Unpack a sentence to teach grammar and writing lessons! Hey everyone, welcome back. I am Kim Venegas, and I’m here to help you become a better teacher, faster! Finding a mentor is like a needle in a haystack. Finding the time to read a book on teaching? You don’t have the time. I’ll share tips each time you listen in. One idea you can use today.Pull a sentence from a story the students are reading. Post it on the board. Ask them: What do you notice? Some ans...

My Easy and Effective Writing Rubric is now listed as a FREE resource in my TPT store at WhamPhonics. I’ll talk through the details quickly. I used one-half sheet for the year. The type of writing didn’t matter-biography, creative writing, informational, or a science report. It can be used at any level. While we’re talking about journals, I prefer composition-style books-even if I had to buy them. The pages don’t tear out easily. They can use the...

You are halfway through the school year. Students seem taller and perhaps a bit more mature than when they left only two short weeks ago. Upper grades are likely to focus on testing strategies. in my state, and maybe everywhere, that often includes the RACE strategy for writing. If you aren’t familiar, Restate the question Answer the question, Cite evidence from the text, and Explain how the evidence from the text answers the question. It isn’t the writing you al...

In today's news-60 percent of Colorado's teachers are considering leaving the profession. Teachers are being hired during their practicum and student teaching. If teachers or principals have noticed you are knowledgeable and up to the challenge, they may offer you this opportunity.Be ready! From day one, be a professional. Be on time. Dress neatly. Attend all meetings. Keep your language civilized. Jump into teaching as soon as you can. Learn how to read th...

When teachers are trying to problem-solve a situation, we often find a tip or strategy and apply it to all students. I want to encourage you to think it through, think about YOUR class of kiddos. Will it work with every student?Here’s my example: Cold calling. According to Doug Lemov of Teach Like a Champion and Paul Bambrick Santoyo of Get Better Faster-Cold calling is an action step designed to engage all students and to discourage students from tuning out Things to ...

When I created Whamphonics as an online screener, I too, wondered about the reasoning of English learners learning to sound out nonsense words. My thoughts were that they needed to make meaning AND learn how to sound out words. It took me time, as it took the reading community to come around to the idea that YES, our English learners need to learn the sound symbol correlation to the English language- nonsense or real words. Online phonics diagnostic @whamphonics.comAdditiona...

I’ve just finished a week full of observations for my practicum students. In every observation, what I’ve seen is a burst of confidence in their teaching. They are no longer nervous when I slip into the room, they are using their content knowledge of math, literacy, science, and social studies to teach elementary-aged students what they need to learn and why it matters. Our future teachers are asking students how they know, how they solved a problem, and where is the evidence. &nb...

Hey everyone, welcome back to JumpStart. If you’ve been here before, you know I love watching documentaries, especially medical stories. Nursing was my number two choice of a career, but I knew the hours would make my family life difficult to impossible. I chose to teach. Both occupations have their heartbreaks and moments of joy. Lenox Hill is my favorite. Two incredible neurosurgeons solve people’s health issues, usually cancer. There’s a phrase, that tea...

I’m here every Monday (or sometimes Tuesday) to mentor you, encourage you, and today, to tell you about a nurse's strike happening in several states. Nurses and teachers are the main support systems in the caring professions. Nurses hold up the hospital walls while teachers bring education to everyone Both are professions dedicated to caring for their clients, their patients, and our students. I am not advocating that teachers strike! My number one as...

For younger children, it may be better to share the conference responsibilities rather than put all of the expectations on a 6 or 7-year-old. They may be very able to share their best work and tell why they chose it, but beyond that…some of my practicum students sat in on early grade conferences, and teacher-led went much smoother and more within the time limits of meeting with 25 families. Of course, each conference can be looked at individually as what will work best for the teacher a...

Watching a master teacher show 2nd graders how to separate words into syllables reminded me of the importance of going slow. She was asking them to tell her the vowels, she marked the vowels, and they went on to divide the words between the consonants. Sometimes between the twins, double consonants. Sometimes between the two consonants, unless there are three consonants, and then we divide after the last consonant in the previous syllable. And we ignore the silent e at...

Empathy can overwhelm and defeat us as teachers. Teachers, along with nurses, are right there on the front lines of caring for others. We drain our own resources trying to meet the emotional needs of our students. Compassion allows us to see the emotions of others, and then try to jump in to fix it, or alleviate some of the suffering. Compassion is action based. Doing for others, giving to others, creates positive emotions in the giver. Remember the movie Pay It ...

The title today, how does it fit with teaching? Great question! One of my online students gave me this definition of warm-blooded animals. His father taught him this. This student has knowledge that I didn’t have, and that I’d never considered. He brought something new to our classroom. All of our students will bring knowledge to the classroom. I think it’s important to acknowledge what they know. Many of our students today are entering classroom...

This week I listened to a news report detailing a slower growth rate of children over the last year. You and I know all parts of a child grow more slowly when their body isn’t growing, including their brain. This is concerning. While Lady Liberty welcomes all, the streets are NOT paved with gold as my GErman grandparents were told, they are paved with the sweat of hard work and low wages. And for families with student loans? Ouch. Those payments will return. What can we...

We created Whamphonics during the Covid 19 summer of 2020. Schools use paper pencil assessments to determine students' phonics gaps. These are inefficient timewise, and ineffective because most often classroom teachers are not involved in the process. I wanted something better. Many of you know Dibels, but did you know it was once a paper/pencil assessment also? Online phonics diagnostic @whamphonics.comAdditional elementary resources @ https://www.teachersp...

Online phonics diagnostic @whamphonics.comAdditional elementary resources @ https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Whamphonics

Let’s begin! These next 15 weeks are some of your greatest opportunities to o serve your mentor teacher, other teachers in the building, as well as beginning or continuing to interact with students. Once you begi student teaching, your time for observing will be limited. You will be focused on planning for each day’s instruction. If your mentor teacher is giving an assessment that doesn’t require you to be in the roo, has your MT for suggestions. Who teaches math...

Perhaps this is week two of the school year. While week one was a whirlwind of activity and getting to know your students, week two is the time to tighten up those procedures and routines that aren’t working well. Resetting can take place as often as you need BEFORE things feel out of control. It is so valuable to reflect on how it’s going and which problems are in the way. In this episode, I’ll offer you a few solutions for the first weeks of school. Ways to begi...

Welcome back! Students will be excited to see you. By the end of the day, they'll be dragging and so will you. Pace yourself through this week. When your district asks for input this year, tell them THURSDAY is a much better starting day for the first week of school. It will be exhausting for all of you. Plan for breaks, time outdoors, the most necessary routines, and getting to know your students. Learn to pronounce their names correctly. NEA offered this tip-whe...

To begin with, social-emotional learning isn’t new, it didn’t begin with the pandemic. Technology of many kinds has changed the ways we communicate with one another in all situations. Not just phones, not just the internet. While I used to knock on my friend’s door to see if she could play, many parents now schedule play dates. My friends and I would negotiate which game to play or whose house to play at. Most families have two parents working by necessity. Perhaps chi...