How I Organize Back to School Forms

Hi everyone! It's Haley from My Silly Firsties. I can't believe we are already thinking and talking about Back to School forms! It feels like we were just gearing up for Summer! 

I know that so many of us make resolutions each school year, and for me, they almost always center around organization. I am just not organized, hahaha. It will never be my strength, BUT I have found some easy ways to manage paperwork at school. I have found that using binders and folders keeps me sane and makes organization way easier. 

During the first week of school, I think almost everyone sends home a Parent/Student Information Sheet. Our school collects this information, but it can be hard to access, and I like to have something tailor-made to my class. So, I usually send my own form home and HOPE they all come back, haha! I have a few tips on keeping these forms organized! :) 

First, it's super important that you find a form that is perfect for your class and will actually be USEFUL to you! You can find lots of editable forms on TPT and teacher blogs! I make sure to give parents the opportunity to write about their child...it helps so much if I can understand how they view their child's strengths and weaknesses! 

I send home a double-sided page, but I actually think it's better to send 2 separate forms. I have found that parents don't always fill out the back, but they will almost always realize there are 2 sheets. 

Here's an example of the forms I send home each year. 

After I have collected the forms, I keep them in a safe place. In the past, I have hole-punched them and kept them in a binder, but I found these adorable folders at Target and thought they would be perfect for keeping forms in that I don't need to access everyday.

Since I don't like to pull these out everyday, I keep all the information for my whole class on a few little cheat sheets. Those would definitely go in my binder so they are always at my fingertips!

Here are examples of these forms! 

I also found this fabulous FREE form to send home by sweet Lisa! 

Thanks for stopping by! :) I'd love to hear how your organize your forms! 

Back to School Ice Breaker Activity

Hey everybody!  This is Terry from Terry's Teaching Tidbits.  I don't know about you, but I only have one week left of summer vacation and then it's back to the classroom for another year of teaching 5th graders.

As a 5th grade teacher, it's very important to get your students' attention on the first day of school and amp them up for a fantastic year, especially because in my school it's the last year of their elementary career.  To do this, I have a great ice breaker activity that I like to do with my class; it's one that I did back when I did musical theatre as a kid in order to become more comfortable with our castmates.

On the very FIRST and very LAST day of school, I do this same activity.  I even tell my students this when we get started.  I have everyone arrange their desks in a huge circle and we each get a piece of lined paper and a writing utensil.  Everyone writes their name on the very top of the paper.  When everyone is ready, I say "pass" and we pass the paper to the left.  Whatever name is on the paper that is in front of you, you have to write one positive thing about that person.  Once everybody has written on the paper in front of them, I say "pass" and we once again pass to the left.  A few important things during this activity - everyone is quiet and everyone must write something and it can only be positive.

After a lot of passing, the activity is over when you receive the paper back that has your name on the top.  When you get it, you read all of the wonderful things that everybody had to say about you.  I have my students put it somewhere special and safe where they can pull it out at any time if they are having a bad day.  I usually suggest their pencil pouch.  I keep mine in my desk.  I know have 5 years worth of first day and last day papers of compliments and I still love reading them to this day.

The reason I have my students do this activity on both the first and last day is because it's amazing how much the comments change in that time.  They go from being more superficial comments such as "I like your hair" to, "you really made me laugh all year long".  The comments become more personal, and they are definitely more meaningful on the page that I receive back with my name on it.   This activity can be just as important for us as teachers as it can be for our students.  My students are usually harassing me by the last week of school about when we're going to do the activity from the first day.

For those of you who have students in upper grades, I definitely recommend this activity.  It's a fantastic way to boost every student's self esteem on the first day, allow them to get to know their classmates, and to especially make any new students in the class feel welcome.  I've only seen positive results with this and I hope that you can use it in your classroom.

Here's to a great new school year!

10 Things to Do BEFORE You Set Up Your Classroom

Hey, there, friends! It's Laura from Peace, Love, and First Grade!

Back to School IPAD Apps

Hi everyone!

 

Its Latoya over at Flying into First Grade !!!

 

I am here to share with you some apps that could be useful for the beginning of the year but also throughout the year.

 

 

 

 

I had the honor of attending a SEE math conference for 2 weeks this summer.  They gave us so many resources and manipulatives.  The best gift was the free IPAD I received during the training.  We learned aboiut many apps that can be used in the classroom.  You will find my favorite 4 apps that I learned below!!!

 

Here is a quick example I found on youtube!

 



 

Here is a quick example I made!!!

 



Here is an example that I created in the training.

 

Here is just a quick example I did last night.

 

 

 

Now Im off to go pack up my classroom so I can move!!!!

 

 

Getting the Most Out of Professional Development

You hear it announced at the beginning of the school day and you dread it ALL. DAY. LONG! Or, you are happily enjoying your summer break and you get an email or text that makes your heart drop... PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SESSION- attendance "optional", but not really, if you know what I mean.

Yup, we have all been there before. I will admit that in my 15 years of being in the world of education, I have sat through some pretty crumby professional development sessions/classes where I felt I knew more about the topic being presented than the presenter. I was grouchy and didn't want to listen or hear what was being discussed!

On the flip-side of that, I too, have sat through many AMAZING sessions of professional development where I left inspired, invigorated, and ready to get the proverbial party started!

I have spent the past couple of weeks reflecting on this topic. I am now an administrator who will be giving these professional development opportunities to my staff. What made some sessions so amazing, and others so lame?

I realized it was ME! It dawned on me that I played a HUGE role in the value I got out of those professional development sessions. I also realized that there were some key components to getting the most out of each and every session- regardless of the topic, the presenter, or the time of day!

So, read on, dear PD'er! I am excited to share a few of these tips with you!

