Storytelling is a wonderful way to build creativity and imagination in your students. How can storytelling activities be beneficial in the classroom? There are so many ways! inspires purposeful talkingraises enthusiasm for reading textsinitiates writingenhances communityimproves writingengages students Want to see how each of these activities work? Watch the Storytelling Activities video on my YouTube
Check out these 5 No-Prep Reviews Games for any classroom or any subject! Click to see what no-prep review games you can add to your teacher toolbox!
Having a fun way to display learning objectives in the classroom makes them more attractive for students and more likely they will interact with them daily.
Teach children art history through a variety of fun art projects and lessons. We love using artists as inspiration for our own creations.
Amazing things can happen with just one dot.
This post explains how teachers can use an academic version of the highly engaging Spoons game to review concepts. Free games included!
Student engagement is my number one goal in the classroom. None of the academic goals can be achieved without student engagement. It is essential! My biggest advice to you is to decrease teacher talk and the time students spend in their desks.I want to share some more specific ways that I keep my students engaged
These all about me, back to school art activities for kids are engaging icebreakers. Encourage creativity and build community during the first week back
Amazon teacher favorites! If you are looking for some new classroom finds, gere are some to add to your wishlist.
I know how much you LOVE FREEbies because I love them too! Make sure to share these free deals with all of your family and friends!
Take a look at what is on the shelves in this Montessori classroom. Language, Sensorial, Math, and Cultural inspiration for your Montessori environment.
Email is such a huge part of every teacher's workflow each day. Conquering the digital clutter in your inbox can lead to increased productivity! This post details GMAIL hacks that help teachers save time and work more efficiently in the classroom. **This post contains affiliate links that pay a small commission to keep this site
I am a self proclaimed "Lover of literacy and all things organization" and I'm here to share 5 ways I cut the classroom clutter and organize student supplies, resources for the entire week, and that pesky pile of graded work!
60+ Must Make Kindergarten Anchor Charts for the classroom. Covers classroom management, literacy and math. Multiple ideas!
Hey, friends! I wrote this post on The Primary Chalkboard a while back and thought it was worth another post. If it's summer vacation for you, enjoy! If not, live each day to the fullest and smile because it happened! I'm here today to talk about getting your classroom ready for a makeover. Now, this is NOT a classroom reveal. Today is all about getting ready to set up your room! Let me preface this by saying, I'm not trying to pressure anyone into decoration madness, but I do believe a happy classroom is one that functions efficiently; and is well organized and attractive. This summer I read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. Marie is a proponent of getting your house in order and keeping it in order. She suggests keeping only the items in your home that bring you joy and letting go of the rest. I think we can apply the same principle to the classroom. Keep what sparks joy in you and let go of the rest. ARE YOU READY TO SEE MY MESS? Here you go! Want more? The good news is...it doesn't look that this anymore! So, are you ready to get your classroom in order? Great! But, remember this is not a one day job. I like to think of it as ten days. Already started school? Take one task a week for the first ten weeks. Day 1) Clean out your children's literature. Keep only the books that bring you and your kiddos joy! I know. I LOVE children's books, too, but let's face it. Not all books are created equally. It's okay to let go of a book. DON'T THROW IT OUT. Pass it on to someone who will find joy in it. You'll be amazed at how much room this gives you AND you'll know what you have when you need something. Day 2) Clean out your Math manipulatives! You don't need 6 bins of pattern blocks or 48 Judy clocks. Keep what you need and pass the rest on to someone else. It's okay. Day 3) Clean out your art supplies. If you haven't used those foam Easter bunnies in the last 3 years, get rid of them. Pass on the joy to someone else! No hoarding! Day 4) Clean out your office supplies. Look at each one. If no joy comes from having them and they serve no purpose, pass them on to someone else or donate them. It's a good feeling! Day 5) Clean out board games, puzzles, and other activities. If you don't use them, someone else can. If Czechoslovakia is still on your globe...you get it. Share your treasures. Day 6) Do I dare say it...Clean out your paper. Oh, it's tough! I know it is. I've done it. But the feeling is just so great! If you haven't used it or it turns your fingers purple...you don't need it. Recycle that paper! Day 7) Decide how you will store supplies. Once you decide