Music curriculum for the 2016-2017 school year.

Have you grabbed YOUR free 2017-2018 School Year Calendar from Laura Candler? The portrait-style pages are perfect for storing in 3-ring binders!

As the year wraps up, we reminisce about the best memories the school year brought us!Give your little ones the same opportunity by filling in and colouring their own little Memory Books!They are two per page so that you get the most out of your photocopying.Download it again next June for an update...

The new Behavior Calendars are out and ready for the 2015-2016 school year! I figured there are teachers as crazy as me that want to start thinking ahead so that the summer is not overrun with things to do. The new behavior calendars work the same as the ones from last year. There are two versions, one with happy face, straight face and sad face. The other one is a color system with green, yellow and red. For those of you who do not know, these behavior calendars are the perfect addition to any classroom management system. You print one calendar per month per student, put it in their homework folder for the month, and have daily communication with parents on their child's behavior. It takes about 5 minutes a day to fill them out at the end of the school day and are so worth the time! My students know that they want to come home with a happy face. They also know that a note can and will be sent home with a straight face (I call it the "Uh-Oh Face") explaining their negative behavior. These notes are included in this pack from TpT. I have also included good notes home, because children NEED positive reinforcements that they can be proud to share with their parents. I hope you find these calendars as useful as I do. I could not teach without them. (Especially not KINDERGARTEN!!) To purchase this item or visit my store CLICK HERE.

Promote academic excellence as you help your child broaden his vocabulary and appreciation of poetry with Spelling, Vocabulary, Poetry 5 . With 34 word lists, teach your child to spell words correctly and use vocabulary words in the proper context. Exercises in each lesson boost proofreading skills and correct word usage. Six poems by famous authors are also included to show your child how beautiful language can be.

Team-Building in a Student-Led Classroom

Welcome to Sharing Kindergarten's Classroom Tour. This is my first year in this classroom after moving to the new school. It is a work in progress and it

Included are free binder covers and spines to be used for the 2016-2017 school year. In addition, I added an editable cover and spine page. Hopefully you find these useful! If you download this free product, positive feedback would be greatly appreciated! Happy Teaching :)

These 3 tips for staying organized when students have been absent are perfect for the secondary classroom.

I have been on summer vacation for a week now, and I am already doing school projects! I am not changing much in my classroom except for a few things here and there. I decided to try my hand at making some decorations instead of buying premade items. Since my theme is Peace & Love, I decided to purchase some clip art from Scrappin Doodles. I fell in love with the Groovy Kids Clip Art collection!! Please check out my Groovy Jobs. My next few projects include: Back-to-School Activity packet, behavior clip chart, AR tracker, desk name plates and center signs. Please check back often to grab some freebies and see how I am keeping myself busy!! Enjoy your summer!! I am working on a Back-to-School Activity packet. Check out the preview below!!! Grab your freebie (HERE). I am linking up with An Educator's Life: Share the Wealth Freebie Linky. I am so excited to have found this super, fantastic linky party!! You can also find the freebies listed on Pinterest. Who doesn't love Pinterest or a great Linky??!!! I know I LOVE them both!!!! 

Use this Free School Bus name puzzle to help your child learn to recognize and spell their name. Perfect for back to school!

Cheat Sheet for TN Social Studies Standards for Fourth Grade I have created a 1 page "Cheat Sheet" that has every 4th Grade Social Studies Standard (Current as of 2016-2017 school year). I developed this product to streamline my planning process. No more hunting, trying to figure out what a certa...

The best back to school games for your classroom including Minute to Win It, printable word search and charades and pictionary clues.

A blog about the 4th grade classroom of Mrs. Skowronski

Each classroom is likely utilizing the art form of Madeline Hunter’s ITIP in some way. If you’re a new teacher, then you may not know what I’m talking about specifically – and maybe I’m showing

Incorrect pen hold is an obstacle to beautiful and legible writing. This graphic will show you how to hold a pen or pencil in a way that limits fatigue.

