Teacher Idea Factory

Teacher Idea Factory

ROCKIN’ RETELL – AN “OUT OF THE BOX” SUMMARY PACKET

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Someone PINCH me!  I finally finished it!  It darn near killed me, but I pushed through the distractions (spring sunshine has been my biggest nemesis) and managed to wrap it up yesterday!  So, without further ado, I bring you . . . Rockin’ Retell – Centers + Activities.

CLICK HERE to take a closer look!

This summary packet contains 71 pages of common core goodness that can be slipped in throughout the year – it’s great test prep too.  Here is my thought process on this (just in case you wanted to know).  Most of our babes become pretty savvy when it comes to summarizing a story and the task can become rather ho-hum.  I wanted to create a pack that attacked retell from numerous different angles.  Angles that help keep things fresh and exciting for kids.  I tried to think of things I would like to see unfold as a teacher . . . then I slapped on my student thinking cap.  I put myself in my students’ shoes and thought of things that 6-8 year olds would get worked up about.  I think I did a pretty good job (I act like I am 6 more than I act like I am 33 these days) . . . and I am super stoked with how this one turned out.  

I tried a few of the activities during the past few weeks (just to make sure my kid brain wasn’t WAY off base).  Let’s just say I was pleased as punch with the outcome.  

We started with News Report Retells.  I have a bunch of hams in my class this year and I thought why not try a little roll play??!!  This lesson has two activities tied to it.  A whole class acting ditty and a partner interviewing task.  Both were big hits with my babes!

The next week we abandoned our regular old summary sheet for something MUCH MORE kid friendly – comic books.  Yup.  My sweeties completed a retell comic book style.  They worked extra hard for me on this one and didn’t even know it.  The buy-in was extraordinary!
Last week we read a different tale and rolled with this Phone-A-Friend idea (inspired by Ms. Ashley Hughes clip art).  Common Core is all about student interaction and I wanted to keep creating things that encourage interaction. What better way to do this than with cell phones??  This lesson comes with a whole class portion as well as an individual follow up activity.  My kids LOVED playing with those silly fake phones . . . they were frothing at the mouth to get a chance to retell our read alouds!  

We will be rollin’ with the Rockin’ Retell craft next week and I think it’s gonna be a grand event.  We are always playing air guitar when something good happens in class, so it only seemed logical that I make a craft to capitalize on this excitement.  If I know my crew, I know that their eyes will light up when I tell them we are going to be “Rock Star Retellers” for the day!  I’ll be sure to post pictures next week 🙂

Alright my friends . . . that’s my Rockin’ Retell Pack in a nutshell.  There are oodles of other activities jammed in there too, but I figured I better give it a rest!  Check back on Friday for a Rockin’ Retell Freebie.  I am working on something extra fun, but I need a few more days to get my ducks in a row.  Oh, and be sure to watch Facebook today.  I am going to do a giveaway later tonight.  Be sure to follow my Teacher Idea Factory page if you don’t already!! With this said, I am off to get busy!  Thanks for visiting 🙂

Comments

  3. Robin says

    Congratulations Kelley! I am trying to gather my own collection of creations to start a TPT store this summer…you're a great inspiration! I also wanted to tell you that your About Me statement is straight out of Dave Burgess' book, Teach Like a Pirate! If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it…sounds like you're already "On Board"!

    Robin
    It's All Elementary!
    http://www.teacherszone.blogspot.com

    • teacherideafactory says

      I haven't heard of Dave . . . I'll have to look him up. I am a marketing major turned teacher, so I still have all that "sellin' jive" running through my blood. If you have questions when you start your store this summer, do not hesitate to look me up!

  9. The Polished Teacher says

    Keep on acting 6! Staying young at heart is the key to success as a teacher! I just love this new pack! Those phones are too cute! I can just bet they were fighting over who could share first! You have such great ideas to always keep learning fun!

    ThePolishedTeacher

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