When you first present the Spin-a-Story Writing Prompts Chart to students, explain that the three wheels provide the three major elements every good story needs:• WHO (character): person, animal, or animated object, such as a robot• WHAT (plot): the main event that happens in the story• WHERE (setting): place and time in which the story … Read more
Flag day Activity Materials 34- by 42-inch pocket chart 9 white sentence strips or 3 each of red (or pink), white, and blue flag and star templates (pages 79–80) red and blue markers card stock scissors an American flag (optional) Flag day Activity Setting Up Write each line of the poem on a separate sentence … Read more
Teaching the Whale Tails Lesson Explain that scientists can tell whales apart from one another. Humpback whales have markings or patterns on the underside of their flukes—the two flat halves that make up the tail. Each humpback whale has its own unique markings. By looking at the flukes, scientists can identify specific whales and track … Read more
Art References: Sculpture: Houdon, Rodin, Duane Hanson, African and Roman portraits; Naturalistic Painting: Da Vinci, Titian, Rembrandt, Ingre, Sargent, Grant Wood;Stylized, Abstract, Mixed-Media Painting: Van Gogh, Modigliani, Picasso, Warhol, Chuck Close, Alice Neel;Caricature: Honoré Daumier, Thomas Nast, David Levine, Al Hirschfeld MaterialsFor each student:• Portrait Template (page 21)• 5 to 8 sheets copy paper• masking … Read more
Half of Half of HalfGive one child a piece of 11- by 17-inch paper. Have the child fold the sheet in half, cut it apart, then hand the other half to another child. Next, have both children fold their sheets in half again, cut them apart, and hand the other halves to other children. Have … Read more
Celebrity Spinners Getting Started Depending on the grade level you’re teaching, you may want to cut out the disks using an Exacto knife prior to beginning this activity. How-Tos Give each student a manila folder and a copy of the template on page 28. Students should use a pencil and ruler to draw a line … Read more
Letters From the Alamo This site contains actual letters from two lesser-known defenders of the Alamo: William Carey and Micajah Autrey. Read their biographies and letters to understand more about the men who fought in the Texan Revolution. Imagine that you are a volunteer in the Texas army, writing home to family members or friends. … Read more
How to Make the Mini-Books Make double-sided photocopies of the mini-book pages. Carefully tear along the perforation to remove the pages from the book. (Note: If your photocopy machine does not have a doublesided function, first make copies of mini-book pages 1/3. Place these copies in the paper tray with the blank side facing up. … Read more
From the Authors Change can be unsettling, but sometimes it is change that leads us to open new doors and make new connections. We were faced with this opportunity when restructuring occurred in our district. Through new classroom assignments, we found ourselves teaching in the same building for the first time. We began the year … Read more
Each of the 15 mini-books encourages children to use active learning and hands-on experiences as they construct knowledge about the world. A lesson for each mini-book provides step-by-step support for guiding children in conducting their research and analyzing data, to create books that they can revisit again and again. Children not only learn about specific … Read more
The program is flexible and easy to use in the classroom. Among the helpful features are the following:• a tiered storage box that makes the titles easily identifiable• six copies of each book, allowing for both independent reading and group instruction• this guide to support and enhance your teaching plans• two student reproducibles for each … Read more
When the British sailed into the harbor, they were met by a boat waving the white flag of truce. On this boat was Francis Scott Key, a Washington lawyer who’d been sent to negotiate a prisoner exchange. Key got an American doctor released, but their truce ship was not allowed to return until the fighting … Read more
Downward linesA Rainy DayTrace each line from top to bottom. Slanted linesColorful KitesTrace each line from bottom to top. Forward circlesClowning AroundTrace each circle. p, b, hPerfect PumpkinsTrace and write. Fill plastic squeeze-type bottles with different colors of tempera paint. Squeeze the paint onto construction paper to create letters. U, P, RUp, Up, and Away!Trace … Read more
Research has repeatedly shown that direct phonics instruction is an important part of literacy learning, and that word family instruction is a highly valuable way to teach sound-spelling relationships. An astounding number of the words children will encounter in their reading fall into common word families, and within these families, words that use the same … Read more
GETTING THE MOST FROM EACH SONG Play the song on the audio CD for your child to enjoy. Sing the song as you and your child track the words. Encourage your child to join in on the repetitive parts of the song. Have your child clap the rhythm of the song as you sing it … Read more
Throughout the simulation, students will keep a journal of their experiences and keep track of the supplies they use and the distance they have traveled. At the end of the simulation, they will write a letter to a fictional aunt who lives “back East,” describing what they have experienced and what they have learned from … Read more
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. On July 4, 1776, the members of the Second Continental Congress approved this Declaration of Independence. The AssignmentFirst, make sure … Read more
The AssignmentThink of an animal grazing in a peaceful, grassy setting. Label the animal “Army of Northern Virginia.” Label the grass “Southern Victories.” Draw a lion or some other predator of the grazing animal lurking in the tall grass. Label this animal “Gettysburg.” Possible TitleThe Battle of Gettysburg, July 1–3, 1863 From Read Draw Remember … Read more
What This Book Won’t DoAlthough this book is crammed with useful ideas and information about developing literacy, it will not show you how to teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons before she is 3. It will not give you evidence to claim that your child is the best and brightest at the … Read more
When the war ended, with the signing of a treaty in 1848, it was decided that the border between Mexico and Texas would be the Rio Grande river. But there was something else in this treaty—called the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo—that proved of greater significance. Mexico sold California and New Mexico to the United States … Read more
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