Project Wars!

Encourage the Creativity

First, let me start by explaining that I love project based learning.  I truly think that is is the BEST way to encourage creativity and awesomeness in the classroom!  Every year I have been teaching, there has always been projects.  However, this year I have a class that really struggles with the concept of project based learning.  I feel like it's one of two things...either the project is done in the correct amount of time and it's rushed, or it takes FOREVER for us to finish a project to the standards that I expect.  

Now, in my 5th grade U.S. History class we have been working on a S.T.E.M. activity where the kids are building their very own colonies.  Very cool, very engaging...we have been working on these since DECEMBER! Are you kidding me?!?!  It was the same cycle of doom...I would give them a work day, they would make so little progress and be so out of line that it would take me over a week to build up the courage to return to the activity.  I tried to encourage productivity, but nothing seemed to work.   However, for whatever reason (perhaps it was the great weather?!) I decided to finish these colony projects...today!  And you know what...it worked! All colonies were finished, turned in, and my class was working the ENTIRE time! 

Encourage the Craziness

So what did I do?  What was the madness that allowed this project to get done in a timely matter?  PROJECT WARS!  It worked and it was AMAZING!  When my students came to call today, I gave them a VERY brief description of the Food Network's show, Cake Wars.   I showed them some of the absolutely amazing cakes that these bakers create in a short period of time, then told them that if they can make cakes like this...they can finish these projects to the same standards.  After that, I stood back and I watched.  It was AMAZING!  My students were working together and being productive! At the end of the 45 minutes, all the projects were done and turned out pretty great! I even had my students carry their projects up in front of the class, just like the show!  It was great!  

A Mixed-Up Fairy Tale

Does teaching writing make you cringe?  Do you think about how you want to teaching the writing process, but go beyond the pencil clip chart?  This mixed-up fairy tale activity has everything you need to take your students writing, and your writing instruction to the next level.

Encourage the Creativity 

I absolutely love teaching fairy tales! I usually use fairy tales to review concepts, such as plot, characters (protagonist and antagonist), and conflict. This always works out well, because most of my students have heard, or read, at least one fairy tale in their life and are able to connect these concepts to either a film or a book they already know.  Now, the one thing I always use my fairy tale unit to really dive into point of view. My students love to hear the different fairy tales told from different point of views!  Trust Me, Jack's Beanstalk Stinks! by Eric Braun is a fan favorite! 

The Power of Choice

I am PASSIONATE about taking teaching outside the textbook and giving students choice in what they are learning about.  Throughout this unit, I have every student select their very own fairy tale, this is one that they will be pulling apart as we practice the different skills and concepts.  (I have a no repeat rule in my classroom, very rarely does anyone get to study the exact same thing.)   I have done this in a couple different ways over the years.  Sometimes, I allow, what I call 'picture book fairy tales.'  These are the picture book version of the beloved tale.  Other years, I have had them read the original tales.  This is always a lot of fun, because my students often times, have never heard the original stories.  My boys, specifically, usually gravitate towards the original tales. On rare occasions, I allow either, by doing that it allows for differentiation in my classroom, naturally. As we work through the different skills, I often model the skill with a fairy tale I read aloud to my class, then I have every student practice the same skill, based off of their specific fairy tale.  For this, I just have them work on a google doc. (Nothing too fancy, but it gets the job done!)

Encourage the Craziness

After it is all said and done, I assess my students by having them write their own fairy tale! It's so much fun to see the whole thing come together!  Their is a lot of freedom in this project, however, they need to incorporate the different elements we studied through the unit such as...

• Obvious Point of View
• Protagonist and Antagonist
• Conflict
• Theme
• Elements of a Fairy Tale

They also have to choose ONE character from their specific fairy tale and AT LEAST one element (setting, character, conflict, exc.) from a fairy tale we read in class. Of course, outside of that they get to create their own story.  They always turn out so well!

