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.
Thanksgiving: History of Thanksgiving. Presents how the American holiday of Thanksgiving got started from the Pilgrims to how it is celebrated today. What is Thanksgiving? Who were the Pilgrims? Covers the voyage of the Mayflower, the landing at Plymouth, the Mayflower Compact, the menu of the first Thanksgiving, how Thanksgiving became a holiday, traditions of the feast and Black Friday, Thanksgiving parades and football. - HappyEdugator
EDITABLE Teacher Binder Covers - 63 Different Ready Made Binder Covers and Spines. Choose which ones you wish to use, print out and slip into your binder front and spine. Also includes an editable cover and an editable spine, so you can add your own words if you need to! These can also be used as dividers in a larger teacher binder (cover for that included) and the spines can double as page tabs. Just print out the pages you need and put in page protectors. Print out the tabs on card stock and attach with clear packing tape to protect and make durable. Safari Zebra background. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator
The Hunger Games Survival Challenge Smartboard Game will engage your students! FUN! INTERACTIVE! 12 Different Smart board activities!
Hunger Games Directions: This is a Smartboard game for up to twelve players or teams based on the book The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. A scorekeeper may be needed to keep track of team scores.
BEWARE Only one player can survive! Will it be you? You may choose up to 12 teams or individual players. Click on the dice to find out your district and see how many points you will start with. There can be two players from each district. If a district has already been claimed, roll again. It is not necessary to have all Districts in play for the game to continue. There will be 12 Challenges. A District will be randomly selected to complete the Challenge. You may win or lose points depending on your performance on the Challenge. The INDIVIDUAL with the most points at the end wins. The password for editing purposes is hunger, in case you wish to change the game. I have the password set up so students can't change it.
Some teachers may wish to vary the game and play the challenges as separate games instead of playing the game with all 12 challenges for a victor. You may adapt how you play it for your class. Just move through the slides and have loads of fun! 25 slides in all. This activity can also be used in math for the practice of adding and subtracting points.
- HappyEdugator
Walrus Facts and information all about walruses. If you are studying arctic animals, introduce your students to walruses with this PowerPoint presentation about these amazing marine mammals.
Includes slides on:
What is a walrus?
Physical features - with a link to a video on walrus sounds
Flippers
Skin
Tusks
Whiskers
Diet
Life Expectancy
Reproduction
Range
Population
Behavior
Threats - Natural Predators
Threats - Climate Change
Threats - Ship Traffic and Oil Spills
21 slides of informational text on walruses. - HappyEdugator
Dead Verbs PowerPoint.Good Halloween writing activity. Bury those dead verbs! Give your students some practical strategies to revise their writing and remove dead and overused verbs to create more lively writing. Students can apply these writing strategies to engage the reader. Four useful strategies with examples provided. 15 slides. Animated graphics will keep their attention. :)
Vocabulary - Mood Tone Words. Vocabulary Improvement Strategy Charts. Twelve vocabulary improvement strategy charts of commonly tested mood and tone words. Each chart has the student complete the synonym/antonym for the word, root, picture clue, definition, and sentence. Can be used as a weekly vocabulary assignment, which would cover twelve weeks. - HappyEdugator
Poetry - Using Emotion to Create Poetry PowerPoint. Graphics and animations will engage your students as they learn about poetry writing. Includes a definition of poetry, explanation of figurative language, imagery, and sound devices, a list of human emotions, and a step by step approach to writing a sensory poem. You can also print out the included poetry frame if you desire. When students are finished, they will have created their own poem! Fun way to get reluctant poets to writing. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator
Homophones in Pictures PowerPoint. Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings and spelling. They can be easily confused. Illustrated homophones will help students remember which ones are which! Slide show has homophones and pictures to help students remember. Slides can be printed out to make a great bulletin board, too. Supports common core standards. - HappyEdugator
Pirates Hidden Treasure Game. PowerPoint review game can be used with any set of questions in any subject! Good vocabulary review game for Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies and even Foreign Language. Your kids will love it! Travel the islands of the ocean with these pirate themed gameboards. Students pick a gameboard and then answer your questions. Each time they get an answer correct, they can pick a square. They continue to answer questions and choose until they find they treasure! (We just go around the room, but it can be done with teams as well.) Ten different gameboards to choose from, that include ten different exotic ports of call. Loads of fun for all ages in any subject area. Enjoy! -HappyEdugator
Literary Terms in Context PowerPoint. This interactive PowerPoint has 30 questions about literary terms in context. May be used individually, with a whole group, or with teams. Students must read the quote and answer the question, then click to check. Includes terms for poetry and literature, including figurative language, rhyme scheme, story elements and point of view. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator
