Items filtered by date: April 2011

I call this "paper love" and have gotten lots of positive feedback from families.  One of my all-time favorite compliments was from a mom who popped in to say hi and shared: "Mrs. Henderson, the best thing you taught Tyler was how to love.  Do you know he still leaves me little notes on my pillow!"

I sometimes tell my students to take their "paper love" out of their backpacks and leave them somewhere.  It makes writing something more exciting, and then telling them to think of a fun place to leave their work makes it an adventure. 

You just need to get into a child's head for a moment to make things different and interesting.  Anything can become fun if you give it a new twist. Children enjoy mystery and making things for their families.

When I think of summer, I think of watermelons; and when I look at a slice of watermelon I see a smile.  This is a cute way to review small, medium and large too. 

For a refreshing and special snack time, ask a parent to donate a half watermelon and give everyone several chunks to munch on after they complete their card. 

Students can color in the seeds or give them a black stamp pad and make the card even more special by having them stamp their fingerprint in the middle of each seed. 

Have children add X's and O's for hugs and kisses and then sign their name on the green rind. 

You can either use tradition red and emerald green construction paper, or give them a choice of hot pink and lime green as well. 

You could also add the student's school picture next to their name if you wanted to, or take your class outside and photograph each child playing on their favorite playground equipment, with a big smile of course, and then have them glue the photo to the back of their watermelon slice for a nice end-of-the-school-year keepsake.  Click on the link to view/print the watermelon card

Patriotic Windsock: Since Flag Day is just around the corner, (June 14th) I like to toss in some red-white-and blue activities as well.  Did you know that Flag Day was first celebrated by a school teacher? It was a Flag Birthday.

Some teachers have a star as one of the shapes they study so this is a nice review of that.

A stripe is a rectangle and the windsock is a cylinder 3D shape, which is a report card standard for many.  I like to make several windsocks during the school year. 

It helps reinforce this concept in a fun way and helps children grasp the vocabulary word cylinder rather easily.

You'll need some yarn, a hole punch, stapler, construction paper, scissors and a glue stick to make this project. Click on the link to view/print the directions and pattern for a patriotic windsock.

Nature Alphabet Book: Your students should now know the letters of the alphabet if they're kindergartners, so why not celebrate and have a review by doing a nature alphabet book.

Run off my block letters and pass one out to each of your students.  Try to match up student initials with a letter, or put them face down on the floor and have each child scamper to pick one up and identify the mystery letter they will do.

Send the note home to parents explaining the project, or go on your own nature walk and have children collect things.  

Students can try and find things in nature that begin with that letter, look like that letter, or simply collect anything and collage their letter.

Mount each page on a different sheet of colored construction paper for each one, collate your class book and read it to your students. 

If you want to make it sturdier, cover the top of each page with a sheet of contact paper.

This makes a great keepsake that new students will enjoy for years to come.  You can do another nature book in the fall with your new students and compare and contrast the different kinds of things that they find. 

Click on the link to view/print the Nature Alphabet Book and note home.

When I went looking for things for my sample page, I found some huge leaves.  I decided to write notes to my students telling them that I hoped they had had a fun time on their walk. 

You could write LEAF LETTERS for any reason, or you could collect some huge leaves and have your students compose their own leaf letters using word-wall words.

Have A Super Summer!  Notes For Your Students:

If you'd like to send a note home to your students wishing them a super summer, I've designed 4 for you to choose from.  Click on the link to view/print them.  Student Summer Notes.  I also included 2 in the  June/July 72-page Apple Bytes. 

For more fun things to do, check out the Books of the Month for June.  I've got some fun things to do for Father's Day. 

The FREE easy reader booklet of the month is in the article after, it's entitled My Summer Senses, and the FREEBIE of the month is There Were 10 In The Barn.  Click on the link to check it out.

Whatever you're doing with your sweeties this summer, may it sizzle with excitement as you kick back and enjoy school being out.

