Practical Elementary Resources

This is a growing bundle for the "What am I?" math puzzle series. The puzzle series is designed to support both math vocabulary and critical thinking. Each set of puzzles includes 27 task cards. Students use the clues on the card to find the mystery number / shape.

Main Idea Made Clear (Grades 2–3): A Visual-to-Text ApproachTeaching main idea can be challenging when students jump to small details or struggle to see how ideas connect. I designed this resource to help my own students build conceptual understanding of main idea and incorporate it into their reading and writing. Students learn that: The main idea connects details Details support a bigger idea Main idea can be found in pictures, sentences, and paragraphs Activities are scaffolded to move f

Looking for a 3rd-grade multiplication math center that scaffolds math vocabulary? These Who Am I multiplication task cards target vocabulary such as products and factors, while reinforcing 3rd-grade multiplication. Fun and engaging, they require students to use multiplication facts, equal groups, and multiplication-specific math vocabulary to find the answer. This resource is designed to make math vocabulary useful (in a way students care about!) and help students use terms such as product, fac

Columns, rows, and arrays are so difficult for my 2nd graders! Even though there are similarities to ten frames, the use of new math vocabulary, as well as the connection to early multiplication, makes arrays a tricky topic for a lot of 2nd-grade students. Especially my ESL ones. These 2nd-grade array math puzzles help students use the new math vocabulary in a way that is engaging. Designed in part for my ESL learners, the task cards feature a vocabulary card that reminds students what a row a

Build scientific vocabulary and background knowledge with these main-idea task cards. As students transition to third-grade reading, many struggle to identify the main idea of a nonfiction paragraph. It doesn't help that main idea itself can become a series of dry, repetitive series of practice sessions for many of our students, especially our ESL ones. I built these task cards for those students. With differentiated difficulty levels, introductions to core scientific vocabulary, and engaging p

These fiction writing planning pages are designed to help students think through a complete story before drafting. Students are guided step by step through planning the setting, characters, plot, and resolution using clear prompts and consistent language. The pages intentionally balance structure and flexibility. Students can draw, label, or write in full sentences depending on their level, making this resource accessible to a wide range of writers while still supporting meaningful story develop

Author’s Purpose Practice: Inform, Persuade, Entertain Nonfiction Text Set + Teacher Guide (Grades 2–4)This is a mini-unit on author's purpose, complete with lesson plans, student activities, model text, and reading sets for students. The reading passages, questions, and lesson plans are designed to: Introduce author's purpose and provide text with varying levels of complexity.Incorporate STEAM knowledge on different materials and environmental impact.Facilitate both student group and teacher-l

Author’s Purpose Text Set – Free SampleInform, Persuade, Entertain (Grades 2–4)This free sample introduces students to author’s purpose through short nonfiction texts designed to spark discussion, comparison, and reasoning. Students read multiple texts on the same topic, each written with a different purpose, and discuss why an author might choose to inform, persuade, or entertain — and how that purpose shapes the writing. This sample is taken directly from the full Author’s Purpose Practice:

This fiction writing plot planner helps students organize a story using a clear beginning, middle, and end structure. Students identify the problem, think through what happens next, and explain how the story ends using simple, consistent prompts. This page is part of a larger fiction story planning packet that guides students through setting, characters, traits, plot, and resolution.