Jigsaw Puzzle: A Fun and Easy Cooperative Activity

As you know, teamwork is vital to success, both in and out of the classroom. If you do a lot of cooperative groupings in your classroom, (and I hope you do),  it is important to plan lessons focused on teamwork throughout the school year. This will encourage students to work successfully as a group and teach them to communicate and cooperate with one another to be successful in their assigned tasks. For some students, this comes naturally. Others are very independent and it is for these students that these lessons are most important.

This activity is called Jigsaw Puzzle. I've seen it used in teacher trainings and corporate trainings. Recently, as I was grabbing items I needed from The Dollar Tree, I happened to be near the jigsaw puzzles. Seeing them reminded me of this activity and I decided that it was time to try it in my classroom and share it with you.

Jigsaw Puzzle will reinforce the importance of cooperation and teamwork. It will encourage students to acknowledge that they will often need work and communicate with others to complete a task.

There are many different versions of this game out there. I made my version workable for a short time frame and 10 year olds in mind. Here's what you need:

• jigsaw puzzles with no more than 100 pieces - I actually did 25 because I do not wish for this to be a lengthy activity. Purchase one box for every 3 or 4 students. 
• baggies
• index cards/small slip of paper for each student (for the debrief)
•  a piece of butcher paper (also for the debrief)

That's it! I bought 8 puzzles. Now, I will tell you that these aren't the highest quality puzzles on Earth, but they will work for the activity. It just might take a few pieces placed together for them to stay put. Cheap puzzle pieces don't seem to click into place as well as more expensive ones. I personally think they are fine for an activity I will only do once a year. 

As a note, you could purchase puzzles that all make the same exact picture - though, good luck finding 8 of them at The Dollar Tree. Since that might be a challenge, just make sure that some of your puzzles have similar colors. You will understand why as you read further. 

Prep Directions

1. Take all of the pieces out of each box and place them in a bag. I wrote a letter on the side of each box and a matching letter on the baggie so I knew which puzzle was in in each bag.  
2. Take two pieces out of each bag. To decide which two, look at the other puzzles and try to take out pieces that are similar to other puzzles. For example, I might take out two blue pieces if a lot of the other puzzles have blue in them. I try to grab middle pieces when I can, but use the color as the guide.
3. Take the two pieces you pulled from each puzzle and place each one in a different bag. The intention is for each bag to have two pieces in it that belong to two other puzzles. Again, if the colors are the same this won't be obvious right away, which is the goal.

Activity Directions

1. Give each group of 3-4 students a bag with the jigsaw puzzle pieces. They should not see the picture what they are making. They will have to rely on the colors and shapes to build their picture. Do not tell them that two of the pieces don't go with their puzzle. 
2. Tell students to split up the pieces equally (which works well with a 24 piece puzzle in groups of 2, 3, or 4. 
3. Direct students to work together to place their pieces successfully. Encourage them to talk to one another as they fit their pieces together. 
4. Give students time to put their puzzles together, depending on how many pieces you've decided to use. Tell students that the goal is for all puzzles to be completed. Make it clear that this is not a competition, but is instead focused on completion. This will make it more likely that all groups will persevere with this task. 
5. As students begin to realize that two pieces do not fit, do not tell them why. Prompt them with questions such as: Where could your pieces be? How could you get them to complete your puzzle? Let them figure out the solution, which will be to communicate with and swap with the groups that have their pieces. Allow students to go around to different groups and talk to them about the pieces they have. 
6. Let all students complete their puzzles. You can give them a moment to do a quick gallery walk and see the pictures if time allows.
7. Debrief with a discussion. Ask the following questions: 
• How did you work together as a team in the beginning of the activity?
• What challenges did you face?
• Why weren't you able to complete your puzzle at first?
• What was the solution to that problem?
• How did communicating with the other groups help you to achieve your goal of completing your puzzle?
8. As an alternative to a standard exit ticket where students write down what they learned,  give each student an index card and have them write down the names of all of the students that made their team successful, both in their assigned group and outside of it.  Take a giant piece of butcher paper, and have every student add the names they wrote on their card on the poster. Repeats are welcome! When all students are finished, all names will be on the poster, some several times. It's a great representation of how they all worked as a team to achieve the goal of completing all of the puzzles. 

