The Science Behind Mood Tracking
Let’s be honest: most kids are expected to “manage their emotions” without ever being taught how to notice them in the first place! We ask for calm bodies, kind words, flexible thinking… and then hand...
Read MoreBoundary Setting with Tough Students
There’s a version of “relationship first” teaching advice that absolutely wears teachers down. It tells you to lead with connection, to assume positive intent, to find the story behind the behavior. All true. All useful....
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Why Reward Systems Fall Short
I can guarantee that if you use reward systems, at some point in the year the reward systems start to feel a little fragile. You have the charts, the systems, the prizes and kids are...
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5 Alternatives to Taking Away Recess
If a student is having a hard time, taking away recess can feel like the obvious move because it’s clean, immediate, and sends a message. It also… usually doesn’t work. (And not in a “kids...
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Resetting Classroom Culture Mid-Year
There’s a point every school year when the wheels start to wobble a little. Routines get loose, patience runs thin, and the class inside jokes turn into class-wide distractions. You look around and think, “This…isn’t...
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Do Fidget Tools Actually Help Kids Regulate?
Walk into almost any elementary classroom right now and you will probably see at least some kind of fidget tools. Teachers often keep stress balls, tangles, Velcro strips under desks, small cubes with buttons, or...
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5 Common Calm Corner Missteps
Walk into almost any elementary classroom right now and you will probably see some version of a calm corner. A soft rug, maybe a few stuffed animals, a poster with breathing strategies, glitter jars, flexible...
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7 Picture Books about Immigration
This post contains affiliate links. Our students bring family histories, languages, traditions, and migration stories that shape who they are. One of the most meaningful ways to honor that reality is through picture books about...
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Introducing a Communication Notebook
There are always going to be students who walk into our classrooms carrying more than a backpack. They’re carrying thoughts they don’t know how to say out loud, impulsive thoughts, worries from recess and home,...
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Using Monthly SEL Interactive Calendars
People tell me CONSTANTLY that they believe in SEL, just don’t have time for another program or curricular initiative. Most teachers aren’t skipping SEL because they don’t value it, but the day is already packed....
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What is Unconditional Attention?
There is a phrase I come back to often when teachers feel stuck with behavior that feels relentless, attention seeking, or exhausting to manage: unconditional attention. This idea is simple, but it is uncomfortable if...
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