Thursday

If You Give a Teacher a Compliment.....

Here is my take on teacher morale and what it can do for a teacher, the kids, and the school.

Feel free to pin.

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For more fun and creative ideas for the classroom, click the above picture to go to my store.

Monday

How to Add Your Own Text to an 'Editable' PowerPoint File

Add Text to a Powerpoint Slide

If you purchase a Powerpoint file from Teachers Pay Teachers that says it is 'editable', this most often means you can add text to it. In very rare cases you might be able to change the graphics out, but most graphics are embedded into the file in order to protect the images for copyright reasons. If the file is saved as a PowerPoint file, here are some steps to follow if you don't know how to add text boxes to the file. Hope it helps.

Click on the images to enlarge. Hover over the images to pin.

Share the Sweetness!

Thank you for helping to spread the word about Classroom Confections.

We appreciate you 'liking' us on facebook, tweeting about us, or pinning us on Pinterest.

For more fun and creative ideas for the classroom, click the above picture to go to my store.

Tuesday

Printable Bubble Sheets

Let's face it.... I think testing is here to stay. Along with the testing comes the infamous bubble sheet. I have a love hate relationship with those little bubbles. I love to use them for a quick quiz or a short assignment, but I hate to use them for standardized testing because even my fourth graders get messed up on their bubbling. They may be bubbling in number ten when they are actually on number eight. They've skipped two and then they are totally screwed up until the monitor/teacher catches it. Monitoring tests is a whole other topic.... is that like the worst job in the world!! I mean, who likes to walk three miles in their classroom in complete silence while trying to focus on circles a fourth the size of a dime. ... UGH!

You will NOT believe this part. For our very important state testing this past year, we were told that if we were walking around during the test (you know, the one they want to eventually base our salary on), and we saw a kid get screwed up on their bubbling, we could not say anything to them. Now, if they realized they got messed up and asked for help, we could then help them, but if we noticed they had gotten off and they didn't realize it themselves, we could not say one ~~damn~~ stinking word to them. We had to watch them bubble incorrectly all the way 'til the end. Thank goodness all of mine caught themselves, but in the lower grades, I'm sure some didn't. That was about the craziest rule change I had heard in a while.

Regardless, bubbling is a thing of today. I have made some printable bubble sheets if you would like to go check them out. I included lots of different kinds, even some for beginners learning to bubble and a ticket out the door bubble sheet.

Printable Bubble Sheets

Feel free to pin. Just hover over the image.

And here is another thought from me on bubbling. :-)

Click to enlarge. Feel free to pin.

Share the Sweetness!

Thank you for helping to spread the word about Classroom Confections.

We appreciate you 'liking' us on facebook, tweeting about us, or pinning us on Pinterest.

For more fun and creative ideas for the classroom, click the above picture to go to my store.

Sunday

God in the Classroom

After church today, I was inspired to make this poster. It's also something I have told myself each year before I start the year, and the service made me think about it. I know it doesn't pertain to everyone. :-) I then had some requests for a copy after it was posted on my Facebook page, so I thought I would make it available.

God in the Classroom Poster

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Thursday

Positive Reinforcement in the Classroom

positive- affirmation, approval, indicating acceptance, having a good effect, marked by optimism

reinforcement- the act of reinforcing, making stronger, to stimulate or encourage

I don't know about you, but I love positive reinforcement. I think it is a natural desire to want positive affirmation for our actions. Even in my teaching job, I love it when someone tells me I did a good job or gives me an award. In the teaching world, it may be something simple like a note left on your desk from your principal or being given a special jeans pass for doing something over and beyond. Wouldn't you be crushed if your principal walked out of our room only leaving you with a negative comment. Just imagine! I don't want people to focus on what I have done wrong, and I don't think when it comes to a student's behavior the focus should just be on the negatives. Now, I am not completely saying that kids don't need to have inappropriate behaviors pointed out to them, because I feel they do. But, once you have given a child an understanding of what appropriate behaviors are, I think it vital to catch them in the act and point it out to them, offering them the positive reinforcement for that behavior. Tell them right when you see them do something good. Make it a point to be positive, and with some teachers this is not an automatic, so they may need to make a conscience effort to do this. One suggestion is to set up a behavior management system in your classroom that is based on positive reinforcement. I have done this for years, and I have found it to be very effective. Most kids naturally want to please, and I have even found over my twenty years of teaching that 'bad' kids want to do well too. Sometimes those kids are the ones that hear negative after negative after negative. It is up to us, the teacher, to stop that for them. Tell them how well they did. You never know, you might be able to offer the positive affirmation that the child has never before received. Try it. :-)

As a reminder to think positively, I made this FREE positive thinking Poster.

Positive Thinking Poster for Teachers

Feel free to pin. Just hover over the image.

For your classroom, you will love this positive reinforcement "Pocket Bucks" money system. Check it out in my Teachers Pay Teachers Shop for all of the details. It has everything needed for a colorful positive reinforcement bulletin board. This can be used for whole class, or you can use an individual pocket for one child if needed.

Pocket Bucks for Positive Reinforcement