Thanksgiving is a required study in many state frameworks, sometimes year after year. You need some fresh new plans! English Start with some great Thanksgiving books. We’ve listed these in order of reading level, but we like them all for older students’ writing classes as well as for reading with… Continue reading
Bats may be the first nocturnal creatures that come to mind, but actually there are lots more. Learn about some of the real creatures that sleep all day and wake up at night (links take you to informational websites): bats possums raccoons owls deer coyote fox mouse skunk weasel porcupines… Continue reading
Some of our favorite books for Egypt units: Bill and Pete Go Down the Nile Muti’s Necklace: The Oldest Story in the World The Egyptian Cinderella The Egypt Game Mara, Daughter of the Nile The Golden Goblet The Egyptology Handbook: A Course in the Wonders of Egypt Pyramids: 50 Hands-On… Continue reading
Chocolate is worth studying, and it can be a great classroom theme all year round. The very first thing to do, when you first start thinking about using the theme, is to write off to the chocolate companies explaining that you plan to do this in your classroom. They… Continue reading
Do you observe Hallowe’en in your classroom? Some do, with parties and costume parades and all, and some don’t. Maybe you (or your district, parents, community leaders, administration…) disapprove of Halloween and would rather not bring it into the classroom at all, but you feel like you spend the whole… Continue reading
September 15th to October 15th is National Hispanic Heritage Month. We made a simple center with leftover fiesta bulletin board border. We put events from the history of Mexico onto craft sticks and had students put them in order. It works just as well to alphabetize Spanish words, sort Hispanic… Continue reading
“21st Century Skills”: a common buzzword in the classroom, but just what does it mean? The Partnership for 21st Century Skills lists these: Core Subjects and 21st Century Themes English, reading or language arts World languages Arts Mathematics Economics Science Geography History Government and Civics Global awareness Financial, economic,… Continue reading
Monsters make a good metaphor for fear. Small children are sometimes sincerely scared of monsters, but older students can relate to the idea of vanquishing the monsters in their lives. Approaching monsters, feeling the fear, deciding whether it’s wise to continue, and showing courage or prudence — these are… Continue reading
It would be nice if Asian Pacific Heritage Month were no longer needed. It would be nice if our history lessons made it clear that the United States has had Asian American presence and contributions for just about as long as we’ve been the United States. It would be… Continue reading
