Classroom Routines at the END of the year!?

What kind of classroom routines do you put in place?  As the year wraps up, I think it is a critical time to think about classroom expectations and routines that you want to change for next year. It is also a good time to try out a new procedure or routine that you are thinking about for next year.

I know its a hard time of year to think about that, but its worth it. If there is a classroom ritual or routine that you have been thinking about implementing, but aren't sure, this can be a good time to try it out.

Think of it as a pilot program :).  Granted, some things are different at the end of the year than the start, but it gives you a chance to get a feel for what you want to try, and then think about changes that you want to make for the upcoming year.

In the past I have changed my homework policy for the last unit or last marking period. I have tried a positive behavior incentive system (it doubles as a good way to keep students motivated at the end of the year).  I have also changed how I did the start of class, or the end of class.   Here is a starting point for reading about behavior incentive systems. I know they are controversial, and can be problematic, but they can also be helpful.  Along with this, another behavior system to try can be classdojo.com. If you haven't heard of classdojo yet, and have a class that is struggling with either behavior or just is not really engaged and motivated, it can be a great tool. You may want to check it out!  Both of these systems take some work and adjustment on the teacher's part, so the trial period/pilot program is a great time to see how you like it, and if it will work for you, or what you want to adjust.

Another area you may want to experiment with is how you start or end class.  It is so important to teach students not to waste time in class, and to come in 'ready to go.'  Part of this means being on time, but it also means engaging your brain at the start of class. Whether its a quiz on yesterday's class, an open-ended question to get thinking about today's topic.  If you use a timer, it becomes a way to really keep students focused and get on task at the start of class.  It is also important to give some students some closure at the end of class, and for both you and they to get a good understanding of their learning and comprehension.

I do think through both warm-ups/bell work and exit tickets.  Over the years I have done warm ups on a smart board or even an overhead (gasp!), and had students answer on paper.  When I did it that way, a big time saver is this bell work sheet.  It will save you time at the copier, and also save time grading, and save class time as students aren't scrambling for paper to write on.

If you are thinking about using Google Forms or Google classroom, they are another great way to do warm ups or tickets out.  I have created a set of warm-up/tickets out in Google Forms that you could try out. I also have the same set of warm ups in Google Slides and an PDF's, if you prefer to project them, do them on paper.  These will eventually be part of a growing bundle of warm ups and tickets out on various topics to use throughout the year (should be posted this weekend).

If you are thinking about trying out different seating arrangements, use editable seating templates to get some ideas going.

 Finally, if what you really want is general tickets out, that are not topic specific, check out this freebie.  Tickets out can be used for reflection, formative assessment, or closure on a lesson. These four freebies are part of a larger pack that is NOT subject specific and can be used in so many different ways.

If you are looking for a timer, to use for bellwork, I have used several free options.  Within the chrome browser is this extension for 1-click timer.  If you use the Smartboard you probably already know that there is built in timer.  If you are looking for a freestanding time in Windows here is good one.  It is 'portable' which means that you don't need to install anything (say on a district computer where you can't install) to use it.

Hope some of these ideas were helpful, and give you a little bit of perspective on your classroom routines at this point in the year.

What things are you looking to change or try out?

Lessons My Students Taught Me That Will Make You Rethink Your Role

As a teacher, and even a veteran teacher, I learn a lot from my students (yes, I know its a cliche, but its true!)

They fill me on and make sure I learn about clothing and music trends, and which rappers and TV shows to watch.  I learn about struggles that young children and teenagers have to deal with that I could never imagine, now, as an adult. I have learned what it really means to live in poverty, and gained an appreciation for the drive, ambition, and pride that some students have, against all odds.  When you teach in an urban area, in a very impoverished setting, and come from a middle class background, you learn a lot.   

However, across different grade levels (7th grade through college), different achievement levels (AP to credit recovery and special education), and different backgrounds, one thing sticks out to me.   

Cutting across all of those groups,  I think the biggest thing that I have learned is how important positive feedback and recognition is. Students will work harder in your class if they feel successful.  You have the power to make sure they feel successful during class, regardless of their grade. Yes,  there are ways to make lessons more fun, more relevant,  more engaging,  but beyond all of those students need to believe that they are appreciated, recognized and successful in class to take a risk and be a part of those activities. 

Students quickly decide that they 'like' or 'hate' your class, and a lot of it has to do with feeling successful. They can also change their mind! You can control this!  I don't mean by changing your expectations or your grading system.

