Classroom Management and Google Tip of the Day

Hi everyone!

Here's a quick little tip to start your Saturday. I always number my students. Number your students! For SO MANY REASONS. 

First of all, confidentiality. I can take anecdotal notes on student number 4 without everyone in the school knowing who that is. 

Also, I don't need to relabel things in my classroom every single year - there are some things that are numbered and just stay. Next, the teacher is number 1. 

When I set up programs or sign up for things online, I am student number 1, and I can experience everything as a student. 

When we line up for fire drills, we are in numbered order to make it simple for the teacher (or substitute) to determine if we are missing anyone. Just yell, "One!" and everyone else starts yelling their numbers in order. 

Finally, in Google Slides, if I give kids an assignment, slide 1 is the directions, and the students can each work on their numbered slide. It makes life easy!

Just another tip to make life easier for us teachers!

Classroom Management Tip from me to you!

Hi everyone!

Here is a quick tip for avoiding confusion with kids and being able to clarify when needed. 

Have kids parrot the instructions. 

I always love watching Whole Brain teaching videos on YouTube. When I taught second grade I incorporated some of the cutesy call outs. I always found a way to incorporate a version of Mirror (kids repeat after you) and Gestures (kids teach each other something using gestures). Repetition and gestures cement knowledge. Plus, teaching a friend the directions, new vocabulary word, or new concept helped the kids understand it deeper. 

No, I didn’t continue with Whole Brain teaching, but my students usually understood instructions because they repeated them back to me and oftentimes explained them in their own words, paired with gestures, to a peer nearby. 

If interested in learning more about Whole Brain teaching, that is a YouTube rabbit hole I encourage you to dive into! It feels more primary, but there’s always something you can integrate into your classroom without feeling the need to start the entire program!

Classroom Fairy Door

This little door from Amazon has worked wonders in my classroom for behavior management! My little third graders really believe that there is a fairy living on the other side of the door. They think that diary brings them clean desk notes and treats, messy desk reminders to clean up, and little rhyming notes for fun in their mailboxes!

The coolest part about the fairy door was the WRITING it inspired. My kids write stories about the purple door and what is behind it. They write mysteries, fictional fantasy stories, and riddles. It has been INSPIRING! And a ton of fun for me to sprinkle glitter on the floor every once in a while. :)

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Classroom-Fairy-Starter-Pack-2938546

Hi there! I'll be linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday today. So, let's get started! :)

I've been experimenting with new ways to incorporate our secret agents day into the year. My second graders had a blast with this room transformation last year! I created secret agents days focused on area, multiplication, addition, subtraction, and time to make this year memorable for my third graders!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Secret-Agents-Day-AREA-2989107

Have you ever made a deep dish pizza in a crock pot? It really works! Just use Pillsbury pizza dough and layer your toppings! It was DELICIOUS!

Yet again, the Valentines science kits I found on TPT were a hit with my students as a Valentines day gift! And so easy! I bought the materials for less than $15 and packaged them in an hour!

I became a Seesaw ambassador recently! Seesaw has transformed my parent communication and I LOVE IT! Email me for more information. I also have a Seesaw ambassador code to get you some free Seesaw Plus, which is an amazing formative assessment tool.

http://web.seesaw.me

I started a new bulletin board in my classroom recently. I began pulling mentor sentences and paragraphs from my students' writing journals and posting them on the bulletin board as inspiration for the class. The kids love reading each other's writing and using this variation of a mentor text.

Student Writers As Mentor Texts

BRILLIANT IDEA:

I had a kind of awkward bulletin board in my classroom behind my library area. I wasn't sure what to do with it for a while. I recently decided to use it as mentor wall for writing. I took excerpts from the writing journals of my students and hung them on the bulletin board for other students to look to as mentor writing pieces. It makes those kids feel GREAT that they are being celebrated, and the other students have tangible examples of the kind of writing I want from their peers.

Five for Friday

Hi there! I'll be linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday today. So, let's get started! :)

Lucy and I have been loving all of the snow in upstate New York recently!

Of course, with the crazy weather here, we have 2 feet of snow one day and then two days later it's 50 degrees and everything is melting! 

Just a little shout out to Teach-a-Roo, who created an amazing resource! I downloaded these Valentine Science kits this year instead of giving out treat bags (because they definitely don't need MORE sugar on Valentine's day!) and they were a huge hit! I went back and downloaded other science kits to use for other vacations throughout the school year!

Check them out here!

I visited a local living museum on a full moon when they were doing an Owl Moon night. It was a lot of fun! There was a nighttime snowy hike in the woods, roasting marshmallows, a reading of Owl Moon, hot chocolate and cookies, and....REAL LIVE OWLS! Very exciting!

Here is a sample of some writing one of my second graders did for me recently. I love Reader Response Journals! I write my kiddos a letter each week in their journals, and they respond to me. One paragraph is personal, and the other is text-based. You can see some of the scaffolding I provide (which goes away as the year progresses). I love looking back through these journals and seeing how far each of my students has come!

I'm still loving the Brag Tags! They are a new addition to my second grade classroom this year. I wish I had thought to use them last year too, because I know that class would have appreciated them as well! 

Tech Thursday

I'm linking up with the Teaching Trio for Tech Thursday!

I really love the iPad app EPIC!!! I use it during my Daily Five for Read to Self/Listen to Reading. Basically, it's a $4.99 Netflix-type app for reading books BUT it's FREE for educators!!! So cool. I got my free subscription (free for life, FYI.), added my student names, and started using the app right away. Kids log in, find their name, and start choosing books based on their reading level and interests. Some are books that will read aloud to the kids, and others the kids read on their own. As the teacher, I can track how long it took kids to read a book (if they are just flipping through or really reading, and if they give up on a book after 20 seconds). Plus, there are tons of recognizable books, and different books for kids to experience. Anyway, for a free app, it's definitely worth checking out!

Try Epic, ASAP! :)