[LM_NET] HIT: end of year activities for difficult classes

[M S <drjesons@GMAIL.COM>]

Here is the HIT for my request
Madeleine Zember
Hempstead Schools NY
drjesons@gmail.com

 I will post as a HIT but here it is

If you go to this web site...

http://www.superkids.com/aweb/tools/words/search/

you can make your own word search.  I entered all of the students' first
names as the words to find.  I changed the grid size to 18 x 18.  Click on
"Create page."  Give the students a copy of the word search and tell them if
anyone finishes in 30 minutes they will get a treat (candy or pencil).  So
far, this has worked like a charm with 4th and 5th grade classes!


I made up decks of cards by cutting 4x6 index cards in half. I wrote the
genres 6 times each (one per card) to make the set. The students have played
Go Fish, Concentration, and Spoons with them and all have loved it. I have
800+ 5th and 6th graders and they are very restless right now, but stayed
focused on the games. The few that got silly had to sit out of the game for
5 minutes. That put an end to it. Instead of spoons, I used a round sticker
laminated to cardstock instead to keep the activity level down. I laminated
the cards so I could use them again next year for other activities.


Do you teach the Dewey System at all?
Last year I had an incredibly rowdy 5th grade class that just could not sit
still. Since I spent most of the 2nd semester trying to get the Dewey
Decimal system into their heads, for the last few times with them I came up
with one time when we played "charades" with the Dewey System. I gave
everyone cheat sheets, had the kids come up one by one and whispered a 100
number to them and they had to somehow make the other members of their team
figure out which one it was through charades. They really enjoyed it and
while they probably don't remember which number Aliens from outer space fit
into, they do remember that they are a part of a Dewey Category and remember
Yee-Ji trying to be one.
The other thing that we did is I brought in a couple of friends who can
"rap" and they performed the Dewey Rap (think i found it on YouTube through
an LM-Net contact). It was so popular that they had to do an encore
performance at the entire school assembly the last day of school.
Good Luck!

Here is something that I have done.  One year I read/booktalked Sudoko.
Then we made paper cranes.  Yes, I am crazy but the kids had fun.  This year
I am reading/booktalking Hugo Cabret and we are going to make flip books.  I
figure at least two thirty minute periods to plan draw out what to put in
the flip book and then make/draw the book.  I also borrowed some of
Meliere's silent films on DVD from the public library and will show some
clips from it. Hope this helps
.
completely concur -- the end of year makes 5th grade more difficult than
ever (and that's saying something).  If you have access to a computer and
digital projector, or another means to display a web clip, this is what has
been working for me ~ I'm bringing up commoncraft.com, then showing the "In
Plain English" videos available on that site.  I start with "World Wide Web
in Plain English", then show "Web Search Strategies in Plain English", then
discuss real-life examples where the search tips recommended on the video
could be used.  Then, we look at "Wikis in Plain English" and use that as a
jumping off point to discuss why Wikipedia is not a reliable source of
information.
The website also has blogs, twitter, podcasts, etc. videos.
Although I find the 5th graders cynical about my ability to tell them
anything they don't already know, especially about the Internet, they have
been attentive to these videos

I have a video about coping with middle school (Sunburst - HOw to Succeed in
Middle School).  I showed that today and gave them a page with questions to
reflect upon and write about.  I'll attach it. Even if you don't have the
video, it could start some interesting conversations.  They all put down
that they would get organized and make better grades in middle school.  I
asked them why they had not done it this year?  They said middle school
teachers would be meaner.  AHA!  That's the secret to getting them to
work!<g>
I also have three videos on study habits.  I'm going to run those and give
them worksheets so they have to pay attention and set a plan for next year.

This is when I drag out the Arthurian legends and Mythology for 4th & 5th
grades. Nothing like monsters, blood , and violence to get their attention..

My kids may as well have "Will Work For Food" tattooed on their faces.
They'll do anything for a piece of gum, etc.  I only have grades 2-4, but
for my tough cases, I play library bingo and in order to hear, they must be
still and quiet, as I use my "every day voice, not my teacher voice..." with
a crazy demonstration.  I remind them if they tell their neighbor the clue,
they are helping them win....  I play it up big and during the game I'm able
to relax my voice, and most of the time, I can literally hear a pin drop.
It's worth a try.  You may be able to get one or two winners from 30 minutes
and it's worth the expense of small treats for some peace and quiet!  Good
luck!

Something that I do often as a fun/engaging lesson that reinforces language
arts skills is Wacky Web Tales (online mad libs). It works best if you have
an LCD projector hooked up to your computer and you do it as a group; if you
have several computers available they can be broken into small groups too.
It will get very loud as they all start shouting parts of speech
suggestions, but they have a great time creating these silly stories.
Google "wacky web tales" and it should be your first hit!
:-) I did a Holocaust unit at the beginning of the year.  I am showing those
very difficult 5th grade classes the DVD of Paper Clips.  I'm also putting
whole classes on the laptop cart on
http://www.funbrain.com/brain/ReadingBrain/ReadingBrain.html to read The
Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  Both activities kept them engaged.  Not the most
academic of activities but with only 3 weeks left it's abo

I have been doing internet webquests. it keeps them very focused
and they have a specific task to complete. Plus they love being
on the computer.


like to do readers' theater at the end of the year. With my most difficult
class we first did a readers' theater based on The True Story of the Three
Little Pigs, then I had them write their own plays, based on a picture book
of their choice or an original work. Then we performed the plays.



http://www.timelessteacherstuff.com/readerstheater/TruePigs.html

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