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A Teaching Blog

Best Books for Teachers to Read

Summer is a great time to rest, relax, recharge, and read! Our awesome co-teachers over in our email community shared some great titles with us. We've compiled a list of the best books for teachers to read as part of their summer reading and throughout the year. Best Books for Teachers to Read Reading some inspirational teacher books can help motivate and reignite your passion. Here are few ... Read More about Best Books for Teachers to Read

Engaging ELA Early Finisher Activities for Upper Elementary

As teachers, we understand the importance of keeping our students engaged and enriched, even when they complete their tasks ahead of schedule. This is one of the reasons why having a variety of engaging early finisher activities is important. What are Early Finisher Activities? Early finisher activities are supplemental tasks made available to students who complete their assigned work ahead of ... Read More about Engaging ELA Early Finisher Activities for Upper Elementary

End of Year Memory Book Ideas for Upper Elementary

As the school year comes to a close, it is the perfect time to have your students create an end of year memory book. It makes such a beautiful keepsake for the future and keeps students busy on a meaningful activity while you work on all those end of the year tasks. End of Year Memory Book Ideas End of the year memory books can be as small or as big as you'd like. You can make a standard one for ... Read More about End of Year Memory Book Ideas for Upper Elementary

Literacy Centers in Upper Elementary: Setting the Stage for Success

Literacy centers in upper elementary have many benefits, however it can be very overwhelming to think about planning them. Setting the stage for successful reading centers in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade can be much less intimidating with certain structures in place. Let me show you how I set up centers in my ELA classroom. Benefits of Literacy Centers Let's take a quick moment to go over a couple of ... Read More about Literacy Centers in Upper Elementary: Setting the Stage for Success

4th & 5th Grade Summer Packet Ideas to Prevent Summer Slide

As the summer creeps up, a sense of relief washes over teachers, students, and parents. At the same time, it's a daunting thought to think of students having 2 1/2 months without any academic instruction. Incorporating a summer packet or reading challenges can help avoid the summer slide everyone dreads when school rolls around in August. What is the Summer Slide? The summer slide refers to ... Read More about 4th & 5th Grade Summer Packet Ideas to Prevent Summer Slide

Last Week of School Activities

As the end of the year approaches, it's important not only to celebrate the work and achievement of students, but to create fun lasting memories. I asked the teachers in our co-teaching community what their favorite end of the year celebration ideas were. Here are some fun last week of school activities that can help make the end of the year memorable for everyone.  1. Create a Memory ... Read More about Last Week of School Activities