Here's a perfect craft to help ease the kiddos back into the goove! Check out Tally's Treasury!

                                                                 Clever Corner Bookmarks

T.G.I.F.Linky Party at Mrs. Mc's Place- Ringing in The New Year

An InLinkz Link-up

get the InLinkz code

Penguin Fun! Here's a place to find lot's of winter crafts for the kiddos.

                                                               Pine Cone Crafts

This is a great site-Martha Stewart, does it get any better than that!  Take some time and look around.  There's a lot of clever ideas for using pine cones in crafts.  You just might find something that will help make winter a little more cheery.

A Fun Winter Craft for the Kiddos

I found this on my Pinterest travels.  Thought it was too much fun not to share.

                                                                       Polar Bear Hand-print

T.G.I.F.Linky Party at Mrs. Mc's Place

An InLinkz Link-up

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Here's a fun idea if you still need a gift for the kiddos to make!

Lia's Wonderful Owl Craft

T.G.I.F.Linky Party at Mrs. Mc's Place

An InLinkz Link-up

On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a webquest for absolutely free

A webquest for absolutely free

On the 11th day of Christmas my true love gave to me, A freebie compound word search

Freebie compound word search

On the 10th day of Christmas my true love gave to me, cupcake freebie word find

Cupcake freebie word find

On the ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a Santa page for coloring

Santa page for coloring

On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a puzzle meant for grades 3 and 4

Freebie for Grades 3 and 4

On the seventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a holiday division freebie

Holiday Division Freebie

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Santa writing paper

Santa Writing Paper

On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Grade 5 Freebie

Grade 5 Freeeeebie

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love moved me up to a freebie meant for a higher grade

Fun Freebie for 6th Grader

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me, free fun for two grades

Freebie for 2 grades

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave two me, a freebie meant for just grade 2.

Grade 2 Freebie

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, One Frozen Freebie!

Frozen Freebie

T.G.I.F.At Mrs. Mc's Place

An InLinkz Link-up

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T.G.I.F. Black Friday Edition

An InLinkz Link-up

T.G.I.F. at Mrs. Mc's Place - Amazing Educational Products Made By Educators Just Like You!

An InLinkz Link-up

get the InLinkz code

Teaching about Ancient Egypt? Have I got a site for you!

I came across this site several years ago when I had partnered up with the Social Studies teacher in the building.  (Full disclosure-he's my husband).  He had a really fun lesson that combined math with hieroglyphics and history. John always liked to get as much out of a lesson as possible.   When the class came to me in the computer lab, I followed up with this activity. I provided the link for the students for the "Hieroglyphic Typewriter". Since I was working with the teacher, he had already provided the lesson and made his expectations clear to the students.  The site can be used in a number of ways by a number of levels.  The children always enjoyed seeing their name in hieroglyphics.

John's Lesson

John's Power Point

John's Companion Worksheet

Link to the Hieroglyphic Typewriter

T.G.I.F. at Mrs. Mc's Place - Amazing Educational Products Made By Educators Just Like You!

An InLinkz Link-up

get the InLinkz code

T.G.I.F. at Mrs. Mc's Place - Amazing Educational Products (some free!) Made Just For You!

An InLinkz Link-up

get the InLinkz code

Giveaway for 2 Lucky Winners. Get the details at Mrs. Mc's Place.

I'm giving this fun and complete way to review second grade math and ELA skills to two lucky winners. It includes a 32 page packet and 3 sets of task cards for a total of 78 pages all with a whimsical charming cupcake theme. You will reach  the Giveaway on Teacher's Notebook using the link.

http://www.teachersnotebook.com/deals/giveaways/5757

T.G.I.F. at Mrs. Mc's Place

An InLinkz Link-up

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Fun Freebie for Thanksgiving Grades 1-2

Here's a fun freebie that might come in handy. Each of the 3 pages has a Thanksgiving themed activity for your students. Some writing, number, and coloring fun.