Printable directions are available below. Please let me know how this goes if you try it. This one isn't a tried and true in my classroom (yet), so I'll be testing it out along with you. I'd love to hear about your experience! 

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Toothpaste Words: The Most Important Back to School Lesson You Can Do

It's no secret that I love fun and engaging back to school activities. I've never been known as the quiet teacher because I love a noisy room - not one that is out of control loud and chaotic, but one where lively discussion is taking place alongside hands-on learning. However, no matter how fun my lessons might be, there is always a meaning behind what we are doing, something to be learned from the experience. 

Enter the Toothpaste Activity. This activity has been floating around for all of my teaching years (that's 13 going on 14 for those that are wondering) I couldn't begin to tell you who thought of this first, but it certainly wasn't me. Whoever it was, thank you! This is the time of year where teachers are looking for ideas to use for the first few days of school, so I thought I'd share it. I mentioned this activity as a one liner in a post many years ago 

The first part the Toothpaste Activity is a blast! Students work in groups. They receive a paper plate and a tube of toothpaste (get blue and use grab them from your local Dollar Store). Students are then asked to squeeze out an entire tube of toothpaste, getting every last drop out. 

For the second part of the activity, give students a toothpick. Tell them they need to put all of the toothpaste back in the tube using only the toothpick. Make it a race. Give them about 10 minutes to get as much back in as they can. They will start to realize they can't possibly get it all (which is why you don't want white toothpaste). 

Students then clean up. This is where the important part of the lesson comes in. When students come back to their seats, you begin a discussion about words. Ask students to share words that are hurtful to them and write them on the board as they share. I immediately tell them that we will agree that any "swear" words are hurtful, but I won't be writing any of those on the board. It will take your kids a bit to open up, so feel free to add a few of your own to get them going. You will get some uncomfortable words. I write most of them down, but if you don't feel comfortable writing it, tell students that you will treat that one like a swear because everyone feels that one is hurtful. I once did this lesson with my principal in the room, and she actually told me she was glad I wrote down all of the words because it made the lesson more powerful, but stick with your comfort level.

Next, take a step back and look at the board. This is where you connect the activity. You explain to students that the words on the board are toothpaste words. Explain that when they squeezed the toothpaste, it was like the words coming out. Ask students to tell you what happened when they tried to put every last drop of the toothpaste back in. Explain that just as the toothpaste couldn't all be placed back in the tube, their words cannot be taken back once they've been said. I always talk to students about the fact that a friend may forgive them, but they will never forget what they said. 

This will lead you to a discussion about the power of words and how we should think before we speak because all of the words listed on the board have hurt someone at one time or another. Talk to students about choosing words that are kind, supportive, and positive. Ask them to agree that they will not use the words listed on the board towards their classmates or anyone else because they now know they are hurtful. Tell them that today, you can erase the words from the board, but if they are said, there isn't an eraser in the world that is strong enough to erase the pain their words will cause. 

Teacher friends, these discussions have been amazing throughout the year. I get the chills, tear up, sometimes just outright cry right along with them as they share their words and stories. You will realize quickly that some of the words they share have probably come from adults in their lives and it will break your heart, but it will also give you a window into their life, which will help you to give them the love and respect they need during the school day. My students refer to toothpaste words from that day forward and it really has an impact on them. I hope you will take the time to do this important lesson. You can download the directions and a reflection response page by clicking the image below. 

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Stretch the "Truth" on the First Day of School

Icebreakers are a great way to help students to get to know each other during the first days of the school year. One of my favorite icebreakers is called Two Truths and a Lie. I first did this activity at a back to school staff meeting several years ago. I knew immediately that I wanted to use it in my classroom.

If you've never played Two Truths and a Lie, it's about as simple as it gets. You write down three statements about yourself, but one of them isn't actually true. You then share your three statements with a partner or group and they determine which one is a lie. It's a fun and engaging way to get to know others.

