Using Reference Materials TEST - Student research skills assessment. Students must know how to be able to use reference materials (such as guide words in dictionaries), and where to look for information (such as atlas, almanac, or encyclopedia). Questions also on key words, how to find information in an index, Great test prep for state testing. 27 questions, multiple choice with key. - HappyEdugator

Reading - 100 Words Every Third Grader Should Know. Vocabulary words for third graders. Includes self test sheet and a Friday test for mastery. Great to use the week of 100th day of school. 103 slides in all to print out as flash cards for literacy centers. Good word wall words, too.

New Years Word Search. Happy New Year Word Search Activity. Start New Years with a wordsearch puzzle to get those minds thinking again. Good for first day back from break. Key included. - HappyEdugator

Fun Veterans Day Printable Activities. Quick and easy! Print and go activities for kids to do on Veterans Day. Includes: ABC order Acrostic Poem Make a Star Banner Color the Flag Make a Card Addition Table HappyEdugator

Veterans Day Reading Comprehension Sheet. Students can read about the history of Veterans Day and why it is observed in the United States. Includes a short nonfiction reading and reading comprehension sheet. - HappyEdugator

What is Poetry - an introduction to any Poetry Unit. Start off your poetry unit by asking What is Poetry? and What is a Poet? On the handout provided, students will read what T.S. Eliot had to say about it, and then come up with their own answers. Also included in this file are several pages of introductory materials a teacher can use to start students thinking about poetry. - HappyEdugator

Poems Graphic Organizer. Using the acronym POEMS, this poetry graphic organizer allows students to show what they already know about poetry and poetic devices, including figurative language such as personification, onomatopoeia, metaphors, and similes. Useful as a poetry preview activity. Students take the wordsplash of vocabulary words, and match them to the graphic organizer. (Hint: The font of words that go together is the same! See if they can figure that out for themselves.) This can be used as an introduction to a poetry unit, and as a pre-assessment which can give you an idea if your students know anything at all before you even start. Use the graphic organizer to complete the study guides that are included. - HappyEdugator

The Cay by Theodore Taylor - Hurricane Brochure Research Project. After reading the novel, students will choose an island or region to research and write a hurricane safety brochure for the residents of their selected region. They must include a graph showing the costliest and deadlest hurricanes in history, a paragraph describing the region's history with hurricanes, a resident preparedness list, a checklist for items and supplies needed, a map with an evacuation route, a what to do and what not to do list, and a list of agencies or shelters where residents can find assistance. Includes project assignment handout, grading sheets, peer rubric, tri-fold template, and teacher directions. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator

Columbus Day Fun Activity Pack. Columbus Acrostic Poem, Writing Prompt, Word Search. Poem Handout, Mak-a-Word, and Fill-in Activity included. Twenty-six Columbus Day related words in wordsearch. October is a fun Fall month, and this is an engaging activity for building vocabulary and spelling skills. Also includes a reading handout of the traditional poem "In 1492" and a Christopher Columbus Fill-In the Blank Activity sheet. You can also use these as time fillers or as a substitute activity. - HappyEdugator

Reading Test Prep. Reading comprehension practice using an excerpt from the short story The Corrector of Destinies by Edward Wellen. Includes excerpt of story, vocabulary fill-in the blank activity, graphic organizer for story elements, and 12 multiple choice questions about the story setting, characters, plot, author's purpose, theme, and figurative language. Questions support standards tested on standardized tests. Supports the rigor required of common core. Can be done independently or as guided practice. Good for a substitute activity as well. Key included. Grades 7 - 12. - HappyEdugator

January Famous Author Birthdays PowerPoint. To engage your readers, show them the slides on these famous authors who had birthdays in January, such as J.R.R. Tolkien, A.A. Milne, Jack London and Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, to name a few. Each slide tells a little about the classic author and their most famous works. This winter, when students return from Christmas break, engage them in reading and writing! Have them choose from three writing assignments about these authors and their works on the last slide. - HappyEdugator

Main Idea in Writing PowerPoint - How can a piece of writing be strong in ideas? Ideas are the big juicy burger that is the meat of the paper. Short presentation and to the point presentation or mini-lesson that explains how students can score better on a standardized writing test with a paper that is strong in ideas, with several strategies on how to make ideas clearer and stronger. - HappyEdugator

Short i Sound - Sounding Out Words PowerPoint. CVC words. Teach reading with phonics and decoding using word families! Short i Word Family. Slides introduce the sound of short i and have students practice blending short i sound with consonants to form one syllable CVC words. Students read the slides and get rewarded with fun shouts and cheers. This is the next step to reading after students learn consonant sounds and the sound of short e. This animated PowerPoint has 17 slides of practice, with a slide of nonsense words and a slide of real words at the end of the presentation for teacher assessment. Good supplement for CVC word work!

