Keeping parents up-to-date on what’s going on in the classroom can sometimes be difficult. Fortunately, there are many free tools on the web that can help teachers streamline the communication process and get parents the information they need. Here are 10 online tools that are free, helpful, and easy to use.

Edublogs – Created specifically for educators, Edublogs makes it easy for teachers to create free and fully customizable classroom blogs. Edublogs uses WordPress technology and provides technical support through their forums.

GroupTweet – GroupTweet is a unique Twitter application that can turn any Twitter account into a group communication hub that allows direct messages and group updates. Updates can be kept private with a protected profile.

Engrade – Used by 150,000+ teachers around the world, this useful suite of tools can keep parents up-to-date on assignments, grades, class events, and other important information. Engrade is private, free to use, and available to parents 24/7.

KeepandShare – KeepandShare is a free file sharing service that allows users to share files, slideshows, photos, online calendars, and other materials online. There is no software to install and all group members are automatically notified when a new file is added. KeepandShare also offers users complete control over who sees what within a group.

LearnCentral – This social network for education allows teachers to post learning content and host virtual meetings with two-way VoIP, multipoint video, an interactive whiteboard, application sharing, and other handy features.

Yugma – Yugma is a web conferencing and screen sharing service that works across multiple platforms. Teachers can use it to conduct free meetings with up to 20 attendees.

Phonevite – Phonevite is an award-winning web application that allows users to send free phone reminders and alerts in three easy steps. The app is a great for reminding parents about parent-teacher conferences and other special events.

Remember The Milk – Remember The Milk is a free, web-based task manager that works with Gmail, Google Calendar, Twitter, and other popular tools. Teachers can use it to share, send, and publish tasks, lists, and other information for parents.

Microsoft Office Online – Microsoft Office Online is a good place to find parent communication templates and forms. Some of the documents available for download include permission forms, progress reports, and parent message templates.

Education World – Education World also offers several useful templates for parent communication, including assignment notifications, conference reminders, permission slips, and progress reports. The templates can be edited, emailed, and printed.

This has been a guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online degrees for OnlineDegreePrograms.org.  

Photo Credit: ChrisL – AK

These three online resources each provide significant academic support to materials many of you already cover in class. Use them to supplement, enrich or integrate them into your regular lessons as you deem appropriate. The choice is yours.

SmartHistory.org

Designed to bring art history discussions and lessons to all who need or want them, this site allows exploration and study of the works of Gaugin, Picasso, Matisse and more. Articles, brief videos and even audio presentations overlayed with the image of a particular artist’s piece, all combine for an in-depth resource teachers and art history enthusiasts alike will enjoy.

The audio visual presentations and articles would each make great small or whole group activities, as well as independent homework assignments where students are required to provide a written response or answer predetermined questions. 
 
World Digital Library

This growing digital collection of cultural treasures and historical documents contains items from around the world, such as one of a kind antique maps, political photos and even immigration paperwork for Maria von Trapp, the woman made famous by the show “The Sound of Music”.  Helpful for research, or preparing presentations requiring specific, hard-to-find images. This project was initiated by UNESCO and the United States Library of Congress, and supported by numerous international organizations.
 
Academic Earth

A treasure trove of video lectures from top universities such as Princeton, Stanford, Harvard and Yale, just to name a few. Topics range from math and science to the new testament as history and entrepreneurship. Great for those topics that intersect with what your advanced high school students are studying, as well as for those students who want to get a feel for the type of lectures they need to be prepared for in college.

Related Readings: bulletin boards for older classrooms, a free Middle East studies resource and a complimentary ESL news resource for educators. 

Photo Credit: Rexand Sharkey

January is prime month for quality instruction. Yet it is also the time many of us have a hard time gearing up after the holidays. To help out, I’ve rounded up what I feel are the top tips from around the web as we launch into 2010.

• What to do with only five minutes left in class? This post from The Apple gives you ten tips to use small amounts of classroom time wisely.
• Top personal finance and parenting blogger Linsey Knerl got a sneak peek of the new Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs DVD. Check out her review to see why she thinks it’s a winner for family entertainment.
• Snow  days cutting in to your academic classroom time? Frugal Upstate has a list of forty different  snow day activities you can recommend to parents.
• Looking to make more of a personal connection with your students? Sean Banville shows you how with his fantastic tips on using audio progress reports for one on one interaction.
• Finally, those looking to motivate your kiddos for goal setting should check out Shelly Terrell’s theme song activity for goal setting over at Teacher Reboot Camp. It’s a must read.

Got another top tip for educators? Share the love in the comment section below.

Photo Credit: Dok 1

Need a basic math center activity for multiple grade levels that will cost you next to nothing? Try this affordable idea that requires nothing but clothespins and index cards.

First, start with a collection of wooden clothespins. Use fine-tipped permanent markers to write various numbers on them appropriate to the grade level you are instructing. (Early primary grades will have single digit numbers, intermediate and middle school classrooms will have higher numbers appropriate to their studies.)

Next, cut several small index cards in half and write a math problem on each. For each numbered clothespin, you’ll want numerous cards with problems that all equal that number when solved. An example would be for a clothespin numbered 9, you would have index cards halves with problems such as 6 + 3, 11 – 2, etc.

The answers are left blank for students to work through them on scratch paper or in the case of primary level problems to eventually learn them by memory. Put the answers for each problem on the back of the index card so students can self check their work.

Students spend time at the learning center working through the problems and clipping each one inside the correct clothespin as they find the answer. For older grades where you are working with three and four digit numbers, this center will work well when you need an activity that takes enough time to allow you to run separate reading or math groups. Simply assign seatwork that will take 30-45 minutes to complete, and you have enough lessons for three full group rotations.

Teaching  Tip: laminate the index card math problems with clear contact paper to keep them from getting damaged. This allows you to use this center year after year without developing the materials from scratch each time.

Related Readings:

• Two Vocab Lessons Using Index Cards
• Cool Ideas for Clothespins and Binder Clips
• Lesson Ideas for Old Fashioned Index Cards
• Classroom Uses for Clothespins

What are your favorite affordable math activities?

Photo Credit: Geisha Boy 500

A situation came up at The Lesson Machine / Lesson Mag office recently that put us in a bit of a conundrum. It got me thinking about how many of us might be contributing to serious environmental problems in spite of all our classroom recycling efforts. Read on to find out what happened, how we responded, and join in the discussion of how you can address the same issue in your own classroom.

Having switched to bamboo and stainless steel drinking straws some time ago, it’s been some time since any plastic ones made it across our doorstep. However, my husband is going to school full time right now to become a science teacher, and a recent model he was required to build and photograph required plastic drinking straws. They needed to be certain colors, so the small packs were out of the question.  Off to the party supply aisle we went, purchasing a large box of several different colors suitable for this particular science model.

While we accepted that it was a necessary purchase and we were going to have to deal with the fact that it was counterproductive to our plastic reduction efforts, the excess straws left us with a quandary. Toss them or use them?
In the end, we decided if they were going to end up in the landfill anyway, they really should be used before we toss them. For purposes of this article however, I pose the following questions:

• How many other teachers are using straws instead of sticks for student-created puppets? I know I have in the past.
• How many of those little foam decorations are necessary for art supplies when paper scraps and fabric remnants would work just as well?
• What simple changes can we all make in our selection of classroom craft materials to help reduce our overall consumption of supplies (namely plastic) that don’t biodegrade safely?

Sound off below, and be sure to add a link in your comment to any online article or image you may have posted of your particular idea, lesson or project. Related Reading: 8 Simple Ways to Reduce Plastic in the Classroom.

Photo Credit: Respres

Everywhere you see the students in your school texting on their cell phones or listening to their Ipods.  Administrators are beginning to ask you how you use computers in your classroom. They have given you gadgets galore you have no idea how to use.

I hear educators daily express their concerns on how to achieve high test scores with the new technologies they are given with very little training on how to use them. This reason is probably the number one reason several educators fear technology and are even a bit angry at having to use technology. However, plenty of educators in the same situation have provided resources to help through various types of learning communities. Here are a few of my favorite learning communities! Joining any of these is free!

BLOGS

These provide innovative lesson plans for any technology. Educators can easily submit  their email addresses to receive their favorite blogs through email. You can decide to follow blogs specific to one technology or you can choose to read a blog that deals with many different types of technology like Teacher Reboot Camp.  

 SOCIAL NETWORKS

Educators can now discover best practices for using any technology and even ask for help with technology nightmares by joining online educational groups. Do you want your class to interact with a class around the world? Just post a question in any of these forums.

• Nings: These are websites that host various tools for groups to interact with each other. Educators can post videos, join discussions, or share files! I recommend the Educator Professional Learning Network  ning group. 
• Twitter: Thousands of educators exchange links, answer questions, and debate educational issues daily on Twitter. You can easily follow a list of educators or follow ones specific to your field. This website will provide you with several resources to get you started.
• YouTube: Did you know you can subscribe to educational Youtube channels? If you subscribe to the Learn to Be the Difference channel, you will find video tutorials, inspiring educational videos, and more!

No need to fear the technology monster, because other educators are willing to exchange ideas, lesson plans, and support! This movement of educators establishing learning communities is exciting and will continue to flourish, because we are all stronger when we put our minds together.

Shelly Sanchez Terrell is a technology teacher trainer,  English language teacher, and consultant for various language institutes, online schools, and educational institutes in Nepal, the US, Germany, and Italy. Explore her Teacher Reboot Camp blog for tips on professional development and integrating technology effectively into the classroom. She can be reached via Twitter: @shellterrell. Check out her articles on building a PLN with Twitter and a further explanation of social networks.

Fourteen years ago, a student at my college asked to use ‘the computer’. His next question stumped me. “How do you turn it on?” I failed in my attempts to help him. How was I to know the power button on the Apple Mac was on the keyboard? I was an EFL teacher! I made lessons for students in my neatest handwriting with my pencil. No need for technology.

Today, I am webmaster of six websites. I have two podcasts, RSS feeds, and a Twitter account. I blog, glog, ning, and create mp3 files, HTML and Flash exercises for class. I use Google docs, digital storytelling, voice threads, wikis and a whole lot more. No need for pencils.

My students love their laptops. They carry them around like Charlie Brown’s pal Linus clings to his blanket. It’s astonishing how many of my class come equipped with their computer and charger but totally forget their pencil and coursebook. Thankfully, the latter is the digital version so I can display it on my Smart Board. My students really get down to work when lessons are computer based. When pencil-equipped, they can get down to some serious doodling.

My students are not familiar with the term Web 2.0. To them, it is simply “stuff we do (all day) every day. They don’t see it as innovation nor experience any manifestation of “new technology” phobia. Ducks to water, pretty much. Same with my two small children (six and eight).

Now, some teachers I know have a reluctance to use these “new technologies”. This is rather peculiar. Laptop computers are two decades old. Smart boards have been around for a decade. We all use e-mail, visit blogs and make stuff on the computer. Web 2.0 is really no longer a term that describes innovation. It’s wholly mainstream. Neither is Web 2.0 stuff new technology – it’s simply ‘stuff’. The myriad of amazing new online things to use in class are just tools. Same as a pencil.

I understand the reticence of teachers who fear dipping their toe in and using these tools. My initial thought when trying another one is “here we go again”. I encounter a small obstacle in thinking it’s a pain to once again register, log in, and then figure out how it all works. Luckily, most of the Web 2.0 stuff out there today is more intuitive to use than my school’s Apple Mac was to turn on way back when.

What I have learned in my very interesting journey from pencil to digital tools is how great the rewards are of engaging students’ interest with computer-based and online materials. In addition, I fully understand that getting over the hurdle of spending a little time to get to grips with the latest tool is definitely worthwhile. I feel happier as a teacher being equipped with all the mainstream tools such as pencils, podcasts and even plurks.

Of course students still need their pencils and notebooks. A healthy balance of traditional tools (pens, pencils, paper) and mainstream tools (digital stuff) is required.

But innovation is now also mainstream, not something we expect future teachers will introduce into the classroom. We should use what the students use. In teaching ESL/EFL, we can easily incorporate new tools while helping students with digital and traditional literacy. They need to know the vocabulary of social media and Web 2.0 tools as much as they need ‘parts of the body’ vocab from Unit Three.

IMHO, there is more hands-on, authentic language and reality on all of the digital tools mentioned above than in coursebooks. Technology integration provides great language practice and motivation. It’s also collaborative, exciting, interesting, and mainstream.

Sean Banville is the webmaster for various ESL materials websites and has plans for many more. He has a Master’s degree in TEFL/TESL from Birmingham University, and  spent thirteen years teaching in Japan before relocating to the UAE in 2006. He recently became an enthusiastic member of the Twitter community, and is gearing up to enter the world of blogging. His web-based projects include the following:

• Breaking News English (previously reviewed here on Lesson Mag)
• ESL Discussions
• Famous People Lessons
• ESL Holiday Lessons
• News English Lessons
• Listen a Minute

Photo Credit: SeanBanville.Com

As December approaches, many teachers are looking for ways to celebrate the Christmas holiday that keep both classroom discipline and budget in check. An advent calendar is one way to do that, provided you select affordable rewards and activities. Here is a way to incorporate a traditional holiday advent calendar into your current classroom routine, without breaking the bank.

First, use a classroom calendar with slightly larger squares, similar to the ones most elementary teachers already use. Those who teach older grades will still be able to incorporate this, it will just require a larger activity space. (Here’s a set of directions to make your own affordable classroom calendar.)

Second, find a source of smaller envelopes, such as the multi-packs of miniature gift cards from the craft or dollar store. Attach one envelope to each calendar day you will be in class during the month of December.

Third, come up with a list of affordable or free classroom rewards, prizes or activities. Make sure you have enough to cover each of the days where you will need envelopes. Some suggestions include holiday pencils, free paper passes, watching a movie in the class, five bonus points to add to a future quiz or test, a classroom popcorn party, erasers or a no homework night.

Write each of these items on the card that goes with the envelope. If you bought a pack of miniature gift cards at the craft store, you’re all set. If you folded your own decorative envelopes, then you’ll need to print off some cards or slips of paper to use.

Pull out the reward, prize or activity at whatever time of day works for you to reveal what’s inside. You might even want to schedule a different reveal time for various days, depending on what’s inside the envelope. For example, a night off from homework at the end of the day, an afternoon classroom movie that you let the students know about just before lunch, or new holiday pencils at the beginning of the day.

Have you tried a similar advent calendar activity in your classroom? What types of activities or gift card ideas did you use?

Related Readings: An Easy Holiday Advent Calendar for Two Dollars and 70 Affordable Advent Calendar Ideas.

Photo Credit: Campbelj45ca

With tight budgets and position cuts the norm in many school districts, physical education often ends up being on the classroom teacher’s list of responsibilities. How do you implement a sustainable physical education program without diverting valuable classroom budget dollars on supplies? Here are seven simple suggestions to get you started.

Hula hoops.

Great for using with traditional hula hoop activities, for exercise stations outside and more, these things are easily found at dollar stores and other affordable retailers. Pick up a set of four to six to have on hand.  For more information on hula hoops and other items in the classroom, check out this article on classroom hacks.

A parachute.

This might be something you want to purchase per grade level, but for teachers of very young primary students, brightly colored classroom parachutes offer a springboard for numerous quality strength building and direction following exercises.  If you’re going to splurge on one piece of equipment for early primary, parachutes are an excellent choice.

A selection of various fitness balls.

Playground balls, basketballs and soccer balls can all be used for things like 4-square, kickball, soccer, basketball and fitness station drills. A collection of three to four makes a nice affordable start to your personal classroom collection of physical education equipment.

Popsicle sticks and reinforcement charts.

In a previous article on how to use craft sticks in the classroom, I covered a very affordable PE program that could be ongoing in your classroom for very little money or space.  Having students run around a course or track of a quarter mile and receiving an additional stick each time they go and recording the distance per student on a classroom reinforcement chart is efficient, cheap, well received by students and requires virtually no advance planning after the initial chart is up on the wall.

A whistle.

Cheap, simple and easy to overlook as a piece of valuable classroom equipment, a whistle provides as much support for your physical education lessons as it does for recess lineup.

Music.

You’ll need a play source as well as a good collection of music to use for cool downs, rock outs, and high stepping musical chairs on rainy days. Seriously, don’t forget the tunes.

Bandanas.

These have numerous affordable uses in the classroom, but when it comes to PE they are fantastic as a cheap solution to identify teams. Instead of paying big bucks for vest-style pull on tops to use for the traditional “skins and shirts” team identification, have half of the class wear their class bandanas around their necks in the voted upon color.

Most of these items not only work to support your physical education program, but also ensure you have a quality selection of playground equipment as well. Have you written about frugal physical education ideas before? Share your link in the comment section. You know we love to hear from you.

Photo Credit: Striatic

There are many free resources online designed to help learning and technology practitioners design curriculum, plan lessons, advance their career, and engage students in the learning experience. This article by Karen Schweitzer offers a list of 10 free resources to explore:

TED – This non-profit organization is dedicated to “Ideas Worth Spreading.” Each year, TED hosts an annual conference that is attended by many of the world’s leading academics, learning technologists, and business leaders. TED’s blog and video podcasts are great for learning and technology professionals who want to stay-up-to date on tech news and innovations.

Tech & Learning – Tech & Learning is aimed as the K-12 educational community. It also provides a wide range of resources for practitioners who support learning and performance in the corporate or professional world too. Resources include blogs, tech forums, webinars, hot topics, articles, and tips.

Enterprise 2.0 Blog – The Enterprise 2.0 Blog is an Enterprise 2.0 Conference affiliate. The blogs offer a wide range of news and information about social learning and technologies in various environments.

Jane’s E-Learning Pick of the Day – Jane Hart is a social media and learning consultant. She posts new eLearning items of interest on her blog every day. She also offers a social media in learning blog and a directory of eLearning resources.

eLearningPost – This eLearning blog explores news and stories from around the web that are related to corporate learning and instructional design. The blog also frequently links to articles on knowledge management and learning communities.

The Bamboo Project – The Bamboo Project is a useful blog from education consultant Michele Martin. The blog seeks to educate individuals and learning professionals about lifelong learning and career development systems. Some of the things Michele likes to write about include learning, training, knowledge sharing, and professional development.

Dice – Dice is a good place for learning and technology professionals to search for jobs online. The site also offers career news and a forum to ask questions, chat, and network with other education and technology professionals.

Employment Engagement Network – This social network is dedicated to employee engagement. The network has more than 1,400 members and provides a place to chat, blog, and network online. The Employee Engagement Network also offers many free resources, including e-books and slide shows.

Blended Learning in the Workplace – This free, eight-page report provides a detailed survey of blended learning trends in U.S. workplaces. More than 118 corporate training and e-learning practitioners were surveyed for the report.

TeachAde – TeachAde is a social networking site for educators. The site is an excellent place to find additional resources and network with other teachers and education professionals.

This is a guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes for OnlineCollege.org, an online college resource. You’ll find her previous guest post, Twenty Professional Development Resources for Teachers, an informative and helpful read.  

Photo Credits: Per Ola Wiberg and Karen Schweitzer

Stick Man, a new release by Scholastic, is out this season for holiday enjoyment. Created by Julie Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, this seasonal rhyming tale tells the story of a stick man who is taken accidentally from his family tree by a well meaning pooch. One mishap after another takes him farther away from home. On his final stop, he ends up in a woodpile by a fireplace. It looks like the end until instead of another Stick Man, he hears a stuck man (Santa) who needs his help getting out of the chimney. From there, all ends well.

Clever rhyming sequences using word families and repetitive language make Stick Man well suited for primary classrooms.

Jim Murphy and Scholastic have teamed up to provide an engaging historical Christmas narrative for intermediate level readers. Teachers of nine-twelve year olds looking to incorporate a real life holiday story with their studies of World War I may want to take a look. Read on.

 Synopsis:

 In Truce, Newbery honor author Jim Murphy tells the true tale of the 1914 Christmas miracle that occurred when troops on both sides openly defied their commanding officers and had a spontaneous holiday celebration with each other.

 Illustration Commentary:

Illustrated with archival images, the publisher has taken the extra step to incorporate sepia tones. In my opinion this helps liven up the photos, as books illustrated with archival photos (and there was really no way out of it in this case) can come across as a bit drab if only black and white image are used.

 A Prophetic Quote:

 I found the most profound portion of the book to be at the very beginning with the following quote spoken by Winston Churchill to his wife Clementine, nearly a month to the day prior to the spontaneous Christmas truce. “What would happen, I wonder, if the armies suddenly and simultaneously went on strike and said some other method must be found of settling the dispute?”

Classroom Recommendations:

Truce is quite suitable for older classrooms who might already be studying that particular time in history. This would be a way to work in the holiday while staying on track curriculum wise. Includes a detailed timeline resource in the back of the book and references to other books, movies and web sites to build the theme.

Scheduled for release in October 2009. Truce is currently available on Amazon.Com.

 Photo Credit: Scholastic.Com

Two time Newbery Medalist Lois Lowry takes her first stab at a picture book in Crow Call, published by Scholastic.

This title for primary grades features a young girl’s first memory of a big outing with her father, a man who had previously been a stranger to her due to a long war time absence. The event: a hunting trip where the day starts off with the girl’s father purchasing her a rainbow colored plaid shirt and a double helping of cherry pie. From there, they enjoy a day in the woods calling crows with a wooden tool.

It wouldn’t be fair to do a review of Crow Call without a serious nod to illustrator Bagram Ibatoulline. The book’s illustrations are absolutely precious. Done in color choices that mimic the seasons, they are period appropriate as well and have a decidedly Norman Rockwell feel.

While this timeless historical piece will appeal to a wide range of readers, this writer feels it would be particularly suited to the following audiences: military daughters whose fathers are currently deployed, daddy-daughter read aloud events and women who grew up “Tom boys” and remember hunting with their fathers.

Crow Call is due out in October of 2009. Available at Amazon.Com.

Photo Credit: Scholastic Press

Teachers are used to working with limited resources, but few issues impact your daily instruction as much as limits on paper, the number of copies you can make, or both. In my career, I’ve dealt with all three. There were schools with strict copy quotas per teacher or department, overworked machines that broke down weekly, too few copiers for a large campus, or no direct access to copy machines at all.

