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You can learn a lot about students when you give them a chance to tell you want they know!

Have you ever visited a colleague’s classroom or watched a video of a lesson and wondered, “How are those kids so perfect? How do they seem to know exactly what to do, the… Continue reading →

There are still a few weeks of summer left, but now is the time to find everything you need to build an enriching environment for the kids in your school, class or program. First Book’s Back to School Hub is your source for great books and resources that will help turn a successful first day of school into a successful school year.

The Back to School Hub includes:

• School supplies
• Learning games and activities
• Books celebrating diversity and inclusion
• FREE ebooks and more!

The first day of school can be a little stressful for students, teachers, staff…and even the school itself! Help ease those first day jitters by reading the charming School’s First Day of School by Adam Rex with illustrations by Christian Robinson, available on the First Book Marketplace.

The post Welcome Back to School appeared first on First Book Blog.

We've curated some of our top 'Back to School' posts to help you plan and launch your writing workshop.

This year, I’m reaching back into habits of old and carving out time to write during that first day. Here are some things I will keep in mind...

It’s holiday time so some shows based on outstanding children’s books are currently being performed in Sydney and surrounds, as well as in other cities around Australia. A highlight is The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Penguin), a production created around four books by Eric Carle: The Very Hungry Caterpillar, of course, The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse – […]

Today’s guest blogger, Sarah Kilway, wrote to us after receiving hundreds of new books for her students. We couldn’t resist sharing her story with you.

I teach 187 kids at Ben Davis Ninth Grade Center in Indianapolis, IN. The majority of my students live in poverty. Most have only one parent at home.

Not many of my kids own books, nor were they read to as children. Even as 9th graders, they lack basic common knowledge of fairy tales, fables and iconic book characters.

Our school has many great resources, but when something is lacking, my colleagues and I step in. This often means spending my own money on books and other items for my students, but it’s totally worth it. I also have First Book.

Thanks to First Book, I was recently able to give a new book to every single one of my students – all 187! A few told me it was the first book they’d ever owned. Some said it was the first book they have ever finished. Such a proud moment for me and them – one that I wanted to share with you.

My students now ask me to go to the library on a daily basis.

Please give to First Book today so I can continue helping them discover and enjoy reading, and so other teachers can too. Your support puts a whole new world within their reach.

The post 187 Reasons Why a Teacher Needs Books appeared first on First Book Blog.

I've culled the TWT archives for posts you might want to read during the first month of the school year.

Lindsay Reyes began her teaching career seven years ago in South Carolina where she taught 4th and 5th graders. Following her heart for urban education and literacy reform, she moved to New York City where she taught middle school in the South Bronx. She has experience teaching General Ed and Special Ed (as a Collaborative [...]

If I were still a classroom teacher, then tomorrow would be my first day back to school (unless I were still teaching in Manhattan, and then I’d be heading back the day after Labor Day).  Even though I no longer have a classroom of my own, I can still recall how overwhelmed I felt in [...]

Mary Brothers is starting her tenth year of teaching with Dublin City Schools where she has taught first, second, and fourth grades. Last year she was a Technology Support Teacher for the district and started her blogging journey. She blogs about her learning, as well as that of her students’, at Teaching in the Tech [...]

Some teachers buy them for their students.  Some teachers have parents purchase their own.  Some teachers have school-issued marble composition books.  Regardless of where students’ writer’s notebooks come from, there should be some fanfare for utilizing them for the first time during a given school year. I wrapped up my students’ notebooks, during my last [...]

Here’s a little Slice of Life from the first student day. As a coach, the first day is one of the days I miss the most about being a classroom teacher. Thankfully,  Christi Overman (she blogs during the school year only, so you’ll want to check back regularly on Chocolate for Teachers) invited me to [...]

My neighbor’s son is starting Kindergarten this month.  Even though I’ve only known him for a little over a year, I’m delighted for him since this is an exciting time in a young child’s life.  Two books recently crossed my desk that I’ve thought worthy of sharing with him before he starts Kindergarten.  If you [...]

Each week I receive, The Big Fresh, an e-newsletter from Choice Literacy.  This week’s feature is entitled “There’s Room for Me Here.” As I began reading through the article, it resonated with the Responsive Classroom Training I received three summers ago.  Essentially, the bottom line is to make your classroom feel welcoming for your students, [...]

Ruth, and many other TWT Readers, have been back-to-school with the kids for weeks. My students, on the other hand, start classes this Tuesday. I was cleaning out my closet the other day when I came across this paper, which I created before the start of the last school year. I found it fascinating to review [...]

I was doing some thinking this morning about the routines I’ll need to rehearse with my students this-coming September. My mind went from general (e.g., walking in the hallways, fire drills) to the specific (i.e., Writing Workshop). Therefore, I figured I’d post my working list of structures I want to teach my fourth [...]

I love Eve Merriam’s work. Here is one of my favorites, which I will be sharing with the teachers attending the Beginning Workshop Training that starts Monday. A Lazy Thought By Eve Merriam There go the grownups To the office, To the store. Subway rush, Traffic crush; Hurry, scurry, Worry, flurry. No wonder Grown ups Don’t grow up Any more. It takes a lot Of slow To grow. Isn’t this so [...]

I just finished reading the July 2008 Issue of Real Simple, which I’ve been subscribing to for years. Since I didn’t start it until AUGUST, I realized that the cover story “More free time: realistic ways to tame your schedule,” was one I should read. If you’re the kind of teacher that I [...]

For the past two years I’ve included “My Writer’s Notebook/Diamond Search” by Brod Bagert inside of every student’s writer’s notebook. However, in addition to Barert’s Poem this year, I’m also going to be putting some writerly advice inside of the kids’ notebooks. These pieces of “advice,” combined with the gift-wrapping of [...]