In too many classrooms, students aren't really thinking. It's time to try something different.
“Nothing is a mistake. There’s no win and no fail, there’s only make.”
Check out the best ESL reading comprehension activities and games, along with worksheets & lesson plans. Teaching reading can be fun!
How to teach ELL students to read challenging, on-grade level texts through Visible Reading, a differentiated, process-driven reading strategy.
What vocational targets for students with Autism do you need to hit in your class to make them job ready? Read on… and FREE Materials to help!| NoodleNook
*Updated April 2016 It's that time of year again! The last time I did this interior design school supplies post, it was for first week survival of design school. This time, I dug a little deeper. I wanted to share supplies that I thought would be used often. 11 Interior Design School Supplies Us
Students love this silly, funny area of a triangle foldable activity for student interactive notebooks because this is a lesson they're sure to remember!
Spanish speaking activities, icebreakers & games to get students speaking Spanish!
There are so many different places you can start from when creating a Curriculum Outline. A curriculum outline is a broad overview of your entire program, across all grade levels. It’s a zoomed out picture of what concepts you want to cover, and what grades will cover them. I’ve written about a c
As a beginning teacher mentor, I have the privilege of helping our future educators wrap their brains around the many components of teaching. This requires me to get my own brain back into what it felt like to start out - the details I would miss, what I struggled the most with, and the mistakes
Ok… we’ve all been there. Where you peer out to your classroom and you’re having a via GIPHY Kind of day. This is seriously every teacher’s worse nightmare. What’s a teacher to do? I mean you have what you thought was a pretty good lesson planned, limited supplies, and of course hardly any time […]
Learn the difference between regular and irregular past tense verbs with our English grammar lesson with a chart, exercises and examples!
In this trigonometry lesson, students will create their own word problem involving right triangle trigonometry. This is a creative way for students to...
Fun and engaging ESL activities, games and worksheets in printable PDF format with full teacher's notes and answers for English teachers to use in class.
We’ve taken the language out of a few authentic comic strips and used them as a writing assessment for students for students to write the dialogue of ordering at a restaurant. Take this Condo…
The following article is presented by Materials, ArchDaily's new US product catalog. How many times in the last year...
Our school has used quite a few Character Education programs throughout the years, but sometimes I find myself looking for more practical, concrete ways to help students deal with conflicts. These are not the larger, bullying-type conflicts that we discuss often in the Character Ed programs, these are the daily recess squabbles, the bickering/arguing, and the tattling that can occur throughout the week. With these types of conflict, I don't want to be the constant referee, negotiating both sides in every disagreement. I want to empower my students to choose between a variety of strategies and develop these necessary skills themselves. While looking for some of these online, I was contacted by Kelso's Choice and couldn't believe my luck. This program seemed to be addressing the skills I was looking for in a very kid-friendly, concrete method. I am excited to share this product review in case you are looking for a similar program. Disclaimer: Although Kelso's Choice sent me these items, all opinions are 100% honest and my own, and I never recommend something I wouldn't or haven't used in my own class. Kelso's Nine Choices The main character in this Character Ed program is a cartoon frog named Kelso. He is present in every K-3 lesson, but not in the lessons for grades 4-5, which I appreciate. He demonstrates all of the strategies that students can choose to solve a small (not big) problem. In grades 2-3, there is a wheel with all of the available choices and I absolutely love that visual. There are nine choices and lessons to introduce each one, along with a story from Willow Pond to help students role-play and solve these small problems for the animal characters. While there are nine choices, the program is very explicit that a student should try two and then get an adult if the conflict persists. There is an entire lesson at the beginning about small and big problems to help students differentiate what needs immediate adult intervention versus something they can work together to solve. The program also emphasizes that students are strong enough and smart enough to solve these small problems-- I love how much it is repeated throughout the teacher guide. Large posters accompany the product and I appreciated the ongoing visual. They cover each of the nine choices: Go to another game Talk it out Share and take turns Ignore it Walk away Tell them to (please) stop Apologize Make a deal Wait and cool off As you can see, these are common strategies that many of the students have used before, often in combination with each other. What I was grateful for was the common, explicit instruction around all nine of these to create a system in the classroom, on the playground, in the lunchroom, and beyond. Plus, the explicit instruction can do a world of good for our students who struggle with these choices and social skills. Working together as a class on each of these in a systematic way can let every single student