Wow...my hat goes off to those of you who blogged regularly throughout your first week back to school. I literally was lucky to make it home without falling asleep at the wheel! Teaching procedures to 8th graders is SO much easier than teaching them to 6th graders. In fact, since I am new to the school, many of them were super helpful in telling me how things are done there and so on. The bell schedule is a little different than the one I was on last year, so I have new dismissal times to memorize. I would just ask my kids how much time is left and wouldn't you know...most of them ACTUALLY know how to read a clock!? Amazing. I was so impressed with how my students behaved all week. These are some of the most polite kids I have ever taught. My classes are widely diverse, but the kids don't even acknowledge it, which is awesome. I am so privileged and blessed to have these kiddos to call my own. After our first day of getting to know you activities (I actually saw all of my classes for about 30 minutes a piece that 1st day!), I knew we were ready for team building on day 2. I had already gone over my syllabus on the first day which I hadn't ever done before, but I felt like I could since I didn't have to give a school tour, etc. I am the one who needed the school tour! (True story...my kids walked me down to the textbook room so that I could issue them textbooks!) I know I have COMPLETELY rambled, so let me get right to it! I read about The Marshmallow Challenge earlier this summer and KNEW that I wanted to try it in my class! If you want to read more about The Marshmallow Challenge, click here. I spent about $10 on supplies for 6 classes which equates to about $0.06 per student. I am so willing to spend that on any lesson that students are going to get something out of. Here is the basic challenge: Students use the following materials: 20 pieces of spaghetti 1 yard of tape 1 yard of string and 1 marshmallow I also include scissors for easy cutting The challenge is that students must create the tallest freestanding structure out of these materials with the marshmallow on top--in 18 minutes or less. It is super easy to do this, but the marshmallow is the key to keeping it upright. Many students build the structure as tall as they can and then put the marshmallow on top...and then watch it collapse before their eyes. We all think of marshmallows as light, airy, and fluffy, but in this challenge, they might as well weigh as much as a brick! I did have several groups that were successful, but sometimes I was too excited that I forgot to take a picture! The tallest one was in 7th period and it was 22 inches. I did not let the students tape anything to the desks and that is what was harder as well. Here are some of the successful groups: This was the first one done in 1st period, and they were so proud. They had started doing some large contraption that of course fell right over after putting the marshmallow on top. This must have been Plan B. Or Plan E. Either way, they were only 1 of 2 groups that were successful in that class! This was the winner in 1st period at 18.75 inches. They said their inspiration was the Eiffel Tower! I was so shocked that this one stayed up! This one was the 3rd period winner. This was the winner in 7th period and overall! 22 inches...super proud of these boys! I can't wait to see what else I can throw at these kids to do this year. They are all begging me to do this again so that they can fix their mistakes--I promised that we would do it in the spring to see how much they had improved! The best part was the recap at the end of the challenge where we discussed that most everything in life has a "marshmallow aspect" to it where it kind of throws a wrench in the plans and how we can overcome it in math. Did I mention I love my kids?!? If you made it this far in my post...thank you! If you are looking for an easy way to incorporate this into your classroom without much setup, you might be interested in this product that can be found in my TPT store: Looking for more Back to School activities to use in your math class? Check these out! Be sure to drop me a line and tell me how it went in your class!

The first day of school is full of so many things: anticipation, wide-eyes, school supplies, new faces, maybe a few butterflies. And I...

Awesome! 52 preschool themes! Great for kindergarten too!

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FUN End of the Year Art Projects- It's the end of the year-go out having FUN! I know how it goes at the end of the year-your tired, the kids are tired...EVERYONE is ready for summer break! Go out with a bang with these super fun end of the year art projects!

Fabtastic ancient Greek architecture STEM challenge & activities! Perfect for all ages: preschool, kindergarten, elementary, middle, high school, and adult!

Happy Saturday! To all of my friends who had their first week back, WE MADE IT! Whoop…Whoop! I only had three days with my new group, but considering I took a “nap” starting at 7:30 on a Friday night and lasting until Saturday morning, I guess I was a lil’ bit worn out! My new...

BINGO GRATUIT: CLIQUEZ ICI POUR TÉLÉCHARGER

I know your weekends are not really weekends at this point. There’s so many loose ends to tie up! It’s so consuming. I was able to tackle one thing on...

I am incorporating many of the amazing ideas that I have come across on Pinterest and this is one of them. It's a missing assignment form, which you have students turn in when they do not have an assignment. I thought it would make it much easier to keep track of those who did not do something versus those who are absent. So here it is!

This is something that I did last year at the beginning of the school year. The kids loved it and it's a fun way to get to know each ot...

Looking for a little guidance on using interactive procedures in the classroom? Don't miss this post where I'm sharing a few great tips!

Mrs. Kearly's class Mrs. Mrs. Savoie's 5th grade class How to Begin... Divide paper into 6 by folding... Draw face lightly to below proportions... Write name creatively on side... Outline details with black or colored markers... Color in with crayons... Original Idea Pinned on Pinterest from artprokectsforkids.org

When I looked at my last post and realized it was Christmas themed, I realized I was long overdo for a blog post. This new year has brought...