At my first school, we had a part-time “copy person” who was the only one authorized to make copies. If you needed copies, you had to get them to her several days in advance at a minimum. On the other side of this issue is paper, which is subject to similar restrictions. Plus, if you have a printer in your classroom, paper seems to become even more scarce.

 As a teacher who always created a lot of custom materials and didn’t rely on textbooks, this was a source of endless frustration, as I’m sure it is for many others. Out of necessity, I developed a series of simple teacher hacks based around three principles: Learn how to use all of the copy machine’s features. Use The Three R’s. Make copies without a copier.

Learn How to Use All of the Copier’s Features

There’s a basic set of features almost every copier has that will limit your paper use and the number of copies you’ll make.

 Double-sided printing.

First, there’s no reason to ever print anything single-sided. Technophobic teachers don’t bother to figure out how to do this, which doubles the amount of paper used. Remember, you don’t need a two-sided original to make a two-sided copy either.

 Multiple pages per sheet.

Even if you use only the two pages per sheet conversion, you’ve just cut your paper use AND copies in half. Combine it with #1, and you can turn an eight page original into only 2 pages and 4 copies.

 Resizing.

 Sometimes fitting things onto a smaller number of pages is just a matter of scaling something down, which the copier can do for you. While you may use an extra copy or two to get the size you need, if you cut a page or two from your print job, the paper you save for your job adds up quickly. Sometimes you can actually fit a little more than the multiple pages per sheet function if you resize yourself. A regular 8.5″ by 11″ page reduced to 60-70% will often easily fit on half a page. Find the right number by noting what percent the copier uses when it does multiple pages per sheet for you, and increase the percentage a bit.

Scanning and emailing.

Newer copiers actually let you scan any document and email it yourself as a PDF. If this is available, you can eliminate the need for printing tons of extra copies for absent-minded students, or even yourself. Scan it, then print it on demand later.

The Three R’s

Reduce.

The easiest way to reduce copies is to print only a “class set” (enough copies for your largest class) to be reused throughout the day. If students work in pairs or groups, your class set will shrink even more. Generally, the larger the original document, the more you should lean towards the class set, even for tests. Remember, anything your students can write can be written on their own paper, including their

work if you require that. Once you remove spaces for answers from your handouts, whatever the subject may be, you’ve probably eliminated several pages from your original.

 If you have a printer in your classroom, whether school issued or your own, procuring ink can be an expensive and difficult task as well. Reduce the amount you use by printing in a low-ink mode (sometimes called draft, economy or fast mode), printing only specific pages, or utilizing a program like Green Print to eliminate anything you don’t want to print (like ads and menus from websites, for example).

Finally, ask yourself this question whenever you feel the urge to copy: “Do I really need to copy this?” If it’s a very short assignment, for example a handful of open-ended questions, is it really a big deal to put it on the overhead or board and have students copy it (or just answer it)? You don’t want your class to be known among students as the one where “all we do is get handouts”.

Reuse.

Reuse every single-sided paper that crosses your desk. You’ll likely get tons of these from school officials, but you’ll also have a surprising amount left over from things you print after you’re done with them. I kept a special box for these near my desk, because it has tons of uses: scratch paper for students (and me), printing non-official documents on my classroom printer, and as a canvas for cutting and pasting together the originals I would later copy for class. It’s amazing how much paper you go through for stuff you only need temporarily.

Obviously if you’re making class sets, you’ll be reusing copies throughout the day, but remember that you could save your class sets and reuse them in subsequent years or semesters to save even more.

Recycle.

Okay, so you won’t reduce the number of copies you make or paper you use by recycling, but you’ll send the message to your students that you’re trying to cut paper waste. Hopefully, they’ll do their best to follow your example.

Make Copies Without a Copy Machine

Your own classroom printer.

I’m a big proponent of having your own printer in the classroom, preferably a multifunction one that also scans and copies. They’re very affordable, and in a school with limitations and problem copy machines, it will make your life a lot easier. You can make single copies very quickly or print on demand from your computer. This saves you from emergency runs to the copier and doesn’t make a dent in your copy quota. If your school copier doesn’t have the scanning capabilities described above, this is your way of avoiding the copier altogether.

Have a home printer.

If having one in your classroom isn’t an option, you should absolutely have a multifunction printer at home. You can get a lot of prep done that might normally require a copier, if only to make one or two copies to create your originals. You can even print out class sets (using the low-ink setting of course) when time or access to the copier at school is an issue.

Scanning.

Finally, the ability to scan documents is completely necessary if you’re serious about cutting down both paper use and the number of copies you need to make.

Tom DeRosa lives and teaches in McAllen, Texas. The owner and author of TeachForever.Com, he has also written several pillar articles of note. Included are 52 Teachers – 52 Lessons, The Golden Girls’ Guide to Telling Great Stories (fantastic), and Why We Need to Change the Way We Teach Math.

Photo Credit: Teach Forever

Trying to find time to honor any type of fitness program in the classroom when PE has been virtually stripped from your school’s curriculum? Lucky to fit in one group activity per week along with all of the unexpected assemblies, special ed integration consults, math reviews and more? Kathy Kaehler, healthy living expert and personal trainer to the stars, has a great free program on her site that provides physical fitness activities to do with your students in workouts as short as one minute. Ready to read on?

Kathy’s program is called Schoolhouse Workout, and features a different one minute workout every month. Often, you’ll see Kathy leading it. Other times, a guest celebrity will be leading the troops. The workouts are in video, approximately one minute in length and are archived for your convenience. Your students won’t need any equipment, other than the occasional use of their desk chair. This makes it perfect for those teachers working in the trenches of various districts where supplies and equipment are either hard to come by, or difficult to replace such as remote international locations. As long as you have a decent internet connection, you’re good to go.

If your internet access is sporadic, get the workout parameters when you are at the internet cafe in the city and jot them down for use in whatever remote village you happen to be working in. Otherwise, just hit the play button and enjoy. Since they are only one minute long, I recommend using them in the following way:

If you are able to route the video to a larger classroom TV as a monitor, fantastic! Otherwise, just model for your students and roll with it.

Creative use of lesson length. Personally, I think the brevity of these one-minute workouts is the greatest strength of the program. Particularly in today’s schools where the term fitness program is virtually nonexistent. That being said, most teachers are used to a full thirty to forty-five minute activity. If that’s the way you still want to go in your classroom, fine. Use the one-minute video segments as a way to start the group activity off. To keep things more integrated for the kids however, I recommend a hybrid. For the first viewing of the video each month, use it as a kick off activity for something like kickball, fitness station rotation or my favorite frugal classroom fitness activity – the popsicle stick running program. ( See this craft stick project ideas post for instructions.)

From there, once the kids have become familiar with the order and moves of that month’s workout, use the one minute workouts throughout the day as a healthy way to transition between lessons. A few of the workout videos will require some room for push-ups and such, so you may want to select a couple of different workout videos to get you through the month. You have several options, since they are all archived on the site. Just choose one that requires a smaller amount of personal space if you are switching between two activities that are both desk related, or to take a minor break during a really long test. Have the kids flip over their papers to avoid peeking and rock out for sixty seconds to get the oxygen pumping.

To access the workouts, simply register on KathyKaehlerFitness.Com . Related Readings: Six Exercise Tips for Travelers and Affordable Inside Tips from a Celebrity Personal Trainer.

Written by Barbara Kerley. Illustrated by Caldecott honor artist Brian Selznick. Published by Scholastic Press.

First Impressions

A perfect picture book for older children just getting introduced to the life and works of Walt Whitman. This book looks like a present at first glance, with its gilded lettering, cut-out picture frame and Robert F. Sibert silver award medallion. The illustrations are well done, and blend the intimate with the unexpected, and the incidental with the iconic.

Tidbits Learned

Walt Whitman was working as a printer’s apprentice by the age of twelve, and publishing his own newspaper at nineteen. After traveling the country to write poetry celebrating the common everyday people, he because deeply passionate about the Civil War and the suffering of the soldiers. A great deal of his work also focused on them.

Personal Verdict

A well-developed piece worthy of inclusion to any collection or study of Mr. Whitman’s works.

Photo Credit: Scholastic 

Written by Caldecott honor book author Anne Isaacs, this pioneer themed tale is set in the American wilderness. This Scholastic Press title is boldly illustrated by Mark Teague.

PERKS

Opportunities for student story predictions.

These exist each time the main character, Toby, meets a new forest animal. Since she trades one item of her winter gear for her safety each time, this provides a built in infrastructure for repeated instruction during the very first group reading.

Repetitive language.

Each time Toby or the animals speak, there are certain repetitive phrases used. This provides a consistent set of chances for young readers to gain confidence and accuracy with those phrases.

Integrated rhyming pairs.

On the majority of pages in the book, numerous pairs of rhyming words are available for student identification. This makes for a great whole group, reading buddy or independent study activity.

Inspirational illustrations.

The scale and color pairings chosen for this title’s pictures are such that children will be able to draw inspiration for their own literature-based art projects without feeling overwhelmed.

Built in pancake recipe.

The complete pancake recipe on the back of the book is a nice extra. Perfect for homeschooling parents looking for an extra extension activity, or teachers who love cooking in the classroom with students.

QUIRKS

To be honest, I was a bit disappointed with the ending the first time around. I found the “melting” of the animals, and the fully boiled and reduced syrup coming out of the tree instead of the more accurate clear sap to be a bit of a let down after the solid story build up of individual animal encounters. I also wasn’t quite sure why the title connection wasn’t worked in until the very end.

That being said, I did read on the interior book jacket flap about Anne Isaac’s affinity for tall tales as a story form. If this was the author’s intent, then teachers have an opportunity here for instruction by assigning the investigation and identification of the specific tall tale elements towards the end of the book, and in other parts of the story.

Have you had the chance to read Pancakes for Supper? What were your thoughts and reactions?

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

]]> http://mtheriault.lessonmag.com/2009/08/27/pancakes-for-supper-a-book-review/feed/ 0 http://mtheriault.lessonmag.com/2009/08/20/guest-post-from-karen-schweitzer-20-professional-development-resources-for-teachers/ http://mtheriault.lessonmag.com/2009/08/20/guest-post-from-karen-schweitzer-20-professional-development-resources-for-teachers/#comments Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:24:49 +0000 Myscha Theriault http://mtheriault.lessonmag.com/?p=639

For most teachers, education doesn’t end when a degree is earned. The teaching profession demands continuing education, and in certain cases, advanced education. Fortunately, there are many online resources that can help teachers with professional development. Here are 20 resources for educators to explore:

NCATE – The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) accredits schools, colleges and departments of education. The NCATE website is a good place to find lists of accredited institutions and scholarship resources.

 NEA – The National Education Association (NEA) is an advocate for teachers and students. Members can access classroom management and professional development resources as well as web and print tools.

 AFT – The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is a teacher’s union that offers many interesting resources on their website. Teachers can view salary surveys, education news, and publications and reports on a wide range of topics.

 ASCD – The ASCD is a non-profit organization with members in more than 100 countries. The organization offers an excellent professional development survey on their website as well as several other professional growth resources for teachers.

NBPTS – The National Board for Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is a non-profit organization that was formed to advance the quality of teaching in schools. NBPTS offers information about education standards on their website and provides numerous development tools for teachers.

RISE – RISE (Resources for Indispensible Schools and Educators) is a non-profit organization that dedicates itself to connecting teachers with low-income public schools. Teachers can use the RISE site to search and apply for jobs.

PBS TeacherLine – This PBS site is an online professional development resource for teachers. TeacherLine provides standards-based graduate-level courses for credit as well as a few free resources to encourage professional growth.

Thinkfinity – The National Verizon Thinkfinity Training Program provides many free training opportunities and resources for educators and after-school practitioners. Offerings include state-specific professional development, instructional videos, and free courses for graduate credit.

Learner.org – Learner.org offers many free professional development video courses to teachers. Courses cover a wide range of subjects and provide information on how to teach today’s standards-based curricula.

Teachers Network – The Teachers Network is an advocate for teacher leadership and student learning. The organization provides many free professional development resources for teachers, including articles, how-to’s, and lesson plans.

Teacher’s Domain – This online teacher library provides free digital media for the classroom and professional development. Teachers who register for a free account can store and share resources online.

TeachersFirst – TeachersFirst offers a series of free online education sessions for teachers. Known as OK2Ask, these sessions last approximately one hour and can be attended from any computer with an Internet connection.

The Teacher’s Podcast – The Teacher’s Podcast provides PD resources for teachers who are interested in integrating technology into the classroom.

We the Teachers – We the Teachers is a social network for teachers. It is a great place to meet other educators and discuss professional development opportunities.

The Apple – Created for current and future educators, this social network provides career advices, education resources, message boards, free job postings, and many other online resources.

Applebatch – This K-12 teacher community was created to help teachers advance their careers. Teachers can join groups in their profession, share resources, build their network, and apply for new jobs.

TeachAde – TeachAde is a social networking site for teachers and other education professionals. Members can network with other educators around the world, search for resources, and create resources of their own.

FolioSpaces – FolioSpaces is a unique social networking system that can be used to create free electronic portfolios.

Fund for Teachers – Fund for Teachers is a non-profit organization that provides teacher grants and other professional growth resources. New grants are awarded each year.

Scholarships and Grants for Teachers – This blog post provides information on a wide range of grants and scholarships for future and current teachers who are pursuing continuing education or degrees in education.

Guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online colleges for OnlineColleges.net.

Other articles from Karen:

Tuition-Free Education Courses for Teachers

25 Free Apps and Web Sites for Tech Loving Teachers

40 Places to Find Free Lesson Plans

We all scramble every school year to find balance between getting our classroom management and discipline procedures up and running and providing those first day of school activities that go the extra mile in style. This article covers both in detail.

Last year, I wrote an article on strategies to start the school year off right. It covered ways to set a serious academic tone while having a stylish classroom. While that article is still more than worthy of a serious read, I actually have a few other ideas for the back to school scramble. Many of them are my own supplemented by specific online instructional pieces, others are ideas straight from some of my internet colleagues. Enjoy!

Make sure your bulletin boards mean business.

I like to have great looking bulletin boards too, but quite frankly many teachers spend valuable time on them every week or month that could be going into lesson planning, extra attention for students or just plain having a life. Let’s face it, if you’re balanced and rested your students will respond accordingly. Try some of my year long bulletin board ideas or some of the tips the article Twelve Bulletin Board Ideas for Older Classrooms. Your room will still look great, and the students will know you value their work and take classroom time seriously.

Throw a New Year’s party.

 I actually found this great back to school idea from YesITeach.Org. They actually suggest picking up New Year’s themed party supplies on discount the January prior to that school year. The year number will match the back to school year, and it’s a great way to start off with the right attitude. (I’ve also seen this work really well as a penny pinching tip for high school seniors. They can do this to have their graduation year theme supplies at the end of the year for a fraction of the cost.) For individual teachers, I think this would be a great idea for the end of the first day, after you have finished establishing discipline. Or, you could try it as a school wide event outside in the playground as the kids get off the bus.

 Scavenger hunt in the library.

This also comes from YesITeach.Org. The media person hosts a scavenger hunt in the library to find things like a particular fiction book, a multi media resource, etc. I thought this was a fabulous idea to review library skills and include a room that is often left out of these back to school welcome ideas for students. Larger classes might need to be broken down into small groups with slightly different scavenger hunt paths, but the idea is sound enough and can be used when each new class has their first library period.

 DIY school book covers.

They need to be done anyway, right? And this way you can work it in with that day one activity that always brings groans . . . the old erasing all of the pencil marks from the reissued text books trick. Now when you hand out books for mark erasing, you can incorporate DIY cover ideas or hand out an ideas list for some of the tougher ones to motivate the students to go the extra mile at home.

Personally, I recommend a combination of both. Do one or two throughout the day in class, and hand out the ideas list for them to get excited about covering their books from other classes or subjects. Some of the cooler ideas I found while surfing the web? A decoupage tie-dye style cover project from Kaboose.Com, a felted book cover from CraftBits.Com, instructions for embroidered book covers from Craft Stylish, and tip or two from Family Fun Magazine.

Other ideas I’d suggest would be paper collages, colored pencil sketches and modern designs and using multiple colors of duct tape to add waterproof striping over the top of plain paper shopping bag book cover. It’ll last all year, won’t harm the book and still provide room for individuality in the form of color choice and diagonal versus vertical or horizontal striping.

 Pimp those lockers, kids!

Once students start breaking into middle and high school, locker decoration and individualization come into play. One way to put a little fun into the first day or two of school and still be providing support for those kids who have trouble with organization and clutter is incorporate activities for decking out their lockers. If other teachers are game, you could even turn it into a grade level or school wide contest. A few ideas?

Construct a pen holder out of a small painted can or covered box with a magnet on the back. Those who like straight advertising and product packaging art will find this project from Not Martha exceptionally quick, as you won’t have to even decorate the tin if you don’t want to.

Make some magnets with the students to help them organize their notes, forms and book club orders. Plenty of things can be turned into locker door organizers by simple slapping a magnet on the back. Seashells, gem colored glass stones, fun rocks or even these photo and word magnet projects. Also, a magnetic mirror is a great multipurpose locker accessory. Students can check their hair or lip gloss and use it to hold notes and permission slips. Another cool online project find was this article on gemstone colored retro style magnets. Very groovy.

This article from Cosmo Girl has ideas for covering corrugated cardboard to line the walls of your locker and provide instant bulletin board space, as well as a supply list and instructions for installing removable extra shelving that won’t damage the locker’s interior. All Free Crafts has this project for making your own denim locker organizers, and Kaboose.Com has instructions for making a desk or locker organizer from a Pop Tart box.

Art gallery.

Personally, I find it extremely important to value their art work and set a higher standard for myself when it comes to how I display and incorporate it into their classroom environment and daily routine. This article from Scholastic suggests unifying thrift frames with spray paint for extra artsy “oomph”. Another way to cheap it out and still have lots of visual drama is to back the standard 8 ½ x 11 inch white paper art projects with larger pieces of dark blue or black construction paper. This is sort of a poor man’s matting job that looks great on a dime.

Larger art sized paper projects can be backed by cutting darker colored butcher paper to provide a three to five inch border around the piece. I’ve done this for things like buddy and self portraits in charcoal, larger pieces done in the style of particular famous artist and collage style projects.

The idea is to get this up and running on day one and have at least one wall dedicated to display rows and columns of the work. It’ll make open house night a breeze.

Related Readings: Other articles on LessonMag.Com you might find helpful at back to school time include Ten Tips for First Year Teachers, Six Strategies for an Inviting Classroom and Four Hot Tips for a Smooth Running Classroom.  Over on Wise Bread, you might want to check out my piece on DIY school gear and other savings ideas.

Photo Credit: McKay Savage

Times are tight for schools everywhere. Teachers who do have a classroom supplies budget with their school or PTO are needing to pare things down as much as possible. Most are still dipping into their own monies to make ends meet in the classroom. With the economy as sluggish as it is, purchasing classroom supplies with take home pay is getting harder and harder to justify on the home front. Need some ideas for teaching on the cheap? Here’s a list of articles on supplies, resources and project ideas for saving money in the classroom.

• Shoestring portable puppet theater.
• DIY whiteboard with homemade cleaner.
• Three cheap classroom hacks using traditional bandanas.
• Cheap ways to go green in the classroom.
• Torn scrap paper mosaics.
• A homemade multipurpose game board.
• Affordable paper bag review game.
• Cheap classroom lessons using index cards.
• Using inexpensive glue sticks to your home court advantage in the classroom.
• Multiple project ideas for file folders.
• Using old fashioned clothespins in the classroom.
• Rock your management style with paper clips.
• Wooden craft sticks as an affordable instructional supply.
• Explore the power of using free newspapers as an instructional tool.
• Creative classroom uses for rubber bands.
• Get more use than expected out of those donated phone books.
• Turn garbage into gold with empty cardboard beverage flats from the school vending machine.
• Use binder clips as a cheap organizational aid.
• A list of great cheap classroom supplies for struggling school teachers.
• An interesting freebie resource for ESL teachers.
• A simple DIY classroom calendar project for cheap.

Other ideas would include checking out the classroom cheapies at Dollar Tree, or using the inexpensive suggestions in this article for art smocks and hula hoops. Do you have a great idea for affordable classroom supplies or resources posted on your blog or web site? Our goal is to turn this page into a comprehensive resource for teachers searching for cheap teaching ideas. Contact us with your site’s URL, and we’ll be in touch about a link exchange. In the meantime, please feel free to post a comment below. We love to hear from readers.

Photo Credit: Pink Sherbet

Those educators serving junior high through high school students who are looking for a quality media resource to study Middle East issues and current events have a fantastic freebie available to them at the click of a button. Read on.

The Doha Debates, carried regularly on CNN, have a web site of their own. What’s great about this is that if you miss an episode, you can catch the podcast, transcript and both high and low resolution video versions of each debate via their archives, which are organized by season.

They tackle such issues as marital choice, the wearing of hijab, and the ongoing Palestinian problems. There are also special debate sessions scheduled regularly where high ranking officials are brought to Doha for the students to ask direct questions. This recently included Shimon Peres, the first high ranking Israeli official to visit Qatar in more than a decade. Other guests have included Bill Clinton and Desmond Tutu. Occasionally, the debates are scheduled at an overseas location. For the most part however, they take place in Doha.

Since they are conducted (except for the special visitation episodes) in debate format with two speakers for each side of every motion, these make for an excellent classroom discussion resource. Work the archived episodes in as you see fit. Incorporate research from a free ESL current events resource or turn them loose to discover titles and URL resources from regular media. When the new seasons start each year, consider assigning research ahead of time based on the subject. Then host a classroom debate and vote prior to watching the high resolution video episode in class and compare results.

 However you decide to incorporate it, I don’t think you’ll be sorry. This is a quality resource with a high degree of political balance and professional quality. Available at DohaDebates.Com.

 Photo Credit: Doha Debates

This true story of the Mercury 13 Women, written by Tanya Lee Stone, chronicles the trials and tribulations of these remarkable women who stepped up to the space challenge.

Why have you never heard of them? After completing all of the testing and a grueling training schedule, they were basically scrubbed from the program. In fact, many would argue that NASA never intended to allow them in space to begin with. Regardless, these women were ahead of their time, and the story is worth reading.

