As teachers, we are always looking for new and better ways to do things. I think it’s part of our nature. I remember in my first year teaching, I bought those office trays that I used for students to collect and turn in papers. The trouble was that the papers would get crammed in there, some would fall out, and oftentimes, students would slip them in the wrong tray! The next ...
Extension Ideas for Early Finishers
Even when working with a 50-minute class period, there will be times when students complete their work quickly and need something “to do” for the last few minutes of class. If you have a longer class period, then likely this happens more frequently, and it’s something to be prepared for. If not, then you will end up saying something like, “Work on something quietly at your desk.” ...
Teaching Interview Tips and Best Practices
When you start applying for jobs, I think everyone starts the Google search with “teaching interview questions” or “what questions are asked on a teaching interview?” There is nothing worse than attending an interview and feeling unprepared when asked a question. While it does help to anticipate the specific questions that might be asked, it is also helpful to consider your interview ...
Change is a Verb
Disclaimer: I am not a trained counselor, psychologist, or psychiatrist. I am an educator, I attended public school for 12 years, I spent four years at a public university, received my graduate degree, and I taught nearly 1,000 students over a seven year span in public schools. Most importantly, I am a mom of a little boy. As I watch the news, I hear the details surrounding the ...
Scholastic Magazines for Middle School
Anyone who teaches middle schoolers is probably familiar with the question, “When are we going to use this?” It’s something about being 12-years -old that produces this ever-growing need to know. And we all know that good teaching practices include making real-world connections. Even many of the standards add that phrase. The truth of the matter is that sometimes those real-life ...
Donor’s Choose Ideas for Middle School
Occasionally, I will see in my personal Facebook page a post from a teacher sharing their Donor’s Choose project. I love to see how creative teachers are with their requests and how they plan to use them in the classroom. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Donor’s Choose it is essentially a crowd funding website where people and companies can fund projects for a specific ...
5 Homeroom Ideas To Keep You Sane
Homeroom- good gracious that can be such a struggle! On various campuses where I taught there were different homeroom ideas and what took place varied greatly. Our schedule typically paired it with lunch and it was intended for tutorial use. But, it wasn't uncommon that students wouldn't have work to do, or not have a book, or ... the list goes on and on. Today, is week five of ...
5 Tips for a Successful STAAR Review
Every year at this time, the pressure of the the spring, the lack of breaks, and then the lingering of the standardized test starts to set in. Here in Texas, students take the STAAR test in March, April, and May. Today, I wanted to share 6 STAAR review ideas to help get you geared up and to help prepare your students. This is the last of three posts about test prep, so ...
Goal Setting and Test Prep: Helping Students Achieve More
One of the realities that teachers face today is the prevalence of assessments. We assess at the school level, at the district level, and at the state level. I won’t go into the politics of assessment, but I will address the fact that we as teachers want our students to be successful on these assessments. If you haven’t checked on the first test prep post on how to keep it fun and ...
5 Classroom Management Books for Middle School
Earlier in the year, we talked about the various different routines and procedures that are beneficial within the middle school classroom. I mentioned the essential classroom management book, The First Days of School, as a resource and reference of the post. I know that classroom management can be a point of tension, especially at this point in the year. So, I wanted to seek out some ...