As always, if you have a fun idea you'd like to share, I'd enjoy hearing from you. diane@teachwithme.com

I don't have a big list of books for summer because we usually let out the first week of June depending on snow days.  Sometimes we go to the second week of June, as is the case for this year; we are out the 10th. 

I don't want to forget Father's Day, so I make sure we take a day to cover that, with some stories, making time to whip a gift together as well. 

My students are always too excited about anything we make to tuck it away and save it, so I know that they will give it to their dad's as soon as they arrive home. 

In this changing world, I make sure that everyone has a daddy so no one feels left out. If they don't, I adapt things to suit the child's home life.

One of my favorite Father's Day books is...

Title: My Daddy and Me  (I was surprised to find out that there are quite a few books out there with this title.)

Author: Amy Sklansky 

Illustrator: Ard Hoyt 

Price: $3.99

The Gist:

Daddies and children play through the seasons in this simple story of love between parent and child. Drawings of all different kinds of fathers and children accompany a simple text.

Why I Like It:

It's a great way to teach description and metaphor: "We go together like honey and bees, like peanut butter and jelly, like hide and seek. Whatever the weather, we go together."

There are 4 or 5 different sets of fathers and children. The children are both girls and boys so that all of my students can relate.

They do different things around the various seasons, like a picnic, a day at the beach, camping, raking leaves, splashing in the rain, skating in the winter park and just being together, so it's a nice review of the seasons and different things you can do during them. 

The illustrations are a classic pen and ink style, reminiscent of Norman Rockwell's work.  He's one of my favorite artists because of the "old-fashioned real-world" America he tried to capture.  I feel this kind of "happy-joy" from Ard Hoyt's illustrations as well.

Story Telling Tips: Have a discussion before you read the book. Ask your students what is their favorite thing that they do with their daddies, what do they like best about their dads? Explain as simply as possible what a metaphor is.  When you are reading, pause before you read the rest of the metaphor and see if they can fill in the rest of the comparison: "We go together like peanut butter and _____________."  

Writing Extension: Have children complete their own page and illustrate it.  My daddy and I go together like _____________ and _______________.  Tell them you'd like them to be original and think of something special and not use any of the metaphors that were used in the book. Collect the pages and make a class My Daddy and Me book. Click on the link to view/print a sample page for your students to fill out. 

Amy Sklansky has a wonderful website with teaching aids including writing extensions for this book. Check it out by clicking on the link.

Art Activity: This book makes a nice Father's Day gift.  I often buy a "kiddie-lit" book about fathers, for my son Jason to read to my grandsons Jeremiah, Gabriel and Joshua.  It's also nice to make a homemade card. I like to have my students include coupons as a fun tuck-in.  Click on the link to view/print the masters. Daddy Card & Coupons

Magic Trick: I show the children that the dove pan is empty. We toss a yellow paper bee into the pan.  I put the lid on. The children say: "My daddy and me go together like bees and honey."  I take the lid off and a small jar of honey is inside.  We later have teddy grahams and honey for our snack.   

You could do the same with peanut butter and jelly if you wanted to, or you could produce the Reese's Pieces that look like M&M's.

As I've said before, I incorporate magic in my teaching as a method to grab students' attention, introduce literature, teach all sorts of subjects, report card standards, and vocabulary words. Click on the link to view some magic videos.

 For a list of other books I read for June, click on the link to view/print a copy of my bibliography for this month.  Bibliography for June

Picture of Amy Sklansky from Amazon.com

I hope you make time to escape and relax with a good book when school is out.

Happy reading! Have a super summer soaking up the sunshine.

Be sure to check out the writing prompts to make some quick and easy class books for the end of the year on the main blog.  Click on the link if you're interested.

If you want a special day to celebrate in June, check out Brownie Locks and the 3 bears.  I find her site invaluable for getting ideas of what's going on so I can think up fun things for you to write about!

Monthly Observances:

It’s Country Cooking Month! You’re in charge of making the entire meal.  What are you fixin’ to fix?

