Author Archives: Sandie

Easter Egg Bird Nest Baskets

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Sandie

These sweet little baskets are sturdy, simple, and easy to make, and they are strong enough to hold a couple of chicken eggs, and plenty of jelly beans or small chocolate eggs. There are three different sets of directions included, … Continue reading →

Posted in Easter, Holidays, How To... | 4 Comments

Children are Amazing People

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Sandie

A recent article on the Dennison Forum, a blog that examines popular culture in the US, reminded me once again about how awesome children are. Ten-year-old Savannah Solis, of Tyler, Texas, heard about two New York City police officers who … Continue reading →

Posted in Amazing, Heroes | Leave a comment

Pot of Gold

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Sandie

When I was working with remedial students, I used monthly themed “flashcards” to help them practice specific words or skills we were working on at the time. Although I didn’t use flashcards much in my regular classrooms, I found they … Continue reading →

Posted in Flashcards, Holidays, Special Education, Thematic Teaching | Leave a comment

Get More from Your Printer

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Sandie

Teachers spend gobs of their paycheck on their classrooms, and we want to get all that we can out of the materials—freebies and commercial items—that we have. One of my larger expenses used to be printer ink, but not anymore. … Continue reading →

Posted in Classroom Publishing | Leave a comment

Colonial America Natural Resources–Magnetic and Flannel Board Materials

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Sandie

I love flannel and magnetic board materials. I’ve used them for LOTS of things. Here’s a set of Magnetic Flannel Board pieces of resources used by the early American colonists. Set them out for center play, group activities, and story telling. … Continue reading →

Posted in Colonial America, Flannel Board, Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, Literacy Activities, Magnetic Board, Natural Resources, Plants, Thanksgiving, Thematic Teaching | 3 Comments

Theodor Seuss Geisel

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Sandie

These easy to make and wear hats will liven up your celebrations of Theodor Geisel’s birthday on March 2. Theodor Seuss Geisel (March 2, 1904-September 24, 1991) was born in Springfield, Massachusettes. He published 46 books for children during his … Continue reading →

Posted in Holidays, Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, Literacy Activities | Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Bookmarks

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Sandie

Send your kids individualized bookmarks for Valentine’s Day. There are 32 different (although fairly corny) bookmarks with notes already written to print on the back. There are several ways to use them: Print only the bookmark. Print the bookmarks and … Continue reading →

Posted in Holidays, Valentine's Day | 7 Comments

Little Helpers

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Sandie

Help your little helpers grow to be big helpers by creating an “I Can Help” book. Talk about things the children do to help around the house and at school, and new things they can do that they haven’t done … Continue reading →

Posted in Classroom Publishing, Literacy Activities | Leave a comment

School Should be Fun…Learning is Fun!

Posted on January 19, 2015 by Sandie

A father once said to me at a parent-teacher conference, “I don’t send my son to school to have fun. I send him to learn.” I responded with, “I wonder how much he will actually be learning if he isn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Thinking About Teaching | 3 Comments