Saturday, November 15, 2014

You Oughta Know About using a Desk Calendar on the Wall

Today I am linking up with Jasmine at Buzzing with Mrs. McClain for her 
You Oughta Know Blog Hop


The tip that I would like to share with you is using a desk calendar on the classroom wall as a teaching tool. 


Yes, indeed. Using a desk calendar on the wall at our calendar area has been handy dandy for me. The last two years I got one during the Back-to-School "season" at Target.

It all started as, "Oooh, I like that calendar! 



It would look great in my classroom, so I got some strong magnetic hooks. 



Voila! I had a handy, large-sized calendar that could substitute my oldie-but-goodie calendar from days of old. From then on I was hooked!


3 Things that I like about it:



{1}

I don't have to change the title of the month and all 30 ... or 31 ... or 28 cards at the end of each month. 


{2}

The students can see how to use a real calendar like we have used on the walls in our homes and offices for decades. These days, I try to use my phone calendar for most personal things, but somehow seeing things written out on a paper calendar helps me keep the big picture in mind. 


{3}

I can add the students' birthdays, events at school and upcoming breaks from school. Not that we teachers are super excited about breaks or anything. (We do need a mental and emotional break from the daily thoughts and concerns that we have for our students and their well-being.)

As a matter of fact, last Spring, I also added the countdown or "count up" to the Berry College eaglet leaving the nest. Approximately. 

We were there. Front and center. Via webcam. 

Well, it FELT like we were there! We were able to watch the excitement of the eaglet's growth during its first 12 weeks. It was very cool! Since we could watch the eagle family on the smart board, many times we left it on as we worked during the day. The kids LOVED it! 

Ok. I didn't mean to blog about all of that, but the memories came flooding back and I had to tell you about it. If you want to read more about that experience please click here. (There is also an Eagle research organizer freebie if you need something like that.) 

If you would like to see the booklet that we used to record our observations, then please click here to check it out in my store. 


Make sure to visit the other bloggers during Buzzing with Mrs. McClain's 

Have a great weekend!
Carrie


6 comments:

  1. What a good idea! And yes, so much easier than changing out the date and month each month. And a perfect way to see a real world example of a functioning calendar!

    Sara
    Sara J Creations

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  2. What a great idea! Definitely would keep calendar maintenance very low-key. Plus love the idea of special days front and center actually ON the calendar.
    Thanks for sharing!
    Amanda
    The Take Home Teacher

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  3. Love the calendar and the idea! I also use my Target calendar on the wall!
    Endeavors in Education

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  4. Such a nifty idea! Thanks for sharing Carrie :-)

    Jasmine
    Buzzing With Mrs. McClain

    ReplyDelete