With SOLS are right around the corner and having taught an SOL grade level for 8 years, I know this is can be a stressful time. Therefore, I would like to do anything to help.
– pull groups for remediation/enrichment
– lunch bunch: eat with a group of selected kids that might need that little boost
During this time, I always found myself also asking these questions…. what else is out there? What else can I do? How can I use my ITRT? How do I get the parents involved? Therefore, I developed a top 5 list of suggestions….
1. Students Created SOL Games
* Use the ITRT to come into your class and create online review games. These games can then be posted on your blogs, sent in a email, and put into your weekly newsletters. You can also put these games into QR codes and put them into your students’ agendas! Here are some examples:
Rags to Riches – Reconstruction – 20th and 21st Century Virginia
Challenge Board – Reconstruction – 20th & 21st Century
Columns – Reconstruction & Civil Rights Movement
Reconstruction and Civil Rights Movement
SS Review Matching and Flashcards
Matching Review Game
Student Created Google Presentation
2. SOL Review @ Home Study Session
Use TodaysMeet to host an online study session the evening before your SOL tests!!! This is HUGE!!! It’s a free website that the students log into from their parents cell phones, computers, ipads, or anything with internet access. I asked about 10-15 review questions and the students had a BLAST!!! It also gave me the opportunity to remind my students to go to bed early and it stressed the importance of these tests to the parents. I had several parents that even took their children to the public library to participate in these online review sessions. We can practice how to use this site during a lesson. I also used TodaysMeet for parents and teachers to post SOL pep rally notes for the students. AWESOME site and I highly recommend it!
3. Flip the Classroom
Have your students record themselves completing a math problem, providing science/ss facts, or even talking about test taking strategies. You can then turn these recordings into QR codes for parents to see and for the kids to listen to at home! ITRT can help with this process as a whole group or small center!
4. The Power of Music
Kids love music and can memorize lyrics quicker than you and I. Therefore, use this strength and have the students create songs/poems about the different units you are teaching! Then put these collection of songs on a cd for each child to have and listen to at home or in the car. The kids will LOVE it and I’d love to help! I still have students that have their songs from 6 years ago on their ipods. Fun stuff!!!
5 – Post Links, Activities and Games
* Post these links on your blog, send them in an email and/or put in your weekly newsletter. Have the kids use these sites in a center, morning work, lunch, and INSIDE RECESS. Great sites!!!
Link Name: AdaptedMind
Address: http://www.adaptedmind.com/Math-Worksheets.html?gclid=CKTOrMOUsL0CFe1QOgodNRQARg
Link Name:SOLPass
Address:http://www.solpass.org/elementary.html
Link Name:Jefferson Lab
Address:http://education.jlab.org/solquiz/
Link Name:SOL Teacher
Address:https://sites.google.com/a/solteacher.com/olteacher-com/
Link Name:SOL Practice Tests
Address:http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/released_tests/
Link Name:Interactive SOL Quizzes
Address:http://www.iq.poquoson.org/index.htm
Link Name:Quia Content Review (by grade level: great site)
Address:Kindergarten: http://www.quia.com/pages/solk.html
Address:First Grade: http://www.quia.com/pages/sol1.html
Address:Second Grade: http://www.quia.com/pages/sol2.html
Address:Third Grade: http://www.quia.com/pages/sol3.html
Address:Fourth Grade: http://www.quia.com/pages/sol4.html
Address:Fifth Grade:http://www.quia.com/pages/sol5.html
