Need some ideas for your math teacher observation lessons? This post has five ideas for upper elementary and middle school math teachers.

Then try these FREE ideas, resources, and tips to make them experts. Click here:

There are so many ways to use math task cards in upper elementary and middle school. This game uses math task cards with a bit of a twist!

Ferris Wheel STEM Challenge activity for upper elementary and middle school students. Teams create a dimensional turning 2-sided-wheel that must be held aloft.

Ready to make math centers work in shorter middle school class periods? Get the details - structure, scheduling, activities, and more!

If you are getting started with Interactive Notebooks, then this blog post is just for you. With information on choosing the right book, page numbering, envelopes, bookmarks, and tables of contents, this post has it all to help you get started on the right foot. Help your upper elementary and middle school students shine with interactive notebooks that scream organization, structure, knowledge, & fun. Ideal for social studies, history, math, science, and ela, interactive notebooks are the best.

Analyzing writing curriculums, planning writing workshop and teaching writing lessons can be overwhelming. You might think, how am I going to fit everything in and produce successful writers? Where do I start? What skills do they need? This post will share the 7 BASIC WRITING LESSONS that every teacher should teach! With this basic knowledge, students will be able to perform other writing assignments more effectively. The following skills are not only effective in upper elementary, they are often needed at the middle school level for review or the primary level for differentiation. So yes, every teacher should teach them! If you start with these 7 fundamental skills, it will set the expectations for your writing lessons and assignments throughout the year! Frequently Asked Questions What are the basic skills and what order should I teach them? Sentence Structure 1. Complete Sentences Lesson for complete sentences 2. Fragments Lesson for fragments 3. Run-ons Lesson for run-ons Paragraph Writing 4. Topic Sentences Lesson for topic sentences 5. Relevant Details Lesson for relevant details 6. Transition Words Lesson for transition words 7. Closing Sentences Lesson for closing sentences How much time should I dedicate to teaching these fundamental skills? I recommend one day for each skill. If you spend a whole writing block for each skill, students will benefit from the practice. How do I teach each skill? First: Start with an anchor chart explaining the skill. (See each lesson link above for effective anchor charts.) Second: Provide examples. Students can share examples too! Next: Students should take notes. I love using Interactive Writing Notebooks to take notes. Research supports the use of interactive notebooks through studies on multiple intelligences, the brain and note taking. Here are a few videos to Set Up Interactive Writing Notebooks. Click photo for the Upper Elementary Version. A Primary Version is also available. Then: Identify the skill. Provide practice sheets and task cards for students to practice identifying the skill in sentences and paragraphs. Last: Apply the skill. Students should have the opportunity to write their own sentence or paragraph to apply the particular skill. What if I can't fit the lesson in one writing block? If you can't extend the days to complete them, there are other ways to get the whole lesson in. You can put practice sheets or task cards in a center, or you can have students apply the skill for homework or morning work the next day. What if my students, some of my students, or absent students can't do interactive notebooks? Make a small anchor chart to put in their notebooks with the same information! If you don't have a printable poster, take a picture of the anchor chart you used in class and print them off! I hope you found this post helpful and your students become successful writers this year! Connect With Me! TPT Store Facebook Pinterest My Blog

Teaching measurement has never been more fun when you use these 2 review activities and 8 real-world, project-based challenges with your upper elementary or middle school students.

Math wheels are a valuable tool in your toolbox! Learn the answers to all of your math wheel questions so you are ready to start using them!

This is a great way to assess your students' number sense/number line skills, as well as their ability to cooperate in a group. Perfect for middle school!

Upper Elementary & Middle School Math Games Math Teachers, Look No Further! 42 printable math games for upper elementary and middles school students, easy-to-setup for any math class // Buy it …

Lesson ideas and activities for listening skills practice and monitoring

This post contains fun and interactive timeline and mapping activities for upper elementary or middle school students who are learning about Ancient Civilizations and Ancient History! These teaching resources are great for homeschool, distance learning, and/or in the classroom! Most of the activities in this post contain both DIGITAL (Google Slides ~ assigned in Google

Are you looking for free printable pentomino puzzles for early finisher activities for upper elementary, middle school, or high school? Check out my collection of pentomino puzzles. These are the perfect logical thinking puzzle to help students work on spatial reasoning.

how I organize student materials and supplies in my middle school ELA and upper elementary classrooms with limited space.

