Image – Page 2 – In Spontaneous Speech

Winter and Cold Theme

1 Jan

January 1, 2023 Cindy 0

As we come back from holiday breaks , it’s time to bring out the winter theme items. There are a lot of wintery cold places across the United States weather map. Some places have been buried in deep snow drifts and are having difficulty digging out. Some students are experiencing snow storms for the first time. You may be exploring what a snowflake looks like.

I found a snowflake on Pinterest that was easy to make and looked impressive. It turned out so well that the students didn’t want to leave them for a bulletin board after making them. Thus I only had 3 of the large ones on my bulletin board at the end.

Following directions to make an item is a good way to engage students and introduce new vocabulary. I hope you find this activity useful for your students. You will find pictured directions within the free download.

button for free download — click here for the free download

The students were able to make them within a 20 minute time period. The directions review vocabulary such as half, triangle, corner, arch, curve, middle, small, medium, large, and center. Have fun. Don’t count on having any left behind for a bulletin board.

Word Association Tasks for Teaching Vocabulary

7 Jul

July 7, 2022 Cindy 0

It’s time to talk about strategies for teaching vocabulary again. Vocabulary is the cornerstone for most of what is taught in our schools and is important at every level. Studies have shown that a good vocabulary is a good indicator of success in the classroom.

Students acquire vocabulary best if they are taught through activities that allow them to think about the words rather than just memorize the definitions. Figuring out the similarities and differences in word meanings is a good way to study and retain the information.

My word association task cards are based on this principal. I made this post to tell you about additional features that are now included. If you have purchased the task cards in the past, you now have additional access to EASEL on Teachers Pay Teachers. This gives you two instructional methods. You have the option of two sided task cards that can be printed out and used as flash cards or a digital activity. The digital activity is a multiple choice activity which gives immediate feed back.

The already prepared digital activities are available with individual sets and as part of the bundle. Below are screen shots of the Animal and Household sets to give you an idea. All 3 sets are similar.

If you have purchased these in the past, go check out the new features. If it looks interesting to you, follow the link to see the Preview. You save by purchasing the bundle.

Comprehension of Complex Sentences EASEL Update

12 May

May 12, 2022 Cindy 0

As you probably know, I like using task cards and have many on this site. EASEL on Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) opens up new possibilities for how task cards can be presented to students. I recently took a course on TPT on using the new features on EASEL. I have been updating some of my products so they specifically use some of the new features such as, movable pieces, multiple choice answers, and immediate feedback. If you have previously purchased some of the task cards I bring you Good News. You can use them on the TPT site without making another purchase. The EASEL digital download is part of the old products. When you make a purchase you are now getting two products; the task cards to be printed on cardstock and the digital version created by the seller, me. I will continue to do upgrades so make sure you take a frequent look at your previous products.

Today, I want to review a recent update of Comprehension of Complex Sentences. For those who are not familiar with my original set of cards, Comprehension of Complex Sentences consisted of cards targeting words used in complex sentences that throw off the meaning for our students who are language learners. Words are presented within the context of a short paragraph, two to four sentences in length. A question is then asked targeting specific words. Words specifically targeted include; neither/nor, either/or, instead, usually, unless, if/then, except, both, after, before, while, when, any, until, during, although. Prepositions such as first, last, between, and middlethat indicate a position of individuals are also included. I’ve included a few screen shots of the student view on EASEL.

As you can see the the EASEL version is similar to the original task cards but have some increased capabilities. I hope you take this opportunity to check it out especially if you have already purchased the task cards in the past.

Update on Before and After Picture Cards

23 Apr

April 23, 2022 Cindy 0

This post may look somewhat familiar to you. I am bringing it back up to the top to make you aware of changes occurring to my products on Teachers Pay Teacher (TPT), in particular the Before and After Picture Cards. You may be aware that TPT has a program called EASEL that allows purchasers and authors of Teacher Pay Teachers products to create and use products on digital devices. New features have been added such as movable pieces, color choices, writing, text, and uploading of pictures, clipart, and videos. Teachers can create their own lessons from the products or use ones that teacher authors have created. As a start, I updated my Before and After Picture Cards. If you have purchased these cards you will now have access to a pre-created digital version using features of EASEL from the TPT site.

You may have bought Before and After Picture Cards in the past to be used as flash cards. At that time I suggested using a “Top Secret UV Pen” (often found at book fairs) to write the answers before or after in the blue boxes. Students could light up the answers with a pen light and some found this very motivating.

Now, you will continue to have the ability to print and cut the cards out, but in addition teachers can use the EASEL feature to assign lessons to students through EASEL. I prepared the Before and After cards for you to try out. Students will have the ability to drag the words Before and After to the appropriate spots on the cards. They will not need the fine motor coordination to write the words out. When students have completed the assignment they can turn it in digitally to be reviewed and corrected by the teacher.

I also updated the EASEL version of Sentence Sequences for Complex Sentences. If you purchased this activity in the past, you will also have access to the EASEL version. The digital version gives instant feedback when the students make answer choices. Go try it out.

Click below for a direct link to my store The Spontaneous Speech Spot

One Cut Book on Bean Growth Cycle

1 Mar

March 1, 2022 Cindy 0

One Cut Book Bean Growth Cycle — Growth Cycle of Beans

The days are getting longer, it is getting warmer, and thoughts of planting a garden come to mind. It is a good time for students to plant seeds and watch them grow. I made a one cut book to help show the sequence and introduce the vocabulary for the activity.

The project may look familiar to you because the book uses the same template as a previous one on the development of a butterfly. It folds up the same and only needs the printed booklet and a pair of scissors.

To complete the activity, students plant seeds in a plastic bag or cup of dirt and watch their mini gardens grow. They can observe seeds as they sprout and grow a stem, roots and leaves. They can use their booklets to label the parts. Plant extra seeds so you can uncover seeds along the way to see their progress. Make sure you plant a few extras for students in case they get a bean that doesn’t sprout in their container. We don’t want any disappointed students.

Making the plant booklet would be a good activity to do before students start planting. I am providing a free down load for the booklet. You can print out what you need for your students. Please refer people back to this site for the download and do not use for commercial purposes. Use it with your students when planting those bean seeds. They can then follow their plants progress. The free download contains the book and complete directions as pictured below. It only requires folding and one scissors cut. You can get the free download by clicking on the yellow star below.

Happy Planting!