Yearlong Pacing Calendar & Science of the Month Questions Answered

Our resources are targeted for the K-2 grade levels.  The vocabulary and science experiments, investigations, and activities are perfect for K-2.  While they would also be great to modify for Pre-K, the cross curricular activities included are not developmentally appropriate for four-year-olds.  The cross-curricular games and activities included target K-2 literacy and math skills.  Many of the skills included can be modified and adapted to meet the needs of both struggling and excelling students.  With many of the cross curricular activities included, we both try to included ideas for modification in the instructions.

Throughout the course of the school year, our science resources will cover all of the science standards for both Common Core and TEKS.   Many of the NGSS science standards are also covered.

The cross curricular activities included cover basic, grade level skills and objectives that are taught throughout the school year and can be easily implemented in either a whole group or small group setting as well as independent and center work.  

The themes included in each month's resource cover MANY of the science standards our students will learn throughout the school year.  Our goal is to ensure that ALL science standards and skills will be covered throughout the course of the year while using different themes to reach each objective and standard.   While the themes may not be science specific (example:  habitats, life cycles, etc.) these concepts ARE COVERED within the week's themes.  Reading through each month's pacing calendar will help you to identify the science skills and objectives that are targeted each week.  

As with anything you teach, the exact sequence of instruction for these resources is not required, rather suggested.  Our science resources are research-based and while we are presenting you with suggestions and ideas, you are the teacher and you know your students needs best!  Not to mention that you have a specific teaching style that fits you!  Do what works best!

For each week of learning, we provide a book list that compliments our activities.  In no way do you HAVE to have these books to successfully implement these activities.  The books suggested are simply that...just suggestions.  As teachers,  we know that not only do mentor texts enhance our instruction and anchor learning for our students, but they also provide a great way for our kids to make connections to their learning and the world around them.  Typically, ANY book (both fiction and non-fiction ) that you have that also covers the same theme and content will work just fine :)  

Yes, yes, and YES!!!!!  And here's what's included.....

We would LOVE to, but quite honestly we aren't going to put ourselves through that, LOL!!!  As we create each resource, we often realize that some concepts and skills turn out to be a little more time consuming to plan and prepare than others.  While we wish this resource were our only commitment, we also have work obligations and families that require quite a bit of our time :)    These resources get take blood, sweat, and tears to create and because they are so time intensive and comprehensive, we want to take the time we need to make it a great fit for you and your classrooms!  We will typically announce the release of the following month's resource a week before it is available for purchase, so follow us on Instagram (Abby's IG /  Cara's IG) to find out when you can expect the next one as we will post teasers throughout the week leading up to the release!

At this very moment, we have no plans on making a yearlong bundle available for purchase anytime soon.  Most likely, we will wait until August - December is completed before bundling all 10 months and making them available for purchase altogether.   If there were any reason we were unable to complete the resources as promised, we would be devastated that we weren't able to fulfill our commitment.  This is the safer way for now. HOWEVER, stay tuned over the next few weeks for a surprise or two we have up our sleeves.

In the meantime, you can see what we have in store for the year.  We are excited about the year's activities to come and can't wait to get those to you!

If you've been on the fence about implementing these resources in your classroom, check out more details HERE: 

STAY TUNED FOR A SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!!  

Mystery Messages - The Summer Edition

For these last few weeks of school, I had a few requests to create something that incorporates both math and literacy...something good for review, but not too easy and really engaging.  I mean, that's not hard, right?!  HA!!!  We're all FRIED this time of the year!!!  Of course that's a tough one!  I went through some of my old files and it hit me.  Mystery Messages!!!!  My kids LOVE those!!!  I decided to make them a bit more current and more applicable for this time of the year.  I combined 15 addition, 15 subtraction, and 6 bonus mixed operations  mystery messages for this fun and exciting resource.

My boys love hanging out with me when I'm creating.  Landon was watching me print out some of these Mystery Messages and he was a bit beside himself.  He loved the idea of earning his "badges" to become an addition/subtraction detective.  He is DETERMINED to become a detective before his little brother.  Just a little friendly sibling competition :)

It can be really challenging to keep our kids excited about learning and engaged in their activities when they've got sunshine and lemonade on the brain.  I love creating activities that excite kids and "trick" them into thinking they're playing a game instead of learning.  With Mystery Messages, kids have the opportunity to solve "case files" (addition/subtraction equations corresponding with scrambled messages) .  Each time they solve a case file, they fingerprint their tracking sheet to close the case.  Once they solve 15 addition messages/15 subtraction messages/6 mixed operation messages, they earn a "detective badge".

