The Organized Classroom Blog

DIY Pencil Pouches

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 12:38:10 +0000

So, as I was creating the Common Core skill ring card pouch for the Common Core Student Data Binder post I did the other day, I realized that you could use the pouches for lots of different supplies! If you stop by my new post at Classroom DIY, you can see exactly how easy it is to make your own to match your classroom theme!

See you there!

Setting Up Your Student CCSS Data Binders

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Wed, 30 May 2012 19:53:37 +0000

I know data binders are really in right now, and I have always found them to be a great student motivator. Since they are personalized for the child, you can really sit with each student to discuss what he or she excels in - and which that he or she could be working on. Perfect for showing parents student progress as well!

I have traditionally used basic data graphs to show student performance in various subjects, which I then used in my student led parent conferences. {If you are interested in those data binder forms or my Complete Guide to Student Led Conferences product, you can find those HERE.}

With the Common Core State Standards being so readily adopted by many districts across the US, I thought of a way to incorporate my Common Core Standards Lesson Planning Packs with a data binder in order to hit all the bases at once! I have a few pictures, so that if you already have your materials, you can set up your own as well!

First, grab a two-pocket folder with brads, and some baggies. The baggies can be any size, but the name brand will hold up better than the store brand in this instance.

On your baggie, use some duct tape (in this case, thick patterned duct tape will be better than the decorative packing tape I typically use) and line it across the bottom edge of the baggie. You could also run it up either side, depending on your preference. I wanted to keep mine a little more simple. Then, print out your labels for your baggie on labels and place the labels right onto your baggie {mine were from the customizable book basket labels from the Black and White Classroom Essentials Set}.

Make sure to hole punch your baggie. The duct tape will make it super hard for it to rip. Add the Common Core skill ring cards and an o-ring (in case of a rip or a dump out, all the cards will be held safely on the ring) to the bag as the students earn them. Mine shown in the picture are from the Black and White Theme Common Core Lesson Planning Packs, but there are also several other themes to choose from if you prefer something different.

Print off the I Can Student Checklist standards, hole punch, and place in the brads. Put your baggie behind or in front of the standards.

Last, as students show mastery of the standards, they will be able to add more skill ring cards to their ring inside their baggie, and highlight the standards. Both will be very visual for showing students AND parents which standards have been learned, and which they still need to work on. Perfect for students to really see the "WHY" they are in school part - and to remind them occasionally how much they really have learned throughout the course of a year. One last idea is o use a different colored highlighter for each marking period so that the visual is even more distinct!

Enjoy putting your CCSS Data Binders together and I look forward to hearing how they go starting in the fall for many of you!

Make Your Own {No Sew} Chair Pockets!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Sat, 26 May 2012 11:46:40 +0000

Hi friends! I know the year is winding down for some, but for others (especially my teaching friends on the other side of the world), school is in full session. So today I thought I would post a fun project you could do now - or pin to revisit later. How about some DIY Chair Pockets? Fun!

This project really only needs a few supplies and you could probably do a class set of 30 for about $50. The best part? You can make them to match your classroom theme! My brand-new Black and White Theme Classroom Essentials Set was the inspiration behind the chair pockets below. They match perfectly! This HUGE file includes everything in the Black and White Theme Category (excluding the coordinating K-5 CCSS Lesson Packs), plus additional items not available individually! ALL applicable items within this gigantic pack also include form fields, which allow you to add you own text right onto the form! The individual items in the Black and White category are just plain PDFs and do not have this amazing feature! Over 130 forms and classroom decorations!

Take a look at the video below to see EVERYTHING in action!

{jumi [*207]}

For the chair pockets, you will need the following:

waist aprons (one for each chair) - I found mine at Hobby Lobby for $1 each, though Home Depot also has really sturdy ones for 77-cents, BUT you will have to go an extra step with the Home Depot style and paint over their orange logo. You super crafty folks will have no problem covering that up. :)
Fabric Paint
Foam Paintbrushes
Stamps
Plastic Cups

Steps Involved:

1. First, grab your plain apron. Make sure there is something under it to protect the surface you are working on. We did have some paint come through the other side on our kitchen counter, so make sure to cover that area.

2. Squirt some of the paint into a cup and then use the paintbrush to apply it to the bottom of the stamp.

3. Place the stamp onto the apron, making sure to apply lots of pressure. In fact, the flowers that turned out the best were the ones where I actually placed all of my weight everywhere on the stamp before lifting up.

4. Add other colors and designs as you like. I did not wait until the paint dried in between colors, but depending on your design and colors, you may want to (I am a bit impatient - lol).

5. Hang on the back of the chair after it has dried completely. Just tie it backwards to hang. You will not be able to add anything heavy as the apron would rip, but a silent reading book or two (depending on the weight of the book), pencils, rulers, or other lightweight items could be placed inside the pocket and out of the reach of idle hands. :)

If you decide to do this project, I would love to see it! For more ideas of fun projects to match the Black and White Theme (see below), make sure to grab the Classroom Essentials Set, which includes templates and complete directions as well! For those of you looking for matching Common Core Lesson Pack Sets, those are also now up and ready!

Enjoy and happy creating!

Need a New Personalized Teacher Bag?

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Thu, 24 May 2012 14:29:23 +0000

Hi all! Well, you may or may not know this about me, but I LOVE coats and bags. I am sort of addicted. Not so much shoes (my flip flops work for most of the year, even in winter). But show me a cute bag, and I most likely will have it. In fact, I never buy the expensive ones because I know I will see another one I want in a few weeks.

So imagine my surprise and excitement when Tara, who is a new mother to almost 1-year old twins and a part-time third grade teacher, contacted me because she is also a Thirty-One Gifts consultant ans asked if I would like to review one of their bags. Ummmmm - that was an easy answer for sure! :)

To be honest, I had never heard of Thirty-One Gifts before, but they are awesome! So many cute bags and more! They specialize in selling organizing totes, accessories, purses and thermals. TONS of products that (in my mind) were made for me alone - lol! Actually, they also have customization which makes it even better for teachers who need to bring back and forth items from school all the time! You even get to choose your thread color and font when personalizing - so cool!

Here is the item that I reviewed: Organizing Utility Tote in Minty Chip

I adore it! This bag is great because it is big and sturdy enough that it would hold my new awesome Black and White Theme Classroom Essentials Set binder, but also some personal items, my laptop, and a couple of books thrown in for good measure. Check out the fabric flower that can clip on or off the bag too! It also has mesh side pockets and fabric corner pockets for water bottles, phones, or whatever else you want to toss in there. I am so going to do double duty with this bag and also use it this summer for a beach bag because it is just so darn cute!