Fun Freebie

Did you know that November 7-13 is "Write a Letter to Santa Week"? Here's a Fun Freebie for the Kiddos to Use.

Did you know that November 7-13 is "Write a Letter to Santa Week"?
Here's a fun free lesson to help with the job. There's decorated writing paper to match the small banner you can use for display. It's a fun whimsical way to introduce or reinforce a variety of ELA skills. 

Dear Santa,

How I Tried to Make Keyboarding Fun-or at Least Bearable!

Generally, teaching in the computer lab is a pretty good position.  The students are motivated and eager to see the lesson that is planned for them.  Learning to create a power point presentation, designing a graph in Excel, or completing a webquest are all lessons that will get a gratifying reaction from most students. But mention keyboarding......instant change.  So, I decided that I would try to find a way to turn the whole situation around.  I'll spare you the false starts and total failures and share with you an approach that seemed to get more of the reaction we would all prefer to see in our students for any lesson.
My classes included Kindergarten through 8th grade.  I decided that I would begin some form of keyboarding right from the start.  After some initial lessons on the actual keyboard and mouse, I introduced them to Kid Keys. They all seemed to get a kick out of it.  It's a very colorful and charming program with a number of components.  For the next level, I had a Type to Learn Program and later added a second one.
In addition to the software I had a monthly lesson with the older students that involved them typing a selection I handed out to them.  They typed in Microsoft Word and it was timed.  They were able to pull up the word count as well as the number of mistakes.  I showed them how to compute their words per minute and they recorded their progress.  During these lessons they typed the selection three times as I timed them.  The second time they typed they had to shut off the monitor.  This was to give them a chance to see how they performed using more of a touch approach.  They would groan but give it a try.  Of course their speed increased and surprisingly as time passed, their accuracy did not suffer as expected.  The third trial they chose how they wanted to type-with or without the monitor.  Most chose to keep the monitor off.
Now, here is what I think really helped make the whole thing work.  They practiced their keyboarding every class period, BUT, for only 10 minutes.  To show my classes I meant business, once everyone was in the program and typing, I set a timer for ten minutes.  Once the timer went off we went on to a lesson that they would normally look forward to.  But what changed for me was the absence of groans and faces when I mentioned keyboarding.  I also added a number of fun online keyboarding games and sometimes would assign these as alternatives to the program.  Variety did seem to help.
One day after school, I was working in the lab.  A young woman came in to visit-a past student now attending high school.  She had come back to tell me how well she did in her high school computer class.  She thanked me for the keyboarding lessons, explaining that she was so much faster than many in her class.  She told me she appreciated how I had made it fun. I thought, mission accomplished!

If you're looking for some fun lab activities, here's one my classes always enjoyed.

Lesson in Designing a Bar Graph in Excel 2007

Halloween and the Middle School Kids-How About Some Fun and Games Linky Party At Mrs. Mc's Place

    Halloween can be a bit tricky for the middle school student and their teachers.  Many of them are transitioning  to a different set of expectations on so many levels.  Now, to add insult to injury, they realize that this change includes NO MORE CLASSROOM HALLOWEEN PARTIES??  No Halloween parade around the school (in my little town it actually includes several blocks in the town),
    Here's a suggestion that might make both groups happy for the day. Educational Games.  Games are a great way to keep the kiddos happy and productive .  You're covered both ways.  You're happy because the kids are learning and on task and they're happy because they think they're just playing games.

