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Back to School Ideas and Resources

8/2/2020

It's that time of year again. But it is also different this year. Normally teachers would be planning and creating in a renewed state, eager to start off a new year with new students and exciting activities. This year, there is a lot of uncertainty and stress as teachers fear going back to school and the difficulties it will bring.

Teachers need to support each other through these difficult circumstances. Self care becomes very important. I posted some ideas for self care in my last post. You can check it out here.

Self care is important to our health. Negativity causes stress. It is important to find ways to de-stress.

As teachers and students return to school, there will be some excitement, and apprehension as new protocols are put in place to deal with the ongoing pandemic. It will be important to help put children at ease as they adjust and learn to engage in a different way.

Start by doing activities that help your students get to know each other and and create relationships. Mixers, groups, and partner activities can still happen, but in a different way. Maintaining social distancing while doing these activities can be a challenge, but as creative teachers, we finds ways to make them happen. That is our super power.

Back to School Ice Breaker

Ways to use back to school ice breaker.

Ways to match up the pieces of the back to school ice breaker.

First week activities help students to ease back into learning and following routines. Here are some resources that might help.

Back to school activities for the first week.

Back to school first week activities for primary grades.

Back to school math and literacy ideas.

These are also available in a bundle that includes start up forms and a back to school kit. I also have several poster sets and theme kits in my Back to School category in my store.

Back to school bundle of 7 resources.

I wish you well as you begin this new year. Stay safe and try to enjoy your time with your students.

Back to school ideas and resources

Self Care Tips For Back To School

7/26/2020

Summer is here and this is usually the time for picnics, barbecues, family and friends gatherings. Because of the pandemic, things are definitely not the same. instead, we have to monitor who we visit, how we visit, and where we visit. Even the smallest group of people could be at risk if we don't take precautions.
This is enough to create a lot of uncertainty and anxiety. People are social creatures and it is difficult to isolate oneself and have minimal contact with others.

Self care tips for back to school. Stay connected while social distancing.

Here are some tips to help you take care of yourself as you prepare for Back to School.

Self care tips. Ways to take care of yourself as you prepare for back to school.

As we approach the end of July, some teachers are already making plans to head back into school. Others are still about 6 weeks away. The uncertainty this year is creating added stress for teachers, parents, and even children. No one knows what to expect.

Self care tips for back to school. Find ways to de-stress.Stress causes anxiety.

Self care is really important now. If we want to be able to help our students through this, we need to take care of ourselves first. Take time now to do things to relax and refresh your spirit. Go for walks, explore nature, read books, do a craft or hobby. Do something for yourself. You deserve it. Don't feel guilty about it either. If you don't take care of yourself and add some positive moments to your day, you will not be able to recharge and stay healthy.

Self care tips for back to school. Enjoy nature. Get outside.

Stop focusing on the news about the pandemic and all the worries of what it will be like when you go back to school. I know this is easy to say, but it is important to do. Negativity builds more negativity and this leads to worry and anxiety. Stress is bad for your health. We have so much negativity around us right now that it is easy to get caught up in it and sometimes it is difficult to get out. We need to protect ourselves from this.

Self care tips. Negative situations cause anxiety. Find ways to de-stress.

It may seem difficult at the moment, but try to focus on some positive things that are happening because of the pandemic. Many people are getting a chance to spend some time with their children or parents because they are home instead of running around trying to get through life.
As my husband and I go for walks each day, we notice many people taking time to work on their gardens, or do some renovations that have been on hold for awhile. People are keeping their distance, but still saying hello and waving as they pass others along the way. Many people are getting outdoors and enjoying the summer weather, but in a different way.

Self care tips for back to school. Happiness is...

Teachers, parents and children are stressed out from the online learning this spring, the uncertainty about school re-opening and what it will look like, and the worry surrounding the virus. It is so important that everyone do things to de-stress. For each person it will be different. Perhaps families should discuss what they think might help in their situations. Teachers can find support with their families or colleagues. Whatever it takes, find ways to enjoy life and de-stress.

Self care tips. Teachers, parents, and children are stressed. Find ways to de-stress.

We often feel guilty when we do things for ourselves. Taking care of yourself is not selfish. We need to take care of ourselves in order to give our best to others.

Self care tips. Self care isn't selfish.

I hope you find these tips helpful and that will have a happy and successful year with your students.
I would love to hear from you. If you have any things that you would like to share or add to this list, leave a comment below.

Calming strategies posters

I would love to be able to connect further with you through email and blog updates. If you are interested in joining my email list, I have a special gift for you. Click on the image to get your copy. This is a set of calming strategy posters that may be helpful when your students are stressed out. They will also work for adults!

