Research Report Time

It's report time in the 2nd grade!

 This year is the first year that second grade has to write a research report. When I first heard this my jaw hit the ground! I was thinking how am I going to get these students to write a research paper when I can barely get them to write a complete sentence? I was put to ease when I found out it was a whole group research report. 

  In two weeks we are going to start the process of learning to write a research based paper and then actually writing a report about the Moon as a class. I started to look ahead at the resources provided by the school district and what I found did not fit my needs and the needs of my students. So.... I did what I always do when I am faced with resources that just don't meet my standards. I created my OWN! 

Below are pictures of a couple of the pages that I created to aid in this long process. The entire 11 page packet is available on my TPT and TN stores. 

 This is the cover of the Packet. Click here to get it

This page is to be either filled out for a group paper or an individual. This is for picking a big topic and then narrowing it down to what will be discussed in the paper.

This pages teaches about what a sources is and deciding what makes a good source and why. 

There is a sheet that goes along with all the steps of writing a research report. I hope you all enjoy this item!

New Writing Center

I saw a wonderful writing center on First Grade Fresh blog. I loved it so much that I have recreated in my classroom. Below are some pictures of my writing center. It is still under construction. I am working on getting another board installed next to the one that is there already. I want to be able to expand this center. I hope you enjoy this post.

This is what my center looks like. I have desks for students to work at, a storage bin to hold paper and dictionaries, a smaller container that has post-its in it for right now, and a place for highlighters and pencils.

Here is a close up of the board. I have a pocket that will hold the must do activity. This will help students stay on task during this center. This was such a great suggestion that I found on First Grade Fresh. The posters that run across the top were given to me by a fellow teacher. I finally found where they came from. Do you have a writer's eye? These are great posters to remind students how to write a sentence.

I created the types of writing labels and soon there will be examples of each type under the titles. These items will be available for free at my TPT store. I found the cute polka dot frames at School Box which is a teaching store near me in Knoxville.

I am very excited for my students to start using this center. I think it will really help them with their writing!