Common Core Outcomes Giveaway

Did you incorporate the Common Core State Standards into your curriculum this year? What did your students have an easier time with, in general, this school year—math or language arts? Let us know and be entered to win a free book from The Mailbox.

Making the Most of These Days

Creating lessons for the last few weeks of school that [continue] to engage students bent on celebrating the joys of summer [is] no easy task. A teacher really has to bring his or her A-game.

A Turkey-Themed Twofer

Before you go rushing over to Diane’s blog (and I encourage you to do so, but wait a sec), double your chances to win a book from The Mailbox by entering my It’s Curtains for Tom Turkey Giveaway! Simply contribute an idea for a competition with other classes that also teaches an important skill or lesson (recycling and graphing, for example). Nothing fancy, just fun!

Sign Up. You Could Win!

There are a lot of things you can do to feel good about yourself. One of them is winning the lottery. On a more practical note, you’ll feel good when you have the tools you need to do your best in your classroom. To help you, The Mailbox has created two new weekly e-newsletters, Literature Links and Common Core Connections.

We Vote for Teachers

Celebrated or demonized, it’s tough being a teacher in an election year, or any year, for that matter. At The Mailbox, it’s our aim to support you everyday with tips, ideas, and resources that work in your classroom. If you’ve got standards you’re teaching to, our activities help you meet them. If you have students with special needs, we can help. If you’re a first-year teacher trying to find your way, we’ll get you organized. If you’re just a few years from retiring, our tools and projects will keep your classroom feeling fresh. But we also care about how you’re doing.

Plot Points

Before the end of the school year sneaks up on you and wallops you upside the back of the head, stop right now and think about some of the lessons you’ve learned this year. If you haven’t noted the people you want to thank, the compliments you’ve wanted to give, or the ideas you’ve had for next year, do it now. Here are some prompts to help you.

Ten Ideas for a Classroom That Fosters Thinking

I like to read people’s ideas. Sometimes, it doesn’t even matter what the topic is, except perhaps for such things as Internet marketing analytics and reality shows about people who don’t seem to ever actually work. Ever. Here are ten ideas about teaching from Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), the late British philosopher, mathematician, historian, and social critic.

More Math Excitement, Please

It may be hard to believe, coming from a writer/ELA teacher such as myself, but I just get the sense that math is getting the short end of the stick on celebratory days during the calendar year.

Best Uses for a Spare Moment

One of the great joys in a teacher’s life is that moment when a lesson is complete, work is done, and the entire class is on the same page—with a relatively equal grasp of the ideas and skills you’ve just taught. And then—BOOM! You suddenly find yourself with extra time… What do you do? How do you fill those unexpected moments of free class time?

202 Ways to End the School Year

We’ve recently rechristened MyMAILBOX Premium—it’s now known as MyMAILBOX Idea Center Gold. If you are a gold-level member, you have a huge supporting cast of awesome year-end teaching resources. As of May 24, 2011, here is a sampling of the resources intermediate-level members will find… (read more)