I've completed week three and not only am I still alive, I'm loving what I'm doing. I love being in a K - 8 school. You can't be upset for too long when the littlest midgets swing by your room to show you the rainbow they just drew. Not only am I teaching four periods of middle school social studies, I'm also teaching a small pull out ELA group. I love getting back to working on literature. Although social studies is my passion, I love teaching reading so this is a great opportunity. Mostly, I loooooooove my interactive notebooks! Right now I've been working on the Five Themes of Geography with my seventh graders and U.S. geography with my eighth graders and they are already loving the notebooks. I love taking something s simple as a worksheet and making it creative and interactive. If you are interested, you can purchase some interactive notebook units over at my TPT store, Engaging Them All. My five themes unit is new and improved! I've added PowerPoints for whole class instruction, a formative assessment and a final project tapping into that old "Create" category in Bloom's Taxonomy (my favorite!!) Click here to check it out!!

Here are 13 fun classroom games to keep students to loves learning . Click here:

I totally forgot to tell you about this great item I made because I started making it over April Vacation stopped and didn't finish till the first days of summer. Labor of Love!!! I have found that many of my kiddos struggle with writing a claim because they just can't recognize one themselves. I created these task cards to help them. On each task card, students are given two to three pieces of evidence supporting one side of a contemporary debate. Using the evidence, students have to choose the best possible claim from three possibilities. This is great as a quick review, a launch to claims, or remediation for your struggling writers. Head on over and check it out!!!

If you have students with limited verbal communication and are looking for ways to engage them during whole group instruction or various daily activities, these big poster sized core boards are a PERFECT addition to your classroom! A great way to supplement for students who use AAC, these core boards are a great way to make communication accessible for all in your classroom! If you: Have students who are primarily verbal communicators, but occasionally need some assistance to be understood Have students who are practicing using core boards and would benefit from having them more easily accessible in the classroom Are teaching core vocabulary in your classroom Are looking for a simple way to increase communication in your classroom Are looking for more opportunities to model AAC and core vocabulary for your students ... then these BIG core boards are perfect for you!! Included in this resource: Three different core boards in three formats each General core board with basic vocabulary (24x36") Snack core board with snack vocabulary (24x24") Restroom core board with restroom vocabulary (24x24") Each board includes the following formats: Modified Fitzgerald key and Goossens', Crain, and Elder color coded boards, and plain (non-color coded) *This resource requires access to a printer that can print large sized products (could easily be printed at a local print shop, a school print shop, or on a poster printer). This resource is not editable *Please note that students should continue to have access to their own individual AAC devices in addition to these. These are not to replace students' communication devices or invididual core boards, but are simply to make it easier to increase communication in the classroom!

Use the jigsaw teaching strategy to engage your students and give them more ownership of their learning. Try it in your classroom.

Explore learning the important geometry terms while working on this geometry map project that's hands-on, engaging, and integrates social studies!

Learning, especially for preschoolers, should be a multi-sensory experience.

Use this puzzle as a springboard to discuss the qualities of a good friend. Play, help, share, respect, and care are all listed on the puzzle pieces. Students may cut, color, and glue them back together while engaging in conversation about how they can apply these traits to help make new friends!

Get to know your new students during the first week of school with this 'all about me' foldable craft. This self-portrait folding activity is a fun and hands-on alternative to a standard back-to-school worksheet for first and second grade. You could use these in the classroom for a first day or week of school activity, or send home for students to complete as a transition activity over the summer break. It could also be used for a myself/me topic or unit, or a back-to-school bulletin board. The Templates There are 15 templates so children can pick one that best matches their hairstyle. They then draw eyes, eyebrows, skin/hair color, and lips, creating a self-portrait! The templates are included with and without a rectangle outline to provide an option for less confident cutters. The simple inside sections prompt students to add some information about themselves - name, age, favorite colors, something that makes them smile, and something they are good at. Finally, they cut out the design, and fold (directions are included for this). Bring the 2 sides of the face together, then gently pull apart to reveal the inside, like a concertina. Minimal prep is needed - just print templates onto letter-sized paper or cardstock and have colored pencils in skin/hair/eye tones and scissors available. Glue/tape are not required. Please note that this is not an editable file. Versions with both US and UK spelling/paper sizes are included. Benefits of this activity Get to know students in a fun way at the start of a new school year Students can complete a template that looks like them Develops fine motor skills (cutting and folding) Easy-cut options for those less confident with scissors The finished foldouts can be used for a back-to-school bulletin board What teachers are saying: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'This was a great resource to use during the first week of school. It gives everyone an opportunity to learn about each other. Thank you!' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'This was an excellent resource for getting to know my new class, and getting them to engage with one another. We had a great time discussing what they'd written, and I would thoroughly recommend this to other teachers!' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'My students loved this as an activity to introduce themselves to one another!' You may be interested in these other back-to-school about me resources: Space themed all about me Dinosaur themed all about me Vertical folding all about me All about me folding pencil craft

