classroom procedures and routines

Effective classroom management skills are the key to success in the elementary classroom. Developing a classroom management plan, fine tuning your classroom management strategies and strengthening your classroom management techniques will make you a more productive, efficient teacher. This will increase student learning, decrease your stress level and make your

If you are a teacher looking for meaningful and purposeful morning work for elementary students, then you’ve found the right place! Like many aspects of my quest for mastering classroom management, “morning work” was a process of trial and error. When I think back, I feel embarrassed that it took

Before I share some teacher organization tips for managing student assignments in your classroom, I would like you to pause and think about this question: In which of the two classrooms described below would you rather be the teacher? Classroom A has 3 kids thrusting papers in your face, 2

If you are looking to learn how to plan a field trip, then you found the right place! Field trips can be so stressful, but they don’t have to be. My first ever field trip was an absolute disaster! It began with me making over 20 peanut butter and jelly

Your students work at different paces. They work on differentiated assignments. They are pulled out for various services. It can be a lot to manage! One of my favorite ways to manage student assignments is a Must Do May Do Board. It helps students stay focused and become independent with

Birthday celebrations at school can be a fun way to celebrate students and make them feel special. There are a lot of things to consider when celebrating: Cost, district birthday and food policies, displays, gifts, and more. Check out the list of classroom birthday ideas below to get inspiration for this

It’s hard enough to keep track of student work when all your students are in class, never mind when you have a student who is absent. Unfortunately, students being absent is an unavoidable occurrence.  Regardless of if the absence lasts a single afternoon for a dentist appointment or an entire week

Do you want to put an end to the students saying, “I’m done! What should I work on next?” Would you like a systematic method for planning and tracking student assignments? It is very challenging to manage long-term projects. Students work at different paces and sometimes they are absent or

Shhhh… It’s a secret. 😉 I actually take attendance on my own silently. As the students are getting settled, I go down my class list and visually verify that all of the children are accounted for and submit my attendance online. This allows me to quickly and accurately get the

Is dismissal crazy in your classroom? I know dismissal was the craziest time of day in my classroom for a long time. Transitions are always challenging, but there was so much to do in those final minutes that it was always hard to make sure everyone had what they needed and were