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Saturday, July 31, 2010

August Lesson Plan Ideas


August Lesson Plan Ideas For You
 
Thinking of Lessons for August? Here are a number of August themes you will want to include in your lessons.

1. August is National Inventor's Month - Learn about past inventors and inventions. Consider holding a science fair.

2. The 19th Amendment to U.S. Constitution was ratified on August of 1920. Consider exploring voting and elections.

3. August 16th is National Tell a Joke Day. Have students make up topic related jokes.

4. Bill Clinton was born on August 19th. Why not learn about the highlights and challenges of his presidency?

5. August 26th is Women´s Equality Day. Explore Women's History
6. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave the "I Have a Dream" speech.


See All August Events and Celebrations 
http://www.teachnology.com/monthly/aug/augustevents.html

Source:  This newsletter is brought to you by teachnology.com, the online teacher resource center.

More August Resources:
http://www.mrscjacksonsclass.com/
http://www.mrscjacksonsclass.com/august.htm
http://mrscjacksonsclass.com/backtoschoolthemes.htm

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

School Welcome Poem

Learning Journey Begins

Grab hold of a magic pencil
Open your eyes and mind
For now begins a journey
Of the most exciting kind.
A journey into learning
A step...a start...a glow,
And we will be there with you
To help and watch you grow.

Author unknown

August Themes-Lessons-Ideas-Resources



August is here once again. August is a double-edged sword for many of us. On the one hand, it usually is the biggest vacation month of the year. We think some more and then we are reminded that August means we are about to enter the hardest month in our profession. Whatever August means to you, we are here to help you through the tough school days.

Remember you matter, educators make the world go around!
Source: Cynthia Hughes & Carol Bailus (Newsletter Editors)
More Resources:
http://www.mrscjacksonsclass.com/ Themes-Lessons-Activities-Resources
http://mrscjacksonsclass.com/backtoschoolthemes.htm Back to School Themes-Lessons-Activities-Ideas-Projects
http://mrscjacksonsclass.com/summerfun.htm Summer Themes-Lessons-Ideas-Activities-Crafts
http://www.mrscjacksonsclass.com/laborday.htm Labor Day Holiday Theme-Lessons-Crafts-Resources

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Magic Playdough Recipe for Welcome Back to School




Welcome Back to School Surprise for First Day of School


"Magic" Playdough Recipe

It changes color from yellow to green.

You will need:

  • 1 cup salt

  • 2 cups flour

  • 2 tablespoons cream of tartar

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

  • 2 cups water

  • food coloring

What to do:

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a saucepan. Add the "wet" ingredients. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture forms into a ball (about 3-5 minutes). Remove from pan on to floured surface. Cool slightly. Then knead it until smooth. Store in ziplock bag or airtight container in the fridge.

How to add the "magic":

Form the playdough into ball shapes. Poke a hole in the ball and put 2 or 3 drops of food coloring in the hole. Form the playdough back into a ball again, covering the drops of food coloring.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Summer Cornbread Salad Recipe

Cornbread Salad

1 pkg. corn bread muffin mix
4 oz. can chopped green chilies, undrained
1 cup mayonnaise
8 oz. sour cream
1 envelope Ranch Salad Dressing mix
2 cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
2 can whole kernel corn, drained
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 cup chopped green pepper
1 cup chopped green onions
10-12 bacon strips, cooked, and crumbled
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare cornbread mix according to package directions. Stir in green chilies. Spread in 8 -inch square baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 min. or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool.

In a small bowl, combine mayo, sour cream and dressing mix; set aside.

Crumble half of the cornbread into a large glass bowl. Layer with half of the beans, mayo mixture, corn, tomatoes, green pepper, onion, bacon, and cheese. Repeat all layers. Dish will be very full. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. I refrigerated overnight. Yield: 12 servings.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Teacher's Guide to Having a Great School Year


Teacher's Guide to Having a Great School Year

You are ready to make a fresh start with a new school year. You've learned a few tricks of the trade with past experiences, and now you are ready to face your classroom and students again, but better. If you are a new teacher, you want to make sure that you start off on the right foot as well. Take a look at this guide on how to have a great school year. It's all up to you!

