Figurative language is one of my favorite topics to teach! It's one of those units that pushes students to dive deep and use their analytical thinking skills. While I may love teaching this topic, I
Reading
Guided Reading: Reading Strategy Groups
Reading strategy groups are a highly effective way of grouping your students during Guided Reading. Instead of grouping students by ability, you are simply grouping students based on the strategy
Standardized Testing: Test-Prep Strategies
Test prep does not need to be like this! Last-minute cramming, piles of review packets, tons of practice tests....sound familiar? Preparing for standardized tests is something we all must face in
5 Ways to Increase Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension is a phrase you think about daily in the classroom. It may seem like you are stuck doing the same thing repeatedly. Your students read a text and answer questions to check their
A Daily Reading Review System for Reading Comprehension
One of the most effective ways to improve reading comprehension for all students is to include a quality daily reading review system into your routine. When you expose students to quality reading
Morning Work that Works with your Morning Routine
The importance of quality morning work is often overlooked in the elementary classroom. Your morning routine is the perfect time to set the stage for the day and sneak in some valuable learning time.
10 Ways to Get Kids Reading Without Reading Logs
Getting students to read nightly because they want to is a pretty difficult task.
We all know you really can't make anyone do anything they don't want to do. Kids are NO exception...not even a
How to Make Reading Homework Meaningful
As a teacher, I always made it my goal to make sure everything I did, or made my students do, was meaningful. Whether it was reading homework, math centers, or morning work, I didn't like wasting
How Much Homework Should You Give? 10 Teacher Tips
Managing homework is something many teachers struggle with. How much should I give? What is the best way to correct it? How can I make it more effective?
I've got you covered. Below are ten
Spiral Assessments: Why They Are Necessary
Spiral Assessments are an important part of my classroom. Awhile back, I wrote a blog post about "Why Spiral In the Classroom". I explained that I believe a spiraling curriculum is critical in