Corwin's New Teacher Toolkit
If you are in your first three years of teaching, we know that you are definitely enthusiastic, perhaps under-supported, and most likely overwhelmed by the competing demands of your new profession. You have a hard, but rewarding job. Our job is to provide you with the professional development you need, when you need it, so that you can find solutions to challenges are they arise.
In Corwin’s New Teacher Tool Kit, you will find a wealth of materials—none of which require more than 30 minutes of planning time, many far less—excerpted from titles we think are particularly helpful for new teachers. We’ve included classroom- and time-management ideas, classroom-ready lessons for literacy and mathematics, teaching strategies, and more. Use what you need, pass along resources to a colleague, and should you discover a resource you find particularly helpful, simply click the book link and use your new teacher discount code RAVEN25 to get a 25% discount and free shipping.
Classroom Management (content for all grades)
How Do I Energize a Sleepy Classroom (Classroom Management)
Excerpted from Answers to Your Biggest Questions About Creating a Dynamic Classroom—Serena Pariser & Victoria Lentfer
Use this resource to discover multiple tips and strategies to keep your students learning despite their varying energy levels. (All Grades)
Ways to Say “Good Job” (Classroom Management)
Excerpted from Engagement by Design—Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey, Russell J. Quaglia, Dominique Smith, & Lisa L. Lande
Use this list of alternative ways to say “good job”, from Engagement by Design, to keep your students encouraged and motivated in their learning. (All Grades)
Goal Setting Worksheets (Classroom Management)
Excerpted from Step into Student Goal Setting—Chase Nordengren
Use these goal setting worksheets for all grade levels to help set goals for your students. (All Grades)
Best Practice #4: Set Your Routine and Structures Early . . . And Keep Them! (Classroom Management)
Excerpted from Real Talk About Classroom Management, Second Edition—Serena Pariser
This excerpt provides tips for establishing classroom structure as well as a list of routines to implement from Week 1. add links. (All Grades)
Organize and Unclutter (Time Management)
Excerpted from Real Talk About Time Management—Serena Pariser & Edward F. DeRoche
This resource helps teachers organize their classroom. (All Grades)
Students’ Perceptions of You, the Teacher (Behavior Management)
Excerpted from Reclaim Your Challenging Classroom—Alene H. Harris & Justin Garwood
Learn how to communicate a positive perception of yourself as a teacher. Includes a self-assessment. (All Grades)
Teaching Methods/Teaching Strategies
Week 1: Give Students A Fresh Start (Staff Development)
Excerpted from "When I Started Teaching, I Wish I Had Known..."—Carol Pelletier Radford
Download this resource to read the weekly wisdom from week 1 to help get your year started on the right foot. (All Grades)
Personal Professional Development: Month 1 Sample (Staff Development)
Excerpted from Teaching Better Day by Day—Jim Burke
This resource offers a glimpse at Teaching Better Day by Day and how you could use it to plan for one month. (All Grades)
Just Teaching Tool #1 (Classroom Culture)
Excerpted from Just Teaching—Jonathan Eckert
This first tool is designed to help you look at each student so you can create a forest that grows each student into a thriving giant. (All Grades)
The Will to Learn Strategy 1 (Classroom Culture)
Excerpted from The Will to Learn—Dave Stuart Jr.