Preparedness is Key

When you walk into your classroom at the beginning of a new year, you will want to be sure that you are prepared for your students. Your first few weeks of school set the stage for the rest of the year. If you are unorganized, your students may become lax in your class. If you are orderly and organized, your students will feel a sense of meeting your same standards. When you and your students are in accord, you will have a great school year.

Win Your Students

In today's day and time, it is more apparent that kids come to school because they have to. If they had any other choice, they would just as soon not go at all. This, of course, is a terrible attitude, and you must somehow convince your students that learning is worthwhile and they are capable of enjoying the journey. In order to do this effectively, you have to make lessons interesting. You don't have bend over backwards to be your students' friend instead of teacher, but you do have to make some effort to prove to them that learning is a privilege, and they should take advantage of it. By doing this, you will have a great school year.

Mix Encouragement with Learning

Students come from all different backgrounds. Some have a healthy home life, while others are not so fortunate. Teaching has become more than just teaching. It is now a matter of encouraging and supporting students who feel depressed and worthless. While you want your lessons to be solid, you must also build a foundation of encouraging your students to do their best. There has to be the right mix between learning with good content and encouraging students to do well. This extra effort will help you to have a great school year.

Elicit Support from the Community

Knowing some of the burdens that teaching has on your time, try eliciting the help of parents and other people in your community to help you where they can. This may involve having a parent come in and read to children for a while each week. It may mean asking a friend to stop in and give your students a talk about what they do for a living, if it connects to your lesson plan. Having people resources is a perfect way to make sure you have a great school year. Volunteers are happy to help, and probably appreciate that you want them involved. Taking some of the burden off your shoulders will help you to have a great school year.

Communicate with Parents

Too often parents are not as connected with your child's education as they should be. Some think that they are not welcome in the classroom. That is the teacher's domain. Others do not think they have the time to contribute to their child's education, so it falls solely on the teacher to teach the kids and prepare them for the future. Don't let this happen in your classroom. Keeping parents up-to-date on what is happening in your classroom will help you build strong relationships with them. This is important for the students because knowing that parents and teachers are working together to give them best education possible, makes them feel unity with you in the classroom. Keep parents in the loop, and you will have a great school year!

Source: http://www.worksheetlibrary.com/teachingtips/greatteachingyear.html Worksheet Library

More Resources: http://www.mrscjacksonsclass.com/backtoschoolthemes.htm Back to School Themes, Lessons, Activities, Ideas

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Camping Theme, Lessons, Activities, Ideas


Camping Theme, Lessons, Activities, Ideas, and Unit Resources

http://stepbystepcc.com/camping.html Camping Theme and Unit Resources

Set up a tent in the room, or if it is nice outside
Tell Ghost stories
Sing Camp songs
Tie-Dye T-shirts

Make a Trail Mix:
1 package of granola cereal
½ pound chocolate chips
½ box raisins
½ pound peanuts
½ pound banana chips

Make S’Mores:
Place a large marshmallow on a square graham cracker. Next place a square of chocolate on top of the marshmallow. Place the cracker on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 minutes at 250. Remove from oven and press a second graham cracker on top. Serve warm.

Source:http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/1036.html Lesson Plans: Camping Theme Activities and Ideas by Christine

Monday, July 5, 2010

Authors Week Second Week of July



Author's Week is celebrated in the second week of July!

Lessons that explore the challenges, achievements, and lives of some of the most influential authors in history are listed below. Dramatizing life stories provides students with an engaging way to become more critical readers and researchers. Students select American authors to research, create timelines and bio poems, and then collaborate in teams to design and perform a presentation in which they role-play their authors. The final project requires each student to synthesize information about his or her author in an essay or other project.

http://www.teach-nology.com/themes/lang_arts/greatauthors/ Great Authors Teaching Theme Resources
http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/indeksi.htm Authors Calendar-ABC Order
http://authorsdirectory.com/ Classical Authors Directory
http://www.classicauthors.net/ Classic Authors List
http://www.first-school.ws/theme/books.htm Children Books and Literature Theme-Lessons-Activities
http://webtech.kennesaw.edu/jcheek3/authors.htm Great-Authors and Illustrators