Tips for Using Quick Writes in the Classroom

A quick write is a 3-5 minute time where students write in response to something. This is a writing that is not graded and encourages students to write the whole time and down anything that comes to mind. Quick writers can be used in any content area and bonus is that several tasks involved in quick writes have high effect sizes (think discussion, reflection, integrating prior knowledge, transfer of strategies, summarizing, elaboration, feedback)!

Writing can be a daunting task for students, but quick writers help lighten the stress. The benefits of quick writes are huge. Quick writes include a bunch of John Hattie's influences with high effect size. Students think critically, build a collection of writing topics, share their voice, build writing fluency and increase of writing volume, share raw emotions, and gain confidence. Quick writes help build a community among one other.  

Quick writes also help you as the teacher know more about your students as writers and personally. 

Here are a few tips I have leaned over the last year:

Tip #1. Plan quick writes a head of time. 

I use Google Slides and house all my quick write ideas together. It helps me know what I have already done, and then I have each one planned out ready to go. What you plan, is what gets done!

Tip #2: Use mentor texts, graphics, or videos to spark student's excitement and keep them engaged. Know your students and use different media and ideas that are relevant to them. A few other ways to implement quick writes into all content areas; use them as a pre-assessment/Brain dump, summary or reflection on the lesson, making predictions and hypothesis, or exit tickets. 

Be creative!

Example of a quick write before or after a read aloud

Example of an image

Tip #3: Allow students some TALK time. 

Talking before writing gives them a chance to think out loud, hear the thoughts of their peers, and helps them feel more confident for the writing. After the first 3-5 minutes, students can talk again and share their quick write. They can also identify Focus Phrases or other writing skills.  Get them up and moving and talking to different people. This will help spark new ideas for the students, help them to add more details, and begin to build connections with one another.

Tip #4: Write with the students, yes YOU.

When you set the timer for a quick write, sit down and complete the quick write with your students. Students love seeing authentic writing from you, seeing where you had difficulty, and hearing what you had to write. This is where your classroom community becomes stronger as well. If you don't have one already create and decorate a Writer's Notebook for you.

Tip #5: CELEBRATE their quick writes.

Allow students to share their voice and ideas. Give positive feedback, highlight students who are trying hard, and reinforce the skills you are teaching in reading and writing. These quick writes are often are the beginning of a great story!

I hope you will give your students a chance to shine, grow, and share their voice through quick writes. They are such a powerful tool! I'd love to hear your thoughts or questions on using quick writes in the classroom. 

Communicating with Parents- Weekly Videos

As an elementary teacher, communicating with parents is a really big thing for me. I want parents to feel connected to our classroom and in the loop. I communicate in a variety of ways several times a week, but wanted to share a new way I have been communicating with my parents. 

I had always taken the time to send a weekly newsletter with important dates and upcoming objectives, but I started to wonder if the parents were actually reading it.  So, last year I decided to switch from my digital newsletter that I was sending to a weekly VIDEO. It was intimidating at first, but I received a lot of positive feedback from parents. They loved being able to see and hear from me each week. 

I used Screencastify in the past, but this year I am using Clips by Apple. Clips makes sending a weekly video super quick.  I record right on my phone, add any text or emojis I want, and upload to my Google Drive. I then share the link with my parents so they are able to be informed. I also post on my class website and ClassTag. (This is not the only parent communication I do each week, but this is how I share weekly updates with all my parents.)

**Side note** ClassTag is going to be a game changer. It is super easy for me to post my weekly video to and any other pictures or updates I want to send. I love that I am able to see which parents viewed my post. Parents can opt to receive notifications as a text or email. Check it out here if you haven't!

Remember with any parent communication that you make you'll want to be...

1. Professional- make sure your are representing your school and yourself well

2. Consistent- make sure to keep up with your communication 

3. Positive- make sure to be positive and upbeat

Sending a weekly video message to the parents helps me build relationships with them and allows them see my passion for teaching and their children first hand!

How do you communicate with your student's parents on a weekly basis? Have you ever tried sending a video?

D-Ice Breaker- A Fun Get to Know You Activity

 

I love the play on words with dice and ice breaker! :) On our campus, we will be implementing Stanford Harmony to help with social emotional learning. One thing they suggest is doing a Buddy Up and asking them questions to discuss with their buddy. I took some similar type questions and put them into a QR dice that the students can roll, scan, and answer the question. 

I plan on using this the first week of school for sure as we are getting to know our classmates and build relationships because QR codes and dice make everything more fun!! 

Questions on the cube...

-If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?

-If you were stranded on an island, what three things do you take with you?

-If you could only eat one food for the rest of you life, what would it be?

-If you won a million dollars, what would be the first thing you buy?

-If you could spend the day with a fictional character, who would it be?

-If you found a magic lantern and a genie gave you three wishes, what would you wish for?

Students could even answer the question a second time with another answer if time permits. 

Click the cube to make a copy.

Tip: Print on card stock, it makes putting the dice together a lot easier!

If, you want to change the questions and add your own QR codes you can do that do. Click here for a copy of the dice template. Then go to your favorite QR generator website, type in your question, download QR code, and put into your dice template.

