Edublog Awards winners announced

Congrats to all the winners and runners up in the 2011 Edublog Awards. Thanks to all who voted for me too! Unfortunately I wasn't a finalist but I'm delighted to have been shortlisted. You can view the full list of winners and runners up here. There are some fantastic teaching resources on this list so it is a wonderful resource.

Edublog Awards: Last chance to vote

This post is short and sweet!


As I've mentioned in previous posts, I'm very happy to have been nominated for an Edublog Award in the Best Teacher Blog 2011 category. Voting for this will close at 23.59EST (That's 7.59pm for any Irish/UK followers!) tomorrow so if you enjoy reading my blog and would like to cast a vote, please do so! 

Free downloads: Boggle board and target board

I put very simple Boggle and target boards on the whiteboard in my classroom for early finishers to use. I tried using a "busy folder" but I found that there was too much movement in the classroom and it was a massive waste of paper. Now the children have "busy copybooks" in which they can use the target/Boggle board to their hearts' content!


Here is the target board. Just download, print and laminate. Then write on it with a whiteboard marker and change the numbers each week.

Here are the letters and heading for the Boggle board if you want to download them. I printed the heading on coloured paper and printed, laminated and cut the letters. I put velcro squares on the letters so I can change them easily.


As you can see, my Boggle board is shamefully boring. I'm sure it could be made a lot more pretty so I'll leave it to your own creative devices to make it more aesthetically pl

Here is a fantastic sheet for the children to use (especially if they have a "busy folder" for early finishers) that I found on Create Teach Share. You could write your own letters onto this sheet and photocopy if you have an emergency substitute folder. 

Also, I've been nominated in the Best Teacher Blog category of the Edublog Awards 2011. If you read my blog and would like to vote for me, you can do so here. And if you REALLY like it, you can vote once a day! ;)

Free Letter-writing rubric

I'm going to try using a rubric for self-assessment in English this week. I'm using it for a letter-writing lesson. Here's one I made for their first attempt. I'm hoping it's simple enough to explain easily. I hope that the children will enjoy giving themselves a concrete number score more than the usual "happy face/ neutral face / sad face" self-assessment sheets.

If you'd like to download this, click on the image below to download it from Google Docs.

Also, I'm delighted to have been nominated in the category of "best teacher blog 2011" in the Edublog Awards. Click here if you'd like to vote for me!

Edublogs awards - please vote for me!

Hi there readers,


I am honoured to have been shortlisted in the "Best Teacher Blog" category of the Edublogs Awards 2011. If you enjoy reading my blog, please vote for me at http://edublogawards.com/2011-3/best-teacher-blog-2011/


I would be very much obliged!

Rainn agus amhráin

FAO Irish teachers, ever have trouble finding a rann or amhrán to fit your theme and age-level? Well look no further than this site. It has poems filed according to class level and theme, complete with pretty fonts and clipart. This is an excellent resource, well worth checking out!

Free resource: Fractions station teaching cards

I've been teaching fractions for the past fortnight to my senior class (10-12 years old). I decided to make Friday's lesson a little more fun with some station teaching. I have set up these stations to assess their understanding of comparing and ordering fractions, equivalent fractions, finding a fraction of a set and making a whole number using a given fraction.


Click on the image to view this pack in Google Docs.
It includes:

• 8 station teaching cards
• Blank answer sheets for the children
• An answer sheet for the teacher

You will also need:

• A jar
• 25 marbles
• At least 18 match sticks
• 2 sets of fraction tiles
• 5 plastic/card triangles
• A computer (and download a free game - the link is on the teacher's answer sheet)

Enjoy!

NOTE: TO ANYBODY WHO DOWNLOADED THIS, THERE'S A MISTAKE ON THE TEACHER ANSWER SHEET. THE ANSWER TO STATION 5 PART B IS B: _5_ whole and _2_ thirds = _5⅔_ = __17/5_