Want to use your photo with your Cricut Machine? Learn the 3 easiest ways to convert your png or jpg to SVG and cut file for use with your Cricut!
Have you ever had one of those parenting moments where you realize you thought you had taught your kids something, but realized you actually never had? I realized recently that my daughter doesn't know what being flexible means. I say it to her all the time and I always thought she understood w
Learn how to make this homemade Jacob's ladder toy with your kids. It's made with simple supplies you likely already have!
I have been starting my Christmas present happy fun time making. :) I thought I would share some of my new favorite things: book bags! I was going to ask if you wanted a tutorial, then when I was sitting...
Emotional triggers can put you in a great mood, launch you into a state of rage, or set your recovery goals back to the stone age. I'm a person in long-term recovery. I practice emotional sobriety. I work with sponsors in two 12-step programs to help me get along peacefully with other people and the world. I still made someone cry this past week. It was not intentional and I felt terrible.
Unsure how to deal with back talk? How to appropriately respond instead of react & calm disrespectful behavior, letting natural consequences teach the lesson whenever possible.
When you are diagnosed with late-stage (chronic) Lyme disease there are many things you might be tempted to do but there are at least 5 things you ABSOLUTELY MUST NOT do. I clearly remember the day I was diagnosed with Lyme disease. It was in 2009 after a two-year-long journey of visiting doctor after doctor
Are you trying out a reading workshop model this year with your Kinders or first graders? If so, you might be wondering, how on earth do I set up a reading workshop when my kids can’t even read?! That’s definitely what I was wondering when I first started implementing reading workshop a couple of years ago. I was teaching Kindergarten, and I think I only had one student who knew a few letter names. They didn’t know letter sounds, and I definitely didn’t have any beginning readers. If this is what your situation is like, you can still implement a reading workshop in your classroom! Even if your little ones can’t name a single alphabet letter, there are things you can teach them to begin setting up the reading workshop. Here are some ideas for minilesson topics that you can use when you first start reading workshop with your nonreaders:– Procedures and Routines: Begin with the basics, such as: how students should access their reading materials, where they should sit, how to treat books, how to hold the book correctly and turn the pages, how to read silently and keep their eyes on the book, etc. It will definitely take multiple days (maybe even weeks) to teach all these routines and procedures. Just teach one simple procedure per minilesson. Also, to squeeze more procedures into one day of reading workshop, you can teach a minilesson, have kids read for 5 minutes, teach another minilesson, and have them read for another 5 minutes. This gives you more time to teach important routines, while still taking into account your students’ teeny tiny attention spans!– How to Tell a Story from the Pictures: Teach students that even if they can’t read the words, they can still tell a story to themselves from the pictures! Simply telling kids that they can do this isn’t enough, though – you have to actually model it. What I did was check out a few picture books from the library in languages that I can’t read – Russian, Chinese, Polish, etc. I would show students the book and begin by saying something like, “I found this beautiful book in the library, and I really want to read it. But I have a problem. The book is written in CHINESE! I don’t know how to read Chinese!! But guess what? Even though I can’t read the words, I can still tell the story by reading the pictures. Let me show you what I mean.” Then I would begin paging through the book, telling the story aloud as students listened. I would wrap up by saying something like, “Today I showed you that even if you can’t read the words of a book, you can still use the pictures to tell yourself the story! You can try this out today during reading time.” And then I would dismiss the kids to begin reading. Some of my Kinders were able to do it after I modeled once, but I modeled this skill several more times with different books so that all of the kids eventually “got it.” One note about this – make sure that when you establish guidelines for independent reading, you don’t require students to be completely silent. When kids begin to tell a story by using the pictures, teach them to whisper the story quietly to themselves – most kids won’t be able to silently tell the story in their heads. – How to Retell a Story You Already Know: Spend lots of time in those first few weeks of school reading aloud fairy tales and repetitive books to students. Some books I love using for this are: The Three Billy Goats Gruff, The Three Little Pigs, Brown Bear, and I Went Walking. Then, get as many copies as you can of each of those books. Place them in students’ reading bags (side note: at the beginning of the year, rather than having students check books out, I prepared book baggies for them and had them switch bags amongst themselves each day so they would have new books to read). Then, teach a couple of minilessons about how to tell a story that you already know. You might start by saying something like, “Readers, today I want to teach you that when you are reading a book that you’ve already heard before, you can retell the story using the pictures and what you remember about the story.” Then, take out a story that children are familiar with and model retelling it (without using any of the words). Have students practice this during independent reading time.– How to Read Songs: I loved singing with my Kindergarteners, and I taught them quite a few songs at the beginning of the year (simple, shorter songs are best). I then gave them copies of the lyrics that they could “read” during independent reading time. To make this work, I started by typing up the lyrics to each song. On each page, I put an image that went with the lyrics (for instance, with a song about a frog, I put clipart of a frog on that page, so they would immediately know what song it was). Then, while we sang the song as a class, I projected a copy of the lyrics on my interactive white board. I modeled how to point to the words as we sang. After practicing a song many, many times, I made copies of the lyrics for the kids. I modeled how to sing the song using the lyric sheet, and then gave them the sheets to keep in their bags for independent reading time. It was soooo cute to see them whisper-singing the songs to themselves and attempting to point to the words! They just loved this option for independent reading time. If you teach in Spanish, click HERE for a free copy of the lyrics that I used with my bilingual Kinders. – Partner Reading: Since little ones can’t sustain independent reading for very long at the beginning of the year, mix things up with some
This page will help you discover strategies for paras and push-in teachers to work effectively with general education teachers. You’ll find tips for both classroom teachers and paras. Setting Up Space for Paraeducators When I was a general education teacher, there were several years when I had either a one-on-one student aide (for very high … Continued
The above is the loft bed I had in mind. I drew it out so my friends daughter, Nova, could approve. The look of it changed a bit since this drawing but is mostly the same. There will be a dresser tucked under the right side, the steps will have drawers, and the left side will look like drawers but would actually be a door. That last part changed though because I wasn't sure how well they would take care of the door (my friends kids are a bit rough with doors, haha!).