Landon is well on his way to earning his.  As soon as he's finished with his homework, he heads right to his "case files" (I keep them in a file folder for him) and chooses a mystery to solve.  Right now he's working on earning his addition detective badge. 

I love the idea of using these in the classroom as a morning challenge for morning work or as a fast finisher activity (who can earn their detective badge first?!?!).  They also lend themselves for group review (displayed on the Smartboard or document camera).  One of the teachers with whom I'm working suggested sending these home for the summer to help prevent the dreaded "summer slide".  I included a parent letter with this resource in case you want to do that, too!  I absolutely LOVE that idea!!!

 My sweet Grant loved that idea, too.  He's one that will only do what's required of him when he's at home.  If his teacher says read 1 book for homework, he'll read one book and one book only.  Nothing more, nothing less.  He's a smart little cookie, but he needs motivation.   So, I went ahead and started creating his case files for summer break while it's still on my mind.  Lord knows I'll get lazy if I wait much longer.  He told me he might not want to wait until summer and I have a feeling that he'll be motivated to get a head start once he sees his brother's tracking sheet :)  Whatever works, right?!

If this is something you're interested in for your classroom...or you'd like to send these home for summer review...just click on the pic below for a description and preview...

  It's *almost* Mother's Day and it's sneaking up on us way too fast!  This little packet includes Mother's/Father's Day coupons, graphic organizers, writing prompts, and craftivities.  

Aren't these gift bags precious?!  I sent these home with my kids the last couple of years and they turned out precious!  Whatever artwork and gifts we made for mom were all put in the bag and taken home for Mother's Day before the weekend.  

Here's a little Mother's/Father's Day math freebie for you!!!!

HAPPY FRIYAY!!!!!

Meet AdSense’s next generation ads: Page-level ads

Today, we’re excited to introduce AdSense’s next generation ads. Page-level ads is a family of ad formats that offer a new and innovative way to help you earn money from your mobile content.

With Page-level ads, you place the same ad code once on each page that you want to show ads. They’re designed to show automatically at the right time and in the right format -  potentially increasing your earnings without interfering with your users’ mobile experience.

The benefits of Page-level ads include:

• Optimized ads that show when they’re likely to perform well and provide a good user experience.

• One-time set-up that only requires you to place the Page-level ad code once on each page you’d like the ads shown. 

• Ability to adjust the settings in your account and to enable new ad formats without having to change the code on your site.

• Additional ads on your site that don’t count towards your AdSense per page ad limit.

Watch the video below for a quick view of Page-level ads:


Currently, the Page-level ads family includes the anchor/overlay and vignette ad formats. More ad formats will be available soon.

Learn more about the Page-level ads in the AdSense Help Center. Get started with Page-level ads today and let us know what you think in the comments below.


Posted by Matthew Conroy, AdSense Product Manager

The Science of May

Hello friends! How many of you are celebrating 5 more Mondays left in the school year?! 

 I know some teachers who are counting down the days! My boys though?!?! Notsomuch....and if I'm being honest, neither am I. I'm SO grateful they LOVE school as much as they do...and I can attribute that directly to their amazing teachers. They've instilled a love of learning in my boys and that's a debt I'll never be able to repay. But me?!?! Well...I'm not ready to say goodbye to those teachers. God has truly placed the boys exactly where they needed to be. He's given them teachers who not only teach them, but love them, nurture their abilities, challenge them, and hold them to high standards. Gah.

 NOT.READY. 

