These 25 quick and easy tips for new teachers will help you create a positive, engaging, and effective learning environment for your students.
This free printable teacher planner is an excellent resource for staying organized. Calling all teachers! This planner is specifically designed with you in mind! It includes the basic organizers yo…
Conquering your digital clutter leads to increased productivity! This post details GMAIL hacks that help teachers save time in the classroom.
The first year of teaching can be a challenge! These 15 Teaching Tips for New Teachers are proven strategies to help new teachers survie their first year!
Every teacher needs a boost sometimes. These tips will help you strengthen resiliency. Plus, receive a free printable infographic to promote resiliency year round.
Has your first year been a doozy? Do you feel like you are drowning and you don't even have your students yet? Here are 20 tried and true tips to tackle your first year of teaching!
Do you search for a teacher planner every year? I don’t. Well let me start by saying I use to but then I stopped. Year after year, I would hunt for the perfect planner to use as my day book and year after year I would spend way too much time filling it out. I...
By now, you’ve probably heard of the new AI (artificial intelligence) program called ChatGPT. Like any new technology, there are both positives and negatives associated with it ( “industrious” students using it to write papers). Still, there is no doubt that ChatGPT can be a valuable tool for teachers. Today I am sharing 11 ways
Teacher interviews can be nerve-wracking! Here are the teacher interview tips that I have learned. What can you do to improve your interviews?
A list of ESL websites that have plenty of activities, teaching strategies, worksheets, templates, lesson plans and articles which will help in your work.
Keep your classroom organized, your sanity intact, and your social media channels popping.
Put together the perfect teacher planner to improve classroom organization! No more messy binders filled with teacher papers!
This pretty and practical free printable teacher binder can help organize important school information, lesson plans, classroom activities, and more. It can help teachers stay stylishly organized w…
What should a first-year teacher know? Here 15 mistakes to avoid making as a first-year teacher! (Personal mistakes i've made!)
How to be a good online trainer, teacher or freelance corporate trainer. 10 tips and advice on becoming a more effective teacher online.
Special educators need a pretty large toolbox of strategies and resources to support our learners. So often, our students can have significantly diverse needs and levels. On any given day, special education teachers might need to take student reading data, modify a math assessment, teach science wit
We’ve all had that teacher at some point in our lives. It can be really difficult to determine what makes a teacher remarkable.
Too Tired to Teach? It happens to the best of us. We all have those days where we stay up too late grading papers, planning fun lessons for the next day, organizing materials for science experiments (or binge watching your favorite show on Netflix). Then you pay for it the next day when you have […]
Inside: A seasoned classroom teacher reveals her secrets to work smarter as a teacher and what to do to be more productive in the classroom. Tip No. 1 will surprise you! Do you ever ask yourself how you can work smarter as a teacher? I ask myself this question all the time. In the years
Get your teacher life organized with 200 free Google Keep headers! This note-taking system will revolutionize the way you teach.
From creating content for students to analyze to sharing strategies for assessment and classroom collaboration, ChatGPT has the potential to save you hours of time and make your life infinitely easier. Here are 50 prompts that will help with that.
I am a list-maker. BIG TIME. This is a list for teachers of eight things that should be on their to-do list at the beginning of the year.
In this post, I share six practical strategies to overcome teacher burnout. These have really helped me regain my love of teaching and enhance my well-being.
Today we are sharing 7 bad habits that may be making you an ineffective teacher. Reflect on this list to see if you have fallen into any of these habits and consider what changes you can make to improve your teaching and classroom culture.
Is the existence of happy teachers a myth? Do they actually exist, or are they just something that we aspire to? We all have them. You know what I am talking about. Those habits that hold
Surviving as a teacher isn’t easy. There’s a lot of work load, there’s a diversity of tasks, teacher training workshops, brutal pace-setters, and seemingly conflicting initiatives pulling you in a thousand directions. Education can break even the noblest spirits. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Below are ten hacks to keep you strong […]
This post shares 5 steps you can implement right now to plan your entire school year in advance + FREE Planning Reflection Guide for teachers
You’ll learn the 13 rules which help you to teach ESL effectively, together with info on how to become an ESL teacher in no time.
