There are tons of strategies for analyzing texts. This post will focus on teaching students to annotate important parts of the text, which is called text annotation. Teaching text annotation is a great way to support your 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students because it’s an effective reading comprehension strategy
Are you looking to learn more about student portfolios and perhaps begin implementing them in your classroom? Did you already take the leap of faith and begin using them but haven’t found an organization tool you love? Wherever you are on your student portfolio journey, know this… Student portfolios can
It is officially spring! I couldn’t be more excited about that. I’m already looking forward to teaching my Life Cycle of Plants and Flowers Unit because we had so much fun with it last year. It’s packed with a ton of Plant Life Cycle project ideas and activities! What I really
Prior to teaching fractions, I find it very helpful to teach the geometry standards. I had an absolute blast teaching 2D Geometry to my third graders recently. It’s a concept that lends itself to lots of hands-on learning and project-based learning experiences. I was really impressed with how quickly my
Regardless of what grade you teach, I have a free student check-in system resource for you that will help you better understand the relationships between your students. This system includes a classroom check-in form that helps you identify which student or students need some extra attention. It was inspired by
When you draft your lesson plans, you have the following resources on hand: computer with internet, teacher manuals, thematic resources you’ve accumulated, pacing guide / curriculum maps, Common Core Materials and Standards, and plans from previous years. Wow, that’s a lot! Check out the tools for organizing lesson plans below to
Testing has very much become a part of school culture. Teachers often initiate assessments, using them meaningfully to plan purposeful, data-driven instruction that aligns directly with what they teach in class. Other tests, however, come as standardized mandates. They’re often not developmentally appropriate, and teachers must administer them to students,
Thinking stems are a powerful tool for elementary teachers. They completely transform the way students respond to prompts and class discussions. Learn about what they are, why they are important, and how to implement them in your classroom below! What is a Thinking Stem? A thinking stem is a visual
In my classroom, we have book buddies. These partnerships come in two forms: Classroom Book Clubs and Reading Partners. A book club consists of a group of students (typically 4-6 is manageable) while reading partners are just two classmates. Both groupings operate in the same manner: The students read the
Yesterday, I blogged about organizing your big ideas and teaching concepts for the school year using curriculum maps. Today I’ll focus on integrating some of those concepts together by designing an integrated multidisciplinary thematic unit. I’m a thematic girl at heart. I live for planning my children’s birthday parties. I
As you start to think about the upcoming school year, it is helpful to start by thinking about “the Big Picture.” What is it that you want and need to cover during your overall time with your students? Creating and utilizing curriculum maps will allow you to be sure that
Today my family and I are planning to pop in to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so I made a new resource that fits the theme of the day. I think it’s also perfect for this time of year as things start winding down and the familiar glow of screen in a