Happy Rolling!

Purposeful Classroom Design

It's that time of year again!! We, teachers, get to set up our classroom. I get so excited for this day, and I am the one that goes up the first day we are allowed to. :)  I'm sure we have all seen the picture perfect classrooms on Pinterst and Instagram, but that kind of classroom is not necessary for student learning to take place and success to occur. 

I put a lot of thought into my classroom design and want my room to echo what I believe as an educator. I have learned over the years that less is more. When planning and setting up my classroom, I make sure to have a focus on a few specific things. 

1. Whole Group Area- 

This is a must in my classroom!  It must be large enough for everyone to sit comfortably on the floor and in a circle if needed. We come together for many things each day; class meetings, read alouds, mini lessons, writing share time, and so much more. This area is where our class grows as a family and builds relationships together. 

2. Small Group Area- 

A lot of my teaching happens in small group, so this area is equally important. I want a place I can easily gather students and store materials, but also see the rest of the class as they work on their other activities. This is also my teacher area. I get rid of my desk to allow for extra room for students and flexible seating.
Lots of selfies happen here!:)

3. Classroom Library-

I believe every classroom should have a library no matter your subject matter. Students should have access to books everywhere. I'm a reading teacher so I have a rather large selection of books for students. I want my library to be assessable, inviting, organized, diverse, and appealing to all my students. My goal for this area is that it is well loved and used daily!

4. Student Seating-

After I have figured out my whole group, small group, and classroom library, I focus on student seating. I make sure students are able to collaborate, are able to move easily around the classroom, and have a variety of seating options. I like to incorporate flexible seating in my classroom to give students choice and ownership over there learning.

Some different options I have in my classroom:

5. Decorations-

Honestly, the last thing I think about is wall decorations. Like I said earlier, less is more. I like to incorporate our school vision, positive messages, and space to hang up the learning that we do together and student work. I incorporate a few colors, which are usually the school colors as well, and try to keep it

6. Class Materials-

When designing your classroom, also think through where students will find and access all supplies and technology. Have a spot for everything and it is organized! Remember that you will need to teach students your routines and expectations for using them all. 

Have fun, be creative, be YOU, and make your classroom an extension of what you believe! Remember you and the relationships you build with your students always trump anything you could decorate your classroom with!

I'd love to see your classroom, leave a picture. :)

Bitmojis in the Classroom

Who doesn't love using Bitmojis? I know I do, and I love to find fun ways to incorporate them into the classroom. They seem to always make my students smile!

Here are two projects I have recently been working on.

1. Positive Student Notes-

I am a firm believer in handwritten notes of encouragement! So what's better than adding my Bitmoji to some note cards I can send home with my students?!

I created them in Slides, and then I like to download to PowerPoint and print 2 or 4 notecards to a page. You can duplicate the note card you want or print all of them in color or on a variety of fun colored paper. 

 Click the photo for a copy of the ones I have already created. Edit them with your Bitmoji or make some of your own!

Love encouraging a growth mindset and student's setting goals!

 You can also order your own notepads with your Bitmojis from Office Depot if you want. :) 

2. Book Basket Labels-

My classroom library is a very important part of my classroom, so I thought why not add my Bitmoji there too! Students can also infer why I chose the Bitmoji I did for each genre. 

Click the photo to grab a copy and see the Bitmojis I used. 

I'm hoping to build students up and make them smile with my Bitmoji in my classroom. How are you using your Bitmoji in the classroom? Please share!!

Student Book Recommendations

I love sharing my current reads and books with students, but I also find it super powerful for students to recommend books to each other and share their voice!

Want an easy way for student to fill out a Book Recommendation? Stick up a QR code or a few in your classroom library and as student return their book they can easily fill one out. 

I used Google Forms to create a simple and fast form for students to fill out.

You can take a look at the form and make a copy here.

I have a special spiral bookshelf where students can place books that have a recommendation. Then, once a week I download the responses and upload the Google Sheet to our Google Classroom. Students can easily sort by title, author, or genre and read the recommendations to see if any books sound like one they want to try.

I'd love to hear how students recommend books to one another in your classroom!

Happy Reading!

First Week Feels Scoot

I try my best to get to know my students, let them know I care about them, and that they have a voice in our classroom the first week of school. One way I do this is by finding out how they feel and allow them to express themselves and feelings. We know students can have many different feelings and emotions that first week.

While introducing and explaining our blended learning rotations at the end of the week, I incorporate a First Week Feels Scoot. It has questions for students to respond to about how they are feeling. It gives me a peak into their thoughts of our classroom, school, and tap into their social emotional side. And I love to get them up and moving! Post the scoot around the room and students can go to the questions in any order. There is also a recording sheet you can print front to back or any piece of paper works fine.

I do ask studens to write down their answers on paper for two reasons; as a writing teacher it gives me insight into their strengths, and I want to be able to respond to their thoughts and questions in my own handwriting.  I believe their is power in personalized, handwritten notes and hope to make a connection with them right away.

Grab a copy of First Week Feels Scoot here. Feel free to make it your own.

What activities do you do the first week of school to help you get to know your students?