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Wacky Times! (and a freebie or two or three!)

Hi friends! I hope you are all doing all right during this crazy time. My school was among many that shut down suddenly and unexpectedly on the 13th of March, for a minimum of three weeks, in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, so, like many of you, I’m getting used to a new way of living.

Now, two days before the 13th, aka a million years ago, on Wednesday, March 11th, I was all super excited because my Teachers Pay Teachers store had reached 500 followers. I was planning a little celebration involving a new freebie, a sale, and maybe even a dance party, wahoo! That Wednesday, ideas bopped around happily in the little TpT section of my brain. But by Friday, the TpT part went into a temporary hibernation as I attempted to process the strange, new information that COVID-19 was so serious that my school closed. Oh, and not just mine, but basically all of them, and the entire world. Heh?

So I took a few days to adjust to this new lifestyle, and eventually decided I still want there to be a little celebration in the So Blessed to Be a Teacher world, because celebrations are happy and we all need happy right now. So, I modified my go-forward plan for how to celebrate my 500 followers. Here’s what I came up with.

1. I made the freebie that was bopping around my imagination on March 11. (It turned out cute, if I do say so myself! You can download it here). But it’s a poster to decorate your library, and, well, you probably aren’t there right now. So I decided that when you download it, you guys might feel the level of joy you’d get if you were receiving a free bucket of rock salt in July.

SO

2. I made two MORE little freebies that can be used on Google Classroom. It was my first attempt at designing resources with distance learning in mind. I would love if you could try them out and tell me what you think! (They are available for FREE here and here).

THEN

3. I set up a GIVEAWAY for my 500 Teachers Pay Teachers followers! (Because giveaways are fun no matter what!) One lucky follower of my store will win a $10 gift card to Teachers Pay Teachers. If you follow me on TpT, check your Teachers Pay Teachers inbox for the link to enter the giveaway. (Don’t follow me yet but want to start? Click here to start following me on TpT, and then send me an email or use the contact link above to tell me your follower number, and I’ll send you the link to enter! The winner will be chosen at 12 AM Eastern Time on March 27, 2020.) (**UPDATED 03/27/20: Congratulations to Julieann, the giveaway winner! Be sure to follow my Teachers Pay Teachers store so you will hear about sales, new products, and my next GIVEAWAY!)

AND

4. I set everything in my TpT store to go on sale from March 22, 2020 to March 25, 2020. Even though school is closed for now, sales are always fun, and some teachers actually have a little time browse around on TpT, so I figured, why not? In the spirit of my last blog post, I am going to donate 50% of profits during my sale to Save the Children, this time to help out with all the needs that are arising due to COVID-19, so it’s actually a great time to stock up on resources that you can use when we are past this wacky period of time! (**UPDATED 03/27/20: Thanks so much to those who made purchases during my sale! Your purchases made it possible for me to make a donation to Save the Children! Yeah!)

AND FINALLY

5. The dance party is on, but, COVID-19 distance learning style. Right now, wherever you are, bust a move!

May God bless you guys during this strange-but-true time we are living in. Stay well and keep taking it day by day!

Giving Back in 2020!

Hey guys! Happy 2020! (Well, Happy First So Blessed to Be a Teacher Blog Post of 2020, anyway! I’m a little late on the Happy New Year wishes!)

I try to be realistic(ish) with my New Year’s resolutions, so I did NOT resolve to blog daily. (I know myself better than that!)

But I DID resolve to do something new with my blog this year. So here’s the scoop.

As you can tell by the name of this blog, I feel SO blessed to be a teacher. My work is challenging, fulfilling, and fun. And now, on top of the career I love, through TpT and my blog, I am able to design and share resources with teachers around the world…which is also challenging, fulfilling, and fun!

When I reflect on the abundance of blessings God has given me, I feel like it’s time to give back in a more intentional way this year. So here’s my new plan. Occasionally throughout 2020, I’m going to plan special days in which I donate a percentage of my TpT store proceeds to charity. I’ll let you all know beforehand by writing a blog post the day before and sharing where the money will be going!

I’m starting off this new plan TOMORROW, JANUARY 25, 2020, by donating 50% of my profits from sales that day to Save the Children’s emergency fund in support of the children who were affected by the bushfires in Australia. I’m super excited because, thanks to a #TpTGivesBack initiative, Teachers Pay Teachers is going to match my donation (and the donations of all teacher-authors who participate!) up to a total of $10,000.

So, if you’ve been thinking about checking out my store or have one of my products on your wish list, tomorrow is an awesome time to make a purchase!

Let’s work together to share our blessings and change the world in 2020!

Two Freebies, a Sale, and a New School Year!

My last post was all about FREE products on TpT for your school library. (Go visit it if you would like to download 50+ freebies that you can use in the library!)