How can you make students feel successful?  Compliment them.  Compliment them on the skills that you want them to continue to utilize.   Reinforce the behavior that you want them to do. Reinforce when they are doing well.  Praise them for using those skills and behaviors.  Its a win-win -- they are feeling successful and are likely to continue or increase those behaviors.  

Let me give you a couple of examples.  My own son does taekwondo.  At taekwondo, when he struggles with learning a particular kick or gets beaten at sparring, he sometimes doesn't want to go back.  When he gets praised from the instructor, wins a contest, or gets a compliment from a peer, it makes his day. In fact, not only does it make his day, but it makes him that much more excited to go again, because he feels like he's good at it.  

This same principle applies in the classroom, but now, instead of starting with a blank slate, you are starting with students who may have previous 'scars' and preconceived ideas that they are not good at school, especially be secondary school.  

I have done a ticket reward system several times in my classroom over the years, depending on the group of students that I have, and the building in which I am teaching.  In most cases, the students who are the most responsive to it are some of the lowest performing.  Also, in most cases, they don't really want the prizes.  There are a few students who are really after the prizes, but most want the points/tickets -- they want the recognition!  That's not something they are used to getting in class! And when they do collect prizes, one of the most popular prizes (yes for high school and middle school students) is a positive note or phone call home.

I give tickets or points for things like getting to class on time, answering questions, taking notes, helping a classmate.  These are basic classroom behaviors, but often it is our weakest students who aren't doing these things.  It is part of our job to teach these steps.  And then when students do them, recognize that!  Then it is cyclical - as they do those behaviors they become more successful and it builds.

In thinking about praise and recognition is, and what kind of non-materials rewards we could give students I started a google search.  I typed and this is what I got

Yep! The top result is for employees!  Yes, I clicked on it.  And you know what, a lot of the ideas suggested I think would be great.  Everyone wants to feel appreciated, and recognized.  I would love to work in a place where there were things like comp time off (does that sound similar to free time to time to listen to music in class?), or a nice card from a boss, recognition at a meeting (similar to a note home, or recognition at an assembly), a better parking spot (not so different from a special seat in class).

School shouldn't be so competitive.  Who wants to come to a place every day where they don't feel successful and appreciated?!  I wouldn't want to work in such an environment, and I doubt you do either.  Not everyone fits into the one-size-fits-all approach that is present at schools.  Part of our job as teachers is to help all students feel successful, welcome, and appreciated for who they are.

I do my little piece by greeting them by name, making positive phone calls home, recognizing in class when they are working particularly hard or helping a class mate. None of those cost a cent! A ticket or point system, I believe, is really in place to make both sides of this process (teacher and student) more tangible, and to serve as a reminder. 

What do you do to help your students feel appreciated and successful in class? 

Test Taking Strategy You Need to Know

When my students take a test, I want them to reason through the answers, read carefully, support their thinking, and make connections to what they know. Don't you? 

I don't know about you, but this is not often the case. When it is the case ,it is usually for my stronger students, but my weaker students (who most need to utilize these strategies) often don't do so.  Instead my weaker students are more likely to just pick answers, sometimes randomly, or even to leave questions blank.  

Like many of you, I have tried many other strategies to help students develop their test taking abilities and strategies, but with limited success.

My favorite is to allow students to work with a partner.  However, I don't tell them this right away.  I let them work on the test for the first half the period or so.  Then I will allow them to choose a partner.  They have to finish the test with a partner, or use their partner to check any that they aren't sure of.  Sometimes I tell them they need to turn in only one answer sheet.  Sometimes I allow them to turn in two answer sheets.

The results are amazing!  Students are already quiet, and for the most part engaged, but may be struggling. They are in a good spot to collaborate. All of a sudden I walk around the room and hear students saying things like,

"I think it has to be B because...."
"Well it asks us to compare, that means we have to talk about how they are alike and different"
"Did you look at the diagram?"

They suddenly have a reason to explain their thinking. They are encouraged to go back and look more closely at the question, the diagram, the vocabulary.

This works better than open notes, in my opinion because my weaker students often don't have good notes from which to pull information.  Here they have a crutch, but they have to convince another person of what they know, or work together with another person to agree upon an answer.

This has been an amazing strategy in my classroom to encourage even the weaker students to work through the questions, just the way that we want them to!  As they do, they learn from talking through the questions, using vocabulary, and also they gain confidence when they see what they know.

