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Have you switched to Bloglovin yet?  Oh my!  It is so easy to use, and now that my Google Reader is going away, and it doesn't always work like it is supposed to, it was time to switch!  Tonight I got a chance to play around with it.

If you have not switched yet, head on over and start your blog following there!  It even syncs all of your blogs from your blog list in Google!

While you are there, follow my blog too, so you don't miss anything!  It is super easy to use!!

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Happy rest of the weekend!

Five for Friday ~ May 17 {Summer ABC FREEBIE}

Well, it is that time again to link up with Kacey at Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday!

Here are my five random things for this week!

1.  I have spent all week testing, testing, testing, except for Monday when I was home with a sick little girl.  She was about as sick as my big toe, dancing and singing all day!  I so wish I was that resilient when I am sick!

2.  This year our school is trying something new for summer school.  Instead of just the few weeks with 12 days, we are spreading it out over the course of six weeks over the summer, with two days each week.  Since it is so different, I am writing the curriculum for summer school.  Here is my workplace for that!  Yes, it looks a little crazy, but it works!

3.  Our summer school is going to have a very different approach.  Like I said before, we will have six weeks of summer school with two days each.  We are hoping this will prevent that "summer slide".  One of the other really cool things we are going to try is to have 1:1 and small group sessions for reading with students who are really struggling.  We are using various books and activities to fill up those 45 minute tutoring sessions.  Kindergarteners will each have 20 minutes each because of their focusing abilities.  I wanted something super fun for them to do for tracking the alphabet, so I made some summer themed ABC order puzzles.  They are half price through the weekend!  You can grab a sampling of them as a FREEBIE by clicking here or on the seahorses puzzle picture.  The cover page takes you to the paid item in my TPT store, which also has the freebie as the preview file.

4.  Back to testing!  I had read an interesting article in Parents magazine about how children's brains work, especially during testing.  It talked a lot about taking "brain breaks", which I have heard a lot about recently.  In the article, it mentioned that for students to actually be more successful on tests, they should do exercise at least 10 minutes before the test.  I told the staff about it, and some of them took it to heart!  Today as I was getting ready to test, I saw that fourth grade was doing Zumba.  I stopped by and did Zumba right there with them.  Here I am doing Zumba!  Don't you love my friend's face in the background?

5.  I spent last night watching one of my favorite shows for its finale ~ The Office.  I spent countless hours "catching up" while on the treadmill. I sure am going to miss the show and "Jim Halpert".  Love that Angela came down the aisle to "Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns N Roses!

 

 So, what are you waiting for?  Head on over to Doodle Bugs Teaching and link up!  Then see what everyone else did this week!

Book Talk Thursday ~ I'm a Booger

Do you have students in your class that pick their nose?  And what do they do with it?  Well, I have the book for you!

Yep!  You read that right!  I am going to tell you about a funny, yet serious book today all about boogers!  When I saw it in my guidance counselor's office, I just couldn't pass up the opportunity!  So are you ready for another...

 Like I said, today's book is all about boogers ~ a super hot topic among boys!  If they are not talking about them, well....we won't even go there!  The book for tonight is I Am a Booger... Treat Me With Respect! by Julia Cook.

This book had me laughing out loud about some serious business!  When I first picked it up, I really thought, "Oh my!  What in the world is this going to be about?"  After reading it, I realized that every child should read it or have it read to them.

Julia Cook writes the story from the perspective of a booger named Boogie.  Boogie gives the reader information of what it is made of.  I did not realize it was really just a bunch of dirt, gross!  So, right there, we should leave them alone!  Boogie does give the reader ways to get rid of them without being so disgusting.  He does tell us to use a "booger ghost", a tissue wrapped around the finger.

Boogie also reminds the reader that boogers serve an important purpose.  They keep germs out of our nose!  Again, a great persuasive stance to treating boogers with respect!  I am always looking for great books that persuade the reader to do something, and this one fits the bill!  How perfect when teaching a unit on author's purpose!

This book will be perfect to read this time of year when the kids are sneezing and stopped up.  Allergies are in full swing, and everyone is full of "snot".  To help with health issues, this book could be read and discussed to help students deal with snot and boogers.  And, students of all ages will relate to it.  Our guidance counselor is even going to read it to the sixth graders, who will be howling laughing!

So, if you get a chance, check out this fun book by Julia Cook:  I Am a Booger... Treat Me With Respect!  You won't regret it!

So, how do you handle students who do odd things with their boogers?  