While this is clearly a book for junior high students, I’m still not sure why no attempt was made to dress up the historical photos. Changing a few to sepia, or tossing in the occasional element of color would have done wonders for this title. I understand the only available images were older black and whites, but the use of them exclusively throughout the book makes it look rather dated and drab. A helpful read though, for those interested in the history of women in the space program. From Candlewick Press.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

A futuristic movie portraying just how Earth could end up if the rate of consumption and trash production doesn’t slow down. Cleverly done, as a single robot character on his own is able to carry the entire first portion of the film.

The trash level and toxic fumes have so consumed the planet that humanity is forced to evacuate for nearly a millennium. When a probe finally discovers plant life that has been shepherded by a trash compacting robot with a big heart, things get even more interesting. By Disney-Pixar.

Photo Credit: Amazon

First Year Teaching

The first year in the trenches can be overwhelming, to say the least. You come out feeling prepared only to realize very quickly there’s still lots to learn. You’re on your own now though, so leaning on your advisors and host teacher from your internship are no longer an option, particularly if you landed a gig half way around the world from where you studied. Here are ten general tips I wish someone had given me my first time out of the gate.

Find a pal or two you can trust.

I don’t mean to sound like a pessimist, but reality is reality. Office politics is just as rampant in schools as it is in any other office setting. Fly under the radar for a while until you get a grasp on who’s trustworthy and who’s not. Then form a professional alliance to give yourselves a safe haven for venting and admitting weaknesses it might not be in your best interests to admit to an administrator or professional mentor. (More on that in a bit.) Suffice it to say, find some friends. If one of them happens to be on your grade level, even better.

Stay off the high maintenance bulletin board bandwagon.

There are plenty of durable designs that can go the distance for the entire year with only an occasional swap out of art work or title lettering. The key is using them in a way that is functional, so students don’t get bored. You also don’t want to look like a slacker if you’re trying to land a permanent gig, so putting up something lame and leaving it there to fade and look dated is out too. Cloth is a great way to go to resist fading and avoid excess staple holes. Bulletin boards for older grades can often stretch for an entire quarter at least, depending on how long a particular theme goes. Mixing and matching these with a few of the year long boards will help keep your sanity. Leave the late night apple tracing to those who have no desire for a life. Even if you eventually decide you want to be included in that group, you’ll have plenty more to worry about in the first few years. Trust me.

Choose your mentor(s) carefully.

If you eventually decide you want to make classroom décor and high maintenance management systems your entire life, fine. But don’t let an ill chosen mentor who’s never managed to find a proper life – work balance make you feel bad if that’s not the lifestyle you’re choosing for yourself. Even if it is, you likely won’t be able to do so for the first few years. There’ll be way too much on your plate to tackle with regards to basic skills and experience.

Everyone wants the mentor who’s found balance between work at home, rocks the classroom without making it their life, and seems to have everything streamlined with extreme precision while not having a high maintenance professional routine. The problem? Most of those people know when enough is enough and aren’t necessarily going to be among those who sign up to mentor a first year teacher. It’s certainly not always the case, but a fair number of Betty Brown Nosers find their way onto the school district’s mentor list. Betty Brown Nosers whose constant sucking up to the powers that be over the years have provided them with a fair amount of weasel room and political clout. Fair? Maybe not. Accurate? Absolutely.

I’m not saying don’t ever trust your mentor. I’m not even saying there aren’t phenomenal people out there who will be willing to step up to the plate for you. You might even be lucky enough to have a mentor who also ends up being on your pal list eventually. But many school districts require you to have one for the first one or two years of your teaching career. While it’s true they are there to guide and support you, it’s also true that they are there at the school’s request and have earned enough of the administration’s trust to be selected for the job. It’s not much of a stretch to assume their loyalties will be divided at best, which means admitting certain weaknesses or professional difficulties could come back to haunt you at contract extension time. Choose carefully.

The secretary can be your ally. If you let her.

It can be very easy to get into a negative long term relationship with the downstairs secretary. Particularly if you’re the newbie and all the other teachers on staff have had years to develop a relationship where they feel comfortable asking favors. That being said, you may notice a fair number of educators treat the para-pros and support staff like second class citizens, or worse, non entities. I’ve had to work with a fair number of school secretaries in my career, and I can only honestly think of two that were nearly impossible to work with. The rest were people I grew to have fantastic relationships with through trust building and mutual respect. Sometimes a situation will present itself where you are able to develop a camaraderie right off the bat. If it does, take the opportunity. You likely won’t be sorry.

Document all chats with administrators.

Even if you have to take a legal pad to each meeting and start each conversation by quickly jotting down the date, time and attendee names, this can really be what saves your neck should anything arise later on where you have a different version of events than those in charge. If you can afford a voice recorder, great. Otherwise a pad and paper or some peel off Post-It notes you can stick in a file will do just fine. You can always collate and key them in later if the situation warrants it. In my entire teaching career, I’ve had to use this information less than five times. At least one of them was before I was wise enough to have been documenting. Like I said, these are tips I wish I had been given. We all wish it could be about student motivation and the coolest lessons ever all of the time. For those times when it isn’t, just have your protective ducks in a row.

Streamline your sub system.

Unless you’re a super hero, you will need a substitute teacher more than once each year. Having a few things streamlined and consistent will keep things easier for both of you. A binder or reference folder with critical information, check lists and procedures is a great place to start. So is a set of hanging files with any seat work handouts for each day of the week in day by day folders. Teachers editions should all be in an easy to find location, and a selection of time filler activities and always allowed classroom games is a nice gesture. Remember, you work in the same room every day. Even if you have a repeat sub, they are in different classrooms every day. They also may only get to your room once every two-three months, after which time you may have made changes. It’s very disorienting to be a substitute teacher. Making their job as seamless as possible just makes things easier while you’re gone, as well as when you return.

One main classroom helper a day is more than enough.

I’ve seen some amazingly difficult classroom duty systems over the years, folks. Systems that take an entire bulletin board of rotating wheels and clips to display, and a notebook to document. I don’t know whose bright idea it was to set the industry standard as different helpers for every single duty in the classroom and rotate them out every day, but I do know that it has never worked for me. I pick one helper a day, and if there’s something they can’t get to or need help with, they get to pick who helps them out. I start at the top of the classroom list, and work down every day to the next person. If they are absent, they miss their turn until it comes around again. Done. This is also easier for those students who have a hard enough time keeping the important rules and procedures straight, let alone a daily chore chart that’s too complicated for even the teacher to remember without a reference book.

Use your free periods with precision efficiency.

This one plays out differently, depending on where you work. You may only have one free period per week, or a couple a day. This is largely a result of the number of specialists your school district is able to hire for things such as art, music, PE and foreign languages. Whether or not you have aides or other support staff to shop for supplies or make copies also factors into the game. While there’s nothing wrong with taking a break occasionally, I like to use these blocks of time for basic classroom housekeeping such as paper grading, art framing, running off of homework copies and getting set up for a science lab or art project when the children return. Last period on Fridays is a particular gift, as it allows you to get completely organized for Monday morning and the rest of the following week without having to stay late or come in on the weekend. It can be extremely easy to get sucked into grade level or mentor meetings on your free periods. Fight hard to keep them open for things that benefit your classroom’s functioning directly. Sliding the other meetings until after school will help ensure they are kept as brief as possible

Enlist room parents early and often.

You’ll need to tread as carefully here as you do with a mentor for obvious political reasons. Aside from that, I’ve often found parents to be my staunchest allies against political mine fields I might otherwise have fallen prey to. Intense classroom projects and implementing new procedural systems are enormous projects even with paid aides, which I’ve rarely had. Involved parents can help you with overwhelming tasks, pitch supply ideas to the PTO and drum up volunteers for field trips you might not otherwise be able to take with only two chaperones. (Think water park, jungle hike or glass bottom submarine.)

Operate in bulk.

This can come in just as handy in a classroom as it can when stocking a pantry. Certain items will be needed throughout the school year, so it just makes sense to get a large enough supply to last a while. Construction paper, index cards, glue, craft supplies, various individualized math quiz sheets for on the fly review, classroom checklists, file folders, bandanas and more come to mind.

Got another great tip for a first year teacher? Are you a first year educator struggling to make your mark? Sound off in our comment section and join the conversation.

Photo Credit: Chicago 2016

Classroom Coupons

Constantly looking for ways to positively reward good behavior without dipping into your own personal funds? If you’re teaching intermediate to older grades, they love getting classroom coupons and extra passes. Design your own in a size that lets you fit at least four-six coupons on a page, allowing a place to add the date, your signature and any necessary black out options like final or midterm exams. Here are a few ideas of rewards older students like to receive individually.

Free homework pass. Kids who try hard but forget to bring assignments from time to time really dig this particular coupon. You can even hand them out individually as a group reward that they can redeem whenever they each want or need to.

One more chance coupon. This is basically a get out of jail free card when they would otherwise be completely busted. You’ll need to keep it within the bounds of reason and safety, of course.

Five extra points on a test or quiz grade. Perfect for that tough subject a student is trying so hard to pass.

Drop the lowest grade in a particular subject. If you teach multiple subjects, you can get a serious amount of mileage out of this one.

One more day on a homework assignment. Kids that are involved in a ton of extra curricular activities have a tough time juggling everything sometimes. One of these per quarter isn’t overdoing it by any means, and lets the kids know you’re there for them.

Retake a quiz or test. It’ll have to be a different quiz or test likely, in order to make sure they aren’t just doing it to get a look at the questions in advance.

Work at the teacher’s desk. This will continue to work to a fairly high grade level.

Ask the teacher to do something crazy. Personally, I have this hilarious ape face I make and can (or could – I haven’t tried it recently) recite all fifty states alphabetically in song. Students think it’s hilarious when you have to take a risk, and it makes you more real to them overall. Give it a whirl.

Private lunch in the classroom with a friend. Again, even the high school students like this.

Be up to five minutes late to class with no questions asked. They’ll all need to use this at least once a quarter. As with the rest of these coupon ideas, handing them out sparingly will make them seem more valuable.

Select the music the rest of the class gets to work by. Obviously, you’ll need to set some boundaries for what’s appropriate. Overall though, they want to be able to listen to the music so they’ll pick something within the bounds of acceptable.

Remarkably, even the students who have trouble remembering to tie their shoes will manage to not lose these coupons. What can I say? It’s magic. Do you have another coupon idea? This list is more for intermediate to high school grades, but ideas for younger grades are also appreciated.

Photo Credit: EEE PC

Inviting Classroom

While structure and the feeling of a serious learning environment are important, an inviting classroom where students feel secure and welcome is also critical to achieving inclusion for all students. Here are six different strategies for increasing the comfort factor of your classroom.

Lighting.

Yes, you’re going to have the traditional florescent ceiling lights no matter what you do. And yes, they are necessary for consistent illumination of class-wide seat work. But for those special little areas where you gather for story time, small group work, center activities or that special reading niche the students love to go to after they finish assignments, a task light creates not only some extra direct lighting for the task at hand, but some groovy atmosphere as well.

Special seating.

A couch, rocker, hammock, floor cushions, bean bags and stuffed back rests all create a special atmosphere for students of all ages. I’ve seen high school kids get as excited about couch time as primary and intermediate level students. You can still require them to have something to work on in those spots, but make them a special situation. A reward for good behavior, allowable only after completed assignments, or for center time only are all examples of how you can work in special seating in an academically appropriate way.

A therapy animal.

Generally, this is some sort of smaller class pet like a fish in a tank, a rabbit or even a ferret. However, this can turn into a maintenance issue for the teacher, and a logistical issue for room parents as well during school vacations. If you and your room parents are up for that, fine. But if you have a progressive school district and the money to put into some serious formal training of your own personal pet, consider a therapy dog. This requires that as a teacher you want to own your own dog, and have an interest in providing your dog with opportunities both in the classroom and local hospital wards. Personally, I’ve had to provide a successful inclusion experience for a fairly diverse group of students over the years and happen to believe the counselor’s office isn’t the only appropriate place for a therapy animal. Children really do relax when there’s an animal in the room. Reading to a pet is an excellent ESL or special needs education strategy, as I’ve touched on previously.

Snack tins.

These work great for crackers or the occasional candy treat. They are air tight and keep the bugs out in tropical or desert environments. It’s also nice to have a whole grain backup for the kiddos who forget snacks. For some kids, that’s what helps keep the stomach growlies at bay until they get free lunch later in the day. It’s an affordable strategy to implement, and often one your PTA can support you with. Or, if your parents are open to it, add crackers to your classroom restock list.

Unified storage.

One or two cabinets with lockable doors is probably a necessity, especially if you are teaching in a school that is routinely used as a storage shelter or have students with extra special needs where boundaries are concerned. They don’t have to look cold and uninviting. In fact, a coordinating couple of shelved cabinets can signify a place where all the special treasures are kept. It also keeps things visually simple and grounded for autistic or easily distracted children. For any open shelving storage, consider going with matching baskets, clear containers or mesh metal bins to provide a coordinated, organized look. If you can’t do it, then you can’t do it. But if classroom budget and PTA support permit, I encourage you to give it a whirl. Many children are easily distracted by what they perceive as too many options, especially if they haven’t been raised with a great deal of structure on the home front. Having an organized room helps them get into the groove academically.

An idea wall.

You could do this in a number of ways, but one of the coolest and most affordable ways I can think of is by using Idea Paint. The cost is much less than larger white boards, and having a large block of open writing space that’s only for creative brainstorming session that can’t fit on the board is fantastic. I think this is a fantastic way to provide structured learning yet set a subtle backdrop that promotes out of the box thinking. Walking the line between classroom creativity and guided instruction can be tough, especially where the inclusion of special needs students is concerned.

These are my top six picks for affordable classroom setup, something I consider a critical and integral component of successful classroom management. Other management articles here at LessonMag.Com include Four Hot Tips for a Smooth Running Classrom, Reviews that Rock, Twenty-five Ways to Say Good Job, Learning Centers for Less, Classroom management Hacks and Low Cost / No Cost Student Rewards. Do you have a unique suggestion for setting up an inviting classroom that promotes creativity as well as structure and academics? How do you allow for the inclusion of students with any type of need?

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

Wise Bread Book

We all know classroom teaching isn’t exactly a big money profession. The constant supplementing of classroom materials many of us do cuts into take home pay even further. Tired of feeling like a pauper after all your efforts? Check out this new book by the writers of WiseBread.Com.

10,001 Ways to Live Large on a Small Budget is filled with tips and tricks to live an extremely fantastic lifestyle on way less money than you might imagine. A few of the high points?

• An entire section on price breaks and savvy tips for your child’s education.
• Easy to read breakdowns of normally eye-crossing financial planning concepts.
• Fifty ways to get more bang out of your health care buck.
• Twelve ways to live rent and mortgage free.
• Professional grade tips on manicure maintenance.
• Elegant entertainment on a dime.
• Travel tips to see the world for less than it would ever cost you to live at home.
• How to power shop your way to financial independence.

While other budget gurus seem obsessed with the perspective that being on a budget has to be a dreary existence full of self sacrifice, the folks at Wise Bread know that frugality doesn’t have to be dull. It’s entirely possible to live within your means, and do so with serious style. Online shoppers are clearly buying their message. The title shot to Amazon’s number one sales rank in the budget and money management category days before it’s official release date of May 18th. So hop off the boring train and hitch a ride on the Get a Life Express.

Readers of this post have a chance to win a free autographed copy of 10,001 Ways to Live Large on a Small Budget. Just leave a comment below telling me why you need / want a copy of this book and you’ll be entered to win. That’s it. I’ll mail the winner (chosen with random integer generator) an autographed copy on my dime. Good luck folks, and don’t forget to check out a few of our other great articles while you’re here. (Must reside in the United States to enter. Contest ends May 31, 2009.)

Disclaimer: This author has several articles published in the aforementioned title.

Photo Credit: WiseBread.Com

Spelling Activities

Spelling lists are a necessary part of our weekly routine. We all want our students to do well, but still need to spend time creating exciting lessons for the rest of the curriculum. So how do we keep the spelling activities familiar enough to allow for self direction, yet fresh enough that the students won’t balk at the idea of doing them? Here are twenty-seven tips for primary through high school to help get you started.

For starters, having a deep repertoire of practice activities is critical. You want the activities to feel familiar when the come again in the classroom, so students will be able to immediately get to work. However, you don’t want to repeat a certain activity too many times, or it will become boring for the children. Also (and this is just a personal opinion), it helps to have a fair number of the spelling practice activities take place while you are busy with small group instruction or circulating the room to reinforce on task behavior. It just sets things up for success from a classroom management perspective. Here are several that I’ve used at various grade levels over the years, and a couple that I ran across just recently.

Spelling memory.

Similar to definition match up for vocabulary instruction, you’ll need index cards for this as well. It’s great for sight word based spelling lists as well as harder to spell terms. Basically, two separate cards are needed for each word, as well as an initial copied list to check off found words from. Since students create their own master game list and word cards, this makes the age old traditional assignment of copying down each word 2-3 times meaningful and game – based as opposed to boring and tedious. My experience is that children up to at least fifth grade enjoy this activity.

A manuscript and cursive T-chart.

This one works well for grades where you’re transitioning from manuscript to cursive penmanship, or for ESL groups that are learning both versions of the new alphabet. Require name and date in the top right hand corner of the looseleaf page, and keep the top margin available to label each column of the T-chart. This way the students are responsible for their own lists, and get the initial practice of having to write each word twice. It’s an authentic activity as well, because taking home a spelling list is necessary for weeknight study activities. This technique also reinforces both spelling and penmanship without taking time away from other holistic lessons and activities.

Parts of speech sorting mats.

This can be used with story vocabulary spelling lists as well as sight words. Divide a sheet of looseleaf notebook paper into two columns, and then add lines to form four to six separate rows of two cells each. Label each section with a separate part of speech such as adjective, conjunction, verb, pronoun, etc. Have students create individual word cards by using cut apart sections of index cards and copying the words from the spelling list on the board. They will then practice sorting the word cards onto the various sections of the parts of speech mat. Using the dictionary and story the words are pulled from, the students will also need to copy a fresh list onto notebook paper, making notations as the parts of speech for each word. They can use it to check their answers. Have each student create their own set of materials, but work next to a partner so they can check each other’s work. If you’re not sure what a sorting mat should look like, check out some of the coupon sorting mats used by money saving mothers around the internet. It will give you a pretty good idea of how this spelling lesson should work. If you don’t want to take the time to have students create their own mats, use our multipurpose game board strategy and use this as a small group or buddy pairs center activity.

Newspaper search.

It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of using things like newspapers and phone books as affordable classroom materials. Here’s a super cheap spelling activity students can work on using nothing but their own supplies and donated newspapers. Have students create a T-chart on a piece of notebook paper by drawing lines with their pencil. After recording name, date and assignment information in the top right corner, the spelling words need to be copied in order down the left hand side of the paper. Using their own scissors and glue sticks along with one new newspaper each, students will search for examples of each word to cut out and paste directly across from the corresponding hand written word in the next column. If a reasonable attempt has been made to find full examples of each word and some are still missing, students may resort to cutting out individual letters to assemble the remaining words letter by letter.

Three – column term / antonym / synonym charts.

You might need to have the class orient their notebook papers horizontally for this one, depending on the average length of the spelling words that week. Label the tops of the columns with the three categories mentioned, placing the terms category first. Then, assign research of antonyms and synonyms for each word, and have the students record them in the appropriate slot in the chart, on the same line as the corresponding term. For those occasions where there isn’t a synonym or antonym to be found, record a dash  (hyphen)  in the slot. This will make their overall charts look complete data wise, and yet let you know what could or could not be found.

Secret code.

Kids of all ages love to solve secret code puzzles. Why not work this in to your weekly spelling routine? Members of our curriculum web site, TheLessonMachine.Com, have this provided for them in all of our units anyway. For those who are just starting out however, you could always have the students create their own and have a partner solve them. Or, you could create one of your own and list each word in code on the board. Then work as a group or assign independent decoding of the spelling words as a sponge activity.

Pictionary or charades.

This doesn’t exactly work with every single word, but there are usually at least a few terms each week that are suitable. Establish a set of workable rules and use either one of these as a sponge activity for getting kids to line up, or to kill a few minutes while waiting for the art specialist to arrive.

Story retellings.

This only works if you are integrating your spelling words with your weekly classroom literature choice. Require a minimal number of terms to be used, and require students to rewrite the story to be told in their own voice. This gives you an integrated writing, spelling and reading assignment with only one project to grade.

Syllabication and accent breakdowns.

You can do this not only in written form, but also with oral and kinesthetic strategies. Integrate dictionary skills practice as well by looking up each word together as a group. Pronounce the words together as a class. I also like to pronounce the words in sections as well. For example, if it’s a five syllable word, say the word in its entirety, followed by the first two syllables only, then the first three, first four and the word in its entirety again. I say the word or sections of the word first and have the students repeat after me. This works REALLY well with ESL students. Still looking for the kinesthetic connection? As you say each syllable, touch a different joint, starting with your shoulder and working your way down one arm and up the next. Or, have them count out the syllables on their fingers. It’s a great way to work on syllable count in morning language, if you are the type to write up a simple paragraph using some words from the spelling list.

Prefix and suffix breakdowns.

You can work this one in as words come up certainly, but if you are looking to cover the concepts with a strong initial focus, it might be good to concoct a list on a week where you don’t necessarily have a separate story to read. (For example, when you  are allowing extra time to work on a science or social studies report.) That way, the vocabulary for that assignment will already be familiar to the students and you’ll have the open slot to create a prefix and suffix rich list for that week. Cover what the most common prefix and suffix combinations are and what they mean. Use this information to decode word meanings as a group and work in the concept of root words.

Word search puzzles.

These are again something we work in with all of our literature units as a way for teachers to have access to a meaningful sponge activity every week. However, they can also make a great DIY activity for the children. They can use quarter-inch or larger graph paper to create two copies each of their own word search puzzle. Place the words in the puzzle from all directions and then fill in other letters into the open squares randomly. Just make sure the second copy is the exact replica. (Or photocopy the original) One will have the answers highlighted in red (or another color) and the other will not. Glue each graph paper to opposite sides of a slightly larger piece of colored construction paper and slip into a sheet protector. Then, using grease pencils or water based overhead projector markers, they can swap with a buddy to each have a unique word search puzzle  that they can self check afterward.

Rhyming matrix.

