This school year is moving right along! Maybe you're starting to feel the pressure of crunch time as some students are achieving their learning goals while others may not be.

If some of your students are struggling with their sight word lists, know that you're not alone! Many years at about this time, I take a hard look at where my students are and realize that some of them are not reaching their sight word goals.

Sight words are included in the most basic form of learning, remembering, so our students should be able to master them. If your strategies so far aren't working for all your students, here are three keys to get the rest of the class over the finish line!

Links in today's episode:
Today's blog post
Rainbow Sight Word System
Intensive Sight Word Practice
Sight Word Engagement blog post (with link to Sight Word Engagement Guide)
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group

One of the areas of our careers as primary teachers that can be difficult is maintaining relationships with our students' parents and families.

Especially when we have to deliver bad news.

Knowing this is coming may give you anxiety. It may keep you up at night.

It's never going to be easy, but I'm going to share five tips I've learned with experience that will help make it less painful. It's possible to give bad news and still maintain good relationships, and you can do it.

Links Mentioned in Today's Episode:
Today's Blog Post
Teacher Cheerleader Blog Post
Joyful Teacher Academy updates

Classroom management is a make or break aspect of being a teacher. I believe so strongly that to be a joyful, and effective, teacher we must have good classroom management.

Directly related to classroom management is student engagement. An engaged classroom is an easy (easier) to manage classroom. So today, I'm going to share three easy sound hacks you can use to up your classroom management game by improving engagement, smoothing transitions, and rewarding focus.

Links mentioned in today's episode:
Today's Blog Post
Joyful Teacher Academy updates
Bog Post - Pacing
Sound Machine 1
Sound Machine 2
Kindergarten Word Works
First Grade Word Works
Daily Write It
Phast Phonics
Silly Sound Library
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook group

Ask any teacher if they love their students, and I'm willing to bet they say yes.

Of course we do! It's why we do what we do.

But what about those students that are a little more difficult? The ones who are talkative, disruptive, or never have their supplies? You know, the ones that are a little more hard-to-love.

Every student deserves the best chance for an education that we can give them. These more difficult students need our love too. So how can we love them?

Here are three tips I use that may help you gain a new perspective for some of these hard-to-love students.

Links mentioned in today's episode:

Today's blog post
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group

Here comes the holiday! Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and our kiddos can't wait. They love holidays, and we can hack the holiday to boost engagement in our primary classrooms. This doesn't mean fancy, detailed activities that take hours to prepare and leave our classroom management running for cover.

Today, I'm going to give you three no-prep Valentine's Day literacy activities you can use with your students. We can make learning memorable and fun without all the stress!

There's also a free download today! Head over to the blog at the link below to grab your downloadable set of Valentine's Day postcards that you can print for some writing practice that will be fun and meaningful.

Happy Valentine's Day, Teacher Friend!

Links mentioned in today's episode:

Today's Blog Post (with free postcard download)
Art for Kids Hub - YouTube
Word Works - Kindergarten
Word Works - First Grade
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook group

Teacher, are you feeling discouraged and unsupported? Do you secretly wonder why you're doing this when it's so hard? We chose a tough profession, and not everyone appreciates it.

So that's why it's so important to find the people who do! We hear, from other people and from ourselves, that we aren't good enough way too often. Let's surround ourselves with people who can encourage us that we are making a difference.

Here are three ways to find your teacher cheerleaders.

Links in Today's Episode:

Morning Message Post
Bad Habits to Bust Post
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group
Joyful Teacher Academy Updates

Whether you're conscious of it or not, you use pacing in every one of your lessons and transitions. It impacts engagement, classroom management, and your joy as a teacher.

So how's your pacing? If your students are bored by a pace that is too slow or overwhelmed by a speed that can't keep up with, then their learning and the overall dynamic of your classroom will suffer.

The good news is pacing can be adjusted! Here are three ways you can modify the pace of your classroom to get the just right challenge for your students.

Links from today's episode:
Pacing Blog Post
Student Engagement Blog Post
Routines Blog Post
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group

Do you have students who are struggling to read? Maybe you've tried strategy after strategy and all the activities you can find, but those students are still not meeting their goals.

I've tried finding the next great activity and latest greatest tools, but that's not the answer. Let me share the approach that worked for me after years of trial and error.

It's not one specific activity or product. It's a mindset.

Are you ready?

Links mentioned in today's episode:
Today's Blog Post
Letter and Sound Fluency Post
Rainbow Word System
Kindergarten Word Works
First Grade Word Works
Phast Phonics Routine
Morning Meeting Post
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group

If you're ready to grow this year but already have plenty of goals, here are three bad habits to BUST!

These three teacher bad habits will steal your joy. Trust me, I know, because I have had to break them. That's why I know you can too! Let me explain why they are so toxic. Then I'm going to give you strategies to bust them to pieces and get them out of your lives.

Links mentioned in today's episode:
Today's blog post
Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group

Tune in for this fun and surprising episode as Toni interviews Mr. Teacher Toni about his life as the husband of a Teacher. She throws some tough questions his way about the role he plays and the sacrifices he’s learned to appreciate. What you'll learn from listening is… although there is much at stake when your spouse is a Teacher… it is all worth it.
 
 Stick around to hear just how it feels to be married to a dedicated teacher PLUS learn how Leon was once caught in public in an Olaf costume as part of his marital duties. 

Click here to join the Primary Teacher Friends Facebook Group!