Teacher Appreciation Door

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

I like how this door includes a picture of each kid dancing, since dance is the theme of the door. That could make for a really cute bulletin board also. Choose a verb and take a picture of each kid doing the verb. Use the photos as the decoration on your bulletin board.

This also reminds me of how important it is for teachers and their students to show gratitude to others. I used to allow my kids to make thank-you cards for staff and teachers as fast-finisher activities sometimes. It’s so important to teach upcoming generations about gratitude. Hopefully we are each doing our part to show thanks ourselves and teaching younger people to be thankful.

Super Hero Classroom Theme Ideas

Posted on May 6, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

Another friend of mine just did this door for teacher appreciation week. I have creative and crafty friends, I know. 🙂 This made me think of how cool it would be to have a super hero theme or bulletin board in your classroom. You could use phrases like “super heroes in training” or “It’s going to be a super year!” or “It’s been a super year!” How awesome would it be to have a bulletin board for open house with pictures of students in masks and capes with the words “Welcome to our super class!” !?!? Anyway, you get the idea…

Check out more great super hero themed ideas on The Bow Tie Teacher!

Effective Bulletin Boards for Your Classroom

Posted on January 19, 2014 by Squarehead Teachers

I saw this idea in an upper grade classroom and thought it was pretty cool. It’s a bulletin board about the things a good reader does: C R A F T

Comprehension: I understand what I read
Response to Text: I respond with thought and detail
Accuracy: I can read a variety of words
Fluency: I can read with accuracy and expression
Text Features: I understand and utilize text features

The teacher focuses on a reading skill and makes anchor charts that go with it. The anchor chart goes on the bulletin board to be referred to later.

This poster is an example of how students should do their math work. The poster shows how students should do their math work: specific heading, numbered problems, write problems left to right in rows rather than columns and the answers are circled. It’s a great way to help students remember what they need before turning in a paper. In addition, it’s a great reminder of how to do some basic math algorithms (in case your students forget).

Full Throttle to the Finish (End-of-the-Year Bulletin Board)

Posted on June 20, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Full Throttle to the Finish Bulletin Board Printable It’s hard to keep kids motivates at the end of the year. Sometimes it’s good to have an activity that will give everyone a quick break. Here’s a bulletin board idea that will do just that. Click here to see my Back To school Bus and Just Keep Truckin’ posts (similar bulletin board ideas). First, have the students make their car (directions on the printable itself and also below).

Click here for the free printable PDF: Full Throttle Bulletin Board

Decorate your car according to these directions:

Draw yourself in the window.
Write your name and favorite number on the door.
1. In the bottom half of the car’s body, draw a picture of something you’ve accomplished this year.
If you are a boy, draw stripes in the wheels. If you are a girl, draw dots in the wheels. Use your favorite color.
Color rest of the car using your favorite color.

Once all the students finish, have each student present their car to the rest of the class. If your class is large, limit each student to 1 minute to share or allow students to only share their car with those near them. Then put each car up on a bulletin board and call it something clever (“Full Throttle to the Finish”, “Travelling Down the Road to Success”, or something…).

Just Keep Truckin’ (Mid-Year Bulletin Board)

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Just Keep Truckin' Bulletin Board Printable Students always like telling someone about themselves. Here’s a bulletin board idea that will do just that. Click here to see my Back To school Bus Bulletin Board (similar idea). First, have the students make their truck (directions on the printable itself and below).

Click here for the free printable PDF: Just Keep Truckin’ Bulletin Board

Decorate your truck according to these directions:

Draw yourself in the window.
Write your name on the door.
Draw each of the following things in the back section of the truck:
1. Your favorite outside activity
2. Your dream birthday present
3. Something you’re good at
4. Your favorite part about school
If you have 2 or more siblings, draw stripes in the wheels. If you have 1 sibling or less, draw dots in the wheels. Use your favorite color.
Color rest of the truck using your favorite color.

Once all the students finish, have each student present their truck to the rest of the class. If your class is large, limit each student to 1 minute to share or allow students to only share their truck with those near them. Then put each truck up on a bulletin board and call it something clever (“Just Keep Truckin’!”, “Travelling Down the Road to Success”, or something…).

Back to School Bus Bulletin Board

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Back to School Bus- 1 It’s always helpful to get to know your students at the beginning of the year. Here’s one bulletin board idea that will help each student express themselves and be a part of the classroom. First, have the students make their bus (using the directions in this post and printed on the page below the bus).

Click here for the free printable: Back To School Bus Bulletin Board

Decorate your bus according to these directions:

Draw each member of your family inside the bus. Make sure to draw yourself in the first window. You may need to put more than one family member in a window if your family is large. Use colors to decorate the people.
Write your name inside the stripe in the middle of the bus.
Draw each of the following things in the bottom section of the bus:
1. Your favorite food
2. Your favorite school subject
3. Your favorite thing to do outside of school
4. What you want to be when you grow up
If you prefer ice cream instead of cake, draw stripes in the wheels. If you prefer cake instead of ice cream, draw dots in the wheels. Use your favorite color.
Color in the top section of the bus (above the stripe and around the windows) using your favorite color.

Once all the students finish, have each student present their bus to the rest of the class. If your class is large, limit each student to 1 minute to share or allow students to only share their bus with those near them. Then put each bus up on a bulletin board and call it something clever (“Mrs. Smith’s Superstar Fleet”, “Travelling Down the Road to Success”, or something…).

Easy Fluency Bulletin Board

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Here’s one way a teacher I know helps kids stay motivated with fluency. She’d got a bulletin board (not huge) with a star for every student. Each star has the student’s classroom number on it (not their name- for privacy reasons, and so she can use it the following year). All the start are laminated after she writes the number on it. About once or twice a month, she updates each kid’s star to show their current words per minute rate. She’s noticed that this really motivates some kids and it’s an easy way to show her class that fluency is important.

This idea could easily be adapted for home school kids. Laminate a shape and put it on your fridge. I guess there’s no real way to keep it anonymous, since your kids can probably figure out whose star is whose… But it’s still a good way to show that you as the parent value fluency.