I recently read a Facebook post from another teacher. Her question was, "Should the first day of school include fun activities or would that set the wrong tone for the year?" I read though many of the comments. One teacher said, "No because you need to show your students that you mean business." My jaw dropped and my heart broke. I don't ... Continue Reading
Vocabulary Instruction
Are you struggling to find time to teach meaningful vocabulary lessons? I was! So I did lots of reading and research about vocabulary. I made it a professional goal to improve the quality of my vocabulary instruction. I tried a lot of different things. I gave my students a dictionary and had them look up the words. They were totally confused ... Continue Reading
Fun Back to School Activities {With Freebies!}
I hate to be the messenger of bad news- but for some of us- back to school is right around the corner! In fact, my kids already started!The first week of the school year is so important. It is the time when you set the tone for the rest of the year. It is the time when the class starts to become a community. It is a time for learning rules and ... Continue Reading
Time Saving Tips for Interactive Notebooks
I have said this a million times, but I feel the need to say it again- Interactive notebooks rock!!!! My students love them because they feel like a craft to them and I love them because my students are working hard on important standards and skills. But if not done properly, interactive notebooks can take up way too much of our instructional ... Continue Reading
Calling All Third Grade Teachers! A Back to School Resource You Need!
So this post is only for third grade teachers. Sorry, if you don't teach third grade, you have to scroll down. Top secret stuff coming.....Ok, so now that it is just us crazy third grade teachers, I have to share this amazing back to school activity with you. I love it! So this activity is actually done on the 3rd day of 3rd grade. It is a way ... Continue Reading
4 Engaging Back to School Activities
Can you believe that teachers in my district start back to school next week?! Crazy! If you are also headed back to school soon, you are going to want to start thinking about fun back to school activities! If you just started your summer break, pin this post and get back in the pool!Save Fred:My third graders had such a fun time with this simple ... Continue Reading
My Favorite Classroom Themes
If you have been following along this summer, then you know just how much I love having a classroom theme! In THIS post, I told you my top three reasons for having a theme and in THIS post, I shared four ways to save money while decorating with a theme. Now, as promised, I want to show you five of my favorite classroom themes and how to incorporate ... Continue Reading
4 Ways to Save Money on a Classroom Theme
Classroom decor makes my teacher heart so happy. The colors. The fonts. The adorable graphics. It just gets me! Last week I shared 3 reasons that I love having a classroom theme. So maybe you are thinking about that new decor, but you don't know where to start and you are working with a measly teacher's salary. Decorating can get pricey if you are ... Continue Reading
5 Reasons I {HEART} Read Alouds in Upper Elementary
During my first couple of years as a teacher, I always had a class read aloud sitting on my desk. It would take months to actually finish it because I so rarely had time to just sit and read to my third graders. Too many standards and assessments. Too many interruptions and mandates. I am embarrassed to admit that I started to feel like taking a ... Continue Reading
3 Reasons I Love Having a Classroom Theme
I am one of those strange teachers that had my classroom theme planned and designed in my head before I was ever hired for my first teaching job! Over the years, I have had many different themes in my classroom and I have loved it. Classroom themes can be elaborate with fancy bulletin boards or simple with just a set of colors or patterns. A ... Continue Reading
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