When it comes to organizing and planning a classroom, every teacher has a few items they couldn't possibly ever go without! It might be that favorite stapler, the perfect book, or an amazing resource! I know, I know. I just posted about Supplies I Can't Live Without but I
Amazon teacher favorites! If you are looking for some new classroom finds, gere are some to add to your wishlist.
This shopping guide shares 25 classroom essentials that every first year teacher needs to be confident and prepared to begin the school year.
Happy summer, friends! It's fading fast, is it not? Maybe you are here today because you are in search of teacher must haves from Amazon or because you are looking for first year teacher must haves for yourself or for a friend or family member. Either way, I've got a list of classroom must haves for you! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I may earn a small commission (at no cost to you) for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, or link to any products or services from this website. There are so many helpful teacher must haves
Amazon is a teacher's best friend! Each year my list of must haves for the classroom grows so I'm here to share more of my Amazon classroom finds!
The ultimate list of teacher must haves to make your classroom run smoothly. From organization, paper products, and more...
We've compiled a list of 21 Amazon Teacher Finds that will make an elementary classroom the perfect place for teaching and learning!
Hey hey, teacher friend!! Oh MY, congratulations on landing a teaching job! I’m so INCREDIBLY stoked for you. I remember that feeling and it’s so SO good. Whether it’s your first classroom or maybe you’re going back after being away for a bit, either way that’s super exciting and I know you’re goi
USB PowerPoint Clicker Presentation Remote Contro This Amazing powerpoint pointer so you can teach away from your lap top! Magnetic Spinners to make learning fun and engaging! Magnetic Whiteboard S…
A Printable Mega List of Kindergarten Classroom Must Haves Written By A Current Kindergarten Teacher. These supplies will make teaching kindergarten better!
As a teacher, I am always on the hunt for the perfect tools at the cheapest prices for my ELA classroom. Taking care of our students and keeping our learning
Amazon is a teacher's best friend! Each year my list of must haves for the classroom grows so I'm here to share more of my Amazon classroom finds!
Ah, the wonderful world of Amazon! Click to check out my favorite Amazon teacher must haves that can be delivered right to your doorstep!
As teachers begin planning for back to school, I see an abundance of creative classrooms filling my Instagram and Pinterest feeds. I love seeing how other
3rd grade teacher Deanna shares how she saves time and works more efficiently.
Today, on the blog, I am sharing 15 of my favorite Amazon finds that I use in my classroom.
Who's ready for a smoother year? ? Stock your classroom for success with these 11 essential supplies, resources, and strategies.
Just a simple sort I made to reinforce respectful actions/gestures. This can easily be added to your Citizenship unit, or beginning of the year activities to set a tone of spreading kindness in the classroom. I have listed 12 scenarios/behaviors, and students must decide is the actions "respectful" or "disrespectful", by gluing the sentence under the correct header. Hope you like and find this resource useful! Be sure to follow me: IG (Beached Bum Teacher) TikTok (Beached Bum Teacher)
These three icebreakers for teens will make the first class, youth group, or club fun for everyone, even the introverts.
Need a fun first day activity to break the ice and get students connecting? Try hexagonal identity one-pagers.
As a teacher, I am always on the hunt for the perfect tools at the cheapest prices for my ELA classroom. Taking care of our students and keeping our learning
This post explains how teachers can use an academic version of the highly engaging Spoons game to review concepts. Free games included!
The best classroom setup ideas to get your class ready for back to school including the best classroom layout and desk arrangements.
Why do I love them so much? Because they love systems and I LOVE SYSTEMS. Even more than in my house, I LOVE having classroom systems. I think oftentimes we
Classroom rewards don’t even have to cost teachers a penny. They can be cheap, free, and easy. Here are 60 ideas for fun whole class and individual student rewards including many that don't cost money. There are simple reward ideas that can easily be used with whatever positive reinforcement system you're using for behavior management in your kindergarten or elementary classroom. Party ideas, non-food, and intangible options are included.
Find out all the top picks for fun games to play in class. Liven up the classroom with these engaging games and activities.
If you have an extra-chatty class, check out this post with tips for how to get your students to stop talking in just one week!
