Let’s face it, Father’s Day crafts are a tad bit tougher to come up with than Mother’s Day crafts.  The traditional tie and mug are great, but by the time Dad’s fourth Father’s Day rolls around he already has a nice tie collection.  This year do something different!  Check out this great Father’s Day coupon
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by Steve Reifman, Monthly Columnist Nearly fifteen years ago I decided to schedule a class baseball game during the final week of the school year. I organized the event on a whim, thinking it might be a way to have some fun and finish the year on a festive note. Since that time our class
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According to a recently published (April 2013) survey by James S. Kim and David M. Quinn of Harvard University, summer learning loss, specifically in reading, can be greatly reduced by teacher-directed and home-based summer reading interventions.  What was significant about their study was that children in low-income areas actually benefitted the most from this type
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by Elizabeth Supan, Monthly Columnist As summer approaches, I have been thinking about how to keep my students activity working on their math skills during the summer. We have worked so hard all year long to master all of our math skills, that I do not want the “summer slump” to kick in and chip
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by Lori Wolfe, Monthly Columnist Summer is almost here! Parents and students always look forward to summer. Many times parents ask us for ideas of things they can do at home with their children to keep them learning. I like to send home a list of things to do during the summer that will keep
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  Ah, the end of the year is upon us! It seems like just yesterday we were talking about the start of the year and now it’s time to wrap everything up. Find out how some of our Really Good Teachers get ready, celebrate with their classes, and pack up for the summer. Remember, to
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Idea by Sara, Kindergarten Teacher, Hialeah, FL To prepare for our end-of-the-year commencement celebration, I shop for fabric ribbon printed with a school motif such as alphabet letters or numbers. One year I even found ribbon printed with rulers! I use this ribbon to wrap each student’s set of workbooks they completed in my class.
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Idea by Julie, 4th Grade Teacher, Akron, OH We like to celebrate the end of our year together in writing. I have my students write letters introducing themselves to their next year’s teachers. Students also write welcoming letters to the incoming 4th graders to put them at ease and let them know what to expect.
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Idea by Melissa, 1st Grade Teacher, Spanish Fork, UT  Each year we plan an end-of-the-year-activity we call “Camp Learned-a-Lot.” Each teacher is responsible for helping students review a topic in reading and in math. We plan fun activities and games to help students review each topic. Then, classes rotate to all of the teachers for
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Idea by Robin, Kindergarten Teacher, Ellenton, FL My students and I end our Kindergarten school year with a special unit on Monarch butterflies. We raise the caterpillars during our last month (or so) of school. We make predictions, observe, record our findings and keep a journal of the caterpillars’ metamorphosis. We then release the butterflies
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