A Great Social Studies Review Game
Try this next time you want to help kids study social studies concepts. The game is called “Post Office” (and no, not THAT kind of Post Office!). You’ll need one large paper grocery sack for each category that you wish to use. Put names, concepts, places, or dates onto index cards. These are the “letters.” Label the bags with their categories, such as people, countries, cities, branches of government, or whatever is being studied. Now, try to sort the cards with the specifics into the correct bags. It’s a great way to master vocabulary and a wonderful study help for upcoming tests.
Have fun!
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You’ll Want to Check This Out….
Here’s a link to a great blog that every homeschooling parent will want to check out:
Splish’s Blog. This reading-related resource is from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, and right now (Nov. 11-16, 2008) is offering a free book give-away in honor of National Young Readers Week. Head on over there today to get in on the drawings!
And even if you miss out on this particular week’s goodies, it looks like Splish the Frog is a pretty active character. He organizes many literacy events throughout the year.
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Build Halloween Vocabulary with Word Games
Holidays are wonderful motivators for learning and one of the best is Halloween. A lot of natural excitement surrounds the celebration, and you can tap into this by trying some descriptive writing and word games. Here are related activity ideas for a variety of age groups.
Young Students (K-2)
Try some seasonal alliterations. See how long of phrases or sentences your students can build, orally or in writing, that are related to Halloween. Alliterative phrases and sentences have the same beginning sound on most or even all of the words. Hold a contest with awards for longest, most syllables, most creative, and so forth. Need an example to get you started? Six spooky spirits sip sassparilla!
Play a memory game. Start the group off with a simple subject-verb sentence like “The cat sat.” Now, have players take turns adding a word or phrase and saying the entire sentence. In our example, steps might include:
The black cat sat.
The skinny black cat sat.
The skinny black cat sat on the fence.
The witch’s skinny black cat sat on the fence.
How long will it get?
Middle Elementary Students (gr. 3-4)
Do a seasonal fill-in game. Choose a Halloween story and underline every third to tenth word. Make a list of the parts of speech (noun, verb, etc.) and any inflective endings (-ed, -ing, -es, etc.). Have players choose fill in words based on the parts of speech guide without knowing the story. Substitute their answers for the original underlined words.
Create some holiday riddles. Have your students choose a common Halloween item and write four to six clues to help someone else guess it. Arrange the clues from toughest to easiest, then have a friend try the puzzle. Here’s an example: I am long and thin. I am wooden. I have a prickly end. I belong to the witch. I fly. (a broom). For an extra challenge, see if the clues can rhyme, like a poem.
Upper Elementary Students (gr. 5-6)
Finish a Halloween story. Have each student write a seasonal story starter with at least ten sentences. Trade with a partner, then finish the story with at least twenty more sentences.
Make a Halloween dictionary. Generate at least fifty words related to the season. Alphabetize them and write definitions. Illustrate at least twenty of the entries.
Middle and High School (gr. 7-12)
Make a Halloween crossword puzzle. Think of at least 25 Halloween words. Come up with a unique clue for each one. Use graph paper to place the words into interlocking positions. Number each box containing the first letter of a word. Number the clues to match the box number where the word begins. Trace the boxes onto blank graph paper and write the numbers and clues.
Write a description for Halloween. You can use a Halloween scene as a prompt or have students create from scratch. Challenge them to write a descriptive essay with at least five paragraphs. Remind them to appeal to all five senses, helping the reader see, hear, touch, taste and smell the scene.
Halloween can be controversial. Have your students write a persuasive essay politely expressing their opinion about the holiday and its practices. Insist that statements of opinion be supported by factual reasons, and that personal opinions be clearly identified as such.
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© 2008 Sandy Fleming
October Holiday Fun
October is so much more than Halloween! It’s also:
Children’s Magazine Month
Dyslexia Awareness Month
Global Diversity Awareness Month
National Bake and Decorate Month
National Reading Group Month
Positive Attitude Month
Squirrel Awareness Month
Vegetarian Month.
You can participate in
The Magic of Differences Week, Mystery Series Week, or National Metric Week (all the first full week of the month), and Kids’ Goal Setting Week during the second week of the month.
National School Lunch Week and Teen Read Week are during the third week of the month, Freedom of Speech Week and World Rain Forest Week are also during the third week of the month, and the fourth week of the month brings Kids Care Week, National Character Counts Week, and International Magic Week.