If you haven't seen Thirty-One Gifts, please check out Tara's website HERE, and take a look at their latest catalog. I found that the prices were super reasonable and the quality was really good! Want even better news? Tara has been sweet enough to offer a giveaway of the same item to a super lucky reader here at The Organized Classroom Blog, which you can customize with your own name!

Get entered below and please stop by and say hello to Tara as well for sponsoring this awesome prize. What a great way to start off next year - with a new bag! Good luck to all who enter from Thirty-One Gifts and The Organized Classroom Blog!

Winner: Lori T.

The importance of History!

survivingateacherssalary@gmail.com (Crystal Rapinchuk) — Wed, 23 May 2012 03:49:10 +0000

In an ever changing society where high stakes testing is so important we begin to leave vital information on the back burner because we can’t afford to purchase, spend time on, or even teach adequately the subjects that are deemed unimportant. Well one very important area is history; today I am going to suggest reasons and ways to make history come alive for your child.

First, consider your next family vacation and where you will be traveling, instead of going somewhere and just enjoying the local tourist traps; consider the historical background of the area you are traveling to. Spend a day, or make a special trip to a particular historical site and spend the time researching so you can tell your child about this part of our history in America or wherever you have traveled.

Second, if you don’t get the opportunity to travel consider local shops, stores, or even areas of interest where you can explain some important historical things that have happened. For instance my family and I always enjoy going to nature trails, and we saw one on the side of the road we decided to visit. While there we realized it was part of the trail that Henando De Soto traveled while exploring Florida where we live. Then I realized studying this map, there is a trail/park in our town which we have been to thousands of times with our kids.

Last, consider a historic building, store, or even area in your own town. I know where we are in Florida there is so much rich history to our town, I don’t even think those born here have a clue as to what there is to find.

No matter what the time or day, consider cherishing the history of our world with your children because no one else will care about it. It is our job as parents to enrich our children in areas that are just not found important in our schools. It has always been the parents' job to oversee their child's education, but we have come accustomed to allowing this to be the job for everyone else these past few decades. Take charge of your child's education, if you don't someone else might not. It would be better to have to many people trying to help them out than no one at all.

Countdown to Summer!

mrsboehm@mac.com (Denise Boehm) — Sun, 20 May 2012 12:49:08 +0000

Hey Friends!

Denise here from Sunny Days in Second Grade. It hardly seems possible, but this is my last guest post for the school year! Next month at this time I will be well rested, well-read and hopefully nice and tan as I write for you. That sounds pretty incredible, right?

Since we have to make it through the last few weeks before those heavenly lazy days of summer are upon us, I have a little idea I'd like to share with you. I've never really been one for the end of the year countdown idea. Mostly because I like to keep the kids unaware that we're actually winding down because that seems to translate in them amping up, if you know what I mean! But this year I decided to give it a whirl and see how it goes. So far, I'm pretty pleased and the kids are having a ball!

When I started planning for this, I didn't want to spend a fortune, so I came up with a mix of activities that were either inexpensive or free. Some items I've asked parents to help donate, some I just picked up myself or actually had leftover from other activities.

Here's the list I decided upon and some tips in case you want to try them out!

1. Shaving cream desk writing. I have found that the yellow Barbasol works the best and three cans were MORE than enough for my class of 18.

2. Gum balls. Could not be simpler! I recently did a class activity that included gum balls and I could not believe how excited the kids were to actually chew gum in school! It was hysterical. They were almost scared to do it! I had some left-over, so day 2 we busted out the gum balls again and they were just as excited. This time we had a little bubble blowing contest which they loved. You can get gumballs at Dollar Tree. Super easy and cheap.

3. Playdough. In second grade, I don't use playdough so much during my everyday routine. But seriously, what kid doesn't dig this stuff? I asked for parent donations and thankfully, we have enough for each kid to have their own can AND lots of fun tools to explore with. After some free time playing, I'm going to stop and ask them to sculpt certain objects, like an animal, the sun, a certain letter, etc - just to keep them engaged a bit.

4. Bubbles. What says summer better than blowing bubbles outside? Bubbles can be picked up pretty inexpensively this time of year. This will be a fun little diversion this week!

5. Ice cream sandwiches. I've done popsicle treats before and the kids love them, but I thought it might be fun two switch it up. I'm planning on taking them outside for snack (which we do every day because of a g-r-o-s-s bug problem in our room) and then surprising them with the ice cream sammies. Should be fun!

6. Dance Party! We recently had a big event at our school with a D.J. When he played the Cha-Cha Slide, almost every kid in my class ran to participate! Seeing that, I knew I had to figure out a way to bring that into the classroom. Try YMCA, Macarena, Chicken Dance, Electric Slide. Don't worry if you don't know the dances - the kids do!

7. Show & Share. This is my second grade version of show & tell. I don't really allow kids to bring in things to share with the class on a regular basis. I know that sounds mean. I actually used to, but then it seemed like every day I had kids wanting to show things that really weren't all that significant and it became a big time killer. I know that the "fossil" they dug up in the back yard is awesome to them, but to the rest of the class (and me) it was just a dirty rock that was taking up valuable class time. So, having a designated day to bring in one cool thing to share is going to be a big hit with my group.

8. Gimp Keychains. You remember making those with these plastic strings, right? Here's a link that gives simple directions, but google "gimp keychains" and you'll find links and videos galore. I know I was hooked on these as a kid and I can't wait to get my kids started!

9. Beach Ball Autographs. I'm going to write a little message on each child's ball, but let them blow them up themselves. I think they'll be surprised to see the message, and then be thrilled that they can have the rest of the class write on it as well. Sharpies are best for this! When the balls are all signed, we'll head outside with them for a few minutes.

10. Silly String Fight. Ok, I'll admit I'm a little nervous about this one! I asked for donations for this one and a parent generously donated a can per child. She left the receipt in the bag and I was shocked to see that it was almost $60, eek! If you do this one, maybe a few parents can pitch in together. My grand plan is to take them outside and let them have at it! I know they'll have fun and I'm hoping it will be a very memorable moment of their last day of second grade!

Have fun, my friends and I'll see you all (poolside, hopefully) next month!

