Strategy board games are great for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers to have on hand for things like “Fun Friday,” indoor recess, class parties, or board game days. My 5th grade teacher taught every student in our classroom how to play chess. Whenever we had any extra time, we got a chance to play this strategy game with a …
If you have 3rd grade, 4th grade, or 5th grade students that don’t like to read (and what teacher doesn’t?), then finding engaging texts is a must. Books about animals are universally appealing – and very few students can resist a nonfiction animal book with unbelievable and incredible true stories. The books below tell true stories of animal friendships, loyalty, …
No matter how long you’ve been teaching, surprise teacher observations will always be a little nerve-racking. Having your teaching skills evaluated based on a 5 minute stretch of time in a room full of 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders who are constantly doing the unpredictable is stressful. During a planned classroom observation, upper elementary teachers generally pull out all of …
Preparing students for the real world is an essential part of our job, so integrating technology into our lesson plans also becomes essential. However, it’s not as easy as it seems to manage a classroom full of 3rd grade, 4th, grade, or 5th grade students and the technology we would so like to integrate. I surveyed over 100 teachers in …
Looking for a Venn Diagram alternative to help spice up your compare and contrast lessons? Check out the 9 activity ideas below for your 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade classroom.1. Have Students Write a Compare and Contrast Essay / ParagraphAn essay can be a daunting task at first, so start your students off small! Have them start off by writing …
Most 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers I know could easily tell you their favorite fiction books to read aloud to students, but choosing a nonfiction book is harder. We just don’t read nonfiction or informative texts as much as we read fiction texts because it is harder to find engaging books and series. We lean on fiction books with …
Only teachers can really understand the complexity of teaching 3rd grade, 4th grade, or 5th grade students. Fellow teachers understand our joys and our struggles. Only teachers are truly qualified to offer back to school teacher tips. So, I surveyed hundreds of teachers, asking them to share a back to school tip that would help a teacher out during the …
Fiction read alouds were an essential part of my education in elementary school. Almost 30 years later, I can still remember the chapter books that my 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers read aloud to my class. Those read alouds helped instill a love of reading in me that has withstood the test of time. Some of my favorites as …
If you Google “What are the best first week of school activities,” you’ll get a plethora of answers. But who better to get activity ideas and tips from than actual 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers? I asked almost 400 teachers about their favorite first week of school activities and ice breakers. The answers were amazing! Teachers gave first week …
Since 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers (as well as every other type of teacher) have to pay for many classroom supplies out of their own pocket, you need to know what supplies are most important. What school supplies can you absolutely not do without if you want your upper elementary students to be successful? This is a hard question …