In a self-paced classroom, each student is given an appropriate level of challenge and grows at a steady pace throughout the school year. Here's how it works.
Back to school means it's time to set up your elementary music classroom-- but what do you do? Make it simple with these tips!
Montessori-inspired star and constellation unit with a roundup of resources and activities for multiple ages; perfect for classroom or homeschool!
One of the most time-consuming things teachers deal with is student absences! I no longer worry about this because my students completely take care of it!
FREE tattling vs. reporting classroom management activity! This puzzle center is a great way to review the difference between tattling and reporting.
Amazon teacher favorites! If you are looking for some new classroom finds, gere are some to add to your wishlist.
Create a positive classroom culture in your classroom with these five activities
Download free teacher printables now – our 100% free educational resources can help you create engaging lessons for your students.
Teach kids empathy and compassion through mindful, fun lessons, discussions, and activities that build social awareness and community.
Fun, free, and engaging ideas to incorporate a class pet and take-home journal with your students. The perfect classroom management tool!
An Elementary Teaching Blog with tips, ideas and freebies for your classroom. For new teachers and seasoned teachers alike!
Here are six essential back to school lessons I’ll be using in my classroom this back-to-school season.
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 […]
Ikea has something for everyone, and teachers are no exception!
Ever since I visited the Ron Clark Academy and saw the AMAZING teachers there use a stage to help transform their classrooms, I knew I just HAD TO HAVE ONE! As soon as I got back from RCA last October, I started transforming my classroom. A stage wasn't something I could build overnight, so I finished the school year with a makeshift stage. I lowered a rectangular table to the floor and BAM... a stage. It was amazing and my kiddos LOVED it, but... I knew I wanted a bigger and better one so I counted down until summer break when I my dad could hopefully make my dreams a reality. Since posting my stage on my Instagram account, I have gotten lots and lots of messages asking me just how I my dad made it, so I wanted to take some time to lay out all of the details in one place because YOU need a stage too, and you/your dad/husband can TOTALLY make one! How to build your own stage: Step ONE: Convince your Dad/Husband/Boyfriend/Friend to build it for you! HAHA! Ok... if you haven't caught on yet, it was MY DAD that built the stage, not me. I am blessed with a rockstar Dad who does woodworking in his spare time and he was kind enough to help me out. I painted and assisted in the heavy lifting, but the brains behind the operation was definitely my dad. Ok - Have you grabbed someone to build it for you or at least assist you?! Haha! Although I have utmost faith that you can complete this project yourself, it would still be easier for you if you have a partner to help you do the heavy lifting! As you start gluing/nailing things together, your stage will get really heavy. If you've found your builder/assistant... you are ready for step two. Step TWO: Go to Lowes and grab your items! What you'll need: -three 3/4 inch pieces of plywood -wood glue -large nails -three sets of door hinges (we put three hinges on each door) -paint Step THREE: Alright gang... It's finally time to build! We built two different 4'x4' squares so that the stage would be easier to transport. The two squares together makes my large 8'x4' stage. The entire stage is 9 inches tall. First, grab two pieces of plywood and cut each of them in half. You now have your two tops and two bottoms. The remaining piece of plywood will become your sides and bracing inside the stage. Side/bracing lengths: 4' long/9"tall Once you have all of your pieces cut, glue your bottoms and sides together and reinforce them using nails! You will also need to glue/nail in your bracing inside. The bracing is SO important for safety and support, so don't leave those out! Step THREE B: If you want to get fancy, you can add trimming to the pieces that will go around the top and around them bottom. My dad also cut out hand holes in the sides of the stage to make for easier carrying. Step 4: Paint everything! I chose to paint the outside of my stage yellow, the top black, and the inside white. Stage 5: Once you've gotten everything painted, you can then attach the top of your stage to the bottom using door hinges. We chose to put the hinges INSIDE the stage so that the metal pieces weren't showing on the outside. You can just put them on the outside if that is easiest for you. (Amazon Affilate links are provided in this post for your convenience.) Step 6: Once everything is painted and attached, you are ready to haul your stage to school and MAKE MAGIC HAPPEN! (Super fun lights under my board can be found on Amazon HERE.) If you have any additional questions, please feel free to leave them in my comments and I'll ask my Dad if they are questions I don't know how to answer! I truly believe EVERY classroom should have a stage, so I hope you will get to building! You can do it!
Are you interested in plants for a dark classroom or office this year? Or maybe you don't have a classroom or an office, but you have a dark home? Well, this crazy plant lady has a few tried-and-true suggestions for best plants for a dark classroom or office. Of course, one factor to keep in mind involves how much light your classroom actually receives. Why not fill up your space with leafy, beautiful plant babies? After all, Nasa studies show houseplants can have a positive effect on rooms by purifying the air through the removal of toxic agents. Whose classroom
As secondary teachers, when it comes to decorating we often don’t know where to start. Sometimes, we just don’t have the time or energy to devote to another long project with possible m…
An effective whole class reward system can transform behavior in your classroom, but only if it's implemented with this one key to success.
Grab your set of 9 poster prints for classroom decor! Decorate your classroom with posters that are cute with a purpose.
Do you teach science? Today, on the blog, I'm sharing ideas and inspiration for decorating your science classroom.
Because getting kids to line up shouldn't require rocket science.
Tutorial on how to effectively use Classdojo in your elementary classroom
Checkout these 5 amazing plants for the classroom! Plants bring life and brightness to any space in the classroom and can instantly transform your room!
10 fun and easy hallway songs to prepare students to go into the hall quietly!
Update your Social Studies classroom decor cheaply and easily with fun and useful decor. Make your classroom fun and inviting for students.
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!
Discover how to easily manage class jobs to help improve student engagement, responsibility, and classroom community.
Inside you'll find an easy step-by-step how to draw a Minecraft Self Portrait & Minecraft Coloring Page. Stop by and grab yours for free.
Check out these 10 ESL classroom favorites. All of these things I use again and again to save time or make life easier in the ESL classroom.
Whether you're looking for a first day ice breaker or games to play at a back to school bash, this list has something for everyone!
Are you ready to dive right into flexible seating in your primary classroom, but you’re not quite sure where to start? Last summer I knew I wanted to give it a try too, but I was TERRIFIED! I’m not ki
14 years ago I walked into my very first art room, full of so much excitement but also feeling totally overwhelmed wondering where to even begin!?
Happy August! We got home from our six day road trip last night, and now it’s time for me to buckle down and start thinking about BACK TO SCHOOL. Our first teacher work day is August 17th, so I’m less than two weeks away now… In honor of that, I thought I’d bring back “Teaching Tuesday”...Read More »
Homeschooling mom and engineer with a passion for STEM education.
Elementary teachers planning a mountains classroom theme will love these decor ideas, inspiring photos, bulletin board tips, and resources.