Honesty & Integrity - Social Skills SEL Lesson Unlock a world of character development for your elementary students with this fun & engaging resource focused on honesty and integrity! Instilling these values early in life is crucial, and this lesson makes it easy for young minds to understand the importance of honesty and integrity in building trust and forming lasting relationships. Elementary students are at a critical stage of moral development. By explicitly teaching social skills, we empower them to become responsible and trustworthy individuals. This SEL unit has it all! This means minimal prep for the teacher! It includes a detailed lesson plan, colorful PowerPoint slides that match the lesson perfectly, an independent activity, and a class game that adds an element of fun while reinforcing the concepts of honesty and integrity. Equip your students with the tools they need to navigate the complexities of life with honestly, integrity and trustworthiness! Includes: ☑️ detailed lesson plans ☑️ colorful & engaging lesson slides ☑️ 1 individual activity ☑️ 1 whole class game Get Unlimited Access to the entire store HERE! Related Resources: Identifying Emotions & Feelings SEL Morning Meetings – Mindset Quotes and Social Stories ✉ Let's Connect! ✉ Blog Instagram Pinterest

First grade math centers! SO many fun geometry activities to help teach 2D shapes and 3D shapes in this super fun and differentiated JAM-PACKED unit that is filled with over 300 pages of everything you need to teach 2D and 3D shapes. This pack covers 5 main standards/concepts: 2D shapes, 3D shapes, 2D and 3D shapes attributes, 2D and 3D shapes in real life, and composing shapes. There is a lot of stuff in here! There are 81 differentiated worksheets, 26 math stations, and 40 cut and pastes in this pack alone! All of the math stations come with student-friendly guided directions, teacher directions/tips, all of the materials, and recording sheets and most of them are differentiated as well. Get this in the First Grade Math Units 10-18 BUNDLE to save a ton! **ADDED**: I added over 50 pages of Composing Shapes differentiated worksheets and center activities so this pack is now over 300 pages! If you already own this or the Units 10-18 bundle, please re-download to get the new pages free! You can check out some of the activities from that section here: Composing Shapes in 1st Grade **Please click the green PREVIEW button above** It will show you the table of contents to give you an idea of what is included :) In the actual unit, clicking on the links will take you to that page in the unit for super quick and easy navigation to find exactly what you need. This is everything you need to print and go to teach these geometry concepts to a variety of learners - it will save you so much time! Plus, ALL of your students will be learning and having fun at their own level since everything is already differentiated for you! This pack will make your math planning a breeze! A UK spelling version is included in the file. This unit is also available in Spanish! Unidad 17: Las figuras geométricas For my other first grade math units: First Grade Math Unit 1 First Grade Math Unit 2 First Grade Math Unit 3 First Grade Math Unit 4 First Grade Math Unit 5 First Grade Math Unit 6 First Grade Math Unit 7 First Grade Math Unit 8 First Grade Math Unit 9 You can currently get all of these at a deep discount in the Units 1-9 bundle!! First Grade Math Units 1-9 BUNDLED First Grade Math Unit 10 First Grade Math Unit 11 First Grade Math Unit 12 First Grade Math Unit 13 First Grade Math Unit 14 First Grade Math Unit 15 First Grade Math Unit 16 First Grade Math Unit 17 First Grade Math Unit 18 which you can also get for a deep discount in the First Grade Math Units 10-18 BUNDLE I also have a Money Unit in this same format! - Miss Giraffe

Awesome collection of Spanish Vocabulary printables for Spanish Preschool, Spanish Immersion Kindergarten, and Elementary Spanish. Browse by resource or theme!

There are more ways to demonstrate understanding than just taking a test! This amazing list has 72 ideas for a project that are...

Kids love Dinosaurs! Take a journey and learn all about them with this 4-week Dinosaur Unit Study geared toward preschoolers.

Getting kids excited about annotating text is a challenge. Using SNOTS not only helps students annotate text, it's engaging and fun.