Halloween Spooky Songs - Twelve Fun and Easy Songs to Sing. Halloween collection of fun little songs sung to familiar tunes like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Kids love to sing these Halloween tunes and sometimes get creative adding new verses. Have fun and don't let them scare you. Happy Halloween! BOO! - HappyEdugator

Awards - Printable Rewards - 30 Bookmarks or Wristbands. Print out and give to students as fun rewards! Fun to use at end of year. A variety for holidays, such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and St. Patrick's Day! Includes rewards for being honest, respectful, trustworthy, and caring. Also includes celebrations such as star student, 100th day, happy birthday, and more. Great for all seasons - Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter! Print out at the beginning of the year and have them on hand. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator

Literature Circle Jobs - Cooperative Learning Assignments. Literature Circles made easy with assigned jobs. Research shows that children working in cooperative learning groups should have assigned roles and guidelines in order to be highly productive. These printable worksheets will help you organize your groups into 4 distinct roles: The Word Finder, The Discussion Director, The Passage Picker/Summarizer, and the Connector. I have also included an Expectation Grid for all group members to work on together

Halloween Word Wall Vocabulary Words. 48 word wall words for the Halloween holiday and a blank template you can use to add your own. Decorated with pumpkins, a tombstone, and a black cat. Print out on cardstock and laminate for durability. You can place in a writing center, or use as flash cards, too. 2 per page. Editable for your own classroom use. - HappyEdugator

Halloween Smartboard Games - 4 Different Activities K - 3. Four Interactive Halloween Activities for the Smart board. The first game, Halloween Consonant-Vowel Sort, is really an easy game for the little ones. They have to decide if the Halloween word begins with a consonant or a vowel, and place it in the vortex. The second game is a Halloween Word Guess, a game similar to Hangman. The third game is A Halloween Sequence, where they have to put the events of Halloween in chronological order. The last game is a Multiple choice Halloween Fun Fact Quiz. Games are made with SMART Notebook software. -HappyEdugator

Reading Strategy Strips - How to Think When You Read. Make active reading strategies more concrete and help students take personal ownership of using reading strategies taught in class. Students will focus on ways to approach their reading. This will empower students to become better independent readers by giving them actual tools they can use to figure out unknown words and gain comprehension of the text. Directions for the teacher: Print out strategy strips, cut out, and laminate. Use these during guided reading lessons. If possible, schedule guided reading groups for at least 25 minutes, four days a week. In small groups, introduce the text and have the students discuss the pictures, make connections and predictions. Immerse students in leveled texts that are on their instructional reading level in a variety of genres. As they read the story, choral read with the whole group or whisper read with individuals to figure out words in context. Write troublesome words on the white board and discuss which strategies will help. Discuss and elaborate on the strategy strips you wish to focus on that day. This depends on the stage of readers. Primarily, with emergent readers, Study the pictures and Read to understand work well. Early readers will be ready for Point at the words and Hear the sounds whereas, students who are already using active reading strategies may be ready for Read some more. Put these strips on white board with a magnet. If students are reading individually, troublesome words can be put on small white boards, and reading strips can be left on the table. Students can pull the strips for the strategies they used. Teacher can suggest other strategies that would be helpful. If a student makes a substitution, for instance, it is a good time to stop, write both words on the white board, and use the strategies to check the words. Use one set of strategies for the whole group. Play strategy detective and see if you can guess who is using which strategy. Students will notice that sometimes they will need to use more strategies than other times. This will help them figure out which books are just right, or if they are too easy or too difficult, so that they will be better able to select books that are appropriate for their level of development. Included here are the active reading strategy strips which you can print out and laminate, and the teacher directions, including an explanation and elaboration on what each strip really means. - HappyEdugator

Spring Vegetable Garden Signs - Fun Literacy Activity! Spring activities: Great handwriting practice! A good accompaniment to the book The Gardener by Sarah Stewart., or books about seeds. Have your students make vegetable garden signs! They can make these as a gift or just to celebrate the coming of spring. Print out the color slides on index cards (set up your printer to the desired size) or on card stock or tag board. Then students can trace the letters and name the vegetables. Students practice reading and writing; developing vocabulary, phonemic awareness, and fine motor skills. When finished, laminate and attach to craft sticks and let them take them home to put in the garden. Good to use in March, April, and May. For even more fun, plant a bean in a paper cup with potting soil and let it grow. Kids can take home their signs when their bean has sprouted. Or plant a school vegetable garden. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator