My kindergarten students love the small group activities that I plan each day. I try to implement simple strategies, teaching resources and easy to implement ideas every time that we meet. My guided teaching time has turned out to be my favorite part of our day together. We learn our letters through explicit instruction, work on writing, work on building words and so many other things! Before I get started, I want you to stop and think about all the things that you do to plan for small group each day or as a week in full. How long does it usually take you? Are you looking for things during ..read more

I absolutely love teaching math. Normally, if you show how much you love a certain something in a classroom, your students will lean towards liking that certain thing as well. For instance, if you rave on and on about a certain book, most kids will want to read it. The same is true about small groups. I love telling my kids that I cannot wait for 'our time' together. They know that I do not allow anyone to interrupt us. Our time at the table is sacred. This is the FIRST step in mastering your intervention time. Make sure to use their timely to the fullest. Do not let the other kids approac ..read more

Please note this post has affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I will receive a small compensation. The ezLaminator is one of my favorites new classroom "things" this school year. I did a Donor's Choose earlier at the start of the year for it with a few other things. What is an ezLaminator? It's a cold laminator that is super quiet to laminate. It has zero odors and laminates with a quick little turn. If you'd like to read the specifics on it, you can find the Xyron Ezlaminator on Amazon. The Ezlaminator comes with an interchangeable laminating cartridge inside. It takes a ..read more

Happy New Year friends! I wanted to write a post on the last day of 2016, but didn't know what. I wanted it to be about something I really loved, but I love so much that it was hard to choose. Then, a light went off in my brain. DUH! Amazon. I seriously am on Amazon almost every day. It's only fitting to tell you what I absolutely loved buying from Amazon in 2016. Please note: This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. If you click the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small compensation. Now that THAT'S out of the way, let's check out my favorites! Since I don't ha ..read more

Last school year, my kinders were ready for some easy sentence comprehension pretty early in the year. I wanted them to be accountable for their reading. However, I didn't have time to fit in space for comprehension practice that was totally dedicated to that. Our morning routine was pretty quick and easy, so I decided we'd use the first 20 minutes after we walked into our classroom to unpack and work on writing sentences correctly and comprehending what we read by drawing a picture to match. Read. Write. Illustrate. was born. My kids absolutely EXCELLED the rest of the months when we were ..read more

Do you ever feel like you're rushed for time when it comes to using technology in your classroom? Are you unsure how to incorporate it into your busy day? Well, I'm bringing you 9 ways to use technology in your primary classroom. 1. Self Checking QR codes QR codes have been around for a while. Many of you may know how to use QR codes and how to use them in your classroom. One way that I LOVE using QR codes is as a self-checker. Have you ever held a small group at your table? Yes? Then, you should relate to this. Think about a time when your students were all working so quietly and your gro ..read more

Hey friends! I'm dropping in really quickly because the first day of school is tomorrow. I've promised a few people on FB, IG and over on the Elementary Entourage's blog that I would post these goodies. I've been setting up my classroom and posting an image or two here and there and people have asked for a few things. My word wall letters are my absolute favorite thing right now! They are simply ADORABLE. They are a remake of something I made two years ago. I updated the kidlettes and none of them repeat each other. How cute are they? ADORBS! My calendar area is a work in progress. Thi ..read more

Hey friends! So I have to be honest with you and tell you that I didn't realize that you could share a wish list. UM, yes! So I did a little browsing through Oriental Trading over the summer. They have SO many things that I want and knew my firsties would LOVE. I created a wish list which was EXTREMELY easy and then narrowed down what I would get from there. Everything else is still on the wish list for me to share with friends, family and parents during Meet the Teacher. Here's my wishlist to get a preview of what everyone will see. Oriental Trading sent me these goodies to show you al ..read more

Yep. You read that exactly right. Do you have a hard time talking with parents? Well, I do. I'd rather not talk to them on most days. It's hard to carry on a conversation since I'm not the type that starts conversations. It's even HARDER for me to write notes home or even CALL. I just look at them. That sounds so horrible, I know, but it's the TRUTH. I hope I'm not the only one that struggles with this part of teaching. One thing that worked REALLY well for me last year was writing a note to one child every day. It was a very short note. It wasn't about how they misbehaved or what they could ..read more

In need of some quick and easy end of the year student gifts? I've got you covered. I went to one of my favorite places, Target, and racked up some goodies. I found some really cute ideas that were really inexpensive. I grabbed a set of mazes, yo-yos, and SCENTED play dough. I didn't make a tag for the dough. I also had leftover bubbles from earlier in the year. These tags go great with some bubbles! I have found sets of 12 in Walmart and a similar set in Target. All you need is to print the tags, grab some double sided tape and a write your name. Easy! These maze ..read more