This is one of my favorite strategies. It can't be used all the time, but used sporadically it has great results.  One time my kids were taking a test this way and the director of science for my district walked in. He was very impressed with the conversations that he heard taking place!

What are your best strategies to build confidence and help students learn to think through difficult questions?

What You Need to Know to Use Digital Interactive Notebooks

Digital Interactive Notebooks in Google Drive

As more and more schools are moving toward chromebooks, or use of Google Drive on laptops or desktop, it presents some opportunities that you may not be aware of.

Most people are aware of using Google drive for students to write a document and 'share' it with the teacher, or even to collaborate with another student to create a document together.

Google Drive can also be used to share information such as readings, slides, videos, etc. 

There are countless blog posts, websites, and resources available on using Google Drive, and Google Classroom.

Google Drive and Google Classroom Resources

Here are a few resources to get you started:

• 34 Interesting ways to use Google Docs in the Classroom
• Getting Started with Google Classroom
• The Google Apps Learning Center

I have been using Google apps quite a bit over the last two schools years, but I have been stuck at times because I do things with a lot of diagrams in them, and I use interactive notebooks. I was nervous for students to have some work on the computer, and some in notebooks.

The switch to Digital Interactive Notebooks

I am making the switch to electronic INB's, with a few tweaks that I wanted to share with you

• Most INB pages can be in google slides, making it easy to combine pages, add and move pages, etc. 
• If they do something on paper that can't be replicated electronically, such as a hand drawing, they can take a picture of it and insert it.
• If I have diagrams that need to be labelled or colored, this can be done.

An example of a converted resource

I converted my Circulatory System Foldable (paper version) to a Google Drive version.  You can see a preview of it below:

I'm finding that students are more successful working on Google Drive because their work is automatically saved, searchable, and not lost! It eliminates the forgetting of papers, and losing papers.  Also, if students are messy writers, or get frustrated with mistakes they might make, this lets them produce a neat and clean copy. If you use Google Classroom, it also is a great help with absent students.  They can check there for any missing work.

Here are a few other shots of this digital product, compared to the paper copy.

Digital Notebook Resources

If you are intrigued, but not quite sure, here are a few other links to some ideas on doing interactive notebooks in Google Drive:

Why Use Digital Interactive Notebooks?

How to get Google to Drive your Lessons

Setting up Digital Science Notebooks

If you are using Google Drive, you may also want to be aware of how to use Google Chrome Extensions to help differentiate.   

Click here for a free starting guide to differentiate with Google Chrome

I'd love to hear how you are using Google Drive in your classroom, or if you are doing Digital Interactive Notebooks in another way.  If not, what reservations you might have. Please comment below and share your experiences. 

Other Example Resources

Here are a few other resources that I've converted to Google Drive format: 

Digital Task Cards or Google Forms formative assessments

Photosynthesis and Respiration Sorting Activity

Macromolecule Organizer

This Will Make You Want to Use Google Chrome With Your Struggling Students

As we know, reading and writing are often huge barriers learning content for special ed students, ELLs, and others.  If you have access to technology, there are some easy tricks to help differentiate, and break down that barrier with your students.  Specifically, within Google Chrome, or on a chromebook there are some easy ways to modify assignments and make them more accessible!  Help level the playing field for your students!

Jackpot: Top 5 Most Popular Posts of 2015

Just a quick link as we start the year to my top 3 blog posts of the past year. 

3. Using Google Forms in the classroom 

2. My second most popular post is tips for setting up your classroom. If you are doing semester classes, this could be very useful now.

And....my top blog post of the year one of my all time favorite labs. Leaf stomata lab! Such simple household materials, and so cool to see! 

Hope you enjoy! 

Behind the Scenes: What Can We Learn From Online Courses?

This year I have taken a different position in my district, and I'm learning a lot.  I am working for the IT department, and am traveling to different schools, working with students who are one extreme or the other.  Either they are taking AP Courses, or they are taking credit recovery courses (courses they have already failed, and they are behind on credits).  What they all have in common is that they are working on those courses online.  The district has purchased some mostly pre-packaged courses, on the brainhoney platform, and the students are scheduled into a computer lab to work on their courses. They are scheduled into a lab together, regardless of what subject course they are working on.  Subject teachers rotate through the lab on a daily basis doing a combination of helping students, and managing the lab.  Students will have face-to-face contact with their subject area teacher once a week, and we are available by phone and email in the meantime.

