Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Teacher FREEBIE Friday!

Oh, wait, it's not Friday! But here are a few Freebies anyway!😊

Fall Writing Prompts FREEBIE!

Fall Word Problems FREEBIE!!!

Long i Word Work FREEBIE!!!

Doubles Addition Flash Cards! FREEBIE!

I hope you enjoy these freebies! 
Feedback is always appreciated!! 

Have a great school year!!!😊


Please visit my store for more lesson plans and ideas. Thank You!!!J
Mrs Wenning's Classroom on TpT

You can find me on Pinterest as well…

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

1st Grade Teacher Survival Kit on TpT! Resources for the WHOLE YEAR!!!

This will be your forever resource and your daily go-to!!! Start organizing now! 30+ of my best-selling 1st grade bundles/resources included! 5000+ pages (something for every subject and season and TONS of teacher tools/resources)!!! Use year after year!!! This diverse bundle is a must have for any 1st grade teacher, especially newer teachers!!! 

First Grade Teacher Survival Kit! WHOLE YEAR!!!

***What's INCLUDED???

ELA Resources:

Math Resources:


Teacher Resources:

Integrated Thematic Units & Projects (Science & SS):

...AND SO MUCH MORE!!! YOU WILL BE PREPARED & ORGANIZED LIKE NEVER BEFORE!!!

**Do yourself a favor! As you begin to print out your weeks, make a folder for each week (or at least a monthly folder) and keep a master set in it! It will be some prep at first, but so worth it! And for next year, all of your folders will be ready so you can just grab and go. THIS WILL BE YOUR BEST FRIEND!!! Can you say leave on time??!!!


I hope you found this helpful! 

Have a great school year!!!


Please visit my store for more lesson plans and ideas. Thank You!!!J

Tuesday, July 11, 2017

15 Tips to Organize Yourself and Your Classroom!

My Top 15 Organizational Tips for Teachers!


You don't know me, but if you did, you would know that I love being organized, especially in my classroom! These are some of my favorite tricks for staying organized at school…

My Teacher Survival Kit will help you stay organized all year! 

Teacher Survival Kit! Teacher Planner Help, Data Binder Help & Class Management!

§       When making your Back to School or Homework Folders, notebooks and so on, make a few extras. You will get new students and now you’re ready for them! If you have any extra desks in your room, keep a set of whatever a new student would need in the empty desks!

§       Keep a clipboard with several student lists (you printed from your attendance or created). Label them for HW, Reading Logs, Field Trip Permission, Behavior Contracts, and whatever else you need returned/signed by a parent. Check off each name as it’s returned and keep the returned copies in one spot/basket, paper clipped by type. No more wondering if a student brought back a form or where you put that stack!

§       Use sticky notes to remind you of upcoming meetings and so on. Keep them right on your desk for a reminder. Make a to do list… If you didn’t get it done, you know what you need to work on, and if you did get it done, it’s the best feeling to cross it off!

§       Instead of YOU passing out all the papers. Have one boy and one girl stand in the front of the room. Split the pile in half. Tell the girls to line up in front of the boy and the boys to line up in front of the girl to receive their paper. If it’s several handouts, line them on a table or set of desks. Have the students rotate through, just like an assembly line!!! After a few times, your students will have this system down, and it gives you a minute to grab the next thing or blow your nose and so on…😊

§       You know all those handouts we get at PD meetings that we don’t know what to do with?? Our principal gave it to us so we don’t want to toss it, but don’t know what we need it for yet… Keep a folder on your desk for them and label it. If you ever need it, you know it’s in that folder!

§       Simplify your life! Research shows that a clutter free environment, with less stimulation on the walls, is a better learning environment for children. If you haven’t used it in 2 years– GET RID OF IT NOW!!! Take that poster with the peeling laminate off the wall and trash it! You don’t need it and your kids don’t need it! LESS IS BETTER! It's time to say goodbye to that overhead that's taking up your precious storage space! Clean out your classroom closets. You will be so happy to get this done. Get rid of the old stuff! Giveaway the fun stuff that you know you won't use!

