Episode 3: Classroom Routines

Episode Summary

In this week’s episode we will talk about classroom routines that can be used all year long. Annie and Nichole share their favorite classroom routine to start off the podcast, but then they go into detail about all the routines that help make the school year go more smoothly.

Nichole has a morning meeting each day, which includes school announcements, question of the day, and any schedule changes. Annie wraps up her day by having students complete their classroom jobs- helps reset the classroom for the next day.

Feedback Friday is Nichole’s favorite to end the week. Students give each other shout outs each week and Nichole shares those out (anonymously) with the group which helps builds classroom community. On Friday Annie’s class has Fun Friday for 30 minutes where there are no screens and kids are often playing board games or card games!

Visiting the library is a fun routine that Nichole’s class does every week- her students have book bags and refill it each week! They keep their books (3-5) in a Ziplock bag in their desk and choose from those books throughout the week. This routine avoids the “I need a book to read” during free read time.

Annie’s 4th grade class does Book Buddies with our 1st grade students. The 1st graders read a story that they are working on in class, and then Annie’s 4th graders read a picture to their buddies. It’s a sweet way to connect students throughout the year to build school community!

Every class Nichole does a math warm up! She gives students a problem or puzzle each day to kick off the math block! Short and sweet is the way to go with math warm ups!

Read alouds are a favorite in Annie’s classroom. She begins every language arts class by reading 10 pages of a novel- usually tied to the curriculum (or Iditarod). Her favorite read alouds are Born to Mush, Wonder, and Sled Dog School.

Topics Discussed

  • Morning Meeting

  • Classroom Jobs

  • Friday Fun- Feedback Friday and Fun Friday

  • Library & Book Bag

  • Book Buddies

  • Math Warm Ups

  • Read Alouds & First Chapter Friday

Links & Resources

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Episode 4: Creating a Math Community

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Episode 2: BTS Strategies