Here are some daily celebrations to liven up learning and tickle your funny bone:
October 1…………………Balloons around the World
October 2…………………Phileas Fogg’s Wager Day
…………………National Custodial Workers Day
…………………Name Your Car Day
October 3…………………World Smile Day
October 4…………………World Card Making Day
October 5…………………Intergeneration Day
………………….World Teachers Day
………………….National Storytelling Festival
October 6…………………Mad Hatter Day
…………………World Habitat Day
October 7…………………National Frappe Day
October 8…………………Bring Your Teddy Bear to School Day
………………….Yom Kippur
October 9…………………Leif Erickson Day
…………………World Sight Day
October 10……………….National Cake Decorating Day
………………..National Angel Food Cake Day
October 11……………….Reptile Awareness Day
October 13……………….Columbus Day
October 14……………….National Dessert Day
October 15……………….White Cane Safety Day
October 16……………….Dictionary Day
………………..World Food Day
October 17……………….Gaudy Day
October 18……………….World Toy Camera Day
October 19……………….Evaluate Your Life Day
October 21……………….Babbling Day
October 22……………….National Nut Day
October 23……………….National Mole Day
October 24……………….International Banana Day
……………….National Bologna Day
October 25………………Make a Difference Day
October 26………………Mule Day
October 28………………National Chocolates Day
……………….Plush Animal Lovers’ Day
October 29………………Internet Day
October 30………………National Candy Corn Day
………………Haunted Refrigerator Night
October 31………………National Magic Day
……………….Halloween
As always, check back often to see links to activity and lesson ideas for specific days.
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September 9: Teddy Bear Day
You can have loads of motivating educational fun on Teddy Bear Day! Check out these ideas….
- Sponsor Bring Your Bear to Class Day
Have everyone bring a furry friend to class today. You can have the bears join into nearly any activity, and the kids will really enjoy showing them off. Make sure to save a bit of time for each child to share about his or her bear-where it came from, how he or she got it, what its name is and so forth. And be sure to have a stash of emergency bears available for children who were not able to bring a bear from home.
- Get Musical
Did you know that Teddy Bears have their own song? Check Teddy Bear’s Picnic Song for the words and even a link to the tune. You can also get the tune in MP3 format from the bard’s net.
- Have a Teddy Bear Picnic
Get out the blankets and plan a Teddy Bear Picnic! You can have the bears join their owners for Teddy Grahams and other fun snacks. Remember that bears love honey, so it might be a super time for a honey-tasting party. It’s a good connection to talk about bees and bee keeping, if you want to throw a bit of science into the mix.
- Teddy Bear Coloring Sheets
Here are some links to teddy bear coloring sheets:
- DLTK’s Kids Crafts Teddy Bear Pages
- Kids’ Turn Central Teddy Bear Coloring
- Get Older Kids Involved
Want to get older kids in on the action? Discover the history of the teddy bear and the connection to Teddy Roosevelt at Teddy Bear and Friends , History of the Teddy Bear and the Teddy Bear Museum. Try having them put together a teddy bear museum of their own, with histories and information about each bear on display, and then give some guided tours to younger children. You might also try creating an advertising campaign for a particular type of bear or even a brand new creation that they invent.
Have fun on Teddy Bear Day!
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© 2008 Sandra Fleming
September Holiday Fun
September is a great month with loads of possibilities for teaching and learning. It’s Library Card Sign Up Month and Self-Improvement Month. It’s also National Honey Month, National Potato Month and National Rice Month if you’re feeling hungry.
Remember that holiday links go to fun educational ideas for that specific day. Here are some great ways to celebrate each and every day in September:
September 1…………………Emma M. Nutt Day
September 2…………………VJ Day (Surrender Ceremony to end WWII)
September 3…………………Skyscraper Day
September 4…………………Newspaper Carrier Day
September 5…………………Cheese Pizza Day
September 6…………………Fight Procrastination Day
September 7…………………Grandma Moses Day
September 8…………………Pardon Day
………………….International Literacy Day
September 9…………………Teddy Bear Day
September 10………………..Swap Ideas Day
September 11………………..Make Your Bed Day
…………………Remember Freedom Day
September 12………………..National Chocolate Milkshake Day
September 13………………..Defy Superstition Day
………………..Positive Thinking Day
………………..Fortune Cookie Day
………………..International Chocolate Day
September 14………………..National Cream-Filled Doughnut Day
September 15………………..Make a Hat Day
September 16………………..Collect Rocks Day
………………..Trail of Tears Commemoration
September 17………………..National Apple Dumpling Day
………………..Constitution Day
September 18………………..National Play-Doh Day
September 19………………..International Talk Like a Pirate Day
September 20………………..National Punch Day
………………..International Eat an Apple Day
September 21………………..International Banana Festival
…………………Miniature Golf Day
September 22………………..Hobbit Day
…………………Elephant Appreciation Day
September 23………………..Checkers Day
September 24………………..Festival of the Latest Novelties
September 25………………..National Comic Book Day
September 26………………..Johnny Appleseed Day
September 27………………..Crush a Can Day
September 28………………..National Good Neighbor Day
September 29………………..Confucius Day
September 30………………..Mud Pack Day
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August 18 is Bad Poetry Day
You know the kind of poems I mean-the kind that make you say “ouch!” when you hear them. Some bad poetry is created on purpose, and some is quite accidental. All of it is fun to read, and you can have alot of fun writing it.