After writing that post, I decided I was due to add a couple of brand new freebies for school librarians to my own TpT store. And I’m going to be honest with you…I kind of like these freebies…a lot.

I’ve had some time over this summer to reflect on teaching and my place in it all, and my conclusion has been this: if I don’t help kids learn to be kind, loving, accepting, compassionate, and hungry for knowledge, not much else matters. Realistically, a lot of what our kids are learning is going into their short-term memory and is on its way out after it gets chicken-scratched onto a test. Who they are becoming will last the rest of their lives. (I know that I’m not the first one to come up with this idea, but I feel like during certain seasons of life as a teacher and a parent, you look at the big picture more…and I guess that’s where I am right now.)

With that in mind, I posted a free coloring page I developed for my own students when I read the book Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller to them last year. I didn’t put it up because I think the coloring page is that amazing, or anything like that, but because I really hope that other teachers and librarians will read this book with their students, or will take the time, for no particular reason, to talk about kindness. Like, often. And if one day the kids want to color a picture while that talk is going on, so be it.

The second freebie, which I literally JUST put up right before I’m writing this post, is a poster set that addresses the idea that libraries are for everyone and that there is something for everyone in the library. At the last TpT sale, I picked up some super cute clip art of gorgeous, diverse kids (by Illumismart), which got me thinking about the awesomeness of libraries and how they are a perfect place for ALL types of kids to gather and learn together. The knowledge, entertainment, technology, and enrichment available in libraries appeal to all groups of people and can benefit anyone. Kids might seek out libraries for different reasons, but libraries are spaces for everybody in a community to grow in knowledge. So I designed this poster set for school librarians, classroom teachers, public librarians, or anyone to download and print, hoping that it will help students with different abilities and backgrounds to feel welcome to learn and create at their library.

If you are interested in either of these freebies, please please please download them, and don’t hesitate to show them to a friend who might be able to use them too. (I don’t think we can overdo the ideas of kindness, acceptance, and loving libraries and learning!)

In other news, TpT is having a one-day bonus sale on Tuesday, August 20, 2019, until 11:59 ET, and you can get up to 25% off everything in my store and around Teachers Pay Teachers! (With the school year RIGHT around the corner, I have informed my son and daughter to keep a close eye on me to keep my spending under control! I guess we’ll see how it goes…I do have candy to distract them if necessary!)

Happy New School Year! Wishing you a new school year full of love, libraries, sale prices, kindness, free stuff, candy, enthusiasm for learning, and everything awesome!

_____________
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Michaels Kids Crafts

(EVEN MORE!) Freebies for Your School Library on Teachers Pay Teachers!

(Disclosure: This blog post contains several affiliate links, and if you click through and make a purchase, I will receive compensation at no additional cost to you.)

(Note: This blog post also contains NUMEROUS just-because-I-love-you links to MANY free products on Teachers Pay Teachers, and if you click through and download the free products, nothing particularly exciting happens for me, but you get the FREE TpT resources! Wahoo!) 

So…I’m sorry it has been a really, really long time since I’ve published a post. I’ve been, you know, teaching and momming and stuff.

And then, when I didn’t write for awhile, I felt like I needed to prove that I was not a total blog delinquent by making sure my next post was worth the long wait…

…and…here it is! It’s time for another list of FREE PRODUCTS that you can find on TpT and use in your school library. I have over 50 goodies to show you today! (If you’ve missed my other lists of freebies, click here and here to cash in on over 80 other free TpT products available for librarians!)

Image by Lubos Houska from Pixabay

I’m back! Let the freebie spree commence! YEAH!

Makerspace / STEAM

Here’s a quick and easy and science-y activity that your students can try in your makerspace! Teaching Tidbits and More with Jamie designed this freebie that lets kids experiment with making 3-D shapes out of card stock and seeing which shape is best at holding up books. It’s a great challenge for the library, since you probably have a book or two kicking around! 🙂

And here’s a super fun STEM challenge for the media center – Build a Gingerbread Man Trap by Smart Chick. It would work well with so many gingerbread-themed read aloud books!

Looking for a way to keep track of what’s going on in your makerspace? That Library Media Teacher has created this free product that includes both printable and digital surveys that students can fill out to share what types of activities they explore when they visit the makerspace! 

Image by cherylt23 from Pixabay
Coding

Get your little library learners’ minds ready for coding with this hot dog themed offline coding activity by iGameMom STEM Learning!

And here’s another free activity courtesy of Teaching with Jackie. This one is just spectacular for practicing coding skills without devices. I tried it with my first grade students last year and I could almost see the lightbulbs lighting up above their heads as they started to understand the basic idea of coding!

