A Better Way to Use Punch Cards in the Classroom

Learn how to upgrade a standard behavior or incentive punch card with this simple hack to make a sticker punch card for instant positive reinforcement and long-term goal setting in one.

What Are Punch Cards?

A punch card is a piece of cardstock usually with a student name and a certain amount of “slots” that are punched by the teacher.  The slots can be punched when the teacher observes positive student behaviors – this is usually discussed ahead with the student as part of a classroom management plan or an individual behavior plan.  

You can also use punch cards to “save up” for something – for example a student receives a punch with every library book returned. Slots are typically punched with a traditional hole puncher.  Once the card is filled, the student earns either a prize or a non-tangible reward.

How to Use Punch Cards in the Classroom

There are many articles written about classroom rewards, incentives, punch cards, and the pros and cons of incentive-based classroom management systems.  Rather than debate the merits, I would advise teachers to read up on ways to use punch cards in the classroom and make their own informed decision. 

You know your students best and combined with best practices there are many ways to use punch cards that are worthwhile in the classroom. My one recommendation is to only punch for something positive, be mindful of the reward – is it achievable, is it extrinsic or intrinsic, is it meaningful – and to make objective and measurable goals.  

If you do use it for behavior, try to break the behavior into a specific positive one - rather than "good behavior" choose something concrete like "Raises hand at circle time" or "Pushes chair in."  For these type of goals, be sure to explain that students may not receive a punch EVERY time so the more they try, the more likely you will see it and punch it.

Also be sure to limit competition and comparison.  One way to do this is to have different goals for each student.  Students can even create their own goal to track. When students are involved in the process, they are more motivated to reach their goals too.  

My editable Emoji punch cards show in this article allow you to type in student names and goals / rewards so creating a different punch card for each student is easy.  I also find that differentiating punch cards and rewards reduces stress and students will earn punches at different times.

Punch Card Limitations

While punch cards do offer a visual recognition of achievement, some students struggle with long term rewards and might need feedback right away to continue to behavior.  In the beginning the punch itself provides that boost, but after a while some students may need more immediate recognition. 

For example, a student struggles with returning his take-home folder.  He creates a goal to track on his punch card so that each time he returns the folder, he get a punch.  After the card is full, he gets a special privilege…maybe he gets his pictures taken (holding the folder of course!) and his photo and card added to a Super Improver Wall or emailed home with a positive message.   However, for this particular student, filling the punch card is difficult and lengthy compared with his peers.  He feels frustrated and loses motivation.

Also, punch cards are limited in that the “progress” is only shown on the card itself.  This makes extra steps needed if you want to share these with parents.  Sending them back and forth opens up the chance that it will get lost.

Punch Card Hack

Solve the issues mentioned above by turning an ordinary punch card into a sticker punch card!  All you need to do is print punch cards onto full sheet sticker paper (or 4x4 large label paper).

Keep the back of the sticker paper on.  Depending on the “slots” of your punch card, you can use a circle puncher to punch out a space.  For my Emoji Punch Cards, each Emoji is roughly 16 mm or 5/8 inch so a circle puncher that punches that size works best.  

After punching the Emoji out, remove the backing paper and voila, the Emoji is now a sticker!

The punch card still shows how many “slots” are used for long-term tracking, but now students receive an instant reward!

You can have students keep stickers inside a take home folder or wear them home to share with families.  Students also like decorating their school supply bins and notebooks too.

Recommended Supplies

I recommend full sheets of printable sticker paper and labels.  The prices for this vary, but I have found the best deals on Amazon purchasing full sheet label paper. This Avery 8165 Label set comes in sets of 25, 50, 100, 500 sheets.  Since most punch cards print 4 to a page, you would not need more than 50 sheets for a year. You can also find off-brand label paper for even cheaper. Click the picture for more information about this package:

For punches, Amazon has a small selection including the Punch Bunch one I use but there are other options at Michaels and Hobby Lobby too.  Just be sure to use a punch that allows you to view the shape being punched so you can correctly line up the Emoji or other image on the punch card.  I have to flip mine upside down to view and then press, which isn't ideal but I'm used to it. 

