No matter where your kids are on the school spectrum, the ULTIMATE Guide to Back to School Printables has something for everyone!

Forget "new car" smell, driving home from class today with a bag full of still warm, fresh baked bread made for a truly heavenly commute. ...

It's the one thing I have to RETHINK every year. If it's not done right, it drives me BONKERS!!! And I've YET to find a perfect system...... I'm talking about ways to help students organize their work. I've tried different things. I've tried hanging files...and letting the kids file their own work.....NOT a great idea.There are not a lot of 2nd graders that have promising secretarial skills....I know..I've tried to use them! I've tried regular folders with brads....2nd graders aren't the best at working the brads...plus they tend to break after a while and upside down/backwards paper drives me INSANE! I've tried pocketed folders.....turns into a hot mess with my little messy marvins. This year, I elected to put poly binders (the floppy kind) on the supply list instead of the traditional braded folders. 3rd grade used them last year and LOVED them. I'm hoping to have the same result. This is going to be their ONE and only folder...( I hope)!!! I've been reading about different 'binders' teachers use for their students......and settled on this--my version of the STAR binder. (Students Taking Academic Responsibility). I've seen several people use this (or some form of this but maybe a different acronym) I'm having different sections in their binders to take the place of different folders: *Home/School Connection *Language Arts *Math *Integrated *Homework Each section is separated by a different colored cover page (for lack of a better word) that is tabbed so they can find it easily. The first section, Home/School connection is going to contain the STAR binder contract: This serves two purposes: first, it holds the kids accountable for their binder and puts some 'ownership' of it by having them sign a contract AND second, it lets the parents know my expectation so when they email or call me with an excuse of how little Phillip Johnny Bob forgot his STAR binder today, but it wasn't really his fault because mom forgot to put it in his backpack for him, I can refer to this little gem and tell them how it is so sad that little PJB isn't living up to his end of the agreement of responsibility for his STAR binder......maybe in subtler terms...but you get the gist!!! The next thing in the STAR binder will be the divider page for the Home/School Connection, which looks like this: I ran these on bright colored cardstock (this one is bright yellow) so we could distinguish them easily. We bought tabs to put on them and will label the tabs with printable labels. Next, we put in the Communication log. This has two parts. Let me explain: Last year we had ready made (bought) planners with a section for the students to write in daily, and (if need be) for the teacher to write, the parent to inital and even a spot for the students to write their spelling words in. This year, out of responsibility to spending our budgets wisely, we elected in K-2 to NOT purchase the planners (they were quite costly) and find other means to communicate. (Kinder never used them, some firsties did, and second was using them but I had this in mind!) I still want a way to communicate with parents if I need to AND do want the parents to check their binder daily....so my dilemma was do I make something like the planner...and expect the kids to write every day, or not? THEN , my bff (who is also 1st grade team leader at my school.....SHOUT OUT JJ!!!) told me that the PTA committee had talked of finding some way to inform the parents frequently (weekly, bi-weekly or every six weeks....its still in the works) what the kids were studying so when asked the age-old question "What did you do at school today?" the response won't be " NOTHING". THAT got me to thinking....what if we had the kids write in the communication piece a little objective or area of study we are doing....then we would have " TABLE TALK" subjects the parents can bring up with the kiddos (i.e " So, I saw in your STAR binder this week you were learning about freshwater and saltwater fish.....what did you learn about them?") For those involved parents it gives them specifics to ask about and feel like they are connected with their school life! SO, this communication log has a double sided page per week. One side for the students to write on (their learning goals/areas of focus/ what we're doing that interests them) and the other side for the parents and/or teachers to write. The next thing I include in this section will be some ready-made excuses for : *PE/Recess - if they miss one, they WILL miss the other..and more than 3 days requires a doctor's note. *Change in Transportation- we go through this EVERY year...if they change the way they go home, it is school policy they MUST let us know....and EVERY year I have parents "just tell the kid" to change the way they go home, then we have the " Oh, you WILL get on the bus" conversation because your mom didn't tell me you were going home with so-and-so..... *Absence excuses- these are for the 'missed a day' absences, not " went to the doctor/dentist" occasions. I will include several of these in their STAR binder so they only need to fill it out and send it in....and there is my documentation for any of those occasions!! This is the Home/School connection part of our student binders. Tomorrow we'll talk about the other sections in our STAR binders

Gear the kids up for school with a couple of fun upcycling projects. #BackToSchool While this folded page book art craft takes a lot of time and focus, it is…

FREE End of School coloring page makes a wonderful keepsake recording all your child's school favorites plus a self-portrait on the last school day.

