Back-to-Schhol E-Book: 40 FREE Ideas and Resources

Back-to-School season is upon us!

To help you get started or add to your planned classroom resources, 40 different TpT sellers have created a “A Back to School eBook for Grades 5 and 6 from TpT Authors.” Each page is packed with tips to help you as you adjust to back to school in your classrooms. 

Click here for your FREE download:

Fifth Grade Freebies shout-outs

Several of the collaborators from "Fifth Grade Freebies" contributed to this e-book

Brian from Wise Guys compiled all of these awesome pages!

They also shared a free guided reading strategies packet.

Jessica from Joy in the Journey has a missing homework management freebie that will help keep your students accountable for their missing work.

Missy from "Wild About Fifth" has a Reading Challenge freebie that will get your students excited about reading and exploring different genres!

If you download the freebies, please leave feedback!

Favorite Fifth Grade Classroom Read Alouds

Fifth Grade Freebies friends,  are you looking for the best 5th grade read aloud books?

If you're like me you probably enjoy switching up your read alouds once in awhile and trying something new.  But finding that something new can be a lot of work. When I'm looking for my next read aloud I ask my coworkers for ideas, scour my favorite celebriteacher blogs, stalk the Nerdy Book Club blog, and take recommendations from my fellow literacy fanatics on Instagram.  All of these steps take time and I'm spending this time over and over again throughout the year. Why is finding the perfect read aloud always so hard?

Cue lightbulb -

and then it hit me.........

I realized that instead of repeating this process continuously, I needed to put all of these AMAZING recommendations into a list that I could refer to whenever needed.  AND even better, that I could share with all my fifth grade teacher friends like you!!!

So, here it is friends!!  The BEST fifth grade read alouds - chosen by those who know best.  You!!!

       

All of these recommendations were gathered through your responses on my Wild About Fifth Grade and our Fifth Grade Freebies facebook pages.  I threw in some of my own personal favorites as well.

Enjoy!

Happy back to school season!!!

FREEBIE idea to save your sanity during the last few weeks of school!

Yes we still have 18 days of school left and lots of important curriculum to cover so I can't afford to give in just yet.  How am I making it through these last four weeks before the freedom of summer arrives?  Bribery.  LOL  Just kidding - O'Bryan Bucks and O'Bryan Sales.

During the fourth marking period we institute a money system in fifth grade.  I tell my students they are entering the real world where they get paid for doing their expected jobs and for going above and beyond. Plus, just like in the real world, they will now have to use that money to pay weekly bills and for extra privileges and fun stuff.

Students start earning money for those daily expectations (that are falling to pieces as summer nears) like: getting their assignment planner signed nightly, turning in completed homework assignments, being in class and in seats when the bell rings, returning signed notes and classroom newsletters, etc. On average, students can earn $5 a day for accomplishing these expected jobs. (It's amazing how fake money can put those expectation pieces right back together again)

Students start paying daily for lunch/recess.  They pay a weekly rent fee and Fun Friday fee.  Those who complete their daily jobs, have more than enough money to pay for all of their daily and weekly bills with some left over to save for our O'Bryan sales.

They can also earn money by following directions quickly, lining up quietly, keeping desks clean and neat, and/or basically whatever desired behaviors I'm expecting at certain times.  Waving a few O'Bryan bucks in the air and stating, "I'm looking for who lines up the quietest," is pure magic at this time of the year.  These additional dollars build up and can be spent when I randomly offer extra privileges like free choice in the computer lab, extra recess, or sit by a friend or work with a partner time, etc.

However, not all students will be able to pay their daily bills or participate in the extra privileges because either they did not complete their daily jobs or they lost money through fines.  Students can be fined money for not achieving the desired expectations - talking during instruction, not following directions, transitioning or lining up loudly, etc.  A few times of having to miss out on the extra fun privileges or not having any money to spend at an O'Bryan sale, and these students are working their hardest to earn O'Bryan bucks the next day.  No lie, I have a student who hasn't turned in a homework assignment on time all year - and has now started to slowly turn things in to earn O'Bryan bucks.  It's sad that it took fake money and not self motivation to accomplish this feat, but hey, whatever works, right?

I'm sure you're wondering by now, "What is an O'Bryan sale?"  This is the cheapest, easiest form of entertainment you can offer your students.  Essentially an O'Bryan sale is a yard sale in your classroom where students can purchase items with their O'Bryan bucks.  I keep things all year long (bookmarks from Scholastic, books and posters I no longer want, toys my own children have outgrown, clearance items I find at Target, etc).  I also invite the students to bring in items they can sell in their own sections of the O'Bryan sale.  It's like a subdivision garage sale! Most of them bring in items of their own they no longer want (with parent permission of course), things they make like loom bracelets, duct tape creations, cookies, and other sorts of stuff.

