Classroom Jobs!

When I first started teaching 5th grade, I wanted everything to be perfect and I felt like it was hard to give up control of the classroom tasks. I sure have learned my lesson since then! 5th grade students are so helpful and when you give them responsibility. Giving the students jobs, helps them take ownership of what goes on in the classroom. 

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 Now, 5th graders also think that they are older and wiser than their younger counterparts and deserve more responsibility. I wanted to create jobs and responsibilities that reflect their age group. 

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 In my classroom, the students get "paid" in tickets if they do their job for the week. In order to get paid, they have to fulfill all the tasks described in the job description. Instead of me trying to remember what each person is responsible for, I put it right on the poster! 

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 When I put the jobs up in my classroom, I print them in color and get them laminated right away. After I laminate, I put them up on the "Help Wanted" wall. I will put the students names on banner in the middle of the job posting in permanent marker. Throughout the year, as I change jobs, I color over the name with Expo marker and wipe clean to write a new name! 

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Want to see more of my products? Click HERE to check out my TpT store.
Can you think of more jobs that should be added on to the list? Let me know!

You may also like the black and white version! 

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Getting Back to School with Math

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Pairing sports and academics always seems to be a hit in my classroom. A BONUS is when I can say that I have met the Common Core standards while we play!

I started playing Math Baseball last year because I am always looking for a new way to review material. I want to keep the students engaged and interested in every question. While we play, I have every student hold a personal white board to work out each math problem. 

To begin, the class is split into two groups (boys vs. girls?). I place the bases around the room so the students have to walk to the base which gets them up and moving. 

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One team starts up to bat while the other is playing the field. The batting team will "roll a hit" by rolling a dice to find out what kind of hit they are playing for. 
Single - roll is a 1 or 4
Double - roll is a 2 or 5
Triple - roll is a 3 or 6
Depending on what they roll, I will choose a question that is appropriate for the level of hit. 

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To keep the fielding team involved, they  determine whether the answer is correct or incorrect (I always have the final say though!) 

What could be better than using Math Baseball to start the first lesson of 5th grade math? They can review what they learned in 4th grade while making the class fun for you and the students! If you teach 4th grade, this also covers all the standards to review at the end of the year!

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Homework Game, Homeworkopoly

The dreaded HOMEWORK! Students dread the moment that they have to write their homework down in their agendas and if you are like me, teachers dread checking the homework too! Every year, one of my goals is to make the idea of homework more fun or at the very least less painful!

I created a Homeworkopoly game board to help with this very problem. So here is how it works...

First, I put up the Homewokopoly bulletin board and gave each student a clothespin with their number on it. Then, if the students complete all their homework assignments for the week (yahoo!). Then they get to roll a dice and move their game piece. The board itself is pictured below...

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Ok, so they roll, now what? Each game board square has a different direction for them to follow like...

Pass "Go" collect 2 tickets

Land on chance "Chance" - choose a chance card and follow the directions on the back. 

Chance Cards

Land on "Pop Quiz" - answer the question on the back correctly and earn 1 ticket. (Pop Quiz questions include questions about Science, Math, Social Studies, Reading, and Writing)

Pop Quiz Cards

One game to play through the whole year! Students love the extra incentive to finish their homework on time and you will love not having to change the bulletin board all year! You can find the full game board, title, homework passes, Chance and Pop Quiz cards HERE.

Let me know what you think! 

Happy Teaching

Back to School Name Tag

The anticipation of going back to school is here! Well, almost... I am always filled with a mix of excitement and nerves as the new year arrives and I have to get to know 20+ students all at the same time! 

I absolutely love this name tag activity so the students can showcase their own personalities,  personalize their desks, and I get to know a little bit about what they like all at the same time!

First, I start by introducing myself. I share my name tag and what led me to draw each one of my letters. For example, sewing is one of my passions so a needle and thread makes my 'M' or I can't get enough of being outside; sitting under a tree with a coffee in my hand would make the best afternoon! 

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After I introduce myself, the brainstorming begins! I have the students write down a long list of things they love to do, see, eat, play, etc. Once they have a list, they can start to see which ones will make which letters! It is a little tricky at first but so fun to see their creativity!

Some of my favorite letters the students have designed in the past are

- an atom for an 'o' for a student whose passion is math and science! 

- a roller coaster for an 'm'

- a soccer ball for an 'o'

I can't wait to see what this year's class will do! 

Let me know how you and your students liked the activity in your class :)

Visit my Teachers Pay Teachers for more fun Back to School ideas.  

Hand Self Portrait

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Self portraits are a great way to get to know students! I love learning about each one of them while they draw or design their self portrait. I tried to do a self portrait one year where the students had to draw themselves. The problem was, some students were discouraged that they couldn’t draw. I wanted this to be a FUN activity not one where they got frustrated that their picture doesn’t look quite like them.

The Hand Self Portrait was born! I do this activity on the first week of school so that I can spend some time getting to know each student while they are creating the project. One of the ways that I introduce myself is by showing the students the one I made!

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Here are the beautiful portraits of some students!

Hand Self Portrait

Hand Self Portrait

You can use this as a “get to know you” activity by having the students partner up at the end to present their partner’s portrait to the class. If you would like to take a closer look click HERE.

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