Use Chirbit to Practice Reading Skills in a FUN Way

I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching's Five for Friday Linky.  This past week I had the opportunity to present at a technology conference.  To be honest, using technology intimidates me.  There are sooooo many things that can go wrong and  I feel that my kiddos ALL need my help at the EXACT.SAME.TIME -- which causes me to lose my cool.  So with that being said, I was impressed with myself for actually having something to share at a technology conference.  

Last year I realized my kiddos were not making as much progress as I wanted with their reading fluency and summarizing skills. We talked about it, I modeled it, they practiced it, but for some reason, it just wasn't sticking.  

Luckily for me, my problem was solved when I was introduced to Chirbit. A FREE and SUPER EASY website that allows you to record and save audio files.  You can have your kiddos record a cold reading of a passage and save it. Then they can listen to their recording and use a rubric to evaluate themselves. Give them a few days to practice the passage, and then head back to Chirbit and have them rerecord themselves reading the same passage. Now they can reflect on their improvements as a reader. 

So the fist step would be to go to Chirbit (CLICK HERE) and sign up for an account. Your students will share your account, so make sure the user name and password you select are easy for your kiddos to remember. I just used the log-in name and password (they all have the same log-in and password) my kiddos use in the computer lab for this website.

Once you have your account set up, decide what reading skill you would like your students to practice.  Chirbit allows your students to record themselves and then save their recording. So when we used Chirbit for the first time, I wanted my students to practice their fluency skills.  I gave each student a reading passage and had them record themselves reading it (you can use any passages you have, or copy a page out of a book and have your kiddos use that). This was a cold reading since they didn't have previous exposure to the text. After it was recorded and saved (we saved the passages like this: Leah 1 My Dog -- which is name; 1 for cold reading and 2 for warm reading; title of text) they listened to themselves reading the passage.

I passed out these worksheets to help with the process, and let me tell you I WAS BLOWN AWAY with their responses. They totally exceeded my expectations and really picked up on their strengths and areas for improvement.

There's one worksheet for each area of fluency (expression, pace, and accuracy) and the last one combines the three aspects into one sheet.

CLICK HERE to download these sheets for FREE!

Once your students have completed their cold reading and reflected on it, have a class discussion or speak with them individually. Have them tell you what they did really well, what surprised them, what they need to work on.  My kiddos provided some awesome ideas and I bet yours will too.

You will also need to tell your students that they will record themselves reading this same passage again.  I typically give my students 4 - 7 days to practice the passage (the number of days just depends on our schedule) and then we head back to the computer lab to rerecord (there's also a Chirbit App available for only 99¢).



After we practiced our fluency with Chirbit, we practiced retelling different texts. Here's the sheet I created for that.

CLICK HERE to download the retelling sheet (it's actually in the same document as the fluency sheets from above).



Another aspect of Chirbit that I love is that you can get a QR code for each recording.  For each of my students I copied the QR code from both of their recordings into a table, then I printed it off and sent them home. My kiddos were super excited to share their readings with their families.

Here's one of my student's Chirbits.




My girls from Primary Peeps are having an absolutely amazing giveaway that you NEED TO ENTER.  You could win a $100 Amazon Gift Card.  CLICK HERE to be taken to it (scroll to the bottom of Laura's post). It ends TOMORROW.

Catch Up on All the Tips and Tools

This week Missy, from The Dirt Road Teacher, has recapped all the Tips and Tools that have been shared this summer. If you have taken a break from the teaching world (I kinda have -- and as much as I love teaching, I have really loved every second of being mommy and wife.) and are ready to get back into the swing of things, make sure you check out Missy's post for some awesome freebies. Here are some pictures of the freebies Missy mentions in her post.  Each freebie is from a different teacher-author in our Primary Peeps group.  

          

          

          

CLICK HERE to be taken to her post and to get the freebies for yourself. 

Tips and Tricks for Literacy Centers

This week, Autumn, from Coast to Coat Kinder is sharing her awesome ideas for making for literacy centers run smoothly.  She'll show you how she organizes her centers

  

and she's offering her adorable center labels for FREE.  

CLICK HERE to read about her awesome ideas.  

HOT Summer Giveaway! $120 in Prizes!

I'm participating in an amazing giveaway that's being headed up by NC Teacher Chick.  For the next three weeks, there will be a different giveaway and there will be a total of $120 in prizes awarded.  Check out the details below:

The first giveaway ends this Sunday (July 20) and the winner will receive a $20 TpT Gift Card AND a $20 Amazon Gift Card.   How awesome would that be to win????  Go ahead and enter below. Good luck. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Words of Wisdom

I'm linking up with Lisa from PAWSitively Teaching to offer some Words of Wisdom for new teachers.  I completely agree with everything Lisa said in her post. If you haven't read it yet, CLICK HERE to do so. It's wonderful.

