"He Ruined My Artwork!" Dealing With Art Room Vandalism % %
I’ve been spending some serious amounts of time this summer leading conversations around the country focused on the integration of social studies and literacy. And for the last few years, I…
Dremel tools are bringing endless opportunities; there are so many different Dremel tool uses you can tackle. Check out six things you can accomplish with a Dremel tool.
Folded Book Art - Best & Most Clear Tutorial Available: I just absolutely love creating my own folded book art. It's such a fun way of re-using old books and give them another purpose. I've searched and searched the web to find any tutorials on how to do it and i just couldn't find anything. Until one da…
Drinking straws at the ready, let’s try bubble painting! Bubble painting This really is an art activity where the process of creating the art is at least as much fun as the finished result. Every child I’ve done this with has loved blowing bubbles. Blow, don’t stuck! It is important that all the artists understand […]
Oh my word? Have you ever spent hours at the end of the school year sorting through student work to put into memory books. Have you ever lost your mind trying to figure out who stole the binding machine to put together books while you so desperately need to begin yours. Were you that teacher who took the binding machine? Oh geez, this is stressing me out just hearing about this! If you hate putting memory books together, then I've got the solution for you! All you'll need are file folders with the prongs and a two hole punch. See the entire tutorial over at Easy Teaching Tools! Want your very own editable copy of the memory book cover? Head to Easy Teaching Tools to pick up several color options for FREE!
Chalk markers are one of those tools that I’ve used and haven’t liked, so I dismissed them altogether. They’re so fussy that by the time you get one to work, you could have been d…
Folded Book Art - Best & Most Clear Tutorial Available: I just absolutely love creating my own folded book art. It's such a fun way of re-using old books and give them another purpose. I've searched and searched the web to find any tutorials on how to do it and i just couldn't find anything. Until one da…
On My Hook is a segment where I feature a free pattern that is either currently on my hook or recently finished, as a way to inspire you and support other
Open when letters for boyfriend / girlfriend / wife / husband, for your best friend, for your child, mom or dad, for ANYONE! PLUS an example letter that you can use as inspiration.
Italic calligraphy is one of the most famous calligraphy scripts in the history of the Latin Alphabet. It is a very dynamic and versatile script with many variations, and in today’s tutorial, we are going to cover the very basics to get you started. This tutorial was created in collaboration…
Real talk: classroom management has always been my biggest struggle as a teacher. I think that this is true for a lot of teachers. It’s one thing to read about classroom management strategies in a college classroom, but it’s a whole other ballgame when you’re standing in front of a roomful of middle schoolers and you are somehow expected to keep them all in line! I’ve had a few tough groups over my first few years, and I needed something to up my classroom management game. The classroom management strategy I’m going to share with you today has been a total game-changer for me, and I hope it can help you, too! This strategy is called Behavior Bingo. To implement it, you will need a 10×10 chart numbered from 1-100. I used to draw mine out on big chart paper, but I’ve since created this handy printable board so that I don’t have to draw it out each time! You will also need 100 popsicle sticks each labeled with a number from 1-100. I keep these in one of those metal pails from Target, and you will also need another pail for the sticks to go in once you have pulled them. You will need a board and set of numbers for each class you are using this with – I have used it with up to 4 classes at once! I marked each class’s set of sticks with a different color and then discarded them all into the same tub. If you don’t want to buy or have to label all the popsicle sticks, I have also seen teachers use small slips of paper numbered 1-100, or even just a random number generator online! Here are the rules that I use: The object of the game is to get 10 numbers in a row (vertical, horizontal, or diagonal) and get a bingo. At the start of each class, I write the numbers 1 2 3 on the front whiteboard. During class, I erase a number any time the students are not meeting my expectations, starting with 3, then 2, then 1. At the end of class, however many numbers are left on the board is how many popsicle sticks they get to pull that day. For example, if only the 3 was erased, then they get to pull 2 popsicle sticks. They can earn up to 3 numbers each day. The students pull out the correct number of sticks for that day. I let them take turns. I hold the jar up above their heads so they can’t peek inside. Then I color in the numbers that were pulled on the bingo board. You can certainly adjust these rules to meet your needs. For instance, you could use a smaller or bigger bingo board, depending on how quickly you want them to earn their reward. With the 10×10 board, it usually takes 1-2 months to earn the reward. You could also adjust how many numbers they can earn each day. Another thing you could do is tie the numbers to specific goals. For instance, my students know that at the beginning of class they need to be in their seats with homework out and working on their warmup. If this doesn’t happen, they know I will erase a number. As for the reward, we choose this as a class before beginning the game. I have the students brainstorm ideas (I tell them that they need to be something either relatively inexpensive or free and can only take up about 20-30 minutes of class time) and list them all on the board. Then I have the students vote for their top two choices. Some ideas we have come up with in the past include an ice cream party (I bring the ice cream, they bring the toppings), root beer float party, time outside, free time, board games, donut party, dodgeball, or popcorn and a short movie. I write their choice at the bottom of the bingo board as a reminder of what we are working toward. And that’s it! It’s very easy to keep it running, and it has been very motivating to my students, especially when they are down to only one number left for the day. You can find the printable board that I use in my Teachers Pay Teachers store if you’re interested! Do you have any awesome classroom management strategies? I would love to hear about them in the comments!