When you walk into an interview for a teaching job, you want to feel confident in your skills but also your ability to show them off! In some careers, a resume’ listing experience might be enough, but in teaching, I think it’s a huge boon to go into an interview with a portfolio that really shows the details of that “elementary teacher” position you’ve had (or student teaching). It’s been awhile since I added my On The Hunt for a Teaching Job series, but I know seeing others’ portfolios really helped me (especially as a new teacher!) so I want to share mine. For my portfolio, I picked up a professional binder. Yes, it’s expensive, but you want the cover to say, “I’m credible and you need to look at me!” I used a pre-made Word template to make a cover page and added a photo of me with my class as well as my contact information. In the pocket, I include a resume, and the inside has a matching cover page that works sort of like an informal cover letter. I started with my favorite teaching quote, and used it as a springboard to describe my passion for teaching. I didn’t rehash my resume’ here- but instead wanted to get them interested in me. (Note: Please feel free to use something similar, but please DON’T copy exactly what I wrote. You want it to be unique to YOU!) Another option is to make a brochure. This is really great to leave after an interview, especially if it has a picture so they remember which face goes with which name! Inside, I use dividers to make it clear where I can find certain things. Notice that I said “I can find,” not “the administrator can find.” Administrators may never ask to see your portfolio or have time to do much with it, but if you happen to be in for an interview, a portfolio can be SO helpful! You can see my dividers here, now that I have a few years of experience: Here, you can see my dividers before my last update, when I hadn’t taught in my own classroom. In the past, I just stuck in pages of things I’d done. Most were printed out worksheets, assessments, parent notes, etc. And that was okay, but this time around I decided to show a little more. One HUGE benefit of blogging is that I take lots more pictures of the things going on in my classroom. So, for instance, when I wanted to show my creative lessons, ta – da! I wanted to showcase classroom management, and again, I already had the photos. It’s a great way to not just tell what I would do, but show it. I want principals to be able to imagine me and my classroom in their school! I still kept examples of work and other things behind each section, but these pages made it look really polished. Even if you’re not going to post them on a blog, I’d recommend finding a cheap point-and-shoot camera (or even a smartphone, if you have one) to take photos of your classroom and projects you do. It really helps when a principal wants to imagine you not in a suit, sitting in the office, but in classroom working with students. What’s really great about these pages is that you can print another copy (or go to FedEx Office for more color copies if you just have way too much money) and leave a mini-portfolio at schools without having to leave your nice binder. I used these mini-portfolios when I dropped off resume’s in person, too! When you consider what to include, make sure you think about the basics (classroom management, reading, math, engaging instruction, differentiation, assessment and data, organization), but don’t forget to include a section with your credentials and any honors/ certificates/ professional development/ licenses you may have! (Page protectors will keep you from having to hole punch those important papers.) Think about what makes you unique as a teacher. When they say, “What are your strengths?,” what will you show them? Don’t be afraid to make it unique and bright! For some other professions, you might not want to add color or any element of cute, but I think as long as it looks professional, colorful works really well for standing out. If you’re new here, be sure you check out the rest of this series and my new teacher tips! Next in the On The Hunt series: How to Stand Out (Even Before a Teaching Interview) Thanks for visiting!
Essentialism The Disciplined Pursuit Of Less can be applied to many settings especially homeschooling. See the book review.
In this inspiring interview with Dr. Catlin Tucker, the blended learning guru, we chat about blended learning strategies and models, and what's working right now!
Explore our range of fun and engaging year 4 fractions resources. Help children master fractions with highly visual worksheets.
How to help your child find the right learning styles to enhance their potential in school and to prep the brain for higher learning. Learning is unique and different for each child.
After spending a week at my alma mater at Penn State Altoona, my heart is full after getting to spend an entire week sharing my story as a teacher turned entrepreneur with student teachers l…
It's about time that we're all either back at school already, or we're certainly counting down the last few days until we are! I have been trying to look and
It's back to school time! Be successful and avoid the first year mistakes with these ideas about classroom management, organization, personal growth, and much more I wish I knew!