Try this engaging, free order of operations activity to help your 5th or 6th grade students practice with order of operations.

As we returned from winter break this year, it became clear that we could not pick up right where we left off in room #264! With the addition of new students as well as some schedule changes that lead to some different class combinations, I knew we couldn’t just jump into business as usual without

FREE Solving Proportions Activity! Want to get your students up and moving? Play this fun scavenger hunt activity while your students practice solving proportions with word problems! Sign up to get your free resource Stay informed about future tips, strategies, and products to help you in your classroom and make your life easier. First name ... Read more

I talk quite a bit about classroom management on my blog. I have to be honest here. I have tried so many different things. I have tried the clip chart, I have tried check marks, I have tried the “flip the card”. NONE of them work for me. The book Dream Class really changed my thoughts on...

Have you been looking for the perfect project based learning curriculum? If you've been on the lookout for a game-changing approach to captivate your upper elementary students and ignite a passion for learning, you're in for a treat! Buckle up as we dive into the world of project-based learning (PBL) – the secret sauce to turning mundane lessons into exciting adventures.

Ready to show the movie WALL-E in class? The WALL-E Math Movie Activities are a companion pack to the movie, "WALL-E." It's perfect for the Upper Elementary and middle school math classroom (grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8). Included in this packet are teacher directions, a consent form to watch the movie, math movie questions about WALL-E, and a movie report. FEATURES: 3 Engaging Math Movie Activities NO PREP, Print & GO Activities! FUN & rigorous activities centered on real world applications BONUS: Parent/Guardian Movie Consent Form to send home included! Topics covered: distance, time, STEM, space science, and more Activities Included: ✔Math Movie Questions #1 {with answer key} ✔Math Movie Questions #2 {with answer key} ✔Movie Report {response paper with & w/out rubric} Great activities to make real world applications. Engage your students in movie math! ***Please note: The movie, "WALL-E" is NOT included. This is only activities to accompany the movie. For a list of Math Movies click here. Don't forget that leaving feedback earns you points toward FREE TPT purchases. I love that feedback! Also, click HERE to follow me and be notified when new products are uploaded. New products are always on sale for the first 24 hours they are posted. It pays to follow me! As always, please contact me with any questions! Thank you, Kelly @ Teaching Math and More

Have you been looking for the perfect project based learning curriculum? If you've been on the lookout for a game-changing approach to captivate your upper elementary students and ignite a passion for learning, you're in for a treat! Buckle up as we dive into the world of project-based learning (PBL) – the secret sauce to turning mundane lessons into exciting adventures.

Your students are returning to school! Whether they are online or in-person, the first days of school are all about building relationships and community.

This request to retest form works for ANY subject area -- it outlines the procedure for students to go through in order to request a retest. As a bonus, a one-pager about why retests are a god thing (great to share with administration, colleagues, and parents) is included!

For the most part, reasoning, deducing, inferring, and critical thinking are not skills that come naturally to our students. Rather, they must be nurtured and developed. We want our students to become critical thinkers so they can reason and apply logic to solve novel problems throughout their lives. These skills will set them up to...

Summer is quickly arriving! You want to make sure your students don't lose what they gained. Check out these tips for preventing summer slide.

This school year is almost over! But that doesn't mean students have to stop learning. Try including some of the fun math activities for middle school and upper elementary. Students will not only continue learning but they will be engaged and have fun!

Games are a tried and true way to engage students. Whether teaching in-person or remotely via a live session like Zoom or Google Meets, teac...

