This past week my school was short a few subs, which means I had to pitch in and sub for a couple hours in one of the classrooms. I haven’t substitute taught in many years. Substituting this past week reminded me that there is some essential information that needs to be included in sub plans to make the day run […]
10 Essentials for Sub Plans
Setting the Tone: Music in the Classroom
Music is such an awesome classroom management tool! I know a lot of teachers who already do this, but I wanted to share how I use music in the classroom. When I was a classroom teacher, I created a Spotify playlist that I played every morning as my students were arriving. In case you don’t know, there is a free […]
10 Hoppy Easter Brain Breaks!
The first day of Spring is next week! Does it feel like spring where you are? Here in South Carolina we are finally getting some warm weather, but the pollen has kicked up. It’s like it is raining yellow! However with the arrival of spring and warmer weather, our students tend to get more bouncy as they wake up from […]
A Round-Up of FREE Resources for SOR Independent Work
Awhile back I wrote about how to bring the fun back into the classroom in a world of curriculums. If you didn’t catch that post, you can read it here. Anyway at the end I wrote that I would be back with some independent work ideas. You may be asking yourself, “Why is she giving us ideas now?” To answer […]
Winter Brain Breaks to Energize Students for Learning
After the holidays, it seems like a looong time until the next break! During this time teachers tend to pick up the learning pace and really hone in on what their students need to get them to the next level. However, we still need to remember to give those brains a break on a regular basis during lessons. This will […]
10 Christmas Brain Breaks to Get You and Your Class to the Holiday Break
Two more weeks for everyone, hopefully! Here in my district we have 10 more school days, but who’s counting, right? To help get you and your students through these next two weeks of craziness, whether it be special holiday dress-up days, more testing, or whatever other holiday festivities your school deems “fun,” here are ten of my favorite Christmas Brain […]
Thanksgiving Brain Breaks to Get Pre-Holiday Wiggles Out
I know my students get more squirrely around the holidays and have more difficulty staying focused and on task. I’m sure yours do, too! To help combat those extra wiggles, I add a couple more short brain breaks into our day along with adding more movement into the lessons I am teaching. Here are 10 of my favorite Thanksgiving brain […]
October is Bullying Prevention Month
This past Wednesday, Oct. 19 was Unity Day and it was announced at my school for staff and students to wear orange to show support against bullying. So, I wore orange because I definitely support the cause, but I admit I didn’t really know much more than that about Unity Day. Hence, I am writing this post as I do […]
Fun Fall Brain Break Videos for Grades PreK-2
With the start of fall happening this past week, I wanted to put together a list of fun fall brain break videos for the classroom! I know most teachers have their favorite go-to videos and, of course, GoNoodle, but it’s always nice to change it up a bit to keep your students’ attention. Also, it gives you the opportunity to […]
Keep Relationships Growing Throughout the Year
Now that you’ve spent some time building relationships with your students and between your students, how do you use the information you acquired during that time to keep your positive relationships growing? Just like how you take care of a plant by watering it and making sure it gets sunlight or the plant will wilt and eventually die; the same […]