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Natural Disasters

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Open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science.

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Every week, Doug pulls three questions from his jar and chooses one to answer in a short video.

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Get Organized! 345+ pages - regularly updated! This IB PYP Teacher Binder will get and keep you organized. Sections include: Binder cover and spine IB Mission Statement 1. Current Planner PYP overview Planner worksheet 2.

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A great classmate ...

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Interactive phonics activity

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Phonics Reading Comprehension Interactive Mats All Year Bundle

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Interactive Phonics and Reading Comprehension Mats are an original idea from Kadeen @ Kadeen Teaches. Thank you for looking at these phonics mats. I came up with the idea for the phonics mats as a way to get my students engaged and practicing the phonetic skills over

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Every teacher has heard the inevitable chorus of I'm Done's! that follows an assignment or activity in an elementary classroom. We all have those so called "fast finishers." There are tons of ideas for filling that gap of time between the "I'm Done!" and the class transitioning to the next lesson or activity. But today, I'm here to tell you what happened when I outlawed those two little words in my classroom, and why you should consider doing the same. 🙂
Heads up! As of February 2018, I've opened up a new Facebook Group that focuses on effective classroom management strategies! Come join us!
The Problem with "I'm Done."

My biggest issue with kids saying "I'm done!" is that it implies "getting done" was the goal in the first place. It's not just the words, but what the words reveal about student thinking. It means that the kids have a sense that their goal was simply to finish the task. This leads to kids rushing through work, racing to be the first one finished, and looking forward to the next activity rather than focusing on the task at hand. Plus, as soon as one student calls out "I'm done," many students feel pressure to catch up or end up distracted from their work.

I outlawed the words "I'm Done!" in my first grade class many years ago and the practice works just as well with my third graders. It was easy! I simply told the kids that we were no longer using that phrase and we listed some other examples that had the same meaning. I explained that work time was exactly that: work time. In the beginning, we'd brainstorm ideas for different activities so that the students were prepared to use their time wisely. But very quickly, this practice was part of our way of doing things. The kids just did it!

Once the kids realized that there wasn't another activity waiting for them after they completed their task, I saw a huge change in how kids approached their work. There was no more race to finish. There was no stress to keep up with the "fast finishers." My students began to think about the time available and set their pace more accordingly. The quality of work improved across the board!

How to Outlaw "I'm Done."
1. Give Clear Expectations
Have a class meeting to discuss the problem with these words. Create a chart listing similar phrases and proclaim these phrases OUTLAWED! In the beginning, you'll want to remind students of this new class rule before any independent work time.
2. Refocus on the Purpose of the Work
Help your students uncover the purpose of their work time. As a class, have students help brainstorm the purpose of different independent work times and all of things they can be doing during that time. I only did this once for a few different parts of the day, and we never had to do it again!

For example, the REAL GOALS of math work times might be to try out new strategies, grow problem-solving skills, and build math fluency. The REAL GOALS of independent reading time might be to apply reading strategies, make sense of the text, learn while reading, build fluency, and get lost in a great book!

Help your students refocus on the real goals, and then give clear examples of things they could be doing during these different work times.
3: Help Kids Develop Time Management Strategies
Many kids are so used to the "rush through so that I can be finished" mindset, that they have very poor time management. Help your students learn to use their time wisely! Before an independent work time, explain how much time students will have and how you expect them to use that time.

For example:

"Before we begin our independent writing time, let's remember that our goal for today is to revise our writing and begin a final draft of our work. You'll have 30 minutes to work. You might want to spend the first 15 minutes rereading and revising your writing and the last 15 minutes beginning work on your final draft."

Then after about 15 minutes, give students an update on their time:

"Just a reminder that we are about halfway through our work time. You have about 15 more minutes. If you're still revising, you might try to finish up and move on to your final draft."

By removing "I'm Done!" you can refocus on the real learning goals and end the race to finish first. Kids learn to put their best effort into their work and develop time management strategies that can carry over into other areas of their lives.

I use this strategy during ALL independent work times including those during reading or writing workshop, tests, independent projects, or even crafts. And I use it during most partner work and group work!

