Silence for Sandy Hook Elementary

Featured Teacher: Casey

            1. What is your most memorable field trip experience?

I took my students to a play for Junie B. Jones this past year. Half way through the play I felt a tug on my ankle and jumped up. One of my students popped up FROM UNDERNEATH my chair! She had come to tell me that she "WAS Junie B!" She also asked me if I "had noticed before how much she was like Junie B." I told her yes and sent her back to her seat the "normal" way.

         2. What is something you have learned from your time on Teachers Pay Teachers?

I have learned that it is important to check and double check and triple check behind yourself when creating new products. There is nothing more embarrassing than selling a product that has an error!

         3. What book inspired you as a student?

A book that I read over and over and over again was "Gone Away Lake" by Elizabeth Enright. I loved the idea of finding an abandoned summer getaway of my very own. That book definitely led to hours of imaginative play. 

4. What is something you would like to see in the future, for education?

I would love to have more time to teach and less time spent doing other "stuff." I know that it is important to document and create student data but I know that I, like many other teachers, feel pulled in so many directions. I am embarrassed by the number of days that I have to give my students independent work so that I can complete all of the necessary paperwork.

         5. What is something fun about you that teachers don't know about you?

I HATED math when I was in school. It was really hard for me and I didn't get the hang of it until I was a high school senior and I had a really AWESOME teacher. He changed my life and probably has no idea!

         6. What is an achievement, in education or otherwise, that you have accomplished?

I am still proud of the fact that I went to a graduated from college. I know that this is a feat that all teachers accomplish but I was the VERY first in my family to do so. I am still paying for it but I wouldn't trade anything for my education and the AMAZING job that I have because of it.

          7.  Your favorite teaching quote is...   

Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theater. - Gail Godwin

          8. What is your 'Go To' time filler?          

 When I have down time I LOVE to sing a song! My kids really get into songs with motion. Eventually they want to lead the songs themselves which gives me a quick minute to get supplies ready for the next lesson etc.                                                               

 by Casey

Casey’s TpT Store

Number of the Week

 Skip Counting Dino Puzzles

Holiday Helpers

It's time for some yearly holiday helpers! As always, Teacher 2 Teacher will take an end-of-year break with new posts beginning January 6, 2013. A huge "Thank You!" to patrons and readers who have made the blog a hit in the educational market. 

Want to share your favorite lesson with others? Do you have a best teaching practice that works in the classroom? Do you have expertise that could benefit other teachers? If so, think about writing for Teachers 2 Teachers.   





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Happy Holidays and a Wonderful New Year!
From the Staff at Teacher 2 Teacher

Featured Teacher: Karen Hester

  1. What is your most memorable field trip experience?

I was with some kids at the Texas State Fair, and we saw Oprah Winfrey!

  2. What is something you have learned from your time on Teachers Pay Teachers?

I need to be patient....

   3. What book inspired you as a student?

Several... All of the Little House books, Where the Red Fern Grows, and Caddie Woodlawn. Those are the books that lit my imagination and turned me into a lifelong reader.

4.. What is something you would like to see in the future, for education?

I would like to see educators treated with the respect they deserve.

 5. What is something fun about you that teachers don't know about you?

Well, I really love to read, and I am crazy about vampire stories. Right now I'm currently devouring the Charlaine Harris Sookie Stackhouse series. The combination of supernatural and southern quirkiness cracks me up.

 6. What is an achievement, in education or otherwise, that you have accomplished?

In the past few years, I have had several former students that are now grown adults contact me and tell me that I made a difference in their lives. Wow!

 7. What was your first 'Free' item that you posted up on Teachers Pay Teachers?  What made you choose that?

I posted a set of clipboard organization sheets. I wanted to post something that I really used, was straightforward and easy to use, and could be modified for personal use.

8. What was your first 'Paid' item that you posted up on Teachers Pay Teachers? What made you choose that?        

My first paid item was "10 to 20 and Beyond!" which is a set of center activities. I chose that because after years in upper elementary, I am new to "little people". I really struggled last year, so I am working on creating center ideas that I would use in my room.

9.  Your favorite teaching quote is...   

"Right is right, no matter who around you is doing wrong."

10. What is your 'Go To' time filler?          

Exploring far away places on Google Earth.                                                                

 by Karen Hester

Karen’s TpT Store

10 to 20 and Beyond?

Ones, Tens, Hundreds

Book Look: Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins

Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric Kimmel
Review by: Lisa Howard
Visit Lisa's Blog
Email Lisa


Recommended for: Kindergarten and up


Hanukkah begins at sundown December 8. Celebrate with your students by sharing the book Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins by Eric Kimmel. In the book, Hershel arrives at a new town just in time for Hanukkah, but the town is strangely dark. No familiar Hanukkah candles flicker in the windows. It is goblins, Hershel discovers, that keep the townspeople from celebrating . The town’s goblins like to smash dreidels, destroy menorahs, and throw latkes on the ground. The goblins hate Hanukkah.