 Speaking of teachers, next week is Teacher Appreciation Week! Are y'all screaming a not-so-silent 'WOO HOOO!!!!!!"?!?!?! I always loved Teacher Appreciation Week because the kids were SO excited to bring in handwritten notes and their very best illustrations to show me how much they loved me. Those handwritten notes and illustrations were always a highlight of my year. Would you believe I still have notes and pictures saved from my first year teaching 13 years ago?!?!?! Now those babies are in college. DEAR.LORD!!!!! I'm sure their handwriting and drawing skills have changed considerably since then ;) In honor of our favorite teachers, I went ahead and ordered some of these PRECIOUS cookies!!!! Are these not darling?! I can't wait to get them!!! I ordered them from a teacher I found on IG who teaches by day and bakes by night. I love supporting teachers because, well, y'all are my people :)

 Moving right along with the end-of-the-year, Abby and I have completed The Science of May and it's available for purchase! 4 full weeks worth of detailed lesson plans that include book suggestions, visual examples, printables, experiments, craftivities, and MORE!!!! Eeeek!!!! I know I say it every month, but this month might be my favorite :) Hahaha. This month we're covering Dinosaurs, Ocean Life, Ocean Animals, and Kitchen Chemistry! Such fun themes to end the school year, no?!?! 

 Here's how it all breaks down. This pacing calendar details the target vocabulary, Science/Math/Literacy objectives, as well as the book suggestions. I like having a visual overview of my month so that I can start with the end in mind. Always helps me make sure I plan with intention.

 Here's a peek at the Table of Contents for each week. This gives you an idea of what to expect for each week of learning. 

We really do create these units with lots of blood, sweat, and tears.  We get so excited each month to share these with you and hear how so many teachers and kids are loving science now and actually looking forward to it each day.  I've seen it up close and personal in the classrooms I visit and it's so neat to see them being put to use!  Here's what people are saying about May so far!

Thank you, dear teachers, for sharing these little peeks into your classrooms.  We love seeing how you're implementing The Science Of... into your classrooms!  Here's a peek into some classrooms using The Science of April...

If you're interested in May's resource and having all your plans done for you for the next four weeks, you can check out The Science of May by clicking on the pic below....

Stay tuned throughout the next few weeks for lots of freebies and fun activities to compliment these themes!!!  Have a great day!

Introducing MODE: Snap-and-swap watch bands designed for Android Wear

With Android Wear, you can wear what you want with watches from 12 different brands and thousands of interchangeable watch faces. And while you can change your watch face with just a tap, it has not been as quick and easy to change your watch band. Starting today, updating your style is as easy as “snap-and-swap,” with new MODE watch bands in partnership with b&nd by Hadley Roma.

Change your look with one click
MODE snap-and-swap watch bands feature a simple slide button so you can attach and detach your band in one click.

MODE bands are versatile—they come in four widths, fit most Android Wear watches, and work on mechanical watches too. This first collection comes in a rainbow of colors, and is available in leather and silicone, so you can easily go from the office to the gym to a night out.

Join the bandwagon

This is just the beginning. We want Android Wear to give you as much choice as possible, so we’ll be sharing the MODE mechanism design and source with other brands to use to create their own snap-and-swap watch bands. To help brands get started, we’ve created a vendor playbook with instructions, requirements and brand guidelines. To find out more, email us at wearMODE@google.com.

MODE bands are now available online at the Google Store (US), Amazon, and Best Buy. We’re excited to see all the ways you wear what you want.

Learn more about MODE at g.co/WearMODE.

Posted by Gina Reimann & Jen Lu, Design Lead & Product Manager, Google Accessories

Tips for writing a successful invalid traffic appeal

In a previous publisher blog post, we discussed tips for writing a successful policy appeal. In today's topic, we’re exploring what happens when publisher accounts are disabled due to invalid traffic, when to submit an appeal, and tips for making those appeals successful.

Invalid traffic includes any clicks or impressions that may artificially inflate an advertiser's costs or a publisher's earnings. Invalid traffic covers intentionally fraudulent traffic as well as accidental clicks.

In the ads ecosystem, advertisers rely on the relevance of our ad placement and the quality of the interaction their ads receive. Publishers in turn count on advertiser participation that contributes to the success of their apps and business. Without this trust, the Google advertising network could not exist. Google treats invalid traffic very seriously, analyzing all clicks and impressions to determine whether they fit a pattern of use that might artificially drive up an advertiser's costs or a publisher's earnings. If we determine that an account might pose a risk to our advertisers, we may take actions against the account, such as suspending or disabling it, in order to protect our advertisers' interests.