If you want to take screen-free coding to the next level, you’ve got to try this free resource by Tess the Krafty Teacher. This product will help you get started with using a Code & Go Mouse to teach your students about coding! She also has another awesome freebie that’ll get you going with Bee Bots.

Awww….Bee Bots are really cute!

When you’re ready for your students to begin with online coding activities, check out this freebie from Mrs. J in the Library, which will help you get your students started with Scratch and Lightbot!

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Library Rules and Etiquette 

Kids love the “David” books by David Shannon! This printable activity by Little Miss Librarian helps students to think about proper library procedures by inviting the students to imagine that David takes a trip to the library! Your beginning-of-the-year review of library rules can be so much fun as your kids can imagine good choices and bad choices that David might make at the library! 

Using a Card Catalog

Practicing with an online card catalog is a must in the library today. Help your upper elementary students gain proficiency with a card catalog with this free product from That Library Media Teacher. (After all, the better they are at finding stuff in the library, the less you have to find for them!) 

And here is another free resource that can help your students as they use the card catalog! That Library Girl has put together a free form that will assist your kiddos by giving them an easy way to record the information they find when they look up a book.

Dewey Decimal System

Here is a free printable by Pooley Productions that can be used when your students study the Dewey Decimal System!

This amazing freebie from Kathryn Garcia – Made for Learning can be printed and used as a puzzle OR a bookmark! Either way, it provides a fun way help your library students learn more about Dewey Decimal call numbers.

For the Little Guys and Gals
This is a derivative of an image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Give your younger students a chance to practice with a basic table of contents with this freebie by Christine Reed!

This free activity by Katie Blair Young asks students to figure out whether books are fiction or nonfiction and why. It’s great for reviewing fiction and nonfiction with your littlest library students!

ABC Order

With this autumn-themed alphabetical order freebie by Differentiation Station Creations, your students can practice the essential library skill of using ABC order!

Or, during the holiday season, your students can try this alphabetical order resource by Bright Buttons! 🎅

And Deanna Cappucci has designed a cute free product so that your students can practice ABC order by alphabetizing each other’s names! (In the library, I could see this working well with first AND last names so that kids can get the idea of alphabetizing books by authors’ last names!)

Image by Wokandapix from Pixabay

Students can practice alphabetizing to the 2nd letter with this Earth Day ABC order freebie, available in More than Math by Mo’s store.

And here is a fantastic set of ABC order task cards! Thanks for the freebie, Erin J Murray!

Research and Reference Books

This fun activity by Darlene Anne challenges students to be creative while also getting some practice with a dictionary and/or thesaurus!

Image by Hermann Traub from Pixabay

And this printable activity by Teaching with Tamara allows kids to practice their dictionary skills while looking up some homonyms. When I SAW this resource, I knew it would be JUST RIGHT for this CURRENT blog post! 🙂

3…2…1…blastoff! Give your kids a chance to practice their research skills and learn about the planets with this freebie by Imaginative Teacher! Students could use this activity to practice with encyclopedias, and the product also includes a list of suggested websites the kids can use to research this topic! 

Or your students could use reference books, along with other library resources, to do some totally fun animal research with this free product from The Library Patch!

Book Review Activities

Asking your students to recommend books to classmates can get kids excited about checking out books from the school library. Here is a cute Halloween-themed book review template designed by Kim Miller that you can have your students fill out to share their favorite library books with their friends!

Looking for other book review options? Here is another great and free book review form by Amanda Rose Resources! Or try this book review freebie by Josie’s Place!

Image by Ben Kerckx from Pixabay
Fun and Fantastic Stuff

I don’t know about you, but I have a few students who are constantly telling me, “I forgot it was library day! I didn’t bring my book!” The Swamped Teacher has developed a freebie that will help with this very situation. By printing out these reminders and making them into magnets to send home with your students, you’ll help students and families remember to return library books!

Do you want to get your library students curious about some of your favorite books? This free, printable sign by Library Learners will give you an excuse to start chatting it up about a favorite title!

Here are some simple, cute, FREE forms you can send home with your students who have done an excellent job in the library. This freebie by Andrea Walkup makes it so easy to acknowledge students for good choices in the media center.

This free product from The Librarian’s Literature Links gives you a super-easy way to give classroom teachers information about what went on in your library class each week. The form includes a spot to point out star students, students who struggled, and students with overdue library books, as well as some basic information about what you did with the whole class. I’m planning to try using these in my school library this year!

Bookmarks

For a FREE, cute, and library-ish birthday gift for your students, how about these free birthday bookmarks, courtesy of Library Learners?!

ElementaryVibes has designed these free bookmarks featuring the Good Egg, the Cool Bean, and their friends. (How adorbs!)

Here are some lovely bookmarks you can personalize with your students’ names by The Organised Teacher Collective!

