Emergency Sub Plans

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Every teacher/class needs emergency sub plans. These are for the day when you’re too sick, stressed, caught off guard to write sub plans… *gasp!* Things you must have in your emergency sub plans:

Substitute Folder Checklist
Use this checklist to prepare a notebook for substitute teachers. It will ensure that
your classroom runs as smoothly as possible in your absence.
____1. Fire Drill Procedures
____2. Evacuation Procedures
____3. Emergency Situation Procedures/Key Codes
____4. School Discipline Plan (including names of teachers the sub can contact if they need help with a student)
____5. Classroom Discipline Plan (including notes about students with unique circumstances, and something to help the teacher gauge how much to use the plan/what warrants certain rewards)
____6. Discipline Forms (referral forms, detention forms)
____7. CURRENT Seating Charts with essential student information included for all classes and students who come in your room (photos if possible)
____8. Emergency Procedures
____9. Daily Schedule (with duty location, parent helpers who come in weekly, special classes, etc.)
____10. Bell Schedule
____11. List of contact people (helpful students, staff members)
____12. Lesson Plans for the week–or–suggested activities to reinforce
concepts and/or skills

Numbers 9 and 12 are the zingers in my opinion. How do you keep updated plans in your sub folder and how can you write a schedule when every day is so different!?

Here are some tips:

A. Use old math assessments (from the previous units or grade). Chances are most kids will have seen them before. When you finish a math unit, stick a class set of the unit test in the folder. Even if you never have to use it when a sub comes, you can use the copies at the end of the year to review for testing.

B. Writing activities. Choose a fun writing activity (that includes an example and good instructions). Leave directions for how to publish the final draft (does it get glued on colored paper? Does it need to be accompanied by a picture?)

C. Just do it. Some teachers put off gathering sub plans and then they regret it. Just do it at the beginning of the year, and then set yourself a reminder (in your planner, Google calendar, whatever) to check it every month. It’s always better to prepare than to repair.

D. Put the sub plans in an obvious place and let your team teacher know where they are also. I put mine in a neon pink binder with huge letters labeling it “Emergency Sub Plans.”

E. Extra milers will prepare plans for each day of the week. Many schools have weekly schedules, where days of the week vary because of fine arts classes, computer lab times or library schedules. Save yourself some time and do it all at the beginning of the year. Again, anything you don’t use during the year can be used for end-of the year review and activities.

Also make sure that your sub plans satisfy the requirements of your school and/or district. Good luck!

Multiplication Dice Game: Landscape

Posted on April 1, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Here’s an easy way to practice the most basic multiplication facts (totals to 6). Players roll the die, and color in a section of the picture that contains the equivalent. For example, if you roll 4, color in “2×2” or “4×1” or “1×4.” Enjoy!

Click here for more free math stuff!

Fancy Turtle! (Odd/Evens Dice Game)

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

My friend’s class is struggling with odds and evens. So I made her this game and I thought I’d share it. It’s really simple: Roll a die and if it’s odd, color in a section of the turtle with a heart. If it’s even, color in a section with a star. When the kids finish the game, the turtle has shapes and different colors on it, making it a “fancy” turtle.

I also made a version where players roll 2 dice and add to see if the sum is even or odd. While I didn’t make a page for multiplication, it would be easy to instruct your kids to multiply the numbers on the two dice and then determine odd or even…

Fancy Turtle- odd even sums- two dice

Click here for more free math stuff!

Student of the Week Ideas

Posted on March 30, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Here are some clever student of the week boards I’ve seen recently:

Submit your ideas or photos squareheadteachers at gmail dot com.

Tracking Student Goals

Posted on March 29, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

One huge part of motivating students to accomplish a goal is to help them track their progress. Here are some ways I’ve seen elementary school teachers track student progress. Submit your photos or ideas to squareheadteachers at gmail dot com.

Tracking reading goals

Tracking reading goals

Tracking multiplication and division timed tests

Tracking reading goals

Tracking math facts

Cute Bunny Box (printable template)

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Here’s a fun paper box for Easter. You can fill it with Easter candy, grass/jelly beans, or anything else fun. My friend sent this to me and said her 2nd graders just LOVE it. Thanks!

small Easter bunny box to color and cut

Eggbert the Easter Egg

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Before my siblings and I were born, my mom taught elementary school. So all growing up, we did all the crafts, songs, games, etc. that elementary school teachers do with their classes. Here’s one of the Easter songs from my childhood: Eggbert the Easter Egg.

