Instructional strategies and teacher tips - Tales from Outside the Classroom

Part Part Whole with Addition and Subtraction

Teaching part-part-whole relationships is critical while teaching addition and subtraction. For students to build a solid understanding of addition and subtraction, they need to understand what each one represents. While helpful when working with equations with unknowns in all areas, it’s imperative that students have a solid understanding of addition and subtraction so they’re able to apply both skills in real world scenarios. Understanding part-part-whole is a much more effective strategy to teach for problem

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2019 Calendars for the Classroom

I have been creating and posting printable calendars for the classroom over the last several years. I like these calendars because of their simple design, and notes space. They’re perfect to print to give to students to track individual needs in the classroom. They’re also perfect for printing and sending out to families. New this year, I’ve also included an editable pdf version. This allows you to customize each of the calendars digitally before printing. Just

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How to create and use custom avatars on Class Dojo

Self-Portrait Custom Class Dojo Avatars

I have been using Class Dojo for six years now in my first through third grade classes. I’ve used it in a variety of ways, and have changed the way I use the points as rewards to best meet my students’ needs. I love that I’m able to build student behavior plans right within Class Dojo and can individualize plans for students all within the same system. It has saved me so much time and

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How To Land your Ideal Teaching Position: Teacher Interview & Resume Tips

Looking and interviewing for a teaching position, especially your first one or a new one after a long time in your current one, is stressful and intimidating. You want to be confident, but not too confident where you give off the vibe that you are set in your current methods. You want to show your knowledge and skill set, but also are nervous and probably aren’t speaking as precisely and eloquently as you’d like. You

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Time Saving Teacher Tips

As teachers, we often feel like we don’t have enough time. Between administrative tasks, compiling and analyzing data, parent communication, lesson planning, and grading, it can quickly become overwhelming. I spend entirely too much time talking with peers, and too little time being productive, and so I’m always feeling like I need to catch up. These time-saving teacher tips help me keep my sanity. I’ve picked up lots of little tricks along the way: some

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