Click to Download from Source @ Michigan.gov Fires, bullying, internet dangers, pedestrian safety and personal body safety and the like ...
Don’t get me wrong — I love candy. And, a jolly rancher, a tootsie roll, or a starburst can work wonders in the classroom for student motivation and enthusiasm. So can pizza parties, and cupcake days, and brunch, and…I’ve had so many types of food parties I can’t even keep track! Recently, however, I’ve been […]
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer revealed her plan to help schools across the state return to in-person learning this fall.
Citeste pe Evz.ro: Când vor termina elevii cursurile. Durata vacanței de vară din 2022. Care sunt excepțiile
UPDATED 5/16/19 to include Student Council Certificate of Achievement! Student Council Start Up.... 2 versions included: Editable Power point OR PDF file! Everything included to successfully start a student council in your Elementary or Middle School! This resource is sure to save you time! What You Get: Student Council ideas and things to do Student Council rationale to send home with the application Student Council application Stu-Co acceptance letter & permission slip Stu-Co unacceptance letter Student Council Transaction register Student Council Start Up by Amy White is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Check out my companion product for Student Council Activities + Assignments growing bundle!
Check out Robert1101's artwork on Artsonia, the largest student art museum on the web. Don't forget to join the fan club and leave a comment on the website.
The 46 Presidents of the United States of America This illustration was very time-consuming and I enjoyed every minute of it. It's so interesting to observe what subtle changes, such as clothing and facial expression, can convey when spread over the centuries of the US presidents. Can you find the last president to sport facial hair? Great Americana wall art poster for a patriotic spot in your library, office, entryway or bedroom! Original created in watercolor and ink This is an unframed archival print on high-quality smooth paper. Watermark does not appear on the physical print.
Do your students need some inspiration to create a work of art inspired by African mask designs? Hand them this printable inspiration sheet. They'll be able to clearly see the different lines, shapes, and patterns that create an African mask. You can encourage them to sketch their own composition on...
PBIS in the Classroom PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports) has become an important part of school wide behavior and expectations for students. My experience shows that many teachers struggle to incorporate PBIS expectations into their classrooms. In this blog post I provide an overview of PBIS and discuss how to implement the aspects into your practice. I believe that PBIS is a great way to reframe punishments and consequences into positive approaches that enable students to be successful. There are three tiers of PBIS. Tier 1 is for everyone in the classroom and usually works for about 80% of the students. Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions are put into place when students have trouble following expectations. The tips below focus on PBIS for Tier 1 students. This is where you start with all of your students. 1- Create clear and positive expectations. Students should understand what the expectation is for them to do in the classroom, instead of not to do. For example, “Raise your hand to talk” instead of “Do not shout out”. Also, do not create too many expectations in the classrooms. You want students to easily be able to remember the expectations. 2- Create routines in the classroom. Teach and model the routines in the classroom for your students. You could have students model the proper way to do the routine. Continue to reteach and model the routines multiple times before you expect that students will know exactly what you would like them to do. 3- Review the expectations and routines often. At the beginning of the year spend a lot of time teaching and reviewing expectations and routines with your students. After the beginning of the year, take time to reteach routines and expectations at least one month. This is an important thing to do even if you think your students are doing well with routines. This is where teachers usually struggle because they feel students should already know the expectations and routines. 4- Have the expectations posted. Post the expectations for behavior in the classroom. This way when a student is not following an expectation you can point to the classroom expectations and review them with the student. Some students will need reviewing of the expectations often. 5- Be consistent with your expectations and routines. Whatever expectations and routines you set up with your students be consistent. Practice the same expectations and routines with students. If students are not following the routines and expectations be clear with students about that and go back to review them. In my experience parents often think that when schools go to a PBIS approach that means there are no longer consequences for not following expectations and routines. However, that is not true. Within a PBIS approach consequences look different and avoid any type of public humiliation (which could be putting a kids name on the board, moving colors in front of the class, or yelling at students in front of everyone). Students who do not follow Tier 1 PBIS may need additional consequences or their own behavior plan that you set up with the parent and student. There are many great resources with ideas of how to help students who struggle following expectations and routines. A great place for resources and ideas is PBIS world. Check it out below! http://www.pbisworld.com/
Teach important leadership skills in your middle or high school Leadership class or Student Council program with these use-tomorrow activity ideas.