My Emoji punch cards work best with a punch sized 16 mm or 5/8 inch. Click the images to see a quick sample of what is available:

If your punch cards have irregular slots or you want to save money, simply cut the sticker out in a square shape or use a larger sized circle punch.

Get my Editable Emoji Punch Cards here and check out Erintegration's other ideas and activities for using Emojis in the classroom. 

Have you ever used punch cards or other positive reinforcement classroom management techniques before? Share in the comments!

  

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What Parents Want - Tips from a Teacher Mom about Parent Communication

Studies repeatedly show that parental involvement in education has a direct impact on student achievement, yet teachers often struggle with getting parents actively involved in our classrooms. As professional demands increase for teachers and modern lifestyles keep families incredibly busy, it becomes even more challenging to build quality relationships with the parents of our students. However, we must invest time in reflecting on the effectiveness of our parent communication in order to maximize the positive impact on our students. This post is written by an anonymous classroom teacher that also happens to be a mother of three wonderful children. Read more to see how becoming a parent really changed her perspective about communication!

Dear Teachers,

When I began teaching, I always thought I was being very clear in my communication. I sent home newsletters, personalized emails and notes, and even invited parents into my classroom for special events. I assumed the parents in my classroom felt informed and understood my perspective. After I became a parent, I began to realize that I may not be communicating all that I originally thought. As teachers, we think a lot about HOW and HOW OFTEN to communicate with parents, but I wonder if we think as much about WHAT message our parents are really receiving from us about their child. Communication is more than the words we say to parents, but also what they hear and understand as a result.  Based on my experiences as both a parent and a teacher, I have developed these tips for better communication between parents and teachers.

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Building a Classroom Community

Teachers have an important task at the beginning of each school year - to help the students in their classroom become a cohesive unit that can truly work together as the year progresses.  It's important to me that my students feel like our classroom is a family, where they are loved and accepted, safe and respected. Developing a positive classroom community takes time, but it is time well-invested. Follow these tips to build a positive community in your own classroom this year! 

BE INTENTIONAL ABOUT RELATIONSHIP BUILDING.

Research has even shown that a teacher's relationships with her students has a greater impact on student learning than the teacher's content knowledge! In other words, it doesn't matter how much you know if your students don't know how much you care about them. Relationship-building should be intentionally built into your classroom through lessons and activities. It can be tempting to think we don't have the time to "waste" on relationship-building, but that's just not true! It's so important.

FOCUS ON BECOMING A FAMILY.  

All students (and people in general) have a deep, psychological need to belong. They need to know they are accepted and valued by the teacher and other students in the class.  One of my favorite ways to help my classroom feel more like a family is to have Family Meetings at the beginning and end of the day. I bring students together in a circle in the mornings and afternoons to have group discussions, solve problems we may be experiencing, and share positive affirmations. Some people have these meetings only once a week, but my students are most responsive when I host them every day. We begin and end the day together on the carpet. I lead the meetings at the beginning of the year, but then teach students how to take over ownership. In time, the students learn the protocol for how a family meeting is held and are leading them out. This time is really cherished by the students!

TEACH STUDENTS HOW TO INTERACT AND BUILD AFFILIATIONS WITHIN SMALL GROUPS. 

In order for students to truly work together in cooperative learning groups, they need to have time to get to know their team members more closely. This is why teambuilding activities are so important! Teambuilding Activities encourage students get to know one another better and develop positive peer affiliations.  Teambuilding is truly the foundation for cooperative learning tasks to be successful because it helps students learn how to interact within small groups. The first few weeks back in school are crucial for students to engage in teambuilding activities.  Some ideas for teambuilding activities include: 

• Team Motto/Mascot/Pennant/Shirt/Slogan, etc - Have students work as a team to design something and be prepared to explain the meaning behind what they designed. This is a great activity for table groups or teams that will be working together more often. 


• 2 Facts and a Fib -  This one is so much fun! Each person has to write down 2 facts and 1 fib about himself or herself. The team has to agree on what they think the fib is, then share out. I always model this one out at the teacher first, and I stump them every time! ("Yes, guys, I really was born during an earthquake, and no, that wasn't the fib!")