June is Perennial Garden Month.  Your garden has just won an award.  What award did it win and why?  OR… if you were given $10,000 to make a dream garden what would you buy and what would your garden look like?

It’s National Camping Month.  You can go anywhere you want.  Where are you going and whom are you going with?  How long will you be gone?

It’s National Candy Month. What’s your favorite candy; why?  OR describe your favorite candy using all of your senses.

It’s National Smile Month.  Write about the top 10 things that make you smile and why.

Weekly Celebrations:

It’s National Headache Awareness Week the 5^th-11^th What people or things or activities give you a headache?

That week is also Sun Safety Week.  What are your favorite things to do under the sun?  OR…. You and some friends are at the beach, suddenly there is an eclipse of the sun, then the radio announces that the sun won’t be coming out again.  All of a sudden it’s very cold and it’s the end of June!  Why is this happening? Solve the mystery and finish the story.

It’s Superman Week the 10^th – the 13^th.  You can have 3 super powers to help Superman and be Super-student.  What are your powers? How will you help?

Daily Celebrations:

June 1^st is Go Barefoot Day.  Where would you like to run barefoot if you could run barefoot anywhere and anyplace in the world and why would you go there, and who would you go with?

The 1^st is also Say Something Nice Day.  Write about something nice you will say.  Who will you say it to and why?

June 4^th is Do-Dah Day a salute to silliness!  So what’s the silliest thing you’ve ever done?  OR the school is planning a silly contest.  Winner gets $500.  What do you plan to do to win?  What will you do with the money?

The 4^th is also Drawing Day.  If you were an artist and could really draw well, what would you draw and why?

June 5^th is Hot Air Balloon Day:  Up Up And Away…where are you flying to and who are you going with?

June 6^th is D Day: What is D day, and why should we remember it?

June 7^th is Daniel Boone Day:  Would you like to go back in time to the day when Daniel Boone lived and be a pioneer?  Why or why not?  OR…Pretend you are living on the frontier.  What does your home look like, what’s a day like in your life?

June 8^th ice cream was first sold in the United States. What is your favorite flavor? Describe how it tastes.  Think of some adjectives that describe an ice cream cone and write a descriptive sentence.  Write a metaphor and a simile using an ice cream cone.

It’s June 12^th and it’s Loving Day: What do you LOVE so much that you just can’t live without and why?  OR…who in your life do you love the most and why?  OR…if you could design your perfect mate what would they look like, what qualities would they have, what would they do for a living, how would you meet them?

June 12^th and 13^th is Raggedy Ann & Andy Day:  Write a story involving these famous dolls.

Ride the Wind Day is also celebrated June 12^th.  Write a descriptive paragraph of what it would be like to ride the wind.  OR… in the wake of so many tornadoes, write about a storm that you experienced and how you felt when it was taking place.  OR…Here’s the scenario:  You’re riding in a car with some friends.  Suddenly the radio is interrupted by a series of beeps warning that a tornado is headed your way.  The sky is already getting dark and the wind is picking up.  You are about an hour from home in the middle of no where.  What do you do?

June 13^th is the Queen’s Official Birthday:  You get to be Queen for a day!  What’s it like?  Where are you queen?  What do you do for the day?  How will you celebrate?

June 14^th is Flag Day: Why do you think this is an important day?  What does it mean to you to be an American?  OR Do you think it is important to respect the flag?  Why or why not? OR What does the flag symbolize to you?   OR… Some people would like to stop saying the Pledge of Allegiance in schools.  Do you agree or disagree with that?

June 14^th is also Blood Donor Day:  Have you ever donated blood?  Do you think this is important?  Why or why not?

Nature Photography Day is June 15^th.  You have just won a photography contest.  What picture in nature did you take?  How did you go about capturing that perfect shot?

June 18^th Sally Ride was the 1^st woman in space in 1983.  If you could be the first person to do something today, what would you like to be first to do and why?  OR…  Would you like to travel in space?  Why or why not?