Students become stakeholders in the learning process WITHOUT having to dress up like Benjamin Franklin.
En Bonne Santé French Booklet for Healthy Living! ☼ This booklet was designed as a teacher-led lesson or read-aloud. As you read the book with your students, ask them to make connections between the statements and images, and their own experiences.Aligned with the Ontario Curriculum • Vie Saine 1er...
Who owns the U.S. money and why can't we just print more? The economics of supply and demand and function of the Treasurer of the United States for 4th grade.
Join me on my journey to engagement (and get a freebie to boot!) If you have been following my blog lately, you will know that I am absolutely (and probably ridiculously!!! ) obsessed with virtual field trips. I promise I will blog about something different soon but I have one last thing. I have been working on organizing all the field trips I find into one sheet and I was just able to make it into a searchable database! So search away and make some connections! Let me know if you take any of these field trips! I would love to hear how others are using them in their classrooms!!! This list is ever growing so bookmark this and keep coming back when you are planning next year!
When we ask students to depict the water in a drawing, the majority draws a blue solid color; in the same way the wood is drew as a brown solid color, and the grass is an area of compact green. In …
Medieval Times & Middle Ages STEM / STEAM Challenges Bundle! There are 20 STEM Challenges in this pack. Each STEM Challenge has detailed directions, photo examples, a list of materials needed, a prediction section, brainstorming section, trials 1, 2, & 3, final results section with drawings, and a reflection section This bundle contains 11 StudentSavvy STEM Units (20 Challenges) Early Byzantine, Early Islam, West Africa, Medieval China, Medieval Japan, Early Medieval Europe, Late Medieval Europe, The Renaissance, The Reformation, Mesoamerica, and Scientific Revolution STEM Challenges!! Cross-curricular challenges for students who are studying the Middle Ages! These resources have science, technology, engineering, and measurement activities to do with your upper elementary kids that will really enhance their learning! The STEM Challenges include: Early Byzantine STEM Challenges Hagia Sophia Marble Run Using a list of supplies, students must design a Hagia Sophia structure that contains a marble run track. The goal of the stem challenge is to create a design that has the longest properly-functioning marble run track. The marble run can travel up, down, around, or inside the Hagia Sophia structure. Using planning pages (included in the resource), the Hagia Sophia model must have similar dimensions and structures from the actual floor plan. Students must shrink the dimensions but maintain the proper ratio. The structure cannot be taller than 2 feet. (more instructions are given in the resource) The Counterweight Trebuchet Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must build a counterweight-style trebuchet. Using planning pages (included in the resource), students must include all the proper parts in their trebuchet model that can successfully swing its arm using a heavy counter-weight to propel an object forward. The goal is to create a trebuchet that can shoot an object into the air and travel a far distance. The group that can create the most effective trebuchet (launches the furthest) wins the challenge!(more instructions are given in the resource) Early Islam STEM Challenges Caravan Contraption Using a list of supplies, students must design a model of a caravan vehicle using simple machines. The STEM team must decide on 2 simple machines using the following pages and incorporate them into their design. Students must come up with at least 4 supplies that they will bring on their 30 day journey across the Arabian Peninsula (planning pages and descriptions included in the resource). Students must also consider how they will protect their goods from robbers and how to preserve them from the harsh climate. (more instructions are given in the resource) Caravan Coding Students will work together to plan and design a game with characters, obstacles, and commands. The game must have an objective with a starting point and a finishing point. It is up to the group how detailed they would like their game to be. (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) West Africa STEM Challenges Gold Mining Machine - Sluice Box Challenge Using a list of supplies, students must design and build a sluice box to search for gold. The goal of this challenge is to create a device that effectively separates gold and heavier material from river sediments (or gravel). As water moves through the device, the riffles must catch and separate the gold and/or heavy material. The sluice box must contain all the parts described (in planning pages found in the resource) using the materials below. (riffles, metal mesh, feeder, etc.) Items can be added to the materials list if needed. STEM teams have 3 days and 3 trials to complete this challenge. (more instructions are given in the resource) Djembe Drum Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must create a Djembe drum. The Djembe drum must contain all of the elements found on the diagram of page 5. The drum must also produce a variety of pitches when played on different parts of the drum head. The drum cannot be larger than 25 inches tall or have a diameter larger than 14 inches. Students must be able to complete this challenge in 2 days. (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) Medieval China STEM Challenge Zheng He's Treasure Ship Challenge! Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must design and build a model of Zheng He’s treasure ship! The goal of the STEM challenge is to create a ship that can carry the highest amount of coins possible without sinking for 3 full minutes. STEM students should discuss and predict which materials and strategies would help their device carry the most coins while staying afloat. Teams only have three attempts to test their boats. They may have to redesign their boat if it fails (breaks apart). The Zheng He Ship requirements are (using the planning pages included in the resource) : the ship must have at least 4 deck levels, there must be 9 masts, and the model can only be created using the supplies listed below. (more instructions are given in the resource) Medieval Japan STEM Challenges Zen Garden (Zen Buddhism) Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must design and build a model of a Zen garden. The garden must contain a constructed sand box, sand , rake, and pebbles or rocks of various sizes and shapes. If students want to add their own features such as branches, moss, or figurines, they may do so. The sand box may only be constructed using Popsicle sticks, glue, and tin foil. STEM teams must also consider what they learned about Zen gardens; their garden should have asymmetrical elements such as the use of odd numbers and various heights in their rock formations. The STEM team with the highest score (see scoring card in resource) will win the challenge! (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) Norimono Zipline Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must create a Norimono vehicle. There must be a zipline apparatus where the vehicle can travel from one designated point of the classroom to the next by using a pulley that attaches to a string. The Norimono must also have a sliding door mechanism (that can effectively open and close) for the passenger to enter and exit the vehicle. (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) Medieval Europe - Early Middle Ages (Feudalism) STEM Challenges Battering Ram Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must design and build a battering ram. The ram must be suspended in the air by string and must effectively swing back and forth to exert force on an opposing structure. The battering ram must also have wheels and axles, moving forward and backward. A cover (roof) for protection from oncoming attacks is recommended but not required..... (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) Watermill Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must create a watermill. The watermill must properly spin when water is poured at the top of the wheel without falling apart. STEM teams have 3 days to complete this challenge. (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) Late Middle Ages STEM Challenges Marshmallow Ballista Challenge Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must design and build a ballista. The ballista must be able to effectively shoot a marshmallow arrow into the air. The goal of the STEM challenge is to propel a marshmallow arrow as far and straight as possible. The STEM team that can build the ballista that shoots the arrow the furthest wins the challenge..... (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) The Siege Tower Using the supplies below, STEM teams must create a medieval siege tower. The tower must have at least 4 platforms and ladders for each one. The tower must be on wheels and can effectively move forward and backward. The tower must have a drawbridge and a mechanism to let down and pull up the platform. STEM teams have 3 days to complete this challenge.... (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) The Renaissance STEM Challenges Leonardo da Vinci's Flying Machine! Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must design and build a flying machine. Using their knowledge of the Laws of Motion and 4 Forces of Flight, (information sheets included) students must create a innovative machine that applies those laws and forces. STEM teams have 3 trials to test their flying machines. If the machine does not fly, that does not mean the team has lost the challenge. The goal of the challenge is to incorporate as many ideas and concepts from the forces of flight and to be able to justify the decisions made in their product creation. ..... (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) Anemometer Using a list of supplies, students must design an anemometer that accurately measures wind speed. They must be able to measure how many spins the device makes per minute by marking one of the revolving cups. Students do not have to use all the materials listed below but they cannot add items to the list. They have one hour to complete this challenge. (time testing their anemometer does not count towards the hour). In order to test, the anemometer should be placed outside on a windy day or can be tested with a fan..... (more instructions and planning pages are given in the resource) The Reformation STEM Challenge Gutenberg's Printing Press Challenge! Using a list of supplies, STEM teams must design and build a model of Gutenberg’s Printing Press. The goal of this challenge is to create a device or model that uses simple machines (such as a lever or screw) to press down on a flat surface. The Printing Press model does not have to create print, but it must contain a lever or screw and it must effectively press down on a flat surface when manually operated.... (more instructions are given in the resource) Mesoamerica STEM Challenges Floating Gardens / Chinampas The Aztec built floating gardens by weaving sticks together to create a giant
A blog full of tips, lessons, and ideas to use in the upper elementary classroom.