Perfect for your first day of library – here’s a set of reading-themed bookmarks by Brittany W!

Here are super cute animal-themed printable bookmarks, by Nicole and Eliceo, and some adorable ocean-themed printable bookmarks by Let’s Learn S’more!

When you are teaching your students about “Just  Right” books, Little Mrs. M has three varieties of free, printable bookmarks that you can give to your students. She’s got free Valentine’s Day themed bookmarks, free St. Patrick’s Day themed bookmarks, and free spring-themed bookmarks! Wahoo!

And…the seasonal bookmark fun continues! Check out these free, printable, Christmas-themed bookmarks by I Teach! And these free, printable, 100th-day-of-school-themed bookmarks by Michelle Dupuis Education! And how about these free, printable, Earth Day-themed bookmarks by Let’s Learn S’More!

Library Decor

Get a start on decorations for the fall with this autumn-themed reading poster by AJ Amazing!

Next, from Librarian Vickie, we have some posters that you can use to teach your students about different genres!

Image by Norberto Blanco from Pixabay

Encourage your library students to read with this printable “READ” banner set by Josie’s Place! Or here’s a “READ” poster set by Erin E Townsend!

I love these seasonal posters by Project Based Learning with Elle Madison. There are tons of cute options that you can print and use to decorate your library (or any space) throughout the year!

And for more all-year-long-decoration fun, you can download this free product from Primary Teacher Solutions by Mark Johnson. These posters show children reading during each of the twelve months of the year!

That Library Girl has a super-cute idea for a media center bulletin board that encourages reading…and may or may not involve a giant inflatable pool toy! Check out her Smarties-themed bulletin board freebie here!

And…here’s a free product from my store that you can use to decorate your library! I call these “Strive Stars” because I’m hoping that they will inspire kids to strive to do great things.  This set includes nine printable pages, each containing a large star with an encouraging message along with a smaller blank star (just to make your display more visually appealing). Designed to save ink but still make a colorful display, these understated black-and-white stars can be printed on bright printer paper before you cut them out. (I like me some Astrobrights, but any colorful paper will work!) The set includes some stars that have a Christian theme as well as some with messages that would work in any school setting.

Clip Art

Teacher-librarians always need book clip art for different projects, so download this free clip art by Allison Fors that includes opened and closed books!

And here is some gorgeous clip art of kids reading by SchoolBoxTreasures! Perfect for library newsletters, overdue slips, worksheets, or whateva!

Let’s Hear it for Teachers Pay Teachers!

TpT really is a beautiful place. I just highlighted over 50 FREE products for librarians, and there are so many more terrific resources available there that will help your school library to be the best it can be. Feel free to visit my Teachers Pay Teachers store (or the stores of any of these great TpT teacher-authors!) so you can discover other nifty resources that will help you save time and increase the overall awesomeness of your library!

**Thank you so much to the Teachers Pay Teachers teacher-authors who gave me permission to include links to their free resources in this post! For more freebies, click here and here to check out my other posts about free resources for your school library. Don’t forget to subscribe to my blog so you don’t miss my next post!**

 


Disclosure: The banner below is an affiliate link. If you click through and make a purchase, I may receive compensation at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support of my blog!

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Back-to-School Fun!

I have some exciting and fun facts to share today as we move toward “Back-to-School” time!

Exciting and fun fact #1: It’s August!

Exciting and fun fact #2: It’s my blog’s birthday today! Wahoo! My little bloggie is one year old!

Exciting and fun fact #3: It’s the Teachers Pay Teachers Sitewide Sale! Two days only – the sale will end August 2, 2018, at 11:59 EST, to be quite exact. My store and many others are chock full of deals! Check it out before it’s over! (Update 08/03/2018: Well, the sale is over. But please feel free to visit my TpT store any day!) 🙂

 

Exciting and fun fact #4: I’m running a back-t0-school giveaway on Instagram! I have teamed up with six other ladies for a gift card giveaway! There will three winners – but hurry!  If you want to enter, you need to do so by Friday, August 3, 2018 at 3:00 EST! (Update 08/04/2018: Congratulations to the winners of this giveaway! Please feel free to follow me on Instagram so you don’t miss any future giveaways!) 🙂

I guess that’s enough excitement for one day! See you soon!

The 2018 Teacher-Librarian Stores Catalog is Here!

Since you all know I’m a book person, I guess it doesn’t come as a big surprise that I am also a catalog person. (Well, at least I was when I was a kid and didn’t notice all the clutter that goes along with being on mailing lists!)

