Holiday and Wintertime Fun!

Holiday Break Activities (including some from previous posts on this blog) -

I want to share with you some websites with activities that would be fun to do over the holiday break, including some books on wintertime fun! 

Build a Snowman:

http://www.castlearcana.com/christmas/snowman/ 
http://www.think-bank.com/iwb/flash/snowman.html
http://dressupwho.net/i-files/swf/182-snowman.swf 
http://www.cyke.com/snowman.swf 

Create a Snowflake:

http://snowflakes.barkleyus.com/ 

http://snowdays.me/?skipDetect=true 

Science behind snowflakes 

Design a card:

http://www.iboard.co.uk/resource/Christmas-Card-Designer-migrated_swfs_3099.swf

Design a gift:

http://www.iboard.co.uk/iwb/Xmas-Tree-Maker-1891

Make your own wrapping paper design:

http://www.iboard.co.uk/activity/Christmas-Wrapping-Paper-Maker--540

Build your own gingerbread house/gingerbread man:

http://www.highlightskids.com/flash/gingerbread-house
 http://besplatneigrice.ba/content/games/slatkisi.swf
http://www.jennybharris.com/activities/home/sweethome.htm 
 http://sprintsweets.com/


Christmas Games:

http://www.thekidzpage.com/freekidsgames/games/alllights/christmaslights.swf 
 http://dingo.care2.com/cards/new/0422/Do-a-rain-deer.swf http://www.learn-ict.org.uk/resources/rudolph/rudolph.htm
http://www.scholastic.com/browse/media.jsp?id=1191 
http://www.akidsheart.com/flash3/diffgame/diffchristmas.swf 
https://hwb.wales.gov.uk/cms/hwbcontent/Shared%20Documents/vtc/ngfl/re/b-dag/ngfl-container/re-unit1-en.html 
 http://www.iboard.co.uk/resource/Christmas-Present-Sorting-migrated_swfs_3490.swf
 http://www.akidsheart.com/flash3/edgegaame/edgeorns.swf


Christmas Math:

http://www.iboard.co.uk/resource/Twelve-Games-of-Christmas-Elf-Sorter-1353586595838714.swf 
http://www.iboard.co.uk/iwb/Christmas-Symmetry-Game-1894 
Math Facts 
http://www.iboard.co.uk/activity/Toy-Timeline-542 
http://www.iboard.co.uk/resource/Twelve-Games-of-Christmas-Presents-in-the-Snow-1353586555951361.swf 
http://www.iboard.co.uk/resource/Twelve-Games-of-Christmas-Fling-the-Elf-1354025236573480.swf 
http://www.iboard.co.uk/resource/Twelve-Games-of-Christmas-Christmas-Tree-Coordinates-1353593601982258.swf 


Winter Stories:

http://www.speakaboos.com/story/the-gingerbread-man 
http://www.wegivebooks.org/books/the-snowy-day/reader 
http://www.wegivebooks.org/books/snowmen-at-night/reader 
http://www.wegivebooks.org/books/frosty-the-snowman/reader 

General Stories:

http://www.storylineonline.net/

Hanukkah -
 
http://www.joi.org/dreidel/index.shtml 
http://www.chabad.org/images/kids/whatif/games/latke_game.swf 
http://www.chabad.org/images/kids/Flash/chanukah/stories/story.swf 
http://www.kosherconnection.com/karaoke/hanukka.htm 
http://www.chabad.org/images/kids/Flash/chanukah/stories/9spoons.swf 


Kwanzaa:

http://www.scholastic.com/browse/media.jsp?id=1193

http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/holidays/kwanzaa/ 

Author Jan Brett to speak in Memphis!

I wanted to share this email that I just received from the Booksellers at Laurelwood.  I love Jan Brett's books and this one looks great too!  (Please excuse the misspelling of the book The Mitten below, but I am just sending the email as it was sent to me:)-  If you attend I would LOVE to hear about your experience!!

Offsite event at the

Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library 

Jan Brett

discussing and signing

The Animals' Santa

Thursday, December 4, from 5 - 7 pm

About the Book:

Join the #1 New York Times bestselling author Jan Brett as we embark on her next snowy endeavor! From the mind that brought us The Miten and Hedgie the Hedgehog comes the story of a little rabbit who is about to celebrate his very first Christmas!

