5 Ways I Use Punch Cards in My Classroom

Every summer about this time, I start to get the itch. You know, what will I add/subtract/continue to do in my classroom this year?

This year I'm changing a lot because it will only be my 2nd year in the role of a reading intervention teacher. Last year was all about learning the ropes of my new position and my new school. I was just treading water. I'd like to think this year I know a little more and I can offer a lot more to my position.

One thing I'm adding is punch cards! I plan to use these punch cards in different ways for each of my groups, grades K-2, because their needs are different too!

Read on to see how I'm using punch cards this year, plus a few ideas for classroom teachers too!

I will be using punch cards to monitor reading with my 1st and 2nd graders. I will send home punch cards in their take-home book baggies. Parents will initial for every book read, then I will punch the image to show I've checked it. The monthly themes of my punch cards add an extra initiative to their at-home reading and it's such an easy way to keep track of who is reading regularly (their nightly reading is optional from me). I will add empty punch cards to their student file and come progress report time I have an instant image of who was reading regularly and who I can recommend more at-home reading to.

Other Ways to Use Them to Monitor Reading...
Have older students reading chapter books, or want to stress quality reading, not quantity? Have parents initial for every 10 minutes read, or have students punch during Daily 5 for every 5, 10, 15 minutes read to focus on stamina.

Punch cards as incentives will mostly be used with my little K friends, although I am not above breaking them out for my older friends as well. My time with my littles ones is precious, as I am spread out between 8-10 classes. And we all know how short of an attention span our little ones have, so I will be using my punch cards as a way to keep them focused for as long as possible.

We will be punching for coming to groups quickly, staying on task, completing a task or mini-assignment, being a helpful friend to others in group, and extra effort. I will be punching away. Punches alone are the perfect incentive. They do not need to be tied to extra prizes. Just saying, "Wow, Brady, you earned 3 punches today!!!" is enough for my little friends. I will also let them pick out their own punch cards instead of using them seasonally because, why not?

Other Ways to Use Them as Incentives...
Independently or Whole Class: you might not want an extra thing to use with your whole class, or you might want a collective way to inspire your kids. There are no rules with these things!
Use them for behavior, at specials times only (the gym teacher gives a punch or she doesn't: EASY!), at dismissal (I wish I thought to use these my first year when dismissal was a HOT MESS for poor first year me!), during arrival, etc, etc, etc

I will have a separate punch card for each of my reading groups (there's so many to choose from)! Anytime my students get a compliment from someone else, they will receive a punch on their group card. There are plenty of opportunities for compliments: we have to walk down to my classroom and back and we share a classroom with another intervention teacher. I also plan on punching the group's card if any of my students' teachers come to me with a compliment about progress in class. Each time a group's punch card is filled, I will have a fun reward, like no shoes or gum in small groups.

Using the punch cards this way is important for me because, as a non-classroom teacher, I struggle with the amount of time to spend on procedures and routines when my primary role is an interventionist. Classroom management has always been one of my strengths and I found it was more difficult this past year not doing my usual beginning of the year lessons on behavior, procedures, and routines. Punch cards will offer a great assist in my management program as pull-out teacher.

Punch cards are great for classroom teachers to use to monitor and track homework. During my last few years as a classroom teacher we had "choice homework"...90% of our homework was by choice and the remaining 10% had to be done each week. I wish I'd had punch cards during those last few years. Students would receive a punch for the required homework and a bonus punch for any choice homework also completed.

Punch cards work great for any homework program, though. An easy, student-centered way, to monitor homework completion.

Do you do timed tests in your classroom? AR? Xtra Math? Any skills you assess using progress monitoring would be a great way to use punch cards. Have students keep individual goals and write the steps for getting to that goal? They can punch their card every time they complete a step along the way. Bonus for letting students choose and punch their own cards! This will really help them take ownership of their own work and goals.

As you can see, I've really thought through how I'm going to use my punch cards this year! Now not the next 23,982 things I want to work on for the next school-year!

