| Discovering Decimals
Several years ago I purchased the
book, Discovering Decimals. I love it!
This book is so easy to use and the
children get so much from the activities. We do Decimals at the
very end of the year and the children are not usually motivated to
finish up before our SOL tests. This book has so many excellent
activities about Decimals.
It walks you through the whole idea
to set up the Cooperative groups and gives several different ways
to group the children. I particularly like the "Think, Pair,
Share." The children have great opportunities to work
together to get the answers.
There is a fun Decimal War game,
Decimal Place Value games and worksheets, too. It was well worth
the money. I hope to see other Math books soon. Thank you for a
great book.
Susan Catron
4th Grade Teacher
Meadowview Elementary
Meadowview, VA
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Teacher on Call
I have used Laura's Teacher
on Call help line to get advice and ideas on how to start a
balanced literacy framework in my classroom. Her advice and
information helped me feel it would not be that overwhelming of
a task to get started. And, even though it is July, I am
actually getting excited about going back in the classroom to
start my program.
Nadia Bardack
5th grade
Westfield School
Glen Ellyn, Illinois
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Science Buddies
Five
years ago, when our district discovered that science, along with
reading, math, and writing, would soon be added to the ‘testing
schedule’ for our state, I decided to begin preparing my second
graders for what would await them in a few years when they became
5th graders. I
implemented the Science
Buddies “program” in my classroom.
This idea came from one of Laura Candler’s fabulous books
by the same name, and here’s how it works.
The
experiments from Laura’s book were used to supplement my yearly
science curriculum. Experiments
weren’t done in the classroom, as one would expect, but each
experiment was sent home for students to perform with a parent,
guardian, or older sibling—hence the term, Science
Buddies. A letter*
to introduce the program was sent home to parents explaining the
process, together with a copy of the first experiment. (*included
in the book) I allowed
a three-week turnaround, to ensure enough time for parents to
gather materials, most of which were common household items,
perform the experiment, provide results, and include ideas for
extending the experiment (feedback page is also included in the
book). Then I held my
breath in anticipation.
End-of-the-year feedback
from parents and students was overwhelmingly positive!
Examples of parents’ responses were: ‘This experiment
really made me think;’ ‘the egg experiment was the BEST. I was
shocked with the outcome.;’ ‘my husband and I alternate months
doing Science Buddies’ experiments with our child;’ ‘Science Buddies
is a great idea. I can’t wait until my younger child gets to 2nd
grade;’ ‘working as Science Buddies gives me one-on-one time
with my child. Thank you for doing this.’
Kids
are naturally curious at this age, and most enjoy science.
Getting parents involved in Science Buddies not only
relieved the pressure of “fitting everything in” for me, but
provided my students one-on-one time performing scientific
experiments—something I could not provide in the classroom.
What began in my mind as test prep for my 2nd graders,
surpassed my expectations: 100% active parental involvement,
students who were bubbling over about science and who couldn’t
wait for the end of the month to discuss the experiment, and busy
families who made learning alongside their children a priority—a
precious commodity with today’s hectic schedules.
I owe the program’s success to Laura Candler, for
providing teachers with Science Buddies.
Barbara
Punchak
Spring
Hill, Florida
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Discovering Decimals
Mine
is most likely one of the most unusual testimonies you’ll ever
see. I work in a correctional institution, and as such, my
students are adults. As a correctional educator I am constantly
looking for materials we can adapt to use in our classrooms. Discovering
Decimals is one of those books we came across that we have
found very useful. Normally we have to make major adaptations in
most material before we can use it. But we didn’t have to do
that in this particular case. It gets used a lot by the teachers
who work for me, and we were really pleased to see how usable to
book was in our setting. More importantly, it really gets used
by our students in math. Thanks.
Michael
Boyd
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Laura's Classroom
My grade level team was privileged to visit Laura's classroom in December. I was really excited because I had used materials from her website often and taken a class she offered about Literature Circles. In addition, my teammate had taken a math class she taught about teaching decimals. Based on those experiences, I looked forward to seeing her work in action.
I expected to encounter a larger-than-life personality and to my pleasant surprise she was friendly, welcoming and very down-to-earth. Her classroom was of the same quality as the materials on her website. Children were actively engaged using
manipulatives for measurement, being held accountable for literacy learning and knowledgeable about routines and procedures. It was obvious that the students felt safe, empowered to take responsibility for their learning and were comfortable working together. It was wonderful to see Laura in action, teaching her lesson to a small group and while other students were working collaboratively in stations. We
asked many questions to both Laura and her students, they responded with patience and never missed a beat with completing the task at hand. Unlike some teachers, Laura freely shared the materials she used in her room.
Laura's classroom is a living, dynamic testimony to what she believes is important in education. Her creativity shines and yet she is humble in her presentation. I've used her materials and have found, in my own practice, the information useful. After seeing her in action, I know Laura practices what she teaches.
Eboni Massey
Fayetteville, NC
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Literature Circle Workshops
I had the pleasure to attend not only one Literature Circle workshop, but three. I had problems getting students to communicate about literature, and more importantly for them to get interested in good literature. In Laura’s introductory Literature Circle workshop, she gave specific details about how to get skills taught while having students discuss and love the literature they read. My teaching changed drastically. Then I noticed that she offered a workshop on integrating Literature Circles across the curriculum. Since the non-fiction genre is the hardest for students to read and retain, I signed up immediately. Not only was this important for testing but for students to become well rounded readers. It was everything I could have asked for and more. Additionally, Laura is such an inspiration as a teacher; she invited me to a workshop for trainers so that I could learn to teach classes to other teachers. This opened me up not only to see myself as a teacher of students, but also to become an instructor for other teachers as well. I can whole heartedly recommend her workshops. And if you have any trouble teaching your students to love and discuss literature like I did; this is the way to hook them.
Andrea Hildel-Reyes
3rd-4th Grade Looping Teacher
Manchester Elementary School
Spring Lake, NC
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Would you like to send in your
own testimonial? If you have purchased one of my books, attended a
workshop, or used my Teacher on Call consulting service, I'd love to
hear from you (lauracandler@att.net).
I always love to hear from people who use the free materials on my site,
too!
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