The object, of course, is to write down statements that are convincing. When I do this activity, I tell students that they should think about activities they've done that are out of the ordinary, while also thinking about ordinary things that they didn't actually do. We discuss the fact that no one rode a rainbow on a magical unicorn and how writing something unrealistic like that would give their lie away.

This year, I'm going to kick this activity off with a read-aloud of the story The Truth About My Unbelievable Summer, a fun, exaggerated story of a child's summer vacation with fantastic illustrations. After I read this story, I plan to ask students to share the events in the story that made it unbelievable.

This will be my segue into Two Truths and a Lie. I will introduce the activity with some examples. Here's some I've used in the past:

• I rode the Superman roller coaster at Six Flags five times in a row.
• I ate a hot dog on the lawn of The White House.
• I swam with the dolphins in Hawaii. 
• I ate frog legs at a French restaurant.
• I went horseback riding at the beach. 
• I caught a 24 pound rainbow trout in Lake Tahoe.
• I coached cheerleading for five years. 

I'll write my examples on the board (or add a slide with them for my back to school presentation) and ask students to think about each one. I'll call on a few students to share whether they think each of my statements is a truth or a lie and why. Students are usually surprised to find out that I'm not a strong swimmer (no swimming with the dolphins for this girl) and wouldn't catch a fish if you paid me. They are even more surprised to find out that I did spend a 4th of July at The White House. We will discuss why my statements were harder to determine than the events that were shared in our read-aloud. I will remind them that the book provided us a good example of the unbelievable, while my examples were more difficult to determine because they were all possible, even if some seemed less likely to be true than others.

After our discussion, students will work on their own statements. They will have about 10 minutes to work on this, and this work time will be at a level zero (no talking) since they will be sharing their statements with a partner or group when they are finished. Be prepared to help some students to generate ideas. As with all activities, this will come easier to some than others. You might want to prepare a list of additional examples in case anyone gets stuck for ideas. 

Students will fold a paper in half the long way (hot dog style) and cut three flaps. They will write their three "truths" on the front and then under the flap of each one, they can check a box to show if it is a truth or lie (have them do this lightly or it will show right through the paper). When their work time is up, students can share their statements with a partner or group (depending on time constraints). Students can flip the flaps up to check their guesses after they've read them all. This activity will lead to great discussions and help to calm those first day jitters!

If you'd like to grab a copy of the reproducible that I use for Two Truths and a Lie, click the image below! Whether it's a couple of weeks, a month, or more, I hope your first week is fabulous! 

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I Didn't Do My Homework... A Fun Book & Activity for the First Week of School

Last year, I purchased I Didn't Do My Homework Because... (not an affiliate link) because the illustrations appealed to me and it looked like a fun book to share with my students during the first week of school. I like to have fun, short books to introduce important rules and procedures to my students. This book was a great introduction to our discussion about homework, which is actually pretty minimal in my class, but exists, nonetheless. I brought my students to the carpet and previewed the cover, asking them what their honest thoughts were on homework. We discussed the types of assignments they liked and the types they didn't like. Then, I asked students if any of them had ever forgotten to do their homework. Of course, many hands went up and they all did a little nervous giggle together. I asked them to turn and talk to a partner (this was a great time to squeeze in my expectations for turn and talks on the carpet) about a reason that they didn't do their homework. After they had a couple of minutes to share, I told them we'd be reading a story with a number of excuses inside. It would be up to them to determine if any of the excuses were actually believable.

I read the book, sharing the pictures, and we all laughed about the reasons the main character didn't complete his homework. I gave students time to share their favorite excuse from the story and we also discussed which ones were possible and which were impossible. Since I had their full attention and engagement, I used this as a springboard for my rules and expectations for homework. We had a serious discussion about what would be expected of them throughout the year. I made my expectations clear, allowed them to ask questions, and then shifted the focus to a fun activity. I created a reproducible that asks students to become both author and illustrator of their own creative excuse for not doing their homework. They were excited to get to work. Before they worked on their illustrations, I had them decide what their excuse would be and write it down under the picture, not telling or showing anyone at first so that all of their ideas would be their own. Once everyone had written down their excuse, I allowed students to talk at a whisper (level 1) as they began to work on their illustrations. The whole activity took about an hour. I put all of their pictures on the wall as soon as they completed them! We had some really creative excuses, as you'll see below!

