1-2-3 Come Make Some Posters With Me

I've learned that when it comes to young children, keeping things simple is a recipe for success.  With that in mind, I designed this simple rules poster.  Use it to review, reinforce and remind. 

This is the latest addition to a lot of other posters and anchor charts that I have on TeachWithMe.com  Over 50 are just a click away. 

I LOVED using posters as a quick way to decorate my room and our hallway, for the various seasons and themes that we studied throughout the year.  Having taught PK, K, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 9th, 10th, 12th and college, you can imagine the collection I accumulated over the years!  They were not easy to part with, but I'm glad to say they have been happily recycled.

Since I wanted to post the newest addition and blog about it, I needed a bit more of an article, so here are a few of my favorite classroom-management type posters.  I've also used posters as a writing prompt, asking my students what they thought and if they agreed or disagreed with the poster.  Click on the various hot links below to grab your copies.

"Please ZIP your lips!" was something that I taught my students on the first day of school. 

Since sewing is one of my hobbies, I had a few zippers on hand, so I took them to school, laying one on my chalk sill, another on my desk, and a 3rd by my reading chair. 

To signal silence, I'd hold up the real zipper and zip it shut.  My students would then pretend to zip their lips. 

It was a simple and effective way to start story time, and my students really enjoyed the monkey-see monkey-do zipping. 

Sometimes, we'd sing the "Zip Your Lips" song, when we prepared to get ready to transition or go somewhere.  Click on the link to view/download the "Zippy" posters and song.

"Owl" Be Watching is an effective, yet gentle reminder, to make wise choices.  Making students take responsibility for their actions and holding them responsible with consequences, is a must for successful classroom management.

I got the idea for my "Dear Students"  poster from Caroline’s 6 point-note to her 3rd grade English students in SC.  Check out her cute Tupelo Honey blog by clicking on the link.

To make your new students feel extra special, run off copies and tuck them in their take home folders or Open House packets, then display one on your classroom wall. 

Likewise, the "In This Classroom..." poster (another tweaked idea) is a nice addition to your classroom booklet.

Studies have shown that good readers are risk takers. 

It's important to foster the idea that it's OK to make mistakes, so students feel at ease making a "guess-timate" and taking the risk of being wrong.  It's simply how we learn.

With that in mind, I designed this pencil poster. 

Remembering to put their name on all of their work, was something that I reminded my students of daily. 

To help with that in  a fun way,  I taught my students this simple rhyme and then made it into a poster that hung above our "turned in work" basket.

"You get what you get, so don't get upset!" was another rhyme that I taught my Y5's.  This is especially handy if you have young ones who pout and/or pitch a fit when they don't get their 1st choice or color preference. 

My little ones were quick to pick up on this, so whenever a child carried on, at least one, if not more students would kindly chant the rhyme to them.

The other Don't Get Upset poster in this pack, is for when students cop an attitude when they don't get to participate, or do a special craftivity, because they did not complete their work.  This "Don't Get Upset" poster is a gentle reminder of the choices they made. 

 If you're like me, you hate it when children continue to whine and give excuses for not following through, staying on task, or completing an activity. This little "Make an Effort Not an Excuse" poster is one of my favorites.

If you practice the "bucket filling" philosophy or simply want your students to consider their words and actions, you may find the "Trading Places" poster helpful. 

Have you used the technique of "Put your thinking caps on?" I actually had my Y5's pretend to put one on, and then make a goofy noise to show me that theirs was working. 

We'd zip our lips and be ready to get down to business.  Click on the link for a cute picture of a "real" thinking cap that I made into a poster. 

Finally, I had to throw in a silly little teacher poster  to make an even dozen FREEBIE posters today.  I hung all sorts of paper "stuff" (poems, posters, quotes, pictures and notes) inside my cupboard doors that would make me smile, or give me a much-needed lift. 

We all need this boost to our spirits, especially if it's been a challenging day -- and the reason we became a teacher in the first place is clouded by craziness.  Thus, I give you my "Whew!" poster, for when you've had one of those days.  I'm sure you can relate, as we've all been there; done that!

