Routines and Procedures Tips

I know it is only July and I don't start teaching until after the Labor Day weekend but already my mind is going over how can I improve the way my class will run in the upcoming school year.  After teaching almost 20 years, I am always changing and looking for new ways to improve how my classroom is managed.  One of the first books I bought on classroom management was "The First Days of School" by Harry Wong.  What stuck with me after reading that book was the importance of having routines and procedures for everything that happens in my classroom.  I developed my routines right away but in the first few years I really didn't spend enough time practising those routines. Now I know better.  I will spend the first few weeks teaching and practising the routines and procedures to my students and worry about getting the curriculum covered later.  I will share some of the tips I have learned about introducing routines and procedures and would love to hear about what has worked for you.

1. Visuals, Visuals, Visuals!

One thing I have learned is that it is not good enough to just have the words on your charts but visuals can help students understand what is being asked of them in an easier way.  I also have a visual schedule and I find students hardly ever ask me the question, "What do we have to do next?".

Morning Routine

  This was my Morning Routine chart from this past year.  Students would enter the class and follow the pictures.
Number 1  - Put your bookbag and lunchbag in your locker.
Number 2.  Bring in your agenda and homework and put it on your desk and if you are ordering recess or lunch put your order in the blue cafeteria bag.
 Number 3.  Start bellwork or morning work.
Number 4.  When finished your bellwork sit on your sit-spot at the front of the class and read until your teacher is ready to start (my class has a Hollywood theme so I have the girls sit on popcorn clip art and the boys on movie clappers clip art which I have taped to the floor.
Number 5.  Calendar time at the SMARTboard.

End of Day Routine

This was my End of the Day Routine.  See if you can figure out the steps to how we go home at the end of the day in my classroom.   You can make your own morning and end of day routine anchor charts by using this product.

Another set of visuals that I have posted in my class are our  class rules.   In the first few weeks we review these daily.  I often get my student of the day to read them to the class each morning during our morning meeting.  After our Christmas and Easter break I will review them again for about a week after the holiday.  It is amazing to me how much they can forget in one week away from school!

Class Rules Visual Reminders

2.   Model, Model, Model!

When I am introducing any new routine in my class I always explain to students the rationale behind the routine or procedure.  I then model to the students how the procedure looks.  For example:  when teaching the students how to line up I always get a few students to line up for the class.  One behind the other, hands to their sides, quiet voices, etc.  Next, I will always get a few students to come up and line up and they will show the other students what you shouldn't be doing such as standing side by side, swinging their arms and shouting.  My students love being the ones picked to show how not to behave!

3.  Be Consistent!

If there is one thing that I have learned about teaching routines and procedures is to be consistent.  Some days I feel like they are never going to figure out the routines but if you spend the time during those first few weeks going over and over what you expect, I promise you it will lead to a well-managed classroom.  My Morning and End of Day Routine charts were taken down at Christmas time because we were decorating the class and I forgot to put them back up right away and my students followed the routines for the rest of the year no problem because we had consistently reviewed that chart on a daily basis in the first term.

4.  Engage, Engage, Engage!  

Try to look for ways to make learning routines and procedures interesting for students.  When I taught grade 5, I would always pass out a booklet outlining the class routines and procedures on the first day of school.  I would tell the students that it would be their only homework for the first two weeks was to read over their booklet.  Each day we would discuss a procedure in the booklet and model it.  I also told students that at the end of the two weeks on the Friday afternoon we would be playing a game of Routines and Procedures Jeopardy.  The students loved playing Jeopardy!  It did take me some time to make the first game the first year but then I had it to use for the next 13 years.  An answer under Procedures for 200 points, might be "The number of pencils that need to be sharpened for morning work" and then the student would say "What is 2?".  They would then get 200 points for their team.  

This year for my grade 2 students I wanted something to help students learn the rules so I decided to make a coloring booklet and some crowns for them to wear.  I am going to get them to wear their crowns everyday for the first week of school so that they can point to the visual on the crown and explain what it means for how to complete independent and group work in the classroom.  If you think it might help you in your class you can get it here.

School Rules

To my friends who are going back to school in the next few weeks, I wish you a great school year!

Before Your Decorate . . .

I know how amazing all those classrooms look out there.  They are awesome! Amazing and awe inspiring. Okay.  Truths.  Mine is not.  Would I like it to be - of course. I haven't managed to get there and I probably won't this year either.  Hence the picture of the current state of my classroom (see bottom photo).  Not Cool.  I Know.   If you start feeling overwhelmed by all the Pinterest worthy classrooms out there just remember extraordinary and unordinary things happen in ordinary

looking classrooms.  I am asking that you share 1 reflection you had on a problem that was problematic all year and how your changing it and one disfunctional space that you're changing.

