Free CVC Word Wheel

Free Word Wheel This is a free sample of my 13 CVC WHIRLY WORD WHEELS which will help students to merge the beginning consonant sound to the vowel-consonant ending in these one-syllable words for beginners who can identify letter sounds but need practice to merge the sounds together to form words. The word wheel has colorful illustrations of words in the wheel and each wheel uses each of the vowels a,e,i,o and u as the middle sounds. The illustrations and colors chosen are varied to appeal to both boys and girls. Instructions for assembly are included. 

3 Great Free Websites for Learning

Who hasn't heard of starfall.com? My kids at home can't get enough!!! And I am happy to have such a great free interactive web site to use... especially for my soon to be four year old son. He loves it. From the time my kids were born, I was buying books to create a personal library for them (my daughter loves to read!) My son also likes books but he gets food on them, wets them, writes on them with pens and crayons and before I can turn around I see that pages are missing and the cover is coming off. So the books do not always last but He seems to respect my laptop! So the starfall system works at my house!

I also like to use another free website called Gudli. It has tons of games and videos that are multidisciplinary and it's really interactive.

My final favorite is somewhat simpler in design but very effective for practicing those multiplication tables... It's the Underwater Times Tables from What2Learn.

Free Fraction Strips Template

Thanks to technology, we can easily create almost anything we can conceive of.  From gizmos to simple teacher-created resources, yes, teachers can make some really top-notch stuff!  If I can do it, then you can too. 

See the fraction strips on the left? To make them, all I needed was a printer, assorted colors of card stock paper and regular white paper, a pair of scissors or a guillotine, clear tape, clear adhesive paper (or laminating machine) and my Free Fraction Strips Template. g 

Just click here to download from TPT or here to download from TeachersNotebook. Suggested classroom activities are included and it's ideal for grades 2 - 3. To create, just follow these easy steps. Cut out each strip and make copies of each to be printed on separate colors of card stock( to color-code each fraction). Then laminate and cut out fraction strips or seal them with the clear adhesive paper. See other easy-to-make fraction stuff here at Nyla's Crafty Teaching.

If you are short on time, I have ready-made color coded Fraction Strips for Unit Fractions, Percents and Decimals. Just Print!

Helping You Teach About 3D Shapes (Upper Elementary)

As Teachers, we try to make teaching as'hands on' as possible. Bearing this in mind, I made this booklet of 3D shape charts and folding activities to allow students to see properties of each shape and to construct the nets for cubes, cuboids, cylinders, cones, triangular pyramids, rectangular pyramids and triangular prisms.  I also included definitions and pictures of real world examples. Click here to get it at TPT or here at TeachersNotebook - $5.00 value.

This happens to be part of a larger bundled product - My 2D & 3D Geometry Pack.  As a visitor to my Blog you save $3.00 off this $12.00 value! And you can get it right here at my Blog Store! 

Fraction Strips for Fractions, Percents and Decimals

These Fraction Strips are handy for discovering equivalency between fractions, decimals, and percents. Each card is color-coded allowing students to make connections when they see relational card values for proper fractions, percents, and decimals. For example, ¼, 25%, and 0.25 are always yellow.

Fraction word name cards are also included to help students learn how to pronounce the numbers correctly. 

The cards included can be used to focus on just one skill (e.g. percents) or use the cards together to learn equivalencies. 

Extra copies can be made to allow students to cut out the fraction tiles and use them to create word problems.  All Fraction Strips are available in whole, halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, sixths, eighths, tenths and twelfths. The same goes for their decimal, percent and word-name counterparts. Everything here is also included in black and white form for ease of making photocopies. The colored sheets can be printed and laminated or they can be printed on transparency paper to make transparencies for use with a projector.


See it here at TPT or here at TeachersNotebook!

My School Year's Resolution - Encouraging Parents

I have decided that for this school year, I'm going to put some focus on the parents.  There's a direct co-relation between parental input and  student performance. Most of my students come from broken homes, single parent homes, etc. I sympathize with parents. Some of them really do have some dire circumstances to deal with. These are a few of the main reasons why these parents are M I A at school:

* Working single parents - some have very demanding jobs cannot afford to leave (even for an hour unless it's an emergency).

*Some just do not have their priorities in the right order!

