Figurative Language Bookmarks Manic Monday FREEBIE

Welcome to another Manic Monday!  I made these Figurative Language bookmarks awhile ago when I was trying out some new techniques using Powerpoint to make printables.  

As you have already noticed, I am also obsessed with all things chalkboard.  I forgot I had uploaded them until I came across them the other day.  They had been downloaded hundreds of times, without my needing a blog post!  

I decided they would make a great Manic Monday Freebie as many of my bloggy buddies south of the border are getting ready for Back to School.  Warm up your colour printers and laminators!

I find that while teaching reading, it is important to refer to the different types of figurative language frequently.  I have poster sets up on bulletin boards in my classroom, but I found giving my students different bookmarks during the year was also helpful.  

Print on cardstock, cut in half and laminate!  EASY!

Click on either image to download for FREE

Are you following this blog on Bloglovin?  Be sure to link up YOUR OWN BLOG at the Back to School with Bloglovin Blog Hop sponsored by Teachingisagift and A Teacher Without a Class.  Click on the IMAGE below to link up your blog and hop along to find other great new blogs to follow!

Looking for a great book to read aloud to your students for back to school?  Read my post about the THREE QUESTIONS by clicking on this beautiful picture by author John Muth.

Must Read Mentor Text Link Up The Three Questions

Hi, this is Sidney from Teachingisagift and this week I am again linking up with Stacia and Amanda from Collaboration Cuties for the Must Read Mentor Texts linky.  

“Remember then that there is only one important time, and that time is now. The most important one is always the one you are with. And the most important thing is to do good for the one who is standing at your side. This is why we are here.”
  -J.Muth, The Three Questions

"Literacy is essentially a matter of acquiring the “tools” needed to thoughtfully access, interpret and share ideas across various mediums of communication. Many activities offered under the guise of literacy instruction–for example, sort and predict, placemats, thinking bubbles and flip books—help students comprehend a specific text or image, but they do little to develop “tools” that students can use purposefully and independently. Our approach is to teach students how to make self-regulated use of a full range of literacy tools—criteria, strategies, vocabulary, habits of mind and background information." The Critical Thinking Consortium

Author John J.Muth uses Tolstoy's story as the jumping off point for this lushly illustrated account of a young boy’s search for an understanding of some of the most profound questions we ask ourselves as human beings.  Young Nikolai asks his friends to help him to find the answer to the three questions that he considers to be the most important ones for helping him to know the right way to act.
When is the best time to do things? Who is the most important one? What is the right thing to do?

I bought this book several years ago because I loved the message and I loved the art work. I also took Russian Literature in university and was intrigued that this was an interpretation of Tolstoy for children.  At my school we were engaged in a Teaching and Learning Critical Pathways initiative with the arts as the basis.  I was also working as partners with our school librarian on media literacy.  I wanted to come up with a way to combine the book, the TLCP and our partnering.  

Click on IMAGE to visit the Critical Thinking Website where you can download your own copy of
 the Teacher Guide to The Three Questions by John J. Muth

I found this Teacher's Guide to The Three Questions on the Critical Thinking Consortium's website.  I used some of the lessons in a modified way with my class.  To begin, I scanned the book and projected it on the library Smartboard.  As suggested in the teacher guide, we read through it and stopped and discussed several points along the way.  As a follow up my students did not make a pencil and paper story map (as suggested in the teacher guide), but rather did one on the computer while working with a partner.  

For the application portion of the reading the students responded to the question "What actions show what it is to be a good person?"  The students created word collages using Tagxedo.  They chose the words they felt best represented their response to the question and then chose a word shape to illustrate their learning.  I was really excited to introduce this online, creative resource to my class, as I really enjoy using it myself!  I created a Tagxedo apple for classroom website this year and the kids loved it.  

You can see for yourself why Tagxedo is so engaging.  It really appeals to the visual learner in all of us!  I also had fun teaching my students how to choose background papers and insert frames. I felt a little like I was teaching them what I do when I create teacher materials and freebies for TpT!

The final products were shared at a whole school event in June.  My class printed out their finished products to put up on the walls in the school gymnasium (I am really lucky we have a colour laser printer at school), and also displayed them as part of a slideshow.  I was really pleased with the integration of literacy, art, media literacy, and technology skills.  I would highly recommend using this text in a variety of contexts.  