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!0 Back to School Tips for a Successful Year

Back to School Insights

Father's Day Ideas for Special Men

6/4/2020

June is the time to celebrate fathers and other special men in our lives. Check below for some activities and things that I have done with my students and some special cards that I have created for Father's Day.

Father's Day activities and ideas

This special bug kit was created for Dads to have handy when barbecuing. To find out how to create one of your own, check out this blog.

DIY Dad's Bug Kit

Wordles are a great way to make something cool for Dad. Just think of all the special words that describe Dad and then put them together to make word art. Here are some examples made by a couple of my students. I put them in glass frames from the dollar store. To find out more, click the image below.

DIY Father's Day gift idea

Games are fun to play together. Here is a travel tic tac toe board that we made. To get the directions for your own diy board, click the image below.

DIY tic tac toe board

Whatever the gift, it was always fun to make the wrapping paper to go with it. All you need is some newsprint and markers. This made every gift special.

Make your own wrapping paper

Here are some Father's Day cards that I just created that can be printed as is in color or printed in black and white so that the children can color them and make them more personal. Click the image to see more.

Father's Day Cards

Click the image below to get a free card for Dad and Grandpa.

Father's Day freebie

Happy Father's Day to all the special men in your life.

Activities and ideas for Father's Day

DIY Tic Tac Toe Board

6/4/2020

Games are a great way to interact with family members. Here is a simple DIY for making a tic tac toe game board that can be used for travel or at home.

DIY tic tac toe board for taking along when travelling.

To make this board, you will need the following materials:
1 piece of card stock cut out so it is a 8.5 inch square
10 puffy balls (2 colors - 5 of each color)
10 foam shapes
ribbon or brickbrack for the lines and border (8 pieces 8.5 inches long)
glue
scissors

Step 1: Glue the ribbon around the edges of the card stock

Step 2: Glue the lines for the spaces

Step 3: Glue the foam shapes on the puffy balls. These will help keep them from rolling away.

Now your game is ready to use. Find a partner and start playing.

When you finish, you can easily store your game in a ziplock bag.

This is a simple game to make, but can provide hours of fun. My students made this one year for their fathers for Father's Day. They just added a card and made some gift wrapping paper and it was ready to go. For more Father's Day ideas and activities, click here.

DIY tic tac toe board great for travel and playing anytime.

Mother's Day Ideas for Special Ladies

4/29/2020

It is that time of year when we celebrate our mothers. Sometimes, we have other special ladies in our lives that we want to celebrate as well. Here are some ideas and suggestions for creating a special day for that special lady.

Mother's Day ideas and activties to make the day special for moms and other special ladies.

I don't know about you, but I always appreciated the special gifts that my children made for me. I took a couple of pictures to share some with you. Of course, over the years there have been many others, but they have been carefully put away and I can't access them at the moment.

beeswax candle made for Mother's Day

double clay pot candle holder

Mother's Day painted vase

Candles and vases have always been popular. These ones are a little worse for wear, but they still grace the shelves as a reminder of my children.

DIY paint and glitter picture frame

A little paint and glitter can turn a simple picture frame into a work of art. This was done by my granddaughter.

Mother's Day word art

Mother's Day word art

Mother's Day word art

Word art is another great way to create something special. Here are some samples.

As I thought back over my days of teaching, I remember doing so many special crafts and activities with my students. Unfortunately, I didn't keep pictures of them. Here are some of the ideas that you might be interested in trying.
A recipe book with special recipes from family members
A calendar with special photographs and dates
A small jewelry box made of popsicle sticks
A modge podge flower pot with a plant
A collage
A book of poems or special memories
A pencil holder made from a tin can with cinnamon sticks around the outside

Create a power word frame for Mom

This word art was created for a different purpose, but it could also work for this occasion. Just add a picture of Mom and a special word that is her power word. Mine is Believe, so this was the one I created.

Here are some booklets, certificates, and special coupons that I created. You can find them my Teachers Pay Teachers store. Click on the images below to get them.

Special cards are also a hit for most moms. Here are a couple that I created today.

Here are some other products that I created a few years ago. Sometimes we have a special lady we want to honor. These writing papers, cards, and covers are also useful for them.

Click on the image below if you would like a sample card and writing sheet.

Hopefully these ideas and products will help you to celebrate your special day with a loved one.

Mother's Day ideas and activties to make the day special for moms and other special ladies.

Distance Learning - Online Resources

4/5/2020

Hi Everyone. I hope you are managing to get some rest this weekend as we prepare for another week on online learning and teaching.

I just wanted to let you know that many of us are trying to make changes to our products or create new ones that are able to be delivered in a digital manner so that they can be used more easily in the new way of teaching and learning.

Distance Learning online resources are now becoming more and more necessary.

