Let us help you teach like a ninja!
Pink Shirt Day is coming again. Depending on where you live in Canada, you might observe this anti-bullying awareness day in February or September (or even April or May). Regardless of when you wear your pink shirt, the movement to bring awareness to bullying has begun to spread worldwide. Do you need an activity to do in your upper elementary classroom?
[Read more…] about Use Pink Shirt Day to Make a Difference in the World
Do your students write goals? It can be an effective way to have students learn to take responsibility for their behaviour or learning. We tried something new this year. Students chose power words instead of goals.
Back to school is a great time to reflect on past years in school. It’s the right time to think about the positive changes you and your students can make. This will help you all have a wonderful year together.
[Read more…] about How to Create Back to School Power Words
Are you looking for a quick and not-too-messy project for any age? Well, look no further than fingerprint art.
Using a little paint, construction paper and markers, your students can transform their fingerprints into different art projects with lots of engagement and very little time or clean up.
Even though this post focuses on using fingerprint art for Christmas, there are lots of ways you can use this type of art.
[Read more…] about How to Create Fingerprint Art Projects
For eleven years we have been part of a proud tradition in our community: delivering Christmas cards to all the homes and businesses that make up our school community. We mail them to agencies and businesses involved with our school community. It is so easy, helps build community and teaches our students to do things for others.
Students love making cards. And they don’t need to be just for Christmas. You can apply this strategy to any type of holiday at any time of year.
Here is how you can start the tradition for yourself.
[Read more…] about How to Spread Joy With Handmade Community Christmas Cards
Here’s a great reason to eat potato chips (you don’t have to eat them, but it’s a good excuse). Have your students collect Pringles cans or any other metal or cardboard can that has a plastic lid and upcycle them into a great holiday activity. Our students have loved making recycled can characters over the years.
This activity will work with other types of cans that are made of cardboard with a metal base and plastic lid.
We made our cans into snowmen, gingerbread men, penguins, Santas, elves and reindeer as a fun Christmas craft activity that parents will cherish for years to come.
[Read more…] about How to Make Recycled Can Characters
Looking for easy Christmas tree art projects for your classroom? Here are 12 we’ve tested using pastels, paint, watercolour, ribbon and recycled materials. Most take about an hour, and each one can become a card, plaque, ornament or hallway decoration.
If you are an elementary generalist who teaches your own art, it can be challenging finding projects that look great, teach skills and aren’t so complicated that YOU can’t figure them out. Don’t worry! We’ve got some great Christmas tree art projects for you. They use regular materials you’ll be able to find in your school and don’t take more than an hour or so to create.
In fact, we think you’ll probably create more than one because they are just so cute!
[Read more…] about 12 Simple Christmas Tree Art Projects We Love
As we were growing up, many of us had family members who had served in World War II. It was easier to understand the purpose of Remembrance Day when Grandpa would wear his medals to our school service. Our current students are a few generations removed from that war, though some have had family members serve in Korea, Afghanistan or with the United Nations Peacekeepers. It is difficult for some of them to understand the abstractness of war, so it is even more important for us to give them a realistic view of those events and the history behind them.
[Read more…] about How to Teach the Importance of Remembrance Day
The year has started. Things are starting to settle and it’s time to count your blessings in the classroom. We call the start of the year through Thanksgiving (well, Canadian Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October) the beta period. It’s the time of year to try things out, get to know the students, build relationships, and set up the year for success. It can be hard to be thankful in the classroom unless we take a moment to sit back and list the things we are grateful for.
The beta period is not the time of year we spend getting deep into the content. We review. We read. And we talk about what is coming next. We check out our skills and show what we can or can’t do.
Most of all, we celebrate all the things were are thankful for in our classroom. Keep reading to see how we spend this special time of year.
[Read more…] about Being Thankful in the Classroom
Each year, we work hard to teach students some basic courtesies to make everyone happier and keep students responsible for their learning space. These are the basic things we teach repeatedly during the first month of school to our upper elementary students. Save your sanity by giving them a try.
We also want to stress that just because this is how we do things doesn’t mean these procedures will work ‘as is’ in your classroom. Feel free to solve the issues in your own way.
By teaching these courtesies, we reduce our own frustrations and the frustrations of students because they already know how to handle these situations.
[Read more…] about How to Save Your Sanity in the Classroom