1) Have A Positive Attitude
No I am not just saying this because I am a new principal. I have been a negative Ned most of my life. I tend to be very pessimistic about many things.  However, I found that when I had a positive attitude, even if I had to "pretend" I was glad about the PD session, that I was more attentive and willing to listen to what was being shared. I tried to smile more in the session and remind myself that something in this presentation WILL make me a better teacher!

Also, be sure to avoid or shut down negative talk about professional development. A simple, "Really? I am looking forward to our meeting today!" is usually enough to get the negative Nellys and Neds to zip it!

2) Get AND Use A PD Notebook/Journal
I learned the value of this from my second principal- Jane Friel. She was a ROCK STAR at modeling for us as teachers things to do and try in our classrooms during PD sessions and Faculty meetings. Each year we would get a new composition notebook that had our name, grade, and year on it. Sometimes were "required" to take notes or reflect on the the learning of the meeting, but mostly it was a place to write down key ideas and take-away points from articles/presentations that were part of the on-going PD at that school. I still have all THREE of the ones I received while working in her school. Even better, I still flip through them from time to time and find the learning still relevant to me today!

I found that when I listened with the foreknowledge of wanting to write down the key ideas, I was able to focus and truly listen. It made a HUGE difference in my learning and understanding.

3) Have A Discussion ASAP!
I have found that when I sit down, whether it is later that day or the next, with a colleague that also attended (or even one that didn't) and discuss key points, that I am able to better retain the information, get new insights from the person I am sharing with, and have a more positive experience overall. In fact, knowing that I will be sharing with someone else, makes me take better notes and ponder about ideas.

However, note that sitting next to your besties and talking off-topic the whole time will NOT be a helpful activity. Side-conversation is distracting to others around you and a real downer for the person presenting. To top it all off, it makes you look unprofessional as well- something we ALL want to avoid!

If no one wants to listen to you when it is all said and done, then write a Facebook post, blog post, share your ideas on Instagram, or even do a quick Periscope video- someone out there will listen and respond! I know I would!


GET REAL MR. HUGHES....
So, I want to make it clear that I understand that some professional development will just suck eggs. That's all there is to it! Sometimes the required topics are annoying- or "just another thing" we have to do. But, if we refer to Tip #1, we will find that regardless of the topic- something useful, positive, and constructive can truly come from ANY training, in-service, or session you are required to attend.

And, if the offering is optional- make it a point to go. Knowing you are there because you CAN be and not because you HAVE to be, will also make a huge difference in your attitude and learning.

Now that I have shared my TOP 3 TIPS for GETTING THE MOST OUT OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT with you- it's YOUR turn! I would love to hear what tips you have to offer about how to get the most out of professional development! Leave your thoughts in the comment section below! I can't wait to hear from you! SCORE!

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful WEEK! WAHOO!

YOU ROCK-
John, Created by MrHughes

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Don't miss the other AWESOME posts from this month. 

Click on the picture to learn and read more! WAHOO!

Getting To Know Your Students

Hi everyone,

Valerie here from All Students Can SHINE! I'm only a few weeks into my summer break and I'm already planning my first week back! Today, I'm here to share some ideas for getting to know your students on that very busy first week of school. Starting over with a brand new group can be quite overwhelming because we don't know much about our students yet and that makes everything a little tricky. I have a few tips for you that I hope will help!

On the very first day of school, I like to ask my students lots of questions. Kids LOVE to talk about themselves so I use this to my advantage. Those little learners can come to you very nervous and shy but you can turn that around really quickly by asking them to chat about themselves. 

We usually go around the room, giving everyone a chance to share a small personal fact. I use this wheel and give each student a chance to spin it. It gets kids moving (which can be very helpful for those little guys who don't like sitting for too long) and makes it fun because we get a different question every time a student spins!

We also fill out an "all about me" page. This is an easy way to assess my students' coloring and printing skills, which will help me quickly get to know them as learners in my classroom. 

Finally, we play a scavenger hunt game. Students walk around the classroom to chat with their new friends and to fill out their "find a friend" page. 

By the end of the day, everyone has had the opportunity to share a few things about themselves and learn about their new peers. It's a great way to break the ice and start the new school year on the right foot. It isn't stressful and helps everyone feel welcome!

Don't forget to grab yourself a FREEBIE before you go. 

(You will need to download the preview file to get it)

If you are looking for more tips for the first week of school,
check out my post at All Students Can SHINE.

You can also check out more posts from our fabulous authors here at the Primary Chalkboard. 

We have loads of tips and tricks for K-6!

I hope some of these tips will help you and I wish you a great first day of school,

Valerie

Helping students keep track of their pencils!

I don’t know about you, but kids not having the supplies they need to do their work drives me CRAZY! Crazy, I tell you.  The problem is that I GIVE them everything they need. EVERYTHING and they lose it, eat it, leave it on the floor, claim, “It’s not mine!” and let their neighbor take it. So one kid has 6 pencils and another has none.

Enter Vodka.

Actually enter this brilliant idea! I flag my pencils with masking tape, write the child’s name on the pencil flag,  and reward the child for keeping track of their pencils until they are all used up.

So what are you waiting for? Grab some masking tape and let’s do this. Simply wrap tape around the pencil and fold the tape back in on itself. Trim the edge for a nice clean finish.  This is a great job for a parent volunteer. I have used many kinds of tape to make the flags. I have found that masking tape works best. It’s easy to work with, write on, and though it can rip, it is pretty durable! I keep about 100 at the ready all the time.

You can hand out the awards in many ways. I like to give a child an award when they use up a pencil. You can also surprise the class with a pencil check. Anyone who still has their pencil gets a responsibility award.