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The Teacher Studio

Learning, thinking, creating

Problem Solving in the Real World!

This week was my turn to blog over at Upper Elementary Snapshots, and I decided to write about a problem-solving experience I planned for my students for my birthday!  I'd love for you to check it out and see what you think. Just click RIGHT HERE or the image below to zip on over. I hope I provide some food for thought as well as some tangible ideas to try in your own classroom--and a freebie ... Read the Post

Back to School: January Activities That Keep Learning Meaningful

As we all finish up our winter breaks, it's time to face the harsh reality that not only do we need to head back to class after the new year, but we need January activities for our classroom that will engage our students.  We weren't the only ones "on vacation", but we can help our students ease back into the routines of school life. Students need to "relearn" how to focus on academic ... Read the Post

New Blog Design. 12 Days of Deals for You!

I hope you enjoy browsing my new blog design...and if you haven't signed up for my email list, I'd love to have you join to get the latest updates and special opportunities.  I'll start it off by offering you some amazing deals over the next few weeks to celebrate my new "look" and the upcoming holidays!  Just CLICK HERE to sign up!   This time of the year is challenging for ... Read the Post

Project Based Learning: How to Make It Work in Your Classroom

One question I get all the time is, "How do you work your thinker tasks into your daily instruction?".  Today I thought I'd share a little more about how I use these project-based learning experiences! First of all, if you haven't seen my "Thinker Task" collection, this video might give you a better sense of what they are and what they involve.  I hope you'll see the benefits of getting ... Read the Post

FIsh in a Tree: Using Read Alouds as Mentor Texts

For me, "Fish in a Tree" is an amazing choice for a mentor text when we do our narrative unit because we want our students to "read like writers" and "write like readers" so we really intertwine our reading and writing work.  We study narratives that we read and then take what we notice and apply those skills to our own narratives. That being said, I truly feel our read alouds should NOT be ... Read the Post

More Than a Graphic Organizer! Written responses to reading

As you know, the purpose of a graphic organizer is to help students (or adults!) make sense of information and organize it into a visible, usable fashion. Sometimes using an organizer is all we need from students—a way for them to represent the information we are asking for. Sometimes, however, we want students to organize information for other reasons…like to do a piece of writing. I wanted a way ... Read the Post