Homework, homework. HOMEWORK! What can I say. It’s what we as teachers use to assess students when they’re not at school. Sometimes it can be stressful. The better you manage it, the easier it will be for you! Here are some tips for getting the most out of your homework folder.
1.) Buy a sturdy poly-folder!
As teachers, I know you’re eyeballing those $0.17 (or even those $0.01) folders at the store. As tempting as it is to grab all of them some of them for your class, try getting more durable folders. Remember, these folders will be used all year long. Paper folders will tear about half way through the year (especially for those messy students). Grab those poly-folders which will last so much longer.
2.) Include a Money pouch!
My nephew’s teacher did this and I loved it! It’s great for younger students, especially K-2. Buy a zipper pouch to place inside the folder. Add a label or write “Money Pouch” on it. This pouch is used to transfer money to and from school. Great for lunch money, book fair money, or any time a student needs to bring money to school.
3.) Include a daily behavior chart!
When I taught 2nd grade, I used to send home weekly progress reports every week. It was hassle to print them out and place them in individual folders. Now I include a monthly calendar with a daily record of the student’s behavior. I use bingo daubers from the Dollar Tree to dauber the color the student is on. When my student helpers passes out homework, I daub folders during pack up. It’s great because most students are on blue and only a few are one other colors. Also, students are not allowed to put the folder away until I daub their chart and check to see if they have their homework.
4.) Include a Reading log!
Every student should read each night. I usually have students read one of their library books or one of their Bag-Books. If they have neither, I have them practice their sight words. Adding a reading log can help you and their parents keep track of the books they are reading (and which of your books a student has). *Bonus* – If you don’t think you need a money pouch, make it a reading pouch!
5.) Designate each side!
Most folders have two pockets. You can also purchase multi-pocket folders or create your own. Designate each side for certain papers. One side can be for homework and the other can be for take-home paper. You can label one side for Math and the other side for Reading. You can even glue an envelope on one side to hold sight words and flash cards.
6. Include a signature page! Keep up with who’s viewing the folder. One year I had a parent who always signed their child’s homework every day. Having a parent or guardian sign the folder helps build the communication between school and home. You can even include a comment section to leave notes for parents or notes parents can write.
I hope these tips come in handy as your start your school year. Be on the lookout for those poly-folders as they tend to disappear the closer school starts. You can also pick up all the sheets featured in this post by clicking the image below:
I’m so happy to join The Elementary Entourage’s blog hop! I went to the TPT Conference in Las Vegas and loved every minute of it. Here are some of my favorite (or not so favorite) moments from this trip.
The Plane Ride
This was my 2nd flight. I had only done it once before and with friends, but here I was traveling alone and literally across the country (from NC). My first flight for Charlotte was ok, but the 2nd was awful! I got on the plane, but had to sit there for about 2 hours before the plane actually took flight. Let’s not even mention the headache and queasiness of the 4 hour flight. =(
The Palazzo Hotel Lobby
When I arrived at the Palazzo, I was beyond amazed. Never had I imaged I was going to stay in such a wonderful place. While I waited to check in, I snapped this awesome picture of the fountain in the lobby. Later on, I took some snaps outside.
My Hotel Room!
I haven’t been to Las Vegas since I was a little kid. My dad was stationed in Barstow, California and we traveled to Las Vegas twice. Each time, we stayed in a small hotel. When I went here for the conference and saw my room, I was
The Palazzo Hotel!
After settling in, I decided to take a walk and get some great photos! This was the walking area before you head to the Grand Mal Shoppes.
After a ride up the elevator, you come to the wonderful Grand Mall Shoppes. I was amazed! Never thought I’d see something so wonderful!
Everything was inside so no need to worry about rain!
You can even ride the gondolas around the entire shop.
I stopped by a few shops to see some wonderful items. I went into a Michaels Kors shop (because that’s all my mom and sister obsess over) and watched a baker at Carlo’s Bakery (Cake Boss!).
I even went to a candy shop with oversized candy boxes! Insane!
Yes, that is a regular sized can even if it is a can of Gummy Bears!
I met some wonderful sellers at the conference include Kelly Malloy of “An Apple for the Teacher” and Kathleen Guleksen of “A+ Kids”. I even got to meet Laine Sutherland from “A Little Peace of Africa” who made my business cards, logo, and blog. They have become life-long friends! Wish I had gotten a picture with them, but I know next year, I definitely will. I did get to meet Deanna Jump. I joked with her that I had never had a picture with a millionaire before.
Lastly, I live with my sister and her family. My sister didn’t want me to go. She didn’t know what she would do without me (aka missing me too much). So Thursday morning, she was going to give her kids some cereal for breakfast. Instead, they wanted pancakes. Usually, I’m the one who makes pancakes or waffles so when I wasn’t there, my niece (2) and my nephews (4 and 6) took it upon themselves to make pancakes.
My sister snapped this shot and sent it to me while at the conference (during the Opening TPT Keynote on Thursay).
I loved to trip and couldn’t wait to go again! Click the link to see more Las Vegas fun from more sellers!
It’s here, it’s here! I finally made it to 1,000 followers. I’m so excited! I wanted to have a small huge celebration. So big it would take an entire week to celebrate! Each day will includes spectacular new games, $1 Deals & freebie steals, and much, much more! You can find out more with in my 1,000 Follower Spectacular Invitation.
Let’s begin with the Gift Card giveaway of the Day! Today, you can win a permanent game license. That means every game ever made. Past, present, and future games! A prize worth over $300.
Today’s $1 Deal is for everyone. Someone requested that I make more backgrounds for powerpoint. I thought about it and decided. Why not? It’s part of my name. Why shouldn’t I have some backgrounds?