Even though he is new to town, Hershel bravely volunteers to stop the goblins and save Hanukkah. Armed with only pickles, eggs, and a menorah, he climbs the hill to the synagogue to face down the goblins. Each night Hershel meets new a new goblin, and each night he defeats it with his swiftness and logic. As in the story of the Maccabees’ victory over the Greeks (the reason we celebrate Hanukkah), it is Hershel’s clever planning that carries him through each confrontation.

Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins is a Caldecott Award-winning children’s book that begs to be read aloud. The humorous illustrations and wisecracking dialogue keep the sometimes dark book from becoming scary. It is a treasure for kindergarten and up.

HOTS or Bloom's Taxonomy

by Barb Evans

Teachers Pay Teachers Storefront: Barbara Evans

It's about time educators revisited Higher Order Thinking Skills or HOTS.  Most teachers have some knowledge of Benjamin Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. However, did you know Benjamin is not actually the author of the taxonomy? It bears his name because he chaired the committee that developed it. Therefore, the next time someone asks you to chair a committee, you may want to say "Yes!"

It seems as though Bloom's Taxonomy has been around forever, and, actually, it has been around since 1956, according to Overbaugh and Schultz, who wrote “Bloom’s Taxonomy”. It has, however, changed over the decades. When first proposed, the taxonomy dealt with three domains of education: cognitive, affective, and psychomotor. The goal of the three domains was to produce holistic education. Over time, however, the cognitive domain has become the taxonomy we think of when Bloom's Taxonomy is mentioned.

The taxonomy is constructed as a scaffold; the lower levels must be broad and strong in order for the upper levels to be built. In an age of standardized testing mania, knowledge and comprehension, the foundation levels, are the name of the game. Since those are the most easily evaluated components, performance is naturally based on those levels. Thus, mostly teachers of gifted and talented students have time to work on upper levels of the taxonomy since their students, presumably, have the requisite knowledge and understanding.

Here are two versions of Bloom's Taxonomy:

Teachers everywhere need to break out of their shells and push their students to work in the higher levels. Our children deserve to be grade A educated.

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Featured Teacher: Brooke Beverly Conway

            1. What is your most memorable field trip experience?

My students one year went on a field trip to Nature's Classroom.  This outdoor learning opportunity brought me back to my experience as a year-round camp director.  It was amazing to see the kids trudging through the mud, investigating nature, dissecting creatures, learning to build forts, building campfires, picking edible plants, etc.  For weeks after this field trip, my kids would go out and explore their own backyard and bring in different leaves, bugs (yuck!), interesting rocks, etc. to share with their classmates.  You could tell that this field trip really grabbed their attention.

         2. What is something you have learned from your time on Teachers Pay Teachers?

I have learned so many things from the wonderful educators who collaborate on this site.  One of the simplest things I have learned, but has saved me so much time is to create projects in powerpoint because it is so much easier to manipulate clipart and word art.  They also inspired me to start a blog.  Check it out at www.3rdgradetroops.blogspot.com .

         3. What book inspired you as a student?

I'm laughing out loud as I write this, but I have always loved “The Pain and The Great One”.  I used to tell my younger sister that she was the pain, and I of course, was the great one.  I wrote many sequels to this story in my elementary school career during different story writing times (it wasn't called "writer's workshop" back then!)

4. What is something you would like to see in the future, for education?

I would love for schools to be infused with technology.  The interactive and engaging learning opportunities that are available, or will be available, for students will truly enhance learning.  It would be great if the government invested more money in education as well!

         5. What is something fun about you that teachers don't know about you?

I used to work as a year-round camp director!  I think that is where I realized that when children have fun, are engaged in what they are learning about, and make connections so that they truly remember a lesson. 

         6. What is an achievement, in education or otherwise, that you have accomplished?

I have had several teaching ideas published in the Mailbox Magazine.  Both the Mailbox Magazine, and TpT inspire me to think outside of the box to find ideas that will really grab my student's attention!

         7. What was your first 'Free' item that you posted up on Teachers Pay Teachers?  What made you choose that?

I posted a French Fry Book Project.  I posted this product because I had just completed it with my students in my classroom.  I liked it because it was a twist on a book project that I hadn't seen before. 

8. What was your first 'Paid' item that you posted up on Teachers Pay Teachers? What made you choose that?        

My first paid product was probably not my best product.  It was a math review worksheet packet.  Today, I feel that my task card sets, and powerpoints are my best products.

9.  Your favorite teaching quote is...   

"The dream begins, most of the time, with a teacher who believes in you, who tugs and pushes, and leads you onto the next plateau, sometimes poking you with a sharp stick called truth."

--Dan Rather

10. What is your 'Go To' time filler?          

I enjoy having kids pull out their dry erase boards and markers for a quick game review.  It is quick and easy, and everyone is involved in the learning process.  I also have "I'm Done, Now What" centers set up around my room for fast finishers to work on, so everyone is always actively engaged in a productive learning opportunity.

I also have powerpoint template games where students there is hidden treasure, or a hidden candy, etc. that can be used as a review for any concept.  This is great for a quick review for science or social studies test, or to give a little extra practice for a tricky math concept or spelling words.                                                                 

 by Brooke Beverly Conway

Brooke’s TpT Store

Newspaper Task Cards
Writing Personal Narratives – Powerpoint and Worksheets

Listening Center Task Cards and Reader Response Activities