Elementary Tales

TAH-DAH!!  Welcome to my very first link-up courtesy of Mrs. Bainbridge's Class .  (I feel silly saying linky, I'm new to this blogging stuff.  Give me time) ;) So here's my story... I am something of a pro when it comes to packing up my room.  At my old district, of the 6 years I spent teaching I've had to pack up and move everything out of my room about 6 times.  Yikes!  Once, I moved rooms during the school year, with the kids in the room, in the middle of the day, given a 3 days notice (not complaining, It was a move for the better ;)).  So yeah, I got this under control. This will be my first year in a new district, I cannot wait to get my junk out of the attic.  (That would be my ENTIRE classroom)!! Pile one consists of boxes I've been through this summer.  Nice and organized. The second and much larger pile is everything else. Who knows what I have back there!  It's been a whole year since I've been in a classro...

Every summer I like to read  How to be an Effective Teacher the First Days of School  by Harry K. Wong and Rosemary T. Wong.  It's a tradition.  It also helps me to start the year organized, inspired, and confident.  Here are my notes from each unit, plus additional information from internet searches, Pinterest, etc. that I found useful and actually do/use in my classroom from year to year. I have read this book cover-to-cover at least 6 times! Must read for new teachers. Unit A helps you to understand why you are teaching in the first place. 1.  Why you need to succeed on the first days of school: Consistency is key:  this creates a safe environment for students that is also predictable and nurturing Come up with a good classroom management plan and stick to it A sample classroom management plan from  Smart Classroom Management A sample  powerpoint  presentati...

I love to-do lists.  They make me sane even though I will probably do only half of the to-do's.  I will take the summer to map out my classroom and how I want those first few days to go so that I'm prepared when the whirlwind of in-service meetings begin and then you are left with a day and a half to get your classroom ready.  Maybe some of these ideas will inspire. Pocket Chart Ideas: Calendar Helpers Daily Graph Story/Poem of the Week Mountain Language/Math Attendance Centers Weekly Spelling/Sight Words list Sticker Chart Uses: Weekly Behavior Homework Accelerated Math/Reading Book Club Displays/Posters: Math Vocabulary (with pictures/examples) Science/Social Studies Theme with Literature Quality Work Examples Themes/Units (per grading period) Writing Examples/Themes Student of the Month Birthdays Holidays Important/Current Events Preparing for the 1st Week of School: Script Getting to Know You Activities Transitions Procedures Ice ...

This game is a great alternative to Around the World with flash cards.  I picked this up at a training my first year of teaching and I've been using it ever since.  The kids love it and it allows every child a chance at answering the math facts. Rules: All students stand at their desk.  The teacher walks around the room with the Kaboom can to each student one at a time.  The student will: 1.  draw a card out of the Kaboom can, 2.  answer the basic fact problem, 3.  answer correctly and the student stays standing, 4.  answer incorrectly and the student sits down, 5.  draw a Kaboom! card and the student sits down. The last student standing is the winner. Here's how I made my new Kaboom cans... One can for each operation 1.  Clean the empty cans. 2.  Measure and cut colorful scrapbook paper. 3.  Glue paper on cans. 4.  Add stickers and done! You can print out the addition , subtraction , multiplicatio...

In order to explain a project, here is a handy  poster  you can add to your bulletin board.  I like to add specific TEKS too.  This is especially handy for open house or when visitors come to school. This is actually way back in the day when I was student teaching in a 2nd grade classroom.  (I miss you Cohort K)!! A closeup of the poster.

Here is a form that I created after years of trial and error.  I wanted to make something that would give parents as much information about their child's day while keeping it simple and quick for the teacher to fill out on a daily basis.  This is just a sample that can be customized to fit your school's behavior plan and color charts. Behavior Calendar

I like to be prepared ahead of time for the first day of school, so I print out  labels  for my folders, journals, notebooks, etc.  Sometimes I spend too much time organizing, but that's what keeps me sane. P.S.  I don't use all these labels in a given year.  I was just trying to cover as many bases as possible.