Thanks for visiting today.  Hopefully you found at least one goodie that you can use in your classroom, as you prepare for a "clean slate" and exciting brand new year. 

A zillion more ideas are floating through my head, so I'm off to jot them down before they disappear like my summer seems to be doing!

"There's no tired, like teacher tired at the end of the first, last, or party day!"

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I found with teaching little ones, keeping rules simple and then demonstrating them, set the stage for a great year.  Hang up this simple rules poster and use it as an easy way to review and remind.

 1-2-3 Come Make A First Day Activity With Me

I know a lot of teachers have a Dr. Seuss theme for their classrooms, so I thought I'd make an activity you can do with your students on the first day of school. 

Simply run off the template.  On each stripe of the cat's hat, students write the things that they enjoyed doing the most and then color the stripes.  Add a first day photo for that finishing touch. 

Encourage older students to use complete sentences.  Younger students can simply write a word or two. 

You may want to start by brainstorming with your kiddos.  To help them with spelling, jot their answers on the board.

There's a hat without the 1st day sentence as well, so you can also use this activity during March's celebration of Seuss or a Cat in the Hat Day.

I've included a poster with another similar Seuss quote. Use it to introduce the above activity, or for a discussion at the end of the day of what your students enjoyed the most, and how everyone contributed to making that first day special.

Click on the link to view/download the Seuss Hat First Day Writing Craftivity. 

Thanks for visiting today.  I hope your days are as filled with fun as mine are. 

I'm off to watch my grandson (22 months) play in his kiddie pool.  So loving summer...

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I know a lot of teachers have a Dr. Seuss theme for their classrooms, so I thought I'd make an activity you can do with your students on the first day of school.  Simply run off the template. Students write the things they enjoyed doing the most on each stripe of the cat's hat.  Add a first day photo for that finishing touch.  There's a hat without the 1st day sentence as well, so you can use this activity during March's celebration of Seuss.

1-2-3 Come Review A Great Back To School Book With Me

Since the Miss Nelson Is Missing packet has been such a popular download, I decided to whip together a few more activities to accompany one of my favorite back to school books.

An interesting way to review the story, as well as reinforce rules for appropriate grammar, is with the Miss Nelson Is Missing punctuation cards.  Hang the cards on your board and read them together as a whole group. 

Choose a student to come up and circle letters that should be capitalized explaining why and then have another child add end punctuation. 

You can also do this with a pointer and pocket chart or pass one card out to each child to correct with a dry erase marker. 

After eveyone has shared their card, have students choose 3-6 cards and rewrite the sentences correctly.  This is a great Daily 5 word work activity too.

Another idea is to run off copies of all of the cards, have students trim and collate into a mini booklet, where they make corrections.

Encourage children to read their Miss Nelson booklet to their family, explaining what they did, as they retell the story.

Click on the link to view/download the Miss Nelson Is Missing Punctuation Cards.  Thanks for visiting today. 

I hope you are getting excited to start another school year, but still making time to relax and enjoy the rest of your summer too.  Wishing you all the best...

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These 12 Miss Nelson Is Missing cards are a fun way to review this great back to school story, as well as rules for appropriate grammar.   Read the cards together as a whole group.  Choose a student to come up and circle letters that should be capitalized and then add end punctuation.   This FREEBIE is part of my jumbo Miss Nelson is Missing Literacy & Math Packet in my TpT shop.

Instead Of An Apple For The Teacher, How About An Apple FROM the Teacher?

Yikes! It's July 19th; how'd that happen?  Every year summer zooms by like no other season.  I feel like I was just blogging about end-of-the year activities, and now my wheels are spinning dreaming up stuff for fall! 

Seeing all of the adorable back-to-school displays, certainly puts one in the mood and generates excitement for the wonderful loss-leaders and discounts on school supplies.  Nothing like the smell of a brand new box of crayons to get the energy and creative juices flowing.

One of my favorite summer projects, was putting together treat bags for my Y5's first day, or dreaming up some other little gift that would make them feel special and welcome.  Since I often taught two alternating classes (40+ total kiddos), I looked for something quick and easy on the budget.

