Decoding Vocabulary Words: Teaching Root Words, Prefixes, and Suffixes in Upper Elementary

Root words have the power to decode the English language. Teaching students root words gives new English readers the ability to work through words to seek meaning rather than leaning on the dictionary (or Siri) to provide them with a quick definition. The ‘Root’ of Change In a contrast to typical ‘sit and get’ learning, contemporary education is leaning more and more toward problem-solving and ... Read More about Decoding Vocabulary Words: Teaching Root Words, Prefixes, and Suffixes in Upper Elementary

8 Real-World Project-Based Challenges for Teaching Measurement in Upper Elementary

Teaching measurement has never been more fun when you use these 2 review activities and 8 real-world, project-based challenges with your upper elementary or middle school students. Teaching Measurement Whether you’re cooking, building, or running, measurements are an integral part of your life which makes teaching measurement in upper elementary super important. Measurements are typically ... Read More about 8 Real-World Project-Based Challenges for Teaching Measurement in Upper Elementary

5 Ways to Ease Back in After Winter Break

The holidays are buzzing and winter break is near! It’s time to start thinking about what you want the spring semester to look and feel like in your classroom. You’ve been planning all of your pre-winter break activities. Many of which you may have even found in our blog post Holiday School Resources: Celebrate the Holidays without the Party, but with only a few days left, and a desperate need ... Read More about 5 Ways to Ease Back in After Winter Break

Teaching Theme in Upper Elementary

5+ new ideas for teaching theme in upper elementary. Use these suggestions for activities, scaffolding, projects, and review to give your students a firm foundation for identifying theme in literature. We teach our students lessons every day, but when it comes to teaching them to FIND the lesson (or theme) when they are reading, our students often struggle to see past the main ... Read More about Teaching Theme in Upper Elementary

2 Unique Strategies for Teaching Main Idea

What’s the big idea? It may have been a go-to line for the Three Stooges, but many upper elementary teachers are asking the same question to their students almost every day, and have been for many years. Today we are going to provide two brand-new strategies for discussing and identifying the main idea. Before we begin though, let’s get on the same page. What is the Main Idea? The main ... Read More about 2 Unique Strategies for Teaching Main Idea