This creative student wrote, "A magician came and turned me into a french fry. I did not have any hands to pick up my pencil or flip a page. Then a giant dipped me into ketchup and bit my head off! 

Another wonderful student wrote, "A evil unicorn on a storm cloud took my house with my homework."

This fantastic student wrote, "A shark-faced dog took me to get ice cream. When I came home, I asked where my homework was and my sister said her frog ate it."

If you don't have a copy of this book, I encourage you to borrow one or invest in one for your classroom. I will be doing this every year from now on. It was a great way to engage students, read an enjoyable book, address an important topic, and give students time to have fun and be creative. You can click the image below to grab a copy of the reproducible for the activity. Enjoy!

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Back to School Tidbits

First week…complete! I have such a wonderful group this year that I actually don't feel that "end of the first week" tired. Instead, I'm feeling excited and rejuvenated. I truly believe that it will be a fabulous year! In this post, I wanted to share a few tidbits that started the year off on the right foot! 

Each year, I create a welcome poem for my students. In the past, I've stuffed the bag with sugary treats and left the bag on student desks for open house. This year, I decided to change things up and write a poem that would include supplies that I wanted each student to start with. Instead of giving it to students at open house, it was waiting on their desks on the first day. That way I knew students would all start with what they needed. It was much cheaper to put together than the candy bags, too! If you'd like to grab this poem, you can find it here: Welcome Back to School Poem for Supplies

Since I still wanted to welcome my students with a little treat, I opted for gourmet lollipops. It turns out that CVS had them on sale, two for $1…score! I also bought welcome bracelets from Really Good stuff, added green tags and some twine and voila, a perfect welcome gift was created! 

Of course, I never leave the parents out! I like to give them a little treat too, so for the second year in a row, I gave them "parent vitamins" with a really cute saying for each color in a pack of M&M's. Parents got a big kick out of them! You can pull up a copy here: Parent Vitamins You'll notice that there are two pages of the same thing. That is because I print two pages to one page to make them small enough to fit on the bags. 

Our lovely fifth grade bulletin board. Student names are on the flowers and peace signs. I drew that mystery bus freehand, so please be kind, I am normally a stick figure kinda gal! How fun is that font? It's called Shagadelic! Love it! 

Inspired by an idea I found from Jessica at The Teaching Oasis, I put together a welcome gift for a new teacher that I get to mentor. She's a baseball fan like me, so I made it a baseball themed-basket! Read more about this idea from Jessica at The Teaching Oasis here: Welcome Basket

I'm hoping that you are all off to a wonderful start of the 2015-2016 year too! May each week be an opportunity for growth for you and your students!

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Introducing Attention Grabbers to Your Classroom

Last night I shared some attention grabbers on my Facebook page. A follower left me a comment that got me thinking and led to this post. She wanted to know how to actually introduce students to attention grabbers. I thought that was a great question, and I'm sure that she's not the only one wondering this, so here's a post to answer that question!

First and foremost, choose one attention grabber that you'd like to use. It is my suggestion that you start with just one so that students can get used to your expectations with that one before you introduce any others. You can select more later if you'd like. I usually use just one all year, but I've done two. I personally wouldn't do more than that, but you'll know what works best for you. As you select the one that you will use, consider your grade level and their interests. I honestly love some of the attention grabbers out there that use old song lyrics or phrases, but I'm not sure my students would get it. Also, "Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom" would not work with my fifth graders, but it works fabulously in a primary classroom. In addition, I have a preference for attention grabbers that are short on words because you know, less equals more. I like to keep it short and sweet so that the attention grabber gets their attention and doesn't get them silly. Here's a list of the ones that I love most:

Click on the image above to grab a printable version of this list. 