Before we continue, let's clarify the difference between an account suspension and an account disablement.

If your account was suspended due to invalid traffic, ad-serving has been turned off for a fixed period (typically 30 days). While suspensions are not currently appealable, if you would like to provide additional feedback to help us improve our processes and communications, you may do so using our suspended publisher feedback form. If there are no further compliance issues with your account, it will be automatically unsuspended after the fixed period. For more information about account suspensions, please visit our AdSense Help Center (or AdMob Help Center).

If your account was disabled due to invalid traffic, your account is no longer serving ads, and you will be unable to monetize with any Google ad solutions. You're eligible to file an invalid activity appeal, but please be aware that that filing an appeal does not guarantee reinstatement. For more information about account disablements, please visit our Help Center.

If you would like to file an invalid traffic appeal for account reinstatement, please first review the AdSense program policies and top reasons for account closure. These policies and reasons apply to all Google ad solution products, including but not limited to AdMob and YouTube.

Here are some tips that you may find useful in writing your appeal:

1. Review the top reasons for account closure. Think about if any of these reasons applied to you and your content. Did your friends click on your ads too many times? Did you purchase traffic that led to a surge of invalid activity? Can you make content and/or behavioral changes to prevent the activity from happening again?
2. Review ad implementations on your desktop site, mobile site, and/or mobile app. Think about what your typical user journey would be, and see if the ad implementations may cause users to accidentally click on your ads.
3. In the appeal form, provide the e-mail address that is associated with your disabled AdSense account. This will help locate your account and reduce delays in appeal processing time.
4. Tell us what changes you’ll make for the future. Once again, carefully consider the top reasons for account closure. What systems or behaviors have you put in place to ensure this won't happen again? For example, tell us how you've adjusted your ad implementations, evaluated your traffic sources, hired testers to properly test your content, etc. We will appreciate your honesty in the appeal.

Publishers are a vital part of the online ads ecosystem, and we want to see you succeed while keeping your users happy and engaged. Everyone in the digital ecosystem benefits when publishers provide engaging content and useful resources, which in turn incentivizes advertisers to bid for space on your content. We hope that these resources can provide some guidance.

Posted by Danielle Chang of the AdSense Ad Traffic Quality Team

[New Resource] Download the AdSense Guide to Audience Engagement

Research shows that “29% of smartphone users will immediately switch to another site or app if it doesn’t satisfy their needs.”

In a world where people are making split decisions about what to consume, it’s increasingly challenging but critical for publishers to figure out how to effectively engage their audiences on their sites. To help lay the foundation to a winning engagement strategy, we’ve created the AdSense Guide to Audience Engagement.

This guide help you drive toward your goals for growing your site – from defining your brand voice to tips to make your site’s content easy to consume. Don’t waste another moment developing web pages that leave you with little opportunity to engage with your audience. Download the AdSense Guide to Audience Engagement here.

In this guide, you’ll learn:

• How to help your audience become familiar with your brand
• Best practices to design delightful user journeys
• How to develop content that resonates with your audience
• Ways to make your content easy to consume
• Why you should share the love with other sites by referring to good sources

Check out the guide and share your feedback with us on Google+ and Twitter using #AdSenseGuide. We’d love to hear what you think. 

Posted by Jay Castro

from the AdSense team

@jayciro

Welcome to Google Play Music, the podcast episode

Hello, and welcome to the latest episode of Google Play Music. Today we’re going to talk about something near and dear to my heart: podcasts. 

People love podcasts. In fact, these days, there are so many podcasts to choose from, it can be hard to pick which one to listen to at any given time. That’s where Google Play Music comes in. Google Play Music already gives you the right kind of music for the right moment—whether you want to have fun at work, prepare for a dance party, or just need to focus—and now, that includes podcasts.

Starting today on the web and rolling out on Android in the U.S. and Canada, we’ll connect you with podcasts based on what you’re doing, how you’re feeling and what you’re interested in. Similar to our contextual playlists for music, we want to make it easy to find the right podcast—whether you’re a podcast aficionado or listening for the first time.