I remember afternoons as a kid, sitting there and thumbing through the glossy pages of the JCPenney catalog, looking at all the pretty things set up on pretty pages. I don’t subscribe to many catalogs anymore to try to avoid unnecessary piles of paper in my house (as opposed to the necessary piles that already take up too much space!). But now that back to school is approaching, I do allow myself to flip through the occasional back-to-school circular…and I also spend some quality time with the digital (so, not glossy, but still pretty) Teacher-Librarian Stores Catalog by my TpT colleague Mrs. J in the Library!

TpT is awesome, but let’s face it – it can be overwhelming sometimes! If you go to the site without a specific resource in mind, but instead you just want to window shop to find inspiration and ideas, there is a ton of stuff to wade through. I just typed “library” into the search bar and got 42,236 results. What?!

Mrs. J in the Library has been compiling this catalog for several years now to help offer school librarians a simplified, streamlined process for shopping for Teachers Pay Teachers materials for their school libraries. This year, it features ten teacher-authors who specialize in resources for the library/media center, and each page is full of clickable links to fabulous products that will work well in the school library. The catalog also includes back-to-school tips and ideas so you can do a little PD while you are browsing.

I am excited that my store is part of the catalog this year! Feel free to download it and look at the beautiful displays of libraryliciousness…without cluttering your desk.

(I will be doing the same!) 🙂

A New Life for Used Books

I love working in a school library, but one of the parts of my job I have a tough time with is saying “thanks, but no thanks” to some of the donations that come in. I think most teachers and librarians LOVE books, and even when you’ve already got two copies of one particular Clifford book, it’s hard to say “no” to a third.  I mean, it’s a book! It needs a reader, and for a reader to find it, it needs to live in a library, right?

As a result, in my early years at my job, I collected quite a mountain of donations that I thought I would maybe, someday, possibly catalog…but obviously that extra time never presented itself and many of the donated books just sat there, waiting and lonely.

Then, one day, these books got a new chance at life when I heard about a fabulous organization that can turn used books into a library for people who may never have had one before. The African Library Project builds libraries in different African countries and fills them with books collected through book drives held around the United States. By working with this organization, my school was able to build a school library in Ghana.

 

Image courtesy of the African Library Project

Spreading Literacy, One Book Drive at a Time

According to their website, since Chris Bradshaw began the African Library Project in 2005, they have helped to build 2384 libraries in the countries of Kenya, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Malawi, Swaziland, Botswana, Nigeria, Lesotho, Cameroon, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Ghana (which is where the books from my school now live!). In order to help the African Library Project start an African library, a U.S. school (or organization, sports team, Scout troop, family, or awesome person) must collect at least 1000 books and $500 to ship the books. The U.S. groups and schools are paired with a site in Africa, which is neat because the U.S. groups will know exactly where their donations are going.

When I heard about the ALP and signed up to do a book drive at my school, the mountain of extra donations to my school library became our book drive’s very first donation. In a few weeks’ time, thanks to more book donations from students and volunteers, we had collected way more than the required 1000 books. It was then time to sort through the books to identify books that would be a good fit for our Ghanaian partner school, since the ALP has guidelines about what types of books are best to send. We found 1000 good ones and donated the others to other charities that collect books.

Since I work at a Catholic school where the students wear uniforms, a couple of “dress down days” was all it took to raise the $500 needed for shipping the books. The ALP has a pretty cool and cost-effective way of getting the books to Africa. Each book drive is packed up by the U.S. school or organization and mailed USPS to a warehouse in Louisiana. Then, a whole bunch of book drives from all over the nation are shipped by boat to Africa. It usually takes about $250 to mail 1000 books to Louisiana (when we did our book drive, we hit that figure almost on the nose), and then the ALP asks the folks behind each book drive to send another $250 check directly to the ALP, which, together with the money from other book drives, funds the boat trip to Africa.

Image courtesy of the African Library Project

Building Awareness and Library Skills While Building a Library

It obviously felt good to know that my lonely donations were going to be loved by children who may not have had an opportunity to love too many books before. But I wanted to make sure that my students benefited from this project, too, so I tried to help raise my students’ awareness and give them a chance to use their research skills during our book drive.

I had my seventh and eighth grade students use library resources to do some research about the country of Ghana, and then they wrote and illustrated picture books to share what they had learned with my younger students. I also spoke to all my classes about libraries around the world, explained that access to books is limited in some parts of the world, and tried to help my students realize how blessed they are that they are learning to read and that they have access to information. (I mean, really!?! How amazing is it that most Americans have access to THOUSANDS of books at their local public library, not to mention all the reading material online! What a blessing that we take for granted so often!)

Overall, my experience with the African Library Project was wonderful, and it was a great feeling to know that my school was a little part of this amazing project that is spreading literacy. Since we ran our book drive in 2013, other teachers in my school have held book drives to support other great organizations, so I haven’t been able to get a second ALP book drive together at school, but it is definitely something I would like to do again! There is something so special about the idea of one school helping another and one library getting another one started.

