Heat related illness can affect kids of all ages. It's important to know the signs and how to treat it before it progresses.
Explore rocks and minerals with this fun rock testing experiment that uses vinegar & sedimentary rocks -- also known as the Acid Test for Rocks!
Make a string and bead puzzle to challenge kids' thinking and problem solving skills. Part of STEAM summer camp.
This is a fantastic way to teach rhythm notation, but it might make you hungry.
An educational blog that shares ideas about teaching! Mostly geared towards science, but sometimes offer ideas that any teacher might benefit from. Come see me!
Learn how to build a catapult! This STEM activity is so fun for kids and needs just a few simple supplies! Plus learn history in the process.
Teach communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, and more to set kids up for their future.
Last year the cup stack was one of my FAVORITE team building activities (see post here). So, naturally, I wanted to give it another shot! The Cup Stack is a fun, yet challenging activity that promotes team work. The supplies are basic: cups, string, rubber bands. I go ahead and tie the string to the rubber bands so it is ready to go. I make a few for groups of 4 and a few for groups of 5, this way no matter what the numbers are in the classroom I can make it work. I start by asking students what teamwork is. What does it look like? sound like? feel like? We brainstorm a list of ideas that I hang in the classroom for students to refer to. Each class comes up with a variety of ideas, but they all center around the same theme. Then I introduce their challenge. I start off my admitting that this will be a frustrating activity. We discuss ways to handle our stress and feelings that arise when others make a mistake or don't do what we want them to do. I model that they will each be given 6 cups and a rubberband with strings attached to it. Their job is to stack the cups into a design by only holding onto their individual string. I demonstrate that when everyone pulls on their string the rubberband opens wider, and vice versa. I also show them the challenges of picking up a cup that has tipped on its side or fallen on the floor. No matter what happens, they must follow the one rule: YOU CAN ONLY TOUCH YOUR STRING. No touching the rubber band, no touching the cup, and no touching other group member's strings. I reinforce how communication is so important in order to reach the goal. Then I set them off. Here are some videos and pics. After about 10-15 minutes, we pause and reflect on our experiences. I ask them to rate their group on how well they worked together using the ideas we wrote at the beginning of the lesson. I ask them what went well for their group. I also ask them what didn't go well for their group. We talk about different strategies and ways we an handle ourselves when things don't go the way we want them to. Throughout the activity I walk around and facilitate positive communication, so I usually have a few examples to help springboard the discussion.
You know what I love even more than when an activity goes exactly as planned? When my kids take the lesson even further than I'd dreame...
Use skittles and a few questions for a great icebreaker game for any social event. This get to know you game is great for young kids.
Give the kids something to shoot at that doesn't involve a video screen. Help them make a mini catapult then use marshmallows or pom-poms to shoot at targets. To make it easy, we've provide a numbered target you can just download and print.
15 Free printable funny summer ad libs, great for kids car activities or for summer party games.
I have posted before about the end of the school year and how I sing camp songs with my kiddos. They love it and can't wait for the end of ...
40+ Gift Ideas Made by Kids
It’s easy enough to tell kids that sounds are caused by vibrations, but that can be a tough concept for them to really grasp! Here are two simple demonstrations that allow kids to actually SEE sound waves in action. This post is the final installment in the Summer STEAM Camp that we have been taking […]
Little storytellers, take a trip to the beach with this fill-in-the-blanks story! Your young writer will practice her parts of speech to finish the story.
Being outdoors with kids can be easy or hard. Easy if they like discovering or hard if they need to be entertained. With my Nature Walk Trail Sign printable I have found a way to appeal to both. Easy crafts or active learning activities are something I like to bring with me for those "I'm bored" times. Redirecting their energy is usually all they ...
So on to the Spy Gear kit we were sent. The biggest hits were the Stealth com walkie talkies as they didn't need to use their hands. They loved these a ...
Build a simple speaker from a paper plate, some magnets, and wire.
Secret message coding bracelets are a unique form of wearable communication that allows individuals to encode and share messages through patterns of beads.
Want to learn and practice differet types of drama? Here's a list of 9 with an explanation of how to do each one. Great for drama class.
Read about how to design an effective summer school curriculum for secondary ELA. Engage students in meaningful content that they missed during the school year.