If you already have some of my products and would like to use portions of them you have my permission to copy and share in password protected programs. Please make sure that those who receive them understand that they are not to be shared out publicly so as to meet my terms of use.

Online resources are now becoming more necessary as people move to the distance learning model.

I have been working on creating some online materials. So far I have created some Boom Cards for math and music. I have also started experimenting with Google Slides and I hope to be able to have some of these ready soon. My goal for now is to create materials for literacy and French in addition to more math materials. You can check those that are done by cllcking here.

Here are some examples of digital materials now available for teaching various subjects and concepts.

By now, you may have heard that there is a Teachers Pay Teachers site wide sale happening Monday and Tuesday, April 6 and 7. This is to help with making materials more affordable for teachers and parents.

My store is on sale and that makes even my bundles more affordable. Hopefully there are some things there that can help you out.

The promo code is FORYOU.

TeachersPayTeachers distance learning sale #DistanceLearningTPT

Stay safe everyone and try to find time for rest and self care during the week.

Online resources that keep kids engaged and learning are becoming more necessary as we transition into distance learning.

Learning At Home and Keeping Kids Engaged

4/3/2020

Our world has been turned upside down and parents and teachers are struggling to figure out how to incorporate distance teaching and learning. This has become the new method or reaching our students. Parents are taking on new roles as teachers at home and teachers are trying to find the right materials and methods of using them in a digital way. There are many challenges ahead, but as always, we will find a way to meet them.

Learning at home using digital resources

Learning at home with online resources

Teachers are creating and converting material to digital formats and they are using different video platforms to provide online instruction as well.

This is a steep learning curve for some teachers. They are used to having access to paper copies and books. They work well with large groups, small groups, and one on one in the classroom, but with online groups there are unfamiliar challenges.

Keep kids engaged while learning at home with real life experiences.

Parents are scrambling to find time for instruction, scheduling assignments, going to work or working out of the home, making meals, and finding time for themselves.They are overwhelmed and need to have some space too.

Parents can get overwhelmed balancing home life and educating their kids

Life can get chaotic when trying to balance home life and teaching kids

Parents need a break when teaching kids at home.

Help! I need a break!

The kids should not be doing academic instruction for several hours a day. Academics are important, but they can be scaled back for now as people adjust to the new method of learning.

Children need some brain breaks, emotional breaks, and family time.

Tips for teaching kids at home. Everyone needs a break sometimes.

When parents and kids have had enough and need a break

This is the perfect time for real life learning.

Math can be part of the meal preparation, setting up schedules, building things and creating things.

$Do some real life activities and games. Try doing some math games with parents.$

Math time with Dad

Do some real life activities and games. Try doing some math activities in the kitchen.

Learning to bake is a great math activity

Reading and writing can be part of the family time. If children have siblings, they can read to each other and maybe even create story boards, comics, or other things that relate to the stories read. They can use these as writing prompts or create some games with them. Maybe they could write letters or emails to friends and family and keep a journal of their days and activities as writing projects.

Tips for learning at home: Practice reading by sharing stories together.

Reading stories to younger siblings

Tips for learning at home: Practice creating storyboards or doing other writing activities as a followup to reading

Try some writing activities as a followup to reading

Social Studies activities could include using Google Earth and exploring different areas of the world. It could also be following other current events. Covid-19 does not have to be the only focus of current events.

Tips for learning at home: Try using Google Earth or a globe to locate different areas of the world.

Finding places on the globe

Science experiments can be lots of fun to do at home. There are so many different ways to learn about things. Make volcanos, grow plants and learn about the life cycles, do research on animals, learn how things work, invent things, etc.

Tips for learning at home: Create models and experiments together

Testing out a volcano experiment

Tips for learning at home: Teaching children how to do things with hands on activities

Hands on learning

Tips for learning at home: Try out different experiments together

Trying out an experiment with color

Tips for learning at home: Make learning practical.

Learning to take care of a bicycle

The arts are also important because they help balance out all the academics. Music soothes the soul and it is a good brain exercise. Art unleashes the creativity inside.

Tips for learning at home: Add in some music and movement. Music soothes the soul.

Let's all sing and play

Tips for learning at home: Create art projects. Art unleashes the creativity inside.

Drawing together

Tips for learning at home: Try role playing and a bit of acting. It is good for body breaks and sharing what has been learned.

Acting and role playing activities

Teachers are working hard to find a balance of what needs to be done and what families should be expected to do.

Have patience as we all work together to get through this.

Tips for Learning at Home during this time of distance learning and teaching

If you are looking for some resources to use at home, I have started creating and converting some materials for online learning. Check them out in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

Conducting Student-Led Conferences

2/22/2020

Communicating student learning is important. Many teachers still use a parent/teacher format, but I have found that the student-led model is far more effective. I am retired now, but this is the model I used for over 20 years and the feedback was always positive and very helpful. I never experienced a time when it wasn't effective or well-received by both parents and students.