Peak by Roland Smith Introductory PowerPoint Presentation. This book is about a boy who climbs Mt. Everest. The PowerPoint presentation introduces students to the novel Peak by Roland Smith. Information about the author of the book, an overview of the plot, a list of main characters, slides on setting (the Woolworth building, Bangkok, Everest and base camp), themes, and a few important vocabulary words to get started. The last slide has students make a prediction about the book and gets them ready to READ! Just updated with new slides...a total of 34 slides! Includes information on climbing Mt. Everest, specialized equipment needed, dangers and expenses, routes to the top with links to video, and a short history of climbing Mt. Everest, including the youngest person to make the summit in 2010. Enjoy - HappyEdugator
Fourth of July PowerPoint. July Fourth - Independence Day - 4th of July. How and Why We Celebrate the Birth of our Nation. Great for summer camp. The Declaration of Independence made simple, Flag etiquette, Popular summer outdoor and indoor games and activities, Traditional food, How to make an American Flag cake, and Fireworks safety. American July 4th traditions for everyone to enjoy, for young and old, foreign or not. Goes with any Fourth of July unit. Great for introducing the summer activities of the Fourth to ESOL students and foreign high school students and adults as well. 15 Review Questions and Answer Key for self check.- HappyEdugator
Suffixes for Parts of Speech PowerPoint Presentation. This PowerPoint has common suffixes that are used for nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs, and their meanings. Students who learn these suffixes will find determining parts of speech easier, and will also be able to use this knowledge to build vocabulary. A foldable graphic organizer (instructions included) will help students retain the information. After students take notes, they can quiz on the practice questions. Then they can learn four spelling rules for suffixes. - HappyEdugator
The River by Gary Paulsen PowerPoint Presentation. Give students the background knowledge they need to understand The River by Gary Paulsen. Many of my students from the South are not familiar with northern rivers and the hazards of the river environment.
This presentation introduces students to the dangers that might face someone trying to survive on a raft on a northern river. This activate prior knowledge of students who have been on rivers, which will lead to some engaging class discussion and create interest to introduce the novel. - HappyEdugator
English Words That Come From Spanish. Use word origins to build vocabulary. Notes about Spanish pronunciation makes this useful for an introduction to a Spanish class, too. Animated graphics and sounds will entertain students. It is fun to study word origins! 23 slide PowerPoint presentation will help students build their vocabulary and develop their understanding of where language comes from. These slides explain words like poncho, platinum, and embargo, with definitions and photographs, and an explanation of the etymology. The words can be used for spelling or vocabulary building. All of them come from Spanish or from indigenous languages of South America. Students will be surprised to know that alligator comes to us from Spanish! Slides can also be printed out onto cards for learning center activities. Leads into research...students can discover other words that come from Spanish, too. - HappyEdugator
Greatest Common Factor PowerPoint (GCF) and Task Cards. Animated PowerPoint slides explain two methods of finding the Greatest Common Factor. Teacher directions, and two leveled sets of 10 task cards for practice in centers with answer keys included. -
Parts of speech PowerPoint game. A fun interactive way to practice identifying parts of speech. Students are given two sentences and have thirty seconds to decide what part of speech the underlined words function as in a sentence. They can work with a partner and use wipe-off white boards or write the answers down on paper. After time is up, the answers will disappear. (Timer is built in) Click again to check answers. Advance slide and click to start with a new set of sentences. Grades 3 and up. Supports common core!
36 sentences in all. - HappyEdugator
Common Core Writing Assignments For A Whole Quarter. 8 different writing activities that can be completed over the course of a 9 weeks grading period. Each handout has the standard or standards that are the focus and an assignment that goes with the standards.Each writing assignment also includes a rubric for evaluation. Writing activities include persuasive, argument, narrative, descriptive, comparison/contrast, expository, and 2 weeks of research, all based on the common core standards. Developed for grade 7, but will work for grades 6 - 8 very well. - HappyEdugator
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.1 Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.1a Introduce claim(s), acknowledge alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.1b Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.1c Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), reasons, and evidence.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.1d Establish and maintain a formal style.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.1e Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2b Develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2c Use appropriate transitions to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2d Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2e Establish and maintain a formal style.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.2f Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.3a Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.