In my classroom, I’m always looking for ways to improve. To grow as a teacher, I reflect on my lessons and consider what went well, what could have been better, and different methods to try in the future. In addition to self-reflection, I welcome feedback from others—administrators, mentors, other teachers, and my students. I’ve even participated in Great Teachers, Great Feedback, which is a virtual coaching service. I’ve been observed countless times during my teaching career. My first year teaching I was observed by my mentor multiple times each month and my program director several times a year. A couple of years later when I was a part of Teach for America I had advisers in and out of my room on a regular basis in addition to visits from the principal and vice principals. While I’ve never enjoyed being observed (who does, right?), I looked forward to hearing their thoughts and ideas. Whether the feedback was good or bad, I wanted to hear all about it. I grew into a strong teacher quickly because I was so eager to learn from others. I’ve always been naturally reflective, but the comments from administrators, advisers, mentors, and fellow teachers showed me where to place my concentration. No matter how often you’re observed and receive feedback, you won’t grow as a teacher unless you are willing to listen to advice and try out new ideas. Don’t shut down when an observer shares a criticism. Ask questions about turning things around instead. True, not all of the advice you’ll receive will be helpful. For example, one of my observers always told me to rank my students from highest performers to lowest performers and create an elaborate seating chart based off of that ranking system. It was such a time consuming process with seven classes of around 30 students each. However, I tried it anyway. For several weeks, I used this new seating chart system. When no benefits of the new seating chart showed themselves I went back to my old arrangements. Out of all of the advice I received and tried over the years, this was the only one that stands out as impractical. While the idea didn’t work out, it did get me thinking about other options for seating charts and table arrangements. Not every idea will be beneficial, but most of them are worth considering. I’ve discovered a lot of wonderful teaching methods this way. Self-reflection and routine observations aren’t the only things that shaped me into the teacher I am today. Some of the best feedback came from the people who were in my classroom every day: my students. Simply watching your students can tell you so much about the efficacy of your lessons and teaching methods. I think most teachers can tell when their students are bored. There are many hard to miss signs there—slouching, open mouths, excessive doodling, drooling, sleeping, acting out... You can tell when your students are engaged, eager to learn, and excited. A quick assessment can tell you how much each student understood the content. There are many informal ways to learn from your students. Besides observing students’ behavior and assessing their work, you can do something as simple as asking questions. Ask your students how you’re doing. Ask what they liked and didn’t like about a lesson. Ask them what was clear and what was confusing. Ask them what helps and what doesn’t. Many students will be hesitant to answer, especially at first. Not many teachers ask their students’ opinions on lessons and teaching practices. If you can get them talking, you might be surprised at their insight. One version of my teacher report card Several times a year I have my students give me a more formal assessment. Most students are more candid about their thoughts when they don’t have to express themselves in front of a classroom full of students and their teacher. To give the formal assessment, I have my students grade me at the end of each quarter. Basically, whenever my students get report cards I get one too. Or, in particularly challenging classes, I have students complete a formal assessment ASAP to help identify the problem and get students back on track to learning as much as they can in the short amount of time they have in my class. When my students “Grade the Teacher” they fill out the answers to questions on a piece of paper. It’s fairly quick: between five to ten minutes. You can ask questions about whatever you think would be useful like classroom management, lesson pacing, types of homework, how students feel in your class, clearness of expectations, etc. I often change up the questions each quarter. I always include a portion about what letter grade I deserve and why. I usually include a question about what unit they learned the most from and why. If you’re considering letting your students grade you like this, I recommend you read through the advice below. Explain to the students that you are giving them the feedback form because you want to know how to improve your teaching. Encourage details and examples because those will give you a better idea of how to improve. Tell students to focus on your teaching, the lessons, and the classroom environment. Not your clothing choices or appearance or other irrelevant things! When students first started grading me, I got comments about how I’m stylish and have beautiful eyes. Flattering, yes. A little creepy, also yes. Helpful, no. Clarify that students should be completely honest but not hurtful. Giving examples of what is and isn’t acceptable is helpful. Example: Mr. Dude sometimes seems mad and yells and it makes students feel uncomfortable. Non-example: Mr. Dude is a mean teacher and everyone hates him. If you want, you can have students complete their evaluations anonymously. This might help them be more comfortable being honest. Personally, I like to have students put their names on the evaluations so I can follow up with them if I have any questions or need clarification. Consider having a question about the student’s level of effort in class. I’ve found this helps the students consider their role in how class goes on a daily basis, and this causes them to be more fair and reasonable in their evaluation of me. This part is hard: Try not to take criticisms personally. Not every student will give you glowing reviews. That’s okay! Remember, you gave them this evaluation to improve and their ideas can often help you with that goal. You can use the Grade the Teacher feedback form I created with your students. I use some version of this with my students every quarter. It’s in English and Spanish so all the voices in my classroom are heard. If you’re serious about improving as a teacher you should reflect on your lessons, invite people into your classroom to observe you, try new teaching methods, and get feedback from your students. Want to get feedback from your students? Try my "Grade the Teacher" reflection tool. Get a "Grade the Teacher" form for your own classroom! Are you a middle school science teacher? You might be interested in my newsletter. Sign up for my newsletter here. Just for signing up you'll receive an exclusive freebie that you can't get anywhere else.
Help your students become better spellers with the spelling hack that every teacher should know! It is mind-blowing how effective as well as how simple it is and easy for students to use!
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Is the existence of happy teachers a myth? Do they actually exist, or are they just something that we aspire to? We all have them. You know what I am talking about. Those habits that hold