Blogging Tip Thursday - Facebook Style!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Sat, 19 May 2012 18:01:38 +0000

Hi all and welcome to Blogging Tip Thursday Saturday. What can I say? It has been a jam-packed week with the newsletter going out, almost finishing up work on the super mega-awesome Black and White Theme Classroom Essentials Set, and chasing after a toddler. :)

Anyway, I found out a really neat tip last night about Facebook Fan Pages and thought I would pass along! I have had several fans complain that they are not able to see the posts from others on the wall on Plan-Day Sunday on their mobile devices. And the only place where it was accessible even on the regular computer was in a small box on the right hand side. Well - I found a nifty fix to be able to allow ALL posts - yours and your fans' - to show up on the wall for the world to see! Yay! I love it when Facebook fixes something that was a bit of a problem before.

Without further ado - check out the video below to see just how to get those posts where they need to be for everyone to be able to interact with one another. Enjoy!

{jumi [*206]}

Summer Reading for Teachers

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Wed, 18 May 2011 14:39:00 +0000

This was originally posted on June 10, 2011 on my old blog, but I thought it would be fun to see if the lists have changed or are the same from last year. What will you be reading this summer?

Yesterday on the facebook fan page, I asked my fans what they were reading this summer for pleasure and/or professional development. Thanks to many for all the great answers I received! Here is a compilation list if you are looking for a new read this summer as well. Enjoy and feel free to add additional titles in the comments below - thanks!

The Book Whisperer

Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement

Best Friends Forever: A Novel

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years)

The Hunger Games

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

Heart of the Matter

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back

No More "I'm Done!": Fostering Independent Writers in the Primary Grades

Growing Readers: Units of Study in the Primary Classroom

Last Night at Chateau Marmont: A Novel

Guided Math: A Framework for Mathematics Instruction

Summer Ball

The CAFE Book: Engaging All Students in Daily Literary Assessment and Instruction

Math Work Stations: Independent Learning You Can Count On, K-2

The Daily Five

House Rules: A Novel

Literacy Work Stations: Making Centers Work

The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work, and Team with Positive Energy

Teaching Outside the Box: How to Grab Your Students By Their Brains

What Would You Do With $400 CASH?

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Thu, 17 May 2012 10:55:28 +0000

What could YOU do with $400? Would you by something for your classroom? Maybe host a killer end of the year party. Or buy a carload of new books at garage sales thins summer?

Perhaps you just want to take that $400 and buy a new bathing suit, several books, and sunscreen to last you all summer. You could rest and rejuvenate all summer long to prepare for the next round of angels you will surely have next year. :)

Whatever you decide, I have teamed up with some friends at Blogaholic Social Network to give you a chance at winning some cold hard cash! Read below and good luck to everyone! I would love to know what YOU would do with $400 in the comments below. :)

Blogaholic Social Network is celebrating their 1 year anniversary and we have teamed up with them to bring you the chance to win $400.00 Paypal cash! If you have not yet heard- Blogaholic Social Network is an online community where bloggers of all niche's connect and spread the word about their blogs while gaining resources, followers, blogging tips, and much more! You must be a member to win but joining fast, easy and best of all FREE! Join here!

This event is hosted by Blogaholic Social Network, The Organized Classroom Blog, Mompreneur Mogul, Swoon Media, Caffeinated OC Mommy, Terri's Little Haven, and Multi Testing Mommy.

You must be 18 to enter. A valid Paypal account is required (to obtain the prize). Open Worldwide. Void where prohibited.

This giveaway ends May 31st, 2012 11:59 pm

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Verifying entries may take up to 2 days days. Please make sure all your entries are valid. Winner must respond within 48 hours or another winner will be chosen.

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This event is also made possible by the following blogs: First Comes Baby, Like A Bump On A Blog, A Mothers Heritage, A Little of This and a Little of That, Fashion in the Forest, Keeping Up With The Rheinlanders, Giveaway Promote, Kids and Deals, Bella Bud, Shereen Travels Cheap, Mrs. Miner's Kindergarten Monkey Business, Addicted 2 savings 4 U, Stacy's Savings, One House Schoolroom, Insights by April, Mom Blogger Buzz, St. Augustine Qpon Posse, Mom to Bed by 8, Another Cookie, Please, Crossroad Reviews, Whole Lotta Mama, The STL Mark Mama, Oh My Gosh Beck, Mommies In Orbit, Lillys & Lollipops, Debt Free Spending, Children Teaching Mama, She Says, Bella Street, It's Just My Life, Nap Time Is My Time, Rockin Teacher Materials, The More The Merrier, The Mama Bird, Social Studies Momma, The Stress Free Spanish Teacher, Truly Simply Pink, The 3AM Teacher, The Mommy Times, Mommy Coupon Swappers, Media Darlings, Frugal Ferret.

Classroom Mgmt? There's an App For That!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Wed, 16 May 2012 20:54:42 +0000

Management in the classroom is a big deal. It can literally make or break your entire school year, so any helpful tip is always a welcome one. Today, I had the opportunity to review a pretty cool app called Classroom Management Essentials. This app is wonderful for all areas of classroom management, including the physical environment, rules & routines, caring relationships, engaging instruction, and discipline.

I love how each of the categories starts with a best practices video from an expert that has actually taught in the field. After watching the video, you move on to Step Two, where each category has some more great advice listed in bulleted lists, which makes it super handy to consult if you are limited in time. The third step is called "Teacher Talk." There are videos of several other experts, who discuss on a teacher-to-teacher basis how they utilize the ideas in their classrooms.

Here are a bunch of pictures from inside the app on my iPad below (and you can download the app to your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch):

I love practical, how-to advice from teachers to teachers in this app! Make sure you stop by their website, iTunes store, and Facebook fan page to say hello, especially since they have agreed to go a giveaway for THREE lucky readers here at The Organized Classroom Blog! Whoo hoo!

Fill out the entry form below and good luck to all who enter from Classroom Management Essentials and The Organized Classroom Blog!

Winners (notified via email): Bethany B., Lee P., and Trish P.

The Imagination Factory

kbcreative321@gmail.com (Karen Bolotin) — Tue, 15 May 2012 07:18:40 +0000

Hi Everyone! I'm a little late with my post but you know how things can get so crazy towards the end of the school year. Seems to have started a little early for me. :-)

Well onto my post! Today I want to share with you a neat site for art/science/social studies/math projects that use recycled items. The Imagination Factory is one of my favorite sites for "green" projects. I love it when the kids can creatively repurpose stuff that normally lands in landfills. Kids love the idea of going green too, especially when they turn "trash" into something useful or beautiful. It gives everyone a great feeling!

mmm...It also saves on the budget because most kids have these "items" at home and can easily bring them to school.