June 19^th is Family Awareness Day: What do you like best about your family and why?  OR…it’s summer.  What things do you and your family like to do during the summer?  OR  What are your favorite family memories?

June 19^th is also Father’s Day.  Write a descriptive paragraph about your dad. OR…How has your dad influenced you?  OR What are your favorite things about your dad? OR compare and contrast you and your dad or your dad and your grandpa.

June 21^st is the first day of summer.  You have just won $5,000 to take a dream summer vacation!  Who will you take it with, where will you go, what will you do and how long will you be gone for?

June 21^st is World Handshake Day (National Handshake Day, with a different sponsor is the 24^th ) If you could shake anyone’s hand in the world, living or dead (go back in time when they were alive…) whose hand would you like to shake and why?

The 23^rd of June is Let It Go Day.  Write a list of things you need to let go and then summarize why you need to let them go.

June 24^th is Celebration of the Senses Day.  What is your favorite sense and why?  OR if you had to lose one of your senses which one would it be and why?  OR…Make up a 6^th sense, name it, what kind of power would you have, why would you want that 6^th sense and how would you use it.

It’s Take Your Dog To Work Day on the 24^th.  You can have any dog in the world.  What kind do you have; describe them; what’s their name?  OR…you have a job and you have a dog and you are taking them to work, but something goes terribly WRONG!!!! Tell me the story of the Day The Dog…..

June 25^th is Eric Carles’ birthday.  What is your favorite book that he wrote and why?

June 25^th is also Great American Backyard Campout Day!  You are camping in your backyard and something happens! What is it?  Write the mystery story.  OR your parents allow you to have a campout party for the weekend!  Whose coming, what are the party plans?  Explain the details from the food to the activities.

The 26^th is America’s Kids Day.  You have been given $5,000 to celebrate kids.  How will you go about doing that? What kids will you celebrate?

June 27^th is Decide To Be Married Day.  Do you think you will get married?  Do you want to get married?  Why or why not?

Happy Birthday to You Day is the 27^th.  What’s your favorite birthday?  OR…You have $2,000 to plan an unforgettable birthday party.  Explain all of the details from invitations and who is coming to food and entertainment.  OR…what birthday are you really looking forward to and why?

Whatever day you're celebrating, or whatever you're writing about I hope you find joy in it!  Have a sweet summer.

To Show Or Not To Show? Good Question!

As for me and my class, I do; when it is appropriate and only for about 10 to 15 minutes. 

I usually do this on a Friday, and it is at the end of our day. 

This is something my students really look forward to.

I incorporate videos into what we are studying. 

This usually has something to do with our theme or science unit such as weather, electricity, leaves, apples, buttterflies, the life cycle of a frog etc.  

I have some super 8 to 10 minute science lessons on tape that are outstanding. I also own all of the Magic School Bus videos which I show in two parts.

My students enjoy watching their favorite stories that have been made into videos such as Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Gorilla, as well as many of the Arthur, Clifford and Berenstain Bears books. 

I choose the ones that help teach the life-lessons they need to know like not being a bully, not talking to strangers, treating people fairly etc. Many Dr. Seuss' books are also on video.  I also use video's for fire safety, counting, and the alphabet. 

I feel that this is an effective teaching and learning tool; we usually have some wonderful discussions after a video that involve even the most shy and quiet children.  

I tell my students a "secret question" I want them to be listening for the answer to.  At the end of the program I'll ask who knows the answer.  Sometimes a video is longer than the 15-minutes I have alotted.  I will show the rest on day number 2. 

Our principal has a rule that he must see all videos before we are allowed to show them to our students to make sure they are appropriate.

I've also plugged in a themed video at the end of a party day.  The lights are out, the children are exhausted and it's a nice way to sooth and calm them down; they chill and unwind.  It gives me an opportunity to clean up and pack up their things as well.  It's amazing what one can do with 10-15 minutes of quiet time.

