3 Years Later...

Welcome to my blog! Or welcome back. During these strange and interesting times, I thought it would be a good idea to resurrect this blog as a way to spread some cheer and encouragement along with some activities you can do. Whether you're a teacher or a parent, it seems like the world has been turned upside-down and it might be hard to focus on learning activities when you're...

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Happy Holiday!

It's here! The holidays took over last week! After all, we base our lessons around children's interests. On Friday, we sent home an activity for the parents to work on with their children. We asked them to draw a building in their neighborhood and label it. We were really hoping to get more than two, but at least two is better than nothing. Next time, I'll probably remind...

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Look at our Word Wall!

Hello all! Christmas break is almost here! We didn't focus much on curriculum this week, since we had our Winter program on Friday. The children sang a few songs, they had a gift exchange, and they had a blast. We were able to talk about buildings a little. We read this book: I snuck in some critical thinking skills. At the end of it, we reviewed the types of jobs...

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Build it Up, Tear it Down, Build it Up Again

Hello! I hope you're all taking time for yourself during this busy holiday season. With winter programs and Christmas presents from the class and for your own families, it's easy for the stress to build up. I'm providing some links here to encourage you to take 5 minutes and just breathe. Relax. It's ok. They'll also be on the homepage in my Links section. This one's fantastic...

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We're Going Green!

Bottles and cans, just clap your hands! It's time for a post on reusing materials! Can you tell this is one of my favorite concepts to teach? And I'm so glad we decided to focus on it early in the year instead of spring, like we did last year. I think this will set the stage for some great projects and STEAM ideas throughout the year. My only regret is not taking some...

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Why Didn't I Do This Earlier?

Hello all! This week, there's a lot of slapping my own head and wondering how I ever missed doing something so obvious. Have you had those moments? Let's dive in! Way back when I taught fifth grade, I had a lot of classroom management issues. My mentor told me, "You have to be a little mean. But it's just not in you, is it?" And it's not. My style tends to be more nurturing;...

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How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the KWL Chart

Hello! I hope everyone is having a great start to the school year! We've had a fantastic month so far. We dedicated three weeks to learning the centers and each other, which we've had a chance to review since some new children started. It's given us an opportunity to let the students become leaders; for example, we can say to a child having trouble making friends, "Will...

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