Rome was at first a village providing a central space for shepherds and farmers living in the hills of what is now Italy. By 753 BC, the city of Rome had come into being, named for its first king, Romulus. There were kings until about 509 BC, when the Roman… Continue reading
The idea of traveling through time has fascinated people for centuries. The Time Machine by H. G. Wells continues to be a popular example of science fiction and fantasy dealing with this possibility.You can read it online. In this book, a time traveler from 1895 goes into the very distant… Continue reading
Frankenstein is the story of a man, Victor Frankenstein, and a monster, who is never given a name. It was written by Mary Shelley, who began creating the tale when she was just 19. Read it online at Literature.org. Having read and enjoyed the book, choose from the cross-curriculum connections… Continue reading
The Sea King’s Daughter is a lesser-known fairy tale from a Russian ballad. In the story, a young musician descends to the home of the Sea King and plays for a wild party — which, he learns, sets the seas raging and endangers the ships above. He marries the… Continue reading
Haunted houses are part of mythology and urban legends in many places and times. They make a good topic for lessons with art, social studies, and writing. Depending on your population, you can put them together with ghost stories for a great genre lesson, use them for Halloween or architecture… Continue reading
If you do Halloween in your classroom, Halloween is a great bulletin board theme for October. CTP has a mini set for Halloween. We like the cheerful retro look. Eureka has a Halloween bulletin board set with the Peanuts characters: If Halloween isn’t a good choice for your classroom, there… Continue reading
Picture it: a long, narrow barge sailing down a river, with an orchestra playing on it, on its way to surprise the king. It sounds like something from a fairy tale, but it really happened. George Frideric Handel wrote some special music for King George I, hired 50+ musicians,… Continue reading
When you listen to the track “Serengeti” from Wild Child, you’ll be invited to close your eyes and imagine the Serengeti, with zebras and lions. “Sunrise in the Jungle” lists a wonderful assortment of African animals. “Rita the Cheetah” is in first person, bragging “I’m bigger than anything you’ve… Continue reading
Musical instruments made in the classroom won’t sound the same as the kind you can buy, but there are lots of good reasons for making them anyway: Creating instruments helps students understand how musical instruments work in a way no other experience can. Every child can have an instrument to… Continue reading
Josepha’s giving tips for helping young singers get the idea of projecting, but this is going to work well for oral presentations, too! Continue reading
