Student Word Walls

I'm back! After a long hiatus of blogging, I am kicking myself into gear and so excited to share what is going on in my classroom this year! Last year was filled with pregnancy, baby boy, and maternity leave, so I had good reason to take a little break. :) Let me tell you, taking maternity leave at the beginning of the school year is NO JOKE! I would not advise it. Haha, but really...I feel like this school year has been a game of "keep your head above the water" and I am finally feeling like I am caught back up and on track again. This sweet little thing is worth all of it. :)

Anyways! Since coming back, my school has fully adapted Lucy Calkins Reading and Writing Units of Study....and let me just say- I LOVE THEM! The amount of growth I have seen with my kiddos just since I have been with them since October is really amazing. I love how the units are laid out and guide the process of learning to read and write. It has also made me kick myself into gear with organizing my leveled library. I have had leveled readers for years and years but I am just now getting around to organizing and labeling everything. Here is a picture of the process:

Leveled Library in PROGRESS!

I am so excited to share my library once it is complete!

Another fun thing we have been working on is our Student Word Walls. In the Writing Units of Study, it encourages snap (sight words) words to be readily available for students. While I have a Word Wall in my room, it is helpful for students to have their own "Word Wall" in their writing folders for quick reference. As a class, we brainstormed a list of words that we have been using a lot in our current unit (narrative) and then put them on their word walls. Here are some examples:

Student Word Walls

What I love about these Word Walls is that they can highlight their words to match the color coded words on my Word Wall in the classroom. That way, I can say "Then is the yellow word under T" for quick and easy reference! This has helped the process of writing SO much! They are more focused on getting their ideas down on paper, rather than remembering how to spell a specific sight word or spending forever trying to find it on the Word Wall.

Do you use Lucy Calkin's Units of study? I am such a nerd when it comes to learning about how to teach reading and writing....I could talk about it and research it for hours!