If you're interested in using punch cards in your classroom or small groups this year, you can grab them from TpT by clicking the picture below. They include a theme for each month of the school-year (some have two themes  because I couldn't decide), plus 5 extra sets for even more student choices! Black ink, so they're printer friendly...print on bright cardstock and you're good to go!

Have other suggestions for how to use punch cards? Leave them below!

Happy Teaching, Friends!

All About: Making Students Feel Special

Good Morning!

To me, teaching is about so much more than reading, writing, and math. It's easy to forget that in today's world of data tracking, state testing, and teacher accountability. But it's so important to remember that we have responsibilities as teachers to model compassion, empathy, confidence, and more.

I always want my students to know they are valued and important. I do this a variety of ways, which I'll be highlighting soon, but one of my favorite ways to do it is by having an All About Student.

Maybe you call it Star Student, MVP, or VIP.

I like All About because I want to learn all about my students and because when they are the All About Student it really is ALL ABOUT them.

We do it up big in my classroom during a student's All About Week! I'd love to share with you just how we do it.

The Friday before a student is our All About student, I send home a parent-letter and survey for my students to fill out {or mom and dad to fill out for them}. This way, when they bring it back on Monday, we can display their answers for the whole week.

Here are some of the categories from the "Stripes Edition"

I try to come up with categories that will really help us get to know each other. 

Here's another display option

Students share their answers during a short presentation on Friday. I love how it builds speaking and listening skills all year long.

We go over good audience guidelines a lot at the beginning. And I always present first to model what good speaking looks and sounds like.

I also give opportunities throughout the week for students to share more about themselves. They can pick a read-aloud book for me to read the class or bring in a special show and tell item.

"All About" letter and reminder notes

My favorite part of All About though, is the parent letter. I love hearing more about my students through the eyes of people that love them the most. Through parent letters, we get to learn about students as babies, and see how they may be different at home. I've had parents, grandparents, step-parents, and older siblings write some really beautiful letters. And the glow from the All About student, as I read them...priceless!

The students need to get in on the action too! I want them to experience the joy of making others feel special. I always have my students write a letter to the All About student. I also made booklet and list options that I might use as a time-saving option this year.

I've created three different themes for All About to match a variety of classrooms.

There's the Primary Edition. It doesn't have any cursive fonts {besides the cover}, and features adorable scrappy kids illustrations and colorful backgrounds:

There's also a Stripes version:

And an ink-saving Black and White version:

Want to add an All About routine to your classroom? Click here to purchase the unit from Teachers Pay Teachers! It will be such a beneficial experience for you and your students!

Halle

the Growing Main Idea Bundle is here: Win It!!

I finally took the leap and posted the growing bundle for my main idea resources!! Have no idea what I'm talking about when I say "main idea resources"? Allow me to show you...

Since December, I've been releasing monthly main idea units. Each mini-unit features posters, 6 original passages to be printed and laminated and/or displayed on a projector, cut and paste worksheets {2 versions for differentiation}, and passages and printables to be used in interactive notebooks, or again, for differentiation.

I created this resource to introduce main idea to my students and it worked so well that I decided to make it a monthly product to use for review and reinforcement. We started in October, and by February, I was using the resource solely in literacy centers because my kiddos were just that good ;)

Here's a few snapshots:

This is a preview of the posters that you can print or project.

Here's an example of one of the printables in the pack used in an interactive-notebook. You could also print the sheet on regular ol' paper and have the students fill out the squares like worksheet-style.

This printable also includes an "Extra Time" section at the bottom. PERFECT for early-finishers. The Extra Time box has students perform an extra task involved with the story they just read: making a text-to-self connection, writing sentence or paragraphs, illustrations, lists, and even comic strips!

See below:

My students loved the Extra Time options and offered work hard to afford themselves time to work on it. I was teaching my students time management without even knowing!

Cut and Paste printables make-up yet another part of the product. There are two options for these guys as well. The option pictured above has students finding and writing their own main idea and supporting details.