    

I think the first point Lisa mentioned is an absolute MUST, so I'm going to repeat it -- make sure you focus on each of your students as an individual.  Get to know them on a personal level.  Find out about their family, what they do on the weekend, their favorite things to do outside of school, anything about them. A great teacher knows each of their students' academic strengths and weaknesses, as well as their personal likes, dislikes, family life, and interests. 

Every Monday morning, I require each of my kiddos to tell me something about their weekend. It doesn't have to be anything special, I just want to know something.  I really focus on what they are saying and often try to ask a question or two to gather more information.  Not only does this help me get to know them, they get to know their classmates AND it allows them an authentic opportunity to practice their listening and speaking skills. 

I know this is difficult to do because as a classroom teacher you're pulled in so many directions and have so many requirements, however, I think building positive relationships with your kiddos is the number one requirement for a successful teacher. 

My second Words of Wisdom goes hand in hand with number one, build positive relationships with your students' families. Within the first few weeks of school, I always make an effort to call each family AND send a positive note home. Many students have never gotten a positive phone call or note home, so this could be a game changer.  Plus, if you do this within the first few weeks, you most likely will have something positive to say about even the most difficult students.  Reaching out to each family shows them that you're invested in their child. And when families know you want the best for their child, they will be more supportive when you need to address problems that may arise during the rest of the year. 

Another way to build positive relationships with your students' families is to truly listen when your students tell you about what's going on in their personal life. If they tell you a grandparent passed away, send a card home expressing your sympathy (Walgreens actually has boxes of cards for only a few bucks. I purchase these and then keep them in my classroom so I always have cards on hand to send home.).  If  one of your student's has a new sibling, send home a small gift to congratulate them.  If you find out it's a family member's birthday, simply write "Happy Birthday _____" in their agenda.   

And if you notice one of your students hasn't been acting like their normal self, call their family and tell them what you've observed and that you're concerned. Most likely, something is going on at home and their family will be grateful you called to let them know it's affecting their child during the day. 

Last but not least, ALWAYS BE FLEXIBLE.  Even though you need to have your lessons planned out and everything ready to go, things very rarely go as planned, so make sure you're flexible. The more flexible you are, the better off you'll be.  

I hope my Words of Wisdom were helpful. If you want to read more, make sure you check out PAWSitively Teaching's linky for additional Words of Wisdom -- or to add your own.  

Must-Haves for Math

I'm linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday Linky party to share some must-haves for 2nd grade math.

I'm so excited to share with you my new math homework product.  If you're tired of assigning boring worksheets and want your math homework to reinforce foundational concepts you're teaching during the day, this product is for you.  I have included a simple and fun activity for each day of the year.  Activities in the beginning of the year are relatively easy and they get progressively harder as the year goes on. 

Here's a sample of some activities.

The best part of this product is that you can customize the assignments to fit your needs.  CLICK HERE to check out the product and download 3 free weeks of homework activities.

If you need centers, try these out.  I have a set for each quarter and almost all Common Core Standards are reinforced through these simple centers. Just print the directions, explain how to play and let your kiddos practice important skills.  CLICK HERE to be taken to 1st quarter's centers.

If you teach 2nd grade and are in need of word problems, I have an awesome product that offers one word problem every day of the year.  In addition, the word problems are laid out so they get progressively harder throughout the course of the school year. Plus, they are organized in a way that you will teach all the different types of word problems required of second graders (start unknown, change unknown, result unknown, comparisons, etc.)  CLICK HERE to check it out. 

Do you know about Learn Zillion? If not, YOU MUST check it out. This is an amazing website that offers FREE short videos for almost every Common Core ELA and Math Standard. I have learned so much from these videos. You can watch them on your own or even show them to your class as an introduction to each standard. CLICK HERE to be taken to Learn Zillion. 

And last but not least, if you teach 2nd grade math and need some help planning, download my 1st Quarter Planning Pack for FREE.  It is jam packed with ideas and other helpful resources to help you have a successful year teaching math. CLICK HERE to download it for FREE.

Short Vowel Task Cards = FREE

This week's Tips and Tools for Back to School freebie is from Julie at A First For Everything.  She's offering a set of simple task cards that focus on missing short vowel sounds. CLICK HERE to be taken to her awesome freebie.  These task cards are geared more for first grade, but they will be fabulous practice for my lower achieving second graders.  

         

If you teach 1st grade, make sure you check out Julie's website for more awesome ideas.

And don't forget to stop by next week for another freebie from one of the Primary Peeps.