Holiday Freebies...and Cyber Sale!

Howdy! 

Wow, there are SO many great things to write about today... I just don't know where to start.

1. How about I start with a reminder to grab those items on your wish-list while they're still on sale! That's right, today is the last day of TpT's annual Cyber Sale.

2. I updated my Christmas Verbs Spot It & Steal It game... and you can grab it for FREE {HERE}!!  If you already own it, just go to your "My Purchases" page to download the updated version. If you don't own it... what are you waiting for?? It's free!!

This game is such a fun way to teach verbs!! Students take turns picking up a 'Spot the..." card, and are on the hunt to find the corresponding "picture card".

If you spot the card... you can steal it from a friend's pile... unless....
they slap their hand on it first (in which case, they get to keep their own card).

The player with the most cards at the end of the game WINS!

The "stealing" part of the game keeps EVERYONE alert and paying attention all while injecting some excitement into the game. Think of it as a little twist to the 'ol "I Have, Who Has" games... except you're not waiting all day for those few kiddos to wake up and realize they have the next card ;) {If you've played "I Have, Who Has" you must know what I'm talking about!}

Here's a closer look at what's inside this FREEBIE!!

You can get more games just like this one {HERE}

3. Last year, many of the bloggers from Who's Who were featured in a holiday e-book. I don't think there will be a 2015/2016 edition...BUT you can download last years e-book to check out the awesome collection of holiday freebies included. (A link to my holiday freebie is in there too!!). Just click on this image to see the collection in Hilary Lewis' store:

Alrighty... now go and fill your carts while there's still time.  The Cyber Sale is ending soon!!

Figurative Language

Hi there!! I'm Neetu from Cinnamon's Synonyms! If you follow me, you may already know that I teach in a school with a very high population of ESL learners... this means I'm always striving to come up with creative ways to make learning a bit more visual so that my students can easily grasp new concepts in a FUN way!    Studies show that 90% of information transmitted to the brain is VISUAL.  Also, visuals are PROCESSED much FASTER by the brain than text! Whether your students are strong in English or new to the English language, using visuals just makes sense! 
Sooo, I have gathered some engaging visuals to help you teach figurative language!!   Using video is a great way to teach figurative language, not only because of the audio/visual component (the more senses involved, the better!), but because it helps students see how figurative language is used more often than they might even realize (ie. in their favorite shows and songs)! 
Hyperboles:

Figurative Language in songs:

Onomatopoeia:

Another way I like to teach figurative language is through my Spot It & Steal It games!!! Here's how you play!

You can also use the "Picture Cards" from the game to create a visual display.  A bulletin board display can serve to remind students to use similes and idioms etc., to enhance their writing!!  The picture cards are also great for creating an engaging anchor chart when introducing the unit!    (So you see, the game cards have multiple uses). Each game includes 3 printing options too! This means if you want to save on ink, you have the option to print the game with or without the colorful background... plus all the games cards come in black & white too!  Here are all my figurative language games in one big bundle!  Click HERE to take a closer look at each game in the pack.
Well, I am as hungry as a wolf... time for lunch!! Ahh-oooooooooo

 

Burlap Bulletin Board

Hi there! I'm Neetu from Cinnamon's Synonyms and I'm thrilled to be blogging here on Who's Who today!

I have a quick little bulletin board tip to share with you ...I actually came up with this idea by pure accident!

Here's the real deal: I am not very talented when it comes to making bulletin boards look pretty. No, really... I'm not. I usually find myself fiddling with my boards ... constantly... because I NEVER like the way things look.  After several failed attempts I usually give up and accept my attempt for what it is (because honestly, who has time to fuss with this stuff when there are a gazillion things to do in the day).

This year, I haven't fiddled with my board once!! Annnd, get this... I continue to receive compliment after compliment on the way my board looks! Yay! Success!!!

In the fall, when school started, I knew I wanted to have a neutral background for my boards. Something that would make my students' work just pop!  In our district there's a huge push for Reggio inspired kindergarten classrooms and although I don't teach kindergarten I thought it'd be neat to incorporate some natural elements into my decor just as the Reggio philosophy encourages.

My initial plan was to just cover the board in this burlap material I had laying around in my basement. I figured it'd be perfect because if the material is resilient enough for the outdoors, then it'd be an ideal way to create a fade-proof bulletin board for my classroom.

I had one problem though...

It barely stretched out far enough to reach the top and bottom of my boards.  Take a look:

I had two rolls of burlap, so I used one to cover the center part of the board.

Then, I cut the other roll in half (lengthwise) and used it to cover the empty parts at the top and bottom. I knew it would look sloppy if I just stapled it flat -  it would look like three ugly rows of burlap. This is when the idea to do this poofy thing came about:

Burlap is extremely easy to work with... the little poofs just happen naturally. Yep, burlap is your reliable friend and will do all the pretty poofing for you. NO SKILL REQUIRED... but people will think you're super talented with mega decorating abilities.  I love Burlap! It took the stress right out of beautifying my board.

It's February now, and I haven't had a single urge to change it out! 6 months is the longest relationship I've had with a bulletin board. I think this is true love!

Neetu teaches in a school with a high population of English Language Learners. With the awareness that students learn best through visuals (whether they speak English as a second language or not), she strives to create engaging language based resources filled with illustrations that kids just dig! There is a strong language component in everything she creates (including her math and science activities). This is inspired by her need to help her students build the vocabulary required to succeed in every subject, not just language arts.  Visit her store by clicking HERE.