Hispanic Heritage Month Picture Book Recommendations

Representation matters!

  You may feel like you have heard that phrase a lot this past summer, especially with the 2020 Census going on.  However, it really does.  When I think back to my childhood as a Mexican-American kid going to school in a predominately white neighborhood, it was hard for me to see people that looked like me achieving success.   With Hispanic Heritage Month starting this week, I am going to share some of my favorite classroom read alouds that celebrate my culture!

Aside from my parents, the working Hispanic adults around me during my elementary days were often seen as the landscaping and janitorial staff at my school.  Despite the fact that I went to a Spanish-named elementary school, I did not feel represented much except for the Friday mornings we all danced the Macarena (part of growing up in the 90s)!

It is amazing to me that the only Hispanic person I read about or learned about as being successful and making a difference in our country was Cesar Chavez (probably because he was born in my home state of Arizona).  The reading book list did offered diversity by exposing me to African Americans and their plight through slavery, but I didn't feel connected to my ancestors or read about people like me.  To help your Hispanic students feel represented, I encourage you to make time to incorporate Hispanic Heritage Month into your instructional day.  Just share about the life of one Hispanic leader a day, and in 10 minutes or less,you can build character education, classroom community, teach tolerance & embrace diversity! (I wish one of my teachers had done this when I was in elementary school.)

So, as an undergrad I earned my elementary ed degree with an emphasis in multiculturalism and began to build up a library with bilingual books.  First, I added in titles from people I knew: Gloria Estefan wrote a picture book about her dog, The Magically Mysterious Adventures of Noelle the Bulldog (so cute - I cherish this story because its theme is all about being true to yourself!)  

Then, my crush growing up, Oscar de la Hoya, wrote an inspiring bilingual picture book called Super Oscar (another win!)  

Later, I discovered Monica Brown and even attended some of her book signings when she was in town at the local bookstore for Me llamo Celia / My name is Celia. 

Of course, I had to own a copy of Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez which tells more about the life of Cesar Chavez.  I feel connected to him because he looks an awful lot like my paternal tios (uncles) and he died on my birthday, along with the AZ connection.  In my opinion, this book is a classic!

 This year, I've been adding to my collection again: Sebi and the Land of Cha Cha Cha (written by actress/singer, Roselyn Sanchez for her daughter), it is filled with beautiful, vivid illustrations that depict her island of Puerto Rico.

Dreamers is written by the amazing Yuyi Morales, so there's enough said.  It was hard for me to get through that one and keep a dry eye.  I recommend this when you want to share an inspiring read!

My latest addition is Selena: Queen of Tejano Music which I knew I had to have as soon as I knew it existed.  The text is very detailed and lengthy, it almost reminds me of a modern-day My Family by Sandra Cisneros.  However, it is all about the life of our beloved Selena Quintanilla!  

For the older students who want a novel to read independently, anything by Pam Munoz Ryan is great.  

-Esperanza Rising

-Becoming Naomi Leon

-Mañanaland is on my wishlist (it just came out in the spring of 2020) 

In case you missed it, I would like to share my Hispanic Heritage Month teaching slides with you.  I've already done the difficult planning and researching for you!  Each school day showcases a new Hispanic leader (wide variety of influencers from all walks of life: athletes, civil rights activists, entertainers, and intellects).  Not to mention, each Hispanic leader comes to life with a kid-friendly video clip for student engagement!  Click the image below if you are interested:

Respectfully representing,

Google Forms for Distance Learning

One of the hardest parts about distance learning is so much of the instructional materials become so dry and it's easy for students & teachers to lose interest.  When your students need a break from reading passages and you need to escape grading Google Classroom assignments, then rely on Google Forms for its amazing ability to self-correct questions!

Another struggle during distance learning is determining how to translate science instruction into an online learning platform.  So, I found the educational and engaging YouTube videos I would have shown to introduce a scientific concept in my brick & mortar classroom, and created, "Watch and Learn" activities.  Animal adaptations, animal behavior, extreme weather, earth and space science are all represented.

How Does It Work?

1. Simply assign the Google Form as a shared link or assignment in Google Classroom.

2. Students simply watch a 5 minute or less video clip on a nonfiction science topic (animal adaptations, tornadoes, volcanic lightning, etc.) and answer the 5-point question quiz.  

3. When they've finished answering the questions, they will receive immediate feedback on how well they understood the topic.  

It doesn't get much simpler to engage kids digitally with digestible, fun learning experiences!

Each Watch and Learn set includes 5 digital learning activities for Google Forms.  You can assign one each day, or you can assign it once a week so it becomes something your class can earn for attendance (or whatever you're trying to work towards as a team goal)!  

If you are interested in sampling these Google Forms Watch and Learn activities, you can try the End of Year set for free (available here.)  Teachers and students alike love these Google Forms digital learning activities!

If you would like to incorporate these distance learning activities into your lesson plans and score the best deal possible, check out the bundled set with 30 Google Forms!  

