This has to be one of THE most frustrating classroom challenges. You give directions, you ask if there are any questions, you tell your students to get started, and . . . they don’t. They fool around, they passive-aggressively take their time, they ask you what they’re supposed to do, etc. Part of what students… Read More

Updated on 7-20-23 with some new favorites! Building your classroom community is a high priority from the very first day of school. In this post, I shared some picture book suggestions for reading aloud in the first days and weeks of school. In this post, I am sharing some great chapter books for upper elementary… Read More

If you are thinking about ways to build community in your classroom this year, consider implementing class meetings or circles in your daily routine! Class meetings or classroom circles are sometimes called morning meetings, but they can actually be held any time throughout the school day. Teachers complain that there is never enough time in… Read More

Now that you are well into the school year, how do you continue to build relationships with students? First – here is something to think about. It’s one thing to say we’re going to build relationships with kids, but Jennifer Hogan challenges us to do something even more important: think about whether you want to… Read More

Parents, do you ever wonder what teachers really care about? Here are 10 things teachers want parents to know: 1 – please get your child to school on time. Coming in late gets your child’s day started on the wrong foot and often leads to stress and anxiety. 2 – let us know about family… Read More

It’s always good to have some kind of classroom reset when coming back to school after a break. But an expected break due to weather might need even more of a reset. My beautiful state was recently hit hard by Hurricane Florence and Tropical Storm Michael. In my town, we were spared the worst of… Read More