Have you ever looked out into the faces of the your students to see blank stares, wondering eyes, fiddling fingers, or students snoring? I think it happens to all of us! Also, do your students want snack time right after they walk in the door? Do you find someone sneaking their snack or part of their lunch during class? How about this....do you get hungry throughout the day and want to sneak a snack? I know I do! Sooooooo.......here is some food for thought: Why not use food for motivation? I know your pocket can't afford to use food for every lesson, but maybe one a month? If you are in a district where parents are involved, get their help! I can honestly say that my students have come back to visit after several years and still remember those lessons with food! Here are some recipes for success in all subject areas: 1. EXPLORERS AND CHOCOLATE After a lesson on explorers and the value of a cocoa bean, we made our very own chocolate bars. Click for directions! How to Make a Chocolate Bar with Students Click to see a Chocolate History Webquest, a Chocolate Opinion Writing, and a Chocolate Grouping Freebie! 2. PARAGRAPH WRITING AND HAMBURGER CUPCAKES Of course since my passion is writing, I love serving hamburgers when teaching paragraph writing, but if you are a sweet freak, you will love the fact that Walmart sells hamburger cupcakes! No lie! I was just there today and you can get some loaded or unloaded (just ketchup and mustard icing) hamburger cupcakes. Here is a pic of a loaded hamburger. Free Hamburger Graphic Organizer Series of Blog Lessons on How to Write a Paragraph Paragraph Writing Resource 3. CHARACTER TRAITS AND SKITTLES Use skittles for a character traits lesson! Make sure you have extras to taste! Click for directions! Developing Characters in Narrative Writing 4. FRACTIONS AND SNACKS See Jennifer William's post on how she uses snacks to teach fractions! Fraction Fun with Snacks. I've also seen fractions done with Hershey Bars, Kit Kat Bars and Pizza! Make sure there are extras to taste! 5. CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD PROJECT AND INTERNATIONAL FOOD FAIR We like to do this after our Christmas Around the World project. I give my students extra credit for bringing in a food item from the countries they studied. I laugh every time because parents aren't shy to bring in things the kids won't touch with a ten-foot spoon! The parent volunteers and I will taste it though! Yum! Click for more info! International Food Fair Blogpost 6. CIVIL WAR AND HARDTACK When teaching Civil War, make some hardtack with your students! Just like any part of history or culture, when you make or serve food to enhance the lesson, students will remember! Their tummies will thank you too! How to Make Civil War Hard Tack 7. TAXES AND M&M'S 1. Appoint roles to three students (King of England, representative from Parliament, tax collector). Have them sit facing the rest of the class in the front of the room. 2. Give each student at their seats one snack pack of M&M's. Tell them they are not to eat the M&M's until the end of the activity. (Have an extra pack for each student) The M&M's represent money and they just got paid for their jobs. However, they need to put some aside for taxes! 3. Start naming off things that will be taxed (wearing shorts, necklace, hat, holding a pen, whatever). You can even tax more than one M&M for an item. This is when the students get fired up for losing their M&M's! 4. Together, count up all the M&M's collected for taxes. Then divide it- tax collector 10%, 50% representative from Parliament, 40% to the king. 5. Discuss feelings over losing money to these people! 6. Then pass out extra pack to eat! Wahhhlaaaaa! Fun eating and learning! 8. BOSTON TEA PARTY AND SWEET TEA! When studying the Boston Tea Party, don't forget to serve some tea! Of course I live in the south and that is what we drink here. You can always serve hot tea or unsweet tea! 9. MOON PHASES AND OREOS Genius right? I've seen this on Pinterest and Google. What a fun way to teach the moon phases! This picture is from Mr. Benson's Science Classroom. 10. ESTIMATING, MEASURING, COUNTING, GRAPHING AND PUMPKIN SEEDS My partner did this for many years. It is messy but loads of fun and educational! I googled it and found it on Scholastic- The Pumpkin Project 11- AUTHOR'S PURPOSE AND PIE Bake a pie with this awesome lesson! 12. BUNNICULA AND CHOCOLATE CAKE In the book, Bunnicula, Harold the scruffy dog loves chocolate cake. Why not make a chocolate cake and give everyone a piece? You will find food in most books so take advantage of it! Before you know it, every time you read a book, one of your students will ask if they could bring in a snack to represent it! 13. DIGESTIVE SYSTEM AND BANANAS WITH GRAHAM CRACKERS I'm really glad I don't have pictures for this one! Gross! I love how the authors of the lesson plans refer to the 'poo'. Ha! I haven't done this experiment with my own class, but Jenn from The Teacher Next Door told me about doing it in her class. I bet students will remember this one! I found an awesome Step-by-Step Lesson plan for you! Lesson Plan Link for Digestive System Science 14. MODEL 3-D SOLID SHAPES AND MARSHMALLOWS All you need are marshmallows and toothpicks! Students create cubes, prisms, and pyramids. See how large you can make them! Make sure to have extras for munching! 