elementary schoolers

  Oh, friends. How things change as our kids get older, right? After years of doing what we can to give our kids choices, listening to them, doing all we can but ultimately having the final say–our kids have expressed to …

On an off for years now, we’ve played Bunco with our family. At family gatherings, after the little ones had gone to bed, the adults rocked out a little Bunco fun. Complete with crazy prizes a la our fun Bingo …

I lied when I said that the best thing about Bunco was that it was an easy game to play while catching up with friends. Really. I lied. It’s not 100% true. The best thing about Bunco is the snacks. …

originally published November 8, 2010       Maddy has been so proud of her spelling and word-learning progress over the last few weeks (and so are we!).  She really is borderline excited when I print out a new list …

    Let’s face it: classroom parties are difficult to throw. Scratch that.  Class parties easy to throw but difficult to throw well. And what I’ve found over time–and by being a classroom parent for five years–is that certain things work and certain …

I’m all about family traditions. Not only does it make your life as a parent easier, but having traditions gives your kids something to hold on to. Traditions give kids the feeling of security. Traditions give kids the feeling of …

      I admit that I am the absolute worst with emails. The worst. But I’m trying to be better. I’ve got thousands of emails just sitting there in my inbox, and I rarely respond because I’m always busy. …

halloween party ideas for kids and classrooms | everything room parents need from start to finish — parent letter, games, and more

        I love this simple and sweet spider web craft. Love it. And I think it’ll be perfect for a Halloween class party or playdate activity. No matter the children’s age, kids would totally dig it because …

      Fall is here! Already it seems as though the year is moving at light speed. For many of us, whether we’re classroom teachers or homeschoolers or parent volunteers, now is a great time to put up some rockstar …

Once your kids hit elementary school, things get a little bit crazy. All of a sudden, your kids actually need to be at school on time. All of a sudden, you’re buried under a mountain of papers, fliers, and notices. …

        I’ve always tried to make a big deal about certain text features when we see them in fiction that we’re reading, especially bold and italics. I’m cool like that. There’s something about bold and italics that …

Originally published 12/7/09 but republished today because, well, it’s worth it–   When I first started teaching, in order to make ends meet, I ran several after-school activity clubs at an elementary school near the high school where I taught. …

Everyone needs a little positive affirmation once in a while. Everyone.  Countdown’s on for the new school year, so I’ve been at work making a new set of lunchbox love notes. In the past, we’ve covered joke notes, we’ve covered …

I’ve said this before: June and July are crazy for us with our busy swim and dive schedules. So honestly, any downtime my kids can get, I’m totally thankful for. Even when Maddy, Owen, and Cora are not at practice, they …

This post about getting reluctant readers to love reading is written by Ali Dent of Courage on the Edge of Tomorrow. Thank you, Ali, for this incredible post! ____________________ Getting Kids to Love Reading with a Literacy Club–LITClub, by Ali Dent Reading doesn’t …

    We are gearing up for a Disneyland adventure, and to prepare our family, we’re rocking some Disneyland fun fact lunchbox notes.Actually, these little fun facts are perfect not only for lunchboxes–but they work just about anywhere! I’m a …

      Lent is here. And this year, rather than have Lent be a time when my kids complain and moan because they can’t have dessert every night, I wanted it to be a more meaningful time of the …

I have been as sick as a dog–sick as a dawwwwg— for the past few days, but today I had a little spring in my step because it was National Grammar Day. And this old gal, though she may have …