Nicknamed “Belgium’s capital of cool” by Conde Nast Traveler, Antwerp certainly lives up to its lofty label. Whether you spend your time exploring the captivating historic city center, hopping between alluring art galleries, shopping at
Fall is in the air now and whether you are looking for a simple coloring page or a more in-depth autumn craft activity like string art, you've come to the perfect spot. Today, we are going to share with you this free printable leaf template that will surely be loved by young children, preschool, kindergarten
Add baby oil to your oil pastel drawing and it becomes an oil pastel painting. This simple experience is the perfect way to learn how to blend oil pastels.
It's that time again - the end of the school year! I've come up with a list of 37 end of the year activities that you can use in your own classroom to make those last days of school special and fun for you and your students. Click through to read all of the ideas - lots of links are included to more resources!
So you’ve taught your students to write sentences. Now what? In the beginning of my career, we worked HARD on writing sentences. When it came time to take the next step into writing paragraphs, I found this was even harder for my students. We were able to write 2-3 sentences about a topic or picture, ... Read More about How to Scaffold Paragraph Writing for Special Education
Kindergarten Rocks! 5 year olds are the best. I was a kindergarten teacher for many years before I became an art teacher. The kids are so full of wonder and possibility. I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite art activities for 5 year olds. Some are ones I’ve done more recently, […]
Independent reading is a great way to help students build a love of reading! These 5 strategies help hold students accountable!
10 mistakes I made as a first-year teacher, what I learned my first year of teaching, and how I've grown as a teacher since then.
Happy Friday everyone! I've been a little MIA since our last pattern release. Back to back colds have run through our house and we are all finally starting to feel better. Which means I have pulled out my crochet hook again to finish up some patterns that I'm excited to share with you! One of them are these fun little stuffed hearts! I'll be using them in a new pattern that you can find here! These little hearts measure about 2 inches tall, I used size 4 worsted weight yarn and my favorite 3.5mm hook. (My poor hooks, I really need to mix it up and use the other sizes too, I might add that to my 2019 resolution list!) Feel free to use another size hook or yarn if you'd like a smaller or bigger size heart. I think they could be quite fun with some safety eyes and facial expressions added too! Don't want to miss any upcoming patterns? Be sure to subscribe to my newsletter and I will keep you in the loop! Feel free to join the Grace and Yarn Crochet Group on Facebook too! We'd love to see what you've been working on, plus it's a great place to ask questions and engage with others who love to crochet! PIN to your favorite crochet board here to save for later! This post contains affiliate links, please click here for more info. Thank you for supporting Grace and Yarn! You may make and sell items made from this pattern but please do not sell, share or reproduce the actual pattern. If you sell finished items online (Etsy, etc) please provide a link to the pattern and credit to me as the designer, thank you! I hope you enjoy this pattern! Materials Small amount of your color of choice (I used size 4 worsted weight yarn, this was a great way to use up some of my yarn that was too small to wind into a cake!) 3.5mm hook Scissors Tapestry needle (bent tips are my favorite for amigurumi but straight tips will work great as well, no sewing needed for this pattern!) Small amount of stuffing Abbreviations - US Terminology MC - Magic circle SC - Single crochet SC INC - Single crochet increase INV DEC - Invisible decrease You will want to be familiar with working in a magic circle and using invisible decreases. I have a few examples below to get you started, for more amigurumi tips head over here! Magic Circle - A magic circle (also called an adjustable loop) is the most common way to start amigurumi. 1. Leaving about a 4 inch tail wrap the yarn into a circle as in the photos below. 