50 Best Blogs for Brand New Teachers

Even after the student teaching and degree have been completed, the prospect of finally setting foot in a classroom of their own greatly intimidates many fledgling educators. Fortunately for them, a good number of their forebears have harnessed the wonderful networking power of the internet to share their own strategies, opinions and observations on everything related to that career path. Consider the following list a sampler of what’s out there — by no means is it meant to be read as something comprehensive, nor are the blogs here the only ones out there with something valuable to say. Seek out the others beyond this mere primer for an even more broad look at what more experienced teachers think, feel and do daily.

Kindergarten

1. Kindergarten Blog: Mrs. Carol Kim at Good Shepherd Catholic School in Beverly Hills writes extensively about many different activities and strategies utilized in her classroom. One does not have to teach at a religious institution to benefit from this information.

2. Chalk Talk: Predominantly about kindergarten, this amazingly informative, comprehensive resource also covers pre-k and first grade at times.

3. Mrs. Hendrix’s Kindergarten Class: Another excellent peek into one kindergarten classroom, overflowing with pictures and activity suggestions for a nice, wide variety of subjects.

4. Elizabeth’s Children’s Books Blog: Visit About.com’s dedicated section for children’s books (be sure to check beyond the blog!) makes for an amazing resource when it comes to stocking a classroom library.

5. Kindergarten’s 3 R’s: Respect, Resources and Rants: Novice kindergarten teachers should drop by this blog for inspiration, especially when it comes to designing activities and decorating the classroom space.

6. Ms. Rose’s Kindergarten Friends: Check out Ms. Rose’s Kindergarten Friends for some excellent book suggestions, lessons, activities, technology and plenty more.

7. Mr. Kindergarten: Dan Gurney shares the techniques he uses to teach math, music and other subjects in his kindergarten classroom, making a lovely place to visit when inspiration runs dry.

8. Mo Willems Doodles: The beloved children’s book writer and illustrator keeps readers posted on cool new reads and treats appropriate for kindergartners.

9. Mrs. Guntorius’ Kindergarten Class: Most of the writings here revolve around teaching math, though Sandra Guntorius still offers activity recommendations for other areas of study as well.

10. Literacy and Laughter: Reading is a fundamental skill, but intimidates many young children. Try these techniques and books to help them build their abilities effectively without scaring them off.

Elementary School

11. Beth’s Elementary Education Blog: Beth Lewis with About.com keeps a blog and website packed with recommendations and resources of particular interest to elementary school teachers.

12. Mrs. Cassidy’s Classroom Blog: See what some first graders in Canada are doing for daily lessons, particularly as they relate to reading and writing exercises and activities.

13. The First Grade Parade: When looking for great first grade (or the immediate vicinity) printables and activity suggestions, give this blog a visit.

14. Mrs. Harju’s Classroom Blog: Step into a second grade classroom in Michigan for information on their music, science and reading lessons — and more, of course!

15. B-3 Class News~Mrs. Manis~2nd Grade!: New second grade teachers in search of book recommendations, project ideas, computer lab suggestions and math information would do well to explore this valuable resource.

16. Mr. Salsich’s Class: A well-designed, highly informative blog of interest to third grade educators, particularly when it comes to incorporating multimedia and technology in the classroom.

17. Mrs. Yollis’ Classroom Blog: Third grade teachers looking to engage their students in some seriously cool projects involving Skype, videos, digital images, virtual tours and more should definitely give this resource a look.

18. Mr. O’Brien’s 4th Grade Blog: Stop by Mr. O’Brien’s 4th Grade Blog for some great slideshows, videos, worksheets and other neat educational things for the classroom.

19. Mr. Reynolds’ Learning Blog: Every subject in this incredible fourth grade blog boasts its own tab for quick reference and inspiration, and tech-savvy educators wanting to learn more about incorporating Web 2.0 and Global Virtual Classrooms into their syllabi should definitely check out those dedicated sections.

20. Mr. C’s Class Blog: For elementary and early middle school students, the amazing interactive, technological and creative projects found here stimulate their educations in fun and exciting ways.

Middle School

21. The Jose Vilson: More than just a middle school teacher’s blog, Jose Vilson’s corner of the internet also raises the public’s consciousness of education issues plaguing the United States. A must-read for everyone working in the education sector, regardless of what level they teach or administrate, as well as parents.

22. Mrs. Trefz’s 5th Grade Blog: It may not update as frequently as the other blogs on this list, but this Tennessee-based classroom boasts some seriously cool slideshows that educators can certainly appreciate.