Why Research Projects are Perfect for Distance Learning

Research projects are PERFECT for distance learning because it puts the child in charge of their own learning!  The reason it is important for teachers like me, is our district decided teachers are not allowed to instruct on new academic content during this time of school closures.  This was a result of not being able to insure everyone has access to the same material.  So I thought, RESEARCH PROJECTS to the RESCUE! Besides, it's what I typically assign after state testing is over with anyway!

So, who doesn't love going on the endless rabbit hunt from time to time when you start diving into a topic?  GUILTY!! NOW is the time to get the students on that learning train!  Go ahead, dangle that carrot in front of them if you have to, but kickstart that love for learning again by assigning a digital research project.  Make sure you maintain parameters, of course! Just provide your class with a little bit of context, some suggested kid-friendly research websites, and an overarching topic.  

Watch my video to see how I kickstart the research phase of our Animal Research Project!

In my opinion, animals and countries are great places to start when introducing research projects.  Don't be afraid when you hear "research projects" and you think back to that dreadful semester-long project your high school English teacher assigned you.  Think of what it looks like now in a 1:1 classroom setting or digital learning through Google Classroom.  It can be as simple as a presentation you might create to teach your class about a new topic - but this time your students are teaching!

What's the encyclopedia of modern times? The Internet!! And how do you begin that search? GOOGLE!  Nobody does Ask Jeeves or Yahoo anymore.  So utilize the research tools available inside Google Docs and Google Slides to set your students up for success in a research project!  And if you're looking for some quality research projects, hurry up and check-out my digital resources by clicking the image below. I promise you with the cute template and 5 video tutorials included to set your students up for success, you'll definitely enjoy how simple it was to assign a research project:

Until we meet again, have a beautiful rest of your day!

Uplifting Strategies for Distance Learning

Attitude is a powerful thing, and it's important to UPLIFT students during distance learning when we can all feel a little glum!  

To combat my classroom Debbie Downers, I started a Moodlifter Monday video segment.  Basically, I played a humorous or thought-provoking video while my class watched & ate their morning snack. 

First, I set the stage for the video clip and stressed the importance of keeping a positive attitude even during times of adversity, and then played the funny reel.  My students LOVED getting in on the action and really enjoyed finding clips for me to share based on something they had created or found online.

During this time of distance learning and the pandemic, you can share a slide with your students through your shared screen on ZOOM, Google Meets or Google Classroom, etc.

As you can see, there's an attached video clip (in the bottom right corner) for students to watch.  In this example, I have shared a humorous animal video clip from a search on YouTube.  I also recommend Kid President and Ellen for more great material!

• sharing a joke of the day(can be changed to thought or quote of the day)
• sharing a bitmoji image(can be changed to a giphy.com or selfie)
• Ask a check-in question through the Classroom stream, a shared Slide or Form
  (example: What's something fun you did yesterday?)
• Include "national holiday" or "this day in history" fun facts
  (National Day Calendar or History)
• Include a physical or mindfulness exercise clip for all to participate
  
• Inspire creativity with a directed drawing (art video clip) or fun read aloud
  

If you would like to use the digital template pictured above in your classroom, click here.

3 Tips to Make Distance Learning Accessible

As an educator, I'm always considering the needs of how to make the curriculum accessible for my struggling readers.  Now more than ever, it is important these students get the help they need in the form of these technical tricks:

#1 - Share This Google Chrome Extension with Families

You may already be familiar with Read&Write Gold from your school's access to these amazing text-to-speech tools!  Click this link to access a free 30-day subscription to Read&Write. 

Read&Write for Google Chrome™ provides personalized support to make documents, web pages, and common file types in Google Drive (including: Google Docs, PDF & ePub) more accessible.  It's designed to help everyone engage with digital content in a way that suits his/her abilities and learning styles.  Here are some of the accessibility features:

• text-to-speech to hear words, passages or entire documents read aloud (with easy-to-follow colored highlights)
• text and picture dictionaries to see the meaning of words explained
• speech-to-text to allow dictated writing
• word prediction to help with spelling

As you can see, these features work wonders to help your English language learners, dyslexic, and below-level readers access a grade-level text passage!

#2 - Insert Audio Recordings into Google Slides Presentations



When teaching a reading lesson, I typically help scaffold my students to digest and comprehend the text to apply the new information learned.  Well, when no longer in a face-to-face classroom, students have to decipher through a lot of text on screens.  One way to make the information more accessible (as many educators use in classroom) is through showing an engaging video clip or tutorial on the concept.  As a 4th grade teacher, my students really enjoyed watching video clips from BrainPop or Flocabulary to bring the content to life!





However, there are certain teacher tidbits I like to share with my students based on my years of experience.  So I found that using the voice recorder app on my phone, then uploading the files to my GoogleDrive I was able to add my words of wisdom to the presentations I share on Google Classroom.



After you have uploaded your voice recording onto your Drive, then go to the desired slide in your Google Slide presentation and click INSERT -> AUDIO.



See this in action on my interactive Text Structure lesson.










#3 - Use Screencastify for Tutorials & Oral Presentations



Another Google Chrome extension that comes in handy for inserting audio into your Google Slide presentation is Screencastify.  Click here to download the extension to CHROME from your Google Educator / work account.