For me personally, this is a much less stressful position, and I am greatly enjoying the new balance in my life.  Educationally, however, I think there are a lot of pros/cons, and I would love to share them with you, and see if anyone has had similar feedback.

Pros:

• Students can move at their own pace. The entire course is designed before they start.  If they want to move faster, they are welcome to do so.  When they complete the course with a passing grade, they earn the credit.  If they are moving slower, that's also on them.
• Since most of the coursework is designed to be independent, it really allows me to spend my time one-on-one, or in small groups with students who are having trouble, or need extra support.
• Again, since the basic course is already existing, I can spend much of my time and energy working on scaffolding materials, parent phone calls, and improvements.
• Since its online, I spend very minimal time at the copier.
• Online discussions and interactions allow everyone an equal chance to participate, even though who may be quiet in class.
• Students who are absent automatically can login and pick up where they left off, no more keeping track of what students are missing. 

Cons:

• Since its pre-existing, I can't directly modify the content, for example to allow different reading levels.  The same course content gets sent out to all students.  I can make additional guided notes, videos, etc to assist, but the basic content stands.  For some students, the reading level is really a difficulty.
• From a science standpoint, the idea of teaching a science class, in a computer lab is very strange. The labs are either computer simulations, or labs that can be performed independently with 'basic household materials.'  I have given students the option to do the hands-on labs with me, and some have, but generally I am not doing labs with students.
• I'm not sure that online classes build community, social interaction, and communication skills like a regular classroom.
• As much as the class is self-paced, this is very difficult for many students as they need the more immediate incentive of something being collected at the end of the class period.

Most colleges are now requiring students to take at least one online course, and it is most often the course which students fail.  Like it or not, education seems to be going more towards online coursework.  What lessons can we take from this to help our students and ourselves in the regular classroom? 

If you have similar thoughts or experiences/reactions, please comment below

Day 5 of Science Teacher Gifts

Day 5:  HUGE BUNDLE giveaway from many science teachers at TpT.  This link will be good through the weekend! 

Day 4 of Science Teacher Gifts

Day 4: Flash Freebie in my store.  

Day 3 of Holiday Cheer

Day 3: 20% discount on my entire store, today only.  Click here to go to my store

Day 2 of Holiday Cheer

Day 2: 25% off Bundles today only!! 

Click here to get to the bundles in my store. 

Day 1 of Holiday Cheer.... BOGO

Day 1: BOGO any item of equal or lesser value.  If you purchase an item on Monday December 7th, 2015, email me your receipt and the item you are choosing to get free.  I will email you your free item.  

The details:
- Item must be purchased on 12/7/15
- BOGO (buy one get one) good for ONE item of equal or lesser value
- Simply forward your sales receipt to sciinthecity@gmail.com along with the link of the item you would like for free (equal of lesser value)
- Deal ends at midnight 12/7/15

CyberMonday (and Tuesday) Sale

I'm going to keep this short and sweet because, honestly, I am really enjoying the long weekend and finding it very hard to get focused back on work.

If you are feeling the same way, I have a plan for you!  Did you know Teachers Pay Teachers is having a site-wide Cyber Monday and Tuesday sale?!  

So......let's say you are like me and don't want to plan ahead this week.  Use the sale to save 28% on all items in my store on Monday and Tuesday.  Save yourself some time and stress during the holiday season. I'm sure you have better things to do than write lesson plans! 

Here are a few of my best ideas on what I would purchase

And if you are looking for more great science products at a discount, check out these stores: 

An InLinkz Link-up

How to Make a Memorable Halloween in the Science Classroom

Every year as Halloween approaches, I think about what I want class to look like on that day.  There is no denying that its not a regular class day.  Students will not be focused, and will likely be resentful if its run like a regular class.  However, there are many options.

A friend of mine teaches upper level students (juniors and seniors), with smaller class sizes.  She does some really REALLY cool demos that day.

My favorite is the exploding pumpkin! It is definitely something students will remember, and be excited about.  She also usually gets dry ice, and does some demonstrations with dry ice, such as these:

Sometimes, however, particularly when teaching large classes of middle school students, I don't always trust their behavior and self-control to do these type of demonstrations.  Students are excited, but they are TOO excited, and it just adds to the chaos, and can get out of control. 

Instead, I have used this day to build on literacy, in a fun and engaging way that still allows students a break from the regular daily routine.  