  

In the wintry forests of northern Canada, Little Snow asks Big Snowshoe: Who is the animal's Santa? Big Snowshoe doesn't know, and neither do any of Little Snow's friends. Could it be a wolf? A badger? Maybe even a polar bear? When nobody can answer him, Little Snow becomes skeptical. Is there really an Animal's Santa out there? Not to worry, though, as Big Snowshoe comes up with a plan on Christmas Eve to ensure that everyone can catch a glimpse of Santa! With their plan in motion, Little Snow and all his friends will have a Christmas they'll never forget! Children will be in for a treat with the beautiful scenerybrought to life by Brett's  snowy illustrations!  

So, get ready to join Little Snow and celebrate his first ever Christmas!Joining us at the event will be Jan Brett's very own Hedgie the Hedgehog!

Line tickets are required and come with the purchase of The Animals' Santa at the Booksellers at Laurelwood.

Poetry

I recently worked with a small group of students from Ms. Falls' class and we shared some of our favorite poems.  I thought that these links looked like fun (and informative!) so I am going to post them here and then add them to my Draggo site (Draggo).   They would be fun activities to do on a cold December night:)
Let me know what you think about them!

Shel Silverstein

Poemstarts

Scholastic Poetry

PBS Kids Cinquain

Acrostic poems

Diamante poems

Free Verse

Poetry splatter

Giggle Poetry

Poetry Explained

Rhyme Zone

Antarctica Food Web Game...

For those of you following the Adelie Penguins nesting in Antarctica, I wanted to share this link.  It is a "game" from PBS about the food chains in the Antarctic ecosystem.  Enjoy!
Food Web Game

Thanksgiving history and activities...

This is such a special time of year as the seasons change and we look forward to spending time with family and friends for the holidays.  I especially enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday as the focus is "food, family, friends, and fellowship"!  While you are relaxing and hanging out, here are some activities that you can do to learn about the history of Thanksgiving and some fun games to play.  Don't forgot that the Penguin Project (see previous posts) is also a great way to be a part of something exciting happening many miles away:)

Thanksgiving History -
The First Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Timeline
Be A Historian

Thanksgiving Games -
Too Many Turkeys
Spot the differences
Turkey Swap
Word Search
Thanksgiving Bounce
Dress A Turkey
Make A Silly Turkey
Create A Thanksgiving Card
Thanksgiving Tale
"Fill In" Thanksgiving Story

Thanksgiving Stories -

The Story of Squanto
The Kitchen
Two Bad Pilgrims



Thanks to Emily Starr (of Starrmatica) for some of the suggested activities:)

Penguin Project Update...

 I wanted to share with you all an email that I received over the weekend about the Antarctica Penguin Project from Jean Pennycook (the Penguin Education Specialist in charge of the project):

Welcome to the 2014-2105 Adélie Penguin breeding season in Antarctica!   Starting Nov 17, follow 10 new penguin families as they raise their chicks at Cape Royds, on Ross Island.  Adopt a penguin family, keep a field notebook, record parent foraging trips, egg hatching and chick rearing data. Follow daily pictures as these amazing birds raise their chicks. http://www.penguinscience.com/education/royds_nestcheck.php

Combine science, art and geography. Have your students track their penguin postcards as they are mailed down to us, and then back from Antarctica.http://www.penguinscience.com/education/postcards.php

 Design and make a flag to fly at our research station.  http://www.penguinscience.com/education/design_flag.php

 Ready made  instructional powerpoints (with teaching notes) about penguins, Antarctica and more!

http://www.penguinscience.com/education/penguin_powerpoint_presentations.php

Something for everyone about Antarctica!

Penguin Science is an NSF funded project engaging and educating classrooms and the public about Antarctica and the amazing Adélie penguins as they raise their chicks and cope with global climate change.

Please let me know if you are interested in participating in this project or if you would like to meet with me during lunch recess to work on it.

Mrs. L.

