Multiple Meanings Words

My class will be studying multiple meaning words this week, so I made a few posters to go along with our activities!  Feel free to download a copy below!

Here is a handout that I'll be giving the kids to keep in their writing folders!

I have found SO many neat resources and activities to teach homophones and homographs!  Here are some great sites/sources you may want to peek at!

Free Multiple Meaning Word Powerpoints @ http://languagearts.pppst.com/multiplemeaning.html  

Interactive game for kids @ Learningtoday.com

Multiple Meaning M&M Idea @ Mrs. Russ's Rockets

Printable games can be found at these blogs: 

Peterson's Pad - Cooking Up Some Homophones 

Teaching in High Heels - Hoppy Homophones 

Pitner's Potpourri - Amelia Bedelia's First Day of School 

Pitner's Potpourri - Matching Multiple Meaning Words

Mrs. Russ's Rockets - File Folder games for MM Words

Bead Glyph - Zipper Pull

This is NOT my original idea!  I've seen a few versions of bead glyphs around on the internet and I've adapted it to fit into my own classroom.  This is such a fun activity for the first day of school and it helps students to break the ice with their classmates! Using a glyph sheet, the students place beads on colored string according to their interests and facts about themselves. (To save on time, I do tie the string to the key rings before this activity!) The kids really enjoy using their glyphs to get to know their classmates and then they have a nice keepsake to hang on their backpacks for the rest of the year!

Here are the printables for this activity!

 

Personality Survey

I have sent this survey out on the first day of school for the past three years and have gotten AWESOME feedback!  It's been a great way to gain insight on my students (and parents) right from the first few days of school!  I still refer back to those surveys throughout the year for various reasons!  The best part is reading what parents write about in "The Life of _______" section, since it's so open ended! Click on the image to download a copy!

  This was not my original idea...I believe a paper copy of it was given to me before I started teaching and I retyped it up at some point.  I've tried finding a copy online, but have had no luck!

Reading Log

Oooooh, reading logs......  I've changed mine A TON of times over the past few years, but have found the one I'm using now works out the best for me!  I used to be terrible at checking them consistently, my students would fill up their logs a different times, and many just simply didn't participate!  With this year's log, my students record their required, nightly reading at the top (I write in the dates before I copy it.....this seems to really help the parents/kids for some reason!) and any EXTRA reading at the bottom.  This helps me easily see who is doing the minimum or going above and beyond!  I collect the logs every two weeks to check for completion and to see what books the kids have been reading at home!  If the logs are complete, the students earn a Reading Star ticket! (See earlier post for info and download.)  With the exception of a few students, the reading logs come back complete every time!  You can click on the photo to download a copy! If you'd like me to send you the Word version in order to edit the directions at the top to better fit your class requirements, leave me a comment with your email and I can send it to you!

Sight Words

I've broken the second grade sight word list into two separate lists for my students.  The first list is the Happy Hundred, where the students pass by reading each word accurately in 100 seconds or less! Once they pass the first list, they earn a "Happy Hundred" club card that includes their name, I.D. number (class number), and thumbprint! (They looooove putting their thumbs in my ink pads!) :)  I then laminate the cards for durability!  After passing the first list, they move on to the Wonderful 120, which they have to pass in 2 minutes or less.  They earn a bookmark once they've passed!  For an added incentive after passing both lists, each student writes their name on an ice cream scoop and adds it to an ice cream cone display in our room.  Once the cone is full (every student has completed both lists), I reward them with an ice cream treat!

NOTE:  Since this original post, I have updated my Sight Word packet and uploaded it to TpT.  Click the images below to download!

 

Reading Incentives

Every two weeks, I collect my students' reading logs.  If they've completed the required reading for those two weeks, they earn a Reading Star ticket.  I occasionally draw tickets from the Star Jar when the class is doing an especially nice job listening, following directions, etc.  Winners may choose from either a piece of candy, sticker, or coloring page.  I also may hand out tickets to students who are doing a great job during group, buddy reading, or literacy centers!  This works well as a motivator for both reading and classroom behavior!  Click on the picture to download a copy of the tickets!



Other reading incentives I use are "Book Bucks".  Each student in my classroom has an AR chart where they can earn a sticker for every Accelerated Reader quiz they receive a score of 80% or higher on.  Each time they fill up a row on their chart (5 quizzes), they earn a Book Buck, which can be redeemed for small prizes in the Book Buck Store!  Click the picture to grab a copy!

101st Day of School!

This summer, I stumbled upon the CUTEST idea for celebrating the 101st day of school, instead of the 100th day!  The day is based entirely on the 101 Dalmatians and even the students dress in black and white spots!  I got this wonderful idea from Mrs. Moore's Busy Bees!  My kids had so much fun and I definitely plan on making it a yearly tradition!  To add to our 101st Day fun, I created a few Dalmatian themed activities that you are welcome to download below!  :)

Book Page - I took each student's picture in front of the "dog house" bulletin board and had them write about their favorite part of the day.  We used our writing and photos to create a class book!

Dalmatian Math -  Students roll a die 101 times and tally their results.  Then, they use their data to answer questions and to create a bar graph.

Estimation Station-  Each student guessed how many dog treats were in the estimation jar.  The student with the closest estimation won a prize!

Mini-Greenhouse

I found a fun activity at Education.com for growing seeds inside a plastic baggie! This is a nice alternative to the potting soil in a cup method! Click on the image below to download the handout I made for my students for beginning this project!

Reading Observation Form

I created this observation sheet to assess my students' reading throughout the school year!  If you'd like to download a copy, click on the image below!

Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose

Our classroom door for Read Across America and Dr. Seuss Week!