Troubleshooting

But won't some kids still finish early? Yes! You'll still have some students who will "finish" early and either sit and stare at you or whisper "I'm done" conspiratorially to others or begin trying to bug the kids around them. Remember, these habits are often ingrained from years of being encouraged to "finish your work." With these students, I first respond by pointing to the poster we created as a class that lists what they should be doing. I then quietly remind that student of the time left and encourage them to find a useful way to use that time. On occasion, I've had to pull certain kiddos into a little mini-conference where we talk through the work and I guide them in next steps and how to use the time wisely. In my experience, kids learn quickly that you're not just going to give in and will adjust their behavior accordingly. Many of my "fast-finishers" were simply rushing and turning in messy work or work filled with silly mistakes. By holding them accountable for using this time, I could then suggest rewriting the work more neatly, checking for silly mistakes, adding more detail, etc.

But aren't some kids just faster workers than others? Yes! We all have bright students that really are faster workers and can produce high quality work in a shorter amount of time. BUT, I find that when I hold those same students accountable for using their time wisely, what I end up with is even HIGHER quality work! It's about pushing every student to do their absolute best, not just trying to reach a minimum standard and be done.

But when will I fit in enrichment games? Not during independent work times. 🙂 If you have a fun activity waiting for students when they finish their "real work" you're encouraging them to rush. Don't do it! Fast-finisher task cards, classroom Boggle boards, and enrichment games are great, but not when used as the final outcome of independent work. Essentially, you're telling kids: "The goal is to finish this work so you can play this game." This also goes for having fast-finishers do classroom jobs or walk around as peer helpers. Anything that takes the focus off the work at hand is harmful in the long run. Move those games to the 5 minutes before lunch or the ten minutes at the end of the day if the class has worked hard all day. Move them to the morning before the instructional day begins. Or if they aren't really serving a purpose, get rid of them!

Do I have to stick to this on all activities? I do this for almost all independent work and much of the partner and group work, as well. I find that students get used to this expectation quickly and there is no need to turn it on and off all the time. On some activities, such as tests, I know that I'll have some students who can do an awesome job but will be done way earlier than others. My solution for this is to provide a minimum work time. For example, if the kids are taking a big math test, I might say that I expect everyone to work for at least 40 minutes and will not accept work before then. And I also explain beforehand what students will be allowed to do after finishing their test (usually reading quietly at their seat). I don't want finishing fast to be a reward!

Build a Community of Hard-Workers

I think it's important to teach kids about the value of hard work and the importance of doing your very best. I guess the outlawing of "I'm Done" is one way I try to help students grow perseverance! I love using the phrase (from my last principal) "Hard work pays off!" And I love these posters!

Thanks for reading! I'd love to hear how you handle this classroom dilemma in your own room! 🙂

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Every teacher has heard the inevitable chorus of I'm Done's! that follows an assignment or activity in an elementary classroom. We all have those so called "fast finishers." There are tons of ideas for filling that gap of time between the "I'm Done!" and the class transitioning to the next lesson or activity.

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One minute math games

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One Minute Math Games: 10 Games to Kill Down-Time Forever

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We all know that down-time can change your classroom from calm to crazy-town faster than I can say "multiplication". That feeling of thirty sets of eyes staring back at you when your lesson is over and you still have 3 minutes until recess is enough to strike dread into the core of any teacher.

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Games with cards

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Here are some great math games to play with cards! These can be used for math centers, review, extra practice, or just for fun. Using playing cards as a math manipulative can make learning more hands-on and fun. Plus most kids love playing with cards, so it's a win-win! There are a ton of card games out there, but here are my favorites. Many of these can be adjusted according to skill level.

2. Multiplication War

4. Concentration/Memory

5. Number Maker

6. Make a Buck

7. Solitaire

8. Blackjack Math: Quick Addition

9. Multiples of 10

10. Card Castle

11. Fraction Simplification

12. Risky Math

13. Times Two

14. Subtraction War

15. Place Value Game

16. Build & Take

17. Old Maid

18. A Mathematical Card Trick

19. Math Games with a Deck of Cards

20. Playing Cards Math Mats

21. 7 Games for Practicing Math Facts

22. Prime Numbers Game

23. Rolling Stone

26. Sequence

4. Skipper Skidoo

5. Gin Rummy

6. Brave Kid Solitaire

7. Lucky Card

8. Crazy Eights

11. Freecell

Want more math games? Be sure to read my post: Math Games With Dice!

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Math Games With Cards - Rachel K Tutoring Blog

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Here are some great math games to play with cards! These can be used for math centers, review, extra practice, or just for fun. Using playing cards as a math manipulative can make learning more hands-on and fun. Plus most kids love playing with cards, so it's a win-win!

