ArticleSearch: first days of school

What can you do, this school year, to bullyproof your classroom? Establishing a positive classroom climate where kindness prevails and everybody is included is a vital first step.
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There is such a sense of potential that comes with the freshly sharpened pencils, organized supplies, and stacks of books waiting to be handed out at the start of a Read More…
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Elevating student voice in a school library may seem unusual to anyone who imagines a library only as a quiet sanctuary. Today’s school libraries bustle with activity and are the Read More…
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In addition to identifying a set of academic competencies, the core belief of Responsive Classroom lays out a set of social and emotional competencies that students need in order to Read More…
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For so many teachers and students, returning after winter break can feel like the first day of school all over again. The routines, rules, and procedures that were once so Read More…
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Q: The students in my classroom come from many different traditions and cultures. I know the winter holidays could be a great opportunity for students to learn about each other’s Read More…
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  In the first week of my teaching career, I had a colleague say to me, “You get only one chance to start the year off in a good place Read More…
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The end of any school year can be a bittersweet time for both teachers and students. This year, these feelings are heightened as we consider how to have closure with Read More…
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Inviting students to name learning goals (hopes and dreams) right away shows them that school is a safe place, that they’re important members of the classroom, and that they can look forward…
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A little over a year ago, I became the principal at a school where discipline referrals and staff stress were at all-time highs. Change was clearly needed, and soon. I’d spent the…
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During my thirty-nine-year teaching career, I’ve walked school hallways in five states and taught many students in public, private, and parochial settings. Over all those years, I’ve seen the power of group…
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At SOAR, a network of public charter schools in Northeast Denver, Responsive Classroom practices are embedded in the daily life of schools, and the approach itself is integrated into the network's core…
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This year didn't start off quite as I'd planned. I'd hoped to start teaching conversation skills right at the beginning of school, but once I met my new class, I decided that…
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I was so nervous as I prepared for my first year of teaching! I worried that the kids wouldn't listen, their parents would think I was too young to teach, and the…
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I never loved the first day of school. My teaching depended so much upon knowing my students, and until I got to know them, I never felt entirely comfortable.Having said that, I do…
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When I started teaching, I always planned way too much for the first days of school. It took me a while to learn to make the first day of school a comfortable,…
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