Conducting student-led conferences requires management that allows for sharing, communicating, and reflecting.

Conducting student-led conferences requires management that allows for sharing, communicating, and reflecting. In my classroom, there were up to 3 families at a time. They all had an agenda to follow and several different things to do. One of those things was to meet with the teacher. There was also flexibility to come and go if the family had multiple children and conferences to participate in.

Student-led conferences work because they include the child in the process. They empower children to be the leaders in sharing their learning.

Student-led conferences work because they include the child in the process. They empower children to be the leaders in sharing their learning. When they are done well, there are opportunities to share what has been learned, work together on activities with parents that relate to what they are studying, look at evaluations from both the child and the teacher, and discuss concerns and goals for future learning.

Student-led conferences are a blend of sharing, reflecting, and setting goals for future learning.

Student-led conferences are a blend of sharing, reflecting, and setting goals for future learning. It is important to prepare the children for these conferences. Role playing and practicing helps them to understand what to expect and sets them up for success.
Scheduling enough time in the conferences is also important. Children need time to share their successes, participate in activities with their parents, and discuss their learning with the teacher and their parents.

The materials and activities that you use for your conferences should reflect what is happening in your classroom.

The materials and activities that you use for your conferences should reflect what is happening in your classroom. I have created a package with some materials that have worked well for me. They can be used as a sample that can be adapted for your conferences.

Here are some activities, evaluation forms, and other materials that will help make a student-led conference meaningful and successful.

For more specifics and to see what is included in this package, check out this post.

Money Lessons For Children

2/19/2020

Teaching children about money is different now than it was a few years ago. We live in a plastic world and children rarely handle actual cash. This makes paying for things and dealing with change a challenge.They still need to understand how to use money, but they need to be taught in a different way for this to make sense to them. Here is a unit that my class created with me that is called "Money Lessons For Children".

This is a unit on money and it focuses on teaching children how to earn money, handle it, and manage it. It is kid friendly and was created with children.

Just before I retired, I created a unit on money with my students. It started out simply, but very quickly became the focus of our math classes. Because my students were directly involved in creating the unit and working through the different aspects of it, they were able to apply what they learned to future activities.

Money Lessons For Children is kid friendly and was created with children. It teaches them about money, how to earn it, save it, and manage it.

The older students in the school had been learning about becoming Young Entrepreneurs earlier in the year. When I saw what they were doing, I decided to modify this to work with my grade 3 students. They were very excited about this and they worked hard to create materials for a Spring fundraiser.

Earning money and managing it is an important part of learning about money. This unit,

Before they were able to start working on the projects, they needed to learn about money and how to work with it. We talked about debit cards and money in the bank. Most of them didn't realize that there needed to be money in the bank in order to take money out or use the debit card to pay for things. They thought that people could just use the card whenever they wanted to buy something.

In a plastic world, learning about banking is an important part of learning about money and managing it. This is covered in the unit,

They were given a "debit" card and they were assigned a starting amount of money. They were then taught how to spend money and keep track of the balance. They were shown ways to earn money to add to the card in order to continue buying things.

The challenge was to come up with ideas of ways to earn money as children. We brainstormed different jobs/chores that could be done and decided on how much money might be earned for each job. Then we used the classroom money and practiced earning and spending money to see how it worked.

These are only some of the activities we did as we developed this unit. It was definitely one of the most valuable units that I have used and it had a great finale as it helped us to earn money for a special field trip.

Money Lessons For Children, a unit created for and with children.

Here is a sampling of the unit that we created together.

Money Lessons For Children outline summary.

How to manage money from the unit

A sample lesson from Money Lessons For Children

Applying skills learned from Money Lessons For Children into a celebration of learning.

If you check out the DIY category on my blog, you will find the directions for making many of the items we used for our Spring Fundraiser.

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Winter Literacy Activities

1/24/2020

The cold weather has arrived. There is snow on the ground and temperatures are falling in many areas. Here are some ideas for using the winter theme for language acquisition and practice.

Winter Literacy ideas for word work. #winterwriting #winterwordwork

Children get very excited when the snow falls. Here are some cute task cards to use for focusing on compound words that go with the snow. Click on the image to get your copy.

Check out this freebie! Snowy Days Compound Words

Snowy Days Compound Words game

Language activities can be helpful if they are used in a fun way. Children learn better if they are interested in what they are doing. Here are some different ideas for engaging children in various types of language activities.

Here are some winter word work language games and activities. #gamesteachskills #winterwordwork

Here are a couple of writing templates that can be used for winter writing.

Frozen writing paper templates for creative writing

I was so frozen writing activity