what manipulatives and supplies you are going to keep, choose how you are going to store them. Then label your supplies. Labeling makes supplies easier to find for students and other adults who may visit. NOW- The next two may not be popular, but I'm going with them. Day 8) Get rid of your filing cabinet OR scale down to a smaller one. The more room you have for stuff, the more stuff you'll acquire. If there's nowhere to put the stuff, you won't be as likely to hold onto it. Day 9) Get rid of your teacher desk OR scale down to a smaller one. You can do it! I did and I had a lot of stuff in mine, too. I never sat there (not even after school), and it took up a great deal of space. Now, that space is used by my first graders, and I don't miss my desk one bit! I use an over-the-door shoe organizer for my office supplies. Space saver! Day 10) Plan your classroom design. Once the clutter is removed and you are ready to set up your room, go online and play around with a classroom set-up tool. You can design your whole room as many times as you like. You'll need your room measurements for this. Here are a few good ones: Floorplanner.com Classroom Architect at classroom.4teachers.org Lakeshore Learning Classroom Designer This is the one I use. And, to show you what a difference organizing makes, the pic below was taken on Valentine's Day, months after I purged and organized. I cleaned out some more baskets and placed them on top of my bins, but other than that, the closet stayed pretty tidy. If I can do it, you can do it! Having a plan makes all the difference!! Good luck!!
From teaching tips and parental strategies, to anti-bullying activities and games, these ideas offer great inspiration to help kids stand up to bullying!
How to decorate an ESL Classroom; 8 ESL classroom decorations for a welcoming and inclusive environment for your multilingual students.
Students will have fun while learning how to cooperate and communicate.
In my play based classroom there are 10 essential learning areas. I cannot do without them. The provocations and resources offered in these areas change throughout the year dependent on children's interests and the curriculum intent. The placement of these 10 areas within the classroom is thoughtf
Explore these fun and informative ideas to build a strong classroom community in primary grades! From student jobs to team building activities, foster a sense of belonging in kindergarten, 1st grade, and 2nd grade. These classroom community lessons to build friendship, respect, and kindness will help you create a learning environment where students thrive. Grab the FREE classroom community activities and respect scenario role play task cards to get you started!
Transforming your third teacher (room) is something that can be as simple as focussing on just one area in your room and can change how your children interact instantly with each other and the materials!
Freebie Vault Login How do I login??? Keep Reading! Welcome to the freebie vault, Teacher Friend. As a thank you for being an email list subscriber and supporter of my business, I love to create and add monthly freebies for YOU to enjoy! It is absolutely free to join this community and to continue to […]
Have you considered a Eric Carle classroom theme inspired by the books, but you are having trouble figuring out how to put all of the pieces altogether?
Pinterest Are you looking to add some excitement to the first day of school? Look no further than the Back to School Escape Room for 1st or 2nd grade! This fun and engaging activity will help your students break the ice, build teamwork, problem-solve, and promote critical thinking skills. The objective of the game is […]
When it is summer time, parents look for activities for their kids to spend the afternoon efficiently. If you are one of them, this article is for you so keep reading. It is possible to keep your children entertained and let them practice their craft skills at the same time. Thanks to some easy to
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
Inspiration, tips, and sources for creating a nature themed classroom for your middle school or high school students!
Introduce your students to Keith Haring's colorful pop art with these printable Keith Haring for kids resources.
Add just a few of these Gorgeous Classroom Libraries ideas to your space and your students will be motivated to read all year long!
Free checklist and tips for developing classroom procedures that build character in students
15 different flexible seating options in your class allows students to choose their seating enviroment and take control of their learning.
It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a super classroom!
I am so excited to bring you an updated tour of Lauren’s classroom! A couple of years ago, Lauren shared photos of her beautiful Montessori environment as part of our Classroom Showcase Series. You can see the original post here, and see her stunning outdoor space here. Lauren was kind enough to offer us a […]
Music. It has the ability to make us feel emotions like joy, inspiration, gratitude, and more. We listen to it at home, in our cars, at the grocery store,