Image courtesy of the African Library Project

How awesome is it to think that somewhere in Ghana, that extra copy of a Clifford book that started out in a box in my library is helping to bring the joy of reading to a child?!

For more information or to start your own book drive, please visit the African Library Project’s website.

Tomorrow is June!

Whoa, baby! Vacation is really almost here! Actually, it probably IS here for some of you lucky teachers!

But for those of you who have to put in a few more weeks like me, I thought I’d direct you to a freebie in my TpT store that might be helpful for a couple of those last library classes! I made this free product around this time last year, and I just updated it today with one new printable worksheet. So now, it includes three no-prep, print-and-go worksheets that work like a charm during those last few totally crazy weeks of school.

Click the cover image below to grab a copy!

Cover clip art by P4 Clips Trioriginals

That’s it for today! I’m sure you have an awards ceremony, spring concert, faculty meeting, banquet, field trip, field day, exam, classroom cleanup, or library inventory to get to…so I’ll see you next time! 🙂

Copyright Resources for Teachers and Librarians

This image is a derivative of a CC0 image courtesy of StartupStockPhotos on pixabay

The internet is overflowing with information and media. There is just SO much content out there, and much of it is just a few clicks away! As someone who remembers looking at documents on those old microform machines for my own school assignments, I am, frankly, a little jealous of today’s students. (However, I did get to say the word “microfiche” from time to time, and our students don’t, and it’s a pretty fun word to say. So there.)

The downside to so much information that is easy to access and free? It’s easy to access and free, so kids can forget that it does not belong to them. Just because you CAN copy and paste and download words, pictures, songs, and videos from the internet in less than 5 seconds doesn’t mean you should. And if you do, it does not mean they are YOURS.

On the other hand, all those words, pictures, songs, and videos ARE there to be read, seen, heard, and accessed, and some of them, such as those in the public domain, are even available for almost any type of use. As teachers and librarians, we want our kids to find and use information, and although we don’t want them to misuse others’ creations, we certainly don’t want them to be afraid of finding and using media and information. We want to help our students learn to synthesize information and create new content, all while being respectful of others who have also created content.

With the complex nuances of copyright law and the ever-changing nature of technology, helping kids with all that can be a daunting task. But, I figured I’d take a stab at helping you help them!

This image is a derivative of a CC0 image courtesy of rawpixel on pixabay

Below, you’ll find links to some resources you can use to help your students get on the right track when it comes to copyright issues.

Disclaimer: I am NOT an attorney, so I cannot attest to the accuracy and validity of any information that can be found on any of the websites/resources I’ve linked to below! At the time this post was published, these websites and resources provided information that, based on my experience as an educator, may be useful to teachers, librarians, and students.

Copyright and Creative Commons Resources for Educators
  1. Common Sense Education – The Common Sense Education organization has created several fabulous videos and lesson plans that can help you teach your students about copyright, such as this Copyrights and Wrongs lesson – all available for free! That particular lesson was designed for high school students, but it could be adapted for middle schoolers, and there are other lessons for younger students on the site as well. (You do need to create an account to access these lessons, but it’s easy and free, and there is bunch of other cool digital citizenship stuff there too that you might be able to use!)
  2. Copyright Kids – Copyrightkids.org, created by the Copyright Society of the USA, is a kid-friendly site that kids can use to explore basic information about copyright law. In the past, I have asked students to visit the site to learn some background info on copyright and then take the Copyright Challenge. I would love to see the site make some updates, since I haven’t noticed any changes in the 5+ years I have been using it, but overall there seems to be a lot of useful information that kids are able to understand.
  3. Taking the Mystery Out of CopyrightThis resource, available on the Library of Congress website, shares great info on copyright geared for children, including an interesting (well…interesting for geeks like me) timeline of the history of copyright.
  4. Copyright Term and Public Domain in the United States – Cornell University – When your students already have a basic understanding of what “public domain” is, this chart by Cornell University’s Copyright Information Center can be used to help students determine whether works are part of the public domain.

    CC0 image, courtesy of JaneMarySnyder on Pixabay
  5. Teaching CopyrightTeachingCopyright.org is a project of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and it provides teachers with five lesson plans and other resources that you can use to educate your students about copyright.
  6. Creative Commons – Hit up CreativeCommons.org to give your students the basics on Creative Commons right from the source. I enjoy this flow chart available there that breaks down the different types of Creative Commons licenses.
  7. Can I Use That? A Guide to Creative CommonsThis resource by Gail Desler clarifies questions you and your students might have about use of images with Creative Commons licenses. It’s very thorough, and as you read it, you’ll find links to many other fantastic resources that will add to your understanding of copyright.
  8. Finding Copyright-Friendly Photos for the Google Images Generation – This article by Kathy Schrock can be found in eSchool News, and it’s an awesome introduction to helping kids find photos to use in their school projects. It has a great overview of Creative Commons and also provides links to some sites that have free images that students can use in their schoolwork. (If you are still looking for more lessons and resources related to Creative Commons and copyright, Kathy Schrock has compiled a monster list of these types of resources on her website, Kathy Schrock’s Guide to Everything.)

