Andrea Knight

Teacher · Learner · Author

What is Happiness? A Fun Lesson for Kids

What is happiness? And can it be taught? I tend to believe it can. If we start conversations about happiness and model joy and gratitude, I think we can help children understand how happiness happens. This isn't to say that we'll be happy all the time. That's not realistic and kids should know that, too. We're human, so we're obviously going to experience moments of frustration, sadness, and … [Read more...]

Vocabulary Activities and Games for Kids

Vocabulary activities are an important part of literacy planning. Because they play a fundamental role in reading comprehension, planning kid-friendly lessons is essential. Children learn the meanings of most words indirectly, usually through everyday experiences with spoken language. However, other words are learned through careful instruction. So what does that look like? WAYS TO DEVELOP WORD … [Read more...]

Pairing Cards for Student Partners

Pairing cards are one of my favorite ways to bring kids together for activities. There are a number of ways you can set up student partnerships in a classroom. Often, I'm very intentional when pairing up children. If the work is academic, I tend to pair kids who need support and a gentle spirit with kids who are patient and natural at coaching. I also try to avoid combining children who rile up … [Read more...]

Morning Greetings – Fun Ways to Say Hey

I love the variety in this set of morning greetings. There's a little something here for everyone... non-contact, non-verbal for your low key kids. And high-five, dance-it-out cards for those kids that are always a little extra. A lot of teachers post greetings right outside their classroom door, giving students a choice of how they want to say HI as they're entering the room. If you're new to … [Read more...]

Comprehension Strategies in Reading

No matter which side of the literacy debate you're on, teaching comprehension strategies is obviously key. I think everyone can agree on that. If children don't understand the words they're reading, what's the point? I can't recall where I first read this, but I say it all the time: Reading is an action sport. I think, at the very least, we should help children fall in love with books. Once … [Read more...]