Ninja Notes

Let us help you teach like a ninja!

Teachers Pay Teachers

How to Use Interactive Notebooks to Teach Number Sense

by

Interactive math notebooks are one way we teach number sense in our upper elementary classroom. Math class hasn't been the same since we started using interactive notebooks. Yes, they are work, but the benefits are HUGE! Come see what we do to make it work and get some ideas for yourself.

We use interactive notebooks in our math class as part of a unit on number sense. We have found creating a reference book of concepts and procedures that students can refer to when working in math helps them build confidence and develop independence.

We’re not going to lie. They are a lot of work, but the working is meaningful. We found on average our math grades improved and students were able to retain more of their learning year over year. Read more to find out how we use them in our classroom as one way to develop number sense.

[Read more…] about How to Use Interactive Notebooks to Teach Number Sense

You’ll Love These Exciting Winter Classroom Activities

by

Come see some of the winter classroom activities we do all winter long (and it's always long up here in Canada). We got winter themed math and language arts. Of course we haven't forgotten about going outside for winter activities and winter lessons. We've even included some winter art projects and a digital escape. You can have so much fun during the winter in your upper elementary classroom with these great indoor and outdoor activities.

Winters in Canada are long, so technically, you could be doing winter classroom activities for most of the school year and you’d still be on track weather-wise.

We tend to use winter classroom activities from November through February, especially around Christmas, since many of our students come from different religious backgrounds. Many do not celebrate Christmas, so everyone deserves to do fun activities that aren’t connected to a specific faith or holiday.

[Read more…] about You’ll Love These Exciting Winter Classroom Activities

How to Celebrate Halloween In the Classroom

by

Are you looking for ways to celebrate Halloween in your upper elementary classroom? We gathered up some of our students' favourite activities for you to try. Come take a look!

Halloween is such a special time for many students. In past years, we’ve had parades and assemblies and handed out candy. There was a time when bobbing for apples was a good idea. Now, since the pandemic, the thought of countless students scrambling to bite into an apple floating around in a tub full of mouth germs…ugg.

Our classroom is usually bustling with parent volunteers who help out at different Halloween-themed stations. Still, some years, there might not be as many parent volunteers available as you need, so it’s nice to have easy alternatives in your back pocket.

If your school and students are celebrating Halloween, here are some generally easy ways to have a little fun.

[Read more…] about How to Celebrate Halloween In the Classroom

How to Set Up Your Reading Comprehension Schedule

by

If you use our weekly reading comprehension sets (or maybe you want to learn more), come see how we schedule the first month and get some ideas for how you can use these reading and grammar activities in your classroom whether your instruction happens in the classroom or online.

If you are struggling with reading instruction in your classroom, you’re not alone. Upper elementary teachers are often not trained in how to teach students to read, despite the fact all the students in their classroom are unlikely to be reading at grade level. Setting up a reading comprehension schedule is one way to get on track.

We designed our Weekly Reading Comprehension Skills specifically for our students. We needed reading material for science and social studies that were at the right reading level and needed to teach grammar and reading skills. You might want to read this post about how we came up with them: Add Great Content to Your Literacy Lessons.

[Read more…] about How to Set Up Your Reading Comprehension Schedule

Add Great Content to Your Literacy Lessons

by

There are so many things to teach and just not enough time for it all. We started using content from science and social studies to teach grammar and reading comprehension. Game changer! Come find out what we did and how we did it in our upper elementary classroom literacy lessons (even during distance teaching).

It took fifteen years of teaching and professional development before we felt confident teaching reading to students in upper elementary. Reading is one of the most important skills any teacher is responsible for, but it is often taught by stabbing at strategies until something works-only to find it doesn’t work for the next student. Literacy lessons were hard to design and we didn’t really know where to start.

The most important thing we’ve learned is that reading comprehension skills are also skills related to grammar, word parts, word families and patterns, and writing. The same skills are used in a variety of ways.

If a student missed one of these skills, they trip over it in everything other subject. By the time students get to the end of Grade Three, if they aren’t reading at grade level, they are statistically unlikely to catch up. So, what is a teacher to do?

[Read more…] about Add Great Content to Your Literacy Lessons

How to Celebrate Asian Heritage Month in Canada

by

How will you be acknowledging Asian Heritage Month in Canada? We pulled together resources that you can use in your upper elementary classroom to learn about the contributions of Asian-Canadians throughout history. Come read the whole post.

Every year in May we celebrate Asian Heritage Month. It started in the United States in the 1990s but eventually, it made its way to Canada. We recognize the history and value of Asian Canadians across the country. Asian Canadians strengthen Canadian society, whether they have been here for years or have newly arrived.

Explore Asian Heritage Month in Canada with us.

[Read more…] about How to Celebrate Asian Heritage Month in Canada