Flat Stanley

Flat Stanley is a wonderful book by Jeff Brown.  It is a story about Stanley Lambchop, a boy who becomes flat when a bulletin board crashes on him in the middle of the night.  The story tells of the many adventures he has while he's flat.  I've done this book in reading groups with 3rd graders and 5th graders, and both classes just loved it!  I did it with 3rd graders last year.  After reading the books and discussing it in reading groups, the kids created their own Flat Stanleys.  They then wrote letters to family and friends out of state asking them to take Stanley along with them on "adventures" and keep a diary of the experiences.  They had a blast with it!  One student's uncle was a professor at a university and took Stanley around campus with him.  He and Stanley visited landmarks at the university, visited a sorority, toured the Crayola and Peeps factories, and delivered candy and cards to children with cancer at a hospital.  He also took 8x11 color pictures of Stanley on each adventure and sent them with his diary entries.  The best part was that he sent crayons and Peeps for the kids in his niece's reading group.  It was really cool!


This year I did Flat Stanley again with my 5th graders.  They had just as much fun with it as the 3rd graders.  We didn't have time to send out Flat Stanleys like the 3rd graders did, but we did do a lot of discussions and a project over the book.  I made a packet for each student to work through as we were reading the book.  The packet included vocabulary words, comprehension questions, and discussion points.  As we read the book, we had round table discussions and worked through the packets.  After completing most of the questions and graphic organizers, the students put it all together to create a summary.  They also made plot diagrams for the story and colored a Flat Stanley.  They listed character traits for Stanley around their colored picture.  We put them onto some tri-fold cardboard pieces.  They also wrote a letter to me as if they were Flat Stanley, explaining how they became flat and how they felt now that they were flat.  The projects turned out pretty neat :)

This was a fun way to still hit the important concepts, but it allowed the students to be a little creative!

A New Kind Of Computer : The Google Chromebook

When I see something new or hear about a new product that would make my life easier, I usually have to buy it.  And that's exactly what happened when my principal, Joel, mentioned this new fangled device called a chromebook.  I had mentioned that I was thinking about buying a netbook so I could work on Progress Book at home (since Adobe and my Mac don't really get along).  He simply said, "Don't get a netbook.  What you need is a chromebook."  I had never heard of such a thing.  When I asked him what it was, he told me to go home and research it.  I looked it up and fell in love.  A chromebook is an internet based computer that boots up in less than 8 seconds.  It has no hard drive and runs entirely off the internet.  Everything is saved online on the cloud.  It's Google based. (I love Google and am still convinced that it is slowly taking over the world.)  I didn't believe it.  It sounded too good to be true.  Naturally, I had to buy one.  I purchased the Samsung Google Chromebook-WiFi only.  I bought it online for the low price of $349.00. (no shipping costs either!)  It shipped in a few days, and I was ecstatic when it arrived.  Could it be everything it claimed to be?


I'll be honest, at first I was not impressed.  Progress Book wouldn't open, and that was one of the main reasons I made this purchase.  Joel, being the tech freak that he is, offered to babysit it for the weekend and try to figure it out.  It was the perfect deal for me.  I didn't get frustrated from trying to figure everything out and Joel got his tech fix.  After contacting a few amazing people through twitter (@RVCPrincipal & @ericcurts & @jrsowash), Progress was working!  It was a simple solution.  An ie browser tab had to be installed...I'll go into detail about that amazing little tool on another day.


After I spent more time playing around on the Chromebook, I am in love.  It is everything that it claims to be.  It really does boot up in less than 8 seconds.  Everything does save to the cloud.  It really does run completely off of wireless.  I'm able to access all of my saved materials through Google Docs anywhere, anytime.   Joel reminded me of another neat feature the Chromebook has.  There are individual accounts and guest sharing. Never fear to hand your Chromebook over to someone. None of "their stuff" ever gets mingled with "your stuff." They can't edit or even see your settings, bookmarks, etc. That's why it's good for students, too. Now, our schools just need to all get Chromebooks so we can flip the classrooms! Check out the Chromebooks for Education video below.  It's amazing what could be done with these little machines.  Oh, the world is changing, and I love that I am getting the opportunity to begin my teaching career during such a techno-savvy time.

Ahhh...They've learned SOMETHING!

I am all about grammar.  My friends and students probably get annoyed with me because I am constantly correcting grammar.  I always get excited when I see a student, or adult for that matter, use an apostrophe correctly.  Let's face it, I'm a grammar geek.  Yesterday I was walking down the hallway at the junior high and this sign caught my eye....

Someone had covered a student's locker with signs for her birthday.  Unfortunately, the sign maker didn't use the correct you're.  It's a very common...and annoying....error that many people make.  Luckily, someone saved the day and added the necessary 'e to the end of the word.  This made my day.  I'm just hoping it was another student who corrected it and not a teacher :)

Express Yourself...With A Glog

Glogster (www.glogster.com) is a site where students and teachers can create "glogs" about basically anything.  A glog is a personalized project someone can put together to express their thoughts and ideas about a topic.  You can personalize the background, graphics, music, videos, colors, and texts on your glog.  The best part...it's free! It's also user friendly for students and teachers of all ages.

Glogster for education.

I think this education version might cost money.  The free version already offers a number of options, so I'm not sure you'd actually need the education version.  I haven't looked into it much.

Once you create a free account with your e-mail, this is what your dashboard will look like.  From the dashboard, you are able to update your status, post a new glog, check your glog's stats, and view other glogs.  To create a new glog, simply click the "post new glog" button next to your profile picture.  