Penguin Research

Over the past several years I have had students participate in a Penguin Research Project being done in Antarctica.  We watched the Adelie penguins nesting habits and enjoyed seeing the little ones as they hatched from their egg homes.  I have even had students send postcards to the researchers in  Antarctica and get them back with a postmark from that far-away place!  I am sharing the link to the website in case your child is interested in acting as a scientist and watching and documenting the progress of the breeding season of the penguins.  I am happy to help if your daughter needs assistance creating and sending a "postcard" to the researchers.  Whether they want to create a postcard or not, enjoy watching and learning about these amazing creatures who live in such a unique part of our world.

Penguin Science Website

30 days of...

I ran across this neat compilation of activities on the National Center for Families Learning website and I wanted to share it with you all.  I hope that you will be able to find and do some of the suggestions and then come tell me all about them!  The photo above is just that, a photo, so here is a link to the "full" list - 30 Days of Families Learning link (then click "download calendar").

Third and Fourth Grade Book Meeting Dates

The 4th grade book club will meet next Thursday, November 13th during lunch recess and the 3rd grade book club will meet the following Thursday, November 20th at the same time.  We will meet in the Lower School Library. 
Don't forget to check out the book club wiki for book recommendations from friends (see link on the right side of this blog).

New link added to build BRAIN POWER!

Greetings!

I am having a great time with a small group of girls after school learning about Executive Functioning Skills and study strategies.  I will be sharing tips with you all soon, but in the meantime, I wanted to share my Draggo page link (which can be found at the top of the column on the right side of this page) that will take you to a list of "Brain Games" that will help you build your memory and brain "reflexes".  I had such fun playing the games while researching them and I hope that you all will too.  Please let me know if you have any difficulty with any of them as I didn't have enough time to play ALL of them:)  You will need to access the sites in a browser that supports Adobe and sometimes Java (usually Firefox will work with most of them).

I am also "tweaking" my blog to make it easier to find some of the neat things that I have posted over the years that haven't changed and are still good practices or fun things to do.  I will create a post to explain them as I finish the updates.

Wonderopolis - Are Ghosts Real?

When I ran across this article I knew that I had to share it with you all!  Enjoy:)
Click on the link below to find out..

Are Ghosts Real??

Halloween Fun...SPOOKY

Happy Halloween!  I know that many of our students recently enjoyed participating in the fun activities at the Upper School Halloween Bazaar and this next week will be full of excitement as the big "Trick or Treating" day approaches.  Here are some fun activities that you can do at home and a link to a great Time for Kids page with lots of interesting information about the history of Halloween, printable pages to color, costume and make-up ideas, and even recipes for spooky treats like the monster cupcake pictured.   Have a safe and fun time with your friends and family this week!

Carve a Pumpkin game 
(several different spooky online games can be located here)

The First Trick or Treaters


Time for Kids Halloween History
 (click on the topics on the left side of the page to see more Halloween things)


More Halloween History

Halloween Q and A

Creative Writing Prompt:
"What if you found some unusual footprints in your backyard? Would you follow them to see where they went or would you be too scared to follow them?  Write a paragraph about this situation and don't forget to say what you found!

Coffee Talk

SAVE THE DATE:
Since the Fall of 2013, faculty members in grades JK-4 have been engaged in a process of identifying key beliefs about teaching reading, establishing language arts standards for St. Mary's, and evaluating reading programs. Come and join reading consultant Dr. Rene Lee and CKLA Development Coordinator Sheri Burkeen as they explain the process and how it will impact reading instruction in the future. This is something you don't want to miss!
Coffee Talk - Thursday, October 16th at 7:30 AM, Moss Hall Library

Happy Columbus Day!

Check out the website below for some fun Columbus Day activities:)

Columbus Day Activities and Links

Writing Tall Tales...

Fall Break Fun Activity:

Tall tale heroes, such as Davy Crockett and John Henry, are often based on real people. Help your child write her own tale based on someone she personally knows. She will learn how story elements work together as she gives some thought to an amazing person in her life.

What you need:   

Paper and pencil

What you do:

     1.  Start this activity by reading (or having your child read to you) several tall tales based on the lives of real people.  You can find several at American Folklore.

     2.  As you read, explain that these stories are about real people, but that the people who told the stories added to them and the stories became tall tales.  Help your daughter identify elements of a tall tale - exaggeration, humor, and a rival.  