Students can either create one on notebook paper or in their journals using a pencil or create one on the computer using the insertion of a table with multiple rows and columns. In the first column on the left hand side, list the spelling words placing one term in each table cell. Several cells will be to the right of it for adding rhyming words that correspond with that particular word. I would shoot for a minimum of five rhyming words for each spelling term, but do what you think meets the needs of your class. This creates an impressive looking final chart that is more grown up in appearance than your basic rhyming list, and also gives the students practice with charts and tables.

ABC order.

An oldie? Yes. But valid, nonetheless. Being able to alphabetize data is a skill we need into adulthood. Granted, if you have older students you’ll want to have them alphabetize the list in addition to another activity, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to work it in.

Incorporate alliteration.

Assign spelling sentences for each word where every word in the sentence starts with the same letter as the spelling word. (Or at least as many as possible.)

Word form wackiness.

See how many forms of each spelling word you and your students can come up with as a group. (past and future tenses, suffix or prefix additions, etc.)

In the Bag.

I’ve mentioned this game before as being popular with nearly every grade. It requires nothing but basic information on word strips, cut paper or index cards stuffed in a paper sack for on the fly review games. Here’s a link to a full article on how to set one up.

Direction cards for line up order.

Basically, you call on one student at a time to complete a particular spelling task before they are allowed to line up for recess. If you have more students than words, it’s no big deal. Just start through the list again. Some examples: spell a word while standing on one foot, spell a certain word backwards, sign language spelling, spell and use in a sentence, etc.

Body Boggle.

This full body floor game is great for competing in teams of two for larger words, or one student against the other for shorter words. Use for indoor recess, or a center activity.

Anagrams and palindromes.

Children in intermediate grades and above have fun spelling a different word with letters from a particular vocabulary term (anagram) or noticing that a word is spelled the same forward and backward (palindrome). Incorporate these ideas as appropriate.

Stencils and stamps.

For younger children or any learner needing an extra kinesthetic element to spelling instruction, have stencils and alphabet stamps available for students to create each spelling word letter by letter on its own index card. Then they can punch a hole in the top left corner of each card and thread them on a book ring to take home for extra practice.

Rainbow writing.

This is a definite hit with first and second graders. Using larger lined index cards or sections of sentence strips, have the students copy their spelling words one at a time in pencil using their best penmanship. The larger handwriting makes this a perfect time to incorporate rainbow lettering. After each word has been written, have the children take a word at a time and copy over it using a different color crayon. Then another, and another until they have four-six colors copied over the original lettering. The colors should overlap creating a rainbow effect. Primary children love rainbows, so this is a fantastic way to get the age old “write your spelling words x number of times” assignment to have meaning for them. It’s also a great science integration if you happen to be covering rainbows, crystals and light bending concepts.

DIY bingo.

Use extra large graph paper with squares that are 13 inches in width. Have each student place a different spelling word in a random square (allowing some to actually be in straight or diagonal lines) until each word has been use. Then have them fill in the extra squares with random words. Then they can switch with a partner, and using dried lima beans as game pieces you call out the words until someone has a straight line of covered terms for “Bingo”.

Morse code.

Work in a nearly lost art by assigning conversions of the spelling words into this form of code. Then have them switch lists to decode back to the original words.

Sidewalk chalk.

Take the kids out for recess a few minutes early and let them practice spelling words using sidewalk chalk and a checklist. Collect the chalk in a bucket afterwards and let the children keep the lists in their pockets. This way they’ll make it home for study time.

Dry erase markers on sliding glass doors or windows.

The writing can be removed with spray cleaner and the activity as a whole has a fair bit of fun factor. Great for home schooling or resource rooms.

Self selected spelling study.

I can’t take credit for this one. Although I think it’s super cool. Here’s a chart a teacher put together of various ways he’ll allow the children to work on their spelling homework. Rather impressive, in my opinion.

Spelling aerobics.

Again, not my idea but a great one regardless. Here’s a link to some ideas on how to try this out in your classroom.

As you can see, there are more than enough ideas here to keep things fresh throughout each grading quarter, no matter what grade level you teach. Several of these activities could also be incorporated into a bulletin board learning center for older students. However you decide to incorporate them, your spelling activities will be seamlessly integrated into your overall classroom routine.

Photo Credit: Got Plaid?

Plastic in the Classroom

OK. We all know about the plastic bag dilemma. Additionally,  most of us are trying to use at least a few cleaning and personal care products that are less toxic. The recycling gig is also familiar to many. But when I recently read about the Pacific garbage patch (North Pacific gyre) on Beth Terry’s web site, Fake Plastic Fish, I found myself completely overwhelmed.

This thing is enormous, people. I’ve seen a fair bit in my lifetime. And I can honestly say it takes quite a bit to shock me, let alone bring me to my knees. When I started researching this phenomenon and saw just how enormous it was, I had to sit down and physically get control of my emotions. I felt physically ill. How can one person feel like what they do makes a difference? And yet, how can anyone sit and do nothing? Beth has done such an amazing job of providing inspiration and information to us. While I’m not sure I can get to her level overnight, she has made me think about what more I can do with my purchasing decisions. Schools generate an enormous amount of trash. When it comes to your classroom, how much of your room’s waste is plastic? Here are a few simple strategies to get you started. I’ll post more information and product reviews as I come across the resources. In the meantime, here we go:

1.Use a refillable tape dispenser.

This alone eliminates the casings the regular rolls come in. Yes, you still have the tape itself, but it’s a start that makes a significant waste reduction.

2.Create your classroom supplies list carefully.

Whether you hand your list out at the end of the year, or have it available for pickup in August, your list has the power to make a huge impact. Consider recommending refillable pens for intermediate grades, stainless steel pencil sharpeners and refillable stainless steel water bottles.

3.Buy your supplies in bulk, particularly things like liquid and powdered tempera, hand sanitizer, lotion, etc.

It’s difficult to find plastic free packaging on some of these things, but by purchasing in bulk you’ll have fewer containers to dispose of.

4.Be more conscious of the teacher supplies you purchase and use.

Your students look to you as a a strong example. Consider a non plastic lunch tote, or wire bins for supply storage.

5.Chalk.

Rather than go for the plastic packaged markers and white board for every single lesson, get back to basics with a blackboard and chalk. Bonus? It’s cheap.

6.Rubber stamps.

I think stickers are fun too, but some of them are enormous and not exactly made of paper. A fun stamp with colorful ink will still reinforce quality work in a way the kiddos can get excited about. They also make stamps to fit in the small squares on reinforcement charts.

7.Composition books.

When asking students to bring in several journals for various subjects, request that they skip the ones with plastic covers and go with the old fashioned paperboard bound composition books.

8.An eco bag fund raiser.

This’ll get the ball rolling, and now is a great time to do it . . . BEFORE everyone buys their kids plastic versions. The folks over at EcoBags.Com gave me the link to their Earth friendly fund raising program. I’ll be reviewing the product individually in the next few weeks right here on Lesson Mag. (So stay tuned.)

Got another classroom plastic reduction tip? Share your information in the comment section below. This post was written in support of the Green Moms carnival, which will be hosted on April 14th, 2009 over at Fake Plastic Fish. For other going green in the classroom information, check out our cloth bulletin board post, eco trash bag article and this post on affordable classroom transition strategies.

Photo Credit: Tourist on Earth

Graphic Organizer

Educators of older students ask me all the time for ideas that are low on “cutesy” and high on sophistication. This request holds true for bulletin boards and classroom décor as much as curriculum and lesson structure. Want some ideas on how to pull this off? Read on.

Let’s face it. All students eventually get to the point where they are basically “over” teddy bears and apples. So what do you do from fourth-twelfth grades when it comes to producing quality bulletin boards for the classroom? Here are some tricks to get the job done.

Cover Images from Books and News Magazines.

Color xeroxed ( and possibly enlarged, depending on the original size) copies of book covers and news magazines are great for literature studies, theme units or current event projects. Even book covers for younger readers will provide a more grown up feel than snowman cutouts. So if it’s mid year and your third graders are starting to request more sophisticated bulletin boards in the classroom, this idea is a great way to start.

An Editorial Collection.

If you have a hot topic in the news that’s discussed quite a bit in your classroom, post a newspaper article from the local paper on the board and surround it with brief op-ed pieces from your students written on large index cards. This is a fantastic opportunity to introduce that type of work, as well as work in a critical thinking assignment.

Distribution Center.

Overwhelmed by all those notices, book club handouts and forms from the office? Consider making at least one of your bulletin boards an information distribution center. Choose a title such as “Command Center” or “Central Command” if you are teaching at a DODDS school. Include a sedate classroom calendar in the center and perhaps a news clipping or two regarding the school. Then attach some acrylic document holders for handouts, returned documents with signatures, a homework slot, attendance and lunch count. This takes at least one bulletin board slot from a full time chore and puts it firmly in the category of  management tool, leaving you with a  smoother running classroom. You can even use some of the space for reinforcement charts and other low cost student reward programs.

Photos.

Instead of animated cartoon-style drawings, consider photographs or color prints as your graphic illustrative element. Some examples could include travel and nature images for geography and science studies, volcano shots, Hubble images, mountain range photos, tribal action shots from remote villages, etc. Another great way to go is with action shots of your students themselves involved with various stages of the writing process, math games, lab experiments, etc. Post cards also rock as a way to get professional quality bulletin board images on the cheap. Tried all of that and still can’t find what you need? Check out online image databases of postage stamps from around the world. If you have a color printer, these can make great download solutions. Remember, national governments pay artists big bucks to come up with fantastic stamps. This is professional quality work you are able to snag for less than a song.

Post Its.

These things come in about as many size and color options as index cards, and are great for adding bold color and graphic elements if you don’t have access to a large supply of construction paper. My favorite use for them is as a replacement for the primary grade level calendar pieces. Instead of cutesy tree ornament pieces in December, go with green and red squares from peel off desk pads. Not only will this look more appropriate for the older grades, it’ll also make for a cheaper classroom calendar.  Just make sure you match the Post It size to the calendar squares.

Lose the Baby Borders.

Snowmen and school buses just don’t cut it after third grade. Consider cloth borders such as belt webbing or woven tribal trims used for funky DIY sewing projects. Nautical themed rope, wide ribbon and solid colored trims are also more than usable as ideas for your bulletin boards. Also, call me crazy but I think straighter edges look a bit more grown up as well. They also reduce the visual chaos present on so many bulletin boards. This is important for older grades where the bulletin board information can be more diverse, or relating to a more complex scientific or math concept.  It’s also helpful for any grade level where you may be trying to provide successful inclusion time for students who may be sensitive to overwhelming amounts of visual stimulation. A good source for materials like sentence and cursive strip borders would be Dollar Tree.

On the other hand, if you really want something unexpected or three dimensional, consider play money from a board game, playing cards, colored pencils or some sort of chopstick / tongue depressor border for a natural look. Just attach the items in an overlapping or side by side pattern, depending on the look you are going for. If you attach the items to the outside frame of the board and make sure they overlap to the inside a bit, you could technically skip needing a formal paper border for the rest of the year. Score!

Shadowing.

This looks great for lettering as well as for white paper printouts of textual information that might otherwise look dull. When doing it with letters, you simply cut out a second set of letters to attach to the back of the brighter ones, taking care to position them slightly up and to the left. This allows for them to still appear as one letter, and yet be highlighted visually. My favorite three looks are black shadows with newsprint lettering, black shadow letters with any other bright color and holographic letters with black shadows. The newsprint combo is great for current events or information distribution bulletin boards, and the holographic shadow letters look smashing for themes like meteorology or mathematics. Black background with front color combo lettering works for nearly anything else you want to look more grown up and serious such as author studies or geography.

Using the shadowing technique for printed text is equally simple. Whether it’s a paragraph with dated historical data, a game schedule for the school basketball team, or contest entry details for a grade level poster competition, all you need to do is cut a colored piece of background paper and attach it to the clipping or printout the same way you would with lettering. Up, and to the left.

News Headlines.

Whether for current events, school coverage in the local paper or recreated news headlines from a particular date or period in history, including visual headlines (shadowed or otherwise) just makes for a more sophisticated look overall. You could also modify this idea for informational resource bulletin boards as well. Just be sure to make the topic or category titles are “newsy” enough to catch the attention of students, teachers, parents or whoever else you are creating the bulletin board for.

Inserts, Foldouts and Maps.

Many traditional periodicals have freebies that come along with the monthly copies. Nat Geo is known for their killer maps, and various news magazines have charts and fold out center articles that make fantastic fodder for bulletin board themes. Bonus? Professionally published materials always look more grown up than basic kiddy charts.

Darker Background Colors.

Whether you go the fabric route or use traditional butcher paper, darker colors ground the room, have a more serious feel and provide a fantastic backdrop for colored elements like post cards, geographical imagery and travel photos. Also, if you are planning on using busier looking elements like detailed maps and charts as primary objects in your bulletin board design, you’ll need all of the visual grounding support you can get.

One year in Kuwait I arrived to find that all of the colored butcher paper had been used. Black was the only color that remained until the overseas supply delivery arrived a few months down the road. Those of you who follow my Wise Bread blog know how highly I value black elements as a stylish and affordable decorating strategy.  Since I had fifth grade that year, I decided to experiment.

The result? I ended up with some of my most smashing bulletin boards ever and the students loved them. In fact, several of them commented the very first day to children in other rooms that they were in the “cool” room with the “grown up” decorations. Yup. Black’s a hit. It’s also extremely neutral, providing a transitional background to use on bulletin boards all year long.

Graphic Organizers.

Charts, graphs, diagrams and tables are all professional ways to integrate curriculum into the bulletin board space in a way that will appeal to older students. Even yarn or twine pieces stretched from labeled push pins to tinier chart details still looks streamlined and serious while providing extra organizational support for readers. Think period tables, KWL charts, etc.

Topic Choice.

This is particularly helpful if you are teaching in a resource room where the material is geared for younger or lower ability levels. Consider a biographical study board of an important historical figure such as Columbus where the information is written for the ability level but presented in one of the ways suggested in this article. Leave the four-six line elementary songs and chants for the primary grades. Another example would be a basic scientific method board versus one on teddy bear math.

These are my top twelve solutions for better bulletin boards. Some other helpful resources from around the web? This link has one of the better breakdowns I’ve seen on elementary versus high school design choices. You can also look here for some fantastic illustrated examples of bulletin boards for higher level math concepts, or here to read about an idea for using DVD cover images to jazz up a Shakespearean literature study. Last but not least, this resource page has an excellent write up on student-created middle school literature study bulletins. Got another great tip for educators in the upper grades? Share the love in the comment section below. 

Photo Credits: Dull Hunk, Digital Art 2, Becflies 2001, Image Editor.

This article was included in Carnival of Education #225.

Perf Go Green Eco Trash Bags

Trying to fight the plastic bag dilemma? Still need to get your classroom trash to the curb? I recently came across a product that is as helpful for schools as it is for office and home. Read on.

The Perf Go Green company has tackled the issue of biodegradable trash bags in a way that won’t produce harmful gases during the breakdown. Made of recycled plastic, these bags are super sturdy and contain an additive that allows the products to break down into non toxic biomass within two years. No toxic fumes or byproducts are left behind. How cool is that?

The bags are bright green and are available in standard 13 gallon kitchen,  larger 30 gallon yard size (which is what we actually prefer for our kitchen trash), commercial trash bags for whole school use, and paint drop cloths for larger student projects. I’ve reviewed the product in depth over on my Wise Bread blog, but wanted to bring them to your attention here in the education arena.  They are available at various retail stores and at Amazon.

Because these bags are so affordable, they should be an easy sell to your school board, administration, PTO or steering committee. This product seems to be custom made for making a distance on a grand scale via use in institutions and municipalities. They also have food storage and cash register bags scheduled to come out some time in 2009.  If you’ve been looking for an alternative to toxic trash bags in the classroom, Perf Go Green may be just what you’re looking for.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

Vocabulary Bingo Game Pieces

Let’s face it. Grammar is far from the most exciting subject matter out there. Providing instruction for it can be a bit like pulling teeth without  Novocaine.   Here are three simple ways to make it hands on for students in early primary through intermediate grade levels.

First, get yourself some bingo chips, dried beans or other game piece. When reading through classroom trade books together as a group, work in an extra vocabulary activity one day by having students place game pieces or chips on the first noun on a particular page, second verb, third adjective, etc. This is great for reinforcing listening skills, as well as sight words from the story.

Second, have each student fold a piece of looseleaf paper in half vertically. Then direct them to fold their paper rectangles into thirds horizontally and unfold. Each learner should then outline the folds in pencil, and label the top of each section with the part of speech you assign it through a modeled example on the chalkboard at the front of the room. Distribute donated newspapers to class members, along with glue sticks and student scissors. The project? To cut out a minimum number of word examples for each part of speech category assigned. For example, eight nouns, eleven verbs, seven adjectives, etc.  This activity makes for a great self directed lesson with fun music playing in the background. Need to get caught up on grading or do some intensive prep work for a massive science experiment later in the afternoon? This project will buy you some time and get those grammar skills covered at the same time.

Third, make a sorting mat. You know those coupon mats all the money saving mothers out there are using? Make one for parts of speech. Or, you could just write the parts of speech in removable ink on the laminated sections of your multipurpose game boards. Either way, have a game board ready and use the student sets of vocabulary index cards from the weekly story words to place the terms in the proper parts of speech categories. This can work out to be really low prep if your classroom management system promotes binders or two-pocket folder “offices” where children can store their own sorting mats and weekly vocabulary cards. If that’s the case, make it a quick sponge activity before lining up for recess. After you verify a student got it right, he or she can put their materials away, push in their chair and line up at the door.

As you can see, none of these ideas are expensive which makes them achievable within any classroom budget. If you are looking to get back to basics on the cheap, these ideas might just be what you are looking for.

Photo Credit: Scott Ableman

Index Card Art

Looking for cheapskate lesson ideas? Love the idea of tried and true materials with major multipurpose potential? When it comes to affordability, index cards are hard to beat. Read on.

They come lined and unlined, colored and plain, small and large, blank on one side and ruled on the other. With all these options, it’s no wonder classroom teachers love to stockpile them. I’ve already addressed their uses for vocabulary study. These ideas provide strategies for using this flexible classroom supply in additional curriculum areas. Ready?

Flash cards.

Math facts, using two separate colors for masculine and feminine words in foreign language study, question and answer memorization and more are all ways to use these old-time cheapies effectively as study tools. If handwritten penmanship isn’t as precise as you’d like for the subject matter you are studying (foreign alphabets, mathematical equations), key the information into a printable table with uniform cell sizes using a basic word processing program. Then print, cut and affix.

Postcards.

These are a great activity to promote communication at all grade levels. Early primary pen pals, high school students writing to famous authors, requesting information and freebies from various programs and communicating with state and national leaders as part of a government study are all ideas where these would come into play. Four inch by six inch index cards are a great size to make your own postcards. I prefer the ones that are blank on both sides. On the back side, have students draw a line down the middle of the card while it is oriented horizontally. Then address as normal on the bottom right portion of the card and attach appropriate postage to the top right corner. Students will write a message appropriate to the assignment on the left side, and you can assign individualized card designs for the front of the student created cards.

Index card art.

Who knew these things were turning into an individualized art medium? I found this set of images from Flickr.Com, as well as one or two others from people who posted personal index card projects. Some ideas that come to mind for classroom use? Playbills for performances at schools for the arts, sketches that look like zoomed in photographs of simple items such as beach balls, sunglasses or flower blooms, abstract or free-form modern art assignments, working in a science-art connection while students are studying tiny life forms or cell anatomy (these would look GREAT as zoom-ins), buddy portraits, self portraits using miniature standing mirrors and charcoal pencils, recreations of famous works in miniature, book jackets for older grade levels reading novels and chapter books and recreations of headline photos and titles from a studied historical event or figure. A tightwad decorating idea for an older classroom would be a bold solid color wall and an arrangement of finished 4 x 6 or 5 x 8 index card projects protected in simple glass and steel clip frames. Think rows and columns like you’d see in a formal art display of repeating items.

Puppets.

There are a number of simple ideas you can use to create puppets from these little nuggets of classroom thrift. Three that come to mind are hinged shadow puppets, decorated craft stick puppets, and a simple 3 x 5 card folded in half with a stick-out dragon tongue and pop up eyes made from the classroom scrap box.

Project summaries or descriptions.

Call me a terror in the teaching trenches, but I seriously think art projects and math assignments are consistently overlooked as opportunities to include written assignment descriptions. When I assign a particular art or math project, I like to have the students write up a brief analysis or description on a small to medium sized index card and attach it somehow to the finished product. Since younger grades have the sentence writing requirements so heavily pushed in the curriculum, this is a great way to work in the skill. No more having them make something up that’s totally unrelated to your current theme, and writing it down on notebook paper. Can you say boring? Working in the sentence or paragraph writing as a project description keeps the writing assignment meaningful and shows them that their artwork is just as valuable as other classroom assignments. Love that.

Assignment modifications.

Trying to provide a successful inclusion experience for students with extra needs? Often their difficulty with completing certain assignments has more to do with being overwhelmed by the empty space of an entire piece of notebook paper. If you are assigning fourth grade persuasive paragraphs for example, why not hand out 4 x 6 or 5 x 8 lined cards to the entire class? That way, the students needing the modification don’t feel singled out since everyone has the same assignment length anyway.

Shorter assignments.

Why waste paper? If you have a project that can be accomplished in less space than a piece of looseleaf provides, assign the work on a medium to large sized index card. The work can be illustrated on the back and hung from the ceiling via twine and paper clips. These also look great on bulletin board displays. Think haiku or acrostic poems.

Interactive time line activities.

For any historic period or event you happen to be studying, assign a sub-event or important date to be written about, dated and illustrated on an index card. Have a horizontal time line with dates only marked off displayed on a classroom wall or above the chalkboard. Distribute student copies of a more detailed time line to discuss as a group. Call on individual students when their respective events come up in the conversation. It will be their turn to attach their card in the correct spot under the time line.

Mix it up.

This is certainly not the definitive list for classroom ideas using index cards. In fact. I found several other ideas of note while poking around for ideas to round out this article. Here’s a tip for introducing classroom rules and procedures at the beginning of the school year, instructions on how to make a jumping origami frog, another idea for custom designing your own classroom checklists and a fun format for working on math concepts that steps outside the box of traditional flash cards.