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Word work ideas

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Email after email, I hear "How do you do word work? I want to expose my students to lots of different words but that's a lot of prep. I do want to spend hours each week trading out words!" To this, I say - "PREACH!" So, I'm stopping by with a picture-heavy post all about how Word Work runs during our Daily 5 block.

How Do You Change Out Choices?

Launching Word Work in mid-to-late August, my friends have 4 choices. I keep the activities in Sterilite containers with their week's words on Command Hooks

above the containers (a color representing each of my ability groups). You can read more about how I differentiate and organize the words in this blog post. The 4-5 choices I keep out stay out for an entire month or so and just the words change. That way, I am not teaching brand-new word work choices every.single.week. That would be crazy! Students visit word work 2-3 times a week and choose their just-right activities. After choosing an activity, they color their choices on their Reading Reflection Log.

Where Do You Get Your Words?

Our weekly words come from Reading Street. While we don't use a basal for guided reading, I do like the phonics sequence and helps keep our team focused. The green words are a mix of the must-know words and some of the phonics-skill words. The yellow words are that week's spelling words and the blue words are the enrichment phonics words in the red section of each week (in the teacher's manual). I keep 3 copies of each word ring

on each Command Hook

because 3 students may visit Word Work each round. Students are expected to visit Word Work at least 2 times a week. (Note - due to Copyright and the fact that these words belong to Reading Street, they are not available for purchase. Sorry!)

Scaffolding Students

With so many moving parts to Daily 5, I try to provide as many scaffolds to my friends as possible. Yes, we did spend lots of time teaching and practicing each of these activities, but still - they're 6. Sometimes they forget. Sometimes they get off track. I find providing visual directions on the tops of each container really helps us keep focused...especially at the beginning of the month when we have new activities. When making visual directions, I prefer to use pictures of my kids, but sometimes (like Super Sentences) it becomes an example/step-by-step guide of what they are to do.

Our Favorites

Hands down, Stamp It and Pyramid Writing quickly become our favorite centers. Note - I do save Stamp It for the second set of centers because there are more procedures for it (i.e. it's a mess). I have lots of training to do before I release students!

Pyramid Writing is another favorite. It's a very visual way to see our words and it's a simple-to-teach center perfect for the beginning of the year!

Differentiating Word Work

In addition to different words, many of our word work choices are also leveled. Within each container, I keep colored folders for my three different ability groups - below, at, and above grade level. Students know to pull the papers or recording sheets from their colored folder. This is a really simple way to make sure everyone is getting just what they need and what they are ready for!

Some of our other favorite Word Work activities in Sentence Scramble. Although a 'high maintenance' centers, my friends LOVE the challenge. You can read my post about how sentence scramble works here.

Now that we're learning about long vowels and vowel teams, we spend a little time each week sorting sounds we see and hear. This is wonderful phonics practice and I love that all my friends (regardless of level) get just-right phonics practice.

This is what is working for us right now! In the next week or so, I will switch up at activities to keep it fresh and interesting. I keep the word-ring storage the same, but will choose 4 of our other favorite word-work activities. I believe January will be long vowel dominoes

, Stacks, and potentially some phonics sound-sorts. I'll keep you updated! 🙂

If you're interested in the Word Work resources I've show above, you can check them out here. So, tell me - what are your favorite Word Work activities??? I'd love to add some variety to our routine! 🙂

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1st Grade Word Work: Daily 5 Style - The Brown Bag Teacher

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Email after email, I hear "How do you do word work? I want to expose my students to lots of different words but that's a lot of prep. I do want to spend hours each week trading out words!" To this, I say - "PREACH!" So, I'm stopping by with a picture-heavy post all about...

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Roll & Retell

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Whether you are learning about geography or just trying to show your kids the route you are taking on your next vacation, these free printable blank maps will come in handy!

Before I dive into all these free printable maps perfect for homeschool and geography, here are some other resources you'll love:

Maps

In the free download below you will find the following blank printable maps for whatever your individual needs may be:

World Map (with /without country names)

North America (with / without country names)

South America (with / without country names)

Australia (with / without country names)

Asia (with / without country names)

Europe (with / without country names)

Antarctica (with / without country names)

Africa (with / without country names)

United States (with / without country names)

By downloading from my site you agree to the following:

This is for personal or personal classroom use (to share please direct others to download their own copy here; that allows us to keep our resources FREE =)

This may NOT be sold, hosted, reproduced, or stored on any other site (including blog, Facebook, Dropbox, etc.)