We have lots of apples here in Michigan, and all sorts of orchards surrounding my school, so I did all kinds of activities with an apple theme.  One of my Y5's favorite snacks was dipping apple slices in caramel.  

Since an apple is super-healthy, I thought it would be a wonderful alternative to the usual treat bags or candy for a first day gift. (Less time consuming too!)

So they looked more like a welcome gift, I felt the apples needed jazzing up in some way, and wanted a cute saying to put on my green construction paper leaf. 

Cyber space never lets me down.  I found this cute poem on Pinterest.  Amy, over at Positively Splendid came up with this sweet gift tag that she attached to the front of her apple.  She made this as a gift for her son's teacher.  Click on the link to grab her FREEBIE.

I revamped her poem and included a ladybug in mine.  Simply run the leaves off on green construction paper, trim and tape a toothpick to the back, so you can simply poke it into the top of the apple.  Wahla! Your gift is done.  

Besides the poem leaves,  I also have sets where I added:  "Welcome to (preschool, kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th grade)!"  to the bottom of the leaves.  To make things more personal, sign the back or bottom of the leaf. 

For that finishing touch, add a ladybug sticker.  If you don't have any on hand, I've included 8 different ladybugs that you can print, trim and glue onto your leaves. 

There's a set of little ones for the smaller leaves, as well as a larger size, if you want to make the big over-sized leaves.  Click on the link to view/download the 1st Day Apple Treat. 

Thanks for visiting today.  Feel free to PIN away. 

Wishing you an "apple-icious" rest of the summer.   I'm off to hit some garage sales with my daughter.  Woo hoo!

"If an apple blossom or a ripe apple could tell its own story, it would be the story of the sunshine that smiled upon it, of the winds that whispered to it, of the birds that sang around it, of the storms that visited it, and of the motherly tree that held it and fed it until its petals were unfolded and its form developed." -Lucy Larcom

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You've heard of an apple for the teacher, well this is an apple from the teacher.  They are a quick, easy and healthy alternative to a back to school treat bag.  If you'll be studying apples in the fall, this snack fits right in.

1-2-3 Come Make Open House Extra Special With Me

Each year for my Open House, as well as parent-teacher conferences, I put up a small table, covered it with a seasonal tablecloth and set a basket of mints on it, along with a sign that said: "Families Are Worth A Mint! Help yourself."

While doing research on the web, I came across a variety of similar ideas, including this adorable poem that was all over Pinterest in various forms.

There was no link to who the original writer was, so I decided to jazz this sweet sentiment up, with a bit of clip art and my original saying.

 Add a bit more color by mounting the poster on construction paper, then laminate and file away in a folder to use each year.  This is a really inexpensive way to express your appreciation, as The Dollar Store sells bags of mints year round and you can pick up all sorts of little baskets at garage sales. 

For that finishing touch, and to draw attention to your basket, I've included some large mint patterns, so you can reproduce my entire display pictured in the photo.

Run the candy circles off on card stock and then tape them to long wooden skewers.  I tacked on a red bow using glue dots and then stuck my "peppermint balloons" into the basket.

One of the nice things about using peppermint, is that it's definitely NOT a favorite of children, however, it is something that adults enjoy.  (No worries about a few kids eating the entire basket.) 

If you'd prefer a smaller "bite size" mint, Sam's Club and Cost-co sell the mini butter-mints (pink, yellow, white and green) in bulk.  They have a long shelf life, so I always had plenty on hand.

Click on the link to view/download the Families Are Worth A Mint packet. 

Thanks for visiting today, feel free to PIN away. 

I hope you are enjoying your summer and starting to get excited for back to school.  Here's to an outstanding open house!

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Each year for my Open House, as well as parent-teacher conferences, I put up a small table, covered it with a seasonal tablecloth and set a basket of mints on it, along with a sign that said: "Families Are Worth A Mint! Help yourself."

While doing research on the web, I came across a variety of similar ideas, including this adorable poem that was pinned, with no link to who the original writer was.  I decided to jazz this sweet sentiment up with a bit of clip art and my original saying.  Simply print and mount on construction paper.  I've also included some larger mints so you can reproduce my entire display.  Enjoy! :-)