There you have it, folks. This is my hands down best Lesson Mag effort at providing you with index card strategies for an in-check classroom materials budget. For other ideas on how to use affordable supplies in your learning environment, check out these articles on glue sticks, newspapers, telephone books and file folders.

Photo Credit: Karin Dalziel

Another example of index card art

Need a cheap way to get your students involved in spelling and vocabulary activities? Read on to find out how easily simple index cards can get the job done.

The classroom supply budget is a major concern to everyone in education. So is getting the kiddos involved in ways they can feel excited about. One of the easiest, most affordable ways I’ve found to do this over the years is with index cards. Bonus? These ideas work at multiple grade levels. While the list itself is slightly longer, I’ve found all of the ideas fall into two basic categories. Ready?

The two-sided approach.

Write one story word on the front of each card, and the corresponding definition on the back. This enables you to assign the good old fashioned writing down of the terms and definitions in a way that is meaningful for the students. It produces an end product they can use to practice with at home or with a buddy. Using them as flash cards during parent study support is one way to go. So is having the glossary on hand as a cross reference tool while learners put all of the words face down and have to guess the term by reading the definition.

Pair ‘em up.

With this approach, you’ll need two same-size index cards per vocabulary term. By writing the words on one set of cards and the definitions on the other, you open yourself up to a more diverse set of study options. Partner-based flannel board matching activities using the glossary as a cross reference tool, mixing them up in two columns on the board and sorting them together as a class, or mixing up both sets and arranging them upside down in rows on student desks to play “vocabulary memory” by trying to remember where matching sets of word cards are after repeatedly flipping them over for review and returning them to their original position.

As you can see, multiple options using only one traditional (and affordable) classroom supply item. What I love about index cards is their flexibility. In my opinion, they are right up there with file folders and craft sticks in the diversity department. Look for more index card ideas for the classroom in future posts. Happy teaching, everybody!

Photo Credits: Karindalziel and Troismarteaux

Nim's Island

Starring Jodie Foster, Abigail Breslin and Gerard Butler, this movie features a young girl (Nim) living alone on a remote island with her plankton studying Dad and corresponding with her favorite adventure novelist, Alex Rover.

When Nim’s Dad gets delayed and stranded in a dangerous storm, Nim reaches out to her adventure writing hero, Ms. Alex Rover. The problem? Ms. Rover only writes about adventure, and spends most of her time holed up in her home, avoiding society and people in general. Once Nim’s situation reaches critical however, Alex realizes she needs to step in and fly to Nim’s assistance.

The scenery is certainly stellar, and any child or class who has read the corresponding book will enjoy watching the cinematic reenactment. While I found the characters a tad underdeveloped from an adult perspective, it was still a charming film overall. Worth using in the classroom as a culminating activity to a literature study or as a family-style film for at home entertainment. Available at Amazon.Com.

Photo Credits: Amazon.Com

Classroom Management

Looking for some simple, affordable ways to make things go more smoothly on the classroom front? Here are four great management hacks to get it done on the cheap and easy. Bonus? They work in classrooms from K – 12, making this one of those classroom tip articles high school teachers can actually benefit from.

Using upside down binder clips for a cheap direction card holder.

These things are good for more than portfolios and snack clips, you know. If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to have a free standing set of project instructions, skip the stress of custom cutting a cardboard easel you’ll only have to store later. Use a couple of small binder clips with the handles pulled back to support an index card with the directions written on it.

Rotating student-led group centers.

Need some strategies for getting the job done during paid hours when cum folders and report cards are due? Get together with the other teachers in your grade level or wing and plan a few centers each to host in your respective rooms. Break all of the students from the combined rooms into separate working groups and assign each group a responsible student leader. Make sure the centers you establish are all easily implemented by the students themselves, and establish the rules that they have to pick everything up and reorganize the centers when they rotate to the next one. If you have the right number of centers set up, you can run this program in the mornings or afternoons for several days in a row. One year, it worked out with my colleagues that we got a full five days of half-day center time.

Make them a mix of different fun activities with a range of academic topics. The students don’t get to do this very often, so discipline isn’t a huge issue. This leaves you and your fellow teachers with enough time during the actual school day to get the extra burden of cums and report card data off you plates without donating even more of your valuable time for free. If you run the centers in the afternoon and coordinate certain matching lessons in your individual rooms in the morning, you’ll be able to have at least one of the centers in each room be a station for seat work catch up and jump start time on homework. I’m not advising a full week of half-day play time. You’ll definitely want quality center activities that support your current theme and academic program. Especially if you’re needing administrative support. What I am suggesting is a way to work smarter, not harder. As educators we work hard for our money, and need all the tips we can get to accomplish such a phenomenally enormous job in the short amount of time we are given each school day.

Rubber band balls.

Tired of having loose rubber bands floating around your desk drawer, adding to the chaos? Try making your own rubber band ball, or saving it as a project for that student who is always done early. You’ll be more organized with your desk supplies. Bonus? These things are just plain fun to have around.

DIY folding screen.

A simple folding screen from core doors with locking caster wheels attached can be a huge help in the inclusive classroom.  Need an impromptu learning area when the rotating reading specialist comes? Looking for a divider to reduce visual distractions during reading group time? This is a budget friendly way to get the job done. It’s also great to create a divided learning area for a home school corner, for those who follow that educational path.

Do you have another great classroom tip? We’d love to hear about it. Don’t forget to sound off in the comment section below.

Photo Credits: Tifotter , Gideon Strauss

Colored Pencils and Craft Supplies

Got a PTA group that wants to support you, but they’re on a budget? Need to replace some basics and score a few craft supplies? Look no further than your nearest Dollar Tree. Read on.

While I agree that for many items one dollar store is as good as another, there are a few areas where Dollar Tree stores really rise above. Here are a few I’ve found of particular interest on the classroom front.

• Flash cards.
• Large and small craft sticks.
• Paint brushes.
• Colored pencils.
• Pens and pencils in general.
• Pompoms.
• Colored foam sheets.
• Pipe cleaners.
• Glue.

These are just a few of the highlights. As you can see, many items here are very suitable for the classroom, art cabinet or home schooling supply box. Unexpected bonus? They offer free shipping on bulk case orders if you have the shipment delivered to your local Dollar Tree for pick up. So if you need to restock some art supplies on the cheap, and are looking for a possible one stop shopping experience to boot, check out your nearest Dollar Tree. I think you’ll be glad you did!

Photo Credit:  Scui3astevio

Supporting Teachers

Are you a school administrator? Feel like you’re herding cats on a regular basis? Do you appreciate and respect the independence of your staff, yet wonder how to balance that with needing them to fall in line when necessary? With the free-flow of creative energy comes at least a moderate need for the same thing you recommend your staff provide to their students: structure. Read on.

Being left to your own devices in the classroom can be both a blessing and a curse. Teachers have the autonomy to plan and schedule their day in a way that best meets the unique needs of their students. Or do they? Remember that while in your mind something may have been decided and dealt with hours ago, chances are there is a large percentage of your staff who remain unaware. So while as an oh-so-understanding admin you may feel they’ve had all morning to readjust their schedule accordingly, they may have only just found out that you need to pop in with the school nurse for just “fifteen minutes”.

You may also be the fourth or fifth person who has needed to interrupt them in the past ninety minutes. Add a couple of last minute assemblies into the mix, and is it really a great surprise to find every grade level chair in the building knocking on your door in a nearly nuclear state of irritation? Here are a few tips to at least help you grease the wheels of reciprocal understanding:

Screaming fast, wireless internet.

Throughout the building. Not only does this provide total flexibility and efficiency in the classroom, it also promotes the best possible use of specialist periods when teachers are left to float during art or foreign language blocks and yet still expected to be performing their duties to the best of their abilities. Having wireless internet access makes it easier to post online homework assignments, spelling lists, etc. It also allows for more streamlined parent communication via email correspondence. Bonus? If you put out a memo, you don’t have to wait until sixth period to give your teachers a shot at seeing it. Remember, just because you’ve disseminated the information doesn’t necessarily mean it has been received.

Acrylic sign holders.

There are many sizes available, but the 8 ½ x 11 size is the easiest one to design and print classroom signs for, in my humble opinion. It also saves on teacher sign  wear and tear and laminating costs. Signs can be created for various themes, quotes, concepts and more to provide professional looking classroom atmosphere. It’s also a much more streamlined look to have all the signs the same size from the hallway, and in a similar position by the door of each room. If teachers want more than the standard one sign, consider having a few for each room. One for the teachers name, another for the class schedule and a final one for individuality. Having the basics done for them before they arrive at the end of the summer gives them more time to get cracking with academic planning and to be available for any meetings you need them for.

Inventory everything by room number.

Actually, this one’s for both teachers and admins. For schools where the staff rotates in and out with frequency (for example on the international teaching circuit) and various circumstances ( typhoons, earthquakes, war evacuations) cause the supplies and equipment to be thrown into chaos, having everything assigned to a pre-numbered room can be a real sanity saver. For that new teacher that is left to rummage through the pile in last year’s supply closet, knowing if she sees something with a particular number that it belongs to her room is a huge relief. Figuring out which three teachers’ names have been assigned to her same room over the past few years is an absolute pain in the neck. Do both parties a favor and inventory by room. Seriously.

Communication boards with attached writing utensils.

These things are fabulous to have on the outside of the door. If a teacher takes the kids outside for an on-the-fly science activity or next door for a shared academic movie with another class, support staff will be able to find them easily. Don’t forget the wipe off cloth and cleaning solution.

Respect their time.

Seriously, respect their time. I know every administrator out there thinks they already do this. News flash? It rarely feels that way from the position of the classroom instructor. Countless last minute assemblies, four separate interruptions during the last hour of school for individual handouts that could have been collated and handed out earlier with the rest of the home communication bulletins, three separate trips to the nurse’s office in one week and support services for students that run late and throw off other group activities are just a few shining examples that come immediately to mind. And don’t get me started on the old “surely you don’t mind me redirecting the time you’ve already donated by coming in early with an unexpected hallway meeting.” It becomes very difficult to be a good sport about every other school employee’s emergency or administrative scheduling conflict when they happen all the time. Particularly if the reciprocal support isn’t there for things like . . . oh, I don’t know . . . let’s go with extreme discipline issues. (Yes, that was sarcasm.)

Cumulative records and class list support.

Personally, in my entire career I’ve only had one school ever do this in a way that was helpful. At the beginning of each year when the class lists were received, they were broken down and coded according to the type of additional support services each child received. Also noted were eyesight and hearing issues, special meds, last year’s teacher placement and general reading levels. From this document it was a simple matter to do appropriate “close to the board” seating assignments, scheduling sessions with specialists, plan initial language assessments, etc. This saved numerous hours of preliminary cum folder research at an already crazy time of the school year. It also made it more difficult for the class placement balance to be thrown off inadvertently when the category totals were already there for the releasing grade level teachers to see at the end of the year when these decisions are handled. (Cum folders are a huge professional issue for me, so definitely look for some follow up articles on this subject  in the future. )

Standard, basic issue, equipment kits.

With as much money as teachers end up spending on their own classroom, I personally think it’s more than fair to expect that some basic infrastructure be both provided and restocked when necessary. A few items on my list? Chalk, glue sticks, single and three hole punches, stapler with staples, teacher and student scissors, eraser, white board supplies if appropriate, widget, staple remover and PE supplies such as a playground ball, hula hoops and jump ropes.

Distribution boxes.

Attached to the wall, and somewhere close to the door on the inside of the classroom should be some sort of container to hold memos, book club forms and other home to school communication. It should also house a slot for communication the admin offices want returned to them and the admin staff should be the ones to both distribute and collect these communication bulletins. For those who are about to remind me of the teacher mailboxes, I have to jump in ahead of you with the following: I can count the number of times admin was finished handing out bulletins to me by my last trip to the teachers’ room on one hand. In my entire career. On one hand.

I know some schools are doing their part with online postings of school issues and parent email lists, but the reality is many districts are just not there yet. Additionally, the old run down to the classroom at the last minute to hand the teacher a separate piece of paper that you interrupt her class time to explain and then in turn ask her to explain to her class really doesn’t cut it Gilligan, I’m here to tell you. It’s a double interruption and highly annoying.

Seemingly simple ideas? Yes. But you’d be surprised how often schools fail to set up these systemic types of support systems, thereby increasing the classroom stress factor exponentially. Most every suggestion on this list can be incorporated very affordably. Consider it an investment in the overall occupational health of the professionals you lead. Additional ideas? Sound off in the comment section below.

Photo Credit: Kim Howarth

School Bus

 

We all know how we start the year with students directly impacts what is to come . . . and just how smoothly it will go. Following are a few ideas to get things flowing in the right direction.

Post an inspirational quote on the door, or at the entryway.

Something about striving for excellence, or perhaps self esteem. This is a great way to establish atmosphere from the start.

A horizontal line of clocks above the board at the front of the room.

Starting with the city your classroom is in, and moving from left to right, put a sign under each clock with the name of a different international city. If you have pen pals in a particular city, include that one as well. Set each clock to the appropriate time zone for its corresponding city. This decorative element is fun, unexpected, and sets a serious academic tone in your room. It’s also very grown up, making it excellent for high school students as well as classrooms as young as the fourth grade, where feeling more grown up is a huge priority.

A math assessment.

On day one. Pick whichever one you deem fit for your new students. A quiz, or perhaps the annual grade level pre-assessment from your school’s selected math series. If the series does not provide a pre-assessment, there should be a yearly review from the previous year’s grade level. Consider using that. Not only will it provide you with hard data on whether or not your students’ skills have atrophied over the summer, but incorporating this on day one will send the message that you mean business. Math is considered serious subject matter, and starting off with an assessment on mathematical content will ensure your students will take you seriously as well. Obviously middle and high school teachers who don’t instruct on every single subject will need to consider alternative assessments or activities, but for general elementary teachers, this is a winner.

Post the latitude and longitude of your location outside your room.

A simple “welcome to” sign will suffice. You can determine your accurate longitude and latitude by using either a GPS, Google Earth, or this link from the USGS.

Letter writing.

Since basic letter writing skills start getting covered as early as first grade, and reviewed for years afterward, they are a great activity to assign the first day of school. The basic elements are quick to reintroduce, the assignment is assessable at a glance, and it allows for a variety of ability levels to participate without being singled out. Whether you have the students write away for freebies, compose a thank you letter to last year’s teacher, or choose a favorite author to write to, the important thing is to have a hard copy of an entry level writing sample for each student. From here you can gather multitudes of information on exactly how you should implement your initial language arts program.

A walk through practice session of the admin-approved fire drill procedure.

You might also include a tour of key locations such as the nurse’s office, where to line up after recess, the cafeteria, etc.

Pack your evacuation bag.

This one is more for your peace of mind. The details are covered in the previous bomb bag post, but suffice it to say an emergency departure bag is a good idea for any teacher in today’s society.

These are my top seven picks for beginning of the year elements to include. I deliberately left off the covering of the class rules, because I know you’ll all do that anyway. The purpose of the piece was to provide solid strategies for professionals at multiple grade levels that would help set a productive tone. My hope is that I’ve achieved that purpose. I believe I have. Have a great start to the school year, everybody.

Photo Credit: KB35

Cloth Bulletin Board

I don’t have to tell you how much paper consumption goes in to our yearly bulletin boards. I also don’t have to tell you just how tedious it is to get them ready and keep them rolling every year. Looking to save paper and a little bit of your precious time? Read on.

Cloth is a colorful, creative and eco friendly way to go when it comes to selecting a bulletin background. Bonus? You can reuse it year after year. Simply select a solid background color a bit larger than the cork surface of your board. Press or lightly steam the fabric, and staple tautly and smoothly to the bulletin. Using a sharp Exacto knife, trim the cloth to the edges of the board frame. If you’re super confident in your measuring skills, consider having it custom cut at the fabric store and skipping the aggravation of trimming altogether. You can do this with many different fabrics, including a dark colored cotton to ground the room, burlap for texture, or felt for additional use as an old fashioned flannel board. In addition to being the green way to go, cloth backgrounds have some other perks as well. A few of note?

• It’s fade resistant.
• Staple and tack holes disappear.
• If a substitute teacher does tape something to it, you won’t have tear marks staring you in the face and begging to be recovered.

Need some ideas for trim? Rope or braiding works great for an ocean or nautical theme, or visit a bulk discount fabric store for other trims such as flat, non fringed ethnic trims that are a bit wider, or thin belt fabric.

Got another idea for a great fabric bulletin board? Share it with us!

Photo Credit: Yaronimus Maximus

 

Looking to integrate Native American heritage with a state of Maine studies unit? This title by Elizabeth George Speare might be just the ticket.

In this historical fiction piece for intermediate students, a young man is left alone in the wild to tend the new homestead while his father returns to civilization for the rest of the family. He makes friends with a reluctant Native American boy and at the request of the boy’s father, teaches him to read. When his father is late arriving back with the family, the boy begins to fear the worst and must decide whether to stay and wait, or travel with his friend’s tribe, who are leaving for good.

This tale of coming of age is an excellent title for use in literature circles or whole group instruction.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

This historically themed, family style story of the American prairie features a family’s grief, a farm’s struggle and a mail order bride.

A classic piece in American classrooms for early intermediate students, this book turned movie by Patricia MacLachlan is an excellent example of a “big kid” story written at a more accessible level for younger readers.

A father and farmer with two young children loses his wife and struggles to keep his life and family on track. He posts an advertisement and a woman from Maine answers. She arrives to make a difference, but not the one he expects.

Personal verdict: A great choice for introducing chapter books to younger readers, both in literature circles or as a whole group book study.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

 

Looking for a magical tale of intrigue from the great frozen north? This wondrous story of a parallel universe may be just the ticket.

Sam Elliott, Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig star in this film chronicling the journey of a young girl on a quest to save her world, and the one beyond. Warrior bears, secret dust, a magical compass . . . this movie seems to have all as far as kids are concerned.

For as much controversy as this film generated in the religious community, I expected it to be much more preachy. But honestly? Not my impression at all. I simply saw this as a visually intense, story-rich flick that kids of all ages could get excited about seeing. Is there some obvious allegory and an anti-establishment overtone? Sure. But nothing that in my opinion got in the way of the great entertainment this film offers.

Worth checking out.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

A magical store where toys come to life is the backdrop for this film starring Natalie Portman and Dustin Hoffman.

The Wonder Emporium, run by Mr. MaGorium, is getting ready to change hands. Dustin Hoffman’s character (MaGorium) wants to give the store to his long time manager and apprentice Mahoney (Portman) as his legacy to her. But the transition doesn’t go as either of them plan. Included in the mischief and mayhem are the store’s new accountant and it’s most loyal young customer and managerial assistant, Eri.

Packed with fun, magic and the power of imagination, I found this movie to be an extremely pleasant surprise.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

What do you get when you combine the talents of Angela Lansbury, Colin Firth and Emma Thompson?

A magical tale of love, responsibility and growing up. Emma Thompson plays Nanny McPhee, the latest in a long string of nannies hired by Mr. Brown (Colin Firth) who have previously been easily run off by his seven resistant children. The difference this time? Magic.

McPhee uses her powers to direct their rowdiness on a path they never expected. As far as the hubbub of this movie being a new Mary Poppins . . . well, I’m sure that was meant as a compliment, but I believe it may be a disservice to a film that’s clearly able to stand on its own.

A great addition to the classroom library. Keep it on hand to show for a hard earned whole group behavioral reward. Primary through intermediate grade levels should find it entertaining.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

A darker children’s story with a European feel, this film would make an interesting selection for the intermediate classroom.

Based on a children’s book series by the same name, this piece stars Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep and the narrative voice of Jude Law. The persecuted child theme brought back memories for me of some of Roald Dahl’s work.

I noticed it was filmed with a visually dark approach as well, which I found an interesting artistic choice. It definitely added to the feel of this movie, and added more than a touch of drama. This film would make a great addition to any educator’s film library, on its own or as a culminating viewing activity after studying the books as a class.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

A working father’s night job turns out to be far more intense than he expects . . .

Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Dick Van Dyke and Owen Wilson join for a feel good family movie that celebrates history in a humorous tale of thievery and teamwork.

Ben Stiller plays Larry Daley, a newly hired night watchman who must somehow learn to control the chaos and create peace between the museum’s evening residents, who come alive from sunset to sunrise. A fun film for at home or in the classroom.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

Tired of cleaning out individual glue caps with the closest available paper clip? I hear you. Here’s why glue sticks are one of my favorite classroom supplies . . . and why they always went on my new student “back to school” buy list during my classroom days.

No leaks.

Not on the desk areas, not in their backpacks, not in a box of your math manipulatives . . . nowhere. Sure, if you leave them out in the hot sun you may get some melting, but in general, these are not a messy project tool.

No clogs.

Ah, the freedom of starting a whole group art project without losing an entire free class period ahead of time cleaning out glue bottle nozzles. Just give the directions, distribute the materials and let them go for it.

Streamlined product dispensing.

Release yourself from over pouring, over squeezing, messy residue and more. Glue sticks are much easier for me to use as an adult, so I can only imagine how much easier they are for a young child still working on fine motor skills.

So take the plunge, free yourself from unnecessary glue bottle aggravation and set your students up for success.Go for the glue sticks, and imagine the power of streamlined student projects.

Photo Credit: Oskay

Starring Denzel Washington and introducing several new talents, this movie is for more than coaches of debate teams.

Set in the south during the era of segregation, this film tells the story of an inspirational teacher, some motivated, capable students, and the changing consciousness of a nation. Sometime towards the middle of the movie, Denzel delivers a line that I dare say has been on the wish list of teachers for generations.

When questioned repeatedly by a student he was trying to instruct, he responds forcefully “Hell is where you’re headed if you question me again!” In my humble opinion, one of the most hilarious teacher lines in the entire flick, tied equally with “Resolved!” But I’ll let you decide. Personal verdict? Great for African American History Month, debate team activity night or a simple feel-good flick for teachers and families. Definitely worth checking out.

Photo Credit: Amazon

Tired of the groaning whenever you settle in for a topic review in class? Here are some ideas to use when getting ready for a big test, and also some strategies to keep the material fresh all year long. Bonus? Many of these ideas can be used as team activities, or as sponge activities when it’s time for transition.

Chalkboard Relay.

