More challenge? People might argue, "The increased rigor of today's classroom is ruining our children!  Let them be kids!  Enough with the crazy standards and unreasonable expectations!" And I agree--enough with UNREASONABLE expectations. That being said, I have been doing this teaching thing for quite some time, and I have noticed a number of things.  One of them is that as our standards have increased in rigor, many students do not have the learning behaviors to tackle them.  It's not that they don't have the ACADEMIC ability--they simply don't have the  proper "learning behaviors" to be successful. This can happen for a number of reasons.  They haven't had to tackle challenging tasks before.  They have gotten too much help (you've seen it--the learned helplessness?),  They might not have someone who truly can help them believe that they CAN do it.  That's where YOU come in. Today I challenge YOU with these FIVE...
I am a technology junky!  At any given time you will find a collection of iPads, laptops, iPhones, smart T.V.s, e-readers, you name it.  If you haven't read Goodnight iPad by Ann Droyd, you really should.  This may very well have taken place in my house.  ;) If you aren't sold on the importance of integrating technology in the classroom or have doubts, this video is an absolute MUST!!  This video is one of the most powerful videos that I have watched lately. This year I was fortunate to receive Chromebooks for all of my students.  Receiving these Chromebooks and feeling the pressure (mostly self-induced) to use them often and effectively was, and still is, overwhelming. To keep my sanity in check, I decided to start small.  By starting small, I saved my sanity and also my students'. Whether you have one, two, three or many technology devices available for your students, start small!! To get you started or to simply get your creative technology juices f...
Math is definitely  my favorite subject to teach.  I love to use a math workshop model and teach my students in a small group setting.  I also love to find short, focused videos to introduce/review math topics.  Below are 6 websites that you can search and find videos to use during your math whole class instruction.   1. Art of Problem Solving This website has a large collection of math videos.  The videos are for older students (grades 5+). 2. KhanAcademy This website is pretty awesome! You can search by topic or grade-level.  What is neat is that there is a path you can follow that has videos and practice problems. 3. VirtualNerd The videos on this website are so well organized!  They are prefect if you are looking for a short video to introduce/review a topic.  (grades 1 - highschool) 4. LearnZillion This is my favorite website for math videos!  You can search any topic and then narrow it down by grade-level and standard.  The example...
This is my favorite time of year!! I love bundling up on cool winter days, celebrating with friends and family, and that feeling of the holiday season in the air!! I also love sharing this time of year with my students!! Although it can be a bit crazy, with their spirits high, it is also a very exciting time for all! Every year I try to incorporate as many fun and educational activities as I can, while also celebrating the holiday season. Today Upper Elementary Snapshots would like to share some of our favorite winter and holiday themed activities!! So, grab a warm beverage, curl up with a cozy blanket, and get ready to download some fabulous freebies to get you through the next two weeks.... Language Arts This Christmas-Themed Roll-a-Story is a favorite in my classroom!! Find it Here!! Reinforce your students' figurative language skills with this simile activity!! Find it Here!! Homophones are brought to life with these Holly Jolly Homophones!! Find it H...
Every year, I try my best to keep my students' parents "in-the-know" about everything going on with their child.  Parents know what they are learning, where they are struggling, and how they are doing in class.  However, the one area I never seem to communicate well in is WRITING!!  It always seems as though ALL writing instruction and practice happens in the classroom, and because it takes so much time to finish an entire writing piece, parents rarely see their child's writing samples. Over the years I have come up with a few ways to get parents more involved in their student's writing.  Here are a few simple tips that will help solve this problem. Send the Writing Process Home Instead of having my students complete every part of the writing process in class, I started having my students work on their writing at home. Once my students are at the point where they are ready to edit their paper - meaning I have already gone through all of my l esso...
While Santa is busy up at the North Pole making his list and checking it twice, you should be doing the same with your lesson plans. December brings changes in schedules, unexpected interruptions to your routine and a general feeling of excitement in the air which often translates into chaos in the classroom if you aren’t prepared for it. Don’t panic! December does not need to be all about surviving until winter break. In fact, it is the perfect time to take all that energy and channel it into motivated learning. Below are three tips to make sure that when it comes to your classroom, “all is calm” and when it comes to your students, “all are bright.” This is the perfect time to plan research activities for your class to work on throughout the month. Research projects are chock full of reading, writing, drawing, and artistic tasks that will automatically create a quieter learning environment just by the nature of the activity. They are also ideal because they are great sp...