There are basic computer skills that every student needs to learn: opening, saving, and closing files; placing and sizing images; typing and choosing styles for text; editing text. Why not make a Valentine card and practice all those skills? Here’s an easy way to create your project using a… Continue reading
January 29th is National Puzzle Day! Puzzles of all kinds help maintain the elasticity of the brain, not to mention our visual spatial skills and problem solving abilities. Online resources: Puzzles for the Classroom Puzzlemaker tool generates word searches, math squares, cryptograms, and more. Brain Bashers Smart Kit online… Continue reading
Presidents’ Day falls midway between the birthdays of Lincoln and Washington, but we like to take the day to study all the presidents of our nation. If you prefer to focus on Washington and Lincoln, these ideas will still work for your classroom. First, get clear on what exactly… Continue reading
Winter holiday lessons and activities: Chanukah Lights Everywhere Christmas Lesson Plans Groundhog Day Lesson Plans Chinese New Year Lesson Plans Mardi Gras The Valentine Bears Leap Day Lesson Plans General winter classroom ideas and lesson plans: Snow Classroom Theme Snowman Classroom Theme Animals in Winter Lesson Plans Penguins Classroom… Continue reading
As James Kakalios, the author of The Physics of Superheroes, explains, students never say, “When are we going to use this in real life?” when he uses superheroes to teach. Apparently, he says, all of them have future plans that involve wearing lycra and saving cities. Your students, too,… Continue reading
Do you feel that the guys get left out when you study folk and fairy tales? Here are three lesson plans at different levels of complexity that focus on the heroes of the stories. Let’s hear it for the boys As you read folktales and fairy tales, create character maps… Continue reading
A study of heroes gives opportunities for working on research skills, reading, writing, critical thinking, and more. You can work within the content areas of social studies, science, literature, math, and even physical education. It suits Veteran’s Day, heritage months, the birthdays of famous people, and character education themes. Begin… Continue reading
Here are our favorite online resources for math, including games to play in the compauter center: Absurd Math: Pre-Algebra from Another Dimension MIT’s free online math courses for high school Mathbun, a sort of free-floating celebration of geometry and other cool math concepts Create a Graph is an excellent… Continue reading
SpellQuizzer spelling software from TedCo is a very handy piece of classroom technology. It’s a minimalist approach (read, it’ll work on your elderly classroom computer) that does just exactly what you need it to and no more. Here’s a screen shot. Let’s go through the top row first, left… Continue reading
Dr. Martin Luther King had a dream for the children of our nation. Here are some ideas for studying this 20thcentury hero in our 21st century classrooms. Online Research All our students need to learn how to do online research effectively. Make it easier for younger students by starting… Continue reading