Try “Learning Something New” to talk about at a dinner party and listen to our favorite episodes from Stuff You Should Know or How To Do Everything. Enjoy a Sunday afternoon by “Getting Lost in a Story” with episodes from Radiolab or Reply All, or relax after a long day by “Laughing Out Loud” to Marc Maron’s WTF or Chris Hardwick’s The Nerdist. If you find something you love, subscribe to download the last several episodes automatically on your device or choose to be notified every time a new episode comes out.And to all you creators who want to make your podcast available in Google Play Music, check out the podcast portal for more details.

Thanks to our invaluable partners without whom the world would be a boring place. And to all you podcast lovers, keep listening!

This week’s episode is brought to you by Google Play. With Google Play, you can get millions of apps, games, songs, movies & TV shows, books and news sources—all your favorites, all in one place.

Hosted by Ilia Malkovitch, Product Manager, Google Play Music

How To Handle Constructive Criticism as a Teacher

It's that time of the year again.

Time for walk-throughs, observations, evaluations, and appraisals.  Summative meetings with administration and the dreaded feeling of wondering whether you're deemed "proficient"or if you'll score the coveted label of "exceeds expectations".  We ALL want to exceed in teaching because, well, it's what we love.  

As teachers, we take our jobs VERY personally...and rightfully so!  We invest so much of ourselves, our time, and our finances into our classrooms and our students and we sacrifice so much in the process.  It's hard for us to admit that we aren't "perfect" teachers.  We hate to think that we aren't the best at what we feel like we were born to do.  

Some years it's even hard to feel like we'll score in the "needs work" category when we're blessed with an extra challenging class. You know the class I'm talking about.  The one that makes you question your career choice.  The one that whispers in your ear as you exit the school parking lot, "just pick up a bottle of wine and everything will be better tomorrow."  THAT class.

So how do you approach observation season?  Are you excited to show your administration what you do in and out every day?  Or do you fear the idea of being judged?  Do you worry that you'll have behavior issues?  Or that your friends will act like it's their very first day of school?  Are you concerned you won't seem competent enough to not only manage, but teach an entire classroom full of different needs?!  I think we'd all be lying to ourselves if we said those thoughts didn't creep in before appraisals.  I mean, Lord!  I feel like we're always second guessing ourselves as it is!!!

What happens when you do get your evaluation back and it doesn't read the way you anticipated?   Maybe areas where you feel you're really strong were scored lower than you expected.  Or your overall score doesn't reflect what you think you deserve.  Has that ever happened to you?  And if it has, how have you handled it?  

Which statement best fits you?

In this kind of scenario, we have two choices...we can choose to welcome constructive criticism as an invitation to become a better teacher, or we can choose to let it define and destroy us.   

Let me tell y'all something.  When I left the classroom to consult/mentor and present, I found myself in a similar situation with evaluations and appraisals.  Only this time the evaluations and feedback aren't coming from my administration....it's coming from my peers.  Teachers who either like what I have to say, or hate it.  Teachers who either like me, or don't.  Plain and simple.  What I found was that there are three kinds of critique we get after a presentation.  Amazing, glowing reviews (love that, of course), constructive criticism (I actually really like this, too!), and downright not nice, and sometimes really tacky comments (not necessary, in my opinion).  

While I love the amazingly kind and complimentary feedback, I often take it with a grain of salt.  I'm pretty hard on myself and to be totally honest it's really hard for me to accept a compliment at face value.  The tackier comments, in my opinion, aren't necessary.  I mean, it's cool if you don't like me or don't like what I have to say, but how am I supposed to grow if you say things like, "she is irrelevant and boring"; or  "I didn't like the way she styled her hair" (<------hahaha, well, neither did I!  LOL!!!)

But let's talk about the constructive criticism for a minute. Sometimes it's hard to hear, but I LOVE it.  I love it because it helps me to improve!  It helps me to grow.  For example, "Great content, but talks really fast.  Hard to keep up."  <-----THANK YOU!!!!  I do talk fast and I try to be  conscious of this when I'm presenting, but sometimes my fast talking speech gets the best of me.  However, I can GROW from that kind of feedback.  It makes me so much more aware of what I'm doing!   It's hard to improve when you only hear the good and the bad.  I like to take what's in the middle and use that to get better.

