Books to help you recharge over the Summer

Hello Friends, it's Erin from The Elementary Darling. The countdown is on! I have about four weeks left before the end of the year, and this is the time that I start planning for the summer and organizing for the beginning of the year. I know some of you are thinking, "She is crazy!" and I might be a little bit, BUT the end of the year is the best time to organize and plan.  Last year, I wrote this post about what I do a the end of the year, and Kristin wrote this post, about planning during the end of the year.

But TODAY, I am going to show you my favorite professional development books. Obviously, I would recommend checking out one or two based on your needs, however they are ALL amazing!

For the teacher that needs to RECHARGE

I love anything written by Ron Clark, but Move your Bus is my favorite. I reread it often to remind myself to be a runner! If you don't know, his co-owner of The Ron Clark Academy is Kim Bearden, and her book, Crash Course will remind you why you went into teaching. It is my ultimate favorite! I also recently found the book Conscious Discipline, thanks to my friend, Theresa from True Life I'm a Teacher. This book is all about teacher mindset. I just started it, and I am loving it!

Throughout this post, you’ll find Amazon Affiliate links. This means I receive a small commission if you purchase something through that link, at no extra cost to you, that helps keep my blog running and helps fund giveaways!

For the teacher beginning Reading Groups

These books are good for reading groups, or ideas for your groups. Even if you have been implementing reading groups for several years, I know you will find something useful in them! These two books are my everything when it comes to Guided Reading. Jan Richardson has everything you need, including strategies and printables in this book for every level of guided reading. The Daily Five book is great for anyone who uses a grouping method for reading.  I also LOVE Word Nerds. This book has amazing ideas for vocabulary instruction. While I would recommend it for 2nd grade and above, it could be modified for Kindergarten and 1st grade.

For the teacher looking for Math Group ideas

I LOVE this book! Debbie Diller is an amazing math group guru, and she has fabulous ideas in this book! It is for grades K-2, so if you have a book suggestion for 3-6, I would love to hear it!

For the teacher looking for Differentiation Ideas 

If you are a GenEd teacher and you have a huge range of student abilities in your classroom, these are my top picks! I got my gifted endorsement several years ago and the book, Teaching Gifted Kids in Today's Classroom is my all time favorite. It has so many suggestions to extend the learning of higher level students.  Advancing Differentiation and How to Differentiate Instruction for Mixed Ability Classrooms are both amazing and so helpful when your classroom ranges in ability levels.

For the teacher looking for IDEAS or Strategies

How many times have we all run out of ideas or needed new fresh strategies for teaching a topic?  I recently found these books this year, and I never knew what I was missing. THEY ARE SO GOOD! You can use these books no matter what ELA format you use. It is literally a book full of strategies for every level. They do cost a little more, but honestly, they are worth EVERY penny. You can find the reading one here and the writing one here. These two will be the ones that I will be reading over the summer!

What professional development books will you dive into this summer? Whether you are reading to recharge, learn new strategies, or try a new method, these books will help you achieve your goal! Do you have an awesome book that I didn't show, leave it in the comments below! Happy Reading!

4 Fun Fall Math Freebies

Happy autumnal equinox... It's FALL y'all!

This is Kristin from School and the City and I'm so excited about today's post. I thought we could kick off this fall season with a collection of FREE fall math ideas and resources!

ADDITION

I just adore this super-cute "Add the Room" activity by Kamp Kindergarten. My favorite thing about this is her alternative idea to place the task cards in a mini photo album and have students write the answers using dry erase markers. What a fun idea for early finishers!

Click HERE to download.

PLACE VALUE

Mandy from Mandy's Tips for Teachers is full of fun fall-themed ideas. I love these candy corn puzzles! Students will create a candy corn by matching a number in standard form to it's word form and expanded form. You can differentiate for your students by using puzzles to the hundreds place or puzzles to the thousands place. I can't wait to use this as a review station with my kiddos; I know they will love it! 

Click HERE to download.

EVEN AND ODD

This next freebie, my own, is an oldie but goodie. It's been my featured free product in my TPT store for years now. I actually use it with my own students every year!

It's an even and odd SCOOT, or "around the room," activity. I have the numbers represented in four different ways to add rigor and variety: standard form, addition equations, ten frames, and word form.

Click HERE to download.

ESTIMATION

This last freebie, also by Mandy at Mandy's Tips for Teachers, is a recording sheet that you can use as a center during math. You can bring in real pumpkin seeds (which I think would be super cute) or use counters as the "seeds" for estimation.

Click HERE to download.

Will you be using one of these fun freebies in your classroom this fall? Let us know if a comment below!

Treats Without the Sweets {FREEBIE}

Hey Friends! It's Theresa from True Life I'm a Teacher!

If you're joining us for the first time...WELCOME! For the month of February we are sharing "Sweet Treats" which involve lots of freebies just for YOU!

Now that we have the pleasantries out of the way...let's get on with the good stuff!!!

Since Valentine's Day falls on a Sunday this year, many classes are exchanging Valentines on Friday, which is just two days away! Yikes! If you haven't made it to the store (#targetrun), I've got you covered. All you need is your printer!

My sweet seconds will be trading cards, goodies, treats, and sweets, but I'm taking a different approach. That is, I'm NOT giving my kiddos candy, but they are going to LOVE {pun intended} the treat I have for them.

Lately, my darlings have been OBSESSED with "fortune tellers" - although, when I was in school we called them "cootie catchers." Regardless of what you call them, they are apparently all the rage right now, and my May drawer - you MAY get it back, you MAY NOT - is filling up with confiscated fortune tellers to prove it.

So, I'm actually going to GIVE my students EACH a fortune teller themed with hearts, flowers, and sweet sentiments.

Fortune tellers are super easy to fold together, and honestly, the folding is part of what makes them so fun! In case you've never made one, or your kiddos have never made one, start by cutting around the edge of fortune teller...you need to start with a square.

Once you've have a square, here's how your fold it:

First, place the square face up, and fold in half. Unfold. Then fold in half again, so that you have created an X.

Next, with the printed side still face down, fold the corners to the center of the paper.

Next, flip the paper over so that the folds/flaps you just made are face down. Now, fold in the corners again, just like you did in picture 4.

Once again, flip the paper over so that the folds/flaps are face down. Fold the paper in half (both vertically and horizontally). 

Slide your thumbs and index fingers under the flaps. Voila...Fortune Teller!

You can grab your Valentine's Day fortune teller freebie HERE (or by clicking the picture below)! I included the fortune teller you see in the pictures, as well as one in which you could personalize with your own sweet sentiments.

Be sure to check back each day of February for other sweet treats!

And...for even more ideas from The Primary Peach, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to catch all the latest news and updates!