An InLinkz Link-up

Rewards In The Classroom

I've used rewards in the classroom in a variety of ways and situations.  I've taught for over thirty-eight years and have been in a lot of different grades and subjects.  I substitute taught for awhile before I was lucky enough to have my own class.  Probably that was when I started using behavior modification and rewarding.  It grew from desperation.
My favorite modification program was with a second grade class.  It happened because I wanted to reward the students who simply did the right thing. I called it "Privileges" with the idea that some rewards were not automatic.  Some things were reserved for students who were willing to follow the rules-privileges that were earned.
It was pretty simple.  If you managed to keep your name off the board for the week, you selected a random coupon from the jar.  I then allowed a few minutes of discussion among the winners and if they chose to trade what they had selected this was their opportunity.  Then the coupons were safely stored in each desk until the student chose to collect the reward.
The rewards were designed to give the students some fun jobs or a chance to be in the spotlight. One reward I designed so that several students could join me in the classroom for lunch instead of the lunchroom.  I provided a small dessert and we chatted and had a relaxed lunch.  It was a nice chance to get to know them better. I found I enjoyed the lunches as much as the coupon holders.

I'm offering a selection of coupons that be used in any reward program you are using.  I've included one for lunch with the teacher.  I hope you enjoy it as well.

Reward Coupons with a Silly Monster Theme

Reward Coupons with a Train Your Dragon Theme

Brand New Power Point

Here's a brand new product.  It's a combination of an editable power point presentation and study guide lesson on the major bodies of water in the U.S.A. The presentation includes a wealth of historical facts and fun links to lots of other information.  The study guide includes a quiz as well as a coordinated sheet to match the slides. It also has several links to web cams and you can take your class on a virtual field trip in real time.  It supports RH.6-8.4 and RH.6-8.7.

Power Point And Study Guide-Where In The U.S.A. Am I? Major Bodies Of Water

Come and Get Great Savings!

 Everything in my Teacher's Notebook Shop is 20% off!
That include all products. That includes this 29 slide Power Point Presentation and collection of worksheets!

All You Need to Know About the 7 Continents and 5 Oceans

Fun Free Fall Word Search.

Here's a cute collection of 2 free word searches for Autumn.  They have a nice collection of fall words that are good for grades 2-3.  Answer keys are provided as well. You can use these as homework, morning work, or tuck one in with your guest lesson plans.   

Fun Free Fall Word Search

Heading back to school? Here's a few products that might make the job more fun.

I have over 600 products in a large range of grades and topics.  I also have my husband's amazing middle school social studies products.  His Power Points and worksheets on latitude and longitude are a thing of beauty.  I don't think that's just a proud wife's opinion judging by the 4 stars he tends to receive.  He has a few PPt's that include worksheets that really help get the job done.  You can save an amazing amount of time and get some really great lessons.  My task cards seem popular and I do have fun creating them. I try to bring an element of fun and work hard at making them as interesting as possible.   Also, my webquests are purchased frequently as well.  I carefully choose safe sites that should stand the test of time.  I keep a copy of Bloom's Taxonomy handy so I am sure to include all the domains I can when creating a quest.  I also include writing assignment or games or some kind of activity to pull it all together.

A 75 slide Power Point -Landforms-Primary-and-Secondary

Power Point 102 slide Age of Exploration

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Ultimate-Ancient-Egypt-Bundle-1027748

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Worksheet-ANCIENT-EGYPT-Latitude-Longitude-Questions-Map-386363

A Collection of 3 WebQuests -Lewis and Clark on The trail with Sacagawea

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Task-Cards-for-Multiplication-and-Division-Practice-Grade-3-Ice-Cream-Theme-1363937

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Math-Task-Cards-Number-Detective-Grades-5-6-

Decimals-to-the-Hundredths-1351647

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Webquest-Task-Cards-Greek-Mythology-Grades-4-7-1074340

Task Cards

Task cards come in handy for early finishers or students you feel could use the extra practice.  I have a collection of well over a 100 for all subjects and levels in both my TpT store and my Teacher's Notebook Shop.  Please stop by and check out what I have to offer.
Here's an example of a few with links.

Antonym Practice Task Cards Grades 4-5

Bundle of Second Grade Task Cards and Game 4CCSS-Fall Theme

Greek Myth Task Cards Grades 4-7

Here is a link to the main page listing all the task cards.
Linda McCormick's Task Cards