What's really nice about The Imagination Factory is that you can choose a project several different ways.

Trash Matcher: Choose the project by material you have on hand.

Scout Badge Matcher: Matches projects with Girl Scout Badges and Brownie Scout Try-its

Project Matcher: Choose by Project

The Imagination Factory has some great summer projects. Perfect for a little brain break during summer school or to include in your lessons.

The Imagination Factory does have a premium membership which is $10/year but they also offer a ton of free stuff(which is what I use).

Hope you hop over and take a look at The Imagination Factory.

~Karen

PS...I created a Father's Day version of "The Scoop" and you can pick it up here. Also I've had many request for a daily version of The Scoop and I'm just starting to work on it. Thanks for all the comments and suggestions I've had for The Scoop. I appreciate them!

End of the Year Stars

cgallagher_1999@yahoo.com (Colleen Gallagher) — Sat, 12 May 2012 11:54:00 +0000

O, my stars...

Is it May?

Do most of us only have a few weeks left of school?

I believe that is right.

The End of The Year is in clear sight.

I hope you had a wonderful school year and are looking forward to celebrating all the learning that went on this year!

I have two Fun & FREE printables to share with the OCB peeps today that may make celebrating the end of the year more fun for you and your STAR students!

First up is a printable that when printed looks like a Webpage. What a special webpage this is!!!! It's all about the STAR student in your classroom and we all know we have a classroom filled with stars - of course we do!!!

(I made a similar printable for moms that you can click and see here... )

Print one out for each student to complete (if you can print them on card-stock and in color I suggest you do as I am sure they will be cherished). When they are finished you can laminate them so they last forever. Then display them until the end of the year. Send the stars students home on the last day with the finished product. I know that parents will keep this one as a remembrance of the year!!! I know I did!

Below is the one my third grader did. He drew himself, but you can take pictures of the kids and put a real picture in the box to make it look more official.

To download and then print this Star Student Online printable - click here.

How about another STAR themed printable before I sign out for the month???

Time to say goodbye to those STARS of yours is around the corner... Tears of sadness and some of joy will be shed I am sure! Send them out with something fun from you. Keeping with the star theme; you may want to read your class the book, Incredible You! 10 Ways to let your greatness shine through.

Before reading tell your star students that when you wish on stars you wish these 10 things for them. After reading and discussing the book remind them that they are your stars! You can then give them a treat to take home that will remind them of the star they are.

Grab a pack of STARBURST candy and this tag (click here to download) and you have a great inexpensive treat to send your stars home with!!!

I hope these two ideas and printables will come in handy for the end of the year. Have a great one with your stars!

Colleen Gallagher
Teaching Heart

Buzzing Around the Barnyard {Giveaway}

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Fri, 11 May 2012 14:26:07 +0000

Small battery-operated buzzers are super fun for lots of classroom activities. I had the opportunity to review Barnyard Buzzers from Learning Resources this week and they are so cute! Basically, this is just a set of 4 buzzers that have different animals printed on them. The kicker? The sounds are not buzzers at all, but rather the coordinating animal sound to the image on the top! How fun!

Check it out for yourself:

Dog

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Cow

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Rooster

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Horse

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If you have a farm or barnyard classroom theme, these are perfect! if not, you could still use them to infuse a little novelty in your lesson. One way I could see incorporating this item into your lesson would be to have a group review activity, much like Showdown. Ask the question and the group comes up with their answer and writes in on a whiteboard hidden from the other groups. When they have their answer written, they tap the buzzer to signal they are ready and sit quietly until all the animal sounds are heard. The students rotate the jobs of touching the buzzer and writing the answer around so everyone has a turn. What fun and I can see the smiles on the children already!

Of course, Learning Resources is amazing and has agreed to a giveaway a set of Barnyard Buzzers to one super lucky OCB reader! Check out the entry form below and stop by to say thank at LR's Facebook fan page if you have a second (I would really appreciate it).

Good Luck to all who enter from Learning Resources and The Organized Classroom Blog!

Winner: Mary O. - notified via email

Turning Noneducational Games into Learning Fun

tabitha@flapjacklapbooks.com (Tabitha Carro) — Sun, 06 May 2012 13:44:43 +0000

As the year winds down to an end, spring fever sets it, and I find I need to step my game up with interesting activities that will keep students learning and on task. One way I have done that this year is by taking regular games that students are already familiar with and giving them an educational "twist."

1) Multiplication Jenga

I found this totally cool activity over at the Minds in Bloom blog by Rachel Lynette. She has provided multiplication and addition labels that can be affixed to the sides of Jenga blocks (click here for her post).

I printed mine on full sheet sticker paper. I then ran the whole sheet through the laminator and cut them out individually. So far, the labels have held up well despite the handling, stacking, and crashing!

2) Twister Measurement Facts

I have seen this activity floating around on Pinterest in so many places, so I'm not sure who to give credit to for the original idea. I will state that this is NOT my idea.

My students needed practice with remembering measurement facts with standard and metric units. So, I stuck velcro dots in the center of each Twister circle.

Then I created questions on index cards, laminated the cards, and also added velcro dots to the backs of the card.

(I'm a Spanish immersion teacher by the way.)

After placing all the cards on the circles, I also created an answer key. I did this by numbering each colored row of circles from 1 to 6 on the index cards.

Then, I created a number- and color-coded answer key.

And now it's time for some Twister fun! This was placed at a station during math groups.

3) Lanyard Team Race

This game I did create earlier this year, although I'm sure the idea is already out there in cyberspace. I found some super cheap mini cones at Dollar General and decided to do a sort of group race.

I purchased enough lanyards for everyone in my class (I think I paid 7 or 8 dollars at Amazon with Prime shipping for 20). We were reviewing place value at the time, so I wrote numbers on index cards in four different colors and underlined a specific digit in each number. I laminated and hole-punched the cards and then attached each one to a lanyard (it would have been a smart idea to put those sticker protectors on the holes).