     3.  Who does she know that would make a good tall tale hero?  Perhaps she knows a pilot or a police officer.  Does she know someone who works harder or faster than other people?  Does she know someone extremely strong or courageous?

     4.  Once she has picked someone, have her write something factual about this person.

     5.  Add exaggeration - how can she make the feat bigger or the challenge scarier?

     6.  Can she add humor?  One way to do this is to exaggerate.  Also, consider physical humor such as something messy.  You can also change details.  What if your cowboy rode a pig instead of a horse?

     7.  Who is the hero's adversary?  Who is it that messes things up for him again and again?  Make this person larger than life too.  Finally, how does your hero triumph?

When the tale is done, help your daughter create a book to give to her larger-than-life hero (use ipad apps like StoryKit,  Book Writer,  Scribble My Story, StoryBuddy 2, Creative Book Builder, or Story Creator).

By Sue BradfordEdwards 
from www.education.com 

Good article promoting reading!!

Here is a link to an article in the Wall Street Journal newspaper about the benefits of reading:))

http://online.wsj.com/articles/read-slowly-to-benefit-your-brain-and-cut-stress-1410823086

The amazing skill we call "reading"!!

Please check out this great video created by my friend Josh Clark and the folks at the Bodine School in Germantown.  We realize know why reading is such hard WORK:)

The Miracle that is Reading video

Also, I just added a good video link about the "dyslexic" brain to the "Information about Learning Differences" tab at the top of this blog.

Congratulations 2014-15 Think Tank Third Graders!!

Congratulations to our 2014-
15 St. Mary's Think Tank Third Graders who created, designed, and built this year's entry into the Lichterman Scarecrow Contest.   Our entry, "Wyld, St. Mary's Style" won an Honorable Mention award in the Best School Entry category!!  Special thanks go to Melissa and Jason DeLany, Roberta Kustoff, Craig Royal, and Lynn Isaacs for their help in gathering supplies and organizing girls:)  Thanks also to our 4th grade advisors Ellie Monaghan and Riley DeLany.  The awards will be handed out at 6:15 pm during the "Stomp in the Swamp" event this Sunday, September 14 at the Nature Center. Voting for the "Most Popular" Scarecrow will continue through the end of September so please go check out the amazing competition but vote for "Wyld" and show your St. Mary's spirit!

It's Scarecrow Time Again!!

     Please go check out the St. Mary's Think Tank Third Graders entry into the Lichterman Nature Center Scarecrow Contest.  The "scarecrows" will be on display from September 11-November 21st and can be seen at the Litcherman at 5992 Quince Road, Memphis, TN 38119.   The Lichterman is usually open from Tuesday-Thursday 10 a.m.-3 p.m. and on Friday & Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. 
     This weekend; however, there is a special family-friendly event called, Stomp in the Swamp, a BBQ & Bidding benefit for the Nature Center.  It will be held on Sunday, September 14 from 5 pm until 8 pm.   This is a GREAT time to vote for most popular ‘crow – so bring plenty of family & friends with you and vote for our entry, "Wyld, St. Mary's Style" from the LEGO Movie!  Advance adult tickets are 2 for $25 and include dinner by Germantown Commissary, live entertainment and children’s activities.  Tickets for children ages 6 -12 are $7.  It’s a great deal and should be a lot of fun. 
Lichterman Nature Center (click here for fun facts and information about scarecrows)

Family Fun Day and other interesting events!

Why Don't We Labor On Labor Day? from Wonderopolis

Check out the information on this fun site about the history of Labor Day: Wonderopolis website

Best Books-

I ran across a couple of book lists that I wanted to share with you in case you needed some suggestions of things to read over the holiday weekend or for your AR contract (and you can "mark" your spot with the new bookmark you made from the instructions in my last blog post!).
These lists are from the Bank Street College of Education in NY and are divided into 5 different age categories.  I would love to hear from the girls if they happen to discover a new "favorite"!

Best Children's Books of 2014

"Marking your place" as you progress!

Now that the 2014-15 school year is fully underway here is an activity that is both fun and useful.  As our students enjoy reading new and different materials (and maybe some old favorites!), they can use a homemade bookmark that keeps their place in a book and guides them to be even better readers.