All downloaded materials provided are copyright protected. Please see Terms of Use.

I offer free printables to bless my readers AND to provide for my family. Your frequent visits to my blog & support purchasing through affiliates links and ads keep the lights on so to speak. Thanks you!

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Whether you are learning about geography or just trying to show your kids the route you are taking on your next vacation, these free printable blank maps will come in handy!

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There are so many wonderful books for helping to teach children about the character traits of the IB Learner Profile. Over the years however, I keep returning to a few that I feel reinforce those profile traits really well. I've used these books with 3rd grade up to 6th grade equally successfully, even though they may seem to be a wee bit young for those age groups. They work well as quick read alouds and can be utilised to reinforce many reading skills and strategies too.- inferring, questioning, synthesising, figurative language and more. This page is a list of my favourite books for pulling together the Learner Profile traits. I like to use some of them within our units of inquiry or simply as a stand alone when the opportunity presents itself in my class to look more thoroughly at a particular profile trait.

I have grouped them according to each Learner Profile trait. Each picture is linked to Amazon so that you can click on any one and find out more about the book, customer reviews and so on.

Open Minded

Developing open-mindedness in children isn't really that difficult since they are actually pretty loving and accepting of others around the world. Opening their minds to the myriad differences surrounding them is tantamount to developing an even greater sense of global awareness and international mindedness in a young person who is going to become our future. Keeping an open mind can also tie in with being a risk taker and trying new experiences. These books help to promote the attitude of acceptance and tolerance as well as inspiring a need for change in certain areas.

Risk Taker/Courageous
Both of these books look at how the character faces fears and steps out of their comfort zone.

Journey is a beautiful tale of a girl who travels within her imagination.

Swimmy tells the story of a fish afraid to step out of his comfort zone and, once he does, discovers a whole world of learning and excitement as well as finding his confidence and strength from within.
Emmanuel's Dream is such an inspirational true story of a boy who only has one leg and yet, despite all of the challenges that he faces daily, still had the courage to face each and every one as he pursued his dream. I love to use this book for this profile trait! Especially since its true!

Inquirer

More Parts - I've used this book as a funny introduction to our unit about the human body. It was used as part of a lesson that looked into the importance of questioning within communication and of asking the right questions. My fifth graders LOVE it! It also offers a great opportunity to review idioms and other figurative language.

If......A beautiful book that inspires questions as we delve into some mighty big numbers that exist all around us. It is a great tool for reinforcing the reading skill of questioning. Provide each child with a sticky note or two and, as you read it together, have them note down the questions that pop into their minds as they discover the massive numbers within. I've also used it as we explored the key concept of FORM within maths for place value and as inspiration for writing using hyperbole.

Caring

Knowledgeable

Parts is one of my favourites for laugh out loud hilarity. It explores the human body and I have used it as a fun formative assessment about the body systems, as we read through the book, thus tapping into the knowledge of my fifth graders. It appeals to their lavatorial sense of humour at this age range, even though the book is for younger readers.

Hippos Can't Swim is a non fiction book full of facts about animals and nature. It is a good book to demonstrate the trait of being knowledgeable since there are many facts that the older kids will know already and equally many that they may not yet know. Its fun.

Thinker

Being a thinker involves using our knowledge to solve problems, thinking things through and even trying out different ways, making mistakes and recognising when we have made a breakthrough. These books look at rial and error as the characters evolve throughout their problems and move towards learning and solutions.

One Hen is set in a village in Africa and explores how one boy learns how to become self-sufficient and help his family to become independent and thrive, escaping hunger and poverty. He works with what he has to begin with and builds upon his previous ideas.

What Do You Do With A Problem? looks into the form and function of a problem and offers suggestions as to how best deal with such things. It's a great book for reinforcing growth mindset too, especially with the IB Attitudes of independence and tolerance.

Principled

Two books that could be initially thought of as too young for upper elementary kids but really, the myriad of ways that they both focus on the trait of being principled is amazing.