To play the game, I passed out the lanyards to the students randomly. Whatever color they received was the team they were on (I made sure to write the same exact numbers and underlined digits for each color). Outside (obviously) the students separated into the four teams. I place a cone about 5 feet in front of each team. Then I called out a certain place in the number such as tens, thousands, ones, etc. (but in Spanish). The student with that card had to run around the cone and back to his team first to earn a point. The first team to reach 3 points first won. Students then traded lanyards with someone different and the game started again.

I also did this to practice present tense verb conjugation in Spanish.

I wrote the verb conjugations on the cards and called out different subject pronouns. The student with the correct conjugation on his card had to run around his team's cone and back to his team to earn a point.

This game could be used to practice so many different skills. And if you have uneven teams, you just give a student two lanyards instead of one. Or skip the lanyards altogether and just hand out cards.

So, testing is finally over, the sun is out, it's time for fun! Do you have any ideas for turning simple games into educational fun? Please share!

Have a great end-of-the-year, teacher friends!

Free End-of-the-Year Award Certificates!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Tue, 08 May 2012 18:25:26 +0000

Hey everyone and Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! I noticed that a few fans on The Organized Classroom Blog's Facebook fan page were looking for end of the year award certificates for their award ceremonies. Well, I just happen to be working on something new at the moment, so I thought I could throw in a little extra help for those who were interested. :)

My newest project is a Black and White Theme Classroom Essentials Set, which will include a bunch of forms, lesson plan templates, and fun labels/calendar items for your classroom - all archived nicely into a handy binder! The cover and the binder dividers are already done. I am beyond excited about how it is going to turn out when all the elements are finished! Here is a sneak peek (and yes, you will be able to change the name on the cover to your own name!):

To get started introducing this package with a bang, below is a plain NON-CUSTOMIZABLE award template pack that you can grab for free! This pack includes 4 templates: 2 with flowers, and 2 that do not have the flowers (not sure some of the students would like the fancy flowers). Use whichever you feel the students would like best. :) Just make sure your printer is set to print all the way to the edge of the page - no margins, otherwise it will cut off some of the borders.

Free Black and White Theme Award Certificates

If you are looking to be able to type right onto the certificate form above (see example in the picture below), then you will love the Classroom Essentials Set, as it will have customizable fields right on the templates, so you can just type, print, and go!

Of course, I am just getting started, so I am still in the planning mode and want to make sure you have the most comprehensive list of forms, labels, and more - I would love to hear in a comment below what items you would like to see added into this pack. I have a list of about 25 items already, but want to make sure I am not missing anything. And yes - for those who will ask - I will also be creating the Common Core Standards Lesson Packs to match this theme as well. :)

What can I add to this binder that will make your life easier? It is Teacher Appreciation Week after all!

Talk to you soon!

Fun Comprehension Skills {Giveaway}!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Fri, 04 May 2012 19:24:24 +0000

How do you work on reading and comprehension skills, such as sequencing, cause and effect, and drawing conclusions? Well, I know many use a guided reading level program or even just work on the skills with the adopted reading series, which are both wonderful resources as well. But, in this handy video below, I show you how ETA hand2mind makes working on these normally boring comprehension skills fun again!

Check it out!

{jumi [*187]}

Now for even better news? ETA hand2mind is giving away an identical set of the VersaTiles for Favorite Children's Books Primary Starter Set to one lucky reader here at The Organized Classroom Blog! Yay! Check out the details below to get entered, and make sure to stop by ETA hand2mind's Facebook fan page to say hello and thanks!

Good luck to all who enter from ETA hand2mind and The Organized Classroom Blog!

Winner: Karen F. - notified via email

Everyone Wins This Jackpot!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Wed, 02 May 2012 11:41:45 +0000

Of course as many of you know, Teacher Appreciation Week is coming up for us here next week and I love that week! In a past school, we would get carnations from the PTO, and at another, we would get a special catered lunch. It always made us feel like rock stars, even if only a week out of the year. What types of events does your school host?

I think teaching is one of the greatest professions in the world! Teaching the next generation how to read, write, tie their shoes, work with others in a civil manner, or fill out a job application is a HUGE responsibility. These kids will be our doctors, attorneys, or next Presidents (whether we believe it or not right now). Whether the students and parents take time out to thank you, I want to be one who says thanks. For all you do (which I know from personal experience is a LOT).

One way to say thanks is by giving you a gift. :) Yay - I don't know about you, but I know I love gifts! For ONE DAY ONLY - Sunday, May 6th, I will be giving away one of my normally priced items all day long for all my teacher friends to grab! It is a way to express my appreciation. Oh, did I mention that I have teamed up with over 130 other Teachers Pay Teachers bloggers to do the same? WHAT?! Awesome!

Since there are so many bloggers involved, the organizers April McNair, Laura Candler, and Adrianne Meldrum will each be taking a specific grade level band in order to make it a little easier for you to grab the items that pertain to your specialty! Nothing like making it easy for you! You will find all the grades 3-6 bloggers in the linky party listed at the bottom of this page, which makes it super easy!

If you are looking for more great news, then you will like this little tidbit I am adding in: everything in my TpT store will 28% off (with the coupon code)! I will place EVERYTHING (yes, including the CCSS Packs, the Owl Theme forms and CCSS packs, The Complete Guide to Student Led Conferences - and everything else in my store!) on sale for 20% off. THEN - if you use code TAD12 at checkout, TpT takes an additional 10% off everything in your cart as well! Many of you know that I RARELY put my items on sale because I feel they are already a steal at my current pricing and I want to help out teachers as much as possible everyday. So if you have been on the fence about grabbing some items from my TpT store, I would load them up in your cart/wishlist now! The sale runs from May 6th-8th, and it has been known to take down a server or two. If that should happen, they are usually pretty quick to get it back up - just stop back at a later time. :) Click the image below to see my TpT store and get your cart revving!

Thanks for all YOU do teachers - you are appreciated by so many!

Here's what you are waiting for! I have decided to say thanks by giving everyone who stops by a copy of my Classroom Parent Handbook! I chose this item because it would appeal to almost every grade level, it is customizable right as a Microsoft Word document, and I figured you would be able to use it going into next school year! Enjoy and I would love if you rated the item while you were there if you have a second in between grabbing all the other awesome freebies listed down below. :) if you missed the freebie, it is on sale now as part of my storewide TpT Store sale, so you still get a deal!

Classroom Parent Handbook

Thanks for everything teachers! I wish you the best Teacher Appreciation Week ever!

{jumi [*186]}

Pretty Clipboards?

