Blog - Your Thrifty Co-Teacher

Make Back to School Preparation Part of Your End of the Year Activities

As the school year comes to an end, there is always so much to do. There are end of the year celebrations to plan, grades to input, awards to write out, and so much more. It can be so tempting to throw everything in a closet and deal with it later. Having taught for over 20 years now, I came to realize that including back to school preparation as part of your end of the year activities was a wise ... Read More about Make Back to School Preparation Part of Your End of the Year Activities

Classroom Morning Routine

Greeting students, taking attendance, and listening to the morning announcements are just some of our morning responsibilities. Having a predictable classroom morning routine can really help the mornings start off smoothly. Having worked in a classroom for over 20 years now, I found a system that has proven to work well for my students and for me. 1. Clear Expectations Displayed The most ... Read More about Classroom Morning Routine

First Week of School Activities

Back to School season is usually one filled with much excitement and anticipation. It's the perfect time to begin to build classroom community and set expectations. In order to help us find some inspiration, I asked the teachers in our co-teaching community what their favorite first week of school activities were. Here are some of the ideas we came up with gathered into categories to make choosing ... Read More about First Week of School Activities

Classroom Transformation Ideas for Upper Grades

Classroom transformations are a great way to add instant student engagement during rigorous content or test prep. Planning a classroom transformation can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish. Here are a few classroom transformation ideas for upper elementary classrooms. 1. Beach Themed Book Bites ✳️ Supports Standards: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.3.4, RF.4.4 & RF.5.4 A beach themed book ... Read More about Classroom Transformation Ideas for Upper Grades

Fun Test Review Games for ELA Classrooms

When someone mentions test prep season, most people cringe. However in my classroom, test prep has become one of our favorite times of the year. Not because we have a state test looming over our head, that part seems unfair, but because we get to show what we know in fun ways. Over the last few years, I have gathered and created a vast collection of fun test review games for ELA. 1. Test ... Read More about Fun Test Review Games for ELA Classrooms

Golf Theme Classroom Transformation

Classroom transformations have been such a hit in my classroom for over six years. Each year, I try to add a simple yet engaging one to my bag of tricks. After some brainstorming, I had an aha moment and came up with a Golf Theme Classroom Transformation. I mean, who doesn't love a good round of mini golf and the classroom is perfect for just that! Things to remember: ✴️ You can make this ... Read More about Golf Theme Classroom Transformation