I love how little kids exaggerate with numbers (like “it’s gonna take me a million years to finish this book”). That was the inspiration for this little jump rope cartoon. Have another free grammar practice worksheet (since you can never have too many)!
Utah State University publishes a super cool teacher resource through a program called Core Academy. Every summer, teachers can sign up to attend a training for activities specifically tied to the core. It’s pretty rad. So every year, there are new materials published from the summer training course!
I especially love the maps unit for 2nd grade (section 4-3 in this packet).
*Double check the copyrights before you go crazy copying stuff…
No, teachers don’t want everything with an apple on it. Yes, teachers love gift cards. No you don’t HAVE to get them anything for Teacher Appreciation Week, but yes they love when you do.
But what to get them? I’ve scoured the internet to find the best ideas (on some pretty cute blogs) and here are some of my favorite ideas (click on the photo to see the complete post):
But what if you’re low on funding? Here are some ideas:
It doesn’t matter what you do to show your appreciation, as long as you show it! And not just during Teacher Appreciation Week, as often as you can. After all, who doesn’t want a nicer, more appreciative society?
I just got off the phone with my Grandpa, who reminded me of a story of my dad’s youth. So in my dad’s honor, I present this grammar worksheet that reminds me of something he and his brothers would have done. Enjoy!
Many teachers give out classroom award certificates at the end of the year. But there’s always those few kids who are hard to find an award for. And who has time to come up with gobs of awards that fit their students. Well, look no more! Here are 44 (yes, 44) pre-made award certificates for you to print off, fill out and distribute! If you plan on teaching for multiple years, it might save you time in the long run to print off a set and sign them (your
name only, not the date or grade) and save them in a folder so you don’t have to find them and sign them next year.
Here’s the PDF version (click to download: End of the Year Awards Collection) so you can print them all at once. I’ve also included a End of the Year Awards- Tracking Sheet for you to write down who gets which award in case the end of the year gets a little hectic. This is what the awards look like:
Personal note here… these are so much more fun to fill out for your students when you’re writing with these Gelly Roll Stardust pens from back in the day! (Yes, I found them on Amazon!! They still exist!)
Click the picture to grab a pack!
One teacher requested a blank version of this certificate so you can write in your own award title. Such a good idea. Here it is:
And since I’m a “pen junkie,” I’ll share with you my other favorite for writing certificates… METALLIC sharpies! They make everything so fancy!
Click the photo to check them out!
Click here to check out my collection of upper grade “Hashtag Awards” (46 printable classroom awards). Here’s a sample:
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Teaching is much easier when you know where you can look for help. So this summer, spend a few minutes each day browsing teacher resource sites. Anything you see that you like should be bookmarked on your browser (make a folder called “teaching resources”), or written down in an organized way so you can find it later. Here are some websites to start with:
1. http://www.pbs.org/teachers/– Tons of stuff (including videos) for teachers
2. http://free.ed.gov/– Free teaching & learning resources from federal agencies
3. http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/educators/– Smithsonian… need I say more?
There. Those 3 links should lead you to enough discovery to last you a looong time! 😉 But if you’ve still got “extra” time, here’s a huge list to browse (collection of links posted by a fabulous home school mom): Huge list of links
I recently saw a class playing this game outside. It’s called Streets and Alleys. This is definitely fast paced and will keep the kids running around a good bit. I couldn’t get a great picture, but I found an excellent description from a great website for kids games.
15 or more players
Ages 7 and up
Three players will stand on the sidelines while the other players divide into 3 groups of the same number of kids (or very close to the same number).
Each team stands side by side, arms outstretched, and hold hands, to form 3 rows.
Each team faces front with about 5 feet between rows – this forms “streets”.
The players on the sidelines become the runner, the chaser and the game leader.
The runner lines up on the end of a street. The chaser lines up in front of the first row. The leader stands in front of the first row as well.
The leader shouts, “one, two, three, GO!” and the runner runs down the streets and the chaser chases her.
The leader can call out “alley” if she wants.
The players lined up in the rows, drop their arms, turn to their right and, with arms outstretched, hold hands with these other players. This forms “alleys”.
Players who are running and chasing have to run down the streets or alleys. They cannot duck under the other player’s arms.
The leader will continue to call out either streets or alleys and the players have to run that way.
Once the runner is caught, a new round begins with a new chaser, leader and runner.
If the runner is not caught after a preset number of minutes, that round is over.
Set time limits for each round depending on the number of players.
Keep it shorter if there are a large group of children playing.
Not a great picture (sorry!), but you can see the kids standing in a grid formation so they can turn to make the streets and alleys…
HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU ARE A TEACHER?
by Jeff Foxworthy
1. You can hear 25 voices behind you and know exactly which one belongs to the child out of line.
2. You get a secret thrill out of laminating something.
3. You walk into a store and hear the words “It’s Ms/Mr.> _________” and know you have been spotted.
4. You have 25 people that accidentally call you Mom/Dad at one time or another.
5. You can eat a multi-course meal in under twenty minutes.
6. You’ve trained yourself to go to the bathroom at two distinct times of the day: lunch and planning period.
7. You start saving other people’s trash, because most likely, you can use that toilet paper tube or plastic butter tub for something in the classroom.
8. You believe the teachers’ lounge should be equipped with a margarita machine.
9. You want to slap the next person who says “Must be nice to work 8 to 3 and have summers off.”
10. You believe chocolate is a food group.
11. You can tell if it’s a full moon without ever looking outside.
12. You believe that unspeakable evils will befall you if anyone says “Boy, the kids sure are mellow today.”
13. You feel the urge to talk to strange children and correct their behavior when you are out in public.
14. You believe in aerial spraying of Ritalin.
15. You think caffeine should be available in intravenous form.
16. You spend more money on school stuff than you do on your own needs.
17. You can’t pass the school supply aisle without getting at least five items!
18. You ask your friends if the left hand turn he just made was a “good choice or a bad choice.”
19. You find true beauty in a can full of perfectly sharpened pencils
20. You are secretly addicted to hand sanitizer and finally,
21. You understand instantaneously why a child behaves a certain way after meeting his or her parents.
Squarehead Teachers 