be "in it together" and have a common language and framework to use as a group. Program Materials Included in the Conflict Management set was everything you could ever need to launch this with your classroom. There is a very comprehensive Leader Guide filled with grade-specific lessons, extensions, reproducibles, parent and staff letters, and stories. Lessons are in-depth, but quick, and encourage you to engage in some meaningful conversations with your students. Take a peek at the Table of Contents HERE. A CD helps with making copies for your classroom. Two frog puppets are also included: Kelso and Lily. Since I teach third grade, I offer these up as an option, but not as a requirement. My daughter is in second grade, and she is still loving any and all activities with a puppet, so I'm glad they were included for the K-3 group. Additional cut-out characters can help bring the stories and role-plays to life. There are also some great lessons provided to help use the puppets with your class. Inside the Leader's Guide are the Willow Pond stories, but they are also compiled in a full-color book that would be perfect for your classroom library. The font is large and these stories could even be used as a shared reading opportunity. The provided DVD has an animated Kelso reviewing all of the choices and how they can be used in students' lives. And, most importantly, there are huge posters to display in your classroom, hallway, lunchroom, etc. You can see the difference between the K-3 version and the 4-5 version above. There are five of each and they are BIG at 24x36"! If you are teaching grades 4-5, the authors knew that Kelso the frog would not be as big of a hit with the older grades, and the lessons are adjusted accordingly. There are photos of real kids and much more in-depth scenarios and questions. Even "Share and take turns" has been removed and choices are divided up into verbal and nonverbal. It's a nice jump and will keep kids engaged even if they've been learning these choices since Kindergarten. One of the components to this program that I really love is the inclusion of every staff member and family member in the program. They realize that a lot of these small conflicts arise outside of a structured classroom environment, and this program is designed to work for just those scenarios. Included are reproducibles that the on-duty adult can use to support and/or congratulate those students who used the choices to solve a conflict. There are letters and activities for students to take home to help educate the parents and certificates of achievement for every student as they complete the program. There's even a song they can learn and maybe even sing schoolwide? The authors, Barbara Clark, PhD and Diane Hipp, CPS not only knew what they were doing when it came to conflict resolution, they knew how to implement it into a schoolwide system and make it doable for teachers and staff. There is no extra fluff to dig through, nor are there scripted lessons that kill meaningful learning. The lessons are packed with goodness and could easily give students new experiences with these choices for their entire elementary experience. Overall Thoughts I really like Kelso's Choice Conflict Management program and could see it becoming a part of a successful school's character education collection. It is practical, simple in its use but effective in its strategies, and is a one-stop-shop for an entire elementary school. I can imagine School Counselors loving this program as a way to help give all kids common language and skills about solving small problems in an empowering way. There are plenty of activities to keep this a yearlong and elementary career-long program for students. Especially with its extensions into 4th and 5th grade, I can see how kids of all ages can use these simple, but powerful choices to solve their ever-changing conflicts. With every adult in their daily sphere reiterating these choices, it gives students a solid framework to address small conflicts and feel empowered instead of frustrated. Find more information at: https://kelsoschoice.com. There are free downloads and loads of extra information for you to peruse. There is also information about a 30-day Free Trial, if you think you would like to experiment before you make the schoolwide decision. Have you used Kelso's Choice in your school? I would love to hear about your experiences with it in a schoolwide system!
When we blame our teaching problems on the collective inferiority of a generation, we only make things worse.
Imagine having a visual grammar poster at your fingertips to teach and reinforce grammar concepts! These grammar posters will help your students to have a visual understanding of many grammar concepts, as well as brighten up your classroom! I use them on my English Language Arts Focus Wall as we study different grammar concepts. Let's […]
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
The co-living concept may be new to you, but it is growing in popularity. Here we review the benefits, downsides, but most importantly, we get into . . .
Long or short preschool math printable.
What I've learned about quickly building relationships as a speaker has helped me better connect with students in my classroom—especially disengaged kids.
Simple tips to help you improve your written English • Really works • Will help you gain confidence in writing essays, business reports, CVs
Ask any group of teachers if their goal is to simply have students regurgitate facts, and every one of them will say no. Despite that, it keeps happening.
Are you eager for students in your classroom to conceptually understand integers and master the skills required for integer operations?
