Student learning is no accident!
I’m always on the lookout for a handy student group work strategy. This one, Clock Partners, is one of my favorites! Sometimes when you prepare for group work, you stay up too late the night before making sure everyone has just the right partner. Have you been there? I have! And, honestly, even if it goes well- it leaves me… Read More
This is one of my favorite strategies to teach my classes- and my life as a teacher has become so much easier since I implemented a few key steps. My teaching partner and I experienced our very first Turn and Talk as participants in a workshop by Bobb Darnell in 2008 and we’ve been using it with students and adults… Read More
Do you want your students to behave or do you want more than that? If you spend all day managing behaviors, you are EXHAUSTED by 3:00. I know!!! I’ve been there. It takes so much mental energy, so much executive functioning to anticipate every fire that might start- and to put out all of the ones that do. So, take… Read More
“The ones that are doing the talking are doing the learning.” I know that. But, no matter how many times I say it, the impact on student learning in front of me is profound and somehow surprising. There is no example stronger than that of talking about fractions in math class. I’ve spent most of my career spending part of… Read More
If teaching fifth and sixth graders has taught me anything, it’s that fractions and decimals can be ABSTRACT and TRICKY… and that kids have to be developmentally ready to perform operations on them. The good news is- the standards aren’t encouraging us to get kids to add, subtract, multiply and divide 5/32 and 16/71! We make equivalent fractions as a… Read More
You know that buzz of collaboration and learning that you hope for everyday? It happens when we play this game. Every. Single. Time. If you like Boggle, you’ll love this game. Word Wrangle is a fun classroom word game inspired by my love of Boggle and also my love of quiet. Once upon a time, I bought SIX Boggle games… Read More
I love these ideas! I share a lot of these with families in my Personal Responsibility Checklist at the start of the year. This year though- I’m definitely making some tweaks- #5 on this list will be SUCH a game changer!!
8 Back-to-School Routines to Steal From Fellow Moms
Start the school year with a foolproof routine (and no tears, yelling, or forgotten lunches).My kids FINALLY slept past 7!!! (Just in time to start waking up early again for school 😫🤷🏼♀️🙄)
How are you doing with the #backtoschool stress?? I’m a list maker. The biggest stress reliever for me during September is having a freezer full of food. AKA- never having to make dinner 😉
There’s no tired like September tired, so I’m filling my freezer with some of our favorite foods so that when I’m as tired and cranky as my kids after a long day- we can have a yummy meal and feel better.
Summer break is really almost over, but if I whip up 2 of these a day, I’ll be in good shape. Plus... I talked my husband into whisking the kids away on Labor Day so I could #haveaminute to myself. I’m thinking I’ll wrap up the back to school prep then and also take a nap!
What’s your secret to surviving back to school?? (Bonus points of you also ENJOY it!)
I’m in LOVE with this! Who’s trying it with me??? Great way to wrap up the day. (And probably change the world, TBH...)
A great visual! A child’s home environment is key to resiliency and overall outcomes.
So you know they’d get SO MUCH out of reading the amazing article you found!!! But, they’re only reading the words... (Are they even reading the words?) Here are some great tips to make your nonfiction text dreams a reality!!! #teachernerd #literacy #readinginthecontentarea #ntchat #educoach
Nonfiction Text Strategies • Write Solutions
Science news articles, social studies chapter sections, primary source documents... These are all fabulous resources to use in our classrooms! We have to make sure however, that we are teaching students how to consume the content. While our students may be able to read the words, comprehending the c...