Tools to Help You Teach Middle School ELA
Are you teaching your students self-assessment skills? Teaching this life skill is so important in helping our students gauge their growth. This post takes you through many ways to teach this. Let’s get started! When should students self-assess? Looking back at our accomplishments over time is so gratifying! We can bring that same joy of […] Read more…
Ready for Parent Night? These tips can help make it a breeze. “Meet the Teacher,” “Curriculum Night,” “Parent’s Night” whatever you call it, it can be stressful. Parents you might not see for the rest of the year are going to visit with you for maybe just a few minutes…yet they’ll be judging what kind […] Read more…
Why will your students love writing weather poems? There is one thing we can agree on…the weather outside our classroom windows can be fascinating! No matter the time of year, the weather can be a source of distraction (“I see a snowflake!”) or inspiration. Use what’s happening outside your classroom to engage students in meaningful […] Read more…
There is nothing like a top ten list for back to school to get you ready for the start of a new year! Whether you’re a new or seasoned teacher — or somewhere in the middle — you’ll find you’re quickly caught up in the current of the school year. Don’t forget to take a […] Read more…
Make healthy habits one of your top priorities this school year! Here are nine tips to help you do just that! Your classroom is decorated, supplies are sorted, the Dollar Store has been ravaged, class lists are printed, lockers assigned, books sorted…yes, you feel ready for your students. But something is missing. It’s not the […] Read more…
A “perfect” class doesn’t just happen. It is created through consistent, compassionate, and well-planned classroom management strategies. Here are five tips to help you get started! When you’re studying to be a teacher, you dream of a classroom filled with eager, well-behaved children enraptured by your carefully-crafted lessons. Then you step into your first classroom…and […] Read more…
No matter what time of year school ends for you, there seems to be an endless list of items to do before you can head off for vacation. After the fun of the end of the year, this year-end teacher checklist will help you wrap up your year. Build your checklist Before you start throwing […] Read more…
Middle school students love options! By providing choices during writing workshop, you will increase student excitement and engagement about the writing process. Here are ways to do just that. The difficulty of teaching writing Well, let’s be honest. Teaching writing is really, really hard work! All of our students are at different levels. In one […] Read more…
Ready for this month? Here is a list of to help you decide what to teach in May. Grab your calendar and mark down these holidays! If it’s time for you to start planning for the end of the year, you’ll want to check out these fun end of the school year activities. Journal Prompts […] Read more…
Research should be fun! Yet it often involves restricted topics, rules, and requirements that can limit a student’s natural curiosity and enthusiasm. Encourage students to follow their questions by implementing simple, small research activities about topics they are curious about. Create a Research Notebook I loved making upcycled notebooks, and I decided to use […] Read more…