Mt. St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. I was living in Northern California at the time, and we had ash falling on us from the sky. For so many of us, volcanoes are something we think of as having happened long ago and far away — the eruption of… Continue reading
The story of Paul Bunyan is an American folktale. It may be more proper to say that the stories of Paul Bunyan are American folktales, because there are quite a few of them, sometimes gathered together into a single long story, but sometimes not. Paul Bunyan is a folk hero among… Continue reading
As we get ready for an election year, a patriotic theme is a natural. It’s also a fun way to introduce American History lessons, and a cheerful theme at any time. Read on for ideas for ways to use patriotic songs in art and English lessons. There are plenty of… Continue reading
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf is a classic of children’s literature. Ferdinand Lesson Plan 1: Be Yourself Ferdinand the Bull is different from all the other bulls. They prefer to romp around and fight, while Ferdinand likes to sit quietly and smell flowers. His mother,… Continue reading
This poem, by Irish poet William Butler Yeats, is a beautiful piece of language. Use it as a first introduction to grownup poetry for older elementary and secondary level students. Here’s the poem: Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths, Enwrought with golden and silver light, The blue and the… Continue reading
O’Sullivan Stew O’Sullivan Stew, by Hudson Talbot, is a fun choice for St. Patrick’s Day reading, since it’s set in Ireland. The story begins with Kate O’Sullivan seeing the local witch’s horse confiscated by the king’s soldiers. Though she tries to get help from the other villagers, she is unable to… Continue reading
It’s Fall, Y’all — or it soon will be. Check out our lengthy list of fall lesson plans. Continue reading
At this time of year, weather is the perfect multidisciplinary study. Weather is on everyone’s minds, whether you’re facing winter storms or signs of spring. There are perfect literature options like mythology about weather gods or parables and poems about the wind, plenty of science topics connect with weather and… Continue reading
Gazpacho for Nacho by Tracey Kyle with illustrations by Carolina Farias is a charming book filled with teachable moments. The name of this tiny muchacho was Nacho and all he would eat was a soup called gazpacho. This pretty well sums up the story: Nacho won’t eat anything else.… Continue reading
Cherokee is one of the few Native American languages with its own writing system. Perhaps in part because of this, Cherokee is also one of the few Native American languages which has a growing — not a shrinking — number of speakers. Studying about the Cherokee writing system can not… Continue reading