Reflection: Issues with turn an talk all year(kinder)

Solution: Will give children carpet partners.  They will sit by each other on the carpet and they will also be writing partners.  I will change their partner approx. every 6 weeks.  In the Lucy Caulkins units of study it suggests giving students writing partners for the length of the unit so I am also making them carpet partners. 

Disfunctional Space:  The ipad area.  They moved my class phone right by the ipad station.  The office would call on the intercom and there was always the one child who yelled, "Mrs.Leslie, the phone!" Right through the speaker! The kids all talked way too much too.

Solution:  Children just don't need a table for all the iPads in 1 spot. They are portable.   I will teach them to find a spot to sit and work then put them back.  This will also free up that space.

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Periscope and new way to connect with teachers.

Hello all!  This is Hilary from Primary Planet (the blog formerly known as Second Grade is Out of This World).  I want to tell you about a new Social Media platform that I learned about recently and I am loving. It is called Periscope.
Periscope is a live broadcasting app.  So, think teacher T.V.! It was created by the Twitter people.
So, that being said.  I am an android user.  So far, none of my Periscope sessions has worked!  Sad isn't it.  It is really making me rethink my phone choice!  Gasp...I may have to go to the darkside and get and iphone!
So far on Periscope, I have seen a session about classroom libraries, I have seen flash freebie giveaways,  I have seen read aloud ideas, how to save your Scopes for future use, using Kahoot in your classroom, etc....I can think of all kinds of ways to use Periscope!  You can share with the public, or you can choose who to share with in a private session.  I am thinking live newsletters in my classroom, special story times for my students, lessons for my parents on those projects where they are always confused!  The ways to use this are limitless!  (I'm excited about this, can you tell?)
Are you ready to try it out?  This is the main page for you to download either to your iphone or android device:  PERISCOPE!
I know that there are a ton of teachers already on Periscope, so join us! I am working on getting my scopes up and running, so:

Thanks for stopping by! 

The Periscope App? Is it a hit or a miss in teacher groups?

Hey Everybody! I am Danielle from Crayonbox Learning & Teacher Blog Designs! I am here today to talk to you about the Periscope App!

Periscope is an App created by Twitter that allows you to record your own LIVE (short) videos while your followers tune in.  The videos then stay online for about 24 hours after recording so that followers who missed it will be able to watch it.  Followers that tune in can make comments on the videos, and also click the screen to make hearts appear.

I first heard about Periscope following the Teachers Pay Teachers Conference that was held in Vegas recently. There was quite a bit of buzz about Periscope and so like any good techie, I installed it on my new Iphone to check it out.

I opened Periscope initially to just see what it was all about.  My friend Danielle Knight from Study All Knight started her first "Scope"  right after I signed on.  It was really cool to see her on camera and hear what she had to say.  She kind of spoiled me for what to expect because she had prepared for her video ahead of time, including bringing props from a new product she'd made just for Periscope. (You can find that here.)  She kept her Periscope sweet and simple, and even had a small giveaway at the end for her new product.

After I watched Danielle's video,  I got to thinking about how Periscope could be used for teachers long term.  I spent a couple days periodically watching random "scopes" by fellow teacher sellers that I was referred to and quickly realized how Periscope was quickly turning into a fad.   I say that not to hurt someone's feelings but to point out that the App, or the use of Periscope, may not be the right fit for everyone.

One of the things that I discovered early on is that not everyone who Periscopes prepared ahead of time.  I realize that with anything new there is a learning curve, but giggling non-stop, hair flipping, and saying um repeatedly can lead to people tuning you out.

Another thing I noticed is that some of the Periscopes were promoted on Instagram and Facebook to be featuring a specific topic, and then the video doesn't really get to the point.  One of the Periscopes I listened to yesterday had a lot of traffic on it, but after 2-3 minutes of of the presenters giggling and talking about things that had nothing to do with the advertised topic, 1/3 of the viewers tuned out all about the same time. I read several comments afterward indicating that when the person creating the video doesn't get to the point or are spending too much time looking at the little animated hearts or responding to comments that they lose their audience.  While I appreciate the Periscopers for putting themselves out there, I think that the time would be better spent sticking to the point.  It's better to create quality content then it is to try and have the most viewers and little puffy hearts.