23. Tech-Taters: A fifth grade class takes to the internet to share what it has learned about the various subjects in its curriculum.

24. Mrs. Mengert’s 6th Grade Blog: Head to the pages sections rather than the main blog for advice and activities appropriate for middle school students. The religion-based ones do not apply to everyone, of course, but there’s plenty of history and social studies suggestions.

25. Mr. Miller’s Classroom Blog: Sixth grade language arts and history teachers will find John Miller’s enthusiastic class projects inspiring, especially when it comes to infusing multimedia into lessons.

26. Mrs. Bhakta’s Blog: This seventh grade-oriented blog features links to some interesting websites and videos, plus Windows Movie Maker project directions.

27. Write Out Loud: With math and science perpetually hogging the spotlight, seventh grade (and other middle school levels) English teachers need to find creative ways to promote literacy and literary analysis.

28. HisTeched: Musings in US History and Education: Carlos Miragila boasts over 19 years of experience in middle school education and currently teaches eighth grade US history. For his contemporaries, he offers up some highly valuable podcasts and projects to help them best inform their students about important historical topics.

29. Mr. McClung’s World: Joe McClung loves teaching and technology, and his eighth grade class greatly benefits from his efforts to engage and educate them using some impressively stimulating methods. The Band of the Week feature is particularly cool.

30. Ms. Teacher: Marriage and family aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but educators who want to have a either kids of their own, a spouse or both will be impressed with how this middle school teacher finds the right balance.

High School

31. Burlington High School Principal’s Blog: Beyond the expected local updates and event notifications, Patrick Larkin also discusses issues impacting high schools (and education in general) across the nation.

32. Cool Cat Teacher Blog: The valuable Vicki A. Davis doesn’t exclusively teach high school, but her amazing work promoting technology in the classroom works great for engaging teens in their lessons.

33. Teaching High School Psychology: Whether teaching an AP or level psychology course, this blog offers up plenty of resources to really drive home the main points.

34. The-Daily-Lesson: A high school social studies teacher shares lesson plans, observations, successes, failures and more information of interest to other educators.

35. High School Math: Though its update schedule isn’t as frequent as some of the others listed here, High School Math’s word problems, poetry and games still make for great lesson supplements.

36. huffenglish.com: Get one teacher’s views on strategies and technologies that enhance English education in high school and beyond — great for ESL instructors as well as those working with native speakers.

37. The Art of Teaching Science Blog: Though not exclusively about high school science, this useful blog started by Jack Hassard brings together students, teachers and professors together to discuss the most effective strategies towards this facet of education.

38. AP Lead Teacher’s Blog: In spite of its infrequent update schedule, the AP Lead Teacher’s Blog is a must-read for any educator involved with the Advanced Placement program.

39. Hobo Teacher: This high school educator finds humor in the more frustrating elements of teaching, and many newcomers will appreciate the candidness regarding some of the problems they may encounter in their careers.

40. The Principal’s Office — Grosse Point North High School Principal Tim Bearden: New high school teachers should count this among many, many resources that keep them informed about stories and trend that effect them.

Special Education and Education Policy

41. Jerry’s Special Education Blog: Stay up-to-date with the latest news and views from special education teachers and administrators across the country.

42. The Core Knowledge Blog: The parents, teachers and administrators behind Core Knowledge draw from cognitive and developmental science to encourage policymakers to formulate the best curricula possible.

43. Teach for Us: Anyone curious about joining up with Teach for America should scan this blog aggregator for opinions on the program and what needs doing to make it more effective.

44. State of Ohio Education Blog: Even American teachers outside of Ohio can benefit from seeing parallels in their own states — not to mention the discussions of federal mandates effecting everyone.

45. Connected Principals: Principals across the country weigh in on the issues that impact the American education system as a whole, not just a particular grade level.

46. An Urban Teacher’s Education: Get an insider’s look at what life is like inside America’s troubled inner-city schools — a subject every educator needs to know about and understand if the country ever hopes to change the situation.

47. Special Education Law Blog: Special education teachers should use this resource as one of many conduits towards staying updated on relevant news and policies.

48. Blogs at Education Week: From special education to public policy to sociological and psychological inquires into education, these blogs offer up something appealing to almost every teacher out there.

49. Education Policy Blog: As the title denotes, this is the place to go for discussions on a wide number of education policy topics, with plenty of different writers offering up their own opinions and insights.

50. Thoughts on Education Policy: Vanderbilt PhD candidate Corey Bunje Bower mainly emphasizes urban education and poverty issues here, but still looks at policies from a broad perspective as well.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 19th, 2010 at 12:05 pm and is filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.