The ideas in this blog post are great routine assignments to cycle through during the year. Plan ahead and have these assignments ready as emergency sub plans, or prep them quickly when you’re planning for a substitute. Students become familiar with doing these assignments. My students complete them independently and with minimal confusion. This makesContinue reading “9 Routine Assignments that are Easy to Prep and Make Great Sub Plans”
Tag Archives: Science Notebooks
High School Biology Vocabulary: Units and Key Terms for Effective Teaching
I hope you enjoy reading about my favorite science terms to teach in high school Biology. I hope this list of vocabulary terms can give you some good ideas and save you valuable planning time. In this blog post I share the vocabulary terms I teach during each unit throughout the year: How I UseContinue reading “High School Biology Vocabulary: Units and Key Terms for Effective Teaching”
Time-Saving Teaching Tips and Lesson Plans for Next School Year
Not to be a buzzkill to your summer vibes, but if you’re like me, you’re already thinking about next school year. What can be improved? What new lessons do I want to try? What systems and routines can I implement to save me time and some of the headaches from this past year? I spentContinue reading “Time-Saving Teaching Tips and Lesson Plans for Next School Year”
How She Teaches Presentation Skills
I do this short Presentation Skills class discussion with students before we do presentations in class. It is crazy the difference this simple exercise makes. Their presentations are much, much better. Students already know what a good presentation looks and sounds like. They just need to be reminded. That’s what this 20 minute lesson does.Continue reading “How She Teaches Presentation Skills”
How She Teaches Body Systems
Biology is the study of life, and in Biology the main system we study is the human body. Body Systems is a great topic to teach in Biology at the beginning of the year. My students are so curious about their bodies and their health. They have so many questions and they spark interesting conversationsContinue reading “How She Teaches Body Systems”
5 Ways to Take Notes Without a Worksheet
It’s good to keep students busy, but I don’t like to feel like I’m giving busy work. Lots of worksheets can feel like busy work. When students create things in their notebooks, they use their brains. They process information and learn. In this blog post I’m happy to share 5 different ways to take notesContinue reading “5 Ways to Take Notes Without a Worksheet”
More Tips for Using Science Notebooks as an Organization System
I had so much to say about science notebooks in my last post, How to Set-up a Science Notebook, that I needed to start a whole new one! In my 7 years of teaching, I used science notebooks most of the time. I tried binders too, but ultimately I like using notebooks the best. OverContinue reading “More Tips for Using Science Notebooks as an Organization System”
How to Set-up a Science Notebook
Many teachers I know are organized people. You have to be in order to manage hundreds of copies, handouts, and pieces of student work every single day. Organization comes naturally to many teachers, but it doesn’t necessarily for students. We teachers all know the student with the crumpled up papers at the bottom of theirContinue reading “How to Set-up a Science Notebook”
My Go-To Lesson Structure and 8 Classroom Routines for Better Classroom Management
Over the years I figured out a lot of tips to streamline my classroom. In this blog post, I’ll share my favorite lesson structure and classroom routines for a typical day. I hope the ideas in this blog post can save you some time and stress! Keep reading to learn more about my go-to lessonContinue reading “My Go-To Lesson Structure and 8 Classroom Routines for Better Classroom Management”
6 Of My Favorite Activity Ideas for the First Day of School
Going over the syllabus and class rules are important on the first day. Icebreakers are another standard activity for the first day of school. “Get to know you Bingo,” is a well known icebreaker. Nothing against Bingo, but there’s a good chance my students will do Bingo in one of their other classes. I wantContinue reading “6 Of My Favorite Activity Ideas for the First Day of School”
How to Teach Vocabulary With a Vocabulary Log
Vocabulary is an important part of my lessons and my teaching. Science, especially Biology, is a vocabulary dense field. If vocabulary isn’t explicitly taught, students have a hard time understanding the complex concepts and processes. With Vocabulary Logs, students define, illustrate, and summarize, which are processes that help connect ideas and information in their brains.Continue reading “How to Teach Vocabulary With a Vocabulary Log”
Beginning of Year Activity: Decorating Science Notebook Covers
During the first week or two of school, one activity I like to do is decorate science notebooks. It’s an easy way to start the year, and a lot of students have fun with this first assignment. It’s a lot of fun to design notebook covers. It’s creative and engaging. The pictures are conversation startersContinue reading “Beginning of Year Activity: Decorating Science Notebook Covers”
Science Notebooks! Or Binders! Which One?
Notebooks or Binders? Notebooks, binders, Google Drive, every teacher and every class needs an organization system for note taking and keeping track of work. My first year student teaching my master teacher used notebooks for the first half of the year, and then binders for the second half of the year. In my classroom, I’veContinue reading “Science Notebooks! Or Binders! Which One?”