Click here for a video with the song. Click here to hear the song and read the lyrics.

Here’s an activity that goes with the song (or as a generic Easter craft):

Eggbert the Easter egg cut out center3 copy

Sorry, the sample didn’t scan well!

Eggbert the Easter egg cut out center2 copy

Depending on what you’re doing with this pattern, choose different egg parts.

Eggbert the Easter egg cut out center1 copy

Directions

Submitted by a fellow teacher. Thank you!

April Fool’s Day Pranks For Teachers

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Squarehead Teachers

Sometimes it’s hard to figure out what kinds of jokes to play on your students on April Fool’s Day. As always, make sure to use your best judgement when playing pranks. And make sure your pranks don’t conflict with school/district policies. Here are some suggestions I’ve gathered:

1. Switch classrooms for the day. When kids come in the door, it’s not their regular teacher they’ll see.

2. Kids in elementary schools have their names written on their tables/desks. Switch everybody’s last names around so they have their first name but some other kid’s last name.

3. A funny prank for little kids is to begin your lesson of the day with your mouth moving but no sound coming out. This REALLY freaks kids out.

4. April Fool’s day is near Easter and many classrooms dye eggs. Glue the eggs into the egg cartons and when kids try to pull them out…they won’t be able to. If you don’t hard boil the eggs, it’s even funnier.

5. When the first kid of the day calls out your name, tell the class, “that’s not my name children”. Make up a name for yourself and totally pretend like that’s been your name the entire year.

6. Glue a few pencils to the floor under your kid’s desks and then demand that they clean up their mess!

7. Re-arrange every kid’s desk or table in the room.

8. Announce that the fabulous field trip planned for today was cancelled because nobody brought in their permission slips on time.

9. Ask everyone to turn in their homework that was due TODAY and is worth 90% of their grade for this 9 weeks.

10. Take your best and brightest student aside and tell them they’re in danger of failing their grade for the year.

11. Tell your class that lunch is cancelled because the cafeteria ran out of food but everyone else at the school got to eat.

12. Send several kids to the principals office for no reason. (Maybe warn the principal ahead of time.)

13. Tell your students that, because it’s a leap year, they have to stay in class 2 hours longer every day this month.

14. Assign the kids new seats and then re-assign again several times during the day.

15. Wear a Halloween costume and tell all the children they won’t get any candy this year because they didn’t dress up.

16. Call out ‘sick’ on Friday or Monday – Think your students want a longer weekend or to not have class on Monday? Have a fellow teacher come in, tell them you’re out sick but that you didn’t have time to find a substitute. Then have that teacher say something like ‘we trust you to be on your own for the rest of the day’ and then have them exit. See what happens. I wonder how long you can last watching them squirm and figure out what to do?

17. Tell your students you’re all going on a field trip to someplace fun at the end of the day – When it gets to be almost the end of the day, tell them that the ‘fun’ place is actually their homes! Zing!

18. Create an entirely new grading system – Tired of the ol’ A, B, and Cs (okay and sometimes Ds and Fs)? Then make up a completely arbitrary and confusing new grading system! For example, students who do well can get a ‘Frog’ and students who don’t do as well can get ‘Blue’ and others can be graded with a gold star. Something that totally confounds the human mind would be the best route to go here.

19. Tell your students the entire day’s class will be conducted via Twitter – Are you a tweacher? Why not just talk about teaching on Twitter and actually do all your teaching on the addictive social media tool? You can instruct students to follow a particular hashtag and then just start typing on your mobile phone in the front of class. Watch ‘em scramble and protest! (Not the best prank if there are not enough computers or other devices around, obviously.)

20. In the spirit of flipped classrooms, have one student chosen at random teach for the entire day – Or at least tell them that’s what they’re going to do. They obviously won’t have to but see how long you can go before the students runs out of things to say.

Click here for more April Fool’s Day ideas. (Sources: here and here.)

I’m dying to hear about your April Fool’s Day pranks! Please comment below!