Math Stations, when done correctly, can solve many classroom challenges. Math stations can meet the needs of various learners, provide practice on spiraled concepts, and it puts the responsibility of learning on the students. Seems like a win-win! In addition, technology has made personalized learning easier than ever! You may be eager to try math stations (or math centers), but are ...
Seating Charts for Middle School
Seating charts for middle school classrooms are essential! They are the foundation of classroom management. Be prepared for day 1 of school with a completed seating chart. Let’s talk about why. Why Should You Have a Seating Chart In a perfect world, all students would be successful no matter where they were sitting in your classroom. We don’t live in a perfect world or ...
3 No-Prep Checks for Understanding
A CFU, or check for understanding, is a formative assessment and a crucial part of instruction. Are students ready to move on to working independently? Are students ready to move on to more rigorous problems? A check for understanding can answer these questions as well as help you identify which students need additional support. What makes an effective CFU? A check for ...
How to Juggle Multiple Preps
Most teachers juggle multiple preps. No matter your content or grade level, if you have been teaching for any length of time, it is inevitable. We asked our Facebook group how many preps they taught, and one teacher said 7! Wow! Let’s talk about some of the ways we can manage teaching multiple preps. Keep scrolling to learn about something HUGE that Maneuvering the Middle is ...
5 Back-to-School Tasks to Knock Out
The start of the school year is just around the corner. With that comes the energy and excitement of getting ahead, so let’s talk back-to-school tasks that you can knock out these last weeks (...or days) of summer. (And if you don’t need this right now, x out, and enjoy the rest of your summer!) You are limited to doing pretty general tasks without class lists, and maybe without ...
Back-to-School Round Up
If you are already thinking about your classroom and gathering ideas on Pinterest for a classroom management system, this post is for you. We have rounded up some of our favorite back-to-school blog posts and put them in one spot for your ease and enjoyment. On Preparing your Mindset Prepare yourself to lead your classroom confidently and effectively. Back to school ...
Student Organization in Middle School
Do you struggle with student organization? When I taught high school students, students would throw away their papers as they left my room – IN FRONT OF ME. Has this happened to you? Today, I am sharing what student organization system has worked for me and how other teachers have students organize notes and other papers using Maneuvering the Middle ...
Smartphone and Social Media Solutions: What Teachers and Parents Can Do
Let's talk smartphones and social media solutions! Welcome to our book study on The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt! In part 1, I wrote about the harmful effects of smartphones, technology, and social media on today’s adolescence. Today I will be summarizing recommendations that the author outlines in the books for what we can do as parents, teachers, and schools to combat ...
Smartphones, Social Media, and Student Minds
Smartphones, social media, and student minds - let's talk about it! The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt was recommended to me in a Parenting in a Tech World Facebook group. I purchased the book and put it on my shelf vowing to read it when my 1st grader was a little older. Fast forward to a few weeks ago, said 1st grader asked me what TikTok was. “Where did you hear that ...
The Pros and Cons of Advanced Math
In 2023, Texas passed a law requiring school districts to develop an advanced math program for middle school students that enables students to enroll in Algebra I in 8th grade. If you work backwards, that means students would be responsible for learning 6th, 7th, and 8th grade standards in just a two-year period. Let’s talk about the pros and cons of this, and what Maneuvering the ...