This collection includes 14 backgrounds in PNG format. I used my own clip art to create this set. Commercial friendly and easy to insert. Great for any powerpoint project.
Today’s freebie is about everyone! Since I made those backgrounds with my own clip art, I thought maybe I should offer it as clip art too.
This is my first set of clip art. I made these a while ago but never really did anything with them besides make 1 or 2 backgrounds with them. Now you can make your own as well.
Comes in 10 colors and includes a B&W version. Formats include both JPEG and PNG. Commercial friendly and easy to use.
That’s all for today. Be sure to stop by my Facebook page for some flash freebies starting at/around 5 pm EST. Click “Get Notifications” so you’ll know when they start!
It’s here, it’s here! I finally made it to 1,000 followers. I’m so excited! I wanted to have a small huge celebration. So big it would take an entire week to celebrate! Each day will includes spectacular new games, $1 Deals & freebie steals, and much, much more! You can find out more with in my 1,000 Follower Spectacular Invitation.
Let’s begin with the Gift Card giveaway of the Day! Today, you can win a $25 gift card to Amazon.com. Amazon.com has so many things to choose from! Teacher supplies maybe? Or how about a new comforter set? What about a keyboard for my iPad? I just don’t know.
Today’s $1 Deal is for everyone. Hard to believem but school will be starting back up in about a month (At least here in NC). So, to help prepare you for that day, let’s get Open House – Back to School night out of the way!
In this editable Open House presentation, you can display all you classroom information while your students browse the classroom (and find their desk).
Each slide displays a different topic. Topics include classroom information, class schedule, breakfast-lunch policy, and more. Each slide is editable and some include a picture square so you can add your own picture.
There’s 7 colored backgrounds to choose from and a blank version for you to design your own!
Today’s freebie is about you! What do you want to tell your students about yourself? Do you like coffee every morning? Do you have a pet dog named Alpha? Do play board games on rainy days? Whatever it is, tell them as your Top 10!
Get your students curious about the person they are going to spend the school year with. The set comes with slides listing the top 10 things about yourself. Comes in 7 colors and a blank slide to design yourself. You can even add photos!
That’s all for today. Be sure to stop by my Facebook page for some flash freebies starting at/around 5 pm EST. Click “Get Notifications” so you’ll know when they start!
I’m so excited! I’ve been nominated for the Liebster Award!. Thank you so much M&M Bilingual for the nomination! I’d never thought I’d be one to receive this award but will gladly accept it! =)
This is such a wonderful button and I’m happy to add it to my blog. I’ve seen it on a few other blogs and had no clue how they received it. A week or 2 ago, M&M Bilingual nominated me and learned a great deal about it. The Liebster Award is given to new bloggers. It’s a great way to get support and encourage others as they blog!
1. Why and how long ago did you start blogging?
I started blogging way back in 2013. I was pretty new to it at the time. I wanted to share my thoughts about education as well as a little bit about my store and myself. I heard it was a great for me to connect with other educators. This definitely proves it!
2. What one word sums up the heart of your blog and why?
Passion! I love what I do! Even though at the moment I don’t have a classroom, I love education and helping others. Before blogging and my store, I just wanted to help students, but through my blogging journey, I came to love helping students, teachers ,and educators alike.
3. Is there something you learned late in your blogging journey that you wished you knew before?
How to schedule posts. I would always just write a blog post and post it that same day. About a year ago I learned how to schedule posts and now I could schedule them ahead of time! Makes blogging a bit easier.
4. What is your favorite pastime other than blogging?
Besides making ppt games, playing video games (Hint hint – that’s where the name came from!). I come from a family of gamers. We all love playing games. From board games to card games, computer games to video games, my family can’t get enough of them. My recent obsession has been Minecraft. I find myself playing it quite often, mostly for the building aspect. Who doesn’t love to build stuff!?
5. How many hours per week do you dedicate to your blog/TPT?
If it weren’t for sleeping, eating, and my niece and nephews, practically every hour. Since TPT is my full-time job, I try my hardest to put in 40 hours each week. Being self-employed has it perks. =)
6. What category of blog posts do you enjoy the most?
I love blog hops about classroom ideas. It’s great to go from one teacher/blogger to the next and get wonderful ideas that I can use in the classroom.
7. Where does your blog inspiration come from?
My inspiration comes my own experiences in the classroom as well as my day-to-day life. My youngest nephew is starting preschool this coming year and my oldest nephew will be in kindergarten this fall. They are also my inspiration!
8. Which post that you’ve written are you most proud of?
My New Year’s Resolution post. I had 3 goals this year —> Blog more, get healthy, and finish projects. I’m happy to say I am definitely blogging more. I am trying hard to get healthy. I’m exercising more and eating better. I am finishing up projects that I started so I very proud that I am sticking to those goals.
9. Is there a post that you are planning to do but have been postponing it for a while?
I have 2 that I plan on doing. One I know will be done before I go to the TPT Conference. The other is a post about using PPT Games in a new way (besides the traditional way). Pictures are the only thing keeping me for doing it.
10. What is your favorite aspect of blogging?
The writing! I love to write so it’s pretty natural for me to write a blog post. I’ve even written and published a book, not to mention notebooks full of fantasy and realistic stories I’ve written since high school.
11. Which idea from a blog would you like to try yourself?
Simply a blog hop! I’ve join several blog hops over the years and I want to try to do a blog hop of my own. The idea I have is very original and I think many will want to try it out. I love Jessica McClain’s You Ought to know Blog hop. It’s one of my favorites!
Here are some blogs that I follow and would love to nominate!