This lesson includes Dave Stuart Jr.'s strategy 1: Track Attempted MGCs. The author outlines what to do, key pointers, and how strategy 1 influences the five key beliefs. (All Grades)
Habits of Resilient Educators Chapter 1 (Teacher Wellness)
Excerpted from Habits of Resilient Educators—Lindsay Prendergast & Piper Lee
This chapter of Habits of Resilient Educators explores purpose as a journey, not a fixed focal point. Purpose, as it relates to the profession of teaching, does not always lead to feeling excited about the daily work at hand in the classroom, nor is it a cure for burnout. (All Grades)
Affective Statements (Diversity & Equity)
Excerpted from Removing Labels, Grades K–12—Dominique Smith, Douglas Fisher, & Nancy Frey
This excerpt explains the what, why, and how of using affective statements. (All Grades)
Smart Goal Setting (Grading)
Excerpted from Balance with Blended Learning—Caitlin Tucker
This template for SMART Goal Setting, will help you set goals for grading that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. (All Grades)
Use Your Service-Mindedness to Help Shape Your Perspective (Motivation)
Excerpted from Perspective!—Dr. Tommie Mabry
This Chapter 1 excerpt from Dr. Tommie Mabry's Perspective! Includes the sections "Use Your Service-Mindedness to Help Shape Your Perspective," "How to Listen," "Do's and Don'ts," and the Chapter Reflection. (All Grades)
Beautiful Questions in the Classroom webinar (Questioning Strategies)
Excerpted from Beautiful Questions in the Classroom—Warren Berger & Elise Foster
Empower your students with questions that will help them evaluate information thoughtfully prior to making decisions or rendering judgement. (All Grades)
Social Emotional Well-Being Strategies for Educators webinar (SEL)
Excerpted from Social Emotional Well-Being for Educators—Michelle L. Trujillo
In this webinar, Michelle Trujillo, author of Social Emotional Well-Being for Educators and creator of this exciting new framework, explores the benefits of this new approach to adult SEL and self-care. (All Grades)
How to Thrive Your First Year and Beyond (Teacher Wellness)
Welcome to Teaching—Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey, & Taryl Hansen
In this information-packed webinar, participants learn teaching strategies, assessment tips and planning tools for building learning experiences that ensure student engagement. (All Grades)
Chapter 2: Teaching Executive Functions (Special Education)
Executive Functions for Every Classroom, Grades 3-12—Mitch Weathers
In this chapter of Executive Functions for Every Classroom, Grades 3-12, teachers can learn more about what executive functions skills are, the benefits of these skills, and how to incorporate them into a daily routine . (Grades 3–12)
What Makes Knowing About the Brain a Superpower (Neurodiversity)
Teaching with Superpowers—Mitch Weathers
In this chapter from Teaching With Superpowers, author C. Bobbi Hansen discusses the application of neuroscience research in education, including how, by teaching in the ways the science tells us works best, it can feel a bit like having superpowers. (All Grades)
The Crucial Role of SEL for Multilingual Learners (Multilingual Learners)
Social Emotional Learning for Multilingual Learners—Diane Staehr Fenner & Mindi Teich
In this excerpt of Social Emotional Learning for Multilingual Learners, Dian Staer Fenner and Mindi Teich explain the critical need for SEL specifically for multilingual learners, and what SEL is and isn't. Discover questions that will guide you to integrate SEL into your classroom and strategies for weaving SEL into school visions and goals. (All Grades)
Literacy (organized from elementary to middle to high)
How to Prevent Reading Difficulties, Grades PreK-3 Book Study (Reading)
Excerpted from How to Prevent Reading Difficulties, Grades PreK–3—Mark Weakland
This book study is designed to be collaborative so that most weeks the group is splitting the reading and recommended in-class activities among the members of the book study. (Grades PreK–3)
How to Determine a Child’s Developmental Reading Stage (Reading)
Excerpted from Simply Small Groups—Debbie Diller
Use this chart to identify the students' reader stage. (Grades K–5)
Lesson: Let Your Talents Shine (Reading)
Excerpted from More Ramped-Up Read Alouds—Maria Walther
This lesson from More Ramped-Up Read Alouds by Maria Walther provides read-aloud strategy and learning targets using the book, Kick Push: Be Your Epic Self. (Grades K–5)
How Do I Keep Track of My Students’ Reading Progress (Reading)
Excerpted from Answers to Your Biggest Questions About Teaching Elementary Reading—Christina Nosek
Keep track of all your formative assessment observations, notes, and insights with these three charts.