15. AREA/PERIMETER AND CHEEZ ITS In order, have students create squares, rectangles, and irregular polygons using Cheez Its. Require them to indicate the area and perimeter each time. Differentiate: Assign students (who are ready for a challenge) an area and perimeter and ask them to construct the mystery shape! Don't forget to give them extras to taste! Or...simply use food as a motivation to achieve a class goal! Reach an academic goal and get a taco party or reach a behavior goal and get an ice cream party or reach a fundraising goal for a pizza party! Yum! I think I am ready to go munch on something...maybe some chocolate for my sweet tooth? What is your recipe for success? Connect With Me! TPT Store Facebook Pinterest My Blog
Completed kindergarten masterpieces. That's right, I said kindergarten. The under-6 set is knockin' it outta the park, er, art room so far this year and I couldn't be more thrilled. What I'm about to present to you right here is one Big Fat Hairy kindergarten unit on line. And color. Oh, and shape, sculpture and good craftsmanship, i.e. how-not-to-drive-the-art-teacher-crazy(-er)-by-not-grinding-your-paintbrush-into-the-paper. Because she no like-y. And, in my art room, keeping me sane-ish is at the top of my Learning Targets. Which is way harder than you could ever imagine. Just ask the kids. Do you recall those wild and wacky paintings created on the first days of school in this post? Those large paintings have come in very handy as backdrops for our displays as you can see here. Without getting into all of that, let's chat about the aforementioned Line Unit, shall we? I'm not gonna lie, I do this same ole project with kindergarten at the beginning of every year. Which is unusual for me because with all the other grade levels, I love to change things up. Not so with kinder'town for a coupla reasons: A. they love it; B. it covers a whole batch o' skills/techniques/vocabulary/routines and C. let's be honest, coming up with projects that the little ones can master is not my forte. So when I find something that works, I stick with it. So on our very first day of art, after introducing ourselves to one another and an abbreviated discussion of rules and consequences (because, after all, these kids are five. They still have baby fluff, suck their thumbs and wet their pants routinely. Rules and consequences mean nada. A wicked stare and a "we don't do that in kindergarten" usually does the trick), I like to dive head first into the art-making swimmin' hole. Which means we create our very first sculpture. Now if you're an old warhorse at this art teacher game, this lesson is nothing new to you. You might wanna skip on down to the bottom where I discuss such things as pinwheel portrait painting and bottomless basket weaving (don't worry newbies, they'll be gone a while. I don't even know what that stuff is!). For the rest of ya, lemme tell you how I go about teaching this line sculpture lesson: First of all, we have a little chat about the difference between flat two-dimensional artwork and sculptures. After looking at some images of sculptures, we chat about the ones we are familiar with (ole Lady Liberty almost always comes up) and discuss how a sculpture is something we can see (rotating body at waist for emphasis) all...the way...around. I then tell 'em that we are going to create a sculpture with a bunch of straight lines (strips of paper cut 1" X 9" but sizes can vary). I ask them how to make a flat piece of paper pop out of their sculpture base (aka the bottom paper) to which they usually answer "glue!" It's at this point that I tell 'em that if they want their sculpture to stand, just like us, it must have feet. I demonstrate creating a small fold at the ends of the strip of paper thus creating feet. It's there that glue is applied (to which the strip of paper always responds, "oohh, that tickles my feet! Ohhh, that glue is soo cold!" Yes, the paper talks to us. It's kindergarten, people. They eat this stuff up). Once the glue is applied, I show the kids how to hold the paper in place on the base for about 10 seconds. From there, I demonstrate adding more paper strips to the sculpture base on top, below, behind or beside the first strip. Then I turn the kids loose on their on sculptures. The following art class, I introduce more lines. I demonstrate folding a zigzag line, wrapping a strip of paper around my pencil to create a spiral and creating a loop de loop. I also chat about how lines create shapes and demonstrate creating a circle by gluing one end of the strip to the other. With that circle, so many other shapes can be created with a pinch. Pinch the circle once and you have a teardrop! Pinch it again and you have an ellipse! One more time, it's a triangle! Anther pinch and you have a square. From there, the kids go nuts on their sculptures creating lines, shapes and whatever else they can dream up. Here! Lemme