I usually print out a variety of news articles on Halloween related topics, at different reading levels, and then I let them choose an article. 

There are many more available, but here are a few of my favorites: 

• Toxic slime, goo-spewing mouth, brain-eating parasites — oh my! (needs a free newsela.com account, but if you don't have one, get one. It is awesome!)
• The Crafty Wasps That Turn Spiders Into Web-Weaving Zombie Slaves 
• Vampires’ gift of ‘blood honey’
• True vampires
• Plant ‘vampires’ lay in wait
• Early school starts can turn teens into ‘zombies’

Depending on my particular class and my goals, I may then have the students answer some comprehension questions about the article (some of these come with comprehension questions), get into a small group or partner and present, write a short summary, connect to a course topic, use a version of the textbook reading strategy, etc.

One year I was at a school that required 'literacy labs' consisting of 

• a list of three or more vocabulary words with definitions that you took from the article (you may need to research to find a proper definition 
• A short essay consisting of: 
• a description of EITHER how this information will impact your everyday life/why the information in this passage matters/your opinion about whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, with supporting arguments.  
• Make a list of facts, opinions, conclusions, and speculations contained in this article. 

There are also numerous free examples of news article summaries and news article assignments available online, as well as common core literacy questions that can easily be adapted.

Students are doing something slightly academic, but have been quite engaged reading about 'Halloween' topics, and taking a break from their regular coursework for one day. 

How do you celebrate Halloween in your classroom? 

Google Forms: Revolutionary Technology in the Science Classroom

There are so many kinds of technology that I use on an almost daily basis in my science class to improve life and education for my students.  Today's post is going to focus on a tool that I use almost everyday -- Google Forms.

If you have never used google forms before, here are some tutorials. They are VERY easy to use.

All you need is a google account (personal or professional, the students will never see your email address). You can go to Google Drive and create a new form, or go to forms.google.com.  You create a form just like you create any other document, and you can choose what type of questions you want (multiple choice, short answers, scale, checkboxes, include a picture or video....).  Your answers will automatically come to a Google Sheet (like excel), and you can also get a summary of responses.  This means google will aggregate the data for you, and show, immediately, for every question, the number of people who chose each multiple choice answer, or a list of the responses.  The responses will show up on real time, so you can immediately see your students' responses.

Here is an example of the summary of results that you can get immediately after students respond.

Before I get into ways that I used google forms in the classroom, a couple of other tips that I wanted to share with you.

1. The snipping tool in windows is a great way to include any images that you want to add in.
2. There is an add-on called flubaroo (there are lots of great tutorials online) that will automatically grade multiple choice for you.
3. If you only want the form available at a certain time, or to end at a certain time, you can toggle on and off the 'accepting responses,' as shown below

Ok, so on to how I use google forms in the classroom.  

I had three main uses for google forms that I want to share, although there are many others.

1. I used it for myself to track parent contacts.  I made a quick form with boxes for student name, method of contact, and what was discussed (time and date are stored automatically).  I put a bookmark to this form on my toolbar and could quickly enter any parent contact.  Then I ended up with a spreadsheet that I could sort or search of all my parent contacts.
2. I used google forms at the end of each unit, or topic, to do a quick survey with the kids around the learning objectives.  I could immediately get a pulse on how they were feeling about the various objectives, and know where to focus my review.  I could pull the summary up on the board and work of off that to review.  I found it much more effective that asking them to ask questions, or openly self-report. We could all be on the same page.  I had them take notes as we were reviewing. 

For example...

3. I used google forms on an almost daily basis for warm ups.  We were a 1:1 chromebook school last year, so this might not be feasible otherwise, but it is certainly something to consider for those days you have device access, or even if you want students to access on any type of device.  I would usually give them a shortened link (from goo.gl) or post the link on google classroom.  Then my form would show 2 or 3 warm up or ticket out questions.  I could even include a video on picture. I could turn the form off when the time was up, and pull up the responses on the board so we could see where we are as a class, and if we are ready to move on.  

Have you used google forms in your classroom?  If so, where do you see it being most useful?  What other technology do you use? 

Why Should I Absolutely Use a Warm Up or Bellwork?

Sometimes you hear people saying that the purpose of warm-ups or bellwork is just to get kids settled at the start of class, and give the teacher time to get settled.  

That may be true, but I don't see that as the main purpose of a warm-up.

