One of the most common questions I hear from teachers is, “How do you get students to revise their writing?” At first, this question stumped me. I didn’t have a special plan or strategy to encourage kids to revise. I just made it part of my writing process. Each day, I taught a mini lesson and told my students to practice the skill we ... Continue Reading
How to Teach Writing When You Don’t Have Time
There are so many subjects competing for your instructional time. Math, reading, spelling, science, social studies, and grammar. So many lessons to teach, tasks to check off, standards to measure . . . . And now you need 30-45 minutes to teach writing!?! Everyday? I know it seems impossible. Your plate is filled to the edge, kind of like on ... Continue Reading
The Best Way to Teach Students Paragraph Writing
I’m not a betting girl . . . but if I were, I’d bet that many of you start the year with a unit about paragraph writing. Am I right? I thought so. It’s pretty common to begin your writing instruction with a unit on “how to write a paragraph." Typical lessons include what a paragraph is, how to write topic sentences and conclusions, and how ... Continue Reading
How To Plan an Entire Year of Writing Lessons
What if I told you that you can plan an entire year of writing lessons in one afternoon? You’d be amazed, right? And maybe a little bit skeptical. (That’s okay, I won’t take it personally). I wouldn’t have believed me either. I thought that teaching writing was so hard. Coming up with ideas. Gathering prompts. Photocopying pieces for all ... Continue Reading
It’s Time to Kick Writing Craftivities to the Curb
When I first started teaching, I had no idea how to teach writing. Literally no idea. I also had no idea how to decorate the large bulletin board outside my classroom. Each month I was expected to have a new display of student writing and art. And that seemed like a lot of work. #amiright? Writing Craftivities to the Rescue? So, I ... Continue Reading
Top 12 Things We Love About Teachers
Hooray! It’s one of my favorite weeks of the year—Teacher Appreciation Week! No one is more deserving and more underappreciated than teachers. I’m so excited to celebrate YOU today! In honor of teacher appreciation week, we’re taking a break from our regularly scheduled content to shower you with love. ❤️ Without further ado, here ... Continue Reading
How to Make the Most of Your Professional Development
Can you feel it? Summer is right around the corner. And although everyone loves to tease teachers about getting summers off, you and I know this couldn’t be further from the truth. Between earning required professional development credits, investing in yourselves and your classrooms, and planning for the upcoming year, summer flies ... Continue Reading
Free Earth Day Activities For the Classroom
Earth Day is on April 22. Over 1 billion people celebrate Earth Day each year. This holiday was designed to raise awareness about the importance of protecting our planet and keeping it a safe and healthy place to live. It's fun to celebrate Earth Day in the classroom too. Students love learning about our amazing planet (and taking a break ... Continue Reading
3 Reading Test Prep Activities Your Students Will Love
It’s that time of the year. You’re up to your eyeballs in test prep and your students’ enthusiasm is waning. Enough already, they’re thinking. Please, no more workbooks or practice tests, they beg with tired little eyes. When you look out at those empty stares and bobbing heads you know you need to introduce a little excitement to the test prep ... Continue Reading
3 Easy Ways to Teach Poetry
April is National Poetry Month. It’s a special time to celebrate the importance of poets and poetry in our culture. And a great opportunity to teach poetry to your class. I know this month is already pretty busy. Between spring break and test prep, you don’t have a lot of free time. And standardized tests are right around the ... Continue Reading
