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freesparrow

Rated 4.67 out of 5, based on 3 reviews

10 Followers

memphis , Tennessee, United States

About the store

I have been in Memphis, TN, for three years now as part of the Memphis Teacher Residency. I am originally from California (not 'cali' or 'socal') and while I was there I got the bug for teaching when I homeschooled a brother and sister for a year. In my residency year here, I got to teach 11th grade English Honors, AP Language and AP Literature. I loved getting to teach at that level, but I wanted to get kids at an earlier, more pliable, age. For the last two years I have been teaching 8th grade, and while it is rough, I LOVE IT! I love my crazy, honest, wild adolescents and wouldn't have it any other way.

Grade Tracker Example

Developing Theme

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Developing Theme

Created by

freesparrow

Having trouble getting your middle schoolers to see how an author crafts his or her theme? I created this worksheet to use at the end of a short story or at the end of each chapter of a book (I am using it on The Outsiders currently, and will use it all year with every novel so my students are familiar with it). This is meant to replace the drudgery of the typical "write a summary" assignment that usually comes at the end of chapters. It forces students to focus their attention on key techniqu

5th - 9th

English Language Arts, Literature, Short Stories

2 day lesson for RL.7.9

Created by

freesparrow

This is specifically designed to go with particular chapters of the novel Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson. 2-3 day lesson plan plus graphic organizer and CFU/MC questions to go with articles and chapters. RL7,9 asks students to compare and contrast a fictional and historical account of the same event. This lesson includes 3 opportunities for students to do that- to go with Isabel's journey to NYC, the topic of seizures and how that was seen as witchcraft in that era, and the hanging of Thomas

6th - 8th

Close Reading, Informational Text, Literature

The Outsiders chapter 9 reading workout with modified version and KEY

Created by

freesparrow

This is a reading workout for chapter 9 (the one where Johnny dies!) of S.E. Hinton's classic The Outsiders. At the end is a paragraph the students will write based on the answers to the reading workout. This is a key so it looks exactly like the student copy except it has the answers filled in as well as the page numbers for each stop of the reading workout (I used audible in my class to listen to the book because of the range of reading levels to keep everyone at the same pace. Outsiders was u

7th - 8th

Literature, Writing

Words Their Way (within word pattern spellers) homework for sort 15

Created by

freesparrow

Need already created weekly homework for your students who are doing Words Their Way? I created this for students I tutor to have extra practice with the WTW activities throughout the week. This is for the Within Word Pattern Speller book Sort 15. It assumes you have WTW sorts and is JUST an already created homework/extra practice sheet to save you time. It does use specific word patterns from sort 15. Activities include: reading logs for each day, Word-O, Build-Blend-Extend, and Blind Sort spel

K - 6th

Phonics & Phonological Awareness, Reading Strategies, Spelling

CCSS

CCRA.L.2

Greek and Latin Roots Set 1

Created by

freesparrow

I have used roots to teach vocabulary for the last seven years and it is huge success! My students on average have been 2-3 years behind in reading and most speak English as a second language which is perfect for so many of the roots that are similar in Spanish. I based my plans on research that shows humans can acquire 8-10 new words a week, so I choose 3 roots with 3 words each and quiz students every two weeks (I used to do every week, but that proved a little fast for absorption). The mega b

6th - 8th

Vocabulary

RL.7.9 graphic organizer

Created by

freesparrow

Great tool for RI/RL.7.9! Graphic organizer to help students compare and contrast two documents for their main ideas and author's purpose. RL7.9 asks students to "compare and contrast a fictional portrayal of a time, place or character and a historical account of the same period." I could not find ANY resources for this as I was planning last year (RL6.9 and 8.9 are distinctly different- this is the only year kids have to do this for some reason but you can still use this for comparing two texts

6th - 8th

Close Reading, Informational Text, Reading

CCSS

RL.7.9

, RI.7.9

"Four Skinny Trees" Close Reading (Mango Street)

Created by

freesparrow

This ten-page close read lesson includes key, paragraph assignment, 2 CFU questions and a mastery check about tone and evidence. The objectives are " SWBAT use close reading techniques to determine the meaning of a vignette." and SWBAT write an ACECES paragraph about how an author uses figurative language to describe characters." I love using close reading lessons to help students deeply understand a key passage in a novel as well as develop their ability to write about literature. The students

6th - 8th

Close Reading, Reading, Writing

Matching Game for Words Their Way Sort 15 (within word pattern spellers)

Created by

freesparrow

Use this as homework or small group extra practice for sort 15. I chose the words specifically that have no 'rule' about WHY they are spelled the way they are (there is no rule to teach a student that tooth is tooth and not tuthe or tuith- they just have to see the word enough to learn the spelling). These words are from the WTW within word pattern speller book for sort 15- you have to already having the WTW book and sort- this is just a supplement. I use it along with my 'weekly homework sort 1

K - 6th

English Language Arts, Reading Strategies, Spelling

CCSS

CCRA.L.2

Words Their Way Word-O template

Created by

freesparrow

I created this as homework for students. You can print them out for each student to do Word-O (description in the WTW book) to go along with whatever sort they are doing that week.

K - 5th

English Language Arts, Phonics & Phonological Awareness, Spelling

CCSS

CCRA.L.2

Grade Tracker Example

Created by

freesparrow

The age-old question of teachers everywhere: HOW DO I MOTIVATE MY STUDENTS? The answer? DATA! Accountability. If my students see their grade and progress (or regress in some cases?) they are motivated to do something. Once I discovered this, I made grade tracking a biweekly activity in my class. I have learned many shortcuts through trial and error, so here is a free example of what I do. I write out all the assignments that were given that week (or two weeks, or unit, etc), and the possible p

5th - 9th

English Language Arts, For All Subjects, Math

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About the store

Experience

Teaching style

I am a fan of: literature circles, getting to know your students, having honest discussions, teaching students organization and reflection, newsela.com, common core (though it has yet to arrive for real in TN), knowing your content, exposing kids to great literary works so they love it too, speaking to 13 year olds as if they are closer to adults than children, residencies for teachers, peer evaluation, coplanning with other super qualified people, working hard, setting boundaries, modeling love and patience when I can't preach the gospel, telling funny stories, and posting endless stories about my kids on facebook because I ADORE them.

Awards & shining teacher moments

I am a third year teacher, so really what could I put here? Please choose my products if they are high quality and worthwhile; I think they are because I spend hours researching and creating them, usually because there isn't anything decent on the internet.

My own education history

I graduated high school with a semester of AP credits and 8th in my class. I went to Hope International University, in Fullerton, CA, where I majored in English, but had a fair amount of random "what will I do in life?" classes like stained glass and czech women's literature (during my semester in Prague). I graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2005. After a stint as a server in various fine dining establishments, I moved to Memphis to be part of the Memphis Teacher Residency in 2011, where I earned a Master's of Urban Education in one year (with a 4.0) while student teaching 11th grade and AP classes. I am a serious student y'all. So I am also a serious teacher.

Additional biographical information

I am married to the handsome devil pictured above- spencer smith. He is a graphic designer which has taught me a lot in how to communicate my messages to students. He is also a musician and is about to drop a new album. www.spencerwsmith.com We also have three nieces, a nephew, and a kitten. Life is good.