I received a handout at a workshop I recently attended on different factors coaches can look for in classroom observations. Collecting quality evidence during observations and presenting it in a clear manner to teachers is such an important piece of improving teacher practice and student achievement…so this handout really got me thinking about what I look […]
When I first read the Common Core Standards I had never heard of shades of meaning. Synonyms and antonyms had always been included in my vocabulary or word study lessons, but semantic gradients was a new concept. But now I see how learning about the subtle differences in word meanings helps students with their comprehension and also helps them fine-tune their writing. I made this simple slide that can be used to explore semantic gradients, or shades of meaning with reading or writing. Here how you do it . . . Reading: 1. Choose a sentence from a story you're reading with or to the class. Here's an example from Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo. And that dog came trotting over to me just like he had been doing it his whole life. (p. 10) Write it on the slide, with the focus word on the cut out area. 2. Now brainstorm with the class other words that mean a way to move. They may come up with a list like this: running, skipping, crawling, racing, jumping, hopping, creeping, strolling, or walking. 3. Choose six of them, along with the original word to write on the paint chip slide. Write them in order from less intense to more intense. Although there isn't just one way to arrange the words, students should be able to explain or justify the order they choose. 4. Now put the paint chip through the slots on the sentence slide. As you slide it through discuss how each word gently changes the tone, or mood of the sentence. Discuss which word they think best expresses what the author is wanting to express in that part of the story. Do they think the author chose the best word? Why or why not. Writing -During the revision step in the writing process students should be taking a closer look at the words they've put in their writing and deciding if it’s just the right word. Ask them to choose one sentence with a word they might want to change. Example: Henry ate his lunch under a tree. -Brainstorm synonyms for ate; gobbled, devoured, gulped, nibbled, munched, scarfed, inhaled, picked at. -Choose six to write on the slide from less intense to more intense. picked at, nibbled, munched, ate, gobbled, scarfed, devoured. There will not be an absolute right or wrong way to line up the words. Students should have time to justify the order they choose. -Let the students try out each word to see how it affects the tone of the story. -Things to discuss: Which word better expresses what is going on in that part of the story? Which word enhances the mood and works for that character and setting? Click here to download the free Shades of Meaning activity.
Teaching properties of functions is foundational in Algebra 1. Read some of our tips and tricks for having students master this concept.
Are you looking for voice over jobs for beginners? If you have a pleasant speaking voice and are looking for ways to make money working from home, voiceover work might be the answer you've been looking for! Voiceover content is all around us whether you're in your car listening
Here is a fun worksheet to practice recognizing the different tenses in English with your young students. Students simply have to color by past, present or future tense.
Gentle Cindy- a great visual for the soft sounds for g and c *A blank copy has been added for your students to fill in themselves! ...
This Smilies Follow Directions Worksheet is a great way for students to improve their direction reading skills. By reading and following the directions, students can draw faces on the templates. This is a fun and effective way for students to learn and practice this important skill. Smilies Follow Directions Worksheet
We have been having fun with an easy indoor growing project and learning lots of fun facts about nature and science along the way! Cakie filled up some plastic tubs with cotton wool balls and watered them until they were damp (but not soaking wet.) We decided to try and grow a cress head each...Read More »
Pinterest It has been a CRAZY few weeks in my house! A birthday party, a root canal, parent teacher conferences…. shew… Spring is BUSY!! On the other hand… My students had a lot of fun learning about homophones the past two weeks! Today, I’m going to share all of our FUN! First, I introduced the […]
Strengthen longterm memory, promote metacognition, and get students moving without entering anything into the grade book!
Hello! I’m Rachael from the Classroom Game Nook Blog. I created a fun board game for students to practice making singular nouns plural! It’s all done for you in one easy download available only on my blog! Check it out! Hop on over to my blog to get your freebie! You Might ... Read More about “Make It Plural!” {A board game for practicing singular and plural nouns}
Introduce your students to the 16 states and capital cities of Germany! Three worksheets (plus answer key). Using the list of states and capitals on page 2, your students will write the capital city of each state on the map of Germany (page 1). Then answer 8 true/false questions on page 3. States - Capitals included: Baden-Württemberg - Stuttgart Bavaria - Munich Berlin - Berlin Brandenburg - Potsdam Bremen - Bremen Hamburg - Hamburg Hesse - Wiesbaden Lower Saxony - Hanover Mecklenburg-Vorpommern - Shwerin North Rhine-Westphalia - Düsseldorf Rhineland-Palatinate - Mainz Saarland - Saarbrücken Saxony - Dresden Saxony-Anhalt - Magdeburg Schleswig-Holstein - Kiel Thuringia - Erfurt You may also be interested in: GERMANY - Introductory Geography Worksheet STATES OF GERMANY WORD SEARCH PUZZLE Thank you so much for using my worksheets in your classroom! I hope you find them useful. Reviews are welcome and very much appreciated. Please FOLLOW THIS STORE for more worksheets.
Perfect for warm-up or lead-in. Nice-looking cards with not trivial questions and some pictures to stimulate the imagination and help with the answers.
Are you ‘old school’ when it comes to your classroom seating layout? Do you prefer small groups or an arrangement that leaves space in the middle? Here are just a few of the many (many) variations out there.
Fun and engaging ESL activities, games and worksheets in printable PDF format with full teacher's notes and answers for English teachers to use in class.
Here is a great list of Tier 1 Strategies that you might find helpful for students who don’t learn in our classrooms. Many of these Ideas are strategies that you already leverage. However, …