TEACH STUDENTS HOW TO INTERACT AND BUILD AFFILIATIONS AS A WHOLE CLASS. 

Teambuilding is a great way to teach students how to interact with one another in small groups, but Classbuilding intentionally teaches them how to interact with one another as a whole group. It is important to help your students build a class identity while still valuing the differences that make each student a unique member of the class. So often, they will form strong group bonds, so we need to get them out of their seats and interacting with people they don't always talk to! These activities are a fun way to mix up the class and get students building connections with new people. 

• Line ups - Line ups have students line up in order of shoe size, birthdays, number of siblings, from tallest to shortest, etc. Fold the Line Up for a fun discussion. Just have students at one end "fold the line" by walking back to the other end so each student is standing in front of another, then have them chat about a specific topic.


• Four Corners - Assign each corner a statement, such as Strongly Agree, Somewhat Agree, Somewhat Disagree, Strongly Disagree. Then read out statements and have students self-select which corner best describes their opinion on the topic. They can chat with members in the same corner about what they have in common or share out why they identify with that statement. 

You May Also Like: 

• Building Positive Classroom Culture - Learn the one magic ingredient for positive classroom culture, as well as specific guidelines and strategies to implement
• 10 Things I Wish I Knew Before My First Day Teaching - Learn from my mistakes so you can be better prepared for the unexpected things on your first day in the classroom! 
• How to Mentally Prepare for Your First Year Teaching - Practical ideas on how you can get ready this summer for your new teaching position!
• 10 Classroom Routines You Need Immediately - Have you overlooked these 10 important classroom routines? 

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3 Great Reasons to Launch Something New Now

Launch the new now? What? Why would I want to start something new at the end of the school year? Well, I have 3 great reasons that the end of the school year is the perfect time to start something new in your classroom.

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5 Apps for Motivation and Classroom Management

Are you at a point in the year when it's getting harder to motivate and grab your students' attention? I've come across some fun apps that will help you with your class management. These apps should keep your students motivated, engaged in the lesson, and behavior under control. 

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7 Uses for Colored Dot Stickers

Teachers are always looking for inexpensive and effective ways to organize their classrooms. Take a minute to check out these simple ideas for using colored dot stickers to make your life a little easier.

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Is Time on Your Side? Solutions for Making the Most of the Time You Have.

If you are struggling to fit it all in, then guess what? You are not alone. I can confidently say that every teacher I know has faced the crunch of time. Time is just not on our side. We run short to get all of the content in, time to remediate skills our students haven't mastered, time to complete grading, and time to complete all of our plans and preps. Therefore, the best we can do is make every minute count.

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3 Sanity-Saving Classroom Routines

Hi all!  It's Kady from Teacher Trap!  With the start of a new school year, I very quickly remembered my 3 favorite classroom routines and I want to share them with you today!  These routines have truly saved my sanity and made classroom management SO MUCH EASIER!

1. Morning Supply Check

This idea came to me after many frustrations with students not having supplies ready for the day. I can't stand hearing the pencil sharpener running during the school day, or hearing students complain that they don't have a glue stick while we're in the middle of a lesson.

In my room, students each have their own supply box, kept in their desk, and are responsible for having a certain set of supplies ready each day.  The supplies include: scissors, glue stick, markers in all basic colors, 2 sharpened pencils, 1 pen, 1 dry-erase marker, and 1 box of crayons.  (Everything else is shared as community supplies.)

The routine is simple.  As part of their morning jobs, students are supposed to prepare their supplies for the day.  Then, when announcements end, we do a quick "Supply Check."  (At our school we use "Dollars" as classroom incentives and students can use the Dollars to purchase rewards and privileges at a school store.  You could replace the Dollars with any little reward though!)  For the "Supply Check" I call out 3 different supplies from their box and students hold them up.  If they have all 3, students earn a Dollar.  For example, I might say, "Hold up your two sharpened pencils, a yellow marker, and your scissors."  Dollars all around!