This is particularly great for math questions. Divide the class into two teams, and have the front person from each team at the board for each question, racing to see who can get the correct answer first. Keep score with tally marks on the chalkboard to see which team finishes in first place. This could also work with spelling word reviews, or reading off definitions to see who can come up with the correct term fastest.

In the Bag.

This was covered in depth in a previous post. Basically, you can save any spelling word cards, study cards from previous class units, etc. For an impromptu review, have one student select a card with a spelling word on it and hold it so the rest of the class can’t see. Then let them call on a student to spell the word correctly and use it in a sentence. The class members swap out once a correct answer is provided.

Topic Riddles.

This is sort of a reverse “Twenty Questions” type of thing. Have several clues for each word, concept or answer. Then ask who / what / where am I based on the answer you need to receive. You could be going for a character in history, a type of biological plan, an astronomical phenomenon, etc.

Lining Up.

This is more of a time to do the review, rather than the activity itself. Each student can line up when they answer the question, or if you are already lined up as a group and they are waiting to get dismissed, let them leave the room if they answer the question and go to the back of the line if they mis it. I like to only send them back one time so it stays fun and keeps things on track time wise.

Roll the Dice.

I saw this my first year teaching at a workshop and it has served me well at multiple grade levels. Basically, you have kids divided into 3-4 teams with a few people (6 or less) in each team. You ask the question and every team confers together for the answer for an allowed amount of time. Then, whatever team’s turn it is waits for you to roll the dice. Each member of the team is assigned a number, so when the number on the dice comes up, they know which team member will need to answer the question. If that person gets it wrong, the question goes to the next team to try to answer it, with the dice getting rolled again. What I like about this is every team has to review the material for each review question, and within each team, every member HAS to be included because they never know who will get called on. Everybody has to stay focused on the activity and material if they want a chance to get points. This is another one of those ideas that can be used from early primary through high school, adult education, or even at the university level if you were so inclined.

Random Trivia.

Quotes from book characters or historical figures, math questions, spelling, riddles, all kinds of ideas would work here. You can use the strategy in a relay, with line up or dismissal transitions.

Review Puzzle as Learning Centers.

This is great for an extra time activity when students are finished with their seatwork. Use the page protector strategy to save on consumable resources.

There you have it. Seven simple ways to provide solid, attention – grabbing content reviews in the classroom. Got a slamming suggestion of your own? Sound off in the comment section and share the love.

Photo Credit: Editor B.

Trying to accommodate parents without re-documenting every piece of communication you release? Got more than a fair number of forgetful tikes in your class whose newsletters never quite seem to make it home? Consider starting your own blog site.

No longer simple online journals, blogs have come into their own. Why not put one to use in your own teaching career? A few ideas to consider when doing so:

· Several free options exist on sites such as Word Press or Blogger.

· Blogs are paperless, saving time, consumable resources and money.

· They let you do your job once, and yet still gives parents a backup if their child loses papers on the way home.

OK, so now you’re sold, but not sure what to do with your blog now that you have one? Well, here are a few suggestions to get the creative juices flowing.

· Pull all parents on your RSS feed so they are up to date at all times.

· Post homework each day as a backup for students copying the info from the board.

· Upload permission slips and other forms so parents may print them out at home.

· Snapshots and updates on special projects or concepts being studied.

· Incorporate class updates into a special section of your online portfolio.

Is there a little more to it? Of course. But if you can type, operate simple software and know how to do basic word processing, you are more than half way there.

Photo Credit: VSQZ

Well, loads of articles have made it into our corner of the blogosphere this past couple of months. In case you’ve fallen behind on your reading, or haven’t had the chance to sign up for our R.S.S. feed, here are a few of the highlights.

· What’s in YOUR Bomb Bag -An extreme teaching article with suggestions on managing your personal classroom evacuation program.

· Fantastic Ideas for File Folders – How can you make the most of this affordable classroom consumable? This article spells it out.

· Portable Puppet Theater -This shoestring teaching tip is perfect for traveling teachers, or those extremely limited on classroom space.

· Newspapers in the Classroom -Need some strategies for working miracles in thin air? Here’s an article with several “no brainer” ideas for these instructional freebies.

· High School Fundraisers – Ideas to start raising cash for older grades that are definitely “beyond bake sales”.

· DIY White Boards – Still want one, but on a major budget? This tells you how to DIY it on the cheap and easy.

· Teach to Travel -Want to know how to break into international teaching? This post spells out all the details you need to get started.

Got a request? Let us know below. We’ll do our best to work in the topic on a future article. Got a favorite? An article in the archives you found particularly fab? We’d love to know about that too. So please, sound off!

Photo Credit: Per Ola Wiberg

Sign up to save the world and left feeling like a chump after seeing your first paycheck from the local school district? Here’s an alternative way to maximize the perks of your career choice. It only requires a sense of adventure.

If you haven’t considered overseas teaching and the bargain travel opportunities it offers, perhaps it’s time you started looking into it. Here are just a few of the benefits you can generally expect from a quality international posting:

· Round trip air fare once a year

· Paid, furnished housing and utilities

· Small to moderate shipping allowance

· Affordable regional travel from your posted location

· Tax free salary

· Opportunities for highly paid on-the-side tutoring

How much can you expect to make? It varies by school and by region. Certain parts of the world are known for lower salaries it’s true, but it isn’t unheard of to snag a reasonable salary at a particular school. On the other hand, certain areas are reputed to pay much higher, with the odd school paying less than you might expect. Some strategies to start searching for an overseas post?

· Job fairs. Several take place each year in various parts of the world. A popular one here in the states is the annual event at the University of Northern Iowa.

· Classified ads. There are many places to find current opportunities with this approach as well. TIE-online,Serious Teachers,and the ESL Caféare a few places to start.

· Service organizations. The Peace Corps is likely the most well known one, but there are others out there to explore.

· Placement services. Head hunters are hardly unique to education, but a fair sized niche industry has evolved here as well, particularly for East Asia and parts of the Middle East. Posting a “position wanted” ad on serious teachers will likely net you several calls, and of course International School Services has been around forever.

Are there details to consider before hopping on a plane to the other side of the world? Absolutely . And you will definitely want to ask around for references and other information any school offering you a position. The important thing to remember is, if you are truly interested, you can do it. Others have managed successfully and so will you if you decide to take the plunge. Who says you can’t see the world on a teacher’s salary?

Photo Credit: Nattu

Teaching in an extreme situation where you are short on everything, including scissors? Here’s a lesson idea I got years ago from a frugal art colleague in Micronesia. Bonus? It’s one of those great lessons that can be used from early primary through high school.

The project? Torn paper mosaics. The flexibility? Nearly endless. Useful for covering nearly every topic through art integration, this lesson basically requires copy paper, glue sticks, pencils and colored scraps of paper. Yes, that’s all.

· Basically, you select a topic (pumpkins, multi-cultural landscape elements, modern art shapes, etc.) and make sure your colors of paper scraps fit with the assignment.

· Students lightly sketch outlines for elements in the mosaic picture.

· Colored bits of paper are torn and glued to form the elements of the picture, leaving slight spaces in between to represent the grout. Filling in all areas, including the sky as a background, really adds drama and zip to the student pieces.

To easily modify the lesson for various grade levels, simply adjust the detail and size of the mosaic assignments. Voila! A dirt cheap art project for all topics and grade levels. We’ve got your back.

Photo Credit: Chris Robinson 1945

Every teacher needs an idea bank of ways to provide positive reinforcement. Looking for a few ideas to keep from sounding repetitive?

Here’s a list of twenty-five ways to give verbal praise, many of them useful at all grade levels.

1. Rock on!

2. That’s awesome!

3. I can tell you’ve been practicing.

4. That’s very colorful.

5. I like how neatly you’re working.

6. You really followed directions.

7. Way to show what you can do!

8. Bravo!

9. That’s fantastic.

10. Great work.

11. You did that very well.

12. Nicely done.

13. Exciting work, that’s for sure!

14. Look at the detail you put into that project!

15. Wow, you’re fast.

16. Excellent.

17. Incredible job.

18. Good presentation.

19. You’re a rock star.

20. You read that very well.

21. Way to manage your time!

22. You were very responsible with that.

23. You aced that assignment!

24. I can tell how hard you worked on this.

25. Very impressive!

There are many ways to say good job. These are only my top picks. If you have any other great verbal praise phrases, don’t forget to share them with us below. Happy teaching!

Photo Credit: AstroGuyz.Com

Looking for an extra employment resource for overseas classroom positions? Here’s one I tried out when we were on the road for a few months, with rather decent results.

The web site? SeriousTeachers.Com.The premise? Simply post your profile and resume for free. Schools and head hunters who are also registered get to post job openings that you can respond to individually, and they will also approach you if you have qualifications or interests in your profile that meet the types of jobs they offer. The first contact will be through email, and then you’ll progress from there, depending on how great the match is.

As with any type of resource like this, you will want to do your part to ask around the circuit about a particular school, ask for other teachers for school quality references, etc. However, I have to say that I consistently got serious offers, although none that were quite the right fit for me at the time. There was even one that was from a school where some good friends of ours used to work, so they were able to provide references to both the school and us. How cool is that?

If you are looking for a place to start exploring your options without a huge initial cash outlay, Serious Teachers could be for you. Have a success story about the site, or any other type of experience you feel people should know about? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below.

Photo Credit: Angela 7 Dreams

If you’ve been following this blog all along, you’re already aware that I love to pass along great classroom hacks as soon as I think of or run across them. This is no exception. Read on for some great ideas on getting things done on the cheap and easy.

Hula Hoops.

In addition to making great classroom playground equipment, these can be used in PE and also for small group circle assembly. As any primary teacher can tell you, younger students really have a difficult time forming circles on their own. Having a few hula hoops on hand for small groups to assemble around gives them a bit of fun factor and you a bit of sanity. Particularly helpful for teaching in outside environments where the school may just be one shaded area surrounded by coconut trees. These situations also tend to be short on classroom furniture. If you are at a school where most of the instruction has to take place outside, you can easily distribute some hula hoops around your area and have one circle for reading group, one for a language game, and one for quiet PE stations such as stretching or sit-ups.

Affordable Art Smocks.

Remember shirt smocks? So do we, and we’re recycling this age old classroom classic. Old adult-sized long sleeved button up shirts can come from family members or a thrift store such as Goodwill. Great for science experiments and art projects, children need only to put them on backwards and have a buddy fasten a button or two in the back.

Poster Taping Tips

Anyone who’s taught in a jungle environment can attest to how difficult it is to keep posters taped to the wall. If you are lucky enough to have walls you can staple things to, congratulations. If you are stuck with concrete however, this is for you. To protect the back of your poster during end of the year removal, flip it over and place flat pieces of masking tape on each corner. This will give you a stable base to put tape circles on, from which they can easily be peeled off later. The jungle element? Instead of placing your tape circles up and down, go horizontal. Keeping them up is still a challenge, but they will at least last longer this way.

Document the Journey

If possible, consider incorporating a digital camera into your learning environment. Document projects and class work throughout the year, compile a slideshow for open house, etc. This is much less expensive than having to continuously purchase film, batteries and developing services. If you have a tech person, you may even be able to include the documentation in a web site.

Get Some Help from the Animal Kingdom

At an outdoor “garden school” in Tucson, Arizona, a trained therapy dog is a favorite visitor for the students to read to. This is worth considering in any learning environment, as practicing oral reading with a class pet or visiting animal removes the fear some students have of reading in front of others. It also generates enthusiasm for those learners who may not be excited to practice reading aloud otherwise. Even a fish tank or aquarium in the classroom or home learning corner can be used to implement this strategy, which is particularly powerful for the shy ESL learner.

Student Anchors

If you’re comfortable going high tech for your student report presentations, consider turning the entire event into a type of news show. Learners can write brief commercials, bring background music for the “anchor people”, write introductory scripts, etc. I have personally done this at numerous grade levels. Students of all ages love the outcome.

Book Parades

This idea was inspired by one of our newsletter subscribers. At this particular school in Texas, students each make a small “float” based on their favorite book, or dress up as their favorite character. The entire school then has a parade to honor the literature each student has celebrated. Home-schoolers could easily implement this as well in their local park or group gathering place.

If you have a great shoestring teaching idea, or one that is just too cool not to share, please post about it in the comment section. Sharing these things helps us all out, and our students as well. Happy teaching, everyone!

Photo Credit: Peiqian Long

Need some cost conscious ideas for independent, fast working students? Following is a list of my favorite cheapies.

Listening centers.

Whether it’s the old fashioned book and tape set you still have, or an audio book file for an I-pod, listening centers are a powerful supplement to any language program, and fantastic for ESL support.

Deck of cards and a set of math tables.

This is a super cheap center idea that requires two people to play. Basically, both players agree ahead of time whether they are playing an addition, subtraction or multiplication round. One person draws two cards, while the other has the math table with answers. If the card drawer gets the math answer right (checked and verified by both partners), they keep those to cards and start their own pile. If not, the cards go back in the pile at the bottom. Then it’s the next person’s turn. The round progresses until the cards are gone. The person with the most cards in their stack wins. Bonus? This is a great way to use up those old decks of cards that may not be complete. You only need to different value cards with each turn.

Word puzzles in sheet protectors.

These work better if you have the answer key as well. Put the blank puzzle back to back with the answer key and slide them into a sheet protector. Using a dry erase marker and an old clean sock, students can check their own works, clear the boards and try again. Consider having a few out for variety. You could also use math problems as well for extra drill and practice.

Computer with learning games.

Whether it’s online activities, or games from various educational software programs, having a computer available during down time is a great way to supplement your students’ computer lab schedule and provide valuable technical skill enhancement for those who may not have a computer at home. Having a goal of a laptop for day-long use for every student is a lofty goal, but the reality is many schools are far from being able to make this happen. If you have at least one computer with internet access in your room, consider making it available.

Simple crafts.

In my humble opinion, the simpler the better when it comes to setting up a craft center. And while I’m sure there are many out there who would disagree, I think the multi step, paints and brush, huge mess art projects are much better suited to whole group lessons where as a teacher you are more available to provide guidance and structure. Centers are something I like to use as flexible sponge activities, and simple crafts fit the bill. Some ideas? Safety pin bead crafts, friendship bracelets, basic summer camp yarn and stick weavings, etc.

Board games.

Whether it’s a homemade option celebrating the weekly vocabulary words, or a game of Body Boggle, age appropriate board games are a great way to keep children occupied academically in between seatwork assignments and group activities.

Silent reading station.

To make it feel a bit more special than “just read quietly at your desk”, consider letting those done early be able to read silently in a fun seating area like a classroom couch, bean bag or rocking chair. Sometimes, it’s all about switching up the details.

This is obviously not meant to be a fully inclusive list, just a list of the simplest ideas I could think of for shoestring teaching budgets. One thing’s for sure, I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more teacher resource books to review and blog about in the upcoming months. Got another great time consuming cheapie? Don’t forget to sound off in the comment section below.

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

Whether I’m starting fresh or recycling used one, file folders are on my short list for simple, affordable classroom consumables. Bonus? They’re super versatile. Read on for some teacher-friendly ideas.

Some of my favorite project ideas are the ones that involve the easiest methods and most affordable supplies. File folders meet both of those requirements. Here are a few simple things you can do with them in an educational setting.

Pattern cut-outs.

This is a great way to use folders that are a bit tattered around the edges. Trace and cut out one pattern, then replicate as many as you need for classroom “trace and cut” crafts.

Student-published book covers.

This requires starting with a fresh new folder for each child. Simple bind with staples or brass fasteners and use loose leaf paper or printed computer documents depending on student access to technology. Cover designs can also range from simple to elaborate depending on your consumables budget.

DIY journals or learning logs.

These are basically blank, fillable versions of the book cover idea above. Most instructors prefer class sets of those black and white composition books, but depending on your location, these may be hard to come by. Having a DIY option up your sleeve will help keep all of your learning programs available even in tough financial times.

Individual student calendar resources.

Here’s a link to a great way to have students follow along individually with group calendar work in the classroom. Home schooling? Your morning calendar routine will be even more streamlined. You do have to scroll down a bit to see the illustrations, but it’s there.

Mini offices.

These absolutely, totally ROCK! Heard about them years ago. Here’s a link to an excellent illustrated version of one.You basically have all the reference materials you would otherwise have to hand out individually and have students keep track of on one fold-up file folder office. I really wish I had known about these while I was still in the classroom. Personal verdict? One of the best classroom ideas I’ve ever seen. Bonus? Easily adaptable for all grade levels, K-12. Here’s another link to an idea of how you can use these in the classroom.

Individual privacy cubicles.

Basically, you assemble them the same way you assemble the “offices” discussed above. Put two of them together so they overlap in the middle and then staple them together. They can then be stood up on individual student desks for quiz and test taking, or as an extra integration support tool for those students who are easily distracted visually.

Easily stored games and learning centers.

There are loads of ideas out there. Here’s a link with a couple of interesting and simple ones. Want some more? Here are some printouts to just glue on and go.

These are just some of the ways I’ve found to use file folders in the classroom. I think you’ll see how flexible they are as a resource for affordable classroom programming. And there’s no denying they provide a huge bang for the buck. Got a great idea for a file folder project? Share your thoughts below.

Photo Credit: Mooganic

Need a get-the-job-done, dirt cheap option for reviewing content in the classroom? These multipurpose game boards always did it for me. Read on to find out how to make them.

•Take an extra large piece of oak-tag or other strong paperboard similar to a file folder, and visually divide it into 3-5 inch squares using a ruler and a permanent marker.
•Next, laminate the piece.
•You will need a writing tool that you can clean off from the laminated surface such as an overhead marker or a grease pencil.
•You will also need a flat rubber ring at least 3-4 inches across, such as a rubber ring for a canning jar or an automotive part.

Congratulations! Now you have a reusable game board for reviewing various classroom concepts. And that’s not all! You can also integrate basic math skills at the same time. Here’s how it works:

•Using your washable writing tool, carefully record questions from language arts, science, social studies, etc, into each empty square, making sure you have the answers on hand for cross reference.
•You will also need to record a point value for each square in the corner(s).
•This is where the math integration comes in. Early primary grade educators may only wish to have 1-2 points per square, where other grades may select higher point values to integrate column addition. Advanced classes may even include a small math problem in each corner in addition to the other question to force students to solve what the point value is before adding it to their point totals.
•For each turn, have a student toss the rubber ring randomly onto the game board. The rubber material provides a natural “cling” against the laminating film, helping it to grip the board when landing rather than continuing to slide.
•If the ring falls on one square only, students have a chance to answer only that question, and therefore earn points for that square only. If the ring lands where it overlaps two or more squares, then learners are allowed to attempt to answer all of the questions within the ring’s circumference.
•This would mean of course that they were also allowed to tally any and all points from correctly answered questions. As the educator, you decide if you want each student to tally each point score as a group activity, or to simply record the team or individual points on the board, solving the math together orally.

Still not inexpensive enough for you? No problem. You can either shrink or enlarge the size of this game board and still save money. To make a smaller version, use a piece of photocopy paper with the grid, questions and point values printed on it from the computer (small font). Slide this paper into a clear sheet protector and use a smaller rubber ring. For a larger version, use a large, flat piece of discarded cardboard from a large box. Draw on the grid lines with a yard / meter stick and a permanent marker. Then, cover with clear contact paper.

The rest of the directions are the same as for the original game board. However, for the extra large version you may want to explore larger ring options, such as a ring-toss game pieces or homemade bean bags.

So there you have it, readers. One game board with unlimited content review and introduction options. Simple. Cheap. Effective. Bonus? Kids dig it.

Photo Credit: Justin

When it comes to cheap office supplies, clothespins are tough to beat. Bonus? There are loads of things you can use them for in the classroom. Following are just a few.

Project clamps.

Great for all the old stained ones that parents are getting ready to chuck anyway.

Art clothesline.

A bit old fashioned? Maybe. But they still get the job done, and are a great way to finish drying those water color paintings without clogging up desk space.

Communication with classroom specialists.

Working at a place where Post It notes are outside of your budget parameters? Clip a directional note to the seatwork of a student who leaves the room for support in another room.

Stick a magnet on the back and use it to hold student artwork or reminders.

This is also a great project to have the kids create and take home to the folks.

Get a grip on classroom snack storage.

They’ll help keep those plastic bags of crackers fresh.

Make a reindeer ornament at Christmas time.

Simple, affordable, and kids dig it. Here’s a link.

Insect crafts.

I’ve seen several different variations over the years that would be fun to try when doing a classroom unit on insects. Here’s a cute simple one with a grasshopper theme. I think the kids would have fun using these to keep their desk papers organized.

Make a multicultural doll.

Here’s a link to one celebrating Asian heritage. As simple as the design is though, I would think you could easily modify with various shades of paint to match different skin tones from around the world. I’m already picturing one dressed with an African tribal cloth. Here’s another link with resources on making clothespin dolls as well, with a couple pictured that could easily represent the heritage of certain European countries.Cute!

Make a center game using clothespins and the cardboard circles that come inside your pizza box.

I love this idea because it is so inexpensive.

Student communication.

I’ve seen teachers successfully use these for students to communicate their location. Each one would have one with their name on it clipped to one side of a poster board. On another side of the board or across the bottom would be various locations such as bathroom, nurse’s office, etc. Children simply clip their pin under the name of the appropriate destination. Simple!

These ideas represent my top ten picks only. As always, please feel free to share your ideas. These things are so cheap that almost any PTA should be able to pick you up a bag at the dollar store as part of a classroom support package.

Photo Credit: L. Marie

Need a cultural heritage activity that’s big on style and short on cash outlay? Here’s a slamming alternative to traditional face painting booths that’s not only more culturally diverse, but cheaper as well.

Using simple henna patterns and inexpensive eyeliner and eyebrow pencils, have your students draw temporary designs on themselves using the easily washed off makeup pencils instead of the semi permanent henna. This is a great center activity, open house activity during international day celebrations, or an alternative booth to face painting at the school carnival. You can find some fun henna patterns for no charge using this link.

This really is fun for all ages, and an unexpected twist. If you want your boss and room parents to think you’re a true rock star, try this out. Really.

Photo Credit: Hiral Henna

The Village of Round and Square Houses, by Ann Grifalconi is the story of the village of Tos, in Cameroon.

Here, men and women live separately, and in differently shaped houses. Thistale was told to the author by a girl who actually grew up there. From what I understand, they actually had to walk in for a day or two on foot to actually get there. Now that’s a dedicated writer. Ann, you go, girl!