I watched the video linked above and used a Screencastify recording I made  in my Text Structure lesson to explain how the interactive features work on my presentation (requiring students to toggle back and forth between edit and present mode).



You can also have your students use Screencastify to narrate a presentation they created with Google Slides and turn it in via Google Classroom for you to grade as you would an oral presentation in person.  Just share a quick tutorial video with your students and families like the one linked above!

Google Classroom during School Closures

Even before our schools closed because of COVID19, I have been a huge advocate and user of Google Classroom to engage learners and improve 21st century skills in the classroom!  Yet, at this time, Google Classroom is such a convenient way to continue learning during our school closures!  Not only has Google provided a way for us to connect through our devices, but they've done it for FREE and other educational websites are offering free access to their resources too!

While the pandemic and change can be stressful, you don't have to reinvent the wheel with the amount of free and ENGAGING resources that are available to work compatibly with Google Classroom.   If you haven't heard of flocabulary.com before, then you may not teach above 2nd grade.  Flocabulary offers an abundance of original hip-hop song video resources to explain grade-level concepts and social-emotional skills to students!!  Most are geared to 8 year-olds and up, but they've been expanding their library and reach each year.  Here's their latest & timely video about the importance of handwashing:

My students and I LOVE watching a flocabulary video clip to emphasize various science, math, and even those drier ELA concepts.  It really brings the academic content to life in front of your student's eyes and truly captivates them with the catchy lyrics and humorous animation.  Because of school closures and the switch to distance learning at home, flocabulary.com is offering a 60 day free trial to their resources.

The BEST PART is if you already have Google Classroom setup for your students, you can easily create assignments for your students straight from Flocabulary.  Once you've linked your Google Classroom account onto your flocabulary sign-in, you are able to create Google assignments and require students to watch a certain video you've found and then take the quiz (or study the vocabuary flashcards, play lyrics lab, there are truly a wealth of options!)  Personally, I just require the video and the quiz.  Linking your Google Classroom account can be done in the three easy steps seen above in my picture tutorial! 

There are two apps I tend to use more than the others on the Google Suite for Education platform.  SLIDES is definitely my go-to!  I use it for creating lesson plans throughout the week, it helps me manage student transitions into and out of the classroom, and it allows me to be the most creative.  Here's a look at the SLIDES resource I display when students enter the classroom.  How can my Digital Morning Message SLIDES be used for distance learning?  Well, you can edit it to share your learning agenda for the day and snip the image to paste into your Google Classroom assignment description.  Or, you can used it along with your recorded lesson through Hangouts - using as a starting point to get you going!  If you're looking for free tips on how to EDIT and customize your GOOGLE SLIDES, access the product preview on TPT!

When creating a lesson to share with students, I often create a SLIDE presentation and embed videos (from reputable & age-appropriate sources like Flocabulary or NatGeo Kids), my bitmoji images, and giphy animated stickers to increase engagement.  When requiring the students to interact with the content, I prefer to share the slide and select MAKE A COPY FOR EACH STUDENT so they are able to add their edits to the document freely without affecting anyone else's work or my master file.  This is important to keep in mind, because if you share the SLIDE so all students can edit, then be prepared to end up with a document that has completely changed!

I've shared this resource on my store, geared toward 3rd and 4th grade students.  This free lesson includes my GOOGLE SLIDE lesson for students to interact with, watch a video.  Then, there's an auto-grading check for understanding made with Google Forms.  It allows students to apply their understanding of the reading skill by answering multiple choice questions by referring back to the text and making connections with a relevant educational video clip!  If this sounds like something you could use with your students, click the picture above for this freebie!

This morning, Teachers Pay Teachers even assembled a FREE assortment of helpful resources, the first of which I know is on the minds of the district staff on how to equitably instruct our SpEd students during this time of school closures.  Check it out above!

Ring in the New Year with Traditions from Around the World!

Are you looking for something quick and engaging to include in your lesson plans the week after winter break?  Sharing how people celebrate New Year's traditions around the world is a FAVORITE activity of mine (and my students)!  I just love getting to connect with my students and find out more about how their family celebrates, as well!!

Something I have been meaning to do is update my files to Google Slides.  With the return back to school after winter break, I knew I wanted to add in related VIDEO CLIPS for my students to get a better understanding of how people around the world celebrate the New Year!  HOORAY, because it finally happened this year!

This New Year, I have added in clips for students and your classroom to get a better idea of how people from Chile, Russia, Australia, and Spain ring in the new year!  In the image below, I have included an overview detailing the importance of starting the year fresh

  The New Year's Traditions Around the World teaching slideshow (now available for use with Google Slides) covers the traditions celebrated in these five countries.  Not to mention, it explains the various, unique ball drops celebrated widely thorughout the United States on New Year's Eve!

If you made it to the bottom of the post, here's a link back to a freebie I made for my blog followers, especially for this New Year themed resource!

Here's to a HAPPY NEW YEAR filled with joy and good health!!