I'd enjoy hearing what you think about this "hot topic" and how your school handles it. diane@teachwithme.com

Ice Cream Sandwiches:

In this crisis-time economy and to try and make better nutritious snacks than the packaged kind offers, have fun making ice cream sandwiches with your kids. 

This is an especially cool activity for June. {Pun intended :-) }  

Oatmeal cookies work well, but you can pick a large sugar cookie too, and if your kids really love peanut butter go with peanut butter cookies.

Sam's Club also sells a nice variety of M&M "monster" cookies, chocolate chip, oatmeal  and peanut butter cookies together if you want to make an assortment. 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vanilla frozen yogurt (Lowfat if you want to be heart-healthy).
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 8 large round cookies

1. Soften the yogurt and mix with the peanut butter.
2. Freeze until firm.
3. Spread on 4 of the cookies.
4. Put other 4 cookies on the top to make a sandwich.
5. Put each one into a Ziploc freezer Baggie.

Frozen Fruit Pops:

Quench your kids thirst in a fruity fun way by giving them chunks of frozen fruit on mini-Popsicle sticks.  You can buy a package of 100 at most craft and Dollar Stores.

Buy a watermelon, honeydew melon and/or cantaloupe and cut up nice size chunks of fruit.  Insert a mini-Popsicle stick.

Lay the fruit on a sheet of wax paper that's been put on a paper plate. Cover with freezer wrap and pop into the freezer. Freeze 'til firm; a frozen fruity - sweet treat so good for them to eat!

Banana Blast:

Ingredients:

• 6 bananas
• 4 tablespoons milk
• 1 drop of vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Peel bananas
2. Wrap in freezer wrap and freeze until firm.
3. Cut in half and put in blender.
4. Add milk and vanilla and blend until creamy.
5. Serve in ice cream dishes, custard cups or small bowls with spoons.

Diane's Shrimp Salad:

I just finished whipping some together this week.  My husband and I love eating this salad during the spring and summer months.  

It's great for a quick lunch as an entire meal and fun to take to a pot luck or picnic.

This one is copyrighted so if you use it please give TeachWithMe.com or Diane Henderson credit

Ingredients:

• 1bag of medium sized frozen cooked shrimp (30-40 in a bag).
• 1 pkg of celery
• 2 tbs parsley flakes
• 2 tbs dried Ranch Dressing
• 1/8th teaspoon celery seeds
• 1/8th teaspoon dill
  
• 1 tbs caraway seeds
  
• 2-3 tbs Helman's real mayo ( You can add more if you like it creamier.  We are trying to cut calories. )
• 1/2 teaspoon creamed horseradish if you like some kick.
• 1 can of large black pitted olives
• 1 cup shredded carrots
  
• 1/4 sunflower seeds
  

Directions:

1. Wash hands.
2. Wash and thaw out the shrimp.
3. Cut the shrimp into 1/3rds.
4. Put in a large bowl.
5. Sprinkle the dry Ranch dressing on the shrimp and blend with your fingers.
6. Add the celery seed, caraway seeds, dill and parsley flakes.
7. Add the mayo and horseradish. 
8. Add the sunflower seeds. 
9. Wash and dice up the stalks of celery.  ( I like to cut a stalk length wise and then dice so that the pieces are smaller.)
10. Add to the bowl. 
11. Drain olives. 
12. Slice into 1/3rds. 
13. Add to the bowl.
    
14. Add the carrots
    
15. Stir 'til blended well. 
16. Chill in fridge.
17. Serve in small bowls.
    

If you're eating this as a meal it's nice to have some Rye Crisp crackers with it. Yummy!

For a few more fun ideas be sure and check out the cute Beach Party snacks that Katja from the Netherlands sent in that were posted on the main blog! Click on the link to go there.

Whatever you're whipping up with your wee ones this June I hope it is summer-super cool!