This routine is quick and easy, and for me, has amazing results!  No more interruptions due to missing supplies.  Plus, students have to take responsibility for being prepared for the day.  The only time students may talk to me about missing supplies is BEFORE morning announcements when they are checking their box.

2. Restroom Responsibilities  

Bathroom breaks are another common interruption that I DO NOT want to hear about during the day. My bathroom routine is simple and I teach it to students on the very first day of school:

You know your own body.  You know when you need to go.  Take care of yourself but don't miss learning.

As a class, we discuss and chart "Good Times to Go" and "Not Good Times to Go."  Students are welcome to use the restroom or get water during any independent work times, during classroom breaks (like GoNoodle time!), or during partner or group activities if they go quickly.  We discuss the importance of being in the room during carpet meetings, lessons, and directions.

At my school, we have a bathroom in the classroom, so I train students to watch for times when the bathroom is empty rather than waiting near the door.  Before, when my students used the hallway bathroom, I used a little sign-out on a whiteboard where students wrote their name when they left and crossed it off when they returned.

I've done this procedure successfully with both first and third-graders.  I always explain that I am trusting students to make good choices.  If I see students abusing this system or choosing poor times, they can lose the privilege of going whenever and will have to raise their hands and ask for permission.  Amazingly, this has NEVER happened.  The kids seem to want this freedom so they make sure they don't lose it.

3. No "I'm Done."

This one changed my room big time!!  In fact, I wrote an entire blog post about this routine! During the first few days of school this year, I immediately remembered why I love this routine so much! After every activity, it was like a whack-a-mole of "I'm Done's."  "I'm done.  What do I do now?" Students were rushing through every activity to be the first to finish, or to find out what was next.  I was getting messy, half-finished work all over the place.

So on the third day of school, I introduced this routine.  I explained that sometimes there is no "I'm done."  That during many activities, I would expect students to use the entire time to improve or add to their work.  Writing Workshop is a great time to teach this because during independent writing time, I expect students to keep writing until the time is up.  We made a list of ways to improve or add on to work including rereading, adding details, and checking for mistakes.

I have cards on magnets that list the options for what students will do after finishing independent work.  They include: "Read Quietly"  "Begin Next Assignment"  and "No "I'm Done."  I use the "No "I'm Done" card more than any other because I want students to get in the habit of using all their work time and doing their best.  The kids quickly learn that there is no reward for being the first done or rushing through their work.

These simple routines have made such a difference in my classroom!  If you're struggling with the same issues I was, try it out!  And if you're looking for more ideas for routines and procedures, you might like my Editable Classroom Handbook.

I'd love to hear what other classroom routines have made your life easier!  Thanks for reading!

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Most Important Times In a Teacher's Day

Teaching can be overwhelming. There is so much pulling on our time with the students. We have standards, scope and sequences, and directives. We have parents, principals, and school boards. So many demands are put on our time with our students. But what really is the most important part of our school day? What should we focus our time on? What should happen each and every day?

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3 Things you Must Do on the First Day of School

It's almost time for me to head back to school, and I'm starting to plan my first day activities. The first day sets the tone for the rest of your year, so it's important to do three main things.

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5 Tips to Keep Students Engaged Until the Last Day

For many of us, spring break has come and gone, the standardized tests are done, and that can only mean one thing--it's almost summer break! The last few weeks of school go much more smoothly when you maintain a regular routine and keep your students fully engaged. Yet, it feels harder than ever to keep our students' attention! Use these 5 research-based strategies to help your students stay engaged up until the very last day of school. 

STAY POSITIVE AND PASSIONATE. 

A positive attitude is crucial for maintaining student engagement. We must make our own well-being a priority in these final weeks of school! According to Eric Jensen in Engaging Students with Poverty in Mind (2013), "You can positively affect students' states of mind simply by being in a positive state."  Feelings are contagious, which means students can tell when we are stressed and lacking motivation, so keep your emotions and body language in check.   

