Kristan Boruch

Students place the steps of uncovering a fossil find in the correct order on the first slide. On the second slide, students discover different kinds of fossils by touching a dinosaur. The dinosaur will disappear and reveal a type of fossil. On the third slide, there is a link to a very cute palentologist song. My students absolutely love this song!! Very cute!

I created this SMART Board Lesson to go along with a mapping activity for our Cold Lands Unit which focussed on Alaska and Antarctica. We followed the SMART Board slides to see real pictures and learn about specific areas in Alaska. Then, my students got together in small groups to find these areas on their own Alaskan maps. After they found each item, they filled in their own Alaskan map including their key. This was very beneficial to my students and increased their excitment about Alaska.

Our school has been using Conscious Discipline for the last few years. In this program it is important for every child to have a job in the classroom every week. I created job titles with pictures that I rotate among all of my students. I have used these for the past few years and have them up in my classroom ready for my new second graders. They have worked great, and the pictures help my students remember and understand what their job entails. I hope you find them as valuable as I have.

This is a great SMART Board lesson to introduce dinosaurs. On the first slide, the students pop 4 different balloons and underneath each balloon is a characteristic of dinosaurs (lived between 245-65 million years ago, now extinct, lived on land, could not fly). The next three slides show different animals with description underneath. Using the characteristics shown above on the table, students slide either yes or no in each box to show their answer. The animals that have yes in each box all

This SMART Board document helps my students review the geography, climate, food, culture, people, currency, and history of Mexico. We do several hands-on activities centered around each of the slides.

A large unit that I teach in second grade is dinosaurs. I created a SMART Board document that helps my students learn who a paleontologist is and what fossils are through videos, pictures, questions and answers. My students love the song about a paleontologist and enjoy how interactive each slide is. I hope your students enjoy it as much as mine do.

We do a huge unit on dinosaurs in second grade. The students are expected to learn the characteristics of each dinosaur period and understand how life changed throughout the periods. My SMART board document includes a map of the different time periods and three different pages of each period of the dinosaurs which includes the types of dinosaurs, plants, characteristics, and climate.

At my school, we are currently doing a DRA assessment three times per year. At the beginning of the school year, we set a goal based on their DRA results of where each child should be by the end of the school year. I wanted my students to play an active role in reflecting on their reading growth. I also will be using this graph at conferences.

I made this chart as a quick reference for my students who were struggling remembering the value of the penny, nickel, dime, quarter, and half dollar as well as what each side looked like. I laminated them and my students who needed them used them on their desks while they were counting money. I have used these for a few years and found it very helpful especially for my students who needed an extra tool to help them with money.

To help reinforce the vocabulary for our new reading series - "LEAD 21", with my second graders, I found pictures that would match each vocabulary word. These can be cut out and glued on index cards. You might also make another copy and glue just the word on the opposite side. I also wrote the definitions for each of these words on cards using the Ellison Cutter. These vocabulary cards work great for matching the word to the definition, playing memory, and many other activities throughout th

Before school begins, I set up interviews with my parents. This form has been given out when the parents register their child in August. Many parents fill out the form ahead of time and for those who don't, I fill out the form when the interview is conducted. It helps in giving me very useful information about my students before school even starts. This can also be sent home after school begins to gather more information about each of your students.

I wanted my students to write specific messages to each of their peers to include in their Valentines. We discussed how much more meaningful a compliment is compared to a generic message that a Valentine card displays. This is an at home project for the students. I have included the parent letter, suggested sentence prompts for students who may struggle with what to write, and student lined writing paper to write their special message on to place with their individual Valentines.

I have created three slides to help my students understand the differences between an asteroid and a comet. The students will pull out tabs that have different facts related to an asteroid or a comet. I also have two video links displaying an asteroid and a comet. The students will complete a Venn Diagram showing what they have learned about the difference between an asteroid and a comet.