(Grades K–5)
How Should I Think About and Guide Students’ Writing Processes? (Writing)
Excerpted from Answers to Your Biggest Questions About Teaching Elementary Writing—Melanie Meehan
Packed with charts, figures, ad examples, this resource will dive into the writing process and its different stages. (Grades K–5)
Lesson: The Invisible Boy (Reading)
Excerpted from Rebellious Read Alouds—Vera Ahiyya
This lesson plan features the book The Invisible Boy written by Trudy Ludwig and illustrated by Patrice Barton. It includes example questions, prompts, and tips for teachers. (Grades K–5)
Lesson: Create the Main Character for Your Story (Writing)
Excerpted from Teaching Fantasy Writing—Carl Anderson
This excerpt is a lesson on teaching students to create the main character for their stories. The lesson is broken down into several parts, including Strategy, Strategy Lesson Language, and Student Example. (Grades K–6)
Lesson 2: The Transcontinental Railroad (Reading)
Excerpt from Critical Comprehension [Grades K-6]—Katie Kelly, Lester Laminack, & Vivian Vasquez
This lesson helps students build their comprehension skills using the book Locomotive by Brian Floca. (Grades K–6)
Phonics & Spelling Lesson from Teaching Reading Across the Day (Reading)
Excerpt from Teaching Reading Across the Day—Jennifer Serravallo
This lesson includes a small-group phonics and spelling lesson for first grade students learning /o/. This excerpt also includes a sample planning template. (Grades K–8)
Lesson: I am Everything Good (Reading)
Excerpted from Antiracist Reading Revolution—Sonja Cherry-Paul
This lesson from Antiracist Reading Revolution by Sonja Cherry-Paul uses the book I Am Every Good Thing, written by Derrick Barnes and illustrated by Gordon C. James, to nurture students' thinking as they read in partnerships, groups, and independently. Pathways capture the details and ideas that students may notice and think about as they read and respond to the text. (Grades K–8)
Lesson: Kitchen Dance (Reading)
Excerpted from Text Structures From Picture Books [Grades 2-8]—Stephen Briseño, Kayla Briseño, & Gretchen Bernabei
This excerpt includes elements to help students break down Kitchen Dance by Maurie J. Manning. This story takes a simple, everyday moment (children going to bed and parents tidying up) and elevates it to a touching story of family, joy, and togetherness. This lesson also includes student examples. (Grades 2–8)
Corwin Connect blog, Everyday Enchantment: The Magic of Fairy Tales in Your Classroom (Reading & Writing)
Excerpted from Text Structures from Fairy Tales—Gretchen Bernabei & Judi Reimer
This blog post written by Text Structures from Fairy Tales author Gretchen Bernabei shares more about the most urgent reason to use fairy tales in a classroom. (Grades 4–12)
How Can I Manage the Unspoken Expectations Placed on Teachers? (Literacy)
Excerpted from Answers to Your Biggest Questions About Teaching Middle & High School ELA—Matthew Johnson, Matthew R. Kay, & Dave Stuart, Jr.
Discover advice and resources to manage the unspoken expectations that are often placed on teachers. (Grades 6–12)
Writing Workouts Memory Maps (Writing)
Excerpted from Writing Workouts, Grades 6-12—Rebecca G. Harper
This Writing Workouts resource outlines how to use memory maps, when to use them, and why they work. (Grades 6–12)
Chapter One: Developing the Read and WRAP Framework (Reading)
Excerpted from Just Read It—Jarred Amato
At its core, Just Read It is about why independent reading matters, what it looks like in action, and how we can unlock the "magic" of independent reading in every ELA classroom, every day. This excerpt includes the author's journey with independent reading, a fall reading survey, making room for both independent reading and whole-class novels, and more. (Grades 6–12)
Poetry Pauses Quotables (Writing)
Excerpted from Poetry Pauses—Brett Vogelsinger
This resource includes quotes gathered from throughout the book, Poetry Pauses, that can encourage your students in their writing in the classroom. (Grades K–12)
Teaching Toward Everest (Literacy)
Excerpted from These 6 Things—Dave Stuart, Jr.