*Many parents are going back to school, studying in Trinidad or abroad, (we're in Tobago). So their children are under the care of other family members.

*The blame game - Sometimes, feuding parents see their children as 'the other's' responsibility and not a shared one.

Believe it or not, I had to put aside some money for the amount of calls I'll be making to parents (the school's phone is always tied up). I've learnt that sending written correspondence has not been effective. Some students either forget to give it to their parents or they deliberately hide it, for whatever reason. So, calling the parents directly, is the sure way of staying connected. 

Some of them have very complex family dynamics and I'll have to be tread carefully. While some may at first  perceive me as 'the nosy teacher' they'll soon realize that my intentions are good. There are a few who would be quick to assume that I just want to 'get in their business' or report something to the Social Services. Generally, from past experience, most parents realize that they can feel safe with me and they open up. I get to communicate with them on a regular basis, they turn up for the PTA meetings and their child improves at school. 

I know that this may be a culture shock for some of my readers but it is a real problem here. However, there are a few parents who really care; they drop in ever so often, ask questions, participate in the P.T.A, fund raisers, etc. If I can help more parents to me more involved in their children's school life, I know it would be worth the effort because the students would benefit.

How Do You Feel About Streaming Your Students?

I was talking to my aunt the other day about the issue of streaming students in our local primary schools. (She's a retired teacher, by the way). I have always felt that streaming should be the way to go and after our discussion, I feel even more strongly about my conviction.

Now, I am aware of the fact that streaming does put a 'label' on students, yes this is true.  And because of this, it should be done in a tactful manner so that the classes are not overtly labelled as 'The A Class' or 'The C Class'.  Many schools simply use the name of the class teacher or her name initials to identify the class.  This is what I prefer for my class.  And also, if the classes within a school are being streamed, this knowledge should be kept confidential and should only be shared among the teachers and the principal.  Parents often ask me questions like 'Mrs. Martin, is my child in the 'A' class?' or 'Is your class the 'A' class?'  I try to show the parents that the philosophy of the school and the Ministry of Education is that children develop at their own pace and that streaming puts a pressure on them to feel like education is a competition which has winners and losers and that this can directly affect their self esteem, etc.

So, as far as the parents and students are concerned, they do not have to be troubled by the negatives of streaming.  However, we the teachers in the school, have our classes arranged in such a way that the students who need remedial math and reading are in a class that teaches at a pace that is right for them both as a class, and as individuals because this class is smaller in number and it has more teachers per student than the other classes!. Of course, if all of the classes had such ideal conditions, then that would be great but we make the best of our reality.  The bulk of our resources are given to the classes that need it the most.

The Cyber Search Showcase was a Success!

The Cyber Search Showcase held on Monday, August 8^th was a success! Thanks to the T.P.T. sellers and you the teachers out there who came and spread the word around.  You’ll find other great free and inexpensive teaching materials here and on the blogs and websites listed below. If you’d like to receive information about future Cyber Search events, be sure to follow my blog, facebook, twitter, or T.P.T. pages so that you can keep up to date with new offerings.

Thank you for downloading My Math Telling Time Unit with Five Lessons (PDF Format)

Other Great Grade 3 - 6 Teacher-Sellers on T.P.T!

• Laura Candler Teaching Resources
• Tracey Graham Smart Chick Teacher
• Lisa Frase Effective Teaching Solutions
• Rachel Lynette Minds in Bloom
• Ashleigh Swinford Education Journey
• Charity Preston The Organized Classroom Blog
• Jennifer Runde Runde's Room
• Wise Guys Teaching Activities, Lesson Plans, and Units
• Karla Banks Life in Special Education
• Heather Kaiser The Teched Out Teacher
• Rosshalde Pak Education Shortlist
• PowerPoint Maniac PowerPoint Maniac's Teaching Resources
• Nyla Phillips-Martin  Nyla's Crafty Teaching
• Margaret Whisnaut Taking Grades for Teachers

Freebie to celebrate 100 fb Likes!

OK, To celebrate my 100 followers (and counting...) here's my freebie!
GO TO FREEBIE

 

Free Chart

Christian Motivational ChartThis free motivational chart is created to encourage, motivate and instill faith in studentsFree Christian Motivational Chart Poster
This can also be downloaded here directly from Nyla's Crafty Teaching TPT Store