I hope all those links will help you get started in the tricky task of teaching kids about copyright!

This image is a derivative of a CC0 image courtesy of rawpixel on pixabay

(By the way, the photos used in this post are thanks to the generous photographers out there who upload their photos with a CC0 mark onto pixabay.com – a website that just so happens to be another great place to visit when discussing copyright and Creative Commons!)

How to Shop Teachers Pay Teachers on a Budget

The more time I spend searching TpT, the more I wonder how I got by without it for so long! There are just so many talented teachers who contribute to Teachers Pay Teachers, and it is so awesome to be able to improve my instruction with their creativity and ideas.

As someone who both buys and sells on Teachers Pay Teachers, I thought I’d share some tips I’ve noticed along the way that will help you get the most for your money!

Shop the Freebies…

Every single seller on TpT is required to have at least one freebie. That means you can legally and ethically get something for free from EVERYONE on TpT, including some of the best educators in the WORLD. And I’m not ashamed to admit that I shop the freebies quite often.

Sellers upload freebies to get their names out there, earn positive feedback, give something back to all the hardworking teachers out there, and get kids around the world using their resources. They WANT you to download their freebies. Go wild! Here are mine – shop away! (By the way, if you happen to be a school librarian and need some freebies that will work well in a school library, check out my previous posts, “Freebies for Your School Library on Teachers Pay Teachers” and “MORE Freebies for Your School Library on Teachers Pay Teachers” to see some of the awesome free products I have found!)

Be sure you have signed up for the weekly TpT newsletter, which highlights 10 freebies every week, to keep up with new and fantastic freebies.

…And Shop Them NOW!

Here’s the thing about freebies on Teachers Pay Teachers – they don’t always have to remain freebies. Sellers can and do change their products from free to paid whenever they want. So if you see something you like, and it’s free, then download it right away – don’t let it sit on your wish list! If you have already downloaded it, you’ll still have access to the file if you need to download it again later, even if the seller decides to increase the price. Some sellers offer occasional “flash freebies” that are free only for a short amount of time, so if you see a flash freebie, you always want to click quick and get it right away.

Speaking of Wish Lists…

While it does not make sense to add freebies to your wish lists (just get them right away!), DO add resources to your wish list that you like but can’t buy at the moment. There’s always a chance that the seller will change the price, or bundle that resource with others, and then you can save money  wholesale club style. Having a wish list helps you keep track of products so you can periodically check prices and watch for potential bundle savings. Having an active wish list also sets you up to get the resources you want at seriously fabulous prices when they go on sale.

And…Speaking of Sales…

Teachers Pay Teachers has occasional sitewide sales in which you can receive discounts of up to 25%. Teachers Pay Teachers and the individual teacher-authors partner together to provide the discount, so you can save a lot of money in many TpT stores. Typically, there is a unique discount code for each sale, so keep a look out for emails about when these sales are happening.

Individual sellers, and small groups of sellers, also throw sales sometimes, so be sure to follow the sellers you love so that you’ll know about their sales.

Leaving Feedback = A Coupon

Okay, so you know how at some fast food places, the receipt says that if you call a number and do a survey on your experience, and then you get a free coffee or burger? Well, TpT does that too, except it is MUCH less of a hassle. No receipt to clutter up your purse, no phone number to call – just a couple of clicks to provide your feedback and get credits toward future purchases.

Let’s say you purchase a resource that costs $10. If you leave feedback for the seller, you will receive 10 “credits” that you can use toward a future purchase. Each credit ends up being worth 5 cents, but they add up quickly – that one $10 purchase got you 50 cents worth of credits, so imagine what a back-to-school shop-til-you-drop could do. TpT rounds up for you, also, so if the resource was $9.50, you’d still get 10 credits.

It actually works out well for everyone, because sellers love to receive feedback on their work, and buyers love discounts.

Love a Resource? Buy With a Buddy!

If you and a colleague are both interested in the same resource on Teachers Pay Teachers, you can save money if one of you purchases the resource plus an additional license, which will be at a discounted price – usually 10% off. (Just as an FYI, TpT sellers price each resource based on the idea that it will be used by one teacher only, so to make sure you are abiding by copyright law and the seller’s terms of use, you’ve gotta get those additional licenses if you and a friend both want to use a resource!)