We hold two O'Bryan sales. One half way through the fourth marking period and the other at the end.  We just held the half way through sale a week ago.  Students had a great time using their hard earned bucks to buy goodies, and earning some bucks as well.  After the sale, students now have a renewed purpose to earn as many O'Bryan bucks as they can for the final sale the last week of school.

 

Not only are the students learning that hard work and good choices pay off, but they are also realizing how to budget and save for their bills as well as when they can afford to spend money for the "extras" in life.  They're having fun and my sanity is safe.......for now!

Happy last few days of school to all my teacher friends!  What are you doing to save your sanity? I'd love to hear.

Common Core Critical Verbs Vocabulary Instruction FREEBIE

As testing time is nearing for us in Michigan, I am spending a few intentional minutes each day reviewing those CRITICAL Common Core verbs like: analyze, articulate, cite, comprehend, convey, collaborate, etc.  My students cannot do well on "the test" if they do not know what the questions are asking them to accomplish.  Purposeful vocabulary instruction is a MUST for test success!  

I'd love to share with all of YOU a FREE week of the instruction packet I am using for this purpose. I hope you find it as useful as I have.

This FREE packet includes a daily practice sheet for four Common Core critical verbs.  I use these pages Monday through Thursday as a daily warm-up..  It also includes a weekly quiz over the words. We take the weekly quiz every Friday.  An answer key is contained as well for the weekly quiz.  

The intentional, purposeful instruction is helping my students to recognize, use and apply these words on a daily basis.  I even overheard a student last week say to her partner, "You need to articulate your answer more clearly, I'm not exactly sure what you're trying to say."   I almost high fived her.  LOL  Enjoy!!!

  

Spooky Multiplication Roll Freebie

Looking for a multi-digit multiplication math game to review/spiral/reinforce 5.NBT.5?  Look no further.  Spooky Multiplication Roll is the perfect fall game and the best part is it's FREE.  Just download, print, copy and play.  All you need to do is model the directions and provide the dice.  I'm planning for my students to play on Halloween day!!

Enjoy!!

Take Home Folder Cover Sheet Freebie

It's the last weekend of summer for us here in Michigan!  We start back to school on Tuesday and in preparation, I'm stuffing these cute cover sheets into 32 take home folders.  If you use the plastic take home folders maybe you'll be able to use this template also.  It's editable so you can add your student's names.  

The folders we use can be found HERE.

The folders have a clear front plastic cover to protect the cover sheet.  Inside they are labeled with "keep at home" on one side - this is for notes and graded work, and "return to school" on the other side - this is for homework and notes that need to be returned.  Look how adorable they turned out!  Click HERE for the freebie.  

I know most of you are way past needing take home folder templates, but hey, maybe you'll want to pin it for next year!  I know I'm constantly pinning ideas in my Back To School pinterest board, even in December.  LOL

I hope everyone enjoys their Labor Day Weekend!  My plan is to relax and stretch out these last few days of summer before the school year craziness begins!!  What are your plans?!?

Shared Reading in the Upper Grades - FREEBIE

Even big kids need shared reading!  It's the perfect way to model/practice comprehension strategies, summarizing and build oral fluency. The best part is that it only takes 10-15 minutes a day.  Since I love Shared Reading so much, I'm here to share my Shared Reading in the Upper Grades FREEBIE with YOU today on FIFTH GRADE FREEBIES!!  This resource outlines how we share reading each day in room 206 and it includes our shared reading note-taking graphic organizers.

So how do we share reading in room 206?  Each week I choose a 1-2 page short story, drama, poem, or nonfiction article.  Highlights Magazines, Time for Kids, Scholastic News, Zoo Books, and Kids Discover are my usual go to's.  But there are tons of great websites that offer FREE short texts too.  This text is the piece we examine all week during shared reading time.

On Day 1, (preview and predict) before I pass out the text, I give students the headline/title of the piece and they predict the genre.  First they think on their own, then write their predictions on the shared reading graphic organizer I've included HERE, secondly they share their thinking with a partner and eventually we discuss the predictions as a class. Great conversations occur from their predictions and they can't wait to see the text of the week. I pass it out and students preview the text and predict what it will be about on their graphic organizers. (think, pair, share again)  We put the text and the graphic organizer away in our reading folders for safe keeping.

On Day 2, (fluency and wonderings) I read the text aloud.  This is the day we practice our oral fluency.  You can play all kinds of fun games to enhance oral reading fluency.  My favorite is just reading a paragraph at a time and having the students repeat it when I'm done - just like I sounded.  I call off random groups of students so they never know who's next to read and it keeps them engaged.  I might say "everyone who brought cold lunch please read paragraph number one after me," or "everyone wearing blue, or sneakers, or with brown hair," or "everyone who loves video games, or animals, or pizza," etc.  It's fun and they have to listen carefully while I read, so they can read it with the same expression and fluency.  Plus, the class is hearing each paragraph twice so it increases comprehension.  After we finish the text. Students record their wonderings on their weekly shared reading graphic organizer, share with a partner, and then we discuss as a class.

