A word wall is a great interactie tool in the ELA classroom to teach middle school and high school students vocabulary and literary terms. This post has ideas and activities that make a word wall effective in a Language Arts classroom. Plus, you can download a free template for a QR-Code word wall making it easy to create in your classroom!
Happy summer, friends! It's fading fast, is it not? Maybe you are here today because you are in search of teacher must haves from Amazon or because you are looking for first year teacher must haves for yourself or for a friend or family member. Either way, I've got a list of classroom must haves for you! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I may earn a small commission (at no cost to you) for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, or link to any products or services from this website. There are so many helpful teacher must haves
Ideas for elementary, middle, and high school classrooms.
In this post, I'm describing the areas and tools that go into a life skills classroom at the secondary level. Check out the examples.
Come check out how I organize, decorate, and utilize spaces & activities to be functional on this Adult Transition classroom tour!
High school teacher Grace Dearborn says students don’t all respond to consequences in the same way, so teachers need a full toolbox of options.
Effective classroom management strategies are essential for a positive and productive learning environment for middle and high school students.
A daily agenda slide is an excellent classroom management tool that will keep you organized. This editable PowerPoint template can be used in Google too!
It's the 2nd month of school and if you've gotten to know your students than you may find these 10 easy classroom management hacks for high school helpful.
Are you looking for quick, simple tips for teaching writing in high school English? These ideas totally changed the way that I teach and...
Lesson plans provide teachers with a framework and a sense of accountability to ensure they are walking into their classroom each day fully prepared.
Canva is an excellent website for students to use to create graphics, reports, infographics, one-pagers, brochures, e-books, posters, public service announcements, collages, images, and MORE. It's a go-to resource for ease of use, and students can integrate Canva into both reading workshop and writ
This model and template will help college, high school, and middle school teachers put together a syllabus that sets you and your students up for a great year.
With these classroom management strategies, your room will have order and your students will thrive. Quickly create your classroom management plan here!
Follow my blog with Bloglovin Teaching vocabulary is vital for the secondary content-area classroom, but the task can also be the most boring activity students must endure. Change that up with this simple how-to! Make learning vocabulary an event in your classroom rather than a start-of-unit menial task. Allow adequate time for the event, and […]
If you're feeling like you’ll lose your mind if you have to repeat yourself one more time. Here's how to get students to listen and follow directions the first time.
Do you want to know the secondary classroom procedure I can't live without??
The use of cell phones during instructional time is a pervasive problem that is only growing in intensity. In this article, learn exactly what to do to completely eliminate their use in the classroom.
When back to school season rolls around, I always have my guard up when it comes to shopping. There is always SO MUCH that I WANT, and so little that I actually NEED. What I’ve done for the past few years is this: I set a budget and I set a limit on my projects. The point of su
By Room 213 There is no doubt about it: students will learn more when they are intrinsically motivated, when they see a purpose beyond a test and a grade, or when they get a sense of enjoyment out of the activity. One thing that is sure to motivate your students is a sense of fun and play, something that we don't spend enough time on in the secondary classroom. We often see a game as an activity you do when the work is done, as a reward. However, what if we could use fun and games to support and enhance learning instead? We can. In fact, using games and challenges in the secondary classroom will definitely enhance student learning. Here's why and how: Challenges offer a low risk way to practice skills Games and challenges should not just be "fillers;" instead, they should be used to zero in on an important skill you want your students to hone. In a sense, you "trick" them into learning. This works because when the students see the activity as "only a game" -- that it's about winning or losing a challenge rather than getting a grade -- they may be more apt to engage and take risks than they are when a grade is at stake. So how do you come up with a challenge or game that does this? First, decide on a skill that your students need to learn or practice. For example, most English students need to work on the art of writing strong thesis statements--something that can be a little dry and boring to the average teenager. However, if you try something like Caitlin Tucker's Thesis Throwdown, complete with motivational music in the background, all of a sudden, creating a strong argument becomes a fun challenge -- and the thesis statements get better. They really do. When I saw my students struggling with creating their own metaphors, I designed a metaphor challenge to get them to practice. The activity was so successful, we extended it to other forms of figurative language. The kids had lots of fun and became much better at understanding how authors use these devices. They also started using them more often in their own writing. 