Teaching With Haley O'Connor

Let's build a better world together-one classroom at a time!

Easter Egg Learning Activities

Easter Egg Learning Activities

About a month ago I grabbed some plastic eggs for my daughter’s sensory bins. As we have used them to put pom poms in, in the bathtub and to build with, I remembered all the fun my students used to have with them. I wanted to share 5 simple activities you can put inside plastic eggs…but really you could put… Read More

Learning with Chalk

Learning with Chalk

Hello!! I never thought I’d say this but I am SO thankful for Texas weather. So many of my friends are stuck inside due to snow or rain. We have been able to go outside almost every day. Granted we go outside in the rain (unless it’s storming), but for the most part, the weather has been perfect. If you’re… Read More

120th Day of School

120th Day of School

Hi! Today I wanted to stop by and share a few fun ideas for celebrating the 120th Day of School with your students! At both schools I taught first grade at, Kindergarten had a SUPER fun and exciting 100th day of school. The kiddos always talked about it an I knew it was a huge deal for them. Because our… Read More

Valentine’s Day Classroom Ideas

Valentine’s Day Classroom Ideas

Hi friends! Happy Saturday! I wanted to stop by and share some fun we had for Valentine’s Day! I know it’s a little late for this year, but hopefully these ideas will be of help to you next year! 🙂 A few weeks ago, I wrote all about preparing for your party! If you can’t tell, I seriously LOVE Valentine’s… Read More

Supporting Gifted and Talented Students in the General Classroom

Supporting Gifted and Talented Students in the General Classroom

Hi friends! I have been working hard all day on this blog post and I hope it helps you in your support of GT kiddos in your classroom! As the GT teacher for my grade level, I’m expected to take 18 hours of training on supporting GT kiddos, and I just finished last weekend. It was, truly, an amazing training…. Read More

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  • Are you trying to encourage student independence in the classroom? A great way to do this is with behavior puzzles. This blog talks about how to use behavior management puzzles to help set goals and increase positive classroom behavior. After your students meet a behavior goal like following directions or solving a problem they receive a piece of the puzzle. Once the puzzle is complete they receive a classroom reward. I like to use student rewards that help with classroom relationship building.
  • Looking for sensory toys for your elementary classroom? I am sharing some of my favorite sensory input toys that are great for students that need help staying on task. For sensory needs in the classroom, I love to let students use these at their desk, during morning meeting, or mini-lessons. You can use them in a calm down corner. I share sensory bracelets and pop it fidget toys which are great classroom management tools. Weighted stuffed animals are also great for students with anxiety.
  • Are you looking for ways to teach honesty in the classroom? Teaching honesty to kids is so important. It is easy for our elementary students to want to follow their peers or to not tell the truth in fear of getting in trouble but it is so important to teach kids all about honesty. Today, I am sharing 5 honesty activities you can use in the classroom. These activities are great for social emotional learning time or to use during classroom meetings or morning meetings.
  • Are you looking for digital activities for vowel teams and diphthongs that you can use during literacy centers, guided reading groups, or word work? This post walks you through the typical phonics progression and how students learn their letters and letter sounds and then I share several phonics activities for vowel teams and diphthongs. These are great activities for beginning readers. Use these digital word work activities for morning work or early finishers as well.
  • Are you looking to add building toys into your elementary classroom? They strengthen fine motor and gross motor skills, support problem solving skills, and encourage creativity and innovation. Today, I am sharing other benefits of learning through play with building toys along with 5 of my favorite building toys for kids. You will find magnetic clocks which are great for STEM, wooden blocks which are great for identifying shapes, and stacking blocks which are great for learning colors.
  • Have you read Ruby Finds a Worry by Tom Percival to your early elementary classroom? This is a great read aloud book to teach your students about big emotions. This book also hits two important topics: kids dealing with worry and teaching kids about diversity. Read about why I love using this book about emotions and how to use this children’s book for social emotional learning. I even have classroom activities and printable handouts that you can use along with this children’s book.
  • Are you trying to find a way to talk about big emotions in the classroom? This blog talks about how to use Ruby Finds a Worry by Tom Percival to talk about feelings with kids. Using books to teach about emotions is a fun and easy way to introduce social emotional learning into the classroom. Most SEL books talk about positive emotions but you can use this read aloud book for teaching kids about sadness. You can even check out my classroom activities and printables to use with this kids book.
  • I am very passionate about including intrinsic motivation in the classroom. This blog post talks all about using behavior management puzzles and how they can be used to help kids set goals and have positive classroom behavior. This positive reward system for students will also have them work towards more student independence. Once your students complete the behavior puzzles they can have a classroom reward. Read my list of classroom reward ideas that encourage classroom relationship building.
  • Building toys offer so many benefits. They strengthen fine motor skills and gross motor skills, support problem solving skills, and encourage creativity and innovation. In today’s post, I am sharing other benefits of learning through play with building toys along with 5 of my favorite building toys for kids. You will find magnetic clocks which are great for STEM, wooden blocks which are great for identifying shapes, & stacking blocks which are great for learning colors. Use for indoor recess!
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