Classroom Organization

Have you gotten the checklist yet? Mine came through email yesterday. You know the one I'm talking about... the "Classroom Pack Up" checklist. That wonderful list of all the things you have to do in order to receive your paycheck at the end of the school year. And is it just me or does it seem to get longer every ...

For many of us, our reading block lasts anywhere from 90-120 minutes every day.  That time is extremely important because it is the one time during the day that is protected and uninterrupted.  However, our reading block can seem like a huge chunk of time to keep students engaged.  For me, the time goes by so fast because I make ...

Ah, literacy, my personal favorite to teach. We do literacy in the afternoons and it makes for such an easy and relaxing end to the day. While all subject areas are important to teach, I find that literacy is where everything really ties together. The phonics they've been working on, the spelling patterns, the writing components, all get tied together ...

It's always the first thing my principal does when she walks into my classroom. Quickly scanning my students, she counts how many are on task and how many there are in total to compute my engagement percentage. Student engagement has become our school's number one focus. If our students are not actively engaged in their learning, how much are they ...

I am a hoarder. Is anyone else able to relate? Plus, having a minimalist classroom was not ever on my wishlist. I do not like to get rid of the materials, games, resources in my classroom EVER! But, a new principal leads to new ideas (old ideas brought up again). Then, our whole administration team decided that it needed to ...