I love google forms! I have done tons of assessments using forms, gathered feedback, used it to create groups based on student choices, and more. It's a fantastic platform that can fill many needs.
12 Ways to Use Google Forms
7 Ways to Use Breakout Rooms
If you're like me, you're teaching online, and breakout rooms are one of the few things that make my online classroom feel real and interactive. Here are 7 ways I'm using this tool and 9 recommendations for gradual release.
20 Morning Meeting Ideas For Staying At Your Desk
I love games and activities in morning meeting! While I know that carpet time may be gone as we re-enter classrooms, there are so many possibilities for maintaining connection and community even with physical distance.
Below are songs/chants and activities that I think would work well while staying at a desk space. These could make for great energizers or brain breaks as well. While many of these require standing up and sitting down, they should be able to stay in their area.
5 Structures for Online Morning Meetings
If you teach elementary, you're likely familiar with the idea of a morning meeting or class meeting. This is typically a time for community building and connection. When we had to switch to online learning in Spring 2020, I knew I wanted to keep elements of morning meeting. Here are 5 ideas (picture prompts, collaborative google slides, partner games, whole class games, and Flipgrid) for building connections online.
5 Reasons I use Digital Readers’ Notebooks
I love having kids reflect in journals on paper and take notes in notebooks; however, I've enjoyed using Google Slides as digital reader's notebooks. Read here to get a set of slides you can adapt and use for free.
10 Strategies for Avoiding Hefty Behavior Paperwork
No matter how great you are at classroom management, there will be times when you want to create individual behavior plans and when it’s necessary to the health of your classroom. Still, it should a later step in the classroom management process because it requires so much work. If you can, I encourage you to wait on an individual behavior plan until you have tried some of these ideas.
6 Mind Games for Middle Schoolers
I love Morning Meetings with my sixth graders. Our typical Morning Meetings follow the structure from Responsive Classroom, but there are some days that we spend a lot longer on activities than others. Sprinkled throughout the year, I love to teach my students mind games. These mind games are ones that can only be done... Continue Reading →
11+ Free Math Resources for In Person or Online
Number Sense Routines have become my passion. Over the past couple of years, I've been exposed to more and more websites with so many free resources. Now, I am obsessed! There is so much variety. I love how these routines and puzzles teach students so many skills. Most of these could be used in an online environment, so no matter how you're teaching this year, these will work for you!
17 Active Games for Social Distancing
As a camp counselor, lover of morning meeting games, and lover of improv games like from the TV show "Whose line is it anyway?" I've curated several fun but structured games to use with students that can be done with social distancing and zero materials other than people and imagination. Have fun!
5+ Nonfiction Podcasts for the Elementary Classroom
Podcasts will be an ideal resource for teaching this year. Whether you're teaching in person with distance and looking for varied independent work or online and have run out of audiobook links, podcasts could make for great independent learning.
Science Labs for Live/Synchronous Online Class
Want to view how I did science labs for online/distance learning? I heard from many parents and kids how much they loved having Science this spring. I hope this gives you some ideas of what you could model at home or record and post for students asynchronously.
10 Ways to Use Individual Whiteboards
One of the first things I wanted kids to have at home while teaching virtually was whiteboards, so I was psyched when my administration planned to make sure every kid got one in their "to go" kit to take home. I love using them in class, and kids love working with them. While whiteboards can of course be used as a replacement for paper, here are 10 specific ways to utilize them.
