Impress your principal, parents, and even yourself as students engage in both fun and learning right up until the last bell rings before Winter Break with the 5 Day Classroom Countdown! All teachers know the last week before the winter break is difficult to fill. ...
February Read-alouds for 1st and 2nd Grade February is a month full of fun holidays. We chose our books for this month to help students celebrate. We LOVE every book selection this month. We closely read each book and spent 3 to 4 days asking text dependent questions...
Wonderful Winter Holidays Around the World Integrated Lesson Plans and Art Projects Before I start our 12 Days until Christmas in the Classroom Countdown, I love to teach about Winter Holidays around the world. Every year this is always one of my class' favorite...
6 Delightful December Interactive read-alouds! We have 6 delightful December read-alouds for you to use in your classroom. Embrace the Christmas spirit during the crazy month of December with these stories. We promise your students will fall in love with all six of...
5 Adorable Christmas Read-Alouds for Kindergarten and First Grade Here are some of our favorite books to read to kindergarten and first grade students during the month of December... Olive, the Other Reindeer by Vivian Walsh and J. Otto Seibold This first story is one...
Try our best selling Christmas in the Classroom countdown lesson plans and activities for 12 full days of themed learning- now including digital activities for distance learning. Impress your principal, parents, and even yourself as students engage in holiday fun...
Help Student take Mindful Brain Breaks Focus on your students’ needs throughout the day by offering quick and simple brain breaks to help them focus on their own mindful practices in the classroom. The purpose of these mini-breaks is to establish focus, refocus,...
For elementary teachers, classroom engagement strategies are meant to keep classrooms running smoothly. In turn, create an environment where student engagement happens naturally. Classroom engagement strategies & techniques may vary from teacher to teacher....
Tips for Choosing First Grade Distance Learning Activities Take the guesswork out of selecting appropriate first grade distance learning activities. These time-saving tips will help you find the very best digital resources. As you're "vetting" distance learning...
Do you want your students to care about their test scores? Do you want ways to engage ALL of your students during class discussions?Does your principal expect to see formative assessment in your classroom but you aren't quite sure where to...
Formative Assessment Can Leave Teachers Feeling Frustrated Formative assessment has been a hot topic for quite a few years now. For years, our principal expected to see teachers using formative assessment in their classrooms. We attended several professional...
Data Tracking for Students Do your students keep track of their own data? Do your students even know what the scores on their papers mean? Let us tell you-- it's a game changer when you start making students aware of their scores throughout the year. As teachers, we...
Mindfulness You can't go anywhere these days without hearing about mindfulness. Mindfulness is calmly acknowledging our thoughts and feelings without judgment and accepting them without being overwhelmed by them. Mindfulness can teach students how to manage...
Like so many teachers, we worried about about what school would look like for 2019 - 2021. We were especially concerned about our Literacy Centers and how distance learning for kindergarten or 1st grade would work. We worked frantically to find ways to work in-class,...
Replace your wall calendar and save bulletin board space by doing all your calendar math digitally! Calendar math provides a set time for crucial math review each day. The basic idea of calendar math is that students practice and review math standards they need to...
What are Sight Words? For new readers, it’s important to learn to read sight words quickly. Sight words are both difficult to sound out phonetically and words that show up frequently in text . Therefore, the goal is to help young readers learn to recognize these words...
Mindfulness and Positivity More and more these days people young and old are practicing mindfulness techniques. Mindfulness is calmly acknowledging our thoughts and feelings without judgment and accepting them without being overwhelmed by them. One of the easiest...
Digital Research We are beyond excited about our new 3-in-1 Independent Research for primary grades! Get your students doing independent research in minutes with zero prep! This resource is compatible with Google Slides, SeeSaw and is printable. It's pre-loaded onto...
It's Time to Focus on Mindfulness As educators and parents ourselves, we have been navigating social distancing, distance learning, and parenting during the coronavirus crisis. Our children range from toddler age to teenagers and we are STRUGGLING! Amidst the...
In our classroom we focus our morning meetings around diversity in February. We have some great discussions about our differences. Black History Month Bulletin Board After Read Aloud Time We use our read-aloud time to read texts that help us learn more about black...
Super Engaging Martin Luther King Jr. Lesson PlansMartin Luther King Jr. Independent Learning Quest leesson plans are super engaging for students. As a matter of fact, we often hear from teachers (and our students directly) that the students have been begging for more...
Are your students like ours? Are they sponges when it comes to learning about informational topics? If your kids LOVE subjects like science and social studies then we recommend using their interests to your advantage! Here's how: Leverage your students' interests in...
My little learners are sponges when it comes to learning about informational topics. They just LOVE subjects like science, history, and social studies. And, I LOVE using their enthusiasm to my teacher advantage. That's right! I'll take every opportunity to leverage my...
GROUPING CARDS provide an easy way to make collaborative groups. These cards provide a fun, quick way to group students in 2’s, 3’s, 4’s, 5’s or more. To group students in pairs give each student a card and instruct them to find the partner with the matching food...
Building Proficient Readers, Writers, and Thinkers Readers. Writers. Thinkers. ----> Three critical educational goals we have for every student. With no time to waste, the beginning of the school year is a perfect opportunity to develop and refine these skills....
Have you heard the buzz about mindfulness & meditation in schools? It seems everywhere we go, people are recommending mindfulness. As teachers, we know the success of our students’ learning relies not only on providing academics, but also a safe...
classroom management tips As teachers we find ourselves regularly looking for classroom management tips. Especially after a long school break, such as after the New Year's Holiday, as it's a great time to put a renewed focus on classroom management. According to...
20 Effective Transitions in the Classroom "If you can't line up quietly, then we will sit back down and try again." I know I've said it over and over again. After 8 years of teaching I've come to a realization that lining up quietly isn't always the best way to line...
Classroom Attention Getters Provides Structure to Student Learning. According to a study in 2013 by Erik Rosegard & Jackson Wilson classroom attention getters is a key component to learning. The article states, "Getting and holding attention is a critical aspect...
Use Positive Shoutouts to Build Classroom Community Classroom shoutouts are quick, easy and effective way to help teachers build your classroom community. As teachers, we know that students react far better to positive reinforcement than negative interactions. With...
Morning Meeting Greeting Cards The 5 components of a Morning Meeting Lesson Plan A morning meeting lesson plan consists of 5 components: message, greeting, reading, sharing, and an activity. Preferably, morning meeting should be scheduled right after your students...
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Building Proficient Readers, Writers, and Thinkers Readers. Writers. Thinkers. ----> Three critical educational goals we have for every student....
Discussing Kids' Cell Phone use to improve on-demand writing skills It seems that younger and younger children are walking around with their own...
Comparing digital and board games to improve on-demand writing skills If your students are like mine, they potentially spend hours playing digital...
Trendy Tricks that Help Students Produce Higher Quality Writing After 15 years in the classroom, I have found that using relevant or trendy topics...
Fidget Spinners Paired Texts To Improve On-Demand Writing Skills Students love fidget spinners (and much to a teacher's dismay), these trendy...
Hoverboard Paired Texts To Improve On-Demand Writing Skills Do your students own (or wish they owned) a hoverboard? This familiar transportation...
Using Multiple Texts in the Classroom With the introduction of more rigorous standards across the country comes the expectation for elementary...