In this post, I share five common reasons for student misbehavior. No matter how strong our classroom management is or how positive our relationships with our students are, we are bound to encounter student misbehavior. As I've said before, I firmly believe the most important
Why It’s Not Just Girl Drama, But Relational Aggression
As a teacher, I felt like one of my weakest areas was dealing with what is often called "girl drama". When I saw this as a teacher, I struggled to find the root of the issue, to have time to deal with the problem, and to know what to do about it. I was also uncertain of where to
Six Methods for Teaching Empathy
I don't know that it's possible to overstate the importance of empathy in the classroom. It is pure joy for me to watch children who are naturally empathetic work with their classmates. I watch them carefully weigh their words and actions as they think about how those words and
Your Most Essential Classroom Management Strategy
I recently wrote about my favorite back to school resources, but I consider this post my most important back to school post, as it covers what I feel is the most essential classroom management strategy: The power of relationships. I know that technically our job is to teach
Classroom Organization Tips and Tricks
My past few blog posts have centered around classroom organization. I started with developing and organizing lesson plans, which you can find here. I then wrote about organizing physical space within the classroom, and you can read that here. This post shares a few tricks of the
Organizing Your Classroom
For me, summer is always a time of organization. It's when I regroup and reflect, and I try to make changes that will keep me organized for the school year. I recently shared how I organize my lesson plans here, and in this post I will share how I keep my classroom organized.
Lesson Plans Without Tears
Writing lesson plans and prepping for the week doesn't have to be an incredibly painful and time consuming process. A little organization can go a long way when it comes to saving time writing plans and making copies for the week. In this post, I'll share a few of my favorite
Essential Paper and Digital Organization
I've been blessed to acquire many teaching resources and tools over the years, and there are quite a few things I don't know what I would do without-from the basics such as clipboards and books-to more advanced resources such as a digital projector and document camera. However
Test Prep for Upper Elementary
Now that it's what I not so affectionately refer to as "testing season", I wanted to share a couple of my test prep ideas. Some of them are tried and true, and a few are things I've tried out for the first time this year. I do want to throw out a disclaimer and say that I do not
Classroom Forms & Organization
Since my first year teaching, I've been searching for that perfect classroom form to keep myself organized, prepared, and on track. I've since come to the conclusion that no such form exists. I've made some forms that are very helpful, but I've found that what works for one class