Good Dog Carl is one of my all time favourites, not least because I have Rottweiles myself. The illustrations are beautiful, as Carl looks after the baby who seems intent on creating all kinds of mischief. Carl struggles to keep the baby on the right track between right from wrong and safe from danger. He's such a good boy and so patient too! 🙂

A is for Activist is has an alphabetical list of different ways to promote rights, identify wrongs and how to take action. I have used this book, believe it or not, as a prerequisite to my 5th grade IB Exhibition. It was a great resource for looking at action. It's a great book for review within Who We Are, How We Express Ourselves and other units of inquiry that inquire into human rights, revolutionaries and taking action for change.

Balanced

Communicator

These are fantastic books for looking at the ways we communicate.

Voices in the Park explores perspective as the same story is told in different ways throughout the book. I have used this to reinforce the key concept, Perspective and also within developing our communication skills.

My Mouth is A Volcano is so funny! As we develop our communication skills, we have to learn when to talk and when to be a listener. It covers the attitudes of Respect and Tolerance too.

Reflective

Both books allow us to reflect upon how the characters changed. Each character goes through a lesson which helps them to develop an awareness of themselves, how they can help themselves to grow and improve and move onwards and upwards.

The Girl Who Never Made A Mistake is great at illustration how perfectionism can be debilitating and that we absolutely can use mistakes positively for our own learning.

Ish is a study of how we can harness our creativity and blossom without having to have everything exactly perfect. It actually questions, what is perfect anyway. I love it!

I hope you find this useful and find something that you can use. Happy clicking!

FOLLOW ME HERE, FOLLOW ME THERE.....

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There are so many wonderful books for helping to teach children about the character traits of the IB Learner Profile. Over the years however, I keep returning to a few that I feel reinforce those profile traits really well.

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We create refreshingly good educational products for primary schools all over the world. Our characters have been a reliable source of motivation for millions of children! The Pedagogs understand the power of positivity and create a framework of communication in the paper and digital classroom.

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World's most popular online marketplace for original educational resources with more than four million resources available for use today.

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First Steps literacy resources comprise comprehensive teaching materials in the four modes of literacy: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Viewing as well as a resource - Linking Assessment, Teaching and Learning.

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Australian curriculum mathematics

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First Steps literacy resources comprise comprehensive teaching materials in the four modes of literacy: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Viewing as well as a resource - Linking Assessment, Teaching and Learning.

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Australian curriculum linked science resources

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Australian curriculum linked science resources

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Primary Connections is a flagship primary school science program from the Australian Academy of Science. It is an innovative approach to teaching and learning which aims to enhance primary school teachers' confidence and competence for teaching science.

Explore exemplary units and access downloadable resources that support you to plan your own unit. Learn about how the 5E teaching and learning model supports a guided-inquiry approach.

Online learning workshops, video resources and professional reading recommendations.

Explore the Primary Connections approach by:

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Primary Connections is a flagship primary school science program from the Australian Academy of Science. It is an innovative approach to teaching and learning which aims to enhance primary school teachers' confidence and competence for teaching science. Explore exemplary units and access downloadable resources that support you to plan your own unit.

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Primary Connections is a flagship primary school science program from the Australian Academy of Science. It is an innovative approach to teaching and learning which aims to enhance primary school teachers' confidence and competence for teaching science.

Explore exemplary units and access downloadable resources that support you to plan your own unit. Learn about how the 5E teaching and learning model supports a guided-inquiry approach.

Online learning workshops, video resources and professional reading recommendations.

Explore the Primary Connections approach by:

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Primary Connections is a flagship primary school science program from the Australian Academy of Science. It is an innovative approach to teaching and learning which aims to enhance primary school teachers' confidence and competence for teaching science. Explore exemplary units and access downloadable resources that support you to plan your own unit.

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Australian curriculum linked lesson ideas

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Australian curriculum linked lesson ideas

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Australian Curriculum Lessons - Lesson Plans, Teaching Resources and more

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Australian Curriculum Lessons provides teachers with free English, Mathematics, Science, History, PE, Health, Art, Geography and Technology lesson plans.

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Australian focused teaching ideas & content

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Australian focused teaching ideas & content

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Scoop.it enables professionals and businesses to research and publish content through its content curation tool.

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Great for producing templates

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teaching materials worksheets printables math fractions handwriting geometry homeschooling classroom teachers parents geography spelling language puzzles

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The premier web service for creating professional educational resources. Used by teachers and parents around the world.

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For those finer details

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English Grammar Rules - The Definitive Grammar Handbook | Ginger

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Are you rusty on your grammar rules? Look through Ginger's definitive English Grammar Rules Handbook for all the rules, examples, and more!

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Some light reading ...