Runde's Room
For more information, please visit peek ring.
We're working on summarizing as our comprehension strategy right now. We've added it on our CRAFT board and written about it in our CRAFT books and reader response books. Next week we are going to start our new literature circles, so we've been practising this strategy orally through the week. When my students have finished their daily independent reading (about 20 minutes a day), they get together with a partner for a "pair share". During this pair share, they each read a page from their books, and then ask their partners some questions related to our current reading strategy. To aid with this, I use my Comprehension Question Fans . One or two groups will get the printed out fans on the ring to use, and for the rest, I project the checklist sheet over the computer onto the smartboard so everybody has access. They must pick at least 2 questions, and the partners can't choose the same question. After about 5 - 10 minutes, students come back to their desks and I choose 4 volunteers to share with the class. They must share a summary of what their partner read to them, and then share how their partners answered the questions they asked. A quick and easy daily formative assessment for oral language.
In writing we're working on our fictional narratives beginning from a Halloween prompt. We've been using the story map planning sheet from my new Story Elements Concept Posters . When students had finished their planning graphic organizers, they met with a partner to share. After they read through what they had, partners had to give them "a wish and a star". Following this, they had to make revisions to their planning sheet based on the feedback from their partner. They LOVE sharing their work with their peers in the class, and it's so beneficial for both students. Students are almost finished with their rough drafts right now, and after some guided editing and revising lessons planned for this week, we'll be publishing them for our writing wall.
Wednesday was our big science day. Students had been working on their independent inquiry projects for Space for about a week and a half, and Wednesday was presentation day. They had to present their findings through a physical project and an oral presentation. They did such a great job! We had poster boards, science fair boards, slideshows, movies, powerpoints, and plasticine dioramas. Here are a few pics - I took a picture of each student presenting so I could send home a pic with the rubric.
So, there it is ... a peek at last week. I have successfully procrastinated for a bit now, so I guess it's time to tackle those report cards. Sigh. Happy Weekend!!!
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit surface safety valve.
I'm totally procrastinating working on my report cards, so I thought a new blog post would be in order. Here is a peek into last week in my classroom.
Okay, let’s talk about the VESA monitor arms first.
At just under $60, this dual monitor desk mount has two swivel arms which allow me to position the monitor however I want. Mounting the monitors gets them off my desk and ensures good posture and ergonomics.
I added this $21 laptop mount tray with the clips to hold my Surface Pro in a vertical position beside my main display — more on that in a minute.
The AOC monitor is a curved display (24″ I think) with plenty of room for side-by-side views of multiple windows for max productivity. The clarity of this monitor can’t touch the Surface Pro 6 screen resolution, so I’d like to upgrade this eventually. After all, I spend at least 10 hours a day looking at the thing, but it works and I love having it on the monitor arm.
My husband bought an adapter for the Surface Pro called a Surfacekit (link unavailable) which gives me a much needed USB-C and HDMI port. You can see it hanging out of the bottom of the Surface where the cables dangle down.
The Surface Pro is an AMAZING computer. It’s a laptop/tablet in one and with the Surface Pen, it makes this computer so powerful! It’s so much slimmer and lighter than an iPad Pro and when I carried it around it was about the same as carrying a spiral notebook.
My issue with portability comes from the kickstand on the back. The thin metal line needs to rest level which makes it difficult to use like a laptop.
You know… on your lap.
While using it at my desk, I needed to mount it higher so I wasn’t looking down all day. My husband built a monitor riser to get it up higher, which worked well but didn’t let me put my screen snug beside my main monitor.
After googling ways to mount a Surface Pro beside my computer, I could only find a proprietary device that was bulky and expensive. So I got the idea to try a laptop tray.
Hubs installed the laptop tray so that it is flat instead of angled, and the clips hold my Surface nice and snug. This has been a PERFECT solution and I think I’d like to add another one for my iPad at some point!
Want more information on peek rings? Feel free to contact us.