Years ago I had an administrator who banned coffee from the classrooms for food safety reasons. It was a short-lived but painful ban that I laugh about when I think back. I frequently joke with my students that “coffee makes me a better teacher”. The thing is… it’s not really a joke! Here at the […]
Learning Sight Words
If you teach reading, you probably spend a great deal of time focusing on fluency, reading comprehension, and decoding skills. One area that I sometimes lacked giving sufficient support and instruction is sight words. Especially as a middle school or even upper elementary teacher, it’s easy to assume that students know the most common sight […]
Teaching Vocabulary
Teaching vocabulary can be one of the most critical skills for readers (especially struggling readers). Many times, students just skip over important vocabulary without using the context clues or word parts to help them. Children really need to be taught how to identify important vocabulary words and examine them to understand why they are used […]
The Power of Positive
Psychologists have researched for years to try and find a perfect ratio of number of positive to negative comments. These researchers have investigated the power of positive comments at work places, in marriages, and at schools. It was interesting to find that many researchers agree on a ratio of around 5 positive comments to every […]
Simple Study Strategies Still Work!
With all new technology, I sometimes forget that some of the best study strategies for my students are the old fashioned ones. Making flashcards out of simple note cards is actually my favorite study strategy. It causes the student to be active in writing out the questions and answers by hand. This alone allows students […]
Incorporating Games into Reading Time
For many students, reading is a fun and enjoyable time where they can learn new things and build on their strengths. But for many other students, reading is a dreaded time. This is especially true if the student has a weakness or disability in the area of reading. It’s hard to make reading fun for […]
Helping Kids Get Organized!
As a middle school teacher, organization is one of the biggest areas that I see kids struggle with on a daily basis. As adults, most of us have already established our own routines that work for us and help us be organized. It’s our job as teachers to help students find those strategies and routines. […]
New Years – A Perfect Time for Goal-Setting
With New Year’s Day upon us in just a few hours, I thought about how right now is a great time for teachers to help students write meaningful goals. So many adults make their New Years Resolutions and our students should too! What is important is that students learn how to set goals that are […]
Last Minute Holiday Classroom Ideas
In my school, we are encouraged not to target any one specific holiday during this time of year so that no students are left out. Sometimes, this is challenging because many great lessons and activities are focused around Christmas. For the many teachers that have to teach in the next couple of days right before […]
Keeping Positive Communication with Parents
At this time of year, everything is so busy! Everything from planning for the holidays to planning lessons through December. It’s so busy that I sometimes forget to do something critical to each child’s success in my classroom – keeping an open (and positive) line of communication with parents. One very simple way to solve […]