Photo Credit: Barnes and Noble

With all of the not so great freebies out there you need to wade through in order to find the good stuff, it’s always nice to find a consistently updated resource available for instant use in the classroom. If you love to cover current events and have a wide range of ages in your student base, this resource just might be for you. Read on for details.

Breaking News English is a free resource for classroom teachers of ESL students. Need some grown up content for learners with lower English skills? Check this out.

Breaking current news stories are provided in summarized form, along with simple classroom lesson ideas. They also have an archive of previous stories for further exploration or those last minute, need to pull a lesson out of thin air for the adult class situations. Definitely worth checking out for adult ESL ideas on the cheap and easy.

Photo Credit: Prufrock 27

Looking for classroom control from day one, but not interested in spending three days custom laminating name cards and pocket charts? Believe me, I hear you. This article provides streamlined management strategies that will still let you have a life. Read on.

Behavior Points.

A simple, budget friendly way to acknowledge group behavior. Here’s what you need: a chalkboard and chalk.

That’s it. If you want, keep track of points using a pencil and a special corner in your plan book in case they accidentally get erased. Use an unobtrusive corner of the chalkboard and draw a chalk cloud with the title “behavior points” inside. At the beginning of the year, you can use a lower number for the class goal and make the goal daily, with a reward of stopping early to play a few minutes of 7-Up, for example.

Later in the year, you can try a higher amount and have the reward take place whenever they accomplish it. Usually, a larger reward is in order for a larger point accomplishment. For example, 150 points might earn them a class movie and popcorn. You can flex the number of points and the goal time depending on your class needs and grade level. I have used this at all grade levels in several different countries. It works every time, and is simple and cost effective to maintain.

The Clean Desk Fairy

Clean desk issues can really slow things down academically. Having an end of the day “desk inspection” where the students do not line up for buses until their desks have been checked for neatness works well for various grade levels. On the days you miss, have the “clean desk fairy” leave a note on the board and a chocolate kiss or new pencil on those desks that are exemplary. Need to pinch pennies? Free paper passes issued from the teacher don’t cost anything, and are just as popular with the students as store-bought treats.

Reinforcement Charts

One of the most cost effective systems I’ve found is to purchase one of those reinforcement charts at the teacher store. You know, the ones with a space for the names down the side, and a full poster board sized grid with quarter inch squares running all the way across. Instead of using stickers, they make rubber stamps that fit into those smaller squares which in the long run is much less expensive. Or, to make it even more affordable, have the students color in a square every time they are caught being good. This enables a daily visual for which students need to be “caught being good”, and the students enjoy competing for the lead position. It reinforces graphing skills as well. If desired, you could do something special with the top behavior student at the end of each quarter. Students at all grade levels love this, and it is the most convenient way I have ever found to keep track of positive behavior.

Need an idea that’s even more extreme? Laminate the chart to the wall and use dry erase markers. It’s an affordable green teaching idea, and you can re-use this chart as many times as you need to with a little DIY white board cleaning solution.

Craft Sticks.

These things really come in handy for classroom management on the cheap. Check out the previous poston craft stick uses in the classroom. In addition to several craft ideas, you’ll also find some great management tips on how to include every student every day, incorporate a dirt cheap running program for PE and streamline your classroom communication in a way that you can use from year to year. Score!

Classroom Study Hall.

If your learning schedule allows it, try incorporating a brief study hall at the end of the day. Students who run into problems during daily independent work time can have one on one time with you. Those finished can assist with room organization, handouts, last minute announcements, etc. Admittedly, this can be tough to pull off without the right schedule. However, I did one year and it was one of the best things I ever tried. The students and I both benefitted tremendously, and the last few minutes of the day turned from chaotic to calm on the very first day we implemented the system. If you are blessed with a supportive administration, see what you can do about convincing the powers that be to allow the last class session of the day to be left to the classroom teachers. Chances are, the specialists will appreciate a chance to get organized for the next day’s room hopping schedule as well.

Daily Helping Hands.

Rather than struggling to develop an elaborate job schedule and chart with a spinning wheel or cards to pull and file, just have a daily helping hand to deal with all jobs. If a particular task is too much for one student, they can select a responsible friend to help them with it. Just go down through your grade book in order and select the next student each day. Simple, easy to maintain, and every student gets to help. This will free up your time (especially if you teach younger grades) to work on other important classroom management issues.

That’s it. Classroom management as cheap and easy as I can make it for you. Got another cheap idea that’s low on effort and high on the get a life scale? Share the love.

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

Think there aren’t any screaming deals left out there for teachers on a budget? Guess again. From now until the end of May, Scholastic is offering tons of great classroom supplies . . . all for a buck!

This seems almost too good to be true, folks. But I checked their site, and yes indeed, dollar deals truly abound. Some of the items I saw and consider to be of note?

• Classroom calendars.
• Reinforcement charts.
• Desk tags.
• Multicultural decorative banners.
• Accents, cut-outs and calendar pieces.
• Stickers.

Lots more items there, and the sale is only until the end of the month. This would be a great time to stock up, or get things in order ahead of time if you are switching grade levels. Here’s the link.

Photo Credit: The Blue Dino

In this book by Catherine Stock, a young girl named Kukamba enjoys spending time helping her grandmother, Gugu, with her art.

What I loved most about this title is how it demonstrates so clearly the contribution art can have in our everyday lives, as well as how powerful the concept of temporary art can be. In celebration of the African nation of Zimbabwe, this book also includes a glossary of story terms. Worth including in your multicultural library or as an asset for your African studies unit.

Photo Credit: Target.Com

Told by noted children’s author Verna Aardema, this tale is from the Nandi tribe of Kenya.

The storytells how an unusual drought on the plain inspires a cow herder to come up with an unusual solution. The illustrations? Absolutely charming. The story was discovered nearly one hundred years ago by Sir Claud Hollis, a noted anthropologist who published the story in his book, The Nandi: Their Language and Folklore, published in 1909. In my opinion, this isa true classic for those studying Kenyan culture and folklore, as well as African heritage in general.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

A film shot with a fair amount of discipline, devotion and passion for the subject to say the least. For those who have not yet seen it, if you are looking for a new library addition to your unit on penguins or Antarctica, you will not be disappointed.

Narrated in the earthy voice of one of my favorite actors, Morgan Freeman, and edited with amazing footage, this piece really tells the story of just how hard it is for these birds to reproduce and survive each year. For a detailed and exciting look at the day to day life of these magnificent survivalists, check this film out. It’s definitely worth picking up a copy for your classroom or media center.

Photo Credit: Amazon

Written by Mordicai Gerstein, this piece tells of a man who is offered all the choices of the universe, yet learns to appreciate the simple beauty of his own life.

The illustrations are softly yet strikingly done, making for an absolutely precious piece of children’s literature. Written from the perspective of Tibetan spirituality, yet perfectly suitable for the multicultural classroom interested in exploring this majestic mountain kingdom.

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

Retold by Mary-Joan Gerson, this tale from the Bini tribe of Nigeria is at least a half a millennium old.

In the story, the tribe’s people learn the hard way about the management of available resources. In addition to exploring Nigerian folklore, this book would also be fabulous to use when teaching about conservation and respect for the planet’s environment.

Photo Credit: Target.Com

Based on the novel of the same name, this film celebrates the Maori culture of New Zealand.

A young girl, Pai, must overcome gender resistance from her grandfather, who is helping raise her. According to tribal tradition, any successive tribal leader must be the son of the current one. According to legend, a chief named Paikea rode a whale and led his people to their current land of New Zealand. In a well – directed modern extension of a traditional myth, Pai shows herself to be capable of picking up the torch with a touch of girl power. Family dynamics are also well demonstrated as the girl and her grandmother try to break through to a stubborn man. I can honestly recommend this film in its own right, as well as a companion piece for those studying the novel. For intermediate grades and up.

Photo Credit: Amazon

Simple, cheap and around for as long as most of us classroom warriors can remember, these under-the-radar bits of office supply fluff can help you get the job done on multiple fronts. Read on for a list of affordable classroom tips involving the humble paper clip.

Ornament hooks.

Need a way for parents to hang those precious homemade ornaments your students just made? Or, maybe you need to find hanging options for a load of donated tree ornaments from the PTA. Either way, paper clips can be your best friend when it comes to this.

Hanging art displays.

If you have one of those old fashioned suspended ceilings with the metal grids in your room, then these work great. Over each student’s desk and anywhere else you might need to hang a sign or art item, attach one paper clip to the edge of the metal rib. Tie on a desired length of classroom twine, and then tie another paper clip on to the dangling end of the string. This is where you can clip on flat edges of lighter pieces of art work. Great for open house night.

Bookmarks.

In addition to rubber bands, paperclips can make awesome bookmarks. Bonus? They don’t fall out as easily as paper ones. Word of advice? Go with the coated ones if you don’t want your pages to get rust stains.

Plaster of Paris Project Hanger.

Embed one in the back of each student’s project on the side where they will want to hang it from the back. Allow to dry. Easy breezy.

Emergency Zipper Pull.

Got a primary student with a zipper malfunction? Thread one of these little gems through the hole and pull up. Problem solved.

Unclogging those annoying glue bottle nozzles.

If your administration or PTA hasn’t upgraded you to glue sticks yet, this could be one of those tedious problems from the good old days that you still need to deal with. Straighten out a paper clip and go for it. We’ll be pulling for you.

Emergency bra strap repair.

Have a hormonal high school student on high wardrobe malfunction meltdown? If the problem happens to be one of those broken plastic hooks, a paper clip can get the job done in a pinch. If the problem is further up the strap, a safety pin might be more what you need.

That’s it from my end. If you have additional bits of clip wisdom, feel free to post a comment. I’m sure we could all use additional suggestions for sticking to the classroom budget and having a touch of convenience at the same time.

Photo Credit: Sunshine City

I don’t know about you, but rarely has my allotted classroom budget met my needs. In fact, in all my years of teaching, I can only think of one school where I was provided with everything I really needed. Even there, I had to be financially careful. And we all know what the unwritten expectation is when school districts can’t fund their own mandates . . .spend your own money. Big surprise. This article highlights my favorite teacher cheapies.

Bonus? They are available in almost every school supply closet, making it easier for you to hang on to your hard earned paycheck.

Page protectors.

I love these. Readers’ play scripts can be protected year to year. They also work great for protecting activity pages where the students need to answer a question or solve a puzzle. Place the paper inside and children can write their answers in water based marker or grease pencil, and wipe off when they are finished. Keeps copying costs to a minimum. Want more ideas? Check this out.

Index cards.

An inexpensive learning supply, they can be used for vocabulary / definition flash cards, spelling memory games, math fact quiz cards and more. For extra flexibility, they are also available in lined and unlined, large and small, and various color options. Tough to beat for affordability, wouldn’t you say?

Cardboard beverage flats.

Even in Micronesia, I had access to these at no cost. If the school does not have a vending machine where these are left over after stocking, chances are there’s at least one store that will save them for you. Use them for holding paper scraps, completed student assignments, desk protectors for messy projects, marble painting, story boards, science fair displays, and homemade hinged-together briefcase portfolios. Here’s a link with more details.

Twigs and sticks.

It doesn’t get any cheaper than this. When you are in an extreme teaching situation and do not even have access to craft sticks, have students bring in twigs and sticks when you need them for things like nature crafts, kite support, puppets, native tribal weaving projects, etc.

Torn paper art projects.

My art guru friend Shelly taught me this little trick while we were teaching on the island of Guam. If you are working in conditions where you do not have scissors for your students, these projects are wonderful. The project she showed me was for torn paper mosaics, where students create a scene with torn bits of paper arranged with spaces in between on a background using glue sticks.

Donated newspapers.

I’ve had English language newspapers donated literally in every location I’ve ever taught at – the States, Guam, Kuwait, Italy, etc. Not only are they free, they provide a tremendous amount of mileage in the classroom. Some of the things I’ve used them for: current events, spelling word search, event collages, stuffing large models of book characters or giant paper sea turtles, tearing up for paper maché projects, and covering desks for messy art and science activities. I’ve also had newspapers offices donate the ends of the rolls of blank newsprint. They usually have a fair amount of paper left over, and it’s great for brainstorming charts and morning language. Old blueprint charts are great for this use as well. For a complete list of ideas for newspapers in the classroom, check out this previous blog post.

Used copy paper.

Folding the pages in half with the printed side in and stapling them allows you to put them together for a clean set of pages to be used for student publishing. Free materials . . . score!

Phone Books

Lots of ways to use these in the classroom. Bonus? Telephone companies will usually donate last years left overs in mint condition.

Dried Beans.

Any large flat bean will do really, and even the smaller ones can work for certain things.Very affordable when purchased at a discount dry goods store, these durable seeds make fabulous bingo and game markers. Substituting these for the expensive plastic game markers assures that you always have plenty on hand when students misplace them (which they will). Economical and eco-friendly!Another really cool thing you can do with the larger flat broad beans is lay a bunch of them flat on newsprint and spray paint one side of them the color of your choosing. The result? Dirt cheap DIY math manipulatives. Take a specific amount of them (nine, for example) and put them inside an empty cup. Shake and dump onto a work space. The beans will come out in various number combinations that equal the number in the cup. Great for younger grades working on math facts and number exploration.

These are items or ideas that made my job easier during my years in the classroom. If you know of others, please let us know.

Photo Credit: Worak

Let’s face it. Classroom calendar supplies can add up to big bucks. If you are at the primary grades and need to work in patterning, it can more than double. Here’s how I made my own and skipped the cutting out and laminating of countless expensive apple and pencil cut-outs.

First, get a piece of plain poster board in the color of your choice, preferably not to dark. Leaving an open space at the top for the name of the month, mark out a grid with squares the size of an average Post-It note. Use light pencil lines at first, and follow up with a permanent marker and a straight edged ruler.

Next, either laminate the entire thing and attach to a larger math themed bulletin board, or laminate directly to the wall with easily peeled off, clear contact paper. Not only is thise calendar much more affordable than the deluxe designer version from the teacher store, but different colored post-its can be used in place of having to purchase several different dozens of calendar pieces for patterning and theme building that teachers like to do at all grade levels. Bonus? You’re not stuck replacing an entire set of calendar pieces if you lose one, or one gets damaged by a student.

Want to skip even the cost of the Post-It notes? Use different colored dry erase or water-based overhead markers. You can write the name of the month in at the top each time, and switch out the colors used to record the various days of the month. This is great also if you want to make the numbers smaller in the upper right hand corners of the squares and save the rest of the space for recording class events, holidays, field trips, assemblies, etc.

Bonus? You can clean off the calendar and start fresh each month. Here’s a link to some DIY white board cleaner recipes that’ll do the trick.

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

These things have been around for as long as I can remember, including my years as a grade school student. Available in multiple sizes, they really go the distance for getting things done on the cheap. Need a few ideas for putting them to use and reducing your classroom materials budget? Read on.

Streamlined questioning practices.

While you can do this with the old fashioned popsicle size, I find it easier with the larger tongue depressor style ones. Put each student’s full name on a stick with a fine to medium tip permanent marker. Then put all the sticks in an empty coffee mug.Use this to randomly call students to answer questions by pulling one stick at a time until everyone has been called on at least once. Then start over. Learners of all ages perceive randomness as fair, so this also eliminates frustration outbursts from students who feel they may have been waiting too long and have a tendency to take it personally. It took me years to start doing this, and then I wondered what on Earth took me so long.

Super Simple Running Program.

Conducting the PE program all by your lonesome with say . . . absolutely NO funding? I’ve been there. Here’s an idea I picked up from an overseas teaching colleague that requires nothing but popsicle sticks and a reinforcement chart: Using your car after hours, measure out a quarter mile course around the playground, school grounds, etc. Try to make sure it’s a course you can see all parts of. Have a giant box of popsicle sticks prior to the class activity. Lead the group in a stretch and have them all start at the same spot on the course. Everybody then jogs / walks / runs around the course according to their own pace and ability level. Every time a student runs back by you at the starting point, hand them a stick. Four of them will equal one mile run. Keep track of everyone’s progress via a bar graph on a reinforcement chart. They love it, and the cost is minimal. You could even use sticks from the forest or jungle if there was no classroom budget for the popsicle sized craft sticks.

Puppet projects.

Stick puppets may not be fancy, but they get the job done. And with puppets being such a HUGE part of holistic story retelling for early language learners, this was something I used a great deal when teaching in Micronesia. When school financial concerns eliminated even these from the budget, I didn’t have a problem resulting to simple twigs. That’s how much I believe in puppet show story retellings for young learners.

Weaving shuttle.

Apparently, they make these things with grooves on the sides of the end. Who knew? When we were doing basic carpet weaving demos with yarn and small square looms in Kuwait, We just had the handymen notch grooves in the regular popsicle sticks for us. If your school has access to the notched ones, go for it. It’s great for simple weaving activities, and the kids really enjoy learning about the warps and wefts of carpet making and practicing simple designs. Even the intermediate aged ones.

Streamlining attendance and lunch count.

I wish I had thought of this one. The fact is, I only ran across this idea when researching extra information for this post.This teacher numbers a class set of jumbo craft sticks for little hands and puts a magnet on the back of each. Since they are not named, she doesn’t have to do it every year. The same number applies to the students for everything else such as coat hooks, cubby holes, etc. The kids place their numbered stick under hot lunch, bathroom sign out spot, etc. She uses the side of her deep file cabinet as a place where the magnets will work. Slick!

These are my top picks. If you have a project or management idea using craft sticks that you feel is exceptional, sound off in the comments section!

Photo Credit: S & S Worldwide

We all know that student rewards are a necessary part of successful classroom management. But how do we keep things rolling smoothly without going broke? Easier said than done, I know.Here are a few things I’ve used over the years, as well as some interesting ideas I’ve run across recently.

Earn a movie.

I usually use the behavior points to let the class earn this as a group, and try to set the activity aside for the end of the day. I either use a video from my own collection, the school library, or ask one of the students to bring in a good one that we vote on ahead of time. This is usually a big reward that doesn’t come along every day. They have to have MAJOR points to earn it. It’s also helpful if you can schedule it on a day when you have lots of admin stuff to do, such as set up for open house, get ready for conferences, calculate mid-quarter reports, update cum files, etc.

Free homework pass.

This works at all except the very young grade levels. You can do up a bunch (4 or 6 to a page) and run them off for the whole year. Just fill in the student name and date, then sign your name.

Free time or recess.

Again, this works for all levels. I prefer ideas that do so, because as someone who has spent most of my career overseas accepting various grade level assignments, I need a professional “bag of tricks” that I don’t have to reinvent every time I move or switch grades.

A structured class game.

Outdoor and inside games apply. Just choose something appropriate to your grade level.

One more chance pass.

Ran across this idea quite recently. It’s similar to the homework pass, but is used for kiddos to get themselves out of a situation caused by a lapse in behavioral judgement. Even the well behaved kids need these from time to time. I love this idea and think it has major potential. Just make up a bunch like you would with the homework passes and have them available for individual rewards.

Take back a bad grade pass.

This was from the same place I saw the one more / second chance pass idea. Usually, I drop the lowest grade for the kids in each subject area at the end of each quarter anyway. But this would be a great replacement idea, so they don’t feel they are entitled to that extra bit of help. Keep some photocopied ahead of time and you’ll be set for the year.

Erasers, pencils, individual candies.

These fall into the low cost rather than the no cost category. I pick them up on super sale or ask the PTO to help me out. It’s really helpful to have them on hand some days, particularly at the beginning of the school year and when you get back after winter break.

A stamp on the good behavior graph.

These are inexpensive charts and your school or PTO should have no problem providing them for you. One chart can get you through an entire quarter, and a miniature rubber stamp that fits in the small squares is WAY less expensive than getting stickers. There is also very little prep to this. You just put each student’s name on their own line of the graph and write the title at the top. . . done. A good place is on the inside of the classroom door.

I hope these ideas are helpful. When I first started teaching, I thought I had to have a reserve bank of reward ideas that was a mile long. That really isn’t necessary. A few for group rewards, a few for individual, some larger, some smaller . . . it will be more than enough to get you through the year smoothly.

Photo Credit: P.P. Digital

Looking for a classroom drama resource that’s quick, easy, inexpensive, and will take up practically no additional space? This tip is for you.

What you need: a tension rod to fit the doorway of your room, and a curtain with a slot at the top to fit the chosen tension rod. That’s it. Just make sure the curtain is long enough to at least reach the floor. It’s OK if it’s a little long. You can just balloon it out for more drama.

What you do: Slide the curtain on the rod. Assemble it across the doorway to the room. That’s it. Students can watch inside, while on the other side of the curtain performers have as much space as they need without worrying about being seen by the spectators. When the performance is finished, simply roll up the “theater” and place in a file drawer or on an unused shelf. Easy!

This idea is also great for traveling performers, or those teaching specialists who have to travel from class to class without a room of their own. I ran across this idea years ago on the teaching circuit. Those of you who may have used thistechnique . . . we would be thrilled if you’d post a link to your own blog or to an online image. And of course, personal success stories are always welcome!

Photo Credit: Jude Pics

Written and illustrated by the author Demi, this is an exquisitely illustrated biography of the world’s most famous Meccan.

The author consulted and worked closely with many regional, historical and religious experts for the publishing of this book. Written with cultural sensitivity, tolerance and tender respect, this title is an excellent addition to any multicultural children’s library.Personal verdict? Two thumbs up!

Photo Credit: Amazon.Com

Need a simple cheap review strategy that can take you from day one to year end ? Would you love it even more if it truly could be used from early primary grades through high school? I’ve got your back. With this article, I’ll show how you can review any concept, any time using only a paper grocery sack and some index cards. Is that cheap, or what?

Here’s what you do: Label the outside of the sack with the game title “In the Bag”. Using the index cards and writing tool, record various questions from material covered thus far such as quotes from known literary characters, plots for book titles, glossary definitions, math problems or even spelling words.

Next, put them all in the bag and shake. The next time you have a few minutes between classes or dismissal time and need a sponge activity, call on a student to come up and select a card from the bag. This person will get to read the question and call on the person who will be required to answer. For example, if you use spelling words the person called can be expected to both spell the word and use it in a sentence. Or, if it’s a famous quote from history, it can be a matter of reading the card without giving the class the answer.

