I've been updating my site and this blog post can now be found by clicking HERE. ... Continue Reading
8 Changes That Made This Teacher Happy
This was my first year of using Whole Brain Teaching in the classroom. It was such an amazing change in classroom management and student collaboration. I loved teaching the classroom rules. Each rule has a hand gesture and the kids practiced teaching each other. When I noticed that the class was a little chatty, I would just say "Rule #2!" The ... Continue Reading
Inspiring Life-Long Readers
I love to read. I am a book nerd. I always have been. I was THAT kid who sat on the wall and read during recess. In high school, I had a job at the local library. In college, I shelved books for Barnes and Noble. Now, I have an Amazon Prime membership just so I can get books delivered within two days. When I finish a book, I get sad because I feel ... Continue Reading
Increase Parent Communication with Friday Journals
Two years ago, I made a professional goal to increase parent communication. My school requires a weekly class newsletter. Yes, I said weekly. I keep mine short and sweet, but I estimate that only half of my parents ever read them. My students complete an agenda every day with their "I can" statements for the day. Again, parents do NOT read. And ... Continue Reading
Time Savers for Interactive Notebooks
I am so in love with our interactive notebooks! I have been using them for three years and I have learned a thing or two about making the most of our notebooks with the small amount of time that we have. If you have tons of extra class time and nothing to fill it with, this might not be the right blog post for you. ;-) But if you want to use ... Continue Reading
Classroom Easter Egg Hunt
I just finished preparing for my annual classroom Easter egg hunt! It took me about 10 minutes to prepare this activity!It was ten minutes of prep that results in some of the most engaging test prep in my classroom! Inside each of the eggs, I have placed mini task cards with all kinds of third grade math and ELA questions.I hide the eggs all over ... Continue Reading
Hit the TEST Out of the Park! Test Prep Tips
Standardized testing is right around the corner. I think we can all agree that standardized testing is one of the worst parts of teaching. I have to keep my third graders in their desks, taking a test, for four hours straight on three separate days. Ugh! Great teachers know that this is not healthy! But no matter how much we dislike the tests, ... Continue Reading
9 Ways to Use Task Cards for Test Prep
It is that time of year- the dreaded test prep season. Sigh… I don’t love testing. Who does? But I have found lots of way to make the test prep a little more fun. It’s all about the TASK CARDS! I printed up a big stack of math and ELA task cards and then found lots of quick and fun ways to use them. Let me share 9 of my favorite ways ... Continue Reading
Tips and Tools for Interactive Notebooks with a FREEBIE!
This year I am using interactive notebooks in math, reading and social studies. I absolutely love them! It was a bit intimidating when I first started using them and I often get questions about them. Let me share a little about what I have learned.If you want more tips and ticks for interactive notebooks, be sure to follow my Interactive Notebook ... Continue Reading
Why I Don’t Assign At-Home Book Reports
At the start of the school year, I promise my parents that I will not be assigning at-home book reports. They look surprised and then relieved.I was not always this way. When I first started teaching, I was excited to assign book reports. I did them as a child and so it seemed natural that my children would do them as well. So I assigned the ... Continue Reading
Grab this FREE Ultimate Holiday Guide for grades 2-5!