Take ownership of your attitude towards work, ensuring that it stays both positive and passionate. If it is getting harder to stay positive and motivated, start a new or special routine for yourself in the morning to get your mind in the right place before school. Write yourself positive affirmations and stick them on your mirror to read before leaving each morning. Make a playlist of your favorite music and listen during your commute.  During the school day, stay active. Move around the room and speak dynamically with hand-gestures. Make eye contact with your kids and smile. In the evening, take time to refresh yourself by pursuing your favorite hobby. Watch a motivating TED Talk in the evening or read a book for enjoyment. The strategies that work best will be unique to you, but the important thing is that you CHOOSE positivity and passion. 

One of my favorite TED Talks. 

EXPECT STUDENTS TO LEARN AND ACHIEVE. 

If students are starting to misbehave more, take some time to self-reflect. Is it possible that you have let your classroom expectations slide? This is so easy to do at the end of the year, but we must stand firm. Our expectations of students are critical for their success. In fact, research shows that teacher expectations have a significant impact on student achievement. Jensen (2013) states, "Students typically live out their own expectations, so effective teachers get students to expect more of themselves."

EXPLORE TOPICS THAT INTEREST YOUR STUDENTS.

Now is the perfect time to set aside the traditional materials and explore topics that truly interest your students. Ask them what they want to learn about, then plan some time to explore that topic together. This will help your students feel like they have more control over what they are learning, which significantly increases their ownership and engagement (Jensen, 2013).   

EMBRACE THE TEACHABLE MOMENTS.

Sometimes the best lessons aren’t planned. If a situation arises where you have the opportunity to explore a teachable moment, go for it! By taking the time to explore a teachable moment together, you are communicating to the students that their questions are valued and your class is a family. This helps students feel more safe about taking risks in the classroom. "When all members of the class are working together toward a positive learning effort, they build a collective social power" (Jensen, 2013). One year, one of my students brought in a Luna moth on the second to last day of school. We spent the entire morning researching Luna moths, then took the Luna moth on a little tour to other classrooms. The kids taught other students all they had learned from their research. Afterwards, we set it free outside. It was one of the best days! Exploring teachable moments is an important part of fostering positive relationships between teachers and students. 

INCREASE NOVELTY FOR ROUTINE TASKS. 

While it is important to keep your routines in place through the end of the school year, you can increase engagement by adding novelty to everyday procedures. Below are a few ideas for ways that you can increase the novelty of common tasks in the classroom. The ideas are geared towards grades 3-5, but can be easily adapted to other grade levels. 

Sustained Silent Reading: Make reading special! Go outside. Spread some blankets on the ground under a shade tree. Enjoy the sunshine and fresh air while reading, then have students share with friends about their books.

Graphic Organizers: Make graphic organizers come alive! Use hula hoops (or string) to create Venn Diagrams, then have students complete them with sidewalk chalk. 

Content-Area Vocabulary: Go on a scavenger hunt to find content-area vocabulary in the real world. Take students outside to look for fibrous roots under trees or types of clouds. Give them pipe cleaners to collect angles, then follow up with differentiated tasks, such as classifying angles as acute, obtuse, or right.

Math Facts Practice: Take students outside to go on a Math Facts Relay where students work as a team to write all the math facts in a set. They can write them on the asphalt with sidewalk chalk or on big sheets of butcher paper with a marker.  

Measurement and Data: Do something fun to collect data from the class. Measure how far paper airplanes fly or how far baking soda and vinegar "rockets" fly. Shoot hoops and record how many people score from different distances. Then have students represent the data in different types of graphs. Have them practice finding mean, median, mode, and range with their real-life data.  

Writing: Have your students write for an actual audience -- next year's students! Have them each write a letter to a student in next year's class of their top 10 tips for being successful in your classroom, then share them with students when you come back to school in the fall. 

I hope that these ideas help you stay motivated and encouraged as the school year draws to a close. What are some of your favorite ways to keep students engaged until the last day? I'd love to hear more in the comments below.

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Revisiting Routines

Routines save my sanity!  Not to mention they empower your students.  When your students have an understanding of the expectations and clear routines they need you less! This frees you up to do the fun stuff, the teaching, the in depth conversations and explorations.

Of course the ideal time to introduce your basic routines is during the first few months of school. We all know that setting up, modeling, training and checking for understanding of procedures is fundamental to the success of your classroom. However, I have found not only do we hit points in the year that we clearly need some refreshers, I occasionally have new ideas and routines I want to add or change.  I am always on the look out for ways I could do things better.