The Final Product 

Since my students pour in so much to these stories, I always end up publishing them for the entire class.  My 5th graders design covers for our class 'Fairy Tale Digest' and vote on the winner!  Then, I bind the stories together and give each student their own copy, complete with all the stories they wrote.  I love how all the kids are excited to read, not only their published work, but the published work of their classmates.  Check the product out in TPT store, you won't be disappointed!

March Madness of Poetry

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I love all things March Madness!  For the past 5 years, I have incorporated some type of bracket madness into my literature class.  So, after either loving or hating my bracket...this year's  March Madness of Poetry, has by far been the best!  As poems advance, the activities get more intense, kind of like the tournament.

I have done similar activities in the past, however, setting it up in a bracket has caused INSTANT engagement!

How it Works

This year, my 7th and 8th graders were in the middle of their poetry unit when March hit,  so I decided to have poems go head to head.  Right now we are working through our Sweet 16, these are a combination of poems that I found dramatic readings of on youtube.  We listen to the two poems going up against each other and I have the students vote on their favorite. (That's it!)  I have loved the fact that there hasn't been a landslide win yet! 

Elite 8

Once we get our Elite 8, my class will break into 8 groups where each will get a poem.  They are to re-listen to the poem and be on the look out for figurative language.  Their goal while they listen is to find 3 examples of figurative language, explain what it means, and then draw a picture representing said example.  I usually take a good chunk of the next class to have my students vote so we can go into the next day with our final four.  

The Final Four 

With the last four, we will really dive into each poem.  Here we will analyze the text and vote to find our two favorites. 

The Big Dance

For the final face off, I break the kids into groups.  They need to make 'propaganda posters' for their poem.  These needs to be persuasive and capture what the poem represents. (Our discussions during the Final Four, really help with this!)  

The Winner

Once we have a winner, we will celebrate by creating a one-pager for the poem!  (Of course, we listen to 'We Are the Campion,' when they turn in the one-pagers!)  

Encourage the Craziness: Word Vomit Writing

What's Going On

This week in 5th grade, we are wrapping up our fairy tale unit. Of course, we focus in on elements of a fairy tale, however, I also use this unit to review theme, setting, characters (protagonist & antagonist) and plot.  Of course, I also us this time to cover point of view, because who doesn't love a fractured fairy tale?  At the end of the unit, the students are to write their own fairy tale. These fairy tales are eventual published in our Fairy Tale Digest! (More about that coming later.)

The Process

When it finally comes time to write, I have the students start day one with a pre-writing story map.  It's nothing fancy, but allows me to know that the students have an idea of what they are going to be writing about, who their protagonist is, conflict, exc.  The next day...we word vomit! 

Encourage creativity

Before I even start the vomiting of words, I explain to my students the difference between our left and right brain.  After that brief conversation, we turn off our right side of our brain. My students are told to not worry about spelling, punctuation, or anything along those lines. (That's right brain stuff!) The other rule is you CANNOT stop writing.  I tell them, if you cannot think of anything else to write, you continue writing the last word you wrote until something pops in your brain.  We take one last quick look at the pre-writing graphic organizer, I set a timer for 5 minutes...AND THEY ARE OFF!

The "Clean-Up"

After the 5 minutes are up, the kids have two directions they can go.  First, finish writing the story.  Second, turn on the right brain and edit, I usually have them type the story after that.  (Personal Preference: I always find it is easier for revisions, peer-meetings and teacher meetings when everything is typed.)  After the 'first' clean up we work ourselves through the writing process.  

Why I Love It!

Obviously, this is just one example of how I use this tactic when getting my students to write.  I have had HUGE success with this in grades 4-6!  For whatever reason, they are hooked with the word 'vomit' and the sometimes friendly competition to get to the back page.  However, my top 3 favorite reasons are...

1. Even my most RELUCTANT writers will freely write at this time.
• Sometimes I have a competition on who can get the most pages or turn to the back of their paper first.
2. The excitement on how much they accomplished in 5 minutes! 
3. The AMAZING conversations after the writing time is up.
• "I took that story in a whole different direction."
• "I ended up talking a lot more about that then I thought I would!"