walk you through it. On the third day of art class, I get real serious about the whole line thing. We look at each of these snake-y lines on the poster I created way back in first-year-art-teacher-land and then locate them on works of art. Any ole Kandinsky works great for this. It's at this point I introduce to the kids a lil poem I wrote some years ago about a snake named Larry that can morph his body into any line he likes. It goes a lil sumpin like this (complete with hand motions, you better believe it!): Larry the Line Is a friend of mine (creating a snake by opening the fingers of your hand, puppet style and there's your snake!) He can make three (hold up a three with your fingers) Straight lines for me! Ver-tickle (create a vertical line with your forearm) Diagonal and horizontal! (pantomime each) Any curve, he can learn With a twist and a turn. When he's out of his tangle he makes a great...angle. (created by placing your hand on your hip and pointing to your elbow) Any line, he can make After all, he's a snake! After learning the Larry the Line poem, I bust out this huge cheesey carnival snake I got years ago that happens to have a little rattle in his tail. I convince the kids that he's real (they're kindergarten so they totally buy it) and maneuver him around to create a variety of lines. If the kids guess the name of the line correctly, I let them "rattle" Larry's tail. They eat it up and learn the names of lines to boot. After that, I give a little demo on painting. If you've read this blog for five minutes, you know that when painting, I liken the bristles of the paint brush to a ballerina: It always dances on it's toes, it never scoots around on it's bottom. After I demonstrate painting each of Larry's lines, the kids go to their seats and we do a little guided painting. Meaning, I paint and they follow along. This school year, I have my kindergarten for 45 minutes every six days (which is different than my usual 30 minute classes, twice every six days...confused yet? That makes two of us). That slightly longer block of time makes a world of a difference in that we can accomplish so much! On the fourth day of this unit, we examine Kandinsky again and this time chat about how influenced he was by music. The kids were told that they were going to be painting a nonobjective picture of lines while listening to Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev. If you're not familiar, this piece of music introduces each character of Peter and the Wolf with a different instrument. Each character really comes to life with the music and makes for great line paintings. On that day, the children were only given black paint. As they painted to the music, you could see them trying to capture each character in line. Once a painting was finished, I'd take it from them and hand them a new sheet of white paper. By the end of art class, each child had painted about three black and white line pictures. The following art class, I introduced the kids to tempra cakes which you can see best a coupla photos ago. My focus was on using the art materials properly and exploration of color. I wrote about this particular painting lesson pretty extensively last year in this blog post. In that lesson, we didn't paint to music and we focused some on pattern in a follow up lesson. Here's a collection of their finished pieces. I love how wild, bright and unique each one is, just like the artists themselves. On the sixth and final day of this unit, the kids were introduced to Roy G. Biv and watercolor paint. Since the last lesson had just been about exploring with color and proper use of painting supplies, I really wanted to focus on the order of the colors in the rainbow. My hat helped them remember the order (even if it is missing the "B" in Roy G. Biv) as did the large rainbow I have mounted on my easel. And in case you're dying to get a rainbow hat of your own, mine is from amazon. Yes, really. Have you read this book? I picked it up years ago at the thrift store and it's pretty cute. As you turn each page, an additional color of ribbon is added to the ribbon rainbow in the book, hence the "Magic Ribbon Book" label at the bottom. After that chat, I demonstrate to the children how to use watercolor paints. This is an easy transition from the tempra cakes as the cleaning-your-brush-before-getting-another-color is exactly the same. We do chat about the differences between the two mediums (you know, watercolor being more translucent) and also discuss painting in Roy G. Biv order. After that demo, the kids returned to their seats with their paintings created on that third day of art class and rainbow-ize the thing. This is the first year I've added this portion to the line unit and I love the result. And there you have it. One Big Fat Hairy line/shape/color/RoyG.Biv/sculpture/abstract Unit for the wee ones. I know these lessons are nothing new...so I'd love to hear how you approach teaching line. Also, for the sake of space, I may have not answered all of your how-you-teach-that questions, so feel free to email me or leave a comment. I may or may not get back to you. Just sayin'.
