Welcome Back!!!

     Welcome Back!!! Summer break has officially started for me.  How many of you are on your summer break?  After a long hiatus, I decided to come back to blogging.  I can't promise to blog every day, but when I do blog, it'll be something that I found to be wonderful.
     Most of you may already know about Teachers Pay Teachers.  For those of you who do not know, I highly recommend visiting the site.  I have found a plethora of teaching materials/supplemental materials for my kids.  I have absolutely fell in love with task cards.  You can find a task card for just about every topic you plan to teach.  Below, I'm going to explain how I use task cards in my classroom.  I'll also be sharing a few of my favorite task cards.
     I use the task cards in centers.  I do not expect my students to complete all of the task cards in one rotation (some topics have over 30 task cards), so I pick out a few and place them in the buckets.  I show my students how to number their papers and allow them to work with their group to complete the cards.  I check the completed work and go over the task cards with the entire class.  My goal is to give them the practice, but make sure they do have an understanding of the topic.  I have read on another blog that the teacher simply made a task card board.  On it, she placed hooks and hung the task cards on the board.  (You have to print, laminate, cut, and cut the cards out.  Then punch a hole in each one and use the binder rings to hold the cards together.)  She allows her students to complete the task cards when they finish their work.  Each child has a printout that allows him/her to record answers and then see which cards need completing.  Most of the task cards do have answer sheets included with them.
     Some of my favorite task cards come from Teaching With a Mountain View.  Her cards are wonderful, in my opinion.  They are very colorful and get to the point, which is what I like.  She creates themed cards (fall, holiday, monthly) for review purposes, as well as cards for specific topics.  This is great for reinforcing skills and reviewing them.  I really used these cards for test prep and my kids really enjoyed them.
     As for me, I am working on creating my own task cards, but right now I'm enjoying my first few days of summer vacation!! I hope you enjoy yours!!

Happy Teaching!!
Lori