Is Periscope a hit or a miss?   Honestly, I am undecided.

I can see where there is value in creating short videos for TPT Sellers to showcase a product they have for sale, or perhaps a small tutorial to explain how to make something for the classroom. I would like to see more Periscope videos that are how-to in nature, where classroom resources are shown in action.  I saw a great video today where 2 teachers had prepared activities on the Alphabet, and demonstrated how the products were used. That was a great way to keep the audience engaged, and interested in learning more about their products.

I can also see Periscope being used for short messages to followers, as the videos can be saved and uploaded to another source like YouTube after the initial 24 hour period.

If you plan on using Periscope for your teaching Blog or store, the first 30 seconds of your video sets the tone for your audience.  If you don't "hook" them in that 30 seconds, they may tune out.  You know how attention spans go....squirrel!   As my Mom always says, "Practice makes perfect."  The more you work with something the better you will become.  Live streaming is the new thing, and hopefully Periscope will become a tool that teachers can use effectively to build their audience.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on Periscope.  Leave me a comment below with your Periscope name and I will follow.

Tune in tomorrow for another perspective on Periscope by Hilary from Primary Planet!

Have a great weekend!

Add Hyperlinks to your TPT Product Descriptions

Hey there Teacher Bloggie Friends!  This is Deniece from This Little Piggy Reads.

Summer is such a great time to get involved in the Bloggie World. This summer Periscope is all the rage.  If you still aren't sure about Periscope, basically it's a video chat app.  You can see the person whose "scoping" but they can't see you.  I think you could use it to flip your classroom.  

If you're on Periscope, follow me....maybe I'll be brave enough to do a broadcast soon.  Leave your Periscope username in the comments and I'll follow you too!  

If you want to grow your business or simply increase your sales on Teachers Pay Teachers, I have a great tip for you!  Include links to similar products in the product description of your best sellers. 

Take note of the red circle around my hyperlinks to other products.  Obviously, I can't track buyers who used the links to purchase another product, but I do know that once I began including links in my product descriptions my sales greatly increased.

If you don't know how to include a hyperlink in your description, the easiest way I know how to do it is by using Easy Hyperlinks.  

Copy & paste the link of your product and then type the words

 that you want to show up.  Press Construct Link 

& voila...you've got HTML ready to go!  

Copy & paste the HTML code into your product description (when uploading a new product).  You'll see the HTML until you publish the product.  Afterwards, you'll see the Display Text.  

It's easy peasy lemon squeezy!  Good Luck & I'll see you on Periscope! 

WAKE UP Your Classroom Library!

Growing up, I attended a church built in 1868. Yes, I said eighteen-68. On the second floor, behind the sanctuary, was a library. I can still picture it: leather-bound volumes, threadbare olive-green carpeting, deep mahogany trim, and lots of shadows. There was always something missing, though.

People.

In my entire childhood, I don't remember seeing a single person touch a single book in that library.

And if I'm being honest, in my first few years of teaching, come November, my classroom library reminded me quite a bit of the lonely library from my old church.

But over the years I've found ways to keep my classroom library a hub of activity all the way through May.

One way to "wake up" your classroom library is to start an event calendar. I was browsing my public library's website a couple of years ago and came across its calendar. Man, it was hoppin'... author visits, story times, clubs, classes, even film showings. People were interacting with the library left and right. And I thought, hmm, why don't we try that for our classroom library?

The idea was to use the calendar we already had hanging on the wall to schedule a few mini "events" involving our library. I wrote briefly about the idea in the fifth part of my Classroom Library series, but now that I've had a full year to play around with it, I've learned a few more things to share.

Scheduling and following through with classroom library events breathes life into our library, builds anticipation and excitement, and helps me and my class be proactive about keeping the classroom library (and reading in general) a priority.

When I say "event," I'm not talking about anything huge and fancy. Most of the ideas below can be done in about 10-15 minutes. But actually seeing two or three events scheduled on our monthly calendar lets us look forward to them and have a little accountability to make them happen.

• Friday Finds: Students share a book they "found" during the week that is worth reading.
• Monday Makeovers: Give students a chance to do a complete "makeover" on their book baskets... return old books, find a few fresh ones, clean out the junk, even make a new bookmark to keep inside.
• Tuesday Trades: Students get with partners and trade a book from their book baskets.
• Wednesday Want That: Get students' input of books and series that they want for the library. Make a list and keep it handy next time you have a chance to grab a few new books.
• Throwback Thursday: Have all students get a favorite book from the classroom library that they've read a long time ago, and give them time to read them with partners.
• Friday Filers: Devote some time to spruce up and organize the library, filing all of the misplaced books. This sometimes works better with just a group of students in charge (but you might be surprised at how many students love doing it.)