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Tue, 01 May 2012 12:21:28 +0000

Do your old clipboards leave a little to be desired? I know mine did! They were covered in marker, crayons, and paint from student creations over several years. So, I decided to do a complete "clipboard makeover" and spiff them up a bit.

I posted the materials and instructions over at my newest fun venture: Classroom DIY! There will be 25 totals authors, which you will start seeing each day this month with different projects to share with you! Today we kicked off the new blog officially with my new listing for these fun clipboards. :)

Make sure to hop on over and follow the blog, subscribe to our daily email (no more than one post per day - I promise), like our Facebook fan page, follow our Pinterest board, or just stop by to leave a comment. We love the attention!

Do you have an idea to share? Head to the About Classroom DIY tab on the top of the blog to find out how to get your idea featured and be able to grab a super exclusive badge for your own blog!

Are you trying some of the projects? Send me your pictures and you will get an awesome goody bag filled with exclusive (most normally priced) items from each of the Classroom DIY authors! Wow! Check out the DIY in Action tab at the top of the blog to find out how to submit yours - I can't wait to see some come through!

OK - head on over to Classroom DIY and grab some inspiration. I have already seen some of the DIY posts coming up that are scheduled and you will not be disappointed!

See you there and happy creating!

Making Some Classroom Mailboxes!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 13:59:44 +0000

I don't know about your classroom supply budget, but mine never seemed to take me far after I bought necessities like copy paper, pencils, and chart paper. I LOVE the usefulness of student mailboxes, but paper sorter/organizers can run around $100 for 12 slots (and that is the cheap version!) - not to mention, that won't be enough for one class of students, so you would need 2 or 3! That is a bit pricey! So, I decided to see what I could come up with on my own, and this version will cost you less than $30 to make a complete set - NICE!

First, you will need to preorder some shipping boxes from the United States Postal Service. Look for the free ones, that are wider than a standard size sheet of paper. (NOTE - honest mistake (I really didn't know this), but apparently if you order them, they are legally to be used for mailing as they are intended. BUT, you could reuse boxes that have already been mailed to you as an effort to reuse. OR you could use cereal boxes that are reinforced with packing cardboard from other boxes you might have as well.) The ones I made in my demo are smaller boxes because that is what I had on hand already. These could make for a cute desk organizer as well. :)

Once you are ready to begin your project, you need to decide what you want the inside of your mailboxes to look like, whether you prefer the cardboard look, or want a specific color. I spray painted each of my boxes a matte gray color on the inside with one coat of quick dry spray paint. If you do 2 coats, you would have a much nicer coat - or you could even roller on paint (I wonder how dry erase paint would work so you could then write the student names inside of each of the mailboxes?).

After the paint has dried, cut off the tabs on the one end, and assemble the box, reinforcing with clear packing tape around the joints. Do the same for all boxes in your set.

Next, place the boxes in even rows flat on the table and use clear packing tape to connect the boxes across in the row (not shown). Now, you should be able to place (without taping) the rows on top of one another to see what the mailboxes will look like after decorating. Decide what colors you will be using on which rows.

I used decorative packing tape on some of the boxes, and decorative duct tape on some others, which I bought at my local Walmart in the packing tape aisle and the hardware aisle. Both work equally well. Keep in mind that there is writing on the outside of the boxes, so if you are planning on using a light colored design, you might want to either spray paint the boxes white before decorating, or use the thicker duct tape. Of course, you could use stickers, decoupage, fabric, or paint designs on the boxes instead. I like the tape because it was easy, non-messy, tons of designs and colors to choose from, and looked pretty cute (if I do say so myself). Remember when you are purchasing supplies that you will only need to decorate the parts of the rows that are showing. Don't go way out of your way to decorate those inside faces as they are not seen anyway.

Last, after you have your rows decorated to your heart's content, use the clear packing tape to connect the rows on top of one another to complete the project. The last step would be to make some labels with student names on them and place on the inside of the box so they know where their materials are located.

Of course, these mailboxes will not hold books or other heavy materials, but for basic use throughout the year for returned papers or handouts from the office or even for a drying rack for art projects, they will be perfect for the price! And you can match your classroom theme! What would you use these for in your classroom? I would love to hear it in a comment below!

Enjoy and have fun creating!

Dry Erase Fun!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:45:06 +0000

Do you use dry erase boards in the classroom - or even cut up shower wall board? What do you use for wipers - old socks? I have used them all too and dry erase boards are a welcome addition into every classroom no matter what age or grade level! I love using them for test prep or fun cooperative learning games. But they can be messy and unorganized trying to keep track of the markers and wipers, which seem to magically disappear. Until now that is...

I had the opportunity to review some awesome dry erase paddles from Kleenslate Concepts and they are wonderful! Check them out in the picture below! They come in tons of colors (perfect for team competitions or various center activities), include the marker, and can also include the wiper! No more lost supplies!

Here is a closer picture of the wiper, which is attached to the handle of the paddle with an o-ring, so it can be changed as well if needed. Genius!

Each board is made of super hard plastic, and are 2-sided. You have plain on one side and the other can be large lines for little ones' writing practice or grid lines for older ones' math practice. I love the gridlines for graphing, perimeter/area, geometry, multiplication arrays, and more!

The markers also come in a variety of colors and are super handy as they snap right into the handle of the paddle, so no more lost markers! On the end of the markers, there is also a small eraser right on the cap if you don't have the attached wipers. The markers come in a variety of colors. On their website, Kleenslate Concepts also has different board shapes and other items, so make sure you head over there to check them out!

Kleenslate Concepts is being super generous and has agreed to provide prizes for not just one, but FIVE lucky readers here at The Organized Classroom Blog! Yay! The first three numbers pulled will each receive a 2-Pack of rectangular paddles (which includes 2 rectangular paddles, 2 wipers, and 2 small black dry erase markers), and the next 2 numbers pulled will each receive a set of 15 new colored small dry erase markers! Fun! Make sure to stop by their blog or Facebook fan page to say thanks for being so giving!

Fill out the entry form below to get entered and good luck from Kleenslate Concepts and The Organized Classroom Blog!

Winners of 2 boards: Susan S., Meredith M., and Lonna T. - notified via email

Winners of the dry erase markers: Amelia M. and Christina D. - notified via email

Visual Supply Organization

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:28:31 +0000

Hope everyone is well today! I know so many are already counting down the days until this school year ends, as well as already planning for next year! If you are one of those people, here is a fun little idea in video form for how to organize your manipulatives (and keep them that way even in the hands of little ones)!

