The Blog
Teaching Fractions: How to Make Math Meaningful
Teaching fractions in upper elementary can be overwhelming because there are SO MANY concepts to cover. Simplifying fractions, equivalent fractions, fractions on a number line, comparing fractions, improper fractions and mixed numbers, converting fractions to decimals, adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing…….
Thoughtful Tips for How To Select Novels in Upper Elementary
I love reading chapter books with my class and digging deep into comprehension through novel study. Teachers often ask me for book suggestions, so I wrote this recent post with my favorite upper elementary books. I wanted to take that…
Creative Distance Learning Valentine Activities
With so many students in digital or hybrid models, teachers are once again showing off their flexibility and creativity by creating unique classroom celebrations. There was a great brainstorming thread In our FREE Inspired in Upper Elementary Facebook group, full…
The Complete Guide to Teaching Prefixes and Suffixes
Once students reach upper elementary, they have a lot of decoding strategies in their reading toolbox. At this point, many students have mastered decoding and have many tools in their decoding toolbox. As texts become more complex, introducing new vocabulary…
Must-Read Novels and Engaging Reading Response Activities for Any Book
I am a big believer in having kids respond to reading with thoughtful, defensible, evidence-based responses. Finding high-interest novels that my students will enjoy for independent reading, small groups, and read alouds is an important piece of that puzzle. Here’s a…
The Best Digital Learning Resources to Enhance Your Instruction
With so many schools one-to-one (even before distance learning!), technology has evolved quickly to offer teachers, students, and families a lot of educational options. The variety of educational apps, websites, and resources can become overwhelming! Here’s a roundup of my…
Thanksgiving Lesson Plans for Big Kids
If you’re looking for Thanksgiving lesson plans for math and literacy, I have some great ideas to share with you today! The week before Thanksgiving is such a fun time to learn more about your students, their families, and their…
Tips for Teaching Multiplication Facts
Multiplication Facts. They are the backbone of so many skills beyond third grade, and yet, students continue to struggle with them well into 4th and 5th grade. We teach students ways to show multiplication, we show them all the strategies,…
Teaching the Presidential Election
I have a bit of a confession. During the 2016 election, I was teaching 4th grade. Even though government was one of our standards that year, I avoided teaching the presidential election at all costs. I was worried. Worried about…
FREE Place Value Activity!
Most schools are in session now (whether virtually or in-person), and I know that year after year, the first thing that most teachers teach in math is place value! Whether or not your curriculum and standards are full of place…
My Three Must-Dos for Setting High Expectations in the Classroom
As most schools head back to in-person learning soon, I want to share several essentials for how I start my school year. We all know how very important it is to build strong relationships, routines, and procedures, which in turn…
Literacy | Anchor Charts | Back to School | Literacy Anchor Charts | Reading Skills | Seasonal | Using Pictures to Teach
Teaching the Difference Between Literal and Inferential Observations
Teaching students the difference between literal and inferential thinking is one of my must-do lessons at the beginning of every single school year. No matter which elementary grade I’m teaching. I have talked about this so many times. So, I…
