I have a total of 27 years teaching experience . After I received my M.Ed. from the University of Florida (hence the name "HappyEdugator"), I began teaching in elementary school, where I taught pull-out remedial classes for grades 2-5 and a section of K-1. Then I taught Pre-K for 5 years, before I went up to Middle School, where I have been in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. Last year, I went back to 1st grade in a private setting. I have traveled worldwide and am also fluent in Spanish.
I have a total of 27 years teaching experience . After I received my M.Ed. from the University of Florida (hence the name "HappyEdugator"), I began teaching in elementary school, where I taught pull-out remedial classes for grades 2-5 and a section of K-1. Then I taught Pre-K for 5 years, before I went up to Middle School, where I have been in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. Last year, I went back to 1st grade in a private setting. I have traveled worldwide and am also fluent in Spanish.
Homophone Match Worksheet. This is a challenging homophone matching activity for upper grades. Have students work in individually or in groups with a dictionary to look up unknown words. Words and definitions are chunked into groups of six. - HappyEdugator
Dolch Sight Words Activities - Week 8. A week of Dolch sight word activities for the eighth set of ten words from the Dolch sight words list. Activities include: flash cards/ memory game, color the words, trace the words, match the words, cut and paste the words in alphabetical order, and write the words in letterboxes. Enjoy! Weeks 1 - 10 will cover the first 100 Dolch Sight Words. - HappyEdugator
20 Journal Prompts with Word Banks - Stop Writer's Block! 20 engaging writing prompts. Each one has a word bank that can provide scaffolding for students who have trouble starting. Graphics have an elephant theme. Project on a screen with an LCD projector or print out as task cards or for use in a literacy center. - HappyEdugator
Internet Safety PowerPoint - Pausing Before You Post. Strategies for students to use the internet and social media wisely. Students can discuss appropriate internet behavior on social media and ways to increase their internet security. Students can then take a pledge online at jostens to pause before they post.
Dolch Sight Words Activities - Week 9. A week of Dolch sight word activities for the nineth set of ten words from the Dolch sight words list. Activities include: flash cards/ memory game, color the words, trace the words, match the words, cut and paste the words in alphabetical order, and write the words in letterboxes. Enjoy! Weeks 1 - 10 will cover the first 100 Dolch Sight Words. - HappyEdugator
Infinitives and Infinitive phrases - includes a Graphic Organizer to aid comprehension, and a handout where infinitives and infinitive phrases oar defined and examples are given (which can also be used as an overhead transparency, or projected on a whiteboard), Also includes a very short worksheet on infinitives for practice, where students have to identify infinitive phrases in sentences, fill in the blanks about infinitives from the notes, and create their own infinitive phrases to complete sentences. (higher level thinking) Also includes a quiz on infinitives and infinitives phrases. Key included.
Chromebooks Keyboard Shortcuts - Essential guide for using Chromebooks in the classroom. If your school is using Google Chromebooks in the classroom, you can use these quick keyboard shortcuts for using notebooks in the classroom to help your kids and yourself navigate on a Chromebook. Keep them handy...share this file with your students to keep as a handy reference tool, or project them on your SMARTBOARD or whiteboard and go over them with your kids before you begin. Useful for any subject, and especially helpful in computing classes. Hope you find it helpful! - HappyEdugator
Brain Teaser Sheet - Critical Thinking.
Fun Brain Workout. Letter equations. May be challenging, but students will love trying to figure them out! A letter equation is a common combination of letters and numbers that are abbreviated. The trick is to figure out what the abbreviation means. For example, 7 d. in a w. is 7 days in a week. 22 brain teaser equations and key included. Good activity to get minds working for test prep. Exercise for the brain. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator
Parts of a Book PowerPoint. Basic parts of a book from the cover, spine and pages to what is inside. Distinguishes between fiction and nonfiction books, and explains how a book is organized, from the title page, table of contents, to the index and bibliography. Animated graphics make it engaging. Supports common core standards. Revised with more content in June 2014 - HappyEdugator
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.K.1 Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.1.1 Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print.
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
Christmas Holiday Sensory Writing Practice Worksheet. A Christmas or winter holiday writing worksheet. Ten different Christmas writing prompts for sensory writing, to create imagery with a holiday twist. Students will need to show, not tell, using words that utilize the five senses. You may use the worksheet in centers. group work, or individual instruction. You may wish to have them complete all the exercises, choose some, or assign them individually. Includes three pages of sensory words for students to use if needed. - 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
Writing: How to Engage the Reader PowerPoint. Focus on writing using three strategies to hook the reader, with examples. These three different writing strategies to engage the reader and create a great beginning for a narrative account can be used to help students overcome writer's block, especially when preparing for state writing tests. For use in a standards-based writing program which supports common core. Includes a slide with several other strategies students can try as well. Updated August 2014
- HappyEdugator
William Faulkner - As I Lay Dying - essay test or examination for the novel. Questions are based on Faulkner's life, style, including characterization and organization, themes, symbolisms and ironies. You can choose to have students answer all of the questions or let them select. This can be used as a take-home open book examination. Grading form and answer key included. You can use this for backwards design, and use the answer key to drive your class discussions. - HappyEdugator
Frequently Confused Words Packet - Supports Common Core! Includes a Poster or Handout on how to study commonly confused words, Four sets of frequently confused spelling words for study, four quizzes, and answer keys. The word lists are typed in text boxes, so they can be cut out and put on index cards. Students can then write the words on the other side of the cards. They will have a set of flashcards that they can then use to quiz each other for practice, and a way to self-check. Give out the words at the beginning of the week and have them take a quiz on Friday. These four sets will provide four weeks of practice! If you would like, do one set one week out of the month instead of their regular spelling words. However, you use them, enjoy! - HappyEdugator
Christmas adjective clause worksheet with 15 different sentences. Students have to identify the adjective clauses in the sentences related to the winter holiday. Useful in December to keep focused on the learning, even when the holidays are coming! Helps students understand sentence structure. Can be used in class or as homework practice. Common core standard in Language Arts. No prep. Print and go. Key included. - HappyEdugator
Snow Activities for Fun! Need some fun things to do this winter? Here are some activities your students can do! Includes a sheet to go with the story There Was a Cold Woman Who Swallowed Some Snow, and also a maze, a snowflake creative writing sheet, a snowman acrostic, directions for an art activity with soap flakes, a dot to dot snowman, a snow globe coloring sheet, Snow Word Family sheet, and even a snowman Venn Diagram. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator
Standards Tracker - Use this excel file to keep track of standards and student mastery. You can adapt it to use for a variety of uses. - Enjoy! - HappyEdugator
Race to the Finish PowerPoint Game Template. Students have to answer a series of mutiple choice questions to move through the categories. Wrong answer...start over! Great for review in any subject. Just add your own content. Enjoy! HappyEdugator
Simple Subjects and Complete Subjects Worksheet. Finding subjects and predicates is made easier with practice. Students will identify simple subjects and complete subjects. This will help them identify complete sentences. Simple and easy to understand directions. Ten sentences for simple subject, and ten for complete subject. Answer key included. - HappyEdugator