Here is a closeup of what my example container label looks like as well in case you are curious:

Enjoy!

{jumi [*184]}

Center Storage Solutions

mrsboehm@mac.com (Denise Boehm) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:49:06 +0000

Hi Friends,

Denise here from Sunny Days! I don't think I'm alone when I tell you that I sometimes struggle with center storage. Today I'm going to share two ideas that have been working pretty well for me lately.

Last year, I started to store centers that I would frequently rotate in and out in a 5-inch three ring binder with heavy duty plastic pocket dividers. Here's a visual before we move on. {Now if this was Charity, there would be a fancy video. But I'm not nearly as photogenic (videogenic?) as our fairy blogmother...}

One feature I love here is that my teammates can borrow an entire center just by removing a plastic pocket. I added a check-out sheet in the front just to keep track of who has what. This system works particularly well for centers that are flat, like task cards or games without three-dimentional pieces. You can see that the center with the clothespins is really making the binder bulge, which is a bit of a drawback if you have centers with lots of bigger pieces.

That brings me to center storage solution #2 - Cardboard file boxes:

I purchased these in Ikea with the intention of using them as student book boxes, but they weren't quite as sturdy for that purpose. However, they're perfect as storage. This solution works great for bulkier items, odd sized pieces and student examples. I've actually started using them to group centers or projects by theme, like measurement. This way, I can pull one box out of the closet and have everything for a theme at my fingertips. This method also works great for sharing across my team since they can now take the whole box. I have a check out sheet for these on the inside of my closet door.

I store them with the back facing out - it just looks a little neater to me when I open the closet door. I think I may look for boxes that match my room a bit more and keep them on my open shelving this way next year.

I've got some labels to share with you for the file boxes. I know you probably need different ones than I do, so I made them pretty generic and included some blank ones that you can write on. You can get those labels {here}. If you're interested in a basic center check out sheet for your team, you can get that {here}.

Enjoy my friends and I'll see you next month!

This is {Classroom} Jeopardy!

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:17:18 +0000

I seriously heart the Jeopardy game show - don't you? I always feel so smart when I can actually guess one of the questions correctly before the genius contestants do. :) Well, today I have an awesome surprise! Educational Insights sent me over their Classroom Jeopardy system to test out and review - and it was AWESOME! I have TONS of pictures, so it is probably best to explain how it all works that way. Enjoy!

This is how the entire set is presented. Reminds me a little of Deal or No Deal, which is funny, but the case is super tough plastic so you can take it anywhere!

Here is everything that was in the case. Each piece has a specific snap in spot inside so nothing gets lost or broken.

All you need to play Classroom Jeopardy is a TV and a handful of AAA batteries - seriously, that's it! They give you the connector cords to run from your TV to their little monitor system. Inside that base system, there is a mini-computer which runs everything. They include a USB key that has all the premade questions already ready to go. You can even make your own using their software also located on the USB key!

Here is a picture of the score screens. You can use the provided dry erase marker to write student names on them. The 3 student buzzers (which don't buzz thankfully) are all wireless, which is fantastic coming from someone who has used quiz systems in the past with wires. That is not so much fun. These are great!

Here is the handy teacher remote. The front also slides down to reveal a number pad as well, as seen in the picture above.

Here is what a new game looks like. It plays the theme music and everything! Alex sounds like the real deal to me, and even the buzzer (beep-beep) when time runs out is identical.

A student will tell the teacher which category and dollar amount, and the teacher clicks on it to begin. Then the answer comes up as shown. This one was for States and Capitals and wanted to know what the capital of California was. Do you know the question?

On the teacher clicker, (I know it is small in the picture), the question is given.

Here is another example. This one had a picture first, then displayed the answer.

When the teacher clicks "Begin," students see the time bar at the bottom of the page (7 seconds) and know they can then, and only then, buzz in. So you could give as much time as you like before pressing that button for students to prepare their answers.

After a student answers (their monitor will light up), the teacher presses "Correct" or "Incorrect" on their clicker and the scores are adjusted automatically - genius!

This set is fantastic! I can see it being used for review after a unit, before a state standardized test as preparation, or just for fun as a Friday reward! {Heck, my hubby will even enjoying playing with me!} It even has Double Jeopardy, Final Jeopardy, and Daily Doubles (as seen below)!

The best part is the customization piece! And, you can even buy more units to stack on the top, for a total up to nine screens, as well as additional buzzers! Want more already created games in all sorts of grade levels and subjects for grades 2-Adult? Educational Insights has that too! You can upload your already created game - or share the love from other teachers who have also done the same! For free!

Make sure you stop by and check it out for yourself!

***OOOOOPPPPSSS! SO sorry! If you thought there was a giveaway - I misread the correspondence from Educational Insights, so it was my false move, not theirs. There is no giveaway, but it is still an awesome product! Thanks for understanding everyone!

Are You Ready to Take the 5-Star Blogger Challenge?

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 02:52:22 +0000

Hi everyone! My readers know that I typically don't do too many posts that are directed solely at other teacher bloggers. I prefer to have useful posts that have some sort of practical application for teachers to use or adapt in their own classroom. That post might include a video, a freebie, or even a complete review of a sponsored product that I might have for a giveaway. But today's post is mainly directed at my fellow bloggers. :)

Some blogging buddies and I were discussing last week how we feel that we are not really focusing on the blogging in maybe a way we should be. Or that we were when we first started. So, that got me to reflecting about best practices of teacher bloggers, and how many the newbies (or even veteran bloggers for that matter) might not even realize some of the etiquette. As teachers we are constantly asking students to self-reflect, so perhaps it is time to take a breather and do the same thing for ourselves to remember why we started at all.

For most of us, we probably started blogging to help other teachers by sharing our great ideas and strategies that worked in the classroom. Thanks to Dana, at 3rd Grade Gridiron, for sharing this pin with me, which should really ring true when we are thinking about what we should write:

pin links to the technology rocks. seriously. blog

So, in an effort to encourage some fantastic blog-stalking as the summer gains on us very quickly, I encourage you to take my Blogger Challenge! Let's celebrate those blogs that are really standing out from the crowd and give us inspiration!