Once you've selected your attention grabber, consider your first week activities. Your attention grabber should become a part of all of the activities that will involve student interaction (which will be the majority of your activities). Remember that no matter the age, your students will need your expectation explained and modeled, modeled, modeled! Before your very first activity that will involve interaction, introduce your attention grabber. Here's an example:

Teacher: Class, this year we are going to do a lot of group work. This will mean that you will be working with your classmates, and yes, you will be able to talk at a voice level ____. Each time you work together, I will need to be able to give you a signal that gets your attention and let's you know when it is time to stop. I am going to call out a phrase, and you will respond back with that phrase. Then, as soon as you have responded, your talking should stop and your eyes should be on me. I will say, Hocus Pocus and you will say Everybody Focus. Let's try it. Hocus Pocus!

Students: Everybody focus.

(Don't expect everyone to get it the first time.)

Teacher: Good job! Now, let's test it out. I want you to turn and talk to the person next to you. Tell them three places that you went this summer. Don't worry if you didn't travel somewhere new, you can say 7-11, my friend's house, and my grandmother's house. Any three will do! Ready? Go!

Students should be talking at this point, though it's the first day so they may need some encouragement. If the first round doesn't spark a lot of conversation, don't worry. I'll give you an extra tip in a moment. After about two minutes of discussion, use your attention grabber to stop conversation.

Teacher: Hocus Pocus!

Students: Everybody Focus!

Teacher: Hooray! That was so awesome! We'll keep practicing and get even better each time. Now, let's move on to activity that will give you an opportunity to chat again.

Here's my extra tip: If your students are incredibly uncomfortable with chatting at first, give them a silly nonsense phrase to repeat to their partner over and over for a minute (and don't forget to include your voice level expectation). It can be ice cream, just ask them to turn and say it to each other, taking turns, over and over, and stop them after a shorter time with your attention grabber. This will work and maybe break the ice a bit too!

From there, you should begin to use your attention grabber each time you have the opportunity. Praise will be important, especially during that first week, so keep complimenting them on how well they are doing with stopping and listening. Don't be afraid, however, to say something along the lines of, "That was even better. The next time, I'd like to see all eyes on me/voices off even faster." Again, be clear in your expectations, practice, practice, practice and the attention grabber will be a great success!

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Lego Back to School Bulletin Board

So I'm swimming in back to school stuff, but I'm not complaining, it's kind of nice being back to busy. We had our back to school night last week and it was a great success. I really think it's going to be a great year!

I'm also celebrating having 1,500 likes and growing on Mrs. O "Knows" Facebook Page! I'm giving away my top 10, not all to one person, but over the course of 2 days with 10 totally random trivia questions. Keep an eye out for these fun giveaways all weekend!

I also realized that I had failed to share our Back to School Lego bulletin board that we put up in our hallway. My partner teacher and I really wanted to create something different and Legos are so big right now that we decided this would be a fun and original way to welcome students back! Students give it two thumbs up! Now to think about our October board...

I hope that you are having a relaxing weekend or are at least in the comfort of your sweatpants and hoodie as you work on your many teacher to-do's!

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See, Run, Do - A Communication Focused Team Building Activity for Back to School

A few years ago, during one of our professional development sessions, we did an activity called "See, Run, Do". It was an excellent team-building activity to reinforce the idea of how important it is to work together and  effectively communicate. I remember thinking that it would be perfect as a back to school activity. As I was cleaning out some old files in preparation for a new year, I came across my notes from this activity. I decided this was the year to try "See, Run, Do" in my classroom. 

I put students in groups of 3 or 4. Each student received an index card (or printable card included below) that said see, run, or do. I asked the group to consider who might be strong in drawing so I could give that person the do card. For those students that had 4 in their group, two students received a "do" card. Each group received one piece of white construction paper and a set (one of each color) of crayons, markers, or colored pencils (their choice).

I then explained the activity to students:

"Today, we are going to need to work as a team. I have placed a picture in the hallway. In a moment, the person in each group with the "see" card is going to be allowed to look at that picture. They will need to think about what they see in that picture carefully because they will be the only person who will see it."