As always, I'd enjoy hearing from you! diane@teachwithme.com  and if you use our recipes please be considerate and link to our page. Thanks!

By now your students have a nice handle on some basic writing skills.  If they are wee-ones, you can brain storm some ideas during Circle Time and write sentences on the board for them to copy.

 Have students TRACE the sentences and then complete the rest of the sentence by WRITING in their thoughts on the lines and then drawing and coloring the page to match it.

 I've designed 3 booklets for you to choose from, or make it a week-long writing activity and do one every other day.

Laminate the pages and then bind the books.

 Make the class books even more personal and special by running off a copy on the photo setting of your printer of your class composite and have each student glue their school picture to their page as well as sign it.

Click on the links to view/print a copy of each one of the end-of-the-year class books.  These Are A Few Of Our Favorite Things... Class Book,   In The Summer I Like To...Class Book, Whew! It's HOT! Class Book or if you like them all, print with one click June Class Books.

You may also want to check out the FREE Easy Reader for this month entitled: My Summer Senses. It's a great way to review your study of the 5 senses.

If you're looking for another Easy Reader fill-in check out: The Colors Of Summer.

It's a nice review of the color words and includes flashcards, skill sheets, and a certificate of praise. When my students are done, we read the booklets as a whole group to reinforce concepts of print.

I take the children outside and read their class books under a shady tree while they slurp on a well-deserved popsicle. 

Happy writing, sharing and reading!

The year is winding down, students have nailed the standards, temperatures are getting warmer (finally!) and vacation is just around the corner, so I wanted to wish everyone a happy and safe Memorial Day weekend.

One of my readers e-mailed me this wonderful Beach Party idea and gave permission to share her name and ideas on the blog.  I thought they were so cute; perfect timing too, incase any of you want to throw a luau or beach party. Here's what she had to say:

Hi Diane I enjoy reading your blog and thought I would pass along some ideas I use for my classroom at the end of the school year that are a hit with my kindergarten students in Den Haag [The Netherlands]
We celebrate the end of the school year and beginning of summer by having a "beach party."

Decorations:

- I decorate the classroom with beach things, most of which I have either in the classroom or at home, and the rest can be purchased at a Dollar Store.
- Use beach towels as tablecloths or to sit on during reading time/circle. etc.
- Wash Frisbees, flip over and use as plates for snack.
- Have inflatable beach balls, sand, water and seashells in a texture table
- Lei's (from The Dollar Store) for prizes
- I have a CD of whale songs and we go "whale watching" at the beach.

Snacks
- Make blue Jell-O with gummy fish mixed in. (Use clear plastic cups so that you can see the fish:)
- We also have "Seaside cupcakes." Frost each cupcake with vanilla/white icing.
- Sprinkle yellow sugar on one half to create the “beach” and blue sugar on the other half to create the “ocean.” (Or use blue icing to make the ocean)
- Open and insert a parasol into each “beach.”
- Attach a gummy bear with a dab of icing onto a life saver “raft” and place onto the blue “ocean.”
- Eat snack outside (weather permitting) and sit on our beach towels

Reading:
At the end of the school year I read Goodbye House and Goodnight Moon.  The children are encouraged to draw things they would like to say goodbye to, and then during circle time we talk about what each child drew, and that it's okay to be sad and miss all of the things we did during the school year.  

Just thought I would share. Danku for all of your ideas. I hope you continue throughout the summer as we get ready for the fall.  Katja Zeldenthuis

Thank YOU Katja for this wonderful idea, and I WILL be continuing to design things through out the summer. 

I'm working on all sorts of fun science things, The solar system and outer space, weather, more things on seasons, nocturnal animals, insects, some more mini offices, + some geography things to name just a few. 

These were all requested by more than one person so they are a top priority.  Then there's a house to clean, all the usual teaching stuff to organize and sort, gardening, a new puppy, family and grandchildren to enjoy and love, well you know...and the summer is gone before you can say Happy Memorial Day weekend!  Stay Safe.