Discover the power of purpose setting and learn how to write an Everest statement about what you would like your students to achieve in your classroom this year. (Grades K–12)
What It Means to Get Free (Literacy)
Excerpted from Get Free—Tricia Ebarvia
This excerpt includes how, through intentional, critical self-reflection, we can begin to free ourselves from the ways in which our socialization causes or maintains harm to ourselves and others. (Grades K–12)
Mathematics (organized from elementary to middle to high)
How Do I Teach Problem Solving? (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Answers to Your Biggest Questions About Elementary Math—John J. SanGiovanni, Susie Katt, Latrenda D. Knighten, & Georgina Rivera
Problem solving is not about simply applying a procedure to a problem to find an answer; it is a process that requires students to think, question, and make sense of the mathematics. Here is a list of helpful tips for working with problem solving across the year. (Grades K–5)
Task 12: Tables at a Party (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Mathematics Tasks for the Thinking Classroom, Grades K-5—Peter Liljedahl & Maegan Giroux
Task 12: Tables at a Party is a sample non-curricular thinking task from Mathematics Tasks for the Thinking Classroom, Grades K-5 by Peter Liljedahl and Maegan Giroux. (Grades K–5)
Math Strengths-Based Analysis (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Strengths-Based Teaching and Learning in Mathematics—Beth McCord Korbett & Karen S. Karp
This strengths-based analysis template helps you record the strengths and challenges of any student or group. (Grades K–6)
Check for Reasonableness (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Figuring Out Fluency in Mathematics Teaching and Learning, Grades K–8—Jennifer M. Bay-Williams & John J. SanGiovanni
This activity will help your students develop the ability to check for reasonableness, an important aspect of developing mathematical fluency. (Grades K–8)
Routine 1 to Jump-Start Problem Solving (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Daily Routines to Jump-Start Problem Solving, Grades K-8—John J. SanGiovanni
Learn more about John SanGiovanni's Routine 1, how to use it, and how this routine helps with problem solving. (Grades K–8)
What Do I Do at the Start of the School Year? (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Answers to Your Biggest Questions About Teaching Secondary Math—Frederick L. Dillon, Ayanna D. Perry, Andrea Chang, & Jennifer Outzs
This resource provides tips for classroom prep and what to do in your first classes! (Note section included). (Grades 6–12)
What Productive Struggle Is and Isn’t (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Productive Math Struggle—John J. SanGiovanni, Susie Katt, & Kevin J. Dykema
Learn what productive struggle looks like in the math classroom and behaviors that may indicate when struggle becomes unproductive. (Grades K–12)
Bad at Math? Study Guide (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Bad at Math?—Lidia Gonzalez
This book study guide aims to explore commonly held beliefs about mathematics and mathematics education that drive the ways we approach mathematics education, narrow the ways we engage with mathematics, and impact efforts to reform. (Grades K–12)
How to Build a Thinking Classroom (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics, Grades K-12—Peter Liljedahl
This excerpt from Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics, Grades K-12 by Peter Liljedahl explores what it means to build thinking classrooms. (Grades K–12)
Bringing Project-Based Learning to Life in Mathematics, K-12 Bee Hotel Project (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Bringing Project-Based Learning to Life in Mathematics, K-12—Maggie Lee McHugh
Using this Bee Hotel Project in your classroom to build cooperation and encourage students to use tools strategically while communicating mathematically. (Grades K–12)
Module 1 Observations (Mathematics)
The Formative 5 in Action, Grades K-12—Francis (Skip) Fennell, Beth McCord Kobett, & Jonathan A. Wray
Observations have been supported as a research-based practice for decades. As you consider classroom-based formative assessments, the Observations technique is your "first stop" in the everyday application of the Formative 5. (Grades K–12)
Let x = Math Trauma (Mathematics)
Excerpted from Math Therapy—Vanessa Vakharia
Students apply and extend previous understanding of multiplication and division to multiply and divide fractions. (Grades K–12)
Webinar: What Works Best in the Math Classroom (Mathematics)
Excerpted from The Mathematics Playbook—John Taylor Almarode, Kateri Thunder, Michelle Shin, Douglas Fisher, & Nancy Frey
This webinar will teach you more about how to design and implement quality mathematics learning experiences, the latest research on what works best in mathematics instruction, and how to ensure all learners have equity of access and opportunity in the math classroom. (Grades K–12)
For Your Classroom
Teach Like Yourself Manifesto Poster
Excerpted from Teach Like Yourself—Gravity Goldberg
Use this beautiful, full-color poster to remind yourself of the importance of teaching in a way that is true to your own self. (All Grades)
Inspirational Poster
Excerpted from Teaching with Light—Carol Pelletier Radford
Print this full-color classroom poster to inspire you and your students to remember, “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” (All Grades)