2. Hold the loop by placing your fingers over the part where the working yarn crosses over the tail. 3. Insert your hook into the circle, yarn over, pull through and chain 1 4. You're magic circle is now ready to start as your pattern instructs (ex: if round one says 6 SC you will complete 6 SC around the loop) 5. Pull your tail tight to close Invisible Decrease - This is the preferred way to decrease in amigurumi, it keeps the decrease tight and avoids the 'bump' of a regular SC decrease. An invisible decrease happens over two stitches, insert your hook into the front loop of the first stitch and then into the front loop of the second stitch (you will have 3 loops on your hook), yarn over, pull through two loops (you will have 2 loops left on your hook), yarn over again and pull through all loops on the hook. Note: The heart is made with two pieces joined together. Make two pieces using rounds 1-4. At the end of the 2nd piece do not fasten off, proceed to round 5 to join them together and make the body of the heart. **I recommend using a stitch marker either at the beginning or end of your round, slowly stuff as you go. Here we go! Round 1: Create a magic circle with 6 SC Round 2: SC INC in each stitch around (12) Rounds 3-4: SC around (12) Round 5: Attach to the first piece with a SC. SC around the first piece and then the second (24 SC) This completes your join and is where your next round will start, from here we will work the rest of the heart. Round 6: SC in the first 6 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (21) Round 7: SC in the first 5 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (18) Round 8: SC in the first 4 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (15) Round 9: SC in the first 3 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (12) Round 10: SC in the first 2 stitches, INV DEC in the next, rep around (9) Round 11: SC in the first stitch, INV DEC in the next, rep around (6) Fasten off and sew remaining part closed. Your mini amigurumi heart is done, easy peasy! I hope you enjoyed this tutorial! Check back next week for a new pattern where we'll use these fun little hearts! Thanks so much for stopping by!
Over the years I've created and shared more than 500 printables here on the blog. Keeping track of all of them and, more importantly, making them easy for you to find can be a bit
This week was our first week back and, boy am I tired! My class is great though...very inquisitive and eager to learn. They take their work seriously and are actively working most of the day. Who could ask for more?? We did quite a few things this week, but I want to share with you one "get to know you" project we did that really came out great. I seriously can't stop staring at it! I saw this pin on Pinterest. I love how it looks and thought it would make a great welcome sign. Now, on the pin, the hands seemed to be just colored in. I wanted something a bit more. So we started with creating Circle Maps about ourselves. What made us special? What are some things that have shaped us? Where did you go in your life? etc....Most of the kids finished these Circle Maps in class on the first day of school. I then asked the students to trace their hands and arms on a piece of 11 x 17" piece of paper. They then had to draw, write, decorate, etc...the traced in hand with items from the Circle Map. The goal was to teach their fellow classmates about themselves in a visual way, without giving away too much information (ie: I didn't want them to write paragraphs.) That is pretty much how far we got in class. So, the first homework assignment the students had to finish the project at home. I gave them this sheet so that they could be a bit more focused on their project and add a bit if they wanted. (but if you are going copy-less, just forgo this. They can write the information on a sheet of paper instead.) The next day, the hands came back to school...and they were great! I had the kids get into groups and share what they decided to put on their hands and why. The kids learned a lot about each other in that 15 minute session! You can see some of them used words as well as pictures to tell about themselves. I love the one directly in the center of this picture! Others just used pictures, like the one in the middle here. When I went to put them around a piece of poster board, like in the original pin, they didn't fit :( I think if I had used a smaller piece of paper to trace their hands to begin with they might have. Oh well! I decided to put them up as if the hands were all in a line, raising up.....and it came out great! I overlapped the hands, so I was able to get 5 or 6 on one piece of large construction paper. I then mounted them on my wall. I love it! All in all, this was a fun little project that served as a great way for the kids to get to know each other and make a nice display! What is something you do during the first week of school to help the kids get to know each other and for you to learn a little about them? Follow me on Snapchat for even more teaching ideas!
Are you new to machine quilting? You may have made tied quilts for a while and now want to explore machine quilting. I’ve seen a lot of advice given for how to machine quilt but I think mos…
Looking for things to do in Rotterdam? You've came to the right place! In this article you can find the best things to do in Rotterdam, from popular sight seeing spots to lesser known places in our city.
