Okay maybe not final but we're getting so close. It's nearly May. I can smell it in the air!!! I'm thinking of sending home a little check...

I've seen several posts on FB pages about what to do at the end of the year. If you've been here before you know I started a tradition a few years ago singing camp songs. Picture on bottom is kids reaction when we get ready to start camp songs! They are the PERFECT finish *ta da* at the end of the year. It keeps the kids singing, clapping, and they are just plain FUN!! This is a previous post I had that has several including tons of variations to "A Sailor Went to Sea" that my kids can't get enough of! This is the expression I usually see when I tell them it's time for Camp Songs! In addition to these my students also love: "Highland Gates" from the Amidons book Down in the Valley- get the book.. you won't regret it!! http://www.dancingmasters.com/store/books-cds-dvds/down-in-the-valley I use this with First Grade on up through about third. Jump Jim Joe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1m-DIa5QTA GREAT for littles- PreK/ Kinder/First Grade And I see this from the older kids when we are doing camp songs: Sashay the Donut also from the Amidons book of the same name (grades 3 and up) They LOVE this one!! These are some of the youtube videos I watched to learn how to sing/perform the songs and chants and then personalized them. I don't use these with the kids. We actually put a crackling fire on the screen to watch and turn the lights out so we have a campfire atmosphere. Wisconsin Milk is here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Mr0ccX7RCc Mac n Cheese: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV46eduDyTY Go Bananas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFXitbTQ0-E Ricky Ticky Toomba: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCmvCJU6v6E&list=PL9738E2086220EEBA&index=4 Tarzan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7w1aREkMnwY&list=PL9738E2086220EEBA&index=8 Herman the Worm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCgwV-iI80E&list=PL9738E2086220EEBA&index=9 Singing in the Rain also called Chili Bop: (LOVE this one!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bbHVrtx0Ow Pizza Hut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ctjeZD0c0A Humpty Dumpty: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYY7JHl_nFw HYSTERICAL! instead of the pelvic thrust on "huh" I have the kids clap and jump as high as they can go. Found a Peanut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOh6tnceO3Q Froggy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VoLaQV8aE8 Baby Shark: MUST DO!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da2IgWbkvI0 Start at 1:15 And a couple more: Have fun and keep the music going until the bitter (or sweet) end!

This compliment book is a great end of the year activity or use it during the year as part of a social emotional lesson. Your students will love writing messages and sharing memories with each other. Print one for yourself and keep a memento of your class each year! Pages are formatted to be prin...

There have been a few times that a student will be getting ready for their pre-algebra final and get no help from their teachers as to what will be on that test. A few years ago, I ended up making my own multiple choice test for an overview of pre-algebra. I thought I would share with you. It has topics in it like ratios, proportions, fractions, probability, stem and leaf plots, area and perimeter, and much more. There are 39 multiple choice tests. In the choices, I would do one correct answer and then some of the other answers I would solve it with common mistakes students make like forgetting to change the sign of the inequality when it's multiplied by a negative. Get a free copy of my overview of pre-alebra by clicking on the image of it below. It will open in Google Docs and you can save it from there. If you find any errors, please let me know. I've checked it through, but there are times when a calculation gets past me. As I tutor my student through this test, we talk about strategies to get through the test quicker. I teach them to look over all the answers and estimate what they think the answer would be. They can then cross out which ones they know it couldn't be. I train them to solve the problems backwards if they are unsure where to start. For example, the student could take the answers and plug them into the equation to see if they work. These are just a few of the ideas I have for teaching test prep for a multiple choice test. What ideas do you have?

This high-energy, low-tech game can be used in any subject area, with almost any age. Perfect for a review.

