I know it's summer "vacation" but teachers never stop working or thinking about their classrooms. Every school year is a fresh start and a chance to revamp the way you have done things in the past. I love that I have that opportunity every year. For the past couple years we have used some "Brain Breaks" interactive notebook activities that I had created. They worked really well to help the students review what they were learning in class and I've wanted to expand on that this year. Back in the spring I came across Lee Ferguson and I was inspired by the Interactive notebooks that her AP Bio students create. I highly recommend that at some point this summer you go to her website and check it out. There are some amazing resources and ideas on her site . Lee Ferguson interactive notebooks in AP Bio Before you go to her site, let me show you what I have been doing. I have a belief that as a teacher if I am going to expect my students to do something...

Next year I will be in my new classroom and the space for desks is a little tighter than my previous classroom so I had to come up with some creative ways to organize classroom supplies. Where do I love to find organizing stuff? IKEA! The closest IKEA to my house is an hour and a half away in Burlington Ontario but I love that store so much that I do not mind the drive.  This was my latest project from IKEA. I installed the Bygel rails ($2.99 each Canadian) and white Bygel containers (99 cents each Canadian).  You can see them on the website at these addresses Rails: http://m.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/art/50072645/ Containers: http://m.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/art/10271091/ You can get the containers in different colors but I personally like a more uncluttered and less distracting look in the classroom.  I also installed the "focus" letters on the wall. I bought these at Hobby Lobby for $3 each and used command strips t...

   My students often copy their notes quickly in class and/or may lose a page or forget their binder at home so now I have found a way that my students can read the notes online. I use a website called Flipsnack www.flipsnack.com  (they also have a quizsnack, bannersnack, and other tools that I recommend checking out). flipsnack's website On Flipsnack.com you can upload .pdf documents and turn them into a virtual flipping book. You can even choose the color of your cover and other features such as a solid hardcover book or a spiral book. My students really seem to enjoy it and it affords them the freedom to look up information even if they left their notes in school. originally posted on ballinwithballing.blogspot.com To view this flipping book you need to have Flash Player 9 or newer installed and JavaScript enabled. Flipsnack is a flash video player that allows you to create stylish flipping books out of your PDF document.

     I started by putting the main topic that we have been studying in class (in this case it was Transport) and  the main categories to get them started. put the main ideas of the concept map on the board Up at the board I placed 6 black expo dry erase markers like these:      I wanted everyone to have the same color so the focus was on the content, not how pretty it looked. My students use the computers almost everyday so I told them that while their computer was starting up  I wanted them to work together and build a "Silent Mind Map" for the unit. They were not allowed to talk.  All of the communication must happen in the writing on the board.  the beginning      Even after they started working online they would look up and still come up to the board and add something, or erase and change something. It was really amazing to see them all work together.      In m...

     Like any other teacher I am constantly revising my curriculum based on student likes/dislikes, new motivation strategies, incorporating new labs, review games, etc. It is very overwhelming to keep it organized so here is the method I have devised.      I have a folder where I keep all ideas for future units. In that folder there is a separate sheet of paper for each unit. a separate sheet for each unit Any random ideas I generate throughout the year that would apply to that unit are jotted down on a post-it note and stuck onto the sheet of paper. post-it notes with ideas post-it notes with ideas      What did we ever do before paperclips and Post-it Notes? Any labs that I want to rewrite or handouts I have found are paper clipped to that sheet of paper. This way I am more likely to revise the units as I go through the year. labs, handouts for rewrites and modifications paper clipped to it.  This i...

Do you ever wonder what other teachers in your discipline are talking about? Do you ever wonder what is happening in their districts? How they are conducting their pre-assessments, APPR's, SLO's? Join a list serve and find out.  I have been a member of the BioForum Listserve hosted out of the State of New York College at Oneonta and I have found it very valuable for acquiring new ideas and new perspectives on teaching Biology. Warning...once you join you will receive a LOT more email but soon you will learn to filter out what is useful to you and what is not.  Click here to sign up to join a science listserve           “I'm a great believer that any tool that enhances communication has profound effects in     terms of how people can learn from each other, and how they can achieve the kind of freedoms that they're interested in.” Bill Gates [Founder of Microsoft Co.] This post originally featu...

How often do you loan students a pencil and never see it again? Every time I give the students a test I loan them a pencil from the "Pencil Tree" Pencil tree and sign out sheet the student signs out the pencil and crosses their name off when it is returned. By storing the pencils in the "Tree." missing pencils all pencils returned! By the way...my students love that they have Mirado Black Warrior pencils to use...they just love the name and it's easy to see if it is my pencil or theirs. You can buy Mirado Black Warriors by clicking on the image here:  I can quickly look and see if all were returned. It saves class time and I never lose a pencil!  This post originally featured on ballinwithballing.blogspot.com

     To save time in class and to get my students started right away I created a mailbox for each of my students. This is a quick way to hand back papers and a nice easy place for my students to store the headphones that they need in class everyday.     Each student has been assigned an "Alpha Number" which is a number that helps me put their papers in alphabetical order by class. So my first student in my first class has the number 1, second student alphabetically in the same class is #2, etc. So every time a student puts their name on their paper, they also write their Alpha Number. This saves a LOT of time when you need to alphabetize over 100 papers. These are pictures of the students' mailboxes where they will get papers that I want to hand back. This is where they turn in assignments to me Each "basket" is for a different class A bit of advice: If you are going to make your own mailboxes, staple them together or else...