2. Games build skills for collaboration & communication Games and challenges are the perfect way to teach communication skills too. Speaking and listening is an important part of all language arts courses, as is critical thinking. There is nothing like giving groups a challenge to get them communicating with each other to solve a problem. Weaker students can also use these opportunities to learn strategies from stronger students, strategies they can use later when they need to do similar problems on their own. You can turn anything that you want your students to work on into a group challenge. Do they need to practice certain writing skills? Get your students to work on them together with a short group writing competition. Do they need to improve their ability to choose effective quotations to back up their ideas? Challenge groups to find the most quotes to illustrate the development of a major character in a text they are studying. When they're done, you can have a class debate about which ones are most effective. You can also use a group challenge to have your students find examples of good writing in the texts they read. Have them use their class text or independent novels to find different types of sentences or an author's use of simile or metaphor. Regardless of the task, students will need to not only work on the skill but also discuss each person's choices and come to a consensus about which ones to use. (Try this yourself, by grabbing this Literary Challenge freebie). 3. Create a climate where learning is fun and engagingThe most rewarding part of using games and challenges in your classroom is that your students will begin to see learning as fun. They will be more likely to persist at the task and will feel great satisfaction when they are successful. Take vocabulary building, for example. Learning new words and parroting back definitions in a traditional assignment isn't that exciting, but if you turn it into a game, then learning those new words becomes far more interesting. You may even find that students can't wait to get to your class to see what they're going to learn next! This word choice challenge was one of my favorites because not only did my students love it, I could use it pretty much any time in the school year when I wanted them to review the importance of choosing the best word for the job. Can English class be all fun and games? Probably not. But, with a little creative thought, you can find ways to build more learning challenges into your lesson plans. Go ahead: I challenge you. Check out my Games & Challenges Bundle My friends at the coffee shop also have some creative ways to challenge students. Check them out here: Presto Plans: Growth Mindset Classroom Challenge Nouvelle ELA: Harlem Renaissance Escape Room The SuperHERO Teacher: Board Game for Any Novel The Daring English Teacher: Test Prep Vocabulary Escape Room SaveSave
Ask any high school teacher, and they’ll tell you one of the most annoying rituals of the day is students coming up before and during class asking if they can run to the bathroom. Not only is it di…
A time management worksheet will inspire you as you work your way toward improved productivity and better health and well-being. Significantly...
A lesson plan! A lesson plan! My kingdom for a lesson plan!
These are the 5 Procedures Every Classroom Needs. From hall passes to supplies to absent work, find the procedures to make your classroom work.
As a business teacher, one of the key objectives is to prepare students for the workplace. While covering key concepts is essential, it is equally important to teach the soft skills students need t…
My class has fish. And I’d enthusiastically encourage any high school teacher to consider adding one (or another kind of pet) to their classroom.
Read about how ChatGPT can help streamline your teacher life!
Do you want to know the secondary classroom procedure I can't live without??
If you’re a teacher, you’ve probably had to tell your students to put their phones away once or twice (or a million times). As technology and social media have increased, so has our students’ need to have their phones on them at ALL TIMES. While there are times when phones are necessary as part of […]
Every line of work has their own FAQs, and the longer you’re in the biz, the more answers you have; some you could answer in your sleep. Teaching is no exception.
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These teacher hacks are brilliant ideas for your classroom that'll make your life so much easier this year. Number nine will change your life!
I am a sucker for handmade posters in my classroom. From inspirational quotes to anchor charts for ELA and math, my room is full of them!Some of them I hand drew on poster board or
Some days you just need a break from the monotony! Preparing for exams, transitioning to a new unit, days when half your students are gone for a basketball tour
Give students a visual to assist them in advocating for themselves while self-assessing, and keeping students engaged in their learning.
Interested in using anchor charts with older students? Read about benefits, best practices, and materials to make the experience a success.
Even if you've been teaching a while, you might still experience moments when all of your classroom management tools stop working. This one cheap, quick strategy, using a simple blank notebook, can help you regain control in under a minute.
As kids get older, organization becomes ever more important! While it is a critical skill for all ages, kids and young adults are often just learning to develop and strengthen their skills as more responsibilities are added on in their lives. When you think about it, kids and young adults can have a
Calling a student out in front of their peers can be unavoidable at times. But this can be tricky when you're dealing with middle and high school students.
Free printable bell ringers for high school and middle school family and consumer science and culinary arts. These bell ringers are for life skills high school and middle school as well as ways to …
Set yourself and your students up for success by planning your high school classroom procedures and routines this school year.
Do you want to know the secondary classroom procedure I can't live without??
Even if you've been teaching a while, you might still experience moments when all of your classroom management tools stop working. This one cheap, quick strategy, using a simple blank notebook, can help you regain control in under a minute.