Solving Dyslexia: 15 Weaknesses and 10 Steps to Remediation ~ Guest Blogger, Dr. Erica Warren

Testing has taken over my life at work, so I am super excited to have a guest blogger today!  Erica Warren at Learning Specialist Materials and Good Sensory Learning is talking today about a hot topic ~ dyslexia!  And, after reading her post, head on over to her blog Learning Specialist Materials to read more super informative information about learning and learning styles!

New estimates suggest that 1 in 10 children have dyslexia, and that it is the most common type of learning disability.  Dyslexia is a language-based issue that impacts academics in the areas of word decoding, reading comprehension, reading fluency, word retrieval, writing, spelling and some mathematical computations such as word problems.  Although dyslexia is widespread in schools, many students remain undiagnosed.  In addition, many others that are diagnosed never receive the needed remediation.  So what can we do to help these underserved individuals?  First, we can learn to recognize the common warning signs so that these students can be formally tested.  Second, we can learn how to help these students strengthen the weaknesses associated with dyslexia.

15 Common Weaknesses:

1.    Difficulty with rhyming words

2.    Difficulty memorizing letters, words and number sequences

3.    Mis-sequencing of syllables in a word (aminal – for animal)

4.    Sees letter and number sequences correctly but may remember and recall them in a different order

5.    Skips and misreads words

6.    Difficulty sounding out words

7.    Difficulty spelling

8.    Word finding problems

9.    Problems with rote memorization

10. Repetitions, additions, transpositions, omissions, and substitutions, of letters, numbers and/or words

11. Trouble understanding inferences, jokes, or idioms

12. Difficulty tracking from left to right

13. Complaints of dizziness, headaches or stomach aches while reading

14. Difficulty discriminating between similar sounding letters and words

15. Difficulty interpreting word problems

10 Ways to Strengthen the Weaknesses Associated with Dyslexia

1.    Allow students to use color overlays and help them select the color that is most soothing for them.  I make my own color overlays by taking transparent, colorful report covers and slicing them into strips.  They make great book marks too!

2.    Play sorting games with common reversals like the letters “b” and “d” or the words “was” and saw.” Have the students organize the letters or words into separate groupings or categories.  As an additional fun option, you can even ask your students to use letters or words that they cut out of magazines. 

3.    Find jokes on the internet or get a joke book.  Have fun going through each joke and talk about them.  Talk about double meanings, what makes them funny and make a list of words that have more then one meaning.  Then, help your students to make their own joke book.

4.    If spelling is a real problem when writing, allow students to use a computer with a spell check.  You can also scribe for them, and consider purchasing speech to text software such as, Dragon Naturally Speaking.  Over time, these options will help students with dyslexia learn the correct spelling as they will continually see the words spelled correctly.

5.    Make a list of each student’s commonly misspelled words and write them in a notebook.  Place one word on each page.  Have fun coming up with memory strategies with the students that will help them remember the correct spelling.  For example, if they have difficulty with the word “what, ” they may notice that the word “what “ has the word “hat” in it.  Then they can draw a hat on top of the word “what.” 

6.    Perform eye tracking exercises with the students to strengthen the eye muscles.  This can be done by placing two objects about 1-2 feet in front of the student.  Make sure to place the objects about 16 inches apart.  Have the students look back and forth between the objects as quickly as they can for a minute.   Do this at least twice a day. 

7.    Play ping pong with the students or have them watch others play ping pong.  Ping pong is a wonderful game that strengthens tracking as well as other visual processing areas.

8.    Make difficult letters and numbers with the students out of wet spaghetti, shaving cream, or clay.   Bringing a tactile modality as well as the “fun factor” into lessons will make the material more memorable.

9.    Make a collage with the students that focuses on one or two difficult words or letters at a time. 

10. Have the students use books on tape.  While listening, ask them to close their eyes and visualize the story.  Many students with dyslexia never fully develop their capacity to visualize, because the process of reading is so mentally taxing.  Helping these students to develop the ability to visualize will aid them with reading comprehension and memory.  Another option is to ask them to read along with the recording, so they can improve their sight word vocabulary and begin to see whole words and phrases.

If you are interested in purchasing some products that help students with dyslexia, consider downloading a free sample of Dr. Warren’s Reversing Reversals, Making Inferences the Fun and Easy Way or, Reading Games.

About the Author

Dr. Erica Warren is a reading specialist, educational therapist and author of multisensory, and mindful educational materials.  She resides in New York, where she works one on one with students as a “personal trainer for the brain” and an educational consultant/teacher trainer. Dr. Warren offers her own materials at Good SensoryLearning and Teachers Pay Teachers. You can also get free advice and resources by following her blog here.