§       Use desks! You can still keep them in groups for cooperative learning (like a table). If you’re concerned about the sound of moving desks, zip tie them at the bottoms (works wonders)! The desks are great because students have their own space and they are responsible for storing their own notebooks and book bags instead of you trying to find a place for all that stuff! Be sure to do Friday desk checks so no one ends up on an episode of Hoarders!😊

§       Put the students to work! If you’re doing something your students can do– STOP and let them do it! Have them clean up before you leave for the day. Build this time into your day! They made the mess and they can clean it up! You don’t want to spend your planning time cleaning!!! Each student can pick up 20 things (or more) and show you before they put it away/throw it away. They can help you cut, sort piles and so on.

§       Assign a weekly designated desk checker. They are responsible for making sure their table/quad of desks are clean on top and underneath, Daily. This will take a while before it’s an exact system, but once your students know your expectations, and have had time to practice what it should look like, you will get results. If a group leaves a mess at their table, be sure to have them come in for lunch the next day for a timeout or to clean another area in the room. If you do this consistently, the kids will be much better about cleaning up their areas!!!!!!!!!

§       Invest in fabric for your bulletin boards or even paint. It’s easier to hang, it looks nicer, it doesn’t fade and it doesn’t rip! You can leave it up year-round! Invest in some multi-use boarders (exp. kids at work), so you can leave them up all year as well. 

§       Save your documents/downloads to a folder with a name that makes sense. Do it now or you’ll be trolling the internet/your pc files looking for it later. Print a copy and put it in your monthly folder, if applicable! I keep labeled folders on my desktop! I add to them every time I download something new or create something new, such as lesson plans. So there is a plans folder on my desktop. I just open it up and get my plan from the year before, tweak as needed, change the date and done with lesson plans for the week. Your desktop is an easy place to find things you use often. Be sure to save a copy to your docs or a zip drive now and then, just in case that old school laptop takes a turn for the worse and you need to be issued a new one. You want those things you use often saved so you can quickly add them to your new desktop. Save yourself time where you can!

§       Use freezer bags for book bags! Students can keep them in their desks. No more shelves lined with cereal boxes filled with books!

§      Use monthly Folders! For everything! Anything that you used in any given month and know you will use again next year, put it in a folder for that month (only a master copy, not all of your extras). If you start at the beginning of the school year, your folders will be ready for the following school year. It is so wonderful to pick up my September folder and know that everything I need for the month is there, including homework and assessments. You can always add to them if you find new ideas…

·        Start copying your September folder in August so you have it all ready by September. Then in September start copying for October and so on. When you get to May you will have it all done so instead of taking May off… Copy for the following August. This will save you tons of time at crazy back to school! And you won’t have to wait in long lines because everyone waited to copy (and you know by the time you get your turn, the machine will have broken down or started making smeary copies (is that word) or worse, run out of staples that need to be ordered– ahhhhh!)...

·        Use weekly baskets! Have a Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri basket on your counter. Everything you’re going to need for each day (that week) should be in the baskets. This will keep you planned and organized. It’s also great if you have a sub last minute! For example, if you do a Number of the day, make your copies (which should already be done because we’re copying in advance now, right?), cut them and put them in each basket. If you give a spelling test on Friday, have the templates copied and in your Friday basket. Everything should go in your baskets before you leave from work the previous Friday, if possible. Once you get in the habit, you will love this system!

My Back to School Kit will help you get organized right at the beginning! 

Back to School Survival Kit!

I hope you found this helpful! Have a great school year!!!😊



Please visit my store for more lesson plans and ideas. Thank You!!!
Mrs Wenning's Classroom on TpT

You can find me on Pinterest as well…

Real Time Saving Tips for Teachers! #TeacherHacks!

My Top 12 Time Saving Tips for Teachers!


My teammates often ask me how I get to work on time (not early) and how I leave work on time (most of the time) and why I never ever have a giant rolling piece of luggage full of work to take home with me…


·   Don’t waste your precious time! I use every spare second– wisely! I eat in my room. I don’t stand in the hallway and talk for 30 minutes, and while this does not make for the best way to develop relationships with all of my awesome co-workers, it does allow me to get home to my family on time and actually be with my family (rather than grading). Close your door during planning time. Try it! 


