About Squarehead Teachers

Well, I’m a travel loving, cookie eating, bright color obsessed teacher who just can’t get enough of blogging or Photoshop. I’ve taught various grades from Kindergarten to Undergraduate courses in both in the United States and in China, teaching everything from dance and PE to English and math. I come from a family of educators, and believe that all teachers (public, private, charter and home school) are grossly under appreciated and deserve a little extra help. I started my Squarehead Teachers blog in August 2012 with the hope that I can be that extra little help that makes teachers feel a little more loved!

Thanksgiving Number Match

Posted on November 18, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

Thanksgiving number matching STICKER Still working on matching numerals with word form numbers? Check out this simple page for kindergarten or first grade. Students write the numerals in the pie with the matching word form number. Enjoy!

Click here to download: Thanksgiving Pie Number Matching – younger grades

Tangrams Turkey (Pattern Blocks)

Posted on November 14, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

I was TOTALLY inspired by this picture:

(photo source)

Yes, it’s an adorable paper Thanksgiving craft. But it could be SO MUCH MORE! Imagine doing this with your 5th or 6th graders. You first tell them to make a turkey, using any shapes.

Then after they’re done putting the shapes together (and BEFORE they glue on the turkey’s body), they have to figure out all the math characteristics of their project. Including:

number of triangles, rectangles, squares, trapezoids, etc.
Number of vertices, edges, etc.
acute, obtuse and right angles
And the list goes on!

Anyway, I thought this would be a cool way to merge math and art. Know of any other great Thanksgiving crafts or activities for kids? Let me know!

Minimize Distractions and Visual Clutter in Your Classroom

Posted on November 12, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

Piles and clutter drive me crazy (in my classroom and my home)! And it’s not just physical clutter that I can’t stand. Visual clutter also bugs me. Here’s a super easy trick to hide stuff and minimize the visual clutter in your classroom.

Use panel curtains and a tension rod to hide sections of a bookcase and other areas. But more important than addressing my pet peeve, these curtains minimize the distractions in your classroom. If every inch of your classroom has multiple colors, shapes and patterns in view, your students will have a harder time concentrating on what you’re saying and showing them. I recommend choosing a solid color or light pattern for your fabric. It doesn’t have to be boring white, but it shouldn’t be super eye-catchy. While it’s pretty trendy right now to pick a bright color scheme and use it in every pattern possible all over your room, think about what it does to your students who already have a harder time focusing. Kids only have so much focusing power in them, so help the focus on what’s really important (which probably isn’t your cute color scheme). 🙂

How have you minimized the visual clutter in your classroom? Send me a picture (squareheadteachers at gmail dot com) and I’ll post it here to share with other teachers. Thank you!

Reading Groups Named After Pets

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

I’ve heard all kinds of debate about whether to name leveled groups using colors, animals, etc. One year, my guided reading groups were all animals, which I didn’t think would be a problem. But I had a fellow teacher criticize my naming of groups because “6th graders are too old for animal groups.”

A friend showed me this idea that I really like. The reading groups were named after pets that the teacher had owned over the years. One of the pets was a dog named coco. The group wasn’t called “the Cocos”, but were called “Coco’s Team” or “Team Coco” so that the students were team members rather than animals. (Since the theme was pets, the teacher also chose a weekly “Top Dog Reader” to spotlight good work or improvement.)

I thought this would be a clever way to help your students get to know you while helping with the group naming situation. I’m definitely trying this in the future.

Have a great idea? Send it to me (squareheadteachers at gmail dot com) and I’ll post it so other teachers can benefit. Thanks!

Veteran’s Day Craft for kids

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

I saw this picture on Pinterest (follow me!) and I knew I had to share it! It’s a paper soldier in a camo uniform. You can make the camo part by sponge painting with brown and green paint, or by gluing brown and green squares of tissue paper to the outfit. Such a cute Veteran’s Day craft for kids! Heart!

(Source)

Be sure to check out my FREE Veteran’s Day worksheet (history and meaning of Veteran’s Day) and some free Veteran’s Day coloring pages for kids!

A HUGE thank you to all the servicemen and women who have sacrificed for America!

If Teachers Were Treated Like Football Players

Posted on November 5, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

Maybe I’m biased, but I think teachers should be revered like football players. This video proves it. Check out this quick video for yourself:

If Teachers Were Treated Like Football Players

Thanksgiving Word Sort

Posted on November 3, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Here’s another freebie for you (since I’m all about free!). This parts of speech worksheet can be modified for upper grades, by designating one of the “noun” sail sections as a proper noun section. That way, older kids have four categories rather than the standard three. Enjoy!

Click here for the free PDF: Thanksgiving Parts of Speech Sort

Thanksgiving Parts of Speech Sort STICKER

Thanksgiving Game Board

Posted on November 2, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

More game boards! I’ve decided you can’t ever have too many blank game boards in your classroom to use with review games (click here to read about some of my favorites). This one’s Thanksgiving themed, and would be perfect to use with math facts, spelling words, etc. They’re actually really simple to use: for example, hand 2 kids a game board (it’s best if you laminate them first) and a die. Kids can roll the die and earn that many spaces if they get a math fact right (just hand them a stack of flash cards) or if they correctly spell a word on their weekly spelling list. Enjoy!