Hello Mrs Sykes

Whoo-woo!  I'm so super excited to share this with y'all - I have been bursting to tell you for weeks, but it had to be kept very hush, hush.  You know... I can keep a secret.  :)  Anywhoo... I've been working (again) on these Comprehension Strategy Sheets for Literature Standards, Grades 3-5 !  I keep coming up with more ideas that I just. have. to. add.  I began this project because it was such a challenge to find targeted informal assessments to use for remediation and enrichment options, as well as to inform parents of the standards covered in Common Core.  This pack includes graphic organizers and response sheets for all grades 3-5 RL standards. Here's a peek inside! Now more than 100 pages!! What teachers are saying: "Excellent bundle of resources, thanks!" "Great resource for literature response aligned to each standard. Thank you!" "A very practical resource that can be used to implement the common core." ...

Summer is in full swing, so it's back to school time at our house.  (Remember, I've been teaching at a year round school !)  Except, I'm on sabbatical - er, I mean, unemployed  self-employed.  OK, here's the truth -  I'm only on sabbatical in my head.  On paper, I'm unemployed; the state of NC does not allow teachers to take unpaid leave unless we're serving our country or taking care of someone who is ill.  After 14 years in the classroom, I need a change of pace for the sake of my health.  I love teaching, and will return (one day!)  For now, I'm kind of reveling in the idea that back to school means my own kiddos go.  It's been over 10 years since I've had a quiet house, and I'm loving it! {source} Since I am not currently employed, I decided to spend more time creating and tweaking the teaching resources I've been working on for years.  Here's the most recent creation (over 6 months in the making!)  Comprehension Strat...

Omigoodness, y'all!!  I am uber excited about this... RL Standards 1-10 for grades 3-5 For years, I worked with students and teachers in grades 3-5 in ways to cut through the "clutter" and simplify the structure we give students, so students can show what they know instead of how well they follow the directions of random, complicated tasks.  This packet follows the same philosophy - clear, straightforward, while having high expectations of referring to text and justifying their reasoning.   Perfect for the Upper-Elementary classroom.  They are Common Core aligned on each page, and all handouts are in black/white for crisp copies.  It doesn't hurt that they are "ninja-cute" (is that a word?) while definitely not  cutesy. Take a peek inside: What teachers are saying: For y'all, this packet is on sale all week for 20% off at my TpT store and my TN store !  Enjoy!!

Happy Monday, y'all!  Here's  a quick  "Mini-Pack" of 12 Task Cards , covering these ELA standards from CCSS:   RF.2.3a, RF.2.3d, RF.2.3f, L.2.4 a,L.2.4d, & L.2.4e. Click the picture to download from  TpT ! Also, I finished my Author's Purpose Task Cards for CCSS RI.2.6.  Click on the picture for more information...

Found some more Amazing Resources for y'all!  Enjoy! Reading A-Z.com - I know this is nothing new for most of you, but trust me - you want to read this tip!  Did you know that you can print books in multiple languages from Reading A-Z?  This saved me last year...  I had a student who did not enjoy doing his nightly reading.  His uncle, who didn't read/speak English, would tell him to read and ask him questions about his reading.  My student would pretend to read and then make stuff up to tell his uncle.  Uncle was frustrated (rightfully so!), and I began sending home Reading A-Z books in both English and Spanish.  Problem solved!  I love when there's a simple solution.  {Subscription service} Free Common Core Posters for K-5 - Really.  There are printer-friendly *free* posters for ELA and Math for grades K-5 available for download from  Core Common Standards .  At the home page , select your grade, add the fr...

Missed y'all lately.  As I'm sure you could tell from my last post , I've been a wee bit overwhelmed at school lately.  I'm trying to get my assessments ready for report cards - I know some most of you are in traditional calendar schools, but I teach in a year round school.  (You can learn more about my crazy calendar here .)  Anywhoo, here's a quick little assessment to see how my green beans do with CCSS standard 2.RL.7.  Feel free to download for free from TPT .  Enjoy!! Download from TPT here.

Here's another quick round up (in no particular order) of some Amazing Resources for classrooms available online.  Best part of all?  They are all free!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If your class is stuck indoors, no worries!  Hop on over to Adventure to Fitness , and register for a free teacher account.  Mr. Marc guides the class through a dynamic and fun adventure to keep fit while exploring the arctic, the pyramids, or the jungle.  New episodes are added often, and teacher guides are available for each episode.   Be swift, be safe, be adventurers! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With all of the focus in Common Core on nonfiction text, it can be a challenge to find engaging, age-appropriate materials.   National Geographic Young Explorers has put all of their past issues online for free, and students can explore the articles or even have the articles read to them! ...

After 3 ag-ra-va-ting days without internet service at home, I'm back online!  Yay!  :)  I really missed y'all. Here's a super cool Common Core shortcut...  right over here ------------->> Click it.  Isn't it cool?  Want to get your own?  Check it out here . Also, have you checked out Dropbox?  I live in fear of losing my precious files, so I back up everything important on my laptop, desktop, and flash drive.  An easy solution is to use Dropbox .  You get 2 G of storage for free, but if you click this link ,  you'll get another 250 MB for free.  Enjoy!!