Here are few of my Go-To Routines:

My Good Morning Song

Yep, I sing it every single day. No, I don't have a beautiful voice, but thankfully 2nd graders don't seem to care.  Years ago I changed up the words to  "Good Morning, Good Morning" from Singing In the Rain.  You can download a copy of my version here and  tweak for your classroom if you like.

Here is how it works, kids come in and start putting their things away, they greet one another, and begin our calendar work (another routine). At some point I start singing.  My students know that when I finish the song they are expected to be in their seats, with their supplies, ready to begin the day.  As soon as I finish the song we are off and running.  No need to get everyone's attention, no waiting for anyone to get ready.  They know what they expectations are for when I am done singing and it helps that the song is long enough that if they were straggling they have time to hustle to their seats!

Pencil Sharpening

Doesn't everyone struggle with how to manage this one?  Currently, this routine is working, but I confess I am pretty surprised at how well.  There is simply NO pencil sharpening in my classroom. Yep, you read that right. All pencils are sharpened at the very end of the day either by my classroom pencil sharpener or by me if we are short on time.

I believe this is working so well primarily because of my pencil numbering system. I keep a dull can, a sharp can, and an emergency can in the classroom.  Students are responsible for leaving their dull pencils in the can as needed, and they can retrieve them each morning nice and sharp. I only implemented the emergency can recently. In it are short pencils my students have donated to the class when they get their two new numbered pencils every month or so.

Packing Up

Much like my morning routine, my end of the day routine looks exactly the same each day.  When given the direction my students know to get their binders, copy the board and write a reflection for their day.  At the beginning of the year I walk around the room and monitor and check to make sure they are using their student planner correctly and writing quality reflections.  Eventually, this is no longer necessary.  Additionally, my students know that upon completion they should, put their binder in their backpack, dull pencils in the dull can, and start helping to clean up any parts of the room that need tidying until I say it is time to line up.  

A Place For Everything

This is especially challenging in my current classroom as it's much smaller than any I have had before.  That said, I still try establish spots around the room so students know where to find and put things. We have a "Finished Work" tub, reading journal tubs, student mailboxes, unit folders. listening center box, containers for all math manipulatives, extra paper trays, etc.  You get the idea. Students quickly learn to put things in their proper locations.   Once the students have learned how we keep an organize things I can rely on them to help keep things organized....for the most part!

Transitions

Transitions can be a  major time waster!  Even with my set routine I find that depending on the day I still lose more time than I would like every now and then.  Our routine for transitions look like this: a few minutes before we need to start making the transition I will give the class a heads up that we have a 1-2 minutes remaining.  When it's time to transition if we need to move or put things away I will ask the students please stand quietly behind their chairs.  I let them know I am looking for the table that is ready to switch and I individually compliment students who look ready.  This is a good time to use whatever class reward system you have.  I give table points and tickets, especially when I am training this routine.

This all happens very quickly.  Students know that we are going to switch quickly and they need to be ready.  In my room we have a VIP table and if they are ready I will dismiss them first to make the transition. Sometimes we all transition at the same time, and at those times I will provide a countdown so that students know how much time they have to accomplish the switch.  I can speed up or slow down the countdown as needed, but when I say "BLAST-OFF!" the students know they are expected to be quiet and ready to move on to whatever is next.

I could go on and on about routines and classroom management, but I will save my ideas for another time. I feel pretty passionately about the importance of setting up routines in order for classrooms to run smoothly.  I have seen so many great teachers with tons of unique and brilliant ideas.  I would love to hear what routines you have that you just love so please share in the comments!

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How to End Your Week On a High Note: A Friday Favorite!

By the time Friday rolls around, I  think it's safe to say that we all need a break-students and teachers alike. However, there is also a hint of excitement when Friday morning arrives, with the promise of the weekend in close sight. In Room 65, however, the excitement is tangible. Students arrive with smiles on their faces, conversation is abuzz with excited whispers, and everybody has a little extra pep in their step.

