
From The Desk of Kelly Harmon
April 2015 Newsletter
Dear Educators,
-Kelly Harmon & Randi Anderson
Camping Season
Team Building
Play games or activities to promote working together and problem solving. A great site for ideas is HERE!
Play games
Students will love playing games. It's one of the best motivators for engagement & success. Remember to play games that practice the skills that have already been taught throughout the year. Some games to play might be 3 Minutes to Win It, Inferring Feud, Jeopardy, Scrabble, Bunco My Word, and so many more. Visit our online store for more games & activities.
Skits
Rehearse & preform reader's theaters or dramatic reenactments. Students will be practicing fluency and comprehension in a fun way. Preform for parents, administrators, or peers. Here is a link to a great list of resources for reader's theaters.
Explore & Experience
It is important to present students with opportunities to ask questions and find information about a topic of interest. Students need to be reading and searching for information with a purpose. Have you taken your students on a virtual field trip? Zoos, museums, and even business websites all provide great opportunities to take students out into the real world without leaving the classroom. Students will be making inferences and connections through media in new exciting ways. Visit the San Diego Zoo Website for great FREE virtual field trips!
Sing, Sing, Sing
One of my favorite things about camp is all the group singing, storytelling, and laughing. Remember to sing with your students. Karaoke, camp fire songs, and the radio are all great ways to develop language and literacy. Use song lyrics to practice inferencing and other comprehension strategies. Here is a link to Kelly's blog on using the song of the week to practice reading skills and strategies.
The most important thing to remember about planning a camp is to have fun & practice a lot! Motivate students by planning fun activities to practice for state testing and they will be sure to ROCK THE TEST and leave the grade level prepared for the next step!
Resource of the Month: Tween Tribune
I used Tween Tribune in my 3rd and 4th grade classroom for several years. It is great resource for expository and informational texts. My students were able to go to the site directly to read and comment on articles. I would occasionally print off an article to use as a weekly assessment. The students LOVED TT!
The Power of Book Talks
Here are 5 easy steps to prepare a book talk.
Students will....
- Read or listen to a book of choice.
- Think about what interested you or why you liked the book.
- Present: Show the book, tell about the author, explain why you chose it, and give a short summary.
- Remember to speak clearly, make eye contact with the audience, and show enthusiasm.
- Make a Telligami to present your book talk on the iPad! (optional)
Book talks are great for all grade levels because the students get to choose the text they are advertising and produce a presentation. The talk can be given in a small or large group or digitally and posted on your class website. Here is a link to Kelly's blog on 10 Ways to Use Tumblebooks. Be sure to check out idea #7 in the blog for more details on book talks.
Kelly Harmon's Book is Available for Preorder!
Practicing Skills, Strategies, & Processes: Classroom Techniques to Help Students Develop Proficiency explores explicit techniques for mastering this crucial strategy of instructional practice. It includes:
- Explicit steps for implementation
- Recommendations for monitoring students’ ability to develop fluent thinking
- Adaptations for students who struggle, have special needs, or excel in learning
- Examples and nonexamples from classroom practice
- Common mistakes and ways to avoid them
First 25 Days of School
June 24, 2015
8:30am-3:30pm
San Antonio, TX
Learn strategies to establish clear and effective classroom literacy routines, including ideas for focus lessons, independent reading, guided and independent writing, word work, research, developing vocabulary, and building reading fluency. Tips will be given on how to get the year off to a great start as you guide and develop children's literacy behavior and motivation to learn. A plan for the first 25 days of school will be shared! Click HERE for more info.
The Best iPad Apps & Strategies to Improve Student Acheivement
8:30am-3:30pm
San Antonio, TX
Grades K-12
iPads are great tools for providing explicit instruction, meaningful practice, and student-designed projects and presentations. In this interactive seminar, explore the best apps and projects that will engage your learners and accelerate learning. Be sure to bring your iPad for the hands on make-and-take projects. Learn more Here!
Comprehension Strategies: Following Figure 19
8:30am-3:30pm
San Antonio, TX
Grades K-12
Join Kelly Harmon as she helps you navigate and plan effective instruction for the TEKS comprehension strategies (Figure 19). Learn how to help your students develop and use the strategies for close reading and recreational reading. For more info, Click HERE!
Using Learning Games to Review & Practice ELAR Teks
August 4, 2015
8:30am-3:30pm
San Antonio, TX
Grades 2nd-High School
Games are a great research-based strategy that engages learners in meaningful review and practice for all of the ELAR TEKS. During this seminar, experience and create games that target specific reading and writing skills and strategies. Discover how to incorporate game formats into daily instruction to practice the STAAR readiness and supporting standards. You will leave with games ready to ignite learning excitement and provide fun in your classroom. Learn more HERE!
The First 25 Days of School: Setting Up Reader's & Writer's Workshop
8:30am-3:30pm
San Antonio, TX
Grades K-8
Learn strategies to establish clear and effective classroom literacy routines, including ideas adapted from the Daily 5 and CAFÉ. Tips will be given on how to guide children's literacy behavior and motivation to learn. A plan for the first 25 days of school will be shared! Learn more HERE!
Guided Reading & Literature Circles in the K-8th Classroom
8:30am-3:30pm
San Antonio, TX
Grades K-8
Learn strategies for assessing students’ literacy needs and planning instruction to match those needs. Participants will explore best practices for guided reading and literature circles. You will leave ready to provide effective reading practice. Click Here to learn more!
On-Site Professional Development
(817) 583-1290 or randi@kellyharmon.net
Kelly Harmon & Associates
Email: randi@kellyharmon.net
Website: www.kellyharmon.net
Phone: 817-583-1290
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Texas-Literacy-Resources/185551092170?ref=aymt_homepage_panel