You may be checking out this post because your child’s new teacher has sent home a form requesting an inventory of your child’s strengths and weaknesses. And while you love your child, you’re just not sure exactly what to write. Most teachers have gotten training or background knowledge in something called “Gardner’s Theory of Multiple…

You probably already intuitively know this, but being a classroom helper matters a lot to kids, particularly elementary students. They give each kid a sense of belonging, help develop work ethic and teamwork, and create trust between difficult kids and skeptical teachers. If you need classroom helpers ideas, I’ve got you covered. I think classroom…

In every academic year, teachers all across the world encounter different kinds of students. These character types show up annually. Of course, every kid is unique and offers their own special contributions to the class. But it’s simply true that some kids are more memorable than others. What makes a great student? You probably already…

Classroom clean up has always been one of the most favorite five minutes of my day as a teacher. I know that sounds crazy, but watching my students zip around the room and have the place sparkling again in a flash was SO. DANG. GRATIFYING. There’s nothing worse for my peace of mind than a…

The 2019-2020 school year was the first year that I tried implementing flexible seating in the classroom. It also happened to be the year I finally really hit my stride with classroom management. I absolutely loved my flexible seating classroom, and I had far fewer behavior problems than in any previous year. Most teachers who…