Soft Start Mornings Just like adults, students need a time to adjust in the morning. I am sure most of you start the day with a cup of coffee or have a routine that helps get you ready for the day. Why don't we do this for students when they arrive to school?  Soft start mornings is probably not something new, it may just be a new name for something that you already do. It is a time set aside in the classroom when students arrive for them to have a few minutes of choice before starting the academic part of the day. We would like to share how we implement soft start mornings in our upper elementary classroom. We have found this to be extremely beneficial for a smooth start to the school day. Students love the routine and we know it helps them get focused for the day. Listed below are the many choices you could have for students for soft start mornings. Pick and choose which ones you think would be successful with your students. You may want to start with five choices a...
The first days of school are extremely important. This is when you take the time to explicitly explain and practice classroom rules and procedures. It is also a time to get to know your students. During the first week of school, my students complete a fun 'Getting to Know You' activity. Below is a picture of a few pages my students complete during the first week of school. Students usually complete these pages for morning work, but you can staple the pages and create back to school books. Students can then work on the books throughout the week. Another great activity that students love to work on is an All About Me Dodecahedron Project. Students are so proud of the final project. Best of all - you can display these around your classroom :) Below is a video on how to assemble the dodecahedron.  You can view this dodecahedron project and others by clicking the images below.     Click the image below to download the free All About Me Pages. ...
Math centers are a large component of guided math, but in order to differentiate and meet the needs of our students on a daily basis, creating and keeping up with math centers can be so time consuming.   So, how can you simplify math centers in order to make them realistically manageable?   Here’s my solution:   GO DIGITAL! Technically, what constitutes a math center?   Math centers provide opportunities for student to practice skills that have been previously taught.   That's it!   There are an abundance of printable math center available.   I love them, because I just love making things cute.   What I have noticed though, is that I can’t keep up with the demands of putting them together.   I have to print them, cut them out, laminate them (I don’t want to have to start the process over again), and then store them.   It’s all so time consuming, and I always feel that I’m behind.   I’ve discovered that creating and implementing math centers does not ha...
tw When it comes to math, geometry seems to be in a whole different league. Some kids fall in love with it instantly, while it seems challenging for other kids. One of the great things about geometry is that there are so many hands-on activities we can provide for our students, which makes it lots of fun! Here are some of my favorite geometry activities: 1. Start With Shapes I like to have students start with shapes they've known since they were tiny, like triangles, squares, and circles. We draw these on whiteboards as a whole class. Next we draw the more advanced shapes like pentagons, hexagons, octagons, trapezoids, and even the rhombus! This brings us to a discussion of polygons and we can classify shapes that way. Besides whiteboards, there are lots of ways for kids to work with shapes, like Popsicle sticks (which are also great to use to illustrate lines like parallel, intersecting, and perpendicular), LEGOS, Geoboards, and even clothespins which can be clipped t...
For the past several years, instead of posting a list of rules in my classroom, I have used motivational posters. Not only do they make a pretty bulletin board that can be left up year around, there are several other reasons why using motivational posters in your classroom can be a benefit to your students. 1. Motivational posters provide students with a positive message. Rather than posting a list of behaviors that students should not do, motivational posters provide students with examples of positive behaviors, and these posters can help to reinforce the positive behaviors that students should strive to have. 2. Motivational posters make a great morning routine. Simply choral read, or have a student in charge of reading the motivational posters each morning. This is another way to motivate students each morning to be their best. 3. Motivational posters can be used as a reference. When students make mistakes, motivational posters are a great reference to remind st...
Let's be honest. You're an expert.  You can browse Pinterest like a pro.  You flip through Instagram and get all sorts of amazing ideas.  There are SO many ideas out there--it's sometimes hard to sort through it all and actually take action. Today's post is geared toward helping you do just that-- TAKE ACTION.   On my blog, I am working to help teachers stop browsing and start DOING with a series of actionable posts geared toward making a real difference with math instruction in your classrooms.  Sometimes I think it's harder to jump in when it feels like there is SO much to do, so I am trying to make the idea of "self professional development" easier by giving some actionable steps throughout the summer.  Improving Math Instruction To get started, I thought I'd share with you a few ways to immediately take action in YOUR classroom to make some changes that directly impact students--and you as a busy, overworked professional.  Are yo...
I was in the classroom for 26 years and I have to admit I fumbled many times. The good thing is I found what works and what doesn't work. Throughout those bumps in the road, there are lessons to be learned- even for teachers! Read on to find out what NOT to do in the classroom and alternative suggestions that will have your students begging to learn! 1.  DON'T USE A TEXTBOOK EXCLUSIVELY I'm not going to lie. When I first started teaching back in the dark ages, I thought the textbook was the best way. Who knew better than an already created source of information? I quickly learned that students weren't learning as much as I thought and guess what? They were bored reading one page after another. Look at a textbook as a guide, not the sole plan of your lesson. Think of Social Studies for example. When I was teaching American History in fourth grade, we had a textbook. My students were learning the bare minimum. There was so much information, that I didn...