·   Stop making homework packets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You will save paper and time! Invest in a weekly HW menu (you can use it year after year). Copy your spelling list right on the back and done – 1 page! This gives the students power of choice and they become responsible for getting the work turned in– not YOU trying to make a bunch of copies for work that may or may not get turned in! And if you’re in the early grades, you will have kids lose their HW packet and need another one (more copies!!!), but not anymore!!!  Try this one:


·        Take something with you to specials (papers to grade, items you need to cut or prepare and so on). If your kids are at a music lesson for 30 minutes, grab your something to do and take it with you! You can listen to the beautiful music while you work!

·        If you have 3 co-workers that take the same recess time as you, have 2 teachers stay out to monitor and let the 3rd go in and get some work done for 30 minutes. Rotate days so everyone gets that extra planning time.

·        Use monthly Folders! For everything! Anything that you used in any given month and know you will use again next year, put it in a folder for that month (only a master copy, not all of your extras). If you start at the beginning of the school year, your folders will be ready for the following school year. It is so wonderful to pick up my September folder and know that everything I need for the month is there, including homework and assessments. You can always add to them if you find new ideas…

·        Start copying your September folder in August so you have it all ready by September. Then in September start copying for October and so on. When you get to May you will have it all done so instead of taking May off… Copy for the following August. This will save you tons of time at crazy back to school! And you won’t have to wait in long lines because everyone waited to copy (and you know by the time you get your turn, the machine will have broken down or started making smeary copies (is that word) or worse, run out of staples that need to be ordered– ahhhhh!)...

·        Use weekly baskets! Have a Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri basket on your counter. Everything you’re going to need for each day (that week) should be in the baskets. This will keep you planned and organized. It’s also great if you have a sub last minute! For example, if you do a Number of the day, make your copies (which should already be done because we’re copying in advance now, right?), cut them and put them in each basket. If you give a spelling test on Friday, have the templates copied and in your Friday basket. Everything should go in your baskets before you leave from work the previous Friday, if possible. Once you get in the habit, you will love this system! Have a sub basket as well! Be ready! 
 

·        Put the students to work! Have them clean up before you leave for the day. They made the mess and they can clean it up. You don’t want to spend your planning time cleaning! Each student can pick up 20 things (or more) and show you before they put it away/throw it away. Assign a weekly designated desk checker. They are responsible for making sure their table/quad of desks are clean on top and under, daily. This will take a while before it’s an exact system, but once your students know your expectations and have had time to practice what it should look like, you will get results. If a group leaves a mess at their table, be sure to have them come in for lunch the next day for a timeout or to clean another area in the room. If you do this consistently, the kids will be much better about cleaning up their areas!!!

·        When taking down your May stuff (calendar, for exp.) at the end of the year, put up your August calendar board and cover it up with butcher paper. Done and ready and you can move onto other tasks in the Fall!

·        Don’t reinvent the wheel! If you need it, it’s already been done and created on Teachers Pay Teachers. If you don’t use TpT– start! You will love it!!! Open a free account and start searching for that perfect resource/s!

·        Invest in fabric for your bulletin boards or even paint. It’s easier to hang, it looks nicer, it doesn’t fade, and it doesn’t rip! You can leave it up year-round! Invest in multi-use borders (kids at work, for exp.) and you will not have to change your borders each month/season. You can leave them up all year!!

·        Save your documents/downloads to a folder with a name that makes sense. Do it now or you’ll be trolling the internet/your pc files looking for it later. Print a copy and put it in your monthly folder, if applicable! I keep labeled folders on my desktop! I add to them every time I download something new or create something new, such as lesson plans. So there is a plans folder on my desktop. I just open it up and get my plan from the year before, tweak as needed, change the date and done with lesson plans for the week. Your desktop is an easy place to find things you use often. Be sure to save a copy to your docs or a zip drive now and then, just in case that old school laptop takes a turn for the worse and you need to be issued a new one. You want those things you use often saved so you can quickly add them to your new desktop.

    My biggest time savers are my survival kits! Your year is planned and there are so many teacher resources from Sub Plans and Back to School Kits to WHOLE YEAR ELA Bundles and Teacher Evaluation Help! Check them out to save yourself hours and hours of work and finding resources already done and created for you!   
First Grade Teacher Survival Kit! WHOLE YEAR!!!

2nd Grade Teacher Survival Kit! WHOLE YEAR!!!
I hope you found this helpful! 
Have a great school year!!!😊


Please visit my store for more lesson plans and ideas. Thank You!!!
Mrs Wenning's Classroom on TpT

You can find me on Pinterest as well…