On Day 3, (author's purpose or perspective) depending on the genre, students reread the text with a partner to determine the author's purpose for writing the piece and the point of view of the author (nonfiction) or perspective (fiction). Students again write their notes on their shared reading organizer and we talk about how the author's purpose, point of view/perspective influence the text.

On Day 4, (text structure) students reread a few sections of the text (that I've determined ahead of time because they contain organizational clues) independently. They take notes on the organizational structure (cause/effect, problem/solution, etc.) or the story, drama or poetry elements.

Lastly, on Day 5, (determining importance/theme/summarizing) the students reread the entire text independently and highlight the main ideas from each paragraph (nonfiction) or the evidence of the theme (fiction). Students use all of the information on their shared reading graphic organizer notes to compose a summary of the weekly piece.

There you have it!  I would love to hear how you do shared reading with your upper elementary students.  I love getting new ideas!

Enjoy!

Start off the the year with Place Value Review - FREEBIE

Hello Fifth Grade Freebieland!  I know, I know, today's FREEBIE says 4th grade at the top, but don't worry 5th grade teachers - this one is for you too!

If your students are anything like mine, they've forgotten a teeny bit LOT of those 4th grade standards over summer break.  So I always start out the year by reviewing 4th grade material.  These Common Core aligned place value exit slips are perfect warm-ups to do just that.  Each exit slip contains less than 4 tasks to complete and is designed to take only 5 or so minutes to complete. Plus, all answer keys are included! This is a great way to get in a few minutes of precious review each day.

I'm planning to start class every morning with a 4th grade exit slip - but I'll actually be using it as an entrance slip. Looking over these slips daily will give me some data on who remembers which 4th grade skills.  I'll be able to quickly plan my intervention groups and fill in some of those gaps early in the year.  Then after our mini-lesson and workshop time, we'll end each class with a 5th grade exit slip and I'll have some amazing data on who has those skills in place as well!! 

The best part of these 4th grade place value exit slips ----- they're FREE ----- just for you.  So snag them up now. Download, print, copy and your first two weeks of math warm-ups are complete!  That's my plan at least!!

Enjoy!!

40 Book Challenge FREEBIES

Hi everyone!  I'm Melissa O'Bryan from Wild About Fifth Grade and I'm so excited to share a recent FREEBIE with you!

Have you read the Book Whisperer and/or Reading in the Wild? This past year Donalyn Miller, the author of both, inspired me to incorporate a 40 Book Challenge into my reader's workshop.  I challenged each of my readers to READ, READ, READ as much as possible, to take every free minute, and to reach the feat of reading 40 books over the school year!  Many think there is no way they'll be able to accomplish the challenge, and some don't, but ALL were surprised at the end of the year with how many books they did read.  Myself included - there's something beautiful about visually keeping track of your progress and then celebrating what you've accomplished!

We started the challenge on the first day of school and we talked about it every day.  I kept track of the books I read on our classroom door. 

How cool was my door?? I loved seeing the books I read increase throughout the year, and I loved talking about those book with my own readers and even readers in the hallway who noticed a cover while passing by. I hated having to take it down at the end of the year, but I also can't wait to start again this year.  P.S. I've started my 40 Book Challenge this summer for this upcoming year so I can keep up with my readers.  :)  I'll post a few covers on the first day of school to kick off our 2014-2015 40 Book Challenge!

If you'd like to make a similar display on your door or a classroom bulletin board, click HERE for an editable FREE 40 Book Challenge poster of your own.

While I kept track of my 40 Book Challenge progress on our classroom door, my readers kept track of the books they read in their reading binders.  I created these record keeping pages for my students to log their progress.  And because I'm so excited for YOU to incorporate a 40 Book Challenge into your classroom, I'm giving away these record keeping sheets for FREE! Click HERE for the FREE 40 Book Challenge record keeping pages.  

Included in the FREEBIE are two options of student recording sheets.  One page (to be copied front/back) with 40 slots for each student to record the title and author of each book they complete, the genre and whether the book was easy (E), just right (JR) or challenging. There is a second option with the 40 left off in case you want to differentiate the challenge to fewer or more books for your students.  Secondly, there are two options of a genre requirement sheet.  The first has the breakdown of genres (how many of each genre) that my students are challenged to read for their 40 book challenge.  The second again is blank so you can create your own genre expectations if necessary.  

The record keeping sheets helped my students stay on track with their 40 Book Challenge progress, and I was able to spot check their progress during daily conferences and strategy groups.  Also, we also kept a total running record of our books read and had a little friendly competition with some neighboring 5th grade classrooms.  Gotta love a good competition!

I would love to hear about how you are incorporating Donalyn Miller's 40 Book Challenge into your classroom! 

Enjoy your last few weeks or days of summer!