Classroom management and thinking through how my classroom will run is more important than the decorations and arrangement! Do you agree? My classroom has several different strategies set up; and as needed, I will adjust accordingly as my students arrive and I learn their needs. Today, I have 8 Classroom Management Tips for you to […]
There are three kinds of teacher-decorators: those who were born for Pinterest, those who can’t, and all the ones in between (such as the broke, the tired, and the I-have-no-time-to-decorate). However, making a classroom appeal to middle and high school students doesn’t HAVE to involve serious crafting or expensive, time-intensive projects. Check out these tips from me and Bonnie from Presto Plans as you prepare your classroom for the fall (or at any time of year that you want to give it a boost!) You might also like Sara's more recent blog post, Inside My Farmhouse Classroom Makeover. 1. Have a color scheme (if you can) Sara: My principal gave each teacher the paint for one accent wall, so that shade of turquoise inspired the rest of my blue decor: milk crates, bulletin board borders, etc. It helped unify the room to make it look pulled-together instead of random. I've also learned about the importance of contrast. Even a full-blown rainbow color palette can look clean and cohesive (instead of cluttered) if you pair it with black or white to balance it out. Bonnie: If you are looking for inspiration for colors that look great together, check out this Pinterest board. There are lots of combinations that will help you choose colors when you are shopping for classroom materials. 2. Stick to a few favorite fonts Sara: Just like businesses create a brand, you are creating a classroom “look” or persona that you will be known for... or, at least a mood you will create. (Friendly? Professional? Fun? Minimalist?) Try to pick a few fonts that most of your labels, signs, and other wall-hangings will consistently use. For example, I used the Google font Crushed to make and laminate labels for my whiteboard (see below), along with mint-colored painter's tape. 3. Make your classroom library a focal point Bonnie: Your class library should draw students in and works well as the focal point for any English classroom. Here are a few things you can do to make your library stand out: Give bookshelves a makeover by rolling them a new coat of paint and/or taking the shelves out and attaching wallpaper or scrapbook paper to the back. Put a few floating shelves on the walls near your library area where you can feature particular novels recommended by students. Add comfortable, flexible seating near a library to make it more welcoming. These items can be more expensive, so shop around online or scour garage sales until you find seating that may work. Use old books as decorations! When a book is unusable, find a way to repurpose it. One easy way to do this is to cut out the pages and write a reading-inspired quote in black permanent marker on top of the page. Frame the page and put it on your bookshelf! Sara: If your classroom library is small, nonexistent, or needs some attention, check out this blog post for more ideas about how to strengthen it. 4. Display student work Bonnie: Use student work as decor by making a framed gallery wall. All you have to do is pick up some inexpensive 8x10 frames (check your dollar store) and arrange them on your wall. When you get a piece of exceptional student work, add it into the frame! If you don’t want the hassle of buying and hanging frames, order a pack of mixed color picture mats and use them to frame student work on a bulletin board. Sara: Another way to get student work on display (while also practicing literary analysis!) is to have them complete this Quote Illustration and Analysis assignment; students use Canva (or any tool you wish) to make an inspirational or literary quote come to life. The results are stunning! 5. Use author-inspired decor Bonnie: Find ways to incorporate the authors you will be studying into your classroom decor. You can do this by featuring fun facts or by sharing quotes by the author. For example, I use an interactive Shakespeare Hashtag of the Week bulletin display that exposes students to one quote from a Shakespeare play each week. If you don’t want to make your own, you might even consider assigning an author to each student and having them develop a bulletin display with a biography, fun facts, and quotes that you can swap out weekly. Sara: Don't forget to interject moments of literary ALLUSION or author-inspired inside jokes as well, like my favorite light switch art... 6. Make your posters work together Sara: On at least one bulletin board or section of wall space, add some symmetry or consistency by hanging posters in a similar style (color, font, or other), or by displaying images that have a common theme. For example, check out these posters of stylized quotes to get some English class wisdom on your walls. Bonnie: If you are looking for some ideas of common themes you could use for posters, try some of these ideas that could work in any English classroom: funny grammar quotes or fails, literary terms or genres, author quotes, famous lines from literature, idiomatic expressions, or jokes using puns! To read more about my favorite bulletin board ideas for middle and high ELA, check out this blog post. "English is Weird" poster set 7. Make displays that are EASY to update Sara: Two of my favorite bulletin board spaces were ones that took VERY little effort in updating, so I didn't have the self-imposed pressure to redo the whole thing multiple times per year. For example, my Word Nerd Challenge is quick to update on a Monday morning because all I have to do is add this week's word to the list. (I made each word tile a magnet that can go on my whiteboard!) I also made low-prep Quote of the Week flipbooks of reading and writing quotes, which students often asked to flip FOR me. I used Command hooks and spiral binding to hang it on a cabinet. Do you have additional ideas? Tell us in the comments!