Limericks are some of the best bad poetry around. These little poems are great jokes and puns, and some are hilarious. They’re also pretty easy to write. Writing limericks is an exercise in control over language and humor, and it’s as much fun as it is good for you. Check out these favorite Limerick Sites:
Limericks A wide selection here, and some info about writing limericks.
Loony Limericks Here’s a fun collection, but it’s definitely rated PG.
Limerick Lesson Plan Teaching a lesson on limericks? Check this out.
Other poetry is simply bad. It was done by accident, usually by someone who thought he or she was writing good poetry. The author just completely missed the boat. For examples, check out these websites:
The Bad Poetry Page -this one features a do-it-yourself system! You can post your own bad poetry here.
Very Bad Poetry Visit here and you’ll be treated to a randomly selected bad poem.
Writing Bad Poetry It’s true that you must truly master something to mess it up on purpose. Check this one out!
Sometimes the best way to appreciate the good stuff is to read the bad. Have fun with Bad Poetry Day!
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© 2008 Sandra Fleming
Get in Gear for Learning
School’s right around the corner for most of us, and it’s time to switch on those mental gears and get the kids back into the swing of learning. You can help everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, get back into school mode by challenging the brains a bit during these last few weeks of summer break. Here are some fun ideas that won’t seem like school, but will get the brains fired up.
Play Family Games
Nearly any game from your game closet will help kids learn something important for school success. Whether they get to practice math facts with dice, learn about modular math with game boards that go in circles, count play money, or plan strategy, it’s all working toward the goal of getting ready to hit the books.
Plan a Shopping Trip
Use catalogs or the newspaper sale flyers and send your group on an imaginary shopping spree. You can have them shop for anything they want: cars, groceries, toys, whatever. Give them each a set amount of pretend spending money and have them find advertisements for things they’d like to buy.
Want Ad Stories
Nearly every newspaper has a personals or a lost and found section in the want ads. Choose an ad and have your young writer make up the story to go with it. What happened to cause this ad to be placed? What happened after the ad was in the paper? How did it all turn out?
Try Some Science
You don’t need a school to tell you to do science projects. How about setting up a family-wide science fair? The internet is loaded with experiment ideas if you need them, and every student will benefit from the logical thinking, writing and presentation practice.
These are just a few ways to get the mental muscles back in shape for the coming school year. Give it a try! You will find that your kids will be more willing and efficient students if they get some of the rust out of the brain in August.
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© 2008 Sandra Fleming
Happy Sea Serpent Day! (August 7)
Now here’s a holiday for all ages! Celebrate sea serpents all day today. Try writing a story or a poem with a sea serpent in it. Make up a recipe for sea serpent stew. Use rulers, yardsticks and tape measures to pace out imaginary sea serpents of various sizes. Get artistic and draw a sea serpent. The sky’s the limit, and you can really get your imagination in gear for this party. How could you build a sea serpent or make a sea serpent costume with what you have around the house? Let’s see…some blankets would come in handy, and maybe some rope.
And check out these helpful links:
Look! Sea Serpents in Wikipedia!
Here’s a real winner: a Sea Serpent PARTY!
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© 2008 Sandra Fleming
Hooray for National Mustard Day!
August 5 is National Mustard Day, and what a great day for cooking with the kids. Check your favorite cookbooks or internet recipe sites and find a few mustard-related recipes, like potato salad, baked beans, or honey-mustard sauce. Head off to the kitchen and let the kids loose. While they’re having fun, they will be learning about sequencing, following directions, reading comprehension, measurement, time management and more.
And don’t forget that mustard is also a color. Can you come up with a yellow art project to round out your day? Try this with young children: get a collection of yellow paint sample sheets from your local hardware store. Cut the yellows apart and then challenge your young child to arrange them in order of shade. You can make this as easy or as tough as you like-just change the number of shades you use and how closely they resemble each other.
Finally, take some time to learn about mustard itself. Where does it come from? What is its history? What is it used for? Who makes it? Do all of the plants with the name ‘mustard’ actually have anything to do with the condiment? Why do they have the names they do?
Have fun!
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