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Caramel Apple Cinquain Poems

This was a fun activity I did in the fall with my second graders to teach cinquain poems.  The students used the process of making caramel apples to come up with verbs and then they looked at the caramel apple after they made it to think of adjectives for their poems.  They both turned out great!

Here's how to make to happen:

Gather:

Crockpot
2 Large Cookie Sheets (check the cafeteria)
wax paper
sturdy popsical sticks

Ask for or Buy:

1 apple for each student
1lb of caramel candy (bulk section)
sprinkles
chocolate chips
peanuts (if no allergies)
cocoa crispy cereal
Any other topping that you could roll the apples in
2 or 3 Parent/Family Volunteers

In the morning of the day you are going to make the apples have students take turns sorting out ten caramels each and unwrap them.  Put the caramel in the crockpot and turn on high.  The caramel will be ready if a few hours.  Swirl the apple in the caramel then let them set for 5-10 minutes.  Have students roll them in the topping of their choice.  You can wrap them up and send them home or take a picture and let the kids eat them once they are done writing adjectives to describe how they look.

Have fun!

Summative and Formative Assessments

   As formative assessments grow in popularity, rubrics are becoming a necessity in best practice instruction.  Rubrics are an excellent way to give students information about what your expectations are ahead of time so they can meet the bar.  Grading and checking for understanding is simple and consistent. But making rubrics can be cumbersome especially when your teaching every subject. 

   Thanks to iRubric creating rubrics doesn't have to be such a chore.  This free online tool makes creating rubrics quick and easy.  Plus you can share your rubrics and use others.  www.rcampus.com/indexrubric.cfm

   There are two basic kinds of rubrics.  One is made for the teacher to assess the students and one is used by the students to self assess their performance and understanding.  You can make them as simple or as complex as you need.  One that I made up for my students is simply smiley, straight and frown faces that the students color in according to their performance in class.  I use kid friendly language to help students assess themselves.  It often helps to give examples of three levels of student work to help them compare their work and make improvements.  You can use rubrics for formative assessments throughout instruction and as a summative assessment for tests, projects or presentations.