Here's how the Challenge will work:

See if your blog qualifies to be a 5-Star Blog by reading the challenges below. If not, make it a mission to change your next few posts so that you do qualify. When you have met all 5 criteria, come on back and grab the badge above for your blog's sidebar to display proudly! I am so excited to see how many 5-Star Blogs we can pull together in one linky (and mainly that I can then add to my blog-stalking blogroll). :) Good Luck and I hope to see you on the other side!

CHALLENGE ONE: I have contact information listed on my blog somewhere. While I understand many bloggers need to remain anonymous for various reasons, you can create a free new email address which can match your blog name in minutes. Hit up any gmail-type email provider and register your new email.

Why is this important? What if you have a company that wants you to do a review of a product that they will give you to try for free with your students? Maybe a shy reader of our blog doesn't want his or her question about your last blog posted out in the public for everyone to see? Perhaps some other bloggers want to team up with you to do a special event? I have found that most email I get is helpful, non-spammy, and true. Take the chance and you might find you connect even better with your readers.

CHALLENGE TWO: No Pass the Award/Tag posts from you in the last 5 posts on your blog. You know the one when you receive it, then have to tell 50 things about your last dental visit, and pass it on to 125 other bloggers with red hair?

Why is this important? While receiving a nice little award from a fellow blogger is lovely, these tagging awards are getting a bit out of control. When a teacher opens up her RSS reader and every other post she reads is about an award someone received, the novelty wears off very quickly for the non-bloggers. While it is fun to read about the bloggers we admire on a personal level on occasion, we really would prefer to read about a great new teaching strategy or grab a freebie instead.

CHALLENGE THREE: Not featuring anyone or anything but yourself and your own ideas on your own blog in the last 3 blog posts.

Why is this important? When I come to your blog, I want to see and hear some amazing teaching ideas, not just have it be a spotlight on someone else I should go to, or your favorite pins on Pinterest. If readers continually see posts about others and just links to websites or pins, most will just stop coming to your blog and start following the blogs that have actual content. (Guest spots are different if they actually contain content - see Challenge Four below).

CHALLENGE FOUR: No self-promoting new products with no content in the last 4 blog posts.

Why is this important? Most teachers I know do not want to walk into a virtual store every time they go to read a blog. Occasional mentions of a new product or an upcoming sale are fine, but not regularly. And when you do post about those things, please write more than 3 sentences. Actually include some great information about your new item like how it could be combined with another subject and give an example or pictures of the students actually using the item. As a fellow teacher-seller, I encourage teachers who sell to a T. But give the readers a reason to want to know about it. Products and sales should be used sparingly.

CHALLENGE FIVE: I will write a new blog post that gives a great teaching idea that I want to share with teachers everywhere. I will link up that blog post below making sure to include a backlink in my post to this blog post (a bonus etiquette point).

Why this is important? Much like reflecting on teaching best practices, taking a few moments to write a blog post that meets 5-star standards is great practice in action.

That's it! Do the five steps above, making sure to link up below for Challenge Five, and you can grab the badge above! Of course, if you don't complete the steps and grab the badge anyway, it is on you. But I am hoping that all those who link up can testify that they are the best of the best!

Good luck and if nothing else, hopefully this post will help out some of the newbie bloggers - and give me some options for new reading material too. :) If you aren't a blogger, we would love to hear which types of posts you love to see and would like to see more of from the blogging community in a comment below! Thanks to all for participating!

{jumi [*182]}

Teaching The Expository Essay

cpreston@pengrouponline.com (Charity Preston) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:11:40 +0000

Today, we have a guest post for all those secondary teachers out there, which is all about teaching how to write essays!

If you’re a high school teacher, there’s a good chance that you teach students the standard five-paragraph expository essay. And there’s also a good chance that you don’t have much positive to say about the essay or the process.

The expository essay has been long-derided as an ineffective and formulaic way of teaching writing and argumentative skills. But teachers continue to use it because there are few viable alternatives. Students need to learn how to make an argument and organize their thoughts. They need to be able to relate their points back to a written text and break down their main points into smaller sections. And they need to understand thesis statements, topic sentences, and concluding paragraphs. All of these skills are important for their future educational and work careers – and all of them can be taught through the expository essay.

But how can we teach the strengths of the essay without stifling creativity and being too formulaic? Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

-Relax the rules. Not all students can be motivated to learn in the same way; among college attendees, for example, private student loans can be a positive motivator or a negative burden in the academic arena. Similarly, while some students may be more inclined to write an essay when given set rules, these very rules may cause others to do a shoddy job and feel disinclined to write in the future. Along these lines, relaxing the rules can be one of the best ways to insure greater creativity and avoid suspect motivators. You should still require that every essay contain a thesis and introductory paragraph, but paragraph counts, sentence numbers, topic sentences, and quote usage do not need to be closely regulated.

-Separate out the approach. Many teachers have bemoaned that the expository essay is a great way to teach argument organization but a poor way to teach argument writing. With this issue in mind, we can separate out the two and focus instead on the benefits of the expository approach. This can be done two ways: either students can write their essays with a “freeform” style and then adapt it to the expository format afterwards, or they conversely can make an outline that mirrors the expository format and then use that outline to write an essay that has no strict organizational requirements. Both of these approaches use the “expository essay” more for its structure than its content.

-Turn the “funnel” into a “staircase.” You may have explained the expository essay to your students using the funnel analogy: you begin the essay at the funnel’s wide brim, narrow down (ie funnel) your focus into the body paragraphs, and then widen your argument once again upon reaching the conclusion. This description can be effective but it doesn’t teach students to adequately build on their arguments as the essay goes. Instead, you may want to teach the staircase analogy instead. Here, the point of the essay is to get from the first floor to the second.

Students should begin by setting the stage (i.e. describing the first floor). Then they should start “climbing the stairs” by writing paragraphs that build on each other. Finally, they should reach the second floor, where they describe how far they’ve come and write about where to go next. Students taught this approach often display a discernible improvement in fluidity and transitional style as a result.

These are just a few tips to consider when looking to teach the expository essay in the most effective manner. While students certainly won’t be writing 5-paragraph papers in their collegiate and professional careers, they will need to remember several elements of expository writing whenever they compose a written work in the future. These are the elements that should primarily be conveyed – and highlighted – in the teaching process.

Anna is a student by day and an online blogger by night. Her studies include journalism and business. Someday she hopes to write for a major online publication so she can pay off her private student loans. Her favorite topics to write about are educations, business, and eco-friendly ideas. If you have any interest in guest writing you can reach Anna at annakayhicks(AT)gmail.com.