I taught with a really wise teacher once who had been in the classroom for 30+ years.  In my eyes, she was the definition of teacher.  She was BORN for the classroom.  She was teacher of the century!  And amazingly, she was constantly seeking feedback.  Not for approval, but to figure out what she could do better or differently to make sure she was meeting the needs of all of her students.  That's something that has stuck with me for years.  She would always say, "If nobody can tell me I'm doing something wrong, I'll keep making the same mistakes!"  LOVE that!!!

So what should you do if you find yourself on the receiving end of unwanted or unexpected constructive criticism this appraisal season?!  Here are some things to keep in mind...

 Don't let any type of criticism...constructive or otherwise...define who you are as a teacher.  Use the constructive criticism to guide you to make changes or improvements where necessary.  As hard as it might be, use it to help you grow!

 I've always had amazing administrators who weren't afraid to say the hard things.  I've also been fortunate enough to teach in schools where my administrators really believed in the power of the constructive criticism sandwich...start with a strength/address the area for improvement/follow up with positive results and observations.  My lessons didn't always go as planned. There were always things I could have done better.   I really appreciated my administrators being able to address those things with me in a constructive way that genuinely made me excited to try something new and different!  I mean, we all know we have room to grow, so why do we take it so personally when it we hear it from someone else?!  Again, use it as a springboard for growth!

 Of course, you won't always agree with the evaluation you might get.  I know of many teachers whose less than stellar appraisals were unwarranted, yet they handled their summatives with grace and respect.  All that to be said, it's important to set aside the disrespect if you do disagree.  Not only is it unprofessional, but it gives off that "I'm right, you're wrong" vibe and makes it seem like you aren't open to any suggestions other than your own :)  When you're the only person you want to listen to, you're limited to your own perspective.  It's okay to disagree, just be sure you aren't being disrespectful when communicating your opposition.

Acknowledge what your administrator is communicating and accept what he/she says.  I honestly think that...for the most part...our administrators give us constructive criticism because they truly want us to be successful and not just for ourselves, but for our kids!  They want to make sure our kids are getting the best we have to give.  So why would I not want to take what I learn and use it to make me a better version of myself?!  After all, that's the goal, right?!  Not to do better than anyone else, but to be a better version of the teacher/presenter  I was the day before.  When you know better, you do better.

***Before I go, I do want to mention that I'm in Texas and my appraisal system here might be vastly different than the appraisal and evaluation system in your area.  I haven't taught in any schools where my performance was solely evaluated based on the performance of my students.  My evaluations were usually given after a series of three, 15 minute walk throughs and one 45 minute formal observation.  We're evaluated based 51 criteria within eight domains reflecting the Proficiencies for Learner-Centered Instruction (Texas teachers know this as PDAS).  Hope that helps you understand where I'm coming from! ***

HAPPY APPRAISAL SEASON ;)

Introducing custom Live Cases to bring your Nexus phone to life

These days there are few things more personal to you than your phone – with all your photos, messages and handpicked apps at your fingertips, it’s almost like a reflection of yourself. Starting today, we're giving you a new way to make your phone even more you. My Live Case lets people create their own snap case for Nexus 5X, 6, and 6P phones, by customizing it with a favorite photo or map.

Our design studio on the Google Store allows you to personalize your phone case with either your favorite photo or a special place on Google Maps. Then, with dozens of filters, you can make your design fit your style – be it vibrant and bright or polished and chic. Along with your signature case, you get a live wallpaper to bring your design to life on your home screen.

Photos Live Case, designed with your favorite photo
Showcase a shot of your family, dog, or any other fave photo. Just upload a pic to the site, choose a style, and you’re done. Snap on your case to see your home screen turn into a slideshow of poses that you handpicked from Google Photos. To add more shots to your wallpaper, simply tap the shortcut button on the back of your case to launch your camera.

Places Live Case, styled with your happy place
Fashion your phone with a stylized map of your favorite location from around the world – whether it’s your dream vacation destination or hometown. Your live wallpaper will show a map of your whereabouts as you go about your day. With a tap of the shortcut button, the app will show you what’s nearby on Google Maps.

Check out some cool cases that The Dogist, Dan Rubin, Marques Brownlee and others have made for Nexus phones.

Now, go forth and customize! Visit the Google Store to make your own.

Posted by Kari Clark, Senior Manager, Live Cases