Classroom subject areas
South Africa is a diverse country in the Southern Hemisphere, so Christmas falls in the summer. Schools are closed for a month, businesses often close for a month as well, and many people go camping. Just as in Australia, Christmas in South Africa is often spent on the beach. Christmas… Continue reading
One of my favorite Thanksgiving books is Eileen Spinelli’s The Perfect Thanksgiving. JoAnn Adinolfi illustrated it with bright colors and primitive drawings with mixed media collage. It is the story of two different Thanksgiving celebrations: the perfect holiday of Abigail Archer, and the imperfect one of the narrator. “Abigail Archer’s father… Continue reading
“The Princess and the Pea” is another tale by Hans Christian Andersen, though he himself said that it was a story he remembered from his childhood. The Brothers Grimm included a similar story in one of their collections in the 1840s, but removed it when they found that Andersen had… Continue reading
Whales are the biggest things your students can readily imagine. They’ll certainly be welcome in your classroom. We like to start a study of whales with a research project covering the basics: Begin by getting to know the physical characteristics of whales. One of the most important physical characteristics of… Continue reading
Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States. In 2012 and 2017, the people of Puerto Rico voted on whether to become the 51st state in the Union, and the majority of voters said yes. In November, 2020, a majority of voters again said yes to statehood. Puerto Rico… Continue reading
Many cultures have trickster tales: stories about a clever person or animal who plots to play tricks on others. Sometimes the tricksters have an undercurrent of danger, sometimes they’re mean, sometimes they’re foolish, and sometimes they’re just funny. Anansi the Spider, Jack of stories like “Jack the Giant-Killer,” and Coyote… Continue reading
Oh, the Places You’ll Go! has become our traditional graduation keepsake, but it’s great for any age. It’s an encouragement for life, beginning with “Congratulations! Today is your day” and ending with, “Kid, you’ll move mountains!” In between, the book alternates between the elation of, “Wherever you go, you’ll top… Continue reading
Many of your students may be unfamiliar with the Marshall Islands. While many Marshallese people live in the United States, particularly in Arkansas and Hawaii, the Marshall Islands are a small nation. Let’s start with some basic background information: Find background information about the Marshall Islands. Here are some useful… Continue reading
The story of The Blind Men and the Elephant is a simple one: a group of unsighted men have their first encounter with an elephant. Since they approach the beast from different perspectives, they all end up with different impressions of the elephant. The man who feels the elephant’s side… Continue reading
Feelin’ groovy? Why not pick a groovy classroom theme? Carson Dellosa has Paisley Power. Get your ’70s groove on with tie dye bulletin boards and psychedelic flowers. You can grab an old sheet and a vat of fabric dye and make your own. Pinch a bit of the fabric and… Continue reading