In my classroom, a warm up or bellwork is a key part of instruction.  I use them as daily quizzes, worth 2 points each day.  At the end of the week they get added up for a ten point quiz grade.  They are graded 2 points if correct, 1 point if tried but partially correct, and 0 points if not tried. I used to actually grade them for correctness, but I really want the students to try, even if they are unsure, and they will get 1 point for trying.  I want to use bellwork more as formative assessment than summative.

I use the same sheet each day for each student.  They know the routine to pick up their bellwork paper on the way into class.  This helps me with attendance, as well, because all students who are present on time pick up their papers.  Those papers left are absent.  When bellwork is over (first 5 minutes), collect their papers and grade them for the next day.  It sounds time consuming, but it only takes me a few minutes each day to go through and mark a 0, 1, or 2 on each student's bellwork square for that day.  It also gives me an excellent gauge on their comprehension as we progress through the unit.

You can see the bellwork sheets that I use on a weekly basis here. This really saves me time at the copier!  Instead of copying daily bellwork, I copy once a month and then put the bellwork on the board or smartboard when they come in. They just record their answers in the daily box.



I choose the questions that I use for bellwork very carefully.

At the start of the unit, I make bellwork very open-ended.  Some examples are interpreting a diagram, or making observations about a diagram.  I have also had bellwork early in the unit that focuses on a small reading passage, a connection between last unit and the new content, or even listening to a song or watching a video and stating what they think it is about.

I also like to use bellwork to build prior knowledge, if possible, or to practice basic skills, such as determining what is wrong with a graph, or to learn new vocabulary.

As the unit progresses, I ask content based questions, usually from what we just did yesterday.  This is where bellwork holds them accountable for yesterday's work, gives them a heads-up if they were absent, and gives me a quick look at understanding from yesterday.  At this stage in the unit, I usually use concept-based questions, but write them in my own words, or in more student friendly language, although I may use some diagrams from state exam questions.

As we get closer to finishing up a unit, my bellwork will mostly consist of state test questions on the topic that we are studying.  This is where they really get used to the language of the exam, and apply what they have used.

Lastly, depending on the group of students that I have, I sometimes do bellwork in a different way.  I teach in an urban district where reading levels are very low.  There have also been years where I have had a lot of ELL's.  Many times they are struggling with not only unit concepts and vocabulary, but tier 2 vocabulary, which we don't traditionally teach in science class.  I have used bellwork as a chance to teach some of these tier 2 vocabulary words, using this products in my store.  These give students pictures of a word, and ask them to infer the meaning.  We worked on 4 or 5 words a week, and then had a quiz at the end of the week.  This really helped, and made students more confident with inferring meanings of unknown words as well.

Teacher Life Hack - Easily Maintain your Sanity

I don’t know about you, but I am constantly seeking a better work-life balance.  Teaching is one of the jobs that can easily take over your life, if you allow it to do so.  There are a lot of things that I do to maintain a work-life balance.  Many of them revolve around food prep.  I previously wrote a blog post here that touches on that.  

During the school year, no matter how much prep I do, it is hard to maintain a balance during the year.  One thing I do to try to maintain some kind of balance is take my work email off of my phone!  I especially do this on the long weekends, or over a school break.

If you aren’t ready for that step, then at least turn of the ‘push’ and the notifications, so you can check it on your schedule!

Another option would be to put it under a separate email app so that you have to choose to check it, on your schedule.

When work email is on your phone, it is too easy to feel an obligation to answer emails at all or hours, or to read an email that makes you frustrated or upset when you should be getting ready for bed, or enjoying family time.

Nightmare with Multiple Labs? Make it Immediately Manageable!

Are you feeling overwhelmed by multiple preps, particularly multiple labs to set up?  That can be mind boggling at first, but it is manageable, I promise you.  I've been there.  Teahcing lab sciences, particularly to middle school students adds another layer of complexity.  Here are a few tips...

