Research projects allow students to become thoroughly informed about an engaging topic. They encompass a lot of different skills and can be integrated into any subject area. Best of all they prepare students for real-life learning by teaching them how to gather information. The benefits don't end there. There are many other reasons to make them a part of your classroom including the following: TIME MANAGEMENT Research projects provide opportunities to practice time management skills. This takes time. The more guided practice students are given, the better they become at knowing how to pace themselves. EXPLORATION OF INTERESTS More and more often students are told what to read and what to learn. Research projects give them some choice. Choosing what to learn about makes practicing those important reading and writing skills so much more enjoyable which results in increased learning. REPLICATES THE REAL WORLD Students are not going to be students forever. As......

According to the US Department of Education, approximately 16 percent of high school students in the US are interested in STEM careers and have the necessary knowledge to be successful in a growing and changing global workforce. Yet, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs in STEM are the fastest growing sector worldwide, with too many positions and not enough skilled adults to fill them. That has forced a whole new paradigm in teaching, one that is focused on instructing children in a way that will help them compete and be successful in future STEM-oriented careers. STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. Although these subjects have always been included in the traditional curriculum, the way they are approached in the classroom is being overhauled to be more relevant to an ever-changing and technologically fast-paced world. The Difference Between STEM and STEAM A growing debate in the newly proposed STEM-based initiative is where arts ......

We have been talking about nonfiction text features and structure since the first week of school. Still, some students haven't made a strong connection between all the fancy words and what they mean. This week I have a great motivator for them :) We will be reviewing nonfiction text features and structures using the book " Owls " by Gail Gibbons and my own nonfiction text flip book . What's the great motivator? After learning about owls through the wonderful book by Gail Gibbons, we will dissect owl pellets on Friday! My students are all super excited and eager to learn everything they can about owls. After our first lesson, I've had students come up to me and show me the non-fiction text features they've noticed in the books they're reading. Score! How I set up my Reading Stations this week I have 3 reading station this week: Teacher, Reading, Computer. Each station is about 20 minutes long. During the teacher station , we are working on the non......

                  I'm not gonna lie to you...Reader's theaters are a lot of fun! They're fun for my students and they're fun for me. But the best part about adding them to your reading program is that besides being fun, readers theaters can help your students in a number of ways. Here's how: 1. Reader's Theater Engages Students        Introduce an entertaining script to your students and magically, even reluctant readers are hooked! Most kids really enjoy being able to be involved in this "fun" kind of reading. 2. Reader's Theater Strengthens Fluency         One of the great things about reader's theater is that the very nature of reader's theater (practicing the script several times to perform it) allows struggling students the opportunity to re-read the same material for an authentic purpose. This repeated exposure helps develop the fluency skills that will allow students to foc......

Today we are going to learn about... blah... blah... blah.  Once students hear the words today we are going to learning about, a majority of them hear nothing but the blah...blah...blah.  That is why it's important to try to hook them before the lesson begins.  Peak their interest, allow them to think, get them talking, and engage them in what they will be learning about. Guess the Topic This is one of my favorite!  Before introducing the new topic, give students a collection of words related to the lesson.  Allow them to guess the topic they are about to learn about.   Play a Game That's right, play a game BEFORE you begin the lesson.  When choosing a game choose a game that activates students' prior knowledge.  For example, before beginning multiplying by multi-digit numbers we played a cooperative learning game called Ask-n-Switch to review the basic multiplication facts.   Giving Scenarios Highlight lesson ob......