Become a Groupie

When you find a great resource and know you’ll be back for more products from that seller, it makes sense to follow that seller, both on TpT AND on his or her blog and/or social media. TpT sellers use blogs and social media to keep you informed of flash freebies, sales, new products, and sometimes even gift card giveaways, so it makes a lot of sense to follow them every which way you can so you don’t miss any news.

(You can follow me on Teachers Pay Teachers by clicking here, and on Pinterest by clicking here and then clicking “Follow.” Oh, and you can subscribe to my blog by typing in your email address up at the top of this post!). (Update 05/17/18: I am now on Instagram too…click here and click “Follow”!) 🙂

Now, when you follow sellers on TpT, you will be the first to know about their new products, which is awesome because sellers often list their products at a reduced price for the first 24 or 48 hours. I do this somewhat haphazardly at my store, I’ll admit, but I have seen some stores that do it for EVERY new product, and I have even seen some that list ALL their products as FREE for 24 hours or so. The thing is, you aren’t necessarily going to know what is going on with the sellers you follow unless you log into TpT regularly, so make sure that Teachers Pay Teachers makes the list of sites / apps you check often – not just when you need a specific resource.

And feel free to take a step beyond following and actually connect with TpT sellers. They are, after all, just teachers like you and me who probably love meeting new people, learning, networking, and sharing ideas. True story: one time, I emailed a TpT seller with a question about a resource, and after a few emails back and forth, this generous seller offered to make some changes to the product AND give me a free resource, all for checking in with her. If you love a seller, comment on his/her blog posts or social media, leave a positive feedback or Q & A comment in TpT, or send an email to say hi or ask a question. You may end up with a free product, a free TpT gift card, some new teaching tips, or even a new pal!

Bundles, Bundles, and More Bundles!

As I mentioned when I was talking about wish lists, buying resources as part of a bundle is a great way to save money. (A bundle is just a group of resources sold together for less money than they would be if you bought them individually.)

In some TpT stores, growing bundles are also an option, which means that when you purchase the product, it is incomplete (but a lot cheaper) and more resources will be added to the product over time. Be sure to read product descriptions carefully so you know what you are buying, but this can seriously be an awesome way to get the resources you need without spending too much money.

For example, I recently purchased a clip art growing bundle that cost me $5. The price went up as more and more resources were added, and now, at the time this is being posted, the same resource costs $36.50, but I can access all of the clip art, even the clip art that was just added. Oh, yeah!

Maybe Somebody Else Wants to Pay for That?

If your school gives you a budget to spend on classroom supplies, don’t forget that TpT products can fall into that category. Teachers Pay Teachers even accepts purchase orders for purchases over $20, making it even easier to make purchases with the school district’s money.

Better yet, share info about Teachers Pay Teachers’ newest program, TpT for Schools, with your principal. TpT for Schools allows teachers to request educational products on TpT and send those requests to their administration, who can then purchase resources for each teacher. I’m thinking this could be a perfect way to get funds for those big ticket items you might not otherwise be able to afford. It’s definitely worth checking out – if your principal likes the idea, you may end up with fabulous TpT resources that you can use in your classroom without having to pay for them yourself!

Also, don’t forget about all those unbelievable PTO parents out there who go above and beyond to help their children get the best education possible. You could consider contacting the school/parent organization at your school about the possibility of purchasing resources or TpT gift cards.

Track Your Spending for Tax Savings

(Disclosure/Disclaimer: I am not an accountant, nor do I play one on TV! The following information is not intended to be considered tax advice. Please consult a qualified tax professional before making any tax-related decisions.)

If you do have to foot the bill for Teachers Pay Teachers resources yourself, here’s another tip! This isn’t exactly a way to save money on your purchases, but it could save you some money overall. The money you spend on TpT may be tax deductible, even with the new tax plan rolling out for your 2018 filing. (There was some debate on whether that deduction was going to stick around, but it did! Yay!) The TpT site does keep track of your purchases, so it will be easy to figure out how much you spent when you are doing your taxes.

If you are buying resources to use in your classroom, the deduction is for up to $250 of expenses that were not reimbursed, and educators who work at least 900 hours a year in a K-12 school may be eligible.

If you are TpT seller, the purchases you make on TpT to use for the resources you sell (e.g. clipart, borders) can offset your earnings, resulting in less taxable income, so sellers should keep track of those expenses as well.

(Again, please check with your tax professional to discuss your unique tax situation. For more information, you can read these articles on the IRS website about the educator expense deduction and small-business expenses.)

Ready to Save on TpT?

I hope these ideas will make your shopping trips on TpT even more fun because you’ll know you are providing your kids with the best resources and saving money at the same time!