Get ready to eat your science with fun food activities for kids that are completely edible! Easy set up & tasty makes the perfect activity.
Activities and Combined Activities Mutual Activities After brief opening exercises, Young Women and Young Men activities are usually held separately. Class or quorum activities usually last 30 to 7…
If you've ever considered adding reader's theater to your reading block but thought it would be too much work, check out this guest post from Sarah Wiggins!
Free printable K-8 teacher worksheets & lesson plans. Educational resources, plans & activities for math, vocabulary, history, science, art & more.
Are you teaching PE this week and need a few ideas on what to do? Here’s a soccer plan you can teach in an hour lesson (click here to view the essential soccer skills) – Easy to setup, …
{Affiliate links used.} Summer is rapidly approaching. There is a plethora of ideas, books, and resources out there to teach Spanish. Here is a list of all the ideas that would work well with summer to help your students/kids learn more Spanish. {By the way, if you are a teacher and thinking of hosting Spanish summer camps, check out my series here with a ton of games, activities, and crafts to do your own camp.} Here is the unit I developed on Oceans. {Free printables available.} Si Quieres Ver Una Ballena is such a sweet and funny book about how to spot a whale. I have developed some activities for it here. Here is a post with a list of Ocean-themed books in Spanish for kids. Books for summer...a great time to read! I love doing this unit with my students in the summer! {Free printables available} Insects are another great subject to study during the summer. For the younger set, here is an activity to go along with La Oruga Muy Hambrienta. Enjoy teaching Spanish this summer!!!
Olympic activities for kids - Gentry moved home before her Rice University internship, so I made homemade donuts - Olympic Rings donuts.
These DIY constellation cards are the perfect project for a summer afternoon. It's a great way to introduce constellations for kids!
Study the Master of Romantic Music -- Tchaikovsky -- in this homeschool composer study.
There are so many fun memories I have from my childhood. Jumping rope, singing songs on the playground at school and playing hopscotch were two of my favorite things. I want to share these songs with my kids through these Jump Rope Songs {Printables}. This time instead of creating easy crafts I made the printable simple to send to one hour photo ...
The fill in the blanks game is a great ice breaker game to get everyone involved and participating.
My 9-year-old son loves codes, history, and treasure hunts. This activity combines all three. When he got home from after school, I handed him a Viking Runes Encryption sheet and the first of six clues. Each clue contains facts about the life and times of Vikings as well as runes that required he decode them and a hint as to where to find the next clue. Our oldest son read the clue at the bottom of each card allowed, giving his 5-year-old brother an opportunity to get in on the action, and guess the location of the next clue. Clues lead them to our bathtub, my jewelry box, front door's deadbolt, refrigerator, games closet, and lastly our living room sofa. Click on the clue or encryption sheet to download my PDF free on Google Drive. In the end, my eldest had to use the small runes in the corner of each clue to identify the location of his prize (couch), which he acquired after reading a wonderful graphic novel history book. (Think comic book meets ancient history!) His prize was a punch card for free electronic (i.e. iPad or DS) minutes; our boys have to do chores to earn their time otherwise. Want to make your own decoding treasure hunt? Print the encryption sheet and use it as a guide! To get kids ready for this activity, give them a fun interactive novel (think choose-your-own-adventure). I don't think I've ever seen our oldest son get so excited over a book before. He LOVED this! My sons had so much fun with this activity and our oldest really liked the books I paired with it. After we were done, my oldest boy even wrote me a note using the Runic Alphabet that when decoded revealed "I love you."
Learn how to make both a basic homopolar motor and a tiny dancing motor! Great science fair project for older kids!
Get fun, free printable worksheets and enjoy cool science activities to do at home
Hi teacher friends, Ancient Civilizations has to be my favorite curriculum to teach. I find the ancient world fascinating, with all the different traditions, inventions, rituals, building structures, gods and goddesses. I could probably spend the whole year just focusing on Egypt alone, with its pyramids, their social hierarchy with pharaohs, and interesting
Step by step instructions for how to make a pencil catapult for a fun and hands-on STEM activity. What are you going to launch?
This is a fantastic way to teach rhythm notation, but it might make you hungry.