Thanks for reading!  Are you following me on BLOGLOVIN?  Don't forget to LINK UP YOUR BLOG with the Teachingisagift and A Teacher Without A Class Back to School Bloglovin Blog Hop.

Click on the IMAGE above to add your BLOG
and join in the fun!

Back to School with BLOGLOVIN Blog Hop

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

A Teacher Without a Class and Teachingisagift are hosting a lil' ole Bloglovin Blog Hop.  We saw that there was a big ole blog hunt going on, and we liked the idea so much we decided to start our own.  

Make sure you pop over to visit A Teacher Without a Class, she's having an awesome GIVEAWAY!  

Enter to win your own laminator!

We hope you will join us and find some great new blogs to follow!

Now onto the rules of the Blog Hop.

General Guidelines for Blogs and Blog Posts for this Link Up

• Only education blogs for teachers or by teachers will be included in the link up.
• Follow both Teachingisagift and A Teacher Without a Class on BLOGLOVIN

• Write a blog post about BLOGLOVIN, this blog hop and reasons why you want readers to follow your blog using bloglovin.
• Please don’t include product links and promotions in this blog post.
• Be sure to add the Back to School with Bloglovin badge image and make sure it's linked to the Back to School with Bloglovin blog post on Teaching Is A Gift and Teacher Without a Class by grabbing a button. 
• Copy and paste the exact code in the little box below the picture: 

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We prefer new blog posts, but if you add the badge to an old blog post, please start pinning it and promoting it again. Thanks!

• To make the blog hop collaborative, you need to either include the linky code at the end or tell your followers to click on the Back to School with Bloglovin logo to find more blogs. 
• If you want the Blog Hop to show up on your blog--just click on the grab the code at the end of the linky. Once you have copied the code, place the code in the blog by clicking on the HTML button and paste the code. 

How to Join the Back to School Blog Hop Link Up

• Add your blog post to the Link Up by clicking the blue "Add Your Link" button at the end of the Blog Hop post and submitting the exact URL of YOUR blog post.
• In the NAME field write the name of your blog.  In the EMAIL field, write an email address we can use contact you if necessary. This email address will not be visible to others.
• Click Submit. Choose an image to represent your blog (blog button) and crop it to fit the square shape. (NB: If your blog post is not accepted during this step, it's probably because the URL was entered incorrectly.)

Pin and share your blog post with to help promote the link up!

My way of saying thank you for following on Bloglovin 

is to offer you a set of chalkboard theme 

Quotes for Your Classroom Posters.  

Just click on either image below to get your FREE copy! 

get the InLinkz code

Please Google Friend Connect Users...Make the switch to BLOGLOVIN!

Update:  Laura Candler is sponsoring a great BLOG HUNT Linky.  Please click on the image above to go to Laura's page.  There you will find lots of awesome blogs to follow and you can link up your blog too!

By now we all know that Google Reader shut down on July 1.  I have read that with Google Reader going, there won’t be any reason to still have Google Friend Connect.  GFC adds the newly subscribed blog to the Blogger Dashboard & Google Reader. When you click on ‘Join This Site’ on GFC, the blog’s address is automatically added to Google Reader in the folder “Blogs I’m Following”. This folder is synced to and from Blogger Dashboard to display the blog you have chosen to follow.

There has been speculation in blog land that when Google Reader disappears there will be no blogs listed in the Blogger Dashboard as it is only set to sync blogs from Google Reader.  This will potentially make GFC useless, because while you could still click on ‘Join This Site’ you would no longer receive updates through Google Reader / Blogger Dashboard.

So now what?  I am asking all my faithful readers to consider switching to BLOGLOVIN.  On my blog you can just click on the BLOGLOVIN button and you will be following me there instead of GFC.  

How do I import the blogs I follow on GFC to Bloglovin?
After you have signed up to BLOGLOVIN using your email address you need to do the following:

1. CLICK ON THIS LINK, 
2. Click on ‘Google Reader’, then ‘Import from Google Reader’ 
3. Allow Bloglovin access and it will do the rest for you!