Reading Challenges

  Why a reading challenge? Reading challenges are so much fun! I love participating in them because they so often introduce me to new books I would not otherwise have read. I’ve gathered a list of some reading challenges you may like to try out in your classrooms or families

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11 steps for ending the homework battle

11 Tips for Ending the Homework Battle

Ending The Homework Battle What do you do when your child won’t do schoolwork without an epic battle every.single.day? What happens if you throw gifted in the mix, just for fun? Motivation is a tricky thing, and every child is different, but here are 11 ideas for how to get kids

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Free printable Christmas bookmarks

Free Printable Christmas Bookmarks

I’m sharing a set of free printable Christmas bookmarks I made with all of you because if you’re like me, you’re giving some books as gifts this holiday season. These are the bookmarks I give away in my own Little Free Library. I’m sharing some book recommendations, too! About the

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The Key to Excellent Lesson Plans

The Key to Excellent Lesson Plans

The key to excellent lesson plans is deceptively simple. It is a single question every teacher must ask when planning. The question is this: What will happen in the life of the learner as a result of this lesson? The role of objectives. Do you see that this is bigger

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8 Reasons You Should Label Kids as Gifted

8 Reasons You Should Label Kids as Gifted

You should label kids as gifted if the label fits. This is a shockingly controversial statement, and I think it is because of three reasons: Bias against giftedness. The ambiguity of identification. Misunderstanding of or bias against the idea of “labels.” I don’t find these reasons compelling, and I will

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Good Books for Middle School Readers

Good Books for Middle School Readers

Finding good books for middle school readers can be tricky (and if those readers are gifted, it’s doubly so). A parent recently asked me for suggestions, so I’ve curated this list. The list has two things: titles of books I recommend, and also places to find lists of good books

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Ten Things About Me

I love meeting people in real life who I know from this site at speaking events or conferences, yet I know that I will never have the opportunity to meet most of you in “real life.” I also have people I follow online who I feel are my “friends,” even

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How to End the School Year Right

Ending the school year right is critical to enjoying your summer and getting next year off to a good start. Thinking about my own years of teaching, I know that the idea of “Well begun is half done” really means that beginning the next year starts much earlier than we

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Reading Buddies – Ideas and a Freebie

Reading Buddies can improve reading fluency, decrease anxiety in reluctant or stressed readers, and add a bit of cuddly fun to reading, making it even more pleasurable than it usually is! A Reading Buddy can be another student, or, as I’m going to talk about here, a stuffed animal or

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Differentiate the Environment with Magazines

Teachers can differentiate the classroom environment with magazines, and it’s very easy! If you’ve been put off of the idea of differentiation because it seems really hard and that it will take a long time, you can start here with this simple idea. This works great for homeschools, too! What

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best practices for testing in schools

Best Practices for Testing in School

I understand that there is a large contingent of people who think that best practices for testing in schools involves no testing whatsoever. Testing is a reality, however, so I’m sharing some best practices for testing in schools with the disclaimer that I’m not a fan of over testing. Best

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