Make a reading bookmark!

What You Need:

• Any book your child is reading
• “Good Reader Strategies” sheet
• Heavy paper (cardstock)
• Scissors
• Glue stick
• Hole punch
• 1/4" lightweight craft ribbon in three different colors.

What You Do:

1. Explain to your child that everyone can become a better reader, even a parent, and that you have some fun, easy ways to help her become a better reader, too.
2. Print out both sides of the reading bookmark (click here for printable version), cut it out, and glue it onto heavy paper that is trimmed to fit the bookmark. (One side of the bookmark will contain word recognition strategies; the other, comprehension strategies.) If you have access to a laminator, you may wish to laminate the bookmark.
3. Use the hole punch to make a hole on the top left corner of your bookmark. Then cut a 20" length of ribbon in three different colors that your child likes. Hold the three strands together, fold them in half, and stick the fold through the hole you have made. You will see that you have made a "loop" of ribbon. Now stick the ribbon ends through that, and pull tight. You will have a bookmark with six colorful ribbons attached.
4. Focusing on one set of strategies at a time (word recognition, for example), have your child read aloud from her newest book. When she comes to a word she doesn't know, help her use the bookmark strategies to figure it out.
5. Continue this process for as long as needed until your child has a good grasp of the strategies.
6. Have your child use the other set of strategies (comprehension, for example) before and after reading their book aloud. Guide her along as she uses the bookmark.
7. When she's ready to stop reading for a while, she can use the bookmark to mark her page...but the ribbons also give her a new freedom with her "chapter" books. She can move one ribbon to the Table of Contents, for example, and another to the title page. Or, if she's reading a textbook (as many second graders will start to do this year), she can mark one section at a time, and not get lost!

Parents, do beware: strategies alone don't make a super reader. Reading is a lifelong skill that takes steady, solid practice. But with tools like this bookmark, along with a joyful, positive attitude about your child's evolving skills, you can be sure you're offering the best support and encouragement possible.

By Laurie Daley

Laurie Daley has been in the educational field for nine years. She has worked as a reading specialist with students from ages 5 through adult. She has also lead training sessions for math teachers.

Lichterman Nature Center Scarecrow Contest

Third Grade Friends and Parents - I am excited to announce that we have begun working on our entry in the Lichterman Nature Center Scarecrow contest!  Here is a link to the Lichterman website that contains examples of scarecrow entries from last year - Lichterman Nature Center  
I will send additional information soon -
Have a great weekend!

Welcome Back and Brain Rules...

Welcome back to returning students and "welcome" to our new first grade friends!  I am so excited to see you all and look forward to learning with you this year.  I wanted to share with you some great tips from a book that I enjoyed reading this summer.  The book is called, Brain Rules, by John Medina and I bought it at the airport in Sydney, Australia when my husband and I traveled there in June.  It was a great read and something that has tips from which we could all benefit.  The book actually lists 12 "rules" that relate to how our brains "work".  It combines science with things that we do in our everyday lives and I was very excited to read it.  I am going to list the rules and then perhaps re-visit them in future blog posts.  Also, feel free to contact me if you would like more information about the "rules".

Rule #1
Exercise boosts brain power.
Rule #2
The human brain has evolved over time.
Rule #3
Every brain is wired differently.
Rule #4
We don't pay attention to boring things.
Rule #5
Repeat to remember (to store things in your memory).
Rule #6
Remember to repeat.
Rule #7
Sleep well, think well.
Rule #8
Stressed brains don't learn the same way.
Rule #9
Stimulate more of the senses.
Rule #10
Vision trumps all other senses.
Rule #11
Male and female brains are different.
Rule #12
We are powerful and natural explorers.

I am often reading articles and books about brain research and we all need to remember that just like our physical muscles, our reading and brain "muscles" also become stronger when they are exercised regularly.  Hopefully we will all work hard this year and "grow" our brains as we explore, read, and learn new things.  We also spoke quite a bit during our teacher inservice time about "creativity" which is a passion of mine and I ran across this video which I really enjoyed and wanted to share with you all -

Rules to spark learning video