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Are you looking for some great project based learning examples? In education, teachers are continually seeking creative ways to captivate their students' interest and foster a love for learning. One approach gaining popularity is Project-Based Learning (PBL), a student-centered type of learning that allows students to explore real-world problems and challenges. For upper elementary teachers, integrating PBL into the curriculum can be an amazing experience, promoting critical thinking, collaboration, and a deeper understanding of academic concepts. In this blog post, we'll explore a variety of engaging project-based learning examples that can be easily incorporated into upper elementary classrooms.

Ready to "cook up" a great first day of school? It's easy with this recipe for a successful start to the school year! PREP: ➤ Think about how you will set the tone for your classroom on the first day of school. ➤ Plan to keep students engaged and active. ➤ Prepare to build a positive rapport with students from the first instant that they become a part of the classroom community. INGREDIENTS: ➤ Warm-Up Activity ➤ Get-to-Know-You Activity ➤ Game that gets students out of their seats ➤ Get-to-Know-the-Teacher Activity ➤ Writing Prompt ➤ Extension Activity Once you've gathered your ingredients, you can get "cooking!" (CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FREE RECIPE!) PROCEDURE: STEP 1: Begin with a warm-up activity. Place an activity on students' desks that they can complete independently. You might try a simple survey or poster. An All About Me poster is a quick way to learn about students. You can even gather them together for an awesome classroom display. Or, a survey is a wonderful way to collect information about students. You might include questions about where students like to sit, their favorite way to learn, and activities that they enjoy so that you can start connecting with students. Another awesome warm-up activity is an "All About You" name tag. Students answer questions about themselves while coloring in a name tag based on their responses. Then, students can place the name tag on their desks to help you learn your students' names. This activity is particularly awesome if you have multiple sets of students. You can collect the name tags and re-distribute them each day during each class while you learn names. Oh, and as a bonus, you can gather them together and leave them with substitute teachers throughout the year! If you'd like to check out ready-made Back to School Warm-Ups, just click here for the poster, here for the survey, and here for the name tags. STEP 2: Mix in a get-to-know-you activity. Give students a chance to share about themselves and learn about their classmates with an engaging get-to-know-you activity. One of my favorites is a doodle-inspired mini-book. Students transform a single sheet of paper into a doodley mini-book all about themselves. After students make the mini-book it's fun to hang them on a clothesline. Then, as students finish their work during the first days of school, you can encourage fast-finishers to grab a classmate's mini-book and learn about him or her. Check out the doodle mini-book HERE. Or, you could have students create this 3-D About Me Activity. Students create an infographic-style book about themselves. After answering some simple questions, they do a little cutting and gluing to create a 3-D "About Me" display. These are especially fun because students can set them on their desks and then everyone can tour around the classroom and learn about their peers. (These are awesome for Open House too!) Learn more HERE. STEP 3: Scatter in an activity that gets students moving. Since students crave opportunities to get up and out of their seats, plan to get your class moving on the first day of school. You might have students complete a scavenger hunt or even play a learning game that requires students to move around. I'm a huge fan of this simple get-to-know-you activity that gets students moving (and you can download it for FREE here.) First, students make paper airplanes. They write their name and 3 interview questions on the wings. Then, students line up shoulder-to-shoulder and launch the planes. Next, they pick up a classmate's plane, find him or her, and ask the interview questions. You can repeat the airplane launch as often as you'd like! Find everything you need to do this activity in this FREEBIE. If you'd like to combine movement and learning on the first day of school, then you and your students will love this Back to School Doodle Infographic. First students fill in the infographic with facts about school. There are 21 facts and you can hide them around the room to get students moving. Then, they put together the infographic to make a fun and doodle-y poster! Check it out HERE. STEP 4: Sprinkle in a chance for students to get-to-know-you (their teacher). On the first day of school, students are very curious about you. They want to learn about you, so you'll want to be sure to share about yourself. You can give a simple biography of yourself, or you might try these easy and engaging activities: Create a teacher interview question along with 4 or 5 prize cards for each student in your class. Then, tape the questions