I don’t think there’s a more fun Shakespeare play to teach than Macbeth. It moves quickly (it’s one of Shakespeare’s shorter plays) and has it all: bloodshed, valor, all wrapped up in a play about what happens when the temptation to get what you want present itself. And it has witches! I also like that no matter ... Read more

I have found myself in a bit of a panic lately over the impending end of the school year. That panic does NOT involve the carefree summer days at the beach, clearly! However, I can't even think about those days yet. I am in a panic over my Reading class. The fact that I only have 18 days of instruction left. Well - let's be clear... between standardized testing and finals, I only have 13 days of instruction left with them. I think my panic is due to the fact that I only had them for the current semester. Maybe if I had had them from Day 1 of the school year, I would feel a bit more relaxed. But as I taught today, I looked around and noticed several things. First, they were all engaged - (Okay, all of them but one. Ya'll - I am desperately still trying to reach this one!) -engaged in meaningful and explicit practice of targeted skills for each of them on their instructional level. (I felt very impressive even typing that...Haha!) Second, they were all working at a higher level - some incrementally higher while others significantly higher - than when I first got them in January. And finally, the one student whose lack of progress, negative behaviors, and zero engagement inspired me to volunteer to take this class was: Progressing, Behaving, and Engaged! So what could be wrong? I am about to send them off into summer with this foundation we have all worked so hard to achieve in our classroom just barely in place. I still have not made progress with many of them in the area of independent reading. I can honestly say, I see in several that they at least no longer hate to read. They are willing to try and are authentic in their efforts. But for some others, they still hate to read on their own and are the best, most epic fake readers you have ever seen. Panic!! How far back will they have regressed when I see them in the Fall? Will they have read anything at all? Will they return to me, roll their eyes, and think: "Oh. Good. Lord. Not this crazy reading lady with all her dorky book suggestions!!" These are literally all of the thoughts running through my head this afternoon as I was watching them do their independent and partner work, and I was about to meet with students individually. And then, as if the Reading Gods heard my panic, one of the students said, "Can we do that thing where we make the words on our desks? I think that is helping me." And another replied, "We won't have time to hear her read Wonder if we do that. We can do it tomorrow. I want to hear Via's (main character's sister) side of the story. " Shut the front door. Maybe the foundation isn't so barely laid after all. Fingers crossed, we may just be able to start up where we left off. And until then, I will continue to plan purposefully, differentiate, and read aloud. And hopefully when they return, the hating to read part will not even be on their radar, and the "hey this isn't so bad it is actually pretty great" part will remain. Fingers crossed. After all, the willingness to try is the majority of the battle. attitude. And today, I realized that at least that much, we have accomplished. I will share quickly two things from this past week. With all of the standardized testing coming up (Ew.), I have tried to have mini-lessons that review literary features they will probably see and need to identify. Since Spring Break, I have done two days of literary feature mini-lessons and three days of reading strategy instruction and/or review mini-lessons each week. I have also done Word Work once a week and Making Words three times a week. This partnered with read aloud, conferring, and independent/small group practice make our class period seem pretty short and sweet. First up is Plot Structure. As a disclaimer here, let me say that I get many of my ideas off of Pinterest. I always give credit when I can find the source. I have looked and cannot find the original post for this Plot Structure idea. So my apologies to the sweet teacher who shared this originally! I am sad I can't find it, because her blog was amazing. Anyway, here is the anchor chart I made: I printed them all books based on their independent level off of the A-Z Reading site so they could practice identifying the parts of the structure. I also had them add the anchor chart to their journals. I didn't get a picture of the independent work. They shared it and I recorded it on the board. Here is a journal entry picture. I wish I had a picture of their independent work. Ugh! We also did a foldable on Plot Structure. Each of the flaps listed bullet points to further explain and give examples of each part. Again, this was a Pinterest find. I adapted the bullet points on the inside. Next we did characterization. I outlined 5 basic questions to ask themselves about the main character in the same book that they had used to identify plot. They filled in a graphic organizer I threw together, and we discussed it. We also discussed how thinking of these questions and answering them about the character as they read could lead to a great character analysis with textual support. Win-win! Here is an anchor chart we put together for the mini-lesson. We also did a FAST characterization strategy. FAST is an acronym for Feelings, Actions, Sayings, and Thoughts. I try to give them options so they can choose what makes the most sense and use what works for them. Here is the anchor chart after we analyzed Santa Claus. They then did a character analysis of someone they know and added it to their journals. Okay - I feel like I inadequately explained the instructional part of this post. Don't judge. Ginger the Golden needs to go out for her walk and I am exhausted. It is pretty self explanatory, though. Look over my Pinterest boards (either High School Classroom or High School Literacy) and you will see links for support if you'd like. Or shoot me an email. Have a wonderful week and make these last days count! Mrs. Beck

