This unit is up and ready at my TPT shop. As always, it will be on sale for the first two days. You can click {HERE} to check it out right now! 

So who is watching Duck Dynasty tonight?!? ;) 

Hope that you all had a happy, happy, happy Wednesday! 

As a Matter of Fact {New Unit!!!}

I am thrilled to have *finally* completed my matter unit. No, no...not because I had to completely remake the unit...twice {long story}, but because this unit is probably my best unit yet...if I do say so myself. ;) I love all of the fun that we had during this study, and I {along with my kiddos} am completely obsessed with matter! These experiments are something that they will remember for quite some time! All I have to say to that is PTL...because PASS is just around the corner! Oh dear! ;)  

As a Matter of Fact is packed with over 130 pages of resources and 11 super engaging science experiments. I am telling you...the kids couldn't take their eyes of off these activities, and they never wanted science to end! 


Here is a look at our experiment craze! Be sure and check out the unit below!  


This was my first time trying this experiment out and let me tell you...it didn't disappoint! So easy and even I stood in amazement! 


We were in love with some Pop Rocks during this unit! Look at those little scientists hard at work! 


We did lots of experiments to help us observe matter as it changed states. 


We observed molecules...



...saw all three states of matter in one place...


And we even had time to incorporate lots writing practice into our science block! {Because we all know that's what scientists do...of course!} 




Do you study the three states of matter?! If so, you can pick up my newest unit at TPT by clicking right {HERE}. As usual, I am going to offer it at a discounted price for the first two days. It will be marked down from $12.00 to only $8.00, so snatch it up fast! 

Here is a look...



***All resources offered in full color or black and white!***

Hope y'all have a fabulous week. I am on spring break, so I am hoping to be back with more goodies to share this week!