Want to learn the one thing that single handedly changed the way I taught kindergarten? This was a game changing shift for me that stopped my whirlwind weekends of planning and prepping immediately. It's all about using weekly workshops to consistently support students. WHY: Cyclical planning helps our littles know what to expect and creates strong routines, boundaries and expectations. It also makes our planning SO much easier and is a great way to directly monitor week after week progress (...

When it comes to teaching kindergarten the days are BUSY and it's easy to get swept up spending every second of your weekend planning and prepping for the week ahead. I'm letting you in on a little secret that with time and practice will decrease your workload AND increase student engagement - a total win win. The secret is that your greatest planning partner is right under your nose and keen to jump in!All you have to do decrease your workload and increase student engagement is embrace...

Alright level with me here. Does your prep fly by in the blink of an eye and before you know it you have gotten zero checked off your to-do list but somehow been busy the entire time? In today's episode we are talking about 3 tips for a more effective prep and it is going to change the game for your productivity and effectiveness at school. The reality is, we all have very limited time both during the work day and beyond. Learning how to best manage this means we can leave as much work as pos...

Today I want to help you bring a little more calm into the classroom. To do that I will tell you exactly how to introduce mindfulness in kindergarten.In addition to being an Ontario Certified and Nova Scotia Certified teacher and a Kindergarten Specialist, did you know I am also a certified children's yoga teacher? I am! I took a certification program with a friend of mine back in 2019 to learn more about how to teach breathing, mindfulness and postures to our littles because I was finding so...

Let's talk about a super underused strategy in kindergarten that majorly decreases your workload and burnout. Repetition. And I'm not talking about repeating instructions and expectations (although… let's be honest that is inevitable and super helpful too in kinder land), I'm talking about repeating activities throughout the year and repeating lesson plans by recyling and re-using your planning in kindergarten.Since the dawn of time, or at least the dawn of social media teache...

Often the biggest hurdles in outdoor learning are other adults. From the members of your teaching team, to the families to your admin, there's a lot of people with a lot of opinions on outdoor time- particularly in less than perfect weather conditions. Sometimes it is as easy as listing the benefits to outdoor learning:> Learning outside helps us develop a respect and appreciation of the environment and the natural world> Playing outside in all types of weather builds resilie...

I'm talking about a sensitive subject today, so buckle up and take a breath. I'm bringing up a majorly divisive topic in the early years world: worksheets in kindergarten (and why it's actually okay to use them). And I'm going to just come out and say it. I use them.GASP SHUDDER SHUT THE DOORS DRAW THE BLINDS. The thing is, I would never lie to you, or quite frankly, waste your time by only sharing information about teaching practices and strategies that work in ideal cla...

As I sit here on the cusp of my first year of motherhood, I realize that all the annoying clichés about raising children are surprisingly accurate. As a new parent, I’ve been learning that there is nothing quite like the love and bond created between a mother and her child. There’s nothing like seeing your child thrive and grow, watching them change right before your eyes. It’s hard to remember life without them, to go back to what you were doing that doesn’t include them.So (almos...

Overwhelming. Exciting. Yet truly Cringy. Your first year as a teacher is a disproportionate mix of different emotions… mine was too. Investing time on things that didn’t matter, feeling burned out, and controlling everything in the classroom, from the bulletin boards to the posters, I pressured myself to perfect everything that needn’t be.If you’re a first-time teacher, it will help you know how typically messy the time was for me. Even in my latest year of teaching I felt kind of new again!...

Real Talk. How long does it take for you to plan your kindergarten lessons?How do you make sure your planning is textbook perfect so that your littles are always actively learning something as they engage in play?Fun fact… I don’t.My systems and routines – contrary to popular ways – are simple and have always been so, meaning I don’t micromanage my classes or stop the play to direct my children to an “important lesson” whenever they’re trying things out.What I do instead is to allow my little...