Prepping Matrix Scheme in High Resolution! The Prepping Matrix helps you visualize everything that needs to be accomplished. As adults, we tend to focus on areas that we are interested in, and neglect areas that we are not. When I first started prepping, I looked for a prepping road map, but was unable to find one. In addition to your personal preps, this matrix can be used to explain what is involved in the prepping lifestyle to those just getting started. Additionally, a group can use it to identify priorities and responsibilities. It is a really fantastic resource that I recommend you to take a look at Thank You!
This post will help you figure out where to eat in Riga by introducing you to some of the best spots to get coffee, lunch, dinner, and of course, cocktails.
In which Book Rioters share with you which books they read in December and loved best (and why they loved those books). Get some good recommendations here!
So you want to become a Nutritarian? You’ve read one of Dr. Fuhrman’s books and you know what the 6 week Aggressive Weight Loss plan entails. Get ready for week #1! This first week was all about survival and acceptance. I’m happy to report that when I weighed myself this morning I had lost 7 ...
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.
Choose your favorite 5" charm squares to make you own cute and scrappy My Town quilt!
Most crafters jump right into selling their crafts without looking into the legal steps they must take. These are the top 3 big ones most crafters skip.
Hi Friends… I hope this post finds you well and enjoying your summer break. I just returned home from a relaxing vacation in Punta Cana! It was a ton of fun and I really needed the R & R 🙂 I actually wrote this blog post on the plane there…BUT… the flight didn’t have any … Science FUN with Interactive Notebooks! Read More »
Time Blindness is a big struggle when you have ADHD. Here's how and why it's a problem along with the best ADHD friendly strategies to combat its affect.
Practice writing cursive letters by tracing them on this free printable worksheet. Learn the cursive alphabet!
After my gluten free Berlin adventure, I realized that most big cities will have a variety of gluten free options - it's just a matter of finding them.
Do you have chronic ear, nose, and throat issues? You may be considering getting your tonsils out as an adult. I had my tonsils out as an adult and although the recovery was intense, it was well worth it.
Elementary teachers need this quick classroom management strategy that increases attention rate during insurrections. Revamp classroom management.
Sample monthly and weekly activity calendars for activity coordinators working in nursing homes. I know from experience that when i first started at a rest home I was thrown in the deep end, and I just thought by sharing this it may help out a newbie to develop their activities program. This is a wonderful resource to help you plan ahead. Thanks to everyone who has shared their calendar.
I am going to let you in on a little secret. When I was a tween/teenager I was a loser. I guess thats not a big secret since I really don't have that many friends as an adult. And based on my writing
This was a very FUN project that i did for a friend's school. They auctioned these off for their school fundraising event. I photographed each child in the 3 kindergarten classes and then asked them what they wanted to be...
How to Salvage a DVD Drive for Free Parts: Have you ever wonder what is inside those optical drives that can be used ? When I was a kid it was really interesting for me to know ways to recycle parts. Even now it is something i find fun and interesting. Guys this has been nominated for treasu…
Learn the step-by-step process to plan project based learning in this blog post. Then download your free PBL planning guide!
For most private practice therapists, marketing is a foreign endeavor, shrouded in mystery and bad vibes. In reality, marketing is just about offering your services. Not forcing or controlling. Just offering. But where to start? Here’s a checklist where you can start.
I know what it's like to stand in the middle of a messy room and feel paralyzed by the mess. This will help: How to clean your house when it's messy -
If you've read my blog or bought any of my writing products from TpT, then you know that I am a huge fan of the Read-Around-Group. I love when kids read each other's writing and
For most private practice therapists, marketing is a foreign endeavor, shrouded in mystery and bad vibes. In reality, marketing is just about offering your services. Not forcing or controlling. Just offering. But where to start? Here’s a checklist where you can start.
This little girl loves talking to her dad. When this 16 month old baby got a call from her daddy dearest, she just couldn't bring herself to give the phone back to her mama. As she starts talking in her own language, you can't help but melt. Her enthusiastic phone call is surely going to
I never would have thought I would be tracking data digitally, I am really not that savvy when it comes to tech, however, when someone pointed out how easy it was, I had to try it. You guys, its sooo much easier than my typical paper and pencil tracking system. I had data sheets EVERYWHERE!! […]
Priceless: When someone shows you a clever way of doing something rather mundane and in a moment of awe and giddiness you realize, "I will finally like doing this!" I was always slipping and sliding around the sample room floor at work because of these small bits of weird 1" wide woven trim that looked like a coated ho