and the prize cards under students' seats before class begins. During class, explain to students that they all have something under their chairs. It might be a question and it might be a prize. If they get a prize card, have students keep it quiet. Then, call on students. They can either read a question for you to answer or reveal that they won a prize. If they won, you might give them a pencil, piece of candy, or a homework pass. You can find all my favorite questions HERE. Or, you might have students complete a "Teacher Guess" about you. First, they predict the answers to questions about you. Then, as you reveal the answers, they earn points for every correct prediction. It's a fun activity that students truly enjoy! You can check it out HERE. STEP 5: Add a fun writing prompt to your back to school activities. A writing prompt is a great way to gather a baseline for students' writing on the first day of school. You might give students a simple prompt about their summer or goals for the new school year. However, I love to add a fun creative writing prompt into the mix. For example, with this writing prompt students select a setting, character, problem, and 3 random objects. Then, they need to work them all into a story. It's fun, engaging, and a great way to see where your students are starting the school year. Find this writing prompt HERE or check out this collection of 10 creative writing activities. STEP 6: Top it off with a review of tomorrow's warm-up. Set students up for success during your next day of school by quickly reviewing what they will need to do when they arrive to class. If you're planning to have students work through warm-ups like these This or That ELA warm-ups where students choose to do the "this" or the "that" activity, then you might quickly review what will be waiting on their desks when they arrive. Taking the time to preview tomorrow's warm-up is a great way to set expectations for students! If you're looking for some daily warm-ups, you might want to check out these This or That ELA warm-ups or these This or That Writing warm-ups! STEP 7: Don't forget to have an extension activity just in case your lesson ends early. I love playing games like "Move If You..." which you can find for FREE HERE. While you may never get to the extension activity, it's a lifesaver if you need it! TIPS: When you're following this recipe for a great first day of school, you might want to: ➤ Greet students at the door and answer these questions for students right away: ➨ Where do I sit? ➨ Am I in the right classroom? ➨ What should I be doing right now? ➤ Also, be prepared to manage students' behavior on the first day of school. Ensure that you have a positive classroom management system in place and ready to use if you need it! Well, there you have it, my recipe for a great first day of school. Be sure to download all the ideas with links AND the FREE airplane activity HERE! CHECK THIS OUT! I've put together a 100+ page guide for back to school for teachers. It includes tips, tools, and printables for classroom décor, classroom organization, lesson planning, community building, and planning the first day of school. It's absolutely FREE! Just click here to sign up. When you sign up, you'll get access to 6 mini-courses that cover everything Back to School including classroom design, organization, curriculum planning, and ways to build a positive classroom community. There's also a TON of exclusive freebies, bonuses, and videos! If you'd like to learn more and sign up, just click HERE. Thanks so much for stopping by, Mary Beth P.S. If you'd like MORE free resources for your classroom, be sure to join the Brain Waves Instruction club!

Supporting reluctant writers is easier than you think. Read 7 tips to help your reluctant writers reduce stress and find success.

For those of you who don't know, I spend every other period of my day working with students who have not passed out state test. Most of these kiddos are 3,4, or even 5 grade levels behind in math. U

How to use the ladder method to find GCF, LCM, and factoring, in upper elementary and middle school math class.

Error analysis is a really important skill for students to master. I'm sharing more about how I teach error analysis for test prep in my classroom here!

Throughout the school year, I know I would often find myself scrambling for ways to keep my students engaged in their learning and jazz up our classroom routine. As the sun starts shining brighter and summer is in the air, students are restless, and so are we... but the show must go on! Learning must continue, but can be done in an engaging and fresh way with hands on, creative project based learning resources! Grab a few of these PBL project ideas to finish out the year and enjoy watching your students engage in their learning and demonstrate their hard earned skills!

The first few days of school are exciting for many, stressful for others and for almost every teacher….. a bit odd. We don’t have a ton of our art supplies in yet, students are moving around a lot due to schedule changes, teachers have to distribute a lot of beginning of the year forms, there

Let your upper elementary, middle school, & high school students better understand homelessness - while teaching tolerance and acceptance. Click for details!