The other option has the main idea and details already listed and students have to decide which is which, and then paste them in the appropriate spot.

Easy differentiation!

Now that I have your attention, you may be wondering...

So, how does a GROWING bundle work?

You will pay a hugely discounted fee up-front to receive all finished Main Idea mini-units. Currently, December-August are completed and included in the bundle. August-November, as well as non-fiction, will be added by January 15, 2016. The calendar below is included in the bundled download:

August is now included! And a week early at that!

The price for all units purchased separately would be $44. The bundled price will be $36. The GROWING BUNDLE price is starting at $26, and will grow each time I add to the bundle.

To purchase the growing bundle, click the picture below. 

If you have already purchased multiple copies of "What's the Main Idea", but you are interested in the discounted bundle please email me {acrossthehallin2nd@gmail.com}, so we can work something out! You can also email me with any questions or clarifications!

I really, truly believe this bundle is such a great investment to keep your students on track with main idea. They love the seasonal passages, and once I made this a center, they were IN LOVE!

Want to win the growing bundle as part of my Summer of Fun giveaway? You have to be fast! Enter below using Rafflecopter:

~Halle

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Makeover Madness with Sums of 10

About four years ago, I discovered Teachers Pay Teachers with my grade partner, Jenna. We were looking for a unit or two for Christmas Around the World. We found more than a few, and before we knew it, we were hooked on TpT.

Not long after, I stuck my toes in the water, and listed a few items for sale. One of my very first products was my "Best Friends" unit. Best Friends was a strategy I used to teach sums of 10 in my classroom for years. I hand-drew a couple of characters and buddied them up to make 10. The strategy was super succesful and my students got a kick out of their number friends, so I was determined to make a unit on it and sell it.

I was so super proud of it...but that was waaaaay back in early 2012. I'd like to think I've come a long way in terms of my units for TpT, but I still love the idea/concept of "Best Friends" and so I thought it would make the perfect candidate for the #tptsellerchallenge

Let's talk about what wasn't working, shall we?

Well, just about everything! Although I still love me some chevron, the cover on the old version was too busy and it didn't highlight what the product was all about.

I still love the Jessica Weible graphics I used but they didn't work in the product. They were too hard to cut out and because they're stick figures, it was hard to show the numbers.

I have new favorite fonts now, so I had to use those in place of the ones in the product.

Perhaps the biggest thing that wasn't working was the formatting and spacing. Fonts were too small, there was too much space between items on some pages, and not enough on others.

And, so now Best Friends is totally updated and a whole lot cuter and user-friendly!

Bigger, bolder pictures and fonts. That's important because this product functions as a classroom display. Plus, I just think bigger looks a whole lot better~

The Memory Game portion of the unit now comes with an ink saving version...important for teachers because our colored ink is so precious!

And perhaps most important? A new price! Pricing was something else I struggled with when I started on TpT. I read a VERY IMPORTANT thread on not devaluing our work and making sure we charge a fair price for our hard work and originality. And while I still think fair pricing is an invaluable took as a seller, I know now that the price I was charging wasn't fair. I've lowered the price a tad bit to reflect what I think the unit it worth, and knocked off another dollar for the remainder of Makeover Madness Week, so you can grab it for $2.00 through Sunday 6/21!!

Click the picture below to grab it.

And check out all of the other Makeover Madness products by visiting Third in Hollywood's blog:

Contraction Kings & Queens

I'm pretty excited about my newest unit for TpT: Contraction Kings & Queens :)

It's such a fun, engaging, and interactive unit you can use to introduce or reinforce contractions. And come on, what kid doesn't want to be the king or queen of anything and everything?

Posters are provided for common contractions. To cut down on printing, I display them on my projector, but they would also be great as part of a contraction bulletin board.

There are also a variety of printables to use with your students.

A big thing for me in my classroom is making the most of every minute. How can I attack multiple skills at once? These printables do just that!