Thank you, Erica, for some wonderful and informative information!

My First Tried it Tuesday ~ Watermarking Pictures

Monday morning the babysitter called to tell me that Ginny Beth had gotten sick in the car, so guess what ~ Yep!  I rushed out to meet her and get Ginny Beth.  Home we went, and the rest of the day was dancing and eating crackers.  Hmmmm....I wish I could get over illnesses that quickly!

So, I played around with something I have wanted needed to do for pictures on my blog ~ watermarking!

It is actually super simple and FREE!

On Sunday I was trying to post all of my pictures into my blog post, but it was taking F-O-R-E-V-E-R to load up.  I figured out that I had way too many pictures that had been uploaded from my computer, so I decided to start using my Photobucket account, which is a lot easier than I had imagined!

Anyway, while I was figuring out Photobucket, I took the plunge and googled "watermarking software".  I found some great paid ones that would do it quickly and in batches, but I wanted free.  I came across TSR Watermark Image, a free watermarking software download.  It is sooooo easy and quick to use!

After uploading my photos to the software, I was able to apply my watermark and resize my pictures to make it perfect for my blog.  I could do it all at one time for multiple pictures!  That makes it so simple!!

The first picture focuses on what I want my watermark to be and look like.  I could do a picture or text.  And I could place it wherever I want on the pictures.  It actually uses a preview image, so I just chose the one I would use for it.

Then, on the next tab, I chose how to save it, including the size.  Since pictures on the web don't have to be huge, I could make them smaller, allowing me more space in my Photobucket account!

Then, I clicked the start button at the bottom, and voila ~ my watermarked image, which I uploaded into Photobucket, copied the direct link, and pasted it into the box under "from URL" tab.  So simple!

You can see my little watermark at the bottom.  I can change it to anything I want at any time!  And the best part is that I can do up to 50 pictures at one time!  Here is a watermarked picture of a product {Read It With Emotion Fluency Phrasing Activity} that I started out with.

I really thought this would take longer, but it is so, so simple!  Plus, my pictures upload much quicker from Photobucket!  So, go check out TSR Watermark Image for free!

I am so glad I took the time to try this out!  Now, all of my pictures will be protected with a watermark!

Let's Get Acquainted Linky ~ Lovin' Teachin'

I am so glad to finally be able to get back into this linky!  Latoya at Flying Into First Grade is back to host her "Let's Get Acquainted Linky.

This week revolves around our love for teaching.  Here are the questions and answers.

1.  What made you decide to become a teacher?

2. What has been your most rewarding experience as a teacher?

3. If you were not a teacher, what would you be?

 

1.  My family has a long line of teachers, but it really comes from my first and second grade years.  I went to a VERY small private school and was in a combined class.  I enjoyed learning what the older kids were learning and then helping the younger kids the next year.  My fourth grade year solidified it when I had an awesome teacher, Mrs. Taylor.  She had "centers" in her classroom and made learning hands on, something that had never been done in the school.  So much fun!

 

2. My job as a reading specialist is always full of rewards.  This year I watched one second grade student move from a Preprimer reading level to a 2nd grade level!  That is awesome!  I see this a lot each year and pray, pray, pray that the summer slide doesn't take them too far back.  But it feels good to know that I had something to do with that!

 

3.  If I were not a teacher, I would be an actress.  I have always liked to be in front of a crowd, and I guess that is why I teach!   

 

Head on over to Latoya's blog and link up to let us know what has made you the teacher you are!

Happy Mother's Day! Giveaway!

Happy Mother's Day to everyone out there!  Even if you are not a mother, I am sure you have touched the lives of many children and have become a "mother" to them!  I love the homemade gifts I get from my kids.

This morning before church, Zack got up extra early to make this with his Legos.  I had to take a picture!

Ginny Beth made this for me in Sunday School.  This one will have to be laminated!

And I got all of my summer flowers!

Since I got some wonderful gifts, I wanted to pass along a gift to you!  Leave a comment below about the best part of being a mom or the best memory of your own mom, and I will pick a winner from random out of the comments below.  The winner will receive any item from my TPT store!
And the winner is Susanna of Whimsy Workshop!  Check your email!

Thanks to everyone for telling a little about your "mom" experiences! 

So, what is the best part of being a mom or the best memory of your mom?

Happy Mother's Day!