2nd Grade Reading prehension Worksheets Multiple Choice from 1st grade reading comprehension worksheets pdf , image source: gialdiniworld.com

Looking for some first day of school picture ideas? Here's a list of some clever ones, ranging from super quick and simple to more detailed and elaborate.

When it comes to future employment, a community service letter plays an important role. Here are the free templates that you can download.

Searching for the most effective strategies for phonics instruction and intervention? Here's a list of 13 effective and engaging phonics strategies that...

DIY Pencil Shoes

Use this colorful first day of school sign to print out and take back to school photos of your kids. Customizable PDF for all grades including preschool and kindergarten

Printable attendance excuses for school absences are a practical and efficient resource for both students and parents. Designed to provide a formal and genuine explanation for a students absence, these printable documents save time and effort by offering a ready-to-use excuse that can be easily filled in and presented to the school authorities. Whether its due to illness, family emergencies, or other legitimate reasons, printable attendance excuses streamline the process, ensuring that students can fulfill their academic responsibilities while adhering to the schools attendance policies.

Need inspiration for your bullet journaling New Year's resolution?

Teaching students phonetic combinations like digraphs and diphthongs can be difficult. These word chunks help students learn phonics combinations and apply them in their reading and writing. There's a free, printable reference sheet to help you use them in your classroom.

Cute last day of school picture signs to edit and print out. Great for preschool, kindergarten, elementary and high school kids.

I apologize for such a long hiatus, but trust me when I tell you -- it was needed. With the traumatic events at the end of the year, I spun into major reflection, but not necessarily the productive kind (pretty sure that would just be called second-guessing/worrying and not reflection then). But after a long ten days in the greatest place on Earth-- Charleston, SC... Im going to dip my toes back into the refreshing waters of the blogosphere, because I have missed my friends oh so much! I actually met a fellow blogger on the beach (her adorable daughter Lilly played so well with Nash and Emmie)... and although she blogs about fashion and other stylish things that I know nohing about-- we shared the same love for the creativity we experience through the process of blogging. In the looong drive home I have spent many hours perusing her site and think you should check it out too because it is just Oh So Fabulous! And like I told her- teachers can be fabulous too right :) Look Linger Love Tell Chassity I sent you! And also to help get us all back in the swing of things here is a document that I plan on including in the Take-Home binders (more on this to come later) for my class this year... Change of Transportation I definitely did not come up with this idea on my own- I got this idea from the fantastic Deanna Jump but just changed it to match the theme of my classroom ( you can see her version here: Mrs. Jump's Class) Thank you for being patient in my absence and once again, I am SO glad to be blogging again! Katie

Do you need a hairstyle that can be done in a few minutes? It can definitely help you out of a busy morning or a bad hair day. Today, I’d like to recommend you several hairstyles that are worn by celebrities. All of them are very easy to make and

How To Paint A Lighthouse Beach This acrylic tutorial will demonstrate step by step how to paint a lighthouse on a beach. What a relaxing way to spend a few hours! I can hear the

I usually do my art features on Friday, but I left my camera at school this weekend (so disappointed), and I didn't want to wait until this Friday, so a Monday Art Feature it is! We've been discussing lines and designs quite a bit during our art classes. Every year I have done some sort of art project featuring lines and designs, but when I saw this crazy cool hand art, I knew I had to do it with my class this year. I've done a lot more art with my class this year than I have in previous years. I LOVE teaching art, so I've been happy to do so, but this year it is a necessity. I have a very difficult class this year (many academic and behaviour issues), and although they're coming along, we still have a lot of work to do. I have found (completely by happy accident), that a bit of art first thing in the morning totally calms these students down, and sets the tone for the rest of the day. YAY!!! It also gives students something to work on for the rest of the week, eliminating some of the "I'm done - what do I do now?" For this lesson we started our discussing different types of lines and designs. I drew some of the blackboard, and we looked for different examples in art we have previously completed in our art portfolios. I also displayed this poster I found here. We started out by tracing our hands in pencil. Students then divided their hand into smaller sections (still using the pencil). They then had to fill their hands in with a variety of lines and designs. I told students to not have two of the same colours touching, nor two of the same designs. We used extra fine sharpies to complete this art. I bought two packages of colour markers (10 packs) and two packages of black (12 packs). I kept them in glasses at the front of the room, and as students finished with one colour, they returned it to the glass and took a different colour. This system worked out quite well for us. When students had completed their hands, they started on the black and white background. Same instructions, but this time they could only use the black sharpies. I LOVE how these turned out, and I LOVE how proud my students are of their art. I had to let them know that their teacher is JUST as proud of them. :) Happy Monday!!! (9 days left until Christmas break ... I think I can, I think I can).