Using Interactive Notebooks in Math

Last spring and over the summer I kept seeing posts online about using Interactive Notebooks (IN) in math, I was interested and decided to implement them this school year.  As I was reading I took a lot of notes and meshed a whole bunch of different ideas to figure out what I was going to do...then the school year came around and I realized that I needed to do what works best for me and my students when it comes to their IN.

A lot of people had posted about using the left side of a page for one purpose and the right side for another based on brain research, while that made sense to me, I didn't want our entire math time together to be focused on their notes, but I want to prepare them for future math classes to know how to take notes that they can use.  Instead of using two pages for a concept we use one page, we have a table of contents, page numbers, and we use foldables...lots of colored foldables.

Interactive Notes for "Operations with Decimals"

The students enjoy building their IN each day and reference them throughout the class when they are working on independent work.  When it comes time for assessments, I have them complete what they can on their own in pencil and then they can get out their IN and complete the rest in pen using their notes.  I didn't plan to let them use their notes at all, but they will be able to use notes in future math classes on some assessments so I want them to have that skill.

I usually teach my mini-lesson to the students as they are filling out their IN notes.  The questions that they have come up as they are working on their notes and then I work with them independently on skills and in small groups.  Although we are only a few weeks into the school year, I am SO glad that I decided to use INs this year! You can access my Interactive Notebook notes and foldables here if you are interested.

Back to School = Exhaustion

I just started my tenth year of teaching, I remembered to check out the weekly ads for good deals on school supplies, took time to get my classroom ready and looking good for the year, and greeted the kids on day one...but somehow I forgot how tired going back to school makes me!

The first week or so the adrenaline of the kids and the newness of the year keeps you going, but now that we are settling into a routine...I am tired!  I love my job and I go 100% while I am at school and love every minute I spend with my students, but when I get home I don't want to leave.  I want to cuddle up on my couch, do some schoolwork in my comfys, and watch mindless television.  Every fall,  I forget how long it takes for some routines to fall in to place, but I have completely forgotten how long it takes me to adjust to an earlier bedtime, not snacking off and on all day, and living on a schedule.

It is a short week after a long weekend, hopefully a low-key weekend and some time to relax will get me caught up for next week. 

FREE Daily 5 Rotation Cards and Headers

I am still new to this blogging thing, but I wanted to let you know that I have FREE Daily 5 Rotation Cards and Headers in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.  I will post a picture with a link.  Head on over and download one for your classroom!

I am really into Chevron right now, it is cute, but still has clean lines...which I love:)

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Daily-5-Rotation-Cards-and-Header-Chevron-859107