Truth and Reconciliation Day

On September 30th, we honour the Indigenous children who were sent away to residential schools in Canada. It is also a day to learn more about the history of those schools. Today, it is also known as Orange Shirt Day or the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

The “orange shirt” in Orange Shirt Day refers to the new shirt that Phyllis Webstad was given to her by her grandmother for her first day of school at a residential school in British Columbia. When Phyllis got to school, they took away her clothes, including her new shirt. It was never returned. 

The message that Phyllis wants to pass along on Orange Shirt Day — and every day — is that every child matters. Orange Shirt Day was started by Phyllis to educate people about residential schools and to fight racism and bullying.

There are many ways you can get involved! 

• Wear an orange shirt on September 30th. 
• Share Phyllis’ story.
• Trace your hand and write something on it that you can do to help others feel like they matter. 
• Read books by Indigenous authors. My favourite books are shown below!

Looking to share picture books authored by Indigenous authors? Each of the shown books are featured in my resource. There are comprehension checks, writing prompts, and response to literature activities for each of the NINE books!

Welcome to my updated blog! New look, but I will still be posting teaching ideas, activities, picture book suggestions, and freebies!

Back To School Games and Activities

Struggling to know what to do first days Back to School?! Those first days of school are so important! It is time to get to know everyone and building a classroom community.  I thought I would share some of my favourite back to school fun in my ready-to-go resource! 

Games and activities are perfect for making connections, establishing expectations, and building a community. Encourage your students to share about themselves with icebreakers, all about me and getting to know you activities. 

Click here to view the resource!

Launch Reader's Workshop with these Back To School Resources!

Prepare for Back to School with great picture books! The Launching Reading series helps students ease back into school and help kickstart your readers workshop. Each resource features a picture book and a reading skill. Teach reading skills such as fluency, vocabulary, goal setting, book discussions, self-selection of books, and comprehension. And that is not all - each resource includes not only a reading skill focus, but a presentation, discussion prompts, comprehension questions, and activities.

The bundle features all of the Launching Reading resources to help guide the beginning of your readers' workshop. Students can complete the activities digitally or in writing!

REFRESHED SCIENCE UNITS!

Needing some new ideas for teaching science? I got you!

I have refreshed my grade three science units!

Look no further for:

Plant Presentations and Activities

Structures and Materials Presentations and Activities

Magnets and Static Electricity Presentations and Activities

Soil Presentation and Activities

Perfect for distance or face-to-face learning, these interactive science resource include presentations, each with interactive activities, to help students scientific concepts. Each presentation includes information, discussion questions, and interactive activities. The presentations can be used as a whole class lessons, independent activities, stations, or small group instruction.

Poetry

Poetry is everywhere.  It is in the jingles we hear on the television, the songs playing on our AirPods, and the verses found in our favourite anthologies. 

Share the love of poetry with students. Play with words using onomatopoeia, alliteration, rhyme, and similes. Introduce types of poems, such as haiku, couplets, limericks, and concrete poetry. 

Not sure where to start? I have you covered. My Poetry resource includes presentations and interactive activities that are engaging and fully prepped!

St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is the time to wear green, read about leprechauns, and pick shamrocks. It is also a great time to introduce fantastical and magical folktales in the classroom!  I am sharing some of my favourite St. Patrick’s Day picture books to bring the magic into your classroom!

Here is a list of St. Patrick’s Day picture books that your students will enjoy. Links to the books on Amazon are included, but you may also be able to find read-aloud videos on sites like Storyline Online and YouTube!

1.  The Leprechaun's Gold by Pamela Duncan Edwards - A nonfiction book offering a real account of what the holiday is all about with some pretty colourful illustrations! 
2. How to Catch a Leprechaun by Adam Wallace - A hilarious story of a leprechaun’s attempt to dodge all of the traps around town!
3.  Fiona’s Luck by Teresa Bateman - A beautiful folktale about a brave girl, Fiona, with a mission to get the luck back for the people of Ireland. 
4. That’s What Leprechauns Do by Eve Bunting - A funny tale about some mischievous leprechauns! 
5. The Worst Luck Book in the Whole Entire World by Joey Acker - Nameless is back at it again, stuck in the Worst Book, but this time he wonders if he can get any more unlucky. 
6. Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie dePaola - Inspired by Irish Folklore, Jamie is a lazy guy who finds himself on an adventure after meeting a leprechaun.

If you need some fun activities to add to your St. Patrick’s Day plans, check out this digital/printable St. Patrick’s Day activity resource. Perfect for distance learning or face-to-face teaching, this holiday themed resource contains interactive reading, math, and writing activities to celebrate March 17th in style.  The ACTIVITIES include:

⭐ Presentation and Quiz

⭐ Scavenger Hunt 

⭐ Riddles and Jokes

⭐ Listen to a Story and Comprehension Questions

⭐ Language Activities - Plurals and Syllables 

⭐ How To Trap A Leprechaun 

⭐ Crack the Code Math Activity 

⭐ Maze

Happy St. Patrick's Day!