Inside: End of the year games for Spanish class. The end of the year can be… interesting, right? Everyone is tired, you have run out of ideas, testing has already been done, and summer is on everyone’s mind. Here are some ideas that work with ANY unit or theme and put all the summer energy to

B1 Rephrasing practice. Here you are a worksheet planned in order to provide an array of different B1 grammar structures before the end of the year test. Possible key provided. - ESL worksheets

(949) End of year feelings

This is the second post I’ve done about how I keep my students engaged at the end of the year. I teach seniors, and after prom they’re pretty much checked out. However, I don’t just want to show movies when there are plenty of fun things to do that can be related back to what ... Read more

I am linking up today with Amy Abbott and several other music teachers to share some ideas for surviving the end of the school year. TIPS #1: Keep them moving with singing games and folk dancing Jump Jim Joe This is the closest version I could find to the one I do with my kids.I use the recording from the Amidons and I have the inside circle move because it is a shorter distance to travel. When teaching a double circle dance, make sure you are always on the outside so that you can see everyone! This will eliminate a lot of problems. Our Old Sow I learned this game from Jo Kirk last summer and my kids LOVE IT! TIP #2: Keep them "on track" and engaged in music learning until the end. I usually spend the last 2-3 weeks as review time to practice the concepts we got through that year as well as looking ahead to next year to prepare the upcoming concepts for the fall. I've been using my "Race to the Finish Line" planning guide to keep myself and my kiddos "on track" from January through May. (click the picture above to see it in my TPT store) It includes song lists for each grade as well as an excel file for each grade that lays out the different concepts through the second half of the school year. Since it is in excel, it is totally editable. You can add song titles under each concepts, or move the concepts to a different month depending on where you are in your sequence. TIP #3 Remember the good times! Music should be a JOYFUL experience for your students. It is so much fun to take a moment and reflect on the experiences shared together in music. I created some "Music Memories" pages for each grade level so that I can see what they remember most about our year together, their favorite singing game, favorite piece we listened to and more. The packet is totally editable, so you can add your own questions if you think it is something you would be interested in using with your kids. (click on the picture above to see it in my TPT store) One more fun thing I wanted to share with you was the a bunch of music teachers will be teaming up for another $2Tuesday on TPT. Enter "$2TuesdayMusicFlashSale" in the search bar on TPT to see all of the hugely discounted items from some amazing TPT music teacher/authors. The file from my store will be my melodic flashcards for preparing and practicing sol-mi. (click on the picture above to see it in my store) These flashcards are amazing resources for melodic transitions between songs. I could have a mystery song on the board like this: Starlight Starbright See Saw I don't have cards for "2,4,6,8" but I had my kids construct it using the cards from the other songs. Then we added the rhythms above. Next time we will transfer to the staff. The kit includes 164 flashcards designed to go with the following songs: Bee Bee Bumblebee Blue Bird (1st measure) Come Back Home My Little Chicks Doggie, Dogggie (1st measure) Hey Hey Look at Me Lemonade Rain Rain Go Away See Saw Up and Down See the Old Witch Snail, Snail (1st measure) Starlight Starbright Pitch is shown using: Icons only (can be used in the preparation stage) Icons w/ solfege Icons on staff Rhythm stick notation w/ solfa (where rhythms are appropriate) Icons on staff with solfa Standard notation with solfa inside note head What are your tips for surviving the end of the school year?

Medieval Japan Lapbook and Unit Study here at Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus is fun. You'll love my other homeschool lapbooks.

When you're still technically in school, but the conditions just aren't great for teaching, what do you do to make the most of the time? Here are 30 ideas.