Cue the gasps!

I went on to tell students that the "run" person will have to meet the "see" person at a designated area. The "run" person is not allowed to be anywhere in the view of the picture. When the "run" person meets the "see" person, it will be their job to tell them what they see. The "run" person will then take that information back to the "do" person, who will be waiting in the classroom with the supplies, ready to draw what the runner tells them. The "runner" will be allowed to go back and forth between the "see" person and the "do" person as many times as they can in a 10 minute period. I did not let my students actually run, so I was explicit in telling them that even though they are called the "run" person, they would be walking briskly instead. 

I did give one piece of advice: I told the "see" students that they should think about delivering a small piece of information each time so that it's easy for the "run" student to remember.

After 10-15 minutes, all students came back to their groups and the "see" students shared the picture with their group. They compared their drawings to the pictures that were drawn by the "do" students. Here's what they came up with: 

Some students were disappointed that their drawings weren't closer to the actual picture. I made my way around to each group and asked if each could identify at least five details that they had correct and each one was able to. We had a discussion about why communication and teamwork were important to the success of this activity.I told them that they needed to be proud of their communication and that five was a great accomplishment and the direct result of awesome teamwork! 

In all honesty, my 27 students did a really fantastic job! I heard zero arguments and saw a display of teamwork that was truly impressive for a group of children who had only been together for 3 days. I made it a point to compliment them on their communication and teamwork. I think we've set a really great tone for the school year! 

I found the cartoon picture here: Cartoon Classroom

If you'd like to grab the printable see, run, do cards, click on the image below. Print on colored paper to make them colorful.

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Five for Friday on Saturday - First Friday of the 2014-2015 School Year

Ok, so it's Saturday and I'm a little late to the party, but hey, better late than never, right?  It's time to link up with:

for another fabulous: 

Lots of back to school goodness going on this week! I have officially begun my tenth year of teaching! 

Seriously, I think I was awake every hour on the hour! The night before the first day of school never gets any easier! So many unknowns, so many what-ifs, too many checklists running through my mind! By the time I "woke up", I was a nervous wreck! 

We started off the week with this awesome Getting to Know My Teacher Powerpoint Activity from The Techie Teacher where students predicted the answers to different questions about me. It was a great way to share a bit about myself. The students were engaged because they wanted to know if their predictions were right and I loved hearing their guesses for each one! This will now be a staple back to school activity for me!

Students participated in an activity called Toothpaste Words. In this activity, students work in groups and are first given a tube of toothpaste and told to squeeze out as much as they can. After about 5 minutes, they are given toothpicks and told that they need to put all of that toothpaste back in! After we clean up our mess, students return to their seats. We then have a very honest discussion about words that are hurtful and I put them all on the board (except the really bad ones). This year, my students shared more than 50 words that had hurt their feelings at one time or another. Once we had our list, I labeled them "Toothpaste Words" and asked students to consider if they had used one before. I asked what happened when we tried to put all of the toothpaste back in. Students quickly realized how this represents that once we have said something negative, it is hard to take it back, just as it was hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube. We talked about how our words can really make a difference and that we want to be remembered for positive actions. This has always been a powerful activity during the first week. It really gets students thinking about their words and actions.

This summer I stocked up on new books. By the time students are in fifth grade, they've already heard First Day Jitters and How I've Spent My Summer Vacation, so I wanted something else that would get us off to a good start. The Girl Who Never Made Mistakes is perfect for a first read-aloud because it's about knowing that it's ok to make a mistake. I always tell students that they are human, they will make mistakes. I also tell them that I am human, and I make at least one mistake a day (I must get tongue-tied at least 5 times a day). Reading this aloud naturally led to a discussion about how our classroom needs to be a place where we feel like it's acceptable to make mistakes. We talked about how important it is to never make anyone feel uncomfortable because they've made a mistake. Another win! 