Still not cheap and easy enough? Check out these additional time and money saving hacks: Take the word cards down from your weekly spelling lists and put them directly in the bag, skipping the additional writing requirement. Don’t want to have to worry about 3-4 separate review games in the elementary or middle school grades? Put all of the various topic cards in together and make it a multi-subject review every time you play.

For educators working under extreme conditions where even index cards are a major budgetary indulgence, this can also be accomplished with donated scrap paper cut into squares. Whatever you have to do to get the job done, right?

With this strategy, you should be able to meet your review goals easily, regardless of the financial parameters of your school or home teaching budget. Happy teaching!

Photo Credit: Tanakawho

A young first year educator tackles a group of rough inner city teens through a high school English class.

Using basic but powerful student journaling strategies (also the basis for the script) and a study of the life of Ann Frank, she finds a way to break through and earn their trust. Also dealt with in this piece starring Hillary Swank and Patrick Dempsey, is the issue of balancing family time with the brutal professional demands of classroom teaching. Something that ultimately cost the lead character her marriage. A feel good flick for teachers.

Photo Credit: Amazon

Vocabulary building ideas are always a challenge. One simple way to make sure you are doing a bit extra is to consistently incorporate a word of the week. Read on to findstrategies for trying this out, and an extensive start up list for those raring to go.

First of all, if you want to make sure you stick with it, I recommend having a list ready in advance. Second, while you’ll be looking up the word in the dictionary with the students, have a simplified definition ready to post in class. This will make it a more user friendly activity for ESL students, and those needing light to moderate modification in the classroom.

Once you’ve looked up the word as a group and read the dictionary definition aloud together, paraphrase out loud and record the definition where all students can see it. Be sure to encourage the word’s use and re-use throughout the week. Some ideas:

•Student recording of the word and user-friendly definition in journals.
•Brainstorming various sentences as a group, all of which use the word correctly.
•Incorporate the word into your daily morning language activities.
•Require its use in a creative writing assignment.
•If you assign spelling word sentences as homework, tack the word of the week on to the end of the list.

Need some awesome word lists to get started with? I’ve got your back. Here are a few starting with letters A through C.

For the letter A:

Abdominous, abapical, abattoir, abecedarian, abnegation, abjure, abrogate, acaulescent, accretion, acrimony, acrasia, acumen, adjutant, allocution.

For the letter B:

Baculiform, balneology, balustrade, bantling, barcarole, basipetal, bastion, bauble, beatific, becalm, bedlamite, beleaguer, bemire.

And last but not least, for the letter C:

Caterwaul, caudal, catharsis, causerie, caustic, caveat, cavil, censorious, centenarian, centesis, charlatan, chimerical, choler, claque.

I’ll post more at a later date. These lists should get you rolling in style. I’m sure this goes without saying, but those of you out there with super fantastic ideas for incorporating words of the week? Share the love!

Flickr Photo Credit: Desi Italy

Loads of ideas are out there for using newspapers effectively in the classroom. Following are some of my favorites, as well as some interesting ones from around the web.

Desk covers for messy projects.

I always called these work spaces, but basically they were individual sheets of newsprint that when unfolded covered basically the entire surface of a standard elementary sized student desk. Great for gluing, painting, science projects, etc.

Paper mache.

Torn into small pieces, recycled newsprint is a dirt cheap art medium. Score!

Current events.

Even lower intermediate level students can usually find something they are able to understand and write about. Bonus? It’s a standard Friday homework assignment that requires no photo copying. Love it.

Spelling word search.

Have the students make a T-chart on a piece of loose leaf paper and write their spelling words down the left column. Then, have them search for as many of those words as possible, resorting to creating them from individual letters if finally necessary.

Parts of speech search.

Divide notebook pages into sections with various category titles such as nouns, verbs, conjunctions, adjectives, adverbs, etc. Assign a specific number of each part of speech to be found in the newspaper. Students should cut out individual examples of each and glue them into sections using glue sticks.

Make an old fashioned hobo or clown style hat.

Using several sheets of newsprint laying at opposite or bisecting angles across the top of the students’ heads, have them hold the papers on their head firmly while you press down to the sides of each head and wrap your way around using wide band masking tape. Then roll up the edges of the paper and staple, creating a sort of rim. Paint. You can also do another style of hat by placing the papers over the top of a large empty coffee can. Then do the same type of masking tape band and trip the edges out flat. Depending on how far down the coffee can you go, you will either end up with a stove pipe or band box hat. Paint and trim as desired.

Select articles ahead of time that fit in with what you are doing in class.

The five W’s, intro-body-conclusion, whatever. Have the students cut out personal copies of the article chosenfor your assignment. I remember one year when Hershey’s was choosing a new color of M&M. There sure were some fun lessons on main idea and predicting with that topic!

For weekly papers, have students create current event collages.

Using titles, excerpts and pictures, have students create a collage of the week’s events. Then assign a written summary according to the grade level you are instructing. Have the kids attach the summary to the bottom of the collage as sort of a “drop down” element of the art. Bonus? Parents dig ‘em!

Use the comic strips to practice transcribing dialogue.

Wish I had thought of this. Kudos to thosewho did over at I Love That Teaching Idea. Have your class work on their skills for writing dialogue correctly by using conversations between cartoon characters as a starting point. By working this in a few times per month, your kids will have that skill hands down! It’s a skill you’ll be needing to cover anyway. This way, they can actually have a bit of fun with the drill and practice, and read something they like anyway. Bonus? The limited vocabulary in the weekly comics is great for those kids who may have a tough time completing some of the lengthier assignments. Don’t you love it when inclusion efforts flow so easily?

Other interesting newspaper idea links from around the internet?

• Simple, easy to understand student assignment ideas using classroom newspapers.

• A fun activity celebrating newspapers and nursery rhymes. This looks like a great reading buddies activity.

• An article on using newspapers in the high school classroom as the entire course text. Interesting.

   

   

• An excellent article listing ten fantastic reasons to use newspapers in the classroom. I’m sold!

   

   

• Great overall resource for educators, including background articles and links to all sorts of print and online news media for students of varying ages. 

   

Well, that’s all folks. If you have links to online images of projects you’ve done or have additional newspaper in the classroom suggestions, don’t forget to drop us a line.

Photo Credit: Alosh Bennett

In this biographical account of the struggle for aboriginal rights in rural Australia, three young girls tackle significant adversity to find their way back home after being forcefully torn away in the early 1930’s.

Featuring real-life footage and commentary from two of the girls, this film pulls no punches when it comes to the misguided separation of mixed heritage children from their indigenous parents and culture that continued to occur as late as the 1970’s. Racial tensions, family ties and the struggle for human rights are all main themes in this film by Miramax Home Entertainment. Molly’s strength of character and fortitude are nothing short of incredible. At least one scene has adult themed content, but in my opinion is still suitable for older students studying the history of aboriginal rights in Australia. Worth including in your unit study.

Photo Credit: Amazon

After a post I wrote on this subject a while back for Wise Bread, I started thinking about their use in the classroom and just how often educators put them into play. Here’s a quick rundown of a few ideas I’ve tried over the years.

Securing rolled up classroom art work.

Take down the art posters and drawings your students have done and roll them up with a trusty rubber band. This will make them easier to transport home in one piece.

Basic primary science.

These work great for younger grades when demonstrating the concept of expanding and contracting muscles. Lift up your right hand until it is even with the same shoulder and grab the rubber band between your thumb and forefinger. Grab the other end of the band with your left hand and hold it firmly against your shoulder. Then slowly and repeatedly extend your right arm to the straight position and bring it back again. A powerful and simple demonstration. Bonus? It’s dirt cheap and doesn’t require any special equipment.

Classroom Tie-Dye Activity.

Tie dye shirts are great for all grade levels. Not only does this make a great classroom art activity, if you go with one basic color or all use the same color combination, you’ll have class shirts to wear for field trips. This is fabulous for events where there will be large groups of people and if your students will be separating and gathering again at a different place.

Dioramas.

Nothing like a power band to close up a shoe box diorama project. They’ll actually have a prayer of surviving the trip home on the school bus.

Bookmark.

This one is also mentioned in the Wise Bread piece referred to above. However, I think it also bears repeating for its use in the classroom arena. Doing this with extremely young students could prove tricky and may result in some wrinkled pages. But for disorganized teenagers in need of some extra logistical support, this idea rocks. Simply stretch the band around the binding of the book and up the center of the inside on the page you want marked. It doesn’t fall out this way.

Make a rubber band ball.

These are easy to make and keep your loose ones from being scattered all over your desk drawer. I love them in the classroom because they have loads of what rock star blogger Linsey Knerl calls “fun factor”.Here’s a link to instructions on how to start one for your classroom.

With as long as these things have been around, I’m sure there are way more ideas out there from professionals such as yourselves.Remember to share the love and post your slamming suggestions below. Have a great week, everybody!

Flickr Photo Credit: B. Melcher

In an article posted today on BBC World News, over two thousand schools are predicted to close to some extent. Projected date? This Thursday. What threatens such an expansive occurrence of empty classrooms?

Teacher pay. Big surprise.

Since I graduated from college in 1990, education salaries have continued to range from ridiculous to pathetic. The only place I was able to find even partial relief was in the overseas, tax-free job market. While my experience is based on the U.S. state of affairs, things are apparently equally tough in England.

What’s even more depressing? I doubt many of the teachers wanted things to get this far. Let’s face it. None of us do this for the super-large salaries. We have simply chosen to spend our careers in service and asked for nothing more than a living wage in the process.

Have a comment or story about teacher salaries in your area? Sound off!

Flickr Photo Credit: Editor B.

Wanting to do your ecological part in the classroom and needing to conserve supplies at the same time? Then maybe it’s time to give some serious consideration to repurposing the standard paper sheet protector.

Traditionally used for keeping black-line masters in good condition, portfolio assessment or corporate presentations, these little gems can help you save money, preparation time and yes, paper. Following are some ways to use them effectively in today’s classroom.

Read-aloud play preservation.

Big on readers’ theater in your program? Print them out, along with companion glossaries, and place the individual collated copies into color coordinated three-hole report covers. You know, the kind you can get at ten for a buck during the back to school sales? Not only can these be used year after year, but the covers will look great for performances in the park or your basic blue jean classroom theater production at open house night.

Streamlined activity sheet use.

Needing to limit photocopies and still really wanting to work in some vocabulary puzzles and small group math quizzes? Print out enough copies for your desired size of activity group (I prefer four-six students) and place each one in a plastic sheet protector. Use water based overhead markers or traditional grease pencils for students to work with. Correct together during group time and erase for the next group. Green. Cheap. Easy. Extra bonus? I dare say more than a few parents will thank you for limiting the nightly paper storm.

Center activities.

Got some printouts with answer keys for things like spelling word search puzzles, math facts, and science questions? Print out two-three sets of each and slide them back to back into sheet protectors. One side will show the blank activity page for students to work on, and the other will have the answers. Using the same strategy mentioned above of grease pencils and overhead markers, let children work together or independently on the sheets. They can correct their own work and practice skills throughout the week to get ready for quizzes and tests.

Organizing classroom communication.

Having a small three ring binder with a sheet protector for each student gives you a place to house all of those paper scrap notes from parents, notes from the nurse, etc. You never know when you are going to be called on to document a pattern or confirm your side of a miscommunication with a parent or administrator. If you end up not needing the info, just get rid of the file items at the end of the year. If you do need it however, you’ll have your proverbial ducks in a row.

Activity sheet protection for outdoor nature activities.

If you have a younger group who may find it challenging to constantly copy directions off the board, print out simple, easy to follow directions for the activity and put them in sheet protectors. Let them work individually, with a buddy or in a group to complete the activity without the page ending up in shreds. First grade educators, are you with me? With this strategy you get to have a successful day along with your students. This also works for maps when traveling or doing rainy day hikes with older PE students. It’s also one of my husband’s favorite travel tips for when we are on the road.

Instant Individual White Boards.

Love this idea! Wish I’d thought of it myself years ago. But I have to come clean. I actually found it when researching this post. Just use this link and scroll down until you see the activity titled “instant white boards”. Basically, in order for each student to have their own “white board”, you need enough smooth finish sheet protectors for each learner to have one, an equal number of sheets of 8 x 11 inch card stock, and erasable markers. To erase the kids can either use tissues, or their own recycled foot portion of an old athletic sock. I would think it might also be helpful to tape off the top open slot with horizontally placed scotch tape to keep it sealed. These are great for sentence dictation, math problems on the fly, daily language correction activities and more. To keep classroom management concerns at bay, consider collecting them after each group use, or having each student keep theirs in a 3-ring resource binder where such things are stored for quick hassle free classroom access.

Organizational support for those home and school binders.

While I never used these during my classroom years, I know of several colleagues who managed them effectively. Having a few included in each one for loose notes and routinely swapped communication documents can save you loads of follow up stress.

So that’s it, readers. My best efforts at using page protectors to streamline your classroom management and paper consumption issues. That being said, I know there are loads of talented educators out there with slamming ideas as well. Feel free to contribute any additional suggestions you might have in the comments section so we can all benefit from your expertise.

Flickr Photo Credit: TXD

Those of you used to teaching under nearly constant threat of evac will be used to these. For those who are only starting to explore the overseas option of working in intense locations, this article will be a primer. Either group will likely benefit from the list of ideas. Read on for some strategies to make the unexpected classroom evacuation process as smooth as possible.

For whatever reason, I was not introduced to this concept until I went to work for an American school in Kuwait. We were required to be able to get out on the fly with our students, as well as maintain intact administrative data such as grades, attendance, parent contact information and lesson schedules. For extra fun and excitement, we never knew how long an evac might last before we were either cleared for re-entry or picked up on site. So emergency rations and student entertainment options were key. After getting several of these events under my belt, I developed the following list, and always kept my bomb bag (otherwise known as a go-bag or storm bag) stocked with these items.

Your grade book.

Obviously, you’ll need to have it out almost daily for attendance and grade recording. But instead of putting it away in your desk and always needing to remember it in an emergency, make the bomb bag your permanent stash location. You’ll be ready to rock and roll on less than a moment’s notice, and your boss will think you’re a rock star.

Pens and pencils.

You don’t need a bunch, just a couple of each for note taking, attendance at evacuation collection / check point, and marking off who gets picked up early by parents when these things drag on . . . and they do. Trust me.

Parent contact info.

Even if you think it’s just a quick drill, you never know when it’s an actual threat called in by some wacko. It can take longer than you might think to get the building cleared for re-entry. If you have to leave the building after lunch time, chances are the parents will be willing to just come pick up their kids. Check with admin first to see what they want, but we found that sitting out in the desert sun of the Arabian Gulf was way too intense to monkey around with, even with loads of extra water. If we even suspected it was going to be a long haul, we started calling parents as soon as possible.

Toilet paper.

Enough said.

Water.

Hydration is critical, and the more nervous your students are, the higher their rate of aspiration is likely to be. Make sure you have at least one two liter bottle with a squirt top to start off with. You can give each child a drink that way without having to touch mouths or carry cups. Your administration will need to coordinate additional drop offs.

Crackers or other simple snacks.

You don’t need enough to feed an army here, and they don’t need to be the fanciest variety available. Just a couple of sleeves of your standard soda crackers will suffice. Something to soak up the nervous stomach acid and take away the hunger pains if you have to beat it before lunch.

Your current read aloud book.

If you teach older grades and don’t do this, consider keeping a great collection of short stories on hand. Anything that will enable you to gather your group under a tree (hopefully there’s one available) and keep them focused. If you do have a read aloud you are currently enjoying with your class, make the bomb bag your storage location for that as well. You’ll always have it if you need it.

Your lesson plan book.

Chances are your schedule is in here as well, and if you truly are forced to migrate with your kids to the nearest refugee camp, you can all get things up and rolling in a hurry if as a staff you know how to get back to your old routine as soon as possible.

Playing cards and other simple light-weight entertainment options.

The read aloud title is only going to get you so far. Long term sitting and listening will get old after the first half hour or so. Having a deck or two of cards along with some simple review questions, or an inflatable ball to play hot potato with will add to the maintenance of calm.

Sunscreen.

Something you can spray on is what I recommend, but whatever you are able to get is better than nothing.

A clipboard and loose leaf paper.

This will assist you with management checklists on parent communication and keeping score on any class games you are able to play.

These are the main items that helped keep me sane during repeated school evacs. If you have spent time under such conditions, or just want to be prepared for the unexpected . . . feel free to share your thoughts below. Just an extra thought? My students in Kuwait were old pros at this, and the term bomb bag didn’t upset them. In fact, it was the term the administration used as well. However, if you are in suburban America and your students have never dealt with this before, you may want to refer to this as an emergency bag or the fire drill bag. The important thing is to have it on the ready.

Flickr Photo Credit: P. Body

When I taught in Micronesia, the phone company came at the start of every year to donate extras of the previous year’s book. In a school district that had very little in terms of a materials budget, this was one of those rare times when I had a full class set of anything. Here are my top picks for using these great freebies in the classroom.

Practice ABC order with a name chase activity.

Make sure each of the students has a book, and you should have one too. Call out the name of a person in the phone book and have students scramble to see who can find the right name. The first one to read off the correct phone number, gets a point. Decide ahead of time on a free prize, such as a homework pass signed by you. This works with the entire class or in small groups. Bonus? It’s a legitimate language skills activity that costs nothing, wastes no paper, and doesn’t leave you with extra paper work. Additional perk? It can be pulled off with absolutely no advance planning. Can you say cancelled assembly?

Recycle them as craft project work pads.

Doing something a bit gooey with the class and want to avoid desk cleanup? Take off the front cover and use the first page available to glue on, color over the edges of a pattern pieces, paint, etc. When the project is finished, each student can tear out that top page and use it as a drying space by the window for their work. The books can then be stacked on a shelf until the next time you have a messy craft project.

Use the books to familiarize the students with the community.

An extra perk of this approach is that the students will gain familiarity with the format of information recorded inside, and you’ll be able to instruct them on how to find information they might someday need. Here’s a cool link with some interactive lessons.

Alternative bulletin board backing.

Rip out the yellow pages and overlap the individual pieces to form an inexpensive covering for the backing of a bulletin board. The overlapping is what gives it the visual interest and keeps it looking interesting instead of cheesy. The pale yellow is a decent backdrop for blue construction paper-backed art projects. I’ve even seen a damaged dumpy apartment wall done in this stuff once and I have to tell you, it didn’t look half bad. The newsprint makes the backdrop a bit more serious, which is nice for a classroom with older students.

Paper mache.

Have the students tear the white pages into small pieces and bag them. When everyone has enough torn paper, commence with your art project of choice.

Got another creative idea for phone books? We’d love to hear it. Sound off below!

Flickr Photo Credit: How Can I Recycle This?

Did open house creep up on you again this year? Your secret is safe with me. Read on for some strategies to help you pull off a successful evening on the fly.

This subject is somewhat dear to me, because no matter how hard I seemed to try, parent night arrived every year leaving me feeling, once again, less prepared than I wanted. Especially during the early years of my teaching career. And the advice I got from all those workaholic would-be mentors with good intentions? Please. If you are new to the teaching arena, do yourself a favor. Skip the advice of the well meaning individual encouraging you to stay late cutting out apple coasters for dozens of people, and get a life.

Here are some simple strategies to pull off a low stress open house night with the parents. Bonus? None of them will break the bank or leave you feeling off kilter in the classroom.

Art Work.

Lots of it. You’ve got from the very start of the school year to pull off one or two fabulous projects. Back them with larger colored construction paper for a makeshift art mat and post neatly in rows and columns for a dramatic statement. Parents dig it.

Wall of Fame.

If you caught my initial post on Year Long Bulletin Board Ideas, you’ll remember the Wall of Fame idea. Use it. If you start on day one by pulling out an excellent piece of completed work from a particular student, this sets the tone for all of them to want a spot on the board. Keep a basic checklist in your grade or plan book so you will be sure to pull one piece for each student prior to open house. (Hint: if you do this every quarter you will also be prepared for each parent-teacher conference session and any unexpected drop-by.) You don’t have to have all the student samples from the same assignment. In fact, it’s better if you don’t. It’ll give the board more diversity and more accurately represent an overall picture of the type of work produced in your classroom. Starting off with this on day one sets a tone for quality work, and ensures that you are ready to roll on open house night.

Coffee.

Both you and the parents will need it. Make it a big pot.

Journal Entries to Parents.

Assign a note to the folks in each student journal as the morning language activity. There will be plenty of time to correct errors, or you could even make the editing process part of that night’s activity. Leave the journals open to that page centered on a neatly organized desk with a sharpened pencil. Each student’s parent can write a note back to them.

Digital Pictures.

If you have a camera, or the school will provide you with one, start snapping pictures from the first day of school. Put them all into one folder on the class computer and have a slideshow running as a conversation piece during the open house session. Determined to go the extra mile? Incorporate them into a class blog and include a post for that night where parents can comment in real time on the blog page itself and even have the capacity to update with images from the event.

Snazz Up the Sign-in Sheet.

Chances are, the administration will want you to record this data anyway. Bring in the sheep by promising a door prize. Nothing fancy, but hopefully something the students will get excited enough about to pressure . . . ahem . . . I mean, encourage their folks to show up for. Like say, a small stack of free homework pass certificates to use throughout the year? A simple three column chart will suffice. In the first column, a list of student names. In the second column will be a place for the parents to sign their name. In the third, a slot to record their ticket number. (Snag a roll of them from the lunch lady or have the PTA pick up a roll for you.) Then, rip the parent’s ticket in half, giving one to them and putting one in an empty jar. Require them to be present to win and draw the ticket at the end of the evening.

Get the Students Involved.

They are usually more than willing to help you get cleaned up at the end of the day and set up for the event. Have a clean desk contest if you really need to “amp up” the encouragement factor.

Have a Simple Activity or Demo.

Got a telescope and know how to use it? You could be good to go if there’s an event right outside your classroom window or exit door. Or, try simulating a crater by having a tall sided box of flour and a giant marble. Another idea would be a simple open microphone night using a karaoke box and microphone. Let the students read poems they have written or tell a joke. The trick is to not plan anything that requires the necessary arrival of a certain group of students or a particular number.

Work in the Pizza Hut Book It Program.

I love this program. And believe it or not, it’s been available in more than one overseas school location. Pizza Hut gives you a stack of tickets allowing each student