After incorporating classroom library events for a year, I've learned that they do indeed keep students interacting with the library in fun ways! And many of them provide opportunities for students to interact with each other too, with books at the heart of the conversations.

To keep it manageable and low-stress, I only scheduled a handful of events (at most) in a month, and some months we didn't schedule any. Avoiding a repetitive schedule helped to keep things lively and fresh. Here are a few more ideas you could sprinkle in:

• Six on the Sixth: Randomly choose six students on the sixth of the month to each choose one book from the classroom library to highlight. I like to lean the chosen books on the tray of our whiteboard for other students to borrow.
• Treasures on the Tenth: Some of my own personal favorites in our classroom library often get forgotten, so I choose a handful of "treasures" that look like they've been sitting on the shelf for awhile and show them to the class, read the back covers, and even recommend them to particular students.
• Nonfiction on the Nineteenth: Choose a student or two to pick out a category of nonfiction books to highlight by setting out for the day.
• Twisted on the Twentieth: Assign each student a partner. Instead of going into the classroom library to find a book for themselves, twist it and have students find a book for their partner. If time allows, have students first interview their partner to get to know their likes and dislikes.
• 'Get Comfy' Day: Students get to bring in a pillow and blanket to read with for the day.
• 'Pair It' Day: During the days leading up to 'Pair It' Day, students work with partners to read and pair books together that connect in some way, yet haven't already been grouped together through the library's organization. For example, Sam and Mike might pair the following books together: Dinosaurs before Dark (Magic Tree House chapter book), How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight? (rhyming picture book), and 100 Facts: Dinosaurs (informational book). On 'Pair It' Day, students introduce the theme of their paired books, and others can select sets to read.
• 'Share It' Day: Take a few minutes with the class to choose a handful of recent favorites from the classroom library to put together a temporary gift basket to share with another class. Attach a note that says: "We love these books so much, we want to share them with you for the week. Please return them to the basket when you finish. We'll pick them up on Friday. Enjoy!" Sometimes you'll even get a gift basket of books in return!

On my calendar you see in the photos, I signified a "classroom library event" with a little bookworm (using clip art from Our Monitos) that I laminated and Velcroed to the calendar dates. You can snag a copy of my calendar tags HERE.

Find LOTS more of my ideas for maintaining a thriving library HERE. If you are interested in the full series of blog posts on my classroom library, including arranging it, organizing it, stocking it, and introducing it to students, you can find it HERE.

Stop by my blog, The Thinker Builder, anytime!

Ron Clark Academy

Have you ever been to the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, GA?

It's been on my teacher bucket list for a while, and this past Spring I was finally able to go.   I was lucky enough to be able to travel to RCA with not only 4 other coworkers, but also with my assistant principal.    It was a dream come true, and I'm excited to share with you guys about it!

This is the view of RCA from across the street.  It's actually very unassuming and gives just a little glimpse of the magic that is inside!!  Hundreds of teachers waited with excitement for those big gates to swing open so we could walk inside!

Once inside, we were greeted with music, singing, and dancing….by not only the kids, but also by the teachers and staff of RCA.  Naturally we joined right in.  It was a wonderful start to our day!  One thing that I was struck by immediately, was how HAPPY the students seemed.  Not just one or two…but every single one of them seemed to be smiling and genuinely happy to be at school.  Now that's definitely not something you see every day!!  

We were able to visit several classrooms in session during the day.  In each classroom, we were both quiet observers AND active participants.  It was amazing to watch as the teachers brought learning to life for the students through dancing, singing, drumming, acting, etc.   I watched with amazement as these middle school students hung on every word their teachers said, and how involved they seemed to be with each lesson.  

At the Ron Clark Academy learning is fun, active, and meaningful.  The teachers seem to have a spark that is missing in many classrooms across America today.  And the students seem to have a true love for learning that seems to be contagious.  My coworkers and I left RCA with a desire to make our classrooms more engaging and fun….but also to make them more rigorous and academically meaningful.

Here are some pictures from the interior of the school.  Modeled after scenes from Harry Potter, the inside is absolutely breathtaking.  These pictures probably do not do it justice!!

If you ever get the chance to go to RCA, I highly recommend it!  Until then there are lots of great videos out there to give you a taste of what the Ron Clark Academy is all about!