Classroom Christmas parties can be tough! We want to have some holiday fun with our students, but we are exhausted! We are desperately trying to finish report cards, make parent holiday gifts, bake, shop, etc, etc. I actually love party planning and if this teaching thing doesn’t end up working out- I may become a party planner! So I thought I ... Continue Reading
Snowman Themed Classroom Christmas Party
Classroom Christmas parties can be tough! We want to have some holiday fun with our students, but we are exhausted! We are desperately trying to finish report cards, make parent holiday gifts, bake, shop, etc, etc. I actually love party planning and if this teaching thing doesn’t end up working out- I may become a party planner! So I thought I ... Continue Reading
Reindeer Themed Classroom Christmas Party
Classroom Christmas parties can be tough! We want to have some holiday fun with our students, but we are exhausted! We are desperately trying to finish report cards, make parent holiday gifts, bake, shop, etc, etc. I actually love party planning and if this teaching thing doesn’t end up working out–I may become a party planner! So I thought I would ... Continue Reading
Christmas Books for the Classroom
The weeks leading up to Christmas break can be tough in the classroom! It can be challenging trying to find a way to mix the holiday fun with the necessary academic standards. I think that Christmas read alouds are the perfect answer! My students just think we are doing fun holiday stuff. But I know the truth- we are reviewing all kinds of reading ... Continue Reading
10 Games to Play with any Vocabulary Words
Vocabulary instruction is so critical in today’s classroom! A vast vocabulary will help students to become better readers and writers. Vocabulary is also essential to their performance on standardized tests. Helping kids to develop their vocabulary is time that is well spent in a busy classroom. I have developed a routine to teach new vocabulary ... Continue Reading
Thanksgiving Books for the Classroom
Thanksgiving is such a fun time in the classroom! Thanksgiving is a great time to teach fun social studies lessons and character trait lessons! I love teaching about the First Thanksgiving and helping students to understand what it means to be thankful. An easy way to do this is to use lots of books throughout the month of November in my classroom. ... Continue Reading
Red Ribbon Week Activities with FREEBIES
Red Ribbon week is just around the corner! With Halloween on my mind, sometimes I feel like Red Ribbon Week sneaks up on me! Red ribbon week is so important and I want to be certain that it is discussed. In my classroom, we will be celebrating our drug free commitment in three different ways. Each classroom is asked to decorate the front of ... Continue Reading
Simple and Meaningful Reading Centers
Quite some time ago, I wrote a blog post about how I organize my math centers and what students do at each center. It has been wildly popular. If you would like to read that post, you can do so by clicking on the picture below. Since that time, I have received many requests to write a similar post about my reading centers. I am thrilled to ... Continue Reading
10 Mistakes Teachers Make
Teachers are humans. They are not infallible. They make mistakes. Even the best teachers. And they learn from their mistakes and become better educators. So before I share the mistakes that I think many teachers make, I want to preface by saying that teaching is one of the toughest jobs on the planet. I have made most of these mistakes, and ... Continue Reading
Ways to Increase Student Engagement
Student engagement is my number one goal in the classroom. None of the academic goals can be achieved without student engagement. It is essential! My biggest advice to you is to decrease teacher talk and the time students spend in their desks.I want to share some more specific ways that I keep my students engaged in our lessons.I LOVE this quote by ... Continue Reading
End of Year Carnival Week for grades 2-5!