Out of nowhere this evening, my oldest asks me, "Mom, have you blogged in a while?" I answered not since before school started. She didn't even bother to ask why....she is the daughter of a teacher and understands the insanity we go through at the beginning of every year (and during report card time, and then again at the end of the year...). I didn't quite realize it had been since um.....July...since I last blogged. ughhhh.
That being said, how in the world do I narrow down just one or two topics for tonight??! How about we start with great back to school items available in my tpt store.
One of my all time favorite items are my student coupons. I have used rewards like these in my classroom for most of my teaching years. I find that while some students enjoy the tangible prizes such as erasers, mini toys, and trinket type items, some children get more positive reinforcement from being able to have certain privileges such as hat day, slipper day, tech time, window designer, and job swap. There are 20 sets of coupons included ready to print, laminate, and put to use. What I like most about these...it saves my pocket book from buying endless amounts of junk treasures at the dollar store and in dollar sections of larger retail stores to fill my prize drawer.
There is a good variety of prizes/rewards that can be used for grades preK-5th (or higher). I usually pic a some variety for students to pick from out of the prize drawer. Then when those are used, I rotate another batch into the drawer. I love seeing their faces light up when they see what they've won. :) Bonus...kids are motivated to read the coupons if they are looking for something specific with high interest. Get your set here.
Another one of my favorites is this Patriot Day activity pack. I have included some patriotic activities, fabulous read alouds to discuss why this day is so important, and some teaching tips.
If you're looking for some Attendance Boards to use on your interactive whiteboards or Smartboards, look no further. Here's an entire year. All names and pages can be edited to match your class. There are general pages such as balloon popping or spots to tap to show students are present. In addition, you'll find monthly themed attendance boards such as apples falling from a tree, raindrops coming down, and snowflakes falling. These can and have been used with grades spanning from prek to third. (Most could probably be used in 4th or 5th grade as well but since I personally don't have experience in those grades, I couldn't say for sure.)
Get yours here.
I also have some environmental posters to add some color and positivity to your classrooms. Some are FREE and some reasonably priced. I have several of mine printed in assorted sizes and even framed around my room. I typically won't draw attention to them but can always tell when students start becoming stronger readers. Suddenly they (and I) discover they are reading all my posters and signs around the room. It's like your very own built in assessment. ;)
FREEBIE!! Serenity Poem
(What teacher doesn't need this poem periodically?!?)
FREEBIE!! Make It a Great day Poster
(One of my favorites!)
Need a great back to school icebreaker/teambuilder?? Here it is. We did ours once again this year and what an awesome activity. I love seeing on day 1 the leaders, builders, planners, creators, and teams come together. Get your FREE Marshmallow Towers activity and follow up reflection sheet for your back to school or teambuilding lesson.
We've been talking A. LOT. about this!!! The quality of our work speaks volumes about our effort and pride we take in our finished products. This was the first year when doing to mini lesson, my kiddos actually got mad at me for "rushing them..." on purpose. I kept yelling at them..."Take your time! Do your best! But go faster!! Faster!!" All while I played some loud, fast music. Talk about frustrating. EEK! Luckily, they only endure that pressure for about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Then we pause and talk about what that feels like and the quality of their work. Grab your poster and activity to find out what we did next to alleviate the pressure and make our work show our best effort after learning our Tips for Neat Work.
Looking for a clip chart to help reinforce students demonstrating good choices and allowing students to have a visual for those not so good choices? Included in my Rainbow Behavior Chart System are behavior notes (think sheets) to go home to parents, a letter explaining the system to parents, monthly calendars, and the actual clip chart ready to print and laminate.
And while I'm on the back to school bandwagon...grab this Star Student packet to celebrate each child in your class. Included are a weekly listing for you to schedule your students, daily activities for each student to participate in, and examples of how this looks in my classroom. We are celebrating our first star this week and she is awfully excited. :)
Another bonus of this activity is that it correlates to the CCSS reflecting Speaking and Listening skills. Woo hoo!
Happy Back to School shopping!
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