Since I am not one to cook, much less prepare a meal ahead of time, I wanted to catch up on our back to school activities that we have done the past few weeks. Bare with me as I let the pictures do most of the talking. Here are a few of my favorites to […]

I am all done with parent conferences and it feels great! I had the most terrific year and I’m so happy to share my students’ progress with their parents. During parent conference time, I always love to have lots of student work to display. I absolutely love to incorporate student pictures into student work. This ... Read More about Silhouette Autobiographies and Read Across America

Here’s a few classroom procedures that have worked well for me – and a couple awesome ideas I’ve run across since I’ve stepped out of the classroom...

Before the start of each school year, I spend a lot of time reevaluating the routines and procedures that I use in my classroom. Establishing routines and procedures early on, sets the stage for a well-managed classroom and helps ensure "smooth sailing" for rest of the school year!! Below is a list that I refer to each year when establishing routines and procedures for my classroom.... {Click here to download!} Like anything else we teach our students, these routines and procedures need to be taught, modeled, practiced, and reinforced!! The following are the routines and procedures that I focus on the most, and the ones which I believe help foster a high-functioning learning environment.... Entering the Classroom "Ready to Learn" One of the first procedures that I teach my students is how to enter the classroom, and what to do once they come in. I strongly emphasize that they need to enter the classroom "ready to learn". We spend a lot of time talking about what it means to be ready to learn.... coming in quietly, having all materials needed for class, ready to follow directions or routines, and ready to GET TO WORK!!! My students learn quickly to always look to the white board for directions. First thing in the morning, after recess, and after lunch, I always have specific directions written on the board. Students learn to come in, look to the white board, and then begin following directions right away. This gives me time to take care of business, especially in the morning. At the same time, it teaches students independence. I always love the compliments I get from subs about how well my students follow directions, and how quickly and easily they get to work!! Teacher Signal The "teacher signal"-- No teacher should be without one!! For me, I have always use the simple and easy, GIVE ME 5. With this, I simply raise my hand and say, "Give me five," and my students raise their hands and show me that they're ready to.... STOP! LOOK! and LISTEN! Below is the graphic that I have displayed for the first weeks of school. We spend a lot of time discussing the expectations, and PRACTICING during those for first few weeks. {Click here to download!} Most of the teachers at my school and our principal use this strategy, so it's something consistent for the kiddos from year to year. However, I have always been very intrigued by some of the fun and catchy "attention grabbers" out there. I have often thought about giving some of these a try. Here are some great examples.... {SOURCE} {SOURCE} Transitions I will never forget my first year of teaching.... It never occurred to me that I would need to teach students how to transition from one activity to the next. So of course, chaos would ensue each time I gave students a simple direction, such as taking out a text book, or coming down to the rug. Each simple task would turn into full-blow conversations!! I would then have to get their attention all over again to give the next direction. A vicious cycle!! I quickly learned that quick and quiet transitions needed to be taught, practiced, and reinforced, NON-STOP for those first few days of school. The key is to always wait until students are quiet and then set the expectation for WHAT they need to do, and HOW they need to do it. I also teach my students to save their movement for when I am COMPLETELY done giving a direction. Quality of Work I spend A LOT of time at the beginning of the year discussing the quality of student work. It's always amazing to me how upper grade students forget {or do they?!} some of the most basic skills they learn in the primary grades. We're talking things as simple as using a period at the end of a sentence, or misspelling the word "read". In my class, I like to have a list of "must haves" that students refer to as they are working, and before they turn an assignment in. While of course there is always room for error, there are just certain things that are simply nonnegotiable for upper elementary (general ed.) students.... {Click here to download!} If anything on the list is missing, I simply hand assignments back to students, and remind them to refer to our Must Have List. Additionally, we spend a lot of time focused on "presentation" and students taking pride in their work. For example, when I assign projects I ask students to outline their writing with black or colored marker, add details and at least 3 colors to their illustrations, and to make the most of the space they have on their paper. I spend a lot of time modeling this, and I am constantly reinforcing high-quality work. In my classroom, time, effort, and pride go a long way!! Final Thoughts With any and all routines and procedures, it is so important to constantly set expectations during those first days. Right before recess, I always remind students about what is expected when they come back into the classroom after recess. Before an assignment, I ask students to tell me how I expect them to behave while they are working. We are constantly talking about expectations! Plus, we practice ALL THE TIME!! When we line up for lunch, we practice how to walk in a line. When we come in after lunch, we practice how to come in the classroom quietly. It seems like a lot, but it is so important to get them in place so that the rest of the year is smooth sailing!!! If you're looking for some Back to School activities and printables to ease you into the school year, be sure to check out this Back to School resource in my teacher shop. Click on the pic below to learn more!