There are sheets for contraction practice, but there are also printables that work on sentence writing and reading comprehension, while still addressing contractions. Win. Win. Win!

And every king and queen needs a crown, right? Different variations of crowns are included for your students to wear. But they have to work for that crown first...

Different versions of king and queen crowns are included. Use them as you progress through the unit, or use them to differentiate among your students.

The last element of Contraction Kings and Queens {and perhaps the most fun} is a "Royal Mission" Hallway Hunt! Your students are on a mission for the King and Queen of Contraction Land! If they complete it correctly, they get added to the Royal Knight & Dame Scroll! Your kiddos will love it!

You can grab this unit for 25% off through tomorrow {April 13th} by clicking the picture below!

-Halle

Bundled Comprehension: Win It!!

PSA: I've been hesitant to write a post plugging my bundled comprehension passages for a few weeks. I hate writing anything that seems to braggy or salesman-like but I really want to show what a versatile product the passages are, as well as give you a chance to win them and/or grab them at a great price...so without further ado..

***

If you've been a follower of my blog or my TpT shop for awhile, you know that my comprehension passages are my babies. I started with the Winter Edition two years ago, and I've since added 6 more editions to the collection. My passages are some of my best sellers in my store and have received some pretty awesome feedback...

The opportunity to buy my passages BUNDLED has been around for awhile...in fact if you bought in early on you got a total of 4 editions for FREE! That's a pretty amazing deal if you ask me!

With the recent edition of my non-fiction passages, my bundled comprehension passages are now complete. Since everyone loves a good deal, the bundle is discounted on TpT. The value of the bundle is $48.50 but you can grab it for $40 even on Teachers Pay Teachers. That's getting a whole regular edition for free, plus another dollar off!

The Bundled Edition of my comprehension passages includes 78 passages, so by purchasing the bundle at $40, you're getting each individual passage for under 52 cents with passages to use all school-year long!

not all passages are pictured

Editions in the Bundle Include:
*Back to School {Mini-Edition}
*Fall
*Christmas {and other winter holidays} {Mini-Edition}
*Winter
*Spring
*Late Spring/Summer
*Non-Fiction

All Editions, except the Non-Fiction Edition {which features non-fiction passages exclusively}, feature both fiction and non-fiction passages that require students to use text-based evidence to answer OPEN-ENDED comprehension questions.

Other skills addressed:
*plot
*characters
*predicting
*inferring
*main idea & details
*sequencing
*author's purpose
*genres
*connections {text to self, text to world}

The passages are PERFECT for:
*homework
*classwork
*centers
*early finishers
*guided reading
*close reading
*small groups
*tutoring
*extra practice

Here are some photos of the passages at work in my classroom:

I introduce my expectations for how to complete the comprehension passages on my projector. We complete a few of these as a class or small group before I assign the passages to guided reading groups or for homework.

A buyer actually introduced me to highlighting the questions and corresponding text in different colors. This is how we complete the passages in small groups. It makes it very easy for the students {and me} to see where in the text they found their answers. We've also used erasable colored pencils in case they make mistakes, but the markers are easier to use.

I also have students circle the words they would use when restating the question for their answer. Restating is a requirement in my classroom.

This is a sheet from the non-fiction passages, which are slightly different than the other editions. They feature a "define it" box where students have to define a specified word from the passage. The passages include definition cards, which are great to keep at a center or use in small groups. You can also have students use their own words or draw a picture of what the word means.

I plan on featuring a post in the near future explaining all of the different ways these passages have been used by myself and other teachers. Be on the lookout!

Now, here's the GOOD STUFF!

You can grab these passages for 20% off today and tomorrow ONLY!{{ Grabbing them during the sale means you get the passages for 41 cents per individual passage!}}

Grab the passages HERE!

You can also enter to win the BUNDLE below!!! Already own the bundle or want to buy it on sale instead? If you win and already own the bundle, I will give you $32 worth of resources from my store instead! I call that Win/Win!

The Giveaway ends tonight at midnight! Good luck!

Halle

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