Last year I set a goal to have Brooklyn be able to get her Good Canine Citizen award. Well if you spend more than two minutes around my dog you will instantly know we didn't reach our goal. She is a catalyst of bad behavior. So this year my goal has been for her to walk in Nashville's Christmas Parade with other Nashville Pitties. I always do a lesson on goal setting, but what good is a goal if you aren't organized enough to ensure the steps are in place to meet it? My goal for Brooklyn was a lofty one, in fact it was too big. So we are reorganizing to reduce the stress of dog and mother. This reorganization made and the stress I put on myself to accomplish made me think about how I could change my lesson on organization. After a lot of brainstorming and about 5 drafts here is my new lesson for 4th Grade on responsibility and organization: Lesson 1: We started with a scavenger hunt. I gave teams either an organized back pack or a messy back pack and a list of items. I started the timer and they were off. Most of the teams with organized back packs finished the scavenger hunt within 2-3 minutes and the teams with messy backpacks anywhere from 4-8 minutes. They really got into this, especially because I hid stinky socks, cereal, stuffed animals, and toys in the messy backpacks. Next we discussed that if you were organized that would save you about 2 minutes per day, just enough time to recheck your work, 14 mintues in a week, enough time to read a chapter or two in your new favorite book, and about 56 minutes a month, enough time to watch an entire episode of their favorite Disney show. We ended with a pre-test of work habits so they could identify what they specifically need to improve on. Lessons 2/3: We talked about responsibility and what it means. We watched the video "I Can Do It! Taking Responsibility" which shows the students different scenarios and allows us time to stop and discuss each one. Next we charted what kinds of responsibilities they had in 4th grade. We then role played different responsibilities (the examples are from AIM Education) and in teams practiced what we would do. For example: A new movie you and your best friend are dying to see has just opened up, and your friends wants the two of you to see it this Saturday. The trouble is, your science project is due on Monday, and you and your project partner agreed you would spend Saturday gathering plants in the park. What should you do? At the end of each skit we talked about the different feelings that come with responsibility: stress, disappointment, frustration, etc. That lead us to the postcard activity. I laid several postcards around the room each with a different picture on it. I asked the students to (in silence) find a card that represented how they feel about starting fourth grade and the new responsibilities they are taking on. When everyone had a card we broke into small groups and shared the card we choose and why. Next I asked everyone to set 3 goals for themselves: 1) Something they could accomplish this week. 2) Something they could accomplish in the next 2 months. (I like to remind them of their work habits pre test here) 3) Something they wanted to accomplish by the end of this school year. We then shared our goals with our small group and then with the entire class. I collected the cards and will give them to our students in two months with a personal check in note written on each. **In the past I have done this icebreaker with my faculty and with 6th grade. They filled out the card like an actual postcard and I mailed it to their homes half way through the year. Lesson 4: We continue our talk of responsibility and stress. First in groups they draw what it feels like to be stressed. Then each group shares and we look for similarities that we all have. Next we watch the Brain Pop on stress and at the end they go back to their drawings and surround themselves with things they can do to help alleviate their stress. To finish our series we take the same work habits post test and see if we have improved! Since I only see this grade once a month this 4 part series starts in Sept and ends at Christmas break. Before I know it the sleigh bells are ringing!
Another great and FREE pinterest/teachers pay teachers find!
Kids will have fun while learning where do I Live with this printable activity perfect for preschool, pre-k, and kindergarten students.
Teaching American government to elementary students doesn't have to be boring. Instead, engage and inspire students, while teaching essential
This anchor chart is a really great way to organize the Bill of Rights.
An elementary art teacher blog with art projects and lessons, DIY projects and outfit photos as well as clothing I have made myself.
