Are you teaching about reading genres this school year? If so, then you need to check out this post, which describes two genre resources that you can use to help you teach about the eight reading genres. Click through to this post to get all of the details!

Genre Resources

If you happen to be teaching literary genres this year, then I have two great resources that can really help. Use these genre task cards to help your students gain familiarity with the eight different genres: biography informational mystery fantasy science fiction historical fiction realistic fiction folktale Each card features a short passage and four choices for selecting the correct genre.   If you want to

how to promote creative and critical thinking in the classroom

Hands On Projects for Creative and Critical Thinking

Minds in Bloom is so very pleased to welcome Heidi Raki, of Raki’s Rad Resources, who will share some terrific ideas for using hands-on projects to promote critical and creative thinking. All too often, math and science concepts are taught from a book. Students read some words, look at some pictures, try some equations, and are expected to think about the problem at hand in critical and creative ways.  However, many

12 Activities with Plastic Eggs

Journal Prompts Write journal prompts on small slips of paper, and put each one in an egg.  Have each student pick an egg and write about whatever prompt he or she gets.  Have students return their prompts and use them again on another day. Create your own, or print off some of these 200 prompts terrific writing prompts.   Math Line-Up Write a different math

Make a Dreidel out of a CD!

So, maybe in the old days kids made dreidels out of clay (I think there’s a song about that…), but not only is that difficult and expensive (a kiln isn’t cheap), it would also likely result in a dreidel that would break very quickly. Here is a more modern way to make this traditional Hanukkah toy. You will need: One old CD or DVD Sharpies

Observation Nature Walk

Here is a fun way for students (or campers, scouts, or whatever you have) to test their powers of observation while enjoying nature. A nature walk is also a great way to introduce the concept of camouflage. To do this activity, you will need a short stretch of trail in the woods, ideally one that is not used a great deal – a couple hundred feet is

20 Creative Questions for Kids

20 Creative Questions to Ask Kids

Grab a FREE digital journal for your students to record their answers! Creative Questions to Ask Kids Asking open-ended, engaging questions is a great way to get to know your students and for them to get to know each other. Use these ones as discussion prompts or as writing prompts for journals or notebooks. Here are the 20 Questions (Great for Journal Prompts!) How would

End-of-year reflections and essays are great, but why don't you try making a class memory wall this year? It's a collaborative activity that the whole class can do, and you can take a photograph of it to send out in a final newsletter or post on your class website!

Make a Class Memory Wall

A class Memory Wall is essentially a way to work as a group to remember the highlights of the school year. While individual projects like memory books and end-of-the-year essays are great, the advantage of the Memory Wall is that by working  as a group, you remember more – one person’s memory of an event sparks another memory from someone else. It’s also great way to

fun ways to teach math in the classroom

Math Scavenger Hunt

Here is a fun math scavenger hunt to try with your students! How many zeroes are in one million? What is an object that is exactly five inches long? How many prime numbers come before 100? How many nickels are in twenty dollars? What do all the numbers on a computer keyboard add up to? What is the circumference of your head? How many stacked

Take your class outside to celebrate Earth Day with a nature scavenger hunt! This fun scavenger hunt will have them searching for items in nature, where they can explore and learn more about their environment.

Nature Scavenger Hunt for Earth Day

  Take your students on a nature walk! It’s a beautiful day for a walk! When it starts warming up, don’t you (and your students!) just want to stay outside just a little bit longer? Why not let your students take a nature walk?! You can download this free printable or digital scavenger hunt activity to make your outdoor time extra fun! Scavenger hunts are a

Fun ways to get students thinking

Harry Potter Would You Rather Questions

You’ve read the books. You have probably seen the movies…so why not try these Harry Potter Would You Rather Questions? Great fun for your and your students! NOTE: As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases. Would You Rather… 1 Have Ron for a friend or Have Hermione for a friend 2 Fight the basilisk or Fight a dementor 3 Spend a weekend with Dudley Dursley

Students love choice, and what better way to give them that power than with Tic-Tac-Toe Choice Grids? They still have to work, but it's their choice!

Get Three in a Row with Tic-Tac-Toe Choice Grids!

One of my mentors from my early teaching days said that we should strive to give students “freedom within structure.” Tic-Tac-Toe Choice Grids are one excellent way to do that. To make a Tic-Tac-Toe Choice Grid, simply put nine more or less equal projects, assignments, or activities into a 3×3 grid. Students must then choose three of the projects to complete. However, just like in

ideas for thank you notes

10 Fun and Creative Thank You Note Ideas

Writing thank you notes for holiday gifts doesn’t have to be a chore. Here are 10 creative thank you note ideas to help make writing thank yous fun! Make thank you notes into an art project: Get out the crayons, the glitter, and the glue. Have your child make a picture (ideally incorporating the gift), and then write a note underneath or on the back.

Check out this gingerbread man recipe in pictures--it's perfect for small children! Your kids will enjoy making this recipe with step-by-step pictures!

Gingerbread Man Recipe in Pictures

Here is a great project to do with little kids this holiday season. Each recipe makes a single gingerbread man, so this is great if you don’t want to make a bunch. The steps are easy to follow for little people with some adult assistance. If you do this with a group, then give the kids margarine tubs or cereal bowls to mix in and

Are you a parent looking for something to occupy your kids while they're home for winter break? This scavenger hunt will have them searching and playing!

Winter Break Scavenger Hunt

Winter Break Scavenger Hunt How many letters are in your full name? Who has the longest name in your family? Find something that is eight inches long. What exactly is Wassail? Find something that is red and white. Find something that is used to fix something. What is the first ingredient in eggnog? Find something with numbers on it. On what date does Hanukkah start next

Free Christmas Tic-Tac-Toe Journal Prompts

Want to add a little holiday magic to your journal writing program? Try this free journal prompt choice grid. At the start of the week, students choose three of the nine prompts. Since they must choose three in a row, they will have to make some choices, weighing one prompt against another. You can get the whole set of  Holiday Tic-Tac-Toe Journal Prompts here. Or you

What are some ideas for book report projects that my students will enjoy?

Ten Great Creative Book Report Ideas

There are many, many great ways for students to respond to literature. Students especially enjoy creative book reports. These will work for almost any book and are especially good when students are reading independent book selections. A quick web search will reveal that there are many ideas out there for creative book reports, but they are not all good ideas. Here are, in my opinion,

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