Free, Free, Free!

Holy hyphen! It’s National Punctuation Day! If this special day has sneaked up on you, no worries. Simply head over to themailbox.com and type “punctuation” in the search box. There’s 265 free student activities waiting for you! Narrow your search by grade level to quickly find the perfect activity for celebrating National Punctuation Day with your students. Check…

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Just Let Them Read!

I took three graduate level reading classes this summer and the underlining theme of all three courses was to give students time to read and talk about reading.  We have overwhelmed students with busywork:  reading worksheets, reading quizzes and reading test, all of which take away valuable reading time.  I am blocking out time just…

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“Seuss” the Week!

Forty-four books for children. Forty-four fun-to-read, fun-to-hear, and fun-to-look-at books for kids. Thank you, Dr. Seuss! When I discovered the author had written forty-four books, I began to wonder how many of the books I’ve read; so I went in search of a book list. That’s when things got interesting. What I learned is that…

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Top 5 Things I’d Like to Note from 2013

2013. Just when it was getting interesting—with a surprise Beyonce album, an actual bipartisan budget deal in Washington, DC, and a Boston Red Sox World Series celebration duck boat parade—it’s time to turn the calendar over to 2014.* Here’s a look back at some of the highlights from The Mailbox in 2013. The Mailbox turned…

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Favorite Classroom Themes

Favorite Classroom Themes  This morning, I had my first cup of hot chocolate of the season. It’s finally gotten chilly enough here in North Carolina for a hot beverage in the morning to taste pretty soothing. (Being a Michigan native, I’m all about cold weather—bring on the sweaters and scarves!) “Hot Chocolate” is actually one…

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