Being the crazy person that I am, I've been at school the last week and a half setting up my classroom even though I won't be returning until November because of my maternity leave. In between the hot gluing and book labeling, I met the person who will be filling in for me while I am out. She's fresh out of college, completed her student teaching, and came to meet me with a list of questions and color-coded notes. She was prepared ... and I was impressed!We got talking about the big picture: curriculum, routines to establish, units to cover. Before leaving, she asked me several questions, but one in particular made me pause...What is your behavior plan? I literally stared at her for a few awkward beats and started flipping through my mental rolodex (youngins, look it up lol). Then it hit me. I don't have one! I don't have one because I don't need one, and why don't I need one???I'm sure most veteran teachers feel this way! Most of us don't have explicit behavior plans, so what do we know, what do we do, that new teachers don't?Tip One: It starts with the first interaction. The first day of school and every day after, I am at the door greeting the kids when they enter my room. I make eye contact, say hello, once I learn it, I say their name, and smile! The first day of school I shake their hands and welcome them into the classroom. THIS IS KEY. If a student tries to enter the room in a way that I do not approve of, I do not let them enter. I literally say these words: That's not how we come into this classroom. Let's try that again. There is no yelling. I keep a pleasant smile, but my tone is strict. They try again, and you bet they enter in a more appropriate way and the correct tone is set. She means business!Tip Two: Loud vs. Quiet My first year teaching I had all these cute call and responses to get the class's attention, but they never worked and I couldn't figure out why. But after observing master teachers I figured it out. When students get loud, new teachers get louder. Master teachers get quieter.I don't know about your house, but in my house if we told our parents something and they were silent, it was WAY worse than if they yelled. Same thing in the classroom. Never, NEVER talk over the students. There are 20+ of them and one of you; they will win every time. The louder they get, the quieter you get. Stand completely still and wait. Wait. Wait. Until every student's attention is on you. It may take a bit, but do it. I normally watch the clock. Standing there waiting can feel like a while, but watch the clock - count in your head 30 seconds, 45 seconds, 1 minute if it takes that long. As soon as you have everyone's attention, glance around the room and move on. They get it. EVERYONE'S attention matters. It's important that they ALL hear what is about to be said. Once they learn this, they get each other quiet when you call for attention.What to do with the one student who still talks? Use the power of a dramatic entrance!I wear heels every day (another story lol), so if a student continues to talk while I'm waiting, I walk... slowly... click... click... arms crossed... making my way over... until I'm standing next to them. I glance down and wait. No yelling. No scolding. No lecturing. Just waiting. Once they finish, pause a beat, then move on. Continue teaching.This quiet waiting game prevents chaos from ensuing! There is no yelling, no lecturing needed!Tip Three: Know their priorities... Most likely, it's not you. Having taught for almost ten years in a middle school, I can tell you there is no greater influence on tweens than their peers. They are so hyper-conscious of how they appear in front of their friends or classmates - keep this in mind! It can be to your advantage, or if used the wrong way, can be a nightmare.Because of this social awareness, confronting a student's behavior in front of the class is not going to work. Most of the time, they get embarrassed and act out because everyone is watching. Corrections need to be discreet. Walk over to a student's desk. Tap on the desk and in a low voice tell them in a few words what needs to be done. Student playing with something they shouldn't have? Walk over, tap the desk, make eye contact: We're doing xyz now. Wait until you see action, and then keep walking. If they behavior doesn't improve, I normally give the kids one more chance. If after I address them twice there is no change, I ask them to step into the hallway. That is where I will have the conversation about appropriate behavior. But NEVER in front of their peers! That is a sure-fire way to start a hostile relationship with a student.Let's Wrap Up... 1. Set the tone at the start of class2. Keep your voice calm and strong3. Redirect students in a discreet manner I hope these tips help all new teachers or even veteran teachers! They have worked for me with my 7th graders! If you have any tips you'd like to add, please comment below! ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Want more iMrs Hughes? Keep the conversation going on Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram! Be sure to check out my TeachersPayTeachers store for additional resources!
1. Kidz Bop Kids: You can find every single Kiz Bop album EVER on Spotify! It is fantastic!!! I love that I can play the current hits and know that they'll be clean and kid friendly. The kids never complained about it either.
