Moon Phase Flash Cards

The trouble with having your students make flash cards to learn moon phases is that when they cut them out, unless they are very careful, they will mix them all up and then end up with the wrong moon with the wrong phase.  I finally developed some moon phase flash cards that cannot be mixed up.  Students have a description of the phase on one side and a picture of the phase on the other.  Both the phase description and the picture have a shape in the corner that matches.  Students can cut all of them out at once and then match the shapes and make their flashcards.  Problem solved!  The moon pictures for these flash cards were taken with my 4.5 inch Dobsonian telescope.  Here is an example of the pictures:

Nice huh? The link to my flash cards can be found here:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Moon-Phase-Flash-Cards

ThINK

I wish I would have had this cool poster when I was teaching chemistry.  Using the elements in The Periodic Table of the Elements you can make inspiring words for your classroom.  By using the symbols for Thorium, Iodine, Nitrogen, Potassium the word ThINK can be made.  The I,N, and K will be capitalized but it makes a great poster for your classroom.  I have created a free download for "ThINK" on Teachers Pay Teachers that you can find here:

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Chemistry-Wall-Art

Have fun creating your own words with element symbols!

Classroom Quiet Signal

I like the idea of a classroom quiet signal.  I teach science and that means hands-on labs and group activities.  It can get kind of loud sometimes!  I do not like the idea of yelling, which is just far too draining to me.  I think my students in middle school would like it if I did yell for quiet because I would probably look funny doing it! My idea this year is to use some sort of signal that I will teach them in the first week of school.  I have heard many ideas from the primary teachers who use these every year but not too many from middle school.  The best ones I have read about lately are using a rain-stick or a wireless doorbell purchased from Home Depot as the signal.  The doorbell would be quite funny the first time you used it, I think.  I plan on teaching the signal and then having my students engage in a chatty activity and practice the signal.  If you have other good suggestions on quiet signals please leave a comment I'd love to hear your ideas on this subject.  Make sure you link my blog in your post and write about "quiet signals."

Back to School Sale

There is a huge back to school sale going on starting tomorrow on Teachers Pay Teachers!  There is a 10% discount by using code B1T1S1 when you check out and many teachers have their stores on sale for addition money off!  Here is the link to my store:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Science-Etc/Products


Gotta run to Staples for the .10 composition notebooks!

Classroom Management in Middle School

Middle school teachers see a wide range of behaviors!  It is always better to plan to teach about behaviors you want to see than to let them happen and then try to fix the situation.  These are some guideline I follow:

1.  Teach procedures and rules during the first weeks of school and revisit them every day thereafter.
I will say something like, "Jenna how do we wait outside the classroom before coming in?"  I review like this every day and actually have a test over my rules and procedures the second week of school. 

2.  Don't yell.
Have you ever seen yourself yelling?  Not a pretty sight. However, middle school kids think it's funny and want to see it again!

3.  Teach skills.
We use a skill teaching program at our school.  The whole school teaches a skill a week.  We give steps for the skill so students know exactly what to do.  Here is an example of the skill of following instructions:

step 1.  Look at the teacher
step 2.  Listen to instructions
step 3.  Do what is asked right away.

4. Show interest in your students.
Students know when you don't care for them.  Show interest in them.

5.  Give incentives.
I use Collingwood's Cash in my classroom.  I also have punch cards for homework that work really well.  Kids still like incentives in junior high!
For more classroom management and a great linky party on the subject go to:
http://lessonplandiva.blogspot.com/

Hobbit Crossword

Well I finally reread The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.  I am really looking forward to the movie that is now in production in New Zealand.  Peter Jackson is the director (thank goodness) after others that were interested in the movie dropped out.  I just got a look at the first day of filming which is posted on Peter Jackson's blog.  The sets are amazing!  He walks around the set of Rivendell and in some caverns where they most likely will film Bilbo's exchange with Smaug the dragon. 

What does this have to do with a crossword you ask?  While I was reading The Hobbit I made some notes on characters and such and created a crossword for the book.  At first I thought of doing more than one, but in the end I just went with a big crossword that covered the entire book.  Here it is with a very nice background:

You can find this crossword and many others at my store on Teachers Pay Teachers here:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Hobbit-Crossword

You Might Be a Geologist if....

I was trained as a geologist so I will be commenting on some "You might be a geologist if..." statements to see if they are accurate!  Here it goes.

You might be a geologist if...

1.  You think recent events are anything that happened at least 100,000 years ago.
Yep this is right. 

2.  Your rock collection takes up more shelf space than your family photos.
True, I try to keep some family photos around too.

3.  You can pronounce molybdenite correctly on the first try.
True.  I think my first word was molybdenite!

4.  You don't think of "cleavage" the same way everyone else does.
Very true.  7th graders like this word!

5.  You have intentionally taken a 15-passenger van over "roads" intended for cattle.
My professors did this all the time.  It's called a field trip!

6.  You own more than half of the "Roadside Geology" books.
I actually own 3 of these but I wish I owned more. 

7. You feel compelled to examine the gravel in other people's driveways.
True.  My last post showed a rock in my grandmother's yard, actually.

8.  You think road cuts are tourist attractions.
Aren't they???

9.  Your map for your next road trip is marked with the locations of a series of interesting roadcuts.
True.  That's what the Roadside Geology books are for.

10.  You get upset when movies have glaring geological inaccuracies and point them out to everyone in the theater.
*cough*cough* Dante's Peak!