When students needed a break from my talking about rules, expectations, and all that jazz, I let them color. But I didn't let them color just anything. I found these wonderful Quotes Coloring Sheets at Doodle Art Alley. I love to display as much student-created work as possible because I want students to feel like it is their classroom, not MY classroom. This gave me an easy way to decorate my cupboards with positive messages that are personalized by each student! I could not be happier with the outcome!

I'm happy to report that it was a wonderful first week and that my group is AWESOME! I just know we're going to have a fantastic year!

 

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Fifth Grade Back to School Tips Blog Hop and Giveaway

I’m very excited to join other fabulous 5th grade teachers to offer this Back to School Blog Hop! We wanted to do this hop to provide you with some back to school tips to start the year off right. We also wanted to do a little giveaway to help stock you up for the upcoming year! So hop around, get some great advice, some fabulous resources, and enter to win our terrific giveaway!

Here's a few tips for a successful year and a couple of resources to get you going!

Parent Communication

Communicate with parents often. As teachers, we have a zillion things going on and sometimes the last thing that we want to do is sit and make phone calls after school. But we don't want to avoid parents or make fall conferences the first time we communicate, especially if you have concerns. On the other hand, do not make your only contacts about concerns. I make time once per week for positive phone calls or emails, where I contact each parent once a month to share something positive that their child has done. Parents love it, but students might love it even more because they are usually rewarded in some way when their parents receive that call. I keep a chart of parent names and the times that I call/email for positive behavior separate from my contact log for behavior/concerns. That way I know that I've had at least one positive contact with each parent once a month. It does take some time out of your day, but it also makes a huge difference.

Now, just to piggyback off of that for a minute, I highly suggest phone calls for any concerns. You do not want to say something in an email that could come back to haunt you. Email can easily be misinterpreted and used against you. The best communication is a conference, but since that's not always possible a phone conversation will accomplish a lot more than an email and spare you the possibility of being misunderstood.

You can download a generic log that I made below.  I am also including a parent communication information sheet that I ask parents to fill out on back to school night. I keep them in a binder together so that everything I need to make contact is in one place.

Classroom Rewards

Now that I've had almost a decade in the classroom, I've had a chance to consider rewards and the cost of certain rewards. My students earn tickets for various actions in the classroom. They used to put those tickets in for raffles of prizes I picked up from the Dollar Store, all cheap little things, any gifts I didn't want, junk really, but I was spending a lot of my money keeping it stocked up. Two years ago I came across the idea of classroom coupons. What a money saver! Now my students use their tickets to purchase coupons. The most popular one? Stinky feet! My fifth graders love to take their shoes off, but I do have a "must have socks on" policy, no bare feet in my classroom! There are tons of great sets out there, but I created my own 5th grade cards with my 6 favorite ones in case you'd like to use them.  During the first week, I usually decide on a fair price (number of tickets) for each one. For example, the gum coupon might be 25 tickets, while lunch with the teacher is 100, and stinky feet could be 40. The amount you set should be reasonable and achievable. I think my first coupons were purchased around the 4th week last year. 

Behavior Management

A little respect goes a long way. I have had exceptional students in terms of behavior and it hasn't always been easy to achieve, but it's worth the hard work. I've often been told that behavior management is one of my strongest areas. When people ask me how I do it, I give them two words: respect and consistency. I give clear expectations that are high, yet reachable. I hold my students to those expectations consistently. I am not terribly strict, but I hold students responsible for misbehavior consistently. I am constantly talking to my students about the decisions that I make for them. I can be heard asking, "Is that fair?" several times a day. I make it clear that I respect them and care about them, and that their learning is the most important focus of each day. I share stories with my students, I laugh with my students, I get to know my students, and I am kind to my students. I truly believe that they behave because they give me what I give them.  If you create a positive learning community where students (and teachers) can make mistakes, share stories, learn together, and grow together, then you have the recipe for success!

Keep Hoppin'!

Now it's time to hop on over and visit the creative and awesome Wise Guys from Creativity in the Common Core Classroom, but before you hop over, make sure you enter our giveaway at the bottom of this post!

GIVEAWAY ALERT! GIVEAWAY ALERT!

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