1. If you can, stagger that days when your classes have labs, so that you don't have to set up too many labs on the same day.  I know it sounds great to do labs when they fit into the curriculum, but most of the time you can make it work.  It is better for the students to have you be able to do it calmly than to be stressed out by trying to do a lab one day earlier or later.  For example, maybe you do Biology labs Monday and Earth Science labs Tuesday.  If you can't always structure it that much, at least try to have them fall on different days. 
2. If possible, maybe you can correlate the classes.  For example, if one is an honors class, and one is a lower level class, maybe they can do different versions of the same lab.  The set up might be the same, or similar, but you might ask for different analysis questions or more detail on their write ups.  Maybe one is conceptual and one is quantitative.  This can only work depending on the classes you have, but its worth mentioning.  Really saved me when I had 5 lab science preps as a new teacher!
3. If you can't, or you have labs that go more than one day, train your students, and use their help.  The best way I have found to do that is to have the materials out in bins (dollar store dishpans work well) for one per table.  You can set them up ahead of time, and they can quickly grab their materials, and put them back into the bin when they are done.  You can either pass out one bin per table, or have them set up in one consistent spot where students can get their supplies. 
4. Another option that I have seen to is to have one counter where students from each lab group come through like an assembly line and get their materials.
5. Leave a few minutes at the end of class for them to clean up. It seems like you want them to finish, but, I promise, it is worth training them and leaving them a few minutes to clean up.  Make sure they do it before they leave and you will save your sanity. 
6. If you have to leave a lab out, have a designated place for them to put their materials.  Don't less class end, and you and they are fumbling for where to put their things.  If you have multiple preps, make those spots different and designated for each class.  For example, maybe one class always leaves their things on the windowsill, and another class always leaves their things on a back counter or extra table.  This will eliminate a lot of confusion.  They know they shouldn't be touching materials belonging to the other class. 

What else do you struggle with when having multiple labs?  What other tips do you have to share?  Please share in the comments! 

Secrets of Success: Proven Classroom Setup Tips

Hi All,

I was recently asked to share my tips for setting up the classroom.  I have been delaying writing this post because I'm not in a classroom this year, so I couldn't include pictures.  But...I have been in a classroom the last 10 years (12 if you count my time as a teaching assistant), in a lot of different settings, so I can still offer my advice.

I have been a teaching assistant in a few different special education, self-contained classrooms, I have been an adjunct college professor (only on campus to teach my course), and then taught in the district I currently work in.  I have been in 3 different classrooms in that district, and one year was on a cart.

There are certain features that I think are necessary in setting up a classroom, no matter what space you are in.  I would like to share those here.   I was also asked to share advice on setting up a classroom for multiple preps or multiple labs, that will also be part of this post.

Here are some views of a few of my classrooms over the years. (These are not all the classrooms I've been in, but those that I have photos of)




In all of those classrooms I think it is critical to have the following information (in no particular order).  I will highlight how I did a few of those in some photos below

• Agenda so students know what is going on that day (and it helps keep me organized).  If I have multiple classes in the same room I have done a few things:
• Erase and re-write
• Write on a smaller white board that I can prop up and switch out
• Write on chart paper and switch
• Divide the board down the middle and write both agendas up
• A place for students to hand in work.  I usually just accomplish this with a bin (the dollar store dishpans work great).

• Student supplies.  This can be split into two types depending on your students, or grouped together.  
• Things that are left out for easy student access, such as pencil sharpener, kleenex, maybe tape, lotion.
• Student supplies that may be left out, or gotten out as needed.  For me, these are crayons, colored pencils, markers, glue, maybe extra tape, rulers.  I like to have these in small bins (pencil boxes from the dollar tree work fine, or other bins), so that you or a student can quickly put one out on each table. The colored bins on my cart were for that.
• A place for you to keep upcoming copies, emergency sub plan, answer keys, etc that is readily accessible.  When I was on a cart I used a file box.  Otherwise I usually had a divider on my desk. 

• A place for students to get missing work or make up work if they are absent. I just use a file crate and make a folder for each day of the week.  Then I make folders behind those for each week of the marking period.  At the end of Monday I put the extra papers in Monday.  When the next Monday rolls around I put them in week 1, etc.   You may want to post near this updated grades by ID number, or a list of missing work. 

• A schedule or list of times you are available for extra help. 
• Seating chart posted, if you plan to use one, so students can quietly go check if they were absent or forgot where they sit.
• I also think it is important to have plenty of wall space or hallway space to display student work.  Students make poster assignments, concept maps, anchor charts, etc. and it is great to show those off, and to use them as a reference point later in the year.
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  

Finally....lab space....

Since this is a science classroom (although I have taught lab science in classrooms that were not labs as well. I think it is key to have a space to set up equipment before class that students know not to touch until they are instructed to do so.  This might be a counter, a cart, a cupboard or wherever you have room.  Ideally each class, or each different prep will have a space.  When instructed, depending on how you run things, each group can go pick up one of each supply, or pick up a supply bin (my favorite), but you can get things set up and not have them right in front of students until you are ready.  The gray bins on my cart are usually perfect for this unless you are doing something really big.

