Indoor recess has been plaguing most of us for months, but soon, outdoor recess will be part of our day again! So many reasons to rejoice, but let’s not forget that it can bring us challenges too. Outdoor play is glorious, but coming back from recess? Not so much. In…
It’s the end of the day and your class is restless. Your students are tired of the same old brain breaks. The dismissal stampede starts in 10 minutes and you need stability and calm. You started your day with a smooth routine and paperless morning meeting–why not end it with a…
It’s true. And if we are being technical here, I should say: Sub plans WERE ruining my life. I’ve always been a Last Minute Lucy, and would suffer through DAYS leading up to my absence with this storm cloud of unwritten sub plans following me everywhere I went. Painful, I…
Open Me When…envelopes are a parent gift that keep on giving throughout the year! Each envelope has a label on the front that reads, “Open Me When _______” and indicates when that envelope should be opened. An ‘Open Me When’ parent gift can be given for Christmas, Hanukkah, Mother’s Day,…
Real talk: mornings are one of the hardest times in the classroom. Attendance. Lunch orders. Unpacking. Small talk. Notes from home. Announcements. Morning meetings. Morning work. And let’s not forget about the time spent prior to students’ arrival; early mornings in your classroom can make you feel like you are…
Sick happens. Meetings are inevitable. And it is the honest-to-God truth that teaching is one of the professions where it is harder to stay home (ahem, sub plans) than it is to just come in and teach 24 6-year-olds despite the fact that it feels like you’ve swallowed a handful…
Welcome to my first installment of #PrimaryProbs, a series of blog posts that will make you laugh, cry, and every other emotion under the sun as we explore some of our greatest classroom challenges. But first, let’s get one thing straight: I am no Negative Nancy. In fact, I’d say…