The Blog
Addition and Subtraction Strategies for Upper Elementary
By the time students reach upper elementary, they often already have a lot of addition and subtraction experience. That doesn’t mean we can skip over this important skill, though! After a thorough review of place value skills, we always spend…
Beyond Story Elements: Encouraging your students to think critically about elements of the text
Teaching and analyzing story elements is a critical part of developing students’ comprehension skills. You probably talk about the setting, the characters, the problem and solution, and eventually the theme. I’ve talked before about the importance of teaching students to…
Analyzing Text Features in Upper Elementary
Captions, diagrams, italics, OH MY! I can’t wait to chat with you all about teaching text features to your students. The standards that hit text features call for students to know and use various text features (e.g., captions, bold print,…
Must-Have Math Manipulatives For Upper Elementary
Teachers loooooove school supples, am I right?? I find that also extends to hands-on learning tools, which is why I’m sharing some of my favorite math manipulatives that are great for upper elementary students. Hands-on learning isn’t just for younger…
How I Organize My Literacy Block
I LOVE hearing from other teachers, and one of the most frequently asked questions I get is, “How do you set up your math or literacy block?” A couple of months ago, I wrote all about how I set up…
Teaching Domain Specific Vocabulary
Today we’re chatting about the importance of explicitly teaching domain specific vocabulary. This standard calls for students to be able to determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a grade-level text, and whether you follow…
Multiplication Fact Practice: Engaging Ways to Boost This Key Math Skill
Learning multiplication facts is an important part of elementary math. Knowing math facts fluently will help students tackle other math skills, as well as benefit them throughout their life. Unfortunately learning math facts can also be super boring because rote…
Low Prep Resources: Simple solutions that save time all year!
I know many of you head back to school in August, so you may or may not be starting to think about prepping for the year. I know for me, it’s always right around this time that I start really…
How to Play Scoot: Getting Started With Task Cards
Have you played Scoot with your students? It’s one of my most-recommended ways to incorporate task cards into your classroom, so one of the most common questions I get is, “How do you play Scoot?” I’ve been playing Scoot in…
Math Workshop Ideas for Upper Elementary
Whether you have 45 minutes or 90 minutes for your block math, how you set it up can make or break the progress you’re able to make with your students. I’ve had such varying setups for math, but for FIVE…
School-Wide Events: Fun and Educational Ideas to Build School Spirit
One of the most popular committees at our school is the school-wide events team, which plans activities that are fun for students, families, staff, and even the larger community. These events are used as incentives, academic boosters, fundraisers, etc. I…
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Incorporating Picture Books In Your Upper Elementary Classroom
I love incorporating picture books in the upper elementary classroom as much as possible. There’s often a misconception that picture books are only for younger students, but they’re a great way to reinforce concepts for upper elementary students too. I…