"Why?" you ask. I'll tell you why---it's "END OF THE WEEK AWARDS" ceremony day! The moment all of my kids wait for and talk about endlessly all week long.

A few months ago, I began thinking about my end of the year awards. I took a moment to think about each student's strengths and began mentally assigning them awards as the end of the year draws closer.

Once I began thinking about the awards, I felt myself becoming anxious and impatient, wanting so desperately for the day to come. Then, I thought, "Why wait?" And, my friends...a star was born.

End of the Week Awards are specific motivational certificates to recognize student successes during the week. We hold a Friday awards ceremony during our morning meeting, but these awards really can be used anytime. It just makes it a little more special and important to look forward to a formal ceremony every Friday morning.

There are over 25 awards with a wide range of recognitions. I have even created a checklist to keep track of which students get the awards every week so I can space them out fairly and make sure all students are rewarded regularly.

Prep is SO easy. I keep a binder of all awards with a few copies of each one in separate sleeves. Every Friday morning, I flip through the binder and pop a few out that I want to use.

Another plus? This is a great character-building routine. As I announce each award, I give an example of what the student has done to earn that award. Throughout the week, I recognize behavior that is award-worthy. It makes students aware of their choices and reminds them of their goals in the classroom.

Easy, exciting, and motivating--what more could you want in a Friday morning? :)

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Daily 5 in my Upper Elementary Classroom

Hey guys! It’s Kristen from Chalk & Apples. When I first learned about the Daily 5, I loved the idea. It’s such a simple way to manage centers so that the teacher can focus on meeting with small groups. In my classroom, though, I ran into a couple of issues... a lack of adequate time and difficulty finding engaging, age-appropriate activities made implementing Daily 5 difficult in my 5th grade class. Today, I want to share some solutions that have helped Daily 5 work for my big kids.

Time Management with 30/30

I recently found an app that I absolutely adore! It's called  30/30, and while this particular app is only available in iTunes, there's an Android alternative.

This app allows you to set time limits for activities, starting and stopping them whenever you want, rather than based on the time of day. I have mine set up for three 20 minute rotations with 2 minutes of transition time in between and 2 minutes of clean-up at the end. If you get off track or need to go long with a group, you can even pause it, skip ahead, or add/subtract 5 minutes with a tap. It has a unique sound, and my students are trained to swap centers when they hear it! (PS: It's pretty good for blog-post-writing and TPT-creating time too! I set it to remind me to get up and move every half hour!)

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Classroom Management That WORKS!

I hope you have gotten off to a great start this school year!  I hope you have a classroom filled with direction-followers and students that can't wait to work and participate in all of your daily expectations.  Does this sound like your classroom?  Or, are you already in need of some classroom management tweaks?  Whether you are finding classroom management success or in need of some inspiration for changes, I have some tips to help right away. 

Teaching 6th graders for 15 years has taught me many things-some good, some bad, some a little scary.  No matter what has come my way, I adore this age.  What I have found is that they are really motivated by an incentive system, and they LOVE to earn things.  So, I turned this understanding into creating a system on my instructional team where students earn "BUCKS" throughout the week to spend in our grade-level store.  Grab this resource to find out just how I created a way to inspire my students.

In a nutshell, I cleared out a classroom closet, bought twenty clear bins and decorative baskets, labeled them with currency amounts, bought items that my students would love to work for, looked for donations, and vowed that every Friday would be our Eagle Buck Store Shopping Day!  …and it was a raging success.  My students wanted to earn Eagle Bucks because they wanted to have the opportunity to shop each week, so work ethic and behavior improved.

I move some things from the closet to the back table.

Items my students LOVE to buy!

It has grown into so much more than I could have imagined with students helping to run the store, AMAZING donations from local businesses, and other teachers implementing a store into their grade levels.  While I certainly don’t have all of the answers and can only speak of my experience, if you are looking for a way to motivate your hard to inspire students, or for a tool that can improve behavior management, this is a really fun way to achieve those goals that will cost very little.

I promise your students will be inspired with some incentives to work for.  Keep me posted on the positive changes you find.

Happy Teaching!

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