The other key, I think, with lab space is to have some space (again, a counter, cart, cupboard, wherever you can find room), where you can leave some lab equipment out. I'm not advocating a mess, but if you have some students who don't finish, or an experiment that goes longer than one day, or even want to leave out just one set for absent students, it's great to have a designated space to do that.  Again, if you teach middle or high school and can designate a space for each different prep/class, that's even better.  Work with what you have.

• Optional ideas, depending upon your school policy:
• bathroom pass
• early finisher ideas
• work with no names, hanging up to be claimed
• late sign in.
• emergency sub folder (sometimes this is on your desk, or in the office)

I have resources that help with some of these (classroom scavenger hunt and signs, editable seating charts, and a few other goodies in my Back to School Pack).  If you made it this far in the post, you may want to check it out by clicking below :).

All of this is personal style, and may be different from teacher to teacher.  These are my preferences, and the things that I think are necessary, to whatever degree is possible, in any classroom setup.  

What are your classroom necessities?  What other questions do you still have? 

Outstanding tailwind feature you may not know

I have just recently started using tailwind and am still learning my way around, but I am impressed. Here are he increase in stats that I have seen since I started about two weeks ago. I wanted to share with you an easy way to find and save pinterest content.

However, as I have talked to more people, I wanted to share what my workflow, or my plan looks like, at least at this early stage, because it seems I am using a feature that not a lot of people are talking about yet.

Throughout the week, maybe when I'm sitting waiting somewhere, I look on pinterest on my phone. When I find new content that I want to pin I use the method below to save a draft.

If you are logged into tailwind, and go to settings and then mobile scheduling. Tailwind will give you a strange looking email address. You can send that pin as a message, from within pinterest, to that email address. You only need to type it in or set it up once and then it will be there when you hit send pin.


Then, when you log in to tailwind, all those pins are sitting here as drafts. I can change he descriptions, check them, select which boards I want them to go to. At that time I also add any product or blog post pins, select intervals, and schedule. I can schedule a lot of more successful pins in a short time.

I will keep this post brief, and in the future I hope to stick to more education oriented pins, but I I am really loving that effortless way to build up drafts and haven't seen much mention of it so I wanted to share.

Please leave you favorite pinterest or tailwind tips in the comments.

How to Use Pinterest in Education: A Powerful Tool

Most of you are probably familiar with using Pinterest to look for gift ideas, clothing, home improvement ideas, and craft projects, but did you know it can also be a great place to look for classroom inspiration, or to solve problems in your teaching? 





Keep your ideas organized? 

If you are anything like me, I frequently see an idea that I want to use later in the year "when we get to that topic."  But then by the time we get to that unit I have lost or forgotten that pieces of paper.  With Pinterest, I made a board for each unit that I teach, along with a general teaching board, a classroom organization board, and a technology board.  As other things come up, I can add them as well.  When I see a great idea for genetics, I can pin in there.  When I go back to teach genetics, I just quickly scan through the images on that board for ideas.  Even if I didn't pin it correctly I can search and find it.  Technology is so much easier to find things than paper. 

Click on the image above for a link to my boards.  

Looking for visual inspiration?
Its true, a picture is worth a thousand words.  Pinterest is visual so you can easily type in a topic or search and get videos, images of lesson plans, and resources that you can assess at a glance.  Sometimes you can quickly see how to use a resource, or find an image that will grab your students attention.  Of course you can search for lesson plans, as well as many other things. 

I even have a board for amazing science images.  These are great warmups, or engagement tools or readings for increased literacy. 

Other collaborators in your subject area? 
There is no question that it is immensely helpful to collaborate with other educators in your subject area.  If you can do that within your school or department, but sometimes you can't.  Pinterest offers a great way to collaborate with other educators in your subject area all around the world.  You can search and click and see what they are doing in their classrooms, or build up collaborative boards with other educators. 

News articles or inspiration for your subject? 
Did you know you can also just browse by topic on pinterest? Of course, you can browse education, but you can also browse for popular pins, or those related to your content. 

What are you favorite pinterest boards? 
I teach high school science, so not surprisingly, my favorite pinterest board is called "High School Science," but I also like the general board "HighSchoolHerd" and some of my general teaching and science teaching boards shown above. 

What are your favorite pinterest boards?  Please comment below and share your favorites. 

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