• Friday Freebie – Candy Corn Sorting

    Happy Friday! I love all things fall, especially the food and that includes Halloween candy. My all time favorite is candy corn, I refuse to buy any at the store before October because I will eat it as soon as I buy it, so I try really really hard to only have it in the house for one month. This cute Sort and Count Freebie is perfect for my candy corn addiction.  It requires a bag of the mixed variety. You know, the one with the regular candy corn, the big pumpkins, and the chocolate candy corn.  This is the perfect excuse for me to start buying it now! Even…

  • Fall Fashion for Teachers

    I’m not a fashion blogger by any means, but I enjoy sharing these posts every now and then.  Autumn is weird in Ohio, for example most of this week it was in the 80’s and then yesterday it was 65 degrees.  It’s hard enough to dress professionally when I know that there is a good chance I’m going to leave work with a new marker or food coloring stain on my clothes, throw in crazy temperature fluctuations and I really just want to stay in my pajamas! There are a few things articles of clothing that I have been turning to regularly over the last few weeks – these are…

  • Autumn Field Trip Ideas

    My brain is stuck on all things autumn, so I’m going with it.  I’m a huge fan of field trips, I think they are an amazing way to make learning real-life and to expose children to places and concepts that they otherwise might not come into contact with. I also think that they are perfect for introducing children to all of the concepts that you’ve been exploring in the classroom. I completely understand that not all programs are equipped to take field trips for a variety of reasons – I’ve worked in programs where this was certainly the case, so I’ve got a lot of tips for working around this…

  • Autumn Cooking Projects

    Autumn is a great time to explore cooking in the classroom because the season naturally lends itself to so many food-related experiences. I’ve rounded up a few of my favorites, along with some great ideas from other bloggers, to give you plenty of recipes to choose from! Apple sauceMaking apple sauce is a great experience for preschoolers because they can be a part of the entire process.  Apples are soft enough that they can be easily cut with plastic knoves, and this recipe is made in the crockpot, so you can do it all in the classroom while they watch – and smell! Mini Apple PiesPlay to Learn Preschool  has…

  • Friday Freebie – Fall Certificates

    Happy Friday! Now that it’s officially autumn I feel much better about posting all of these great fall products! This freebie is a great way to recognize positive behaviors and encourage children to be helpers.  Go download these Autumn Certificates from Teacher’s Big Helper, and have a great weekend!

  • 36 Autumn Themes for Preschool

    I’m a Reggio teacher, but I love to throw some seasonal themes in my lesson plan too so that my students get to experience a variety of topics. The other day a teacher asked me for some new ideas for autumn themes because she was tired of the same old pumpkins and apples, I was able to think of a few! Here are 36 themes that are perfect for exploring in the fall: If you prefer plain old text, here’s the list: Leaves Trees Logs Campfires Mums Sunflowers Acorns Squirrels Owls Farming/Harvest Tractors Scarecrows Corn Pumpkins Gourds Apples Farmers market School safety Fire safety Candy Corn Spiders Monsters Bats Halloween…

  • More Autumn Decor

    Yesterday I shared some cute ideas for making your classroom feel a little more homey during this autumn season, but if crafting isn’t your thing then I have something for you too! If you’re looking for printable classroom decor, you’ve come to the right place. I love my autumn classroom decor set because: It’s printable and EASY to put together You can keep it up for the entire season or just use it for a class party It’s something that you could print and then ask a parent volunteer to cut and put together when you’re done with it it can all go in a file folder to store for…

  • Autumn decor for the classroom

    My philosophy about the classroom environment is that the classroom should feel like home. We certainly spend an incredible amount of time there, and also, I like my students to be able to interact with the same kinds of things that they come into contact with at their own homes.  Since I routinely decorate my own home for different seasons, it feels natural to me to decorate the classroom seasonally too. Over the years I’ve found that if I add a few seasonal pieces to my collection each year, it is more affordable. I also do a lot of DIYing to create decorative elements.  Oriental Trading has become my go-to…

  • Friday Freebie – Leaf Charts

    Happy Friday! I shared a bunch of great leaf activities with you this week, and I wanted to share a leaf freebie to go along with them, but I couldn’t find one that I liked. So I made a new one! This brand new leaf documentation set includes three charts that you can use to record and document all of the work that the children do relating to leaves. There’s a page for recording new vocabulary words, a KWL chart, and a page for writing down conversations that you have with the children about leaves.  Download them and print as many as you’d like!

  • An Easy Fall Science Center

    Fall is the perfect time of year to explore science – there are so many changes happening! It’s also really easy to find natural materials to use in the classroom (check out this list and this list for ideas), but sometimes I struggle with how to contain all of those natural materials.  No more worries, I’ve found the perfect solution: How awesome are these leaf-shaped containers from Oriental Trading (of course) ?! I filled mine with tree bark, grass, pebbles, twigs, some small red leaves, and one larger green leaf. The best thing about this set is that it includes 24 containers, so your students could help you find all…