I’m getting ready for summer school. You may be finishing out your year or looking forward to beginning a new school year in August. We all need classroom themes that capture the fun and sun of summer. Here are some of our favorite classroom theme ideas for summer classrooms: Jungle… Continue reading
What would spring and summer be without bugs? This is a theme with lots of ready-made options for decorating the classroom. Buggy for Bugs Behavior bulletin board makes behavior management quick and easy, TCR’s We’ve Got the Writing Bug Mini Bulletin Board Set features the writing process, and Carson Dellosa’s Buggy… Continue reading
Movies, stars, popcorn — bring it all together for a fun classroom theme that lends itself to art, social studies, and technology lessons. Use big paper stars and put everyone’s name up in lights for a fun bulletin board. Slogans: We’re stars Starring us Red Carpet Treatment Celebrity Learning Oscar… Continue reading
Mt. St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. I was living in Northern California at the time, and we had ash falling on us from the sky. For so many of us, volcanoes are something we think of as having happened long ago and far away — the eruption of… Continue reading
The rainforests of the Congo Basin are second in size to the Amazon rainforest, but they are greatly endangered. One of the nations in the region is Côte d’Ivoire, or Ivory Coast, so named for the great herds of elephants that used to live there. Now, this country which used… Continue reading
There are some real advantages for using a sports theme. It can be energizing, it gives you a natural lead-in for lessons on health and character, it brings up natural science, lit, and social studies connections, and it’s easy to decorate for. Continue reading
For an election year, a patriotic theme is a natural. It’s also a fun way to introduce American History lessons, and a cheerful theme at any time. Read on for ideas for ways to use patriotic songs in art and English lessons. There are plenty of ready-made decoratives (more at… Continue reading
Mesopotamia, meaning “between the rivers,” was the cradle of civilization. Explore the people who lived here thousands of years ago with a couple of our favorite Mesopotamia lesson plans. These two lessons are designed to give a sense of time and place for ancient Mesopotamia, while integrating critical thinking, math,… Continue reading
With St. Patrick’s Day upon us, it’s a great time to learn the geography of Ireland. Any time of year is a great time to improve geography skills, actually, and you can use these ideas with other places, too, but I’ve got some great links for your Ireland study.… Continue reading
This poem, by Irish poet William Butler Yeats, is a beautiful piece of language. Use it as a first introduction to grownup poetry for older elementary and secondary level students. Here’s the poem: Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths, Enwrought with golden and silver light, The blue and the… Continue reading