Each time you create a glog, you are given a template.  You can go in and delete it all, or just change the items.  To change the graphics and videos on the template, double click on them.  

Around the outer edge of the graphic, there will be boxes of editing options.  Just start clicking on them and playing around with them to check out all the options.  It's pretty simple!

Once you finish editing your text and graphics, simply click on the outside of the object and it will take you to the original screen.  You can then click on the various options--text, graphics, images, wall, audio, or video--to edit your glog.  There are many pre-loaded options, and you can also upload your own images, audio, and video. 

On this practice glog, I changed the glog wall.  I also inserted a heart graphic.  To change the color, I double clicked on it and chose the eyedropper option.  

You can also link other websites to your glog!  The link option is below the eyedropper option.  Simply click on it and enter the website url.  When someone views your glog, they are able to click the heart and link to the website you provided.  

Next, it was time to add a video!  Once on the home screen, you can click the video option to add a video.  You can add a video you already have saved on your computer or you can search Google for a video.  The video above was added from Google.  On the same screen you choose the video on, you can pick a frame for the video.  There are lots of pre-made options available.

Adding a picture is similar to adding a video.  You are able to add your own saved pictures, search Glogster's gallery, or search Google for images.  There are lots of pre-loaded graphics available.

And...don't forget to add a frame to your picture!

Another way to add videos, photos, or audio is the grab tool.  You have to have a webcam to use this tool.  The grab tool allows you to take a picture, record audio, or record a video and add it to your glog.  

You are also able to add music to your glog.  You can upload your own music or search for pre-loaded sounds.  There are also player graphics available to add.  You are also able to choose whether your song automatically starts when someone goes to your page or if they have to click the play button on the player.

When you're finished creating your glog, click the save and share button at the top of your page. (I believe it's hot pink.)  It gives you options to share it on Facebook and Twitter.  This site is an awesome tool to use for projects and with the creative kids in your class.  It gives students an opportunity to mix creativity and learning.  The possibilities are endless!

Go to www.glogster.com to create your own Glogster account and begin "glogging."  

Click here to preview my practice glog. You can play around with the different stuff I added :)

Click here to view a timeline blog I made. Click the music player to start the music :)

Happy Glogging!

Google +

If you aren't familiar with Google Docs, Google +, or anything else Google for that matter, you need to get familiar with it.  I've jokingly been saying that Google is taking over the world, but I'm seriously beginning to believe it.  I have the awesome opportunity to work with staff who are on the forefront of technology and I LOVE it!  Every day I'm learning something new from either my principal, other teachers, or co-workers.

I've been using Google Docs for some time and it has made my life so much easier.  I'll go into detail about all the awesome features of Google Docs in a future post.  Tonight, I was introduced to Google + Hangouts.  Talk about amazing....

Hangouts is a platform combining video chat, chat, and live viewing options.  You can video chat while sharing documents live with other hangout members.  Also, you can have multiple people chatting simultaneously.  Tonight, my principal, Joel, and one of my co-teachers, Christie, and I "Hung out" trying to figure out all the features of this nifty little tool.  We were all 3 able to video chat with each other while sharing and viewing docs and screenshots.  Oh, and the video camera option can be switched off if you don't want other group members to see you!  We don't have it all figured out yet, but I see it being an awesome tool to use in the classroom with both students and co-workers.

I'll share more details about Google Docs, Google +, and Hangouts in future posts, but I just wanted to share a little bit about these amazing things.  With Google, the possibilities are endless!

Ryan Gosling in the Classroom

I've been seeing these Ryan Gosling education Hey Girl pictures everywhere and they make me laugh every time I see them.  

Ryan Gosling knows what's up :)

Have A Wild Valentine's Day

Well, it's that time of year...Valentine's Day parties at school!  In the past, parties have been on Fridays.  It's nice that way because we can sugar the kids up and then send them home to settle down over the weekend.  This year is different.  Valentine's Day parties are tomorrow!  It should make for an interesting week to say the least.  I'll use any excuse to make fun crafts, so Valentine's day was the perfect oportunity for me to try out some new ideas.  See what you think!


First, I made these "dynamite" valentines.  They are super cute and easy to make.  I wanted to use Rolos candy, but I was unable to find single packs of them.  I settled with Mentos.  I covered them in red card stock first.  Next, I hot glued the three rolls together.  After that I wrapped black pipe cleaner around the three packs and added a short piece at the top.  Lastly, I attached a piece of card stock with the saying, "You're the Bomb." They only took a few minutes to create and are super cute!

Next, I made treats for the students in my after school group.  I found this idea from a blog, thegunnysack.com, and fell in love! It was awesome because there was a template of the tags that just had to be printed.  This project was also pretty simple.  I did have my mom help me hold the balloons open so I was able to stuff them with candy easier.  I think they turned out pretty awesome :)

the finished product <3

i had to use pink balloons too :)

Finally, I made treats for my co-teachers.  I used to make these pretzel cookies for Christmas with regular Hershey Kisses and M&Ms.  For a creative twist, I used the Hugs & Kisses Hershey Kisses for a "wild" themed treat.  

Simply place a kiss on top of each pretzel.  Place in an oven heated at 300 degrees until the kiss begins to melt.  Press an M&M into the center of the kiss.  I placed mine in the refrigerator so they would cool more quickly.  After they cooled, I placed them in snack bags that I had decorated with homemade tags.

so cute!

finished product :)

I used Elmer's dot runner glue to attach the labels to the baggies.  My friend, Julie, introduced me to this AMAZING craft tool, and I can't believe I crafted before without it!  They run about $3.00 at Wal-Mart and are awesome!

I hope you all have a great Valentine's Day <3