Uncategorized Archives - Whimsy Workshop Teaching

Drawing as a Writing Prompt

April 11, 2016 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching 10 Comments

Directed Drawing is a fun and engaging way to integrate art and writing.
Here are some ways that I use art in my classroom to encourage more writing!

WRITING COMPLIMENTS

After your whole class directed drawing lessons, invite students to do a “gallery walk” around the room to see other students’ work. Then, leave a post-it note beside each picture and assign secret partners. Students study their partner’s drawing and write a compliment on the post-it note. Students love to return to their [Read More…]

Math: 5 Steps to a Successful Program

January 3, 2016 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching 19 Comments

A look at practical solutions for a primary math program.

Today I’m sharing a list of simple but effective changes I made in my classroom to make my math program more successful. Hopefully they will help you, too!

THE PROBLEM…

Does this sound familiar to you?
I’d finish a math lesson, and then before students went off to work, I’d ask if there were any questions. All the little heads would shake no, and everyone seemed happy and confident skipping off to their desks.

HOWEVER…
Soon [Read More…]

Art Tutorial – Little Gecko

April 28, 2015 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching Leave a Comment

We made these cute little geckos in our classroom during art time, and they turned out so well that I’ve made another simple tutorial to show how easy it is!
You will need green and black paper, glue, scissors, and chalk pastels (similar to soft chalk). You could change the colors to suit what you have available.

If you’d like to see more step-by-step photo tutorials, you can choose from these huge collections of art lessons for elementary classrooms. Each has lots of [Read More…]

Hundred’s Day FUN and Free Collaborative Poster

January 1, 2015 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching 8 Comments

Hundred’s Day is a big deal in our class. Isn’t it great that we can turn a number into a cause for celebration?

It’s such great review, and students are completely engaged and excited to show their skills. For this reason, we usually end up extending the fun into Hundred’s WEEK! There’s just too much learning to pack into one day.

How Do We Celebrate?
We review counting to 100 by making giant collaborative hundred’s charts together.
This so great for teamwork, and it [Read More…]

Turkey Trot Ideas and Freebies HOP

November 15, 2014 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching 7 Comments

Welcome to “The Chalkies” Turkey Trot!
We hope you enjoy a jog through our blogs gobbling up freebies, ideas, and recipes for some holiday joy!

We have a new blog name! We switched out the word “Primary” for “Elementary” so that we can meet the needs of any teacher K-6. Our blog has been thoughtfully designed to help you find what YOU need for YOUR classroom level! See what I mean in the screen shot below of our blog:

You can see the [Read More…]

Teaching Plural and Possessive Nouns

April 16, 2014 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching 1 Comment

Hello everyone!

Two weeks ago we finished learning about contractions, and we were ready to move on to plural and possessive nouns. This can be tricky in Grade 2, especially when they can become confused about the different uses of apostrophes. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to try Laura Candler’s “Plural or Possessive Nouns” pack, and I am so excited to tell you about the great results!

Setting up was easy because it’s already well organized. After printing the [Read More…]

Organizing Online Resources – Bright Ideas April

April 11, 2014 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching Leave a Comment

Welcome to another Bright Ideas Link Up!

My favorite teacher ideas are those that solve a big teacher problem, so I’m sharing with you how I organize my online resources with the free website Symbaloo.

When I first began using my computer to project things for my class, I’d bookmark the webpage for future use.
However, soon I [Read More…]

Bulletin Boards Collection

January 2, 2014 by Whimsy Workshop Teaching 4 Comments

My favorite bulletin boards are those that showcase student work and make them feel so proud! I love putting together the board right outside our classroom, and when other teachers walk by they sometimes poke their heads inside just to say how much they love it. Everyone beams with pride!
Here are some of my favorite board from last year:

Getting to know each other under the rainbow – love this interactive creation!

These pumpkins turned out a bit scarier than I intended!

We all [Read More…]