RTI: Fluency

It seems like it's been so long since I have blogged about something that is happening in my room, but today's the day!

I just got back from school doing some planning for the week and checking on how my kiddos were Thursday and Friday. I took my wrestling cheerleaders to the State Wrestling Tournament in Des Moines Wednesday night and just got home last night. We had 2 qualifiers, and one ended up with 5th place! The girls and I had so much fun!

Last week, I asked my Facebook fans what they did for RTI, specifically fluency. Tammy contacted me suggesting a few things she created. I tried out her Cut and Glue Sight Word Sentences for 2nd grade.

I have 2 kids I'm starting RTI with and started using this on Tuesday. OH MY GOODNESS, I LOVE IT!
In this particular pack, you get 30 cut and glue sentences that include over 90 dolch words, 45 being from 2nd grade. I started with having my kids cut out the words. We then talked about what a sentence needed at the beginning and at the end. That helped them figure out their first 2 words. They both unscrambled their words differently, and both were incorrect the first time. I gave them each a whisper phone and had them read the sentence to see where their mistake was. It was AWESOME seeing them easily be able to fix it. We did 2 sentences the first day. We talked about what it meant to be a fluent reader, and we practiced reading our sentences out loud to each other.

I love these so much, I got the Cut-and-Glue Sight Word Sentences for Second and Third Grade COMBO PACK. The pack includes 13 sets including awesome themes perfect for holidays and seasons! I'm also going to use these with some of my kiddos who seem to be having a hard time with finger spaces! We will cut, unscramble, and glue, then I'll have them copy the sentence below for practice. I'm so excited about this product and the great versatility!

I'm meeting with these 2 boys for about 20 minutes every day. I recently had to change my schedule around, which was great, because now I have 4 rounds of Daily 5, and I do RTI during the last round.

Click above to go check out Tammy's blog! :)

Also, don't forget to enter the Pencil Sharpener giveaway! You have til March 1st! :)

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Classroom Friendly Supplies Pencil Sharpener GIVEAWAY!

You can read all about my review on the best pencil sharpener ever, here!

And here's your chance to win your very own!

Thanks Troy for allowing me to give one of these babies away! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Good luck! You have through the end of February to enter! :)

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Currently February! and a FREEBIE!

Is it seriously already February?! Holy moly!

Time to link up with Farley @ Oh Boy 4th Grade!

Listening: This is one of my favorites from the RED album, and I loved her performance of it on the Grammy's last Sunday. I'm hoping it doesn't get overplayed! 

Loving: Since my wrestling cheerleaders and I couldn't go to the tournament Saturday due to weather, we made locker signs for districts. We took 4 hours, but they're super cute! :) I hope the boys like chevron, bows, and glitter!

Thinking: We're expecting 4-8 inches of snow Tuesday afternoon-Wednesday. Awesome. NOT! We have Iowa Assessments this week! :(

Wanting: Obviously. I'm over winter...it can leave now.

Needing: Because we're testing this week, I'm not doing a basal story or a spelling test. science and social studies are pretty much on hold. I have testing in the morning every day and testing all day Thursday. So my afternoon will be some fun math and reading things. I'm just going to be pulling a ton of TpT things I haven't had a chance to use and hopefully my kiddos will feel relaxed with no homework this week!

2 Truths and 1 Fib: I was born in Germany. My dad was in the Army for 23 1/2 years and we moved quite a bit before my parents divorced in 2nd grade. I lived in Germany (2 different cities), Kansas, Oklahoma, and 2 cities in Iowa by the time I was 7 years old! 

I have an older brother and 2 younger step sisters. My brother moved to Oklahoma to live with our dad when I was in 5th grade, so I don't get to see him very often, but he is the best brother a girl could ask for, and his beautiful wife is the big sister I always wanted!

I have a tattoo on my side. When I was a senior in high school, I got very sick and was hospitalized for 16 days, half of it being in intensive care. I have scars on both sides from chest tubes. The S is right below my scar on my left side, which was the lung that was completely filled with fluid.

I hope you have a wonderful week and February! If you're like me and testing this week, pick up this freebie for your door to keep away interruptions!

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Classroom Friendly Supplies Pencil Sharpener: Review

If you have been following blogs within the past couple years, you've heard all about the "BEST PENCIL SHARPENER" ever...but do you actually believe it is better than your electric sharpener you spent $50+ on?

I'm here to tell you, it is!

I purchased my 1st sharpener in August and I was amazed! Imagine my diappointment when my trusty sharpener started to not work in December. My kids had dropped it a couple times, and I had several students using it incorrectly and I believe that is the reason it no longer works.

But then! I got a shiny red one in the mail to try out...

PERFECT POINT EVERY TIME! :)

Now, I've read a lot of reviews on this baby, but I think most just focus on the PROS. Although I would recommend this sharpener to anyone, I do believe it is only fair to point out a couple things that I don't like.

PROS:

• Sharpens ALL kind of pencils...including the very popular design pencils with plastic coating.
• Stops sharpening once perfect point is achieved
• Clear shaving tray
• Color choices
• Quick sharpening...faster at sharpening new pencils than electric sharpeners
• quietness! Now this thing isn't completely silent...is is using a sharp blade to shave a pencil after all, but it is the quietest on the market!
• Design allows for lefty and righty sharpening. If you're left handed, you can sharpen the pencils with your left hand...you just have to crank in a counter-clockwise motion.

CONS:

• Clamp doesn't hold sharpener. I tried several times to use it, and it always loosened and is more of a headache than anything. Troy did design a new clamp that is more permanent, if you're looking to permanently secure your sharpener.
• Can be a bit messy. Even if the tray is empty, there are times that little shavings somehow don't get collected in the tray. 

Clearly the pros outweigh the cons. My only hope is that this sharpener lasts longer. Currently, I only have one student using the sharpener, and that is their classroom job. The rest have to have me sharpen their pencils in the morning or afternoon. This is working well. I just had students clean their desks, so there were many pencils to be sharpened that afternoon, but once they get them sharpened, it lasts them a LONG time, so it worth taking a few minutes to sharpen the handful each student brings me.

Troy also has a new sharpener out for you Kinder teachers! It works with the larger pencils such as My First Ticonderoga and standard size pencils.

To purchase your sharpener, head on over to http://www.classroomfriendlysupplies.com/

You won't regret it!

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