Have you thought about having a class pet, but don’t want to add one more thing to take care of in your classroom? Well, I have the perfect solution---a take-home stuffed animal! Kids love it and there is no cage or tank to clean out! Having a traveling class pet was by far the most popular class pet I ever had. Kids couldn’t wait for their week to take home the pet and have it be part of their life for a few days. Of course, I had to include a journal for the kids to write in through the week. Tips for having a take-home class pet. 1. Choosing a stuffed animal is the easy part because kids love them all. But, keep the size of the pet in mind. Too large and it's difficult to transport home and then back to school. Too small and it feels too much like a toy instead of a real pet. 2. Pick a traveling bag for your pet. I like clear plastic bags so everyone can see the adorable pet inside. Make sure it's large enough to hold the pet and the journal. I found this bag on Amazon for under $10. (Search "clear plastic tote" for lots of choices.) 3. Decide on the requirements for the journal. The requirements should be based on the writing level of your students. Kindies can have a drawing journal where they draw a picture or two that shows what they did with the pet. Firsties can write a few sentences along with illustrations. For older students, they can write paragraphs and add illustrations. Make sure all requirements and suggestions are included in the journal, so kids know exactly what is expected. 4. What will you use as a journal? I like using a composition book. It's sturdy and will last the whole year. You can glue on a cover and then glue all instructions and suggestions to the inside cover. Click here to download this freebie from my TpT store. (Click on this image.) 5. Make sure you share the journal on the day it's returned and before it goes home with a new student. 6. A letter home at the beginning of the year, explaining the Take-Home pet is a good idea. That way, parents know what to expect. I also let parents know the take-home schedule a few weeks in advance. That way, the schedule can be adjusted if a family needs to reschedule the pet's visit to their home. Above all, have fun. Just like a live pet, the stuffed animal pet is a great way to teach responsibility.
Does the first week of Kindergarten have you shaking in your boots? You are not alone! I've been at this for a little while now so you would think it would get easier with time but I am here to tell you it does not! I still get anxious right before school starts. What will they be like? Will I remember what to do at line up time? What if I don't set things up right and I mess up the whole rest of the year? (sounds dramatic but that is really what goes through my head!) I sat down as soon as school got out and wrote down my first week of lesson plans to put my mind at ease. It has really helped with my worry so far! I wrote down the first five days, plans and procedures I need to introduce, brain breaks, classroom community building activities, easy morning work to get started with and even got my welcome back gifts ready. My mind is officially at ease. I want to make sure I have a lot of fun and a LOT of books planned for the first week too. Here are a couple of fun crafts to go with the books I have planned. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. You can't skip this book the first week of school! Our focus will be all about names the first week (or more!). I put together all of my favorite books with some crafts to help teach all of those back to school procedures like cutting, gluing, and of course following directions. The Wheels on the Bus This one is fun for a little first sound fun. The students change the words to match the first sound in their name. A My Name is Alice by Jane Bayer Alphabet books are the best the first few weeks of school. A My Name is Alice Jane Bayer is the best! This is a fun activity to do after we read the book and they will make really cute self portraits to hang in the hallway the first week of school. Not only did I plan out the activities for these books but for lots of other favorites like Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes, Rosie Takes a Walk by Pat Hutchins, No David by David Shannon, and Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon by Patty Lovell. So now I don't have to feel guilty when I am floating in the pool this summer (just kidding, I never feel guilty doing that!) But honestly, I can relax knowing all I have to do is hit print when I get back to school. These plans can work for you too! Click here to see them in my store! Or if you are not ready to think about school yet pin this for later! P.S. Get a FREE ALPHABET ACTIVITY when you sign up for my newsletter HERE!
A simple way to teach your students classroom procedures and expectations at the beginning of the school year
Podcasts in the classroom are so fun and engaging! Have you jumped on the podcast train yet?! I have a great system for using podcasts in the classroom...
We have another fun project for your kids (or you) to do during the hot summer months, this time we are sharing a fun summer agamograph template with you. Making an agamograph is really, really
Although "practice makes perfect," it doesn't have to be boring. Find 6 ways to make lessons more engaging with movement in the classroom.
5 must-haves for a functional virtual teaching workspace: the essentials you need to help you teach remotely. Extra screen, planner, and more.
After 19 years in the classroom, I‘ve picked up a few tricks that have saved me from hours reinventing the wheel year after year. The best thing I ever did for myself was complete some upfront work that led to years of little to no prep and planning! Here are my top three work smarter, not harder tips for easy lesson planning: 1. Save and store reusable worksheets and task cards. Classrooms don't have a lot of storage space, but keeping photocopies of the materials your students will use year af
This high school art substitute lesson package is a BUNDLE of Grid Drawing Worksheets. It includes 13 Grid Drawing Worksheets. There are 5 VALUE drawings that require an understanding of SHADING and 8 are more simple line drawings.
Art Teachers, in your Art Classroom you’re always going to have students finish before the rest, fast finishers, so let’s take a look at some ideas or routines that you can build into your classroom so that students know what to do when they’re done so they don’t have to ask you and so that you don’t have to instruct them on what to do EVERY time.
