Teaching Geometry Geometry is often one of the trickiest concepts for teachers to teach—and so often our textbooks and other resources either present things too quickly or in a way that simply isn’t engaging enough or with enough practice opportunities. Geometry actually crosses content areas—both measurement and geometry! I have had SO many teachers ask me for support in teaching geometry, ... Read the Post
Focused Instruction: Teaching Effective Writing Minilessons
Our world of teaching has changed over the last few years--from virtually teaching to the gap in instruction to seeing more and more issues with focus and behavior. It's time to look at the remaining curriculum, streamline it, and figure out how to get the most "bang" for the delivery method with truly focused instruction. One thing that is becoming clear to me is that short and sweet ... Read the Post
Making Task Cards More Interactive
Today's my day to blog over at Upper Elementary Snapshots! Just click the image above to take you to today's post...hope you enjoy it. ... Read the Post
Task cards for “big kid” interventions!
If you are like me, you are frequently frustrated with the options for interventions for struggling readers in the intermediate grades. No matter how low a student is, a 10 year old doesn't really want to read "Henry and Mudge" or "Billy's New Shoes"--not when their friends are reading and understanding Percy Jackson and Diary of a Wimpy Kid! That being said, we know that students need ... Read the Post
Improving our sentences…task card style!
One thing that continues to challenge me as a writing teacher is helping my students push themselves outside of their comfort zone. As my fourth graders began to write in sentences in kindergarten and first grade, they practiced writing "simple" sentences. I like ice cream. The Packers are awesome. Snakes have lots of scales. After teaching older students for 24 years, I still ... Read the Post
What does “equal” mean and other algebraic thinking ideas
Algebraic Thinking in Elementary School? YES! One thing that I have discovered over the years is that students can be very trained to "fill in the box". The more focus we put on our math series and workbooks, the more true this is. In my mind, it is our obligation as elementary math teachers to develop mathematical thinking in our classrooms--and there are so many ways to nurture ... Read the Post