Five for Friday: Journals & Charts & Freebie!

I'm linking up with Doodlebugs for Journals & Anchor Charts & a Freebie, oh my!

Our grade level started using interactive math notebooks this year. I recently found THIS amazing resource from Blair Turner and it was worth EVERY penny! I really mean it too, because I'm not one to spend a ton of money on TPT products, I'll try to figure out a way I can make it/do it myself or ways I can make it fit my teaching style better, etc. But this is second grade math interactive journal perfection!

The kiddos LOVE adding to their journal. We do a version of Math Centers/Math Workshop and they LOVE when I tell them the teacher rotation will be their math journals.

I hope this will eventually be an independent rotation but for now they need my support so I use it as an opportunity to expand on/reteach my mini lesson while they cut & glue.

Our grade level has also started using (at the reccomendation of one of the 3rd grade teachers) interactive reader's notebooks. I bought THIS amazing resource from Nicole Shelby  to help with that.

I've been using it in small pieces about 2-3 times a week. So sometimes it takes a full week to complete an entry, but I'm finding it's working well because it isn't taking away from any of my "normal" lessons.

I also am using parts during reading group - i.e. summary entry was made after completing a book in a reading group so we could talk about that story in relation to what we learned about summaries.

One of my girlies says: so can I look at this page when I'm reading to make sure I'm thinking about what's important? I could of hugged her! YES YES YES, that's what these journals are for!!!!!

The toughest thing with the interactive notebooks is all the cutting... so I've started to really put the paper cutter to use when I prep for an interactive journal day!

I was inspired by Nicole Shelby's interactive notebooks and used her "What stuck with you?" bubblegum theme for author's message. My kiddos were even impressed with my artistic anchor chart... it made my day that they noticed my hard work :)

On the anchor chart note, I'm loving our addition and subtraction strategy anchor charts this year! Last year we included "count on fingers," "use manipulatives," etc. but this year my kiddos are more proficient with their math facts so we have included more "complicated" strategies! Our subtraction one isn't quite finished yet!

Finally, the promised freebie! Although this is not an "anchor chart" per say, it is certainly a chart that is a huge part of our daily routine. Each day we complete this "number of the day" chart for the number of days we've been in school. It has really helped my kiddos with their number sense, especially when it comes to 10 more/10 less! I have the cards printed and laminated then taped to one of the giant post it note chart papers so I can move it to the easel during morning meeting and stick it up behind the easel during the rest of the day. This would also work really well to gear kiddos up right before math! I hope you can find it useful in your room.