What is a social story? Plus tips on how to write a social story for kids with autism or hyperlexia

Thank you to Diane for submitting this fun book report poster. It’s legal size (paper) worksheet and is great for lower grades (or as an easy project for upper grades). Great end of the year …

Creative Writer Worksheet – Writing Study Guide (PDF) This week marks the end of our year of creative writer worksheets. From a multitude of possible topics I had to choose one last worksheet, and here it is! I hope this worksheet will serve as a reminder to keep studying and improving yourself as a writer. There’s always more to…

End-of-the-year memes that all teachers will understand. Save this for when you need a laugh to get you to the end of the year.

I'm back!!! Sorry for the gap in posts. The end of the year was a bit crazy for many reasons and blogging had to be put on the back burner...

Oh my goodness, I so hate packing up my stuff at the end of the year. And I thought I was organized! Oh well. While I was cleaning, I t...

sandflakedraws - Posts tagged sandflakedrew Art blog of Joey. Funky mix of fan art, original, and professional work. Agender, they/them please ^^ //COMMISSIONS ARE CLOSED\\

Some ideas for sending home end of the year gifts for your students. Plus a poster for parents: 9 Ways a Parent Can Help With Reading

This is the second post I’ve done about how I keep my students engaged at the end of the year. I teach seniors, and after prom they’re pretty much checked out. However, I don’t just want to show movies when there are plenty of fun things to do that can be related back to what ... Read more

A blog about teaching middle school ELA and math.

Everyone loves Boggle! Here is a template that you can use again and again – just change the letters. There are two versions, one in color for the overhead and one in grayscale for individual use. Perfect for centers, bell work, or anytime you have a few spare minutes. Download Boggle Template Rachel Lynette You ... Read More about Boggle Template for End of the Year Fun

What are they? Inflectional endings are those groups of letters that are added to the end of a word. These endings change the meaning of the words. We are following the Katelyn’s Progression for th…

In 1922, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, new parents and pinched for cash, gave up their suite at the Plaza Hotel and rented a house on Long Island in Great Neck. The rent was $300 a month, compared wi…

A number of people have commented and/or asked questions about the Year-End Evaluations that I hold in my studio. I started doing this ten years ago and it has been so helpful for me and the families! The last lesson of the year one or both parents attend the lesson with their child. The week […]

I don't know where you stand, but for me, I only have 9 more teaching days left! This happens to be a bittersweet moment for me. I LOVE teac...

Fifteen school themed ad lib worksheets great for homework assignments, extra credit, and language arts skills practice.

Here are some fun end of lesson activities and ideas that can be used for the remaining three to five minutes of you class time.

When you're still technically in school, but the conditions just aren't great for teaching, what do you do to make the most of the time? Here are 30 ideas.

The first day of school is full of so many things: anticipation, wide-eyes, school supplies, new faces, maybe a few butterflies. And I...

While testing is traditionally the most widely used final assessment method, there are a variety of other alternatives a teacher could use to measure comprehension at the end of a unit. While marking tests can be tedious, summative assessments are important to not only a students learning, but your teaching as well. My students needed a break from traditional testing. I was willing to give them a break, but I still wanted them to review the elements of a unit in a way that I could still measure their personal comprehension. That's when I came up with this Board Game Project. It's a fun twist on the traditional test. This board game project allows students to reflect on what they learned, while at the same time, presenting the information in a really fun and creative way. Everything that was covered in a unit is fair game and can be incorporated in one way or another. Even the smallest details of a unit are important to this project.The project can also be done individually, in pairs, or even in small groups. There a lot of flexibility within this project, that's what makes it a great alternative. Here are some other testing alternatives: • Final paper • Poster • Portfolio • Fact sheets • Open book tests • Chapter/series quizzes These kinds of activities are especially useful if you have students that suffer from test anxiety. Giving them an option to show what they know with another type of project can build their confidence and allow them to demonstrate their knowledge in a less-stressful manner. If you look like this when you see a stack of tests that need to be marked, or your students look like this when they hear the word T-E-S-T, then take a break from the traditional testing and try something new! You and your students deserve it! What assessment methods do you use in your class instead of testing? Leave a comment below and I will add it to the list!