Get ready to join the HUGE sale at Teachers Pay Teachers! Visit my store: All-American Teacher Tools and search on the left column for a variety of teaching aids - free and inexpensive! Stay safe and stay sane, teacher friends!

How to keep your work at school

Certainly there are professions where, when you leave for the day, the rest of the day belongs to you and your home life.  That seldom seems to be the case with teachers, with lesson plans, grading, and posting taking up most of the time spent at home.  Here are a few ideas to cut down on that time that interrupts your time spent at home:

1. Plan to grade while students test.  When your students are busy taking a test, you can grade the previous assignment.  Post the results during your prep period.  Repeat the process, and you'll only be one test behind at all times.
2. With the exception of the required essay-style tests that seem to need more grading time than other tests, make it easy on yourself when you grade them.  Even if your school isn't in the 21st century and uses online testing regularly, learn to place the answer column on one side of the paper so you can line them up and grade many at one time.  The one Answer D in a sea of Answer Bs will let you know that there is a wrong answer in the group. And regarding those essay tests, make a rubric that will make your life easier to grade them.
3. Assign numbers to your students.  Then put clear plastic holders on a bulletin board.  When the students come in with completed homework, you'll know at a glance which papers are missing.  Note the missing assignments and you can enter that later during a prep period. With this method, you'll also be able to tell which students are missing!  This can be a system where you put missed assignments for absences.  
4. Now what about those lesson plans?  Unless you are a brand new teacher, you'll likely have used your plans in previous years.  There's no shame in re-using the plans. If you want to upgrade the plan, do it in small steps so you aren't overwhelmed by a huge plan to implement.  If you ARE a new teacher, then have fun making plans that will last for several years.  Your first year will be the most difficult and will involve bringing most of your lesson planning home, but in the long run, you'll be able to re-use them for many years to come
5. Another lesson plan tip: Don't plan for just one day.  Plan for a whole week. And plan to let the kids take control of their learning. How? Develop a project-based learning unit where students take control of their education.  All you need to do is monitor their progress.  You don't have to stand in front of the room all the time!

These are just a few of the ways you can cut down on the time you spend away from your family and friends on weekends and evenings.  With a little advance planning and your own ideas on how to cut corners, you can have more time for family fun!

Check out my Middle School Social Studies project-based learning resources on Teachers Pay Teachers on these topics:
Ancient Greece
Ancient Rome
Ancient Egypt
All state histories - here is an example from NJ

Do you have enough "me time"?

The holidays were hectic.  Your family came to visit.  You had entertaining obligations.  All of these demands equal a stressful time when you were supposed to be "on vacation" from school work.

Then, on the last day of vacation, you crammed your lesson plans, handouts, and grading into a few short hours before bed.

Do you feel relaxed? Of course not!  You didn't plan "me time" - that special period of time that can last from 10 minutes to 2 hours when nobody wants your attention, nobody needs your opinion, and nobody knows where you are.  No, the bathroom visit does NOT count!

Here are some ways you can capture some valuable "me time" so you can emerge rejuvenated and ready to take on the demands of home and work:

1. Maintain a relaxation ritual.  That might mean you need to get up 10 minutes earlier when everyone is still asleep to meditate, read a book, give yourself a facial mask, or whatever you enjoy doing by yourself.
2. Keep a happiness journal.  Find a happy little journal, as Bob Ross might say.  Then every evening, record the wonderful things that happened to you. Make sure you block out the family by posting a Do Not Disturb sign on your den or bedroom door.  When you find yourself getting overwhelmed some time in the future, go back to your journal and relive the wonderful moment when your spouse surprised you, your kids did chores without being asked, or a student gave you a thankfulness note.  
3. Schedule lunch with a friend once a month.  Your family will be just fine without you for one meal and you'll feel much better about returning to the daily grind after your enjoyable afternoon.
4. Look at soothing pictures.  Scour Pinterest for beach, lake, or mountain scenes.  Picture yourself there, enjoying the sunshine and warmth.  It's not as good as being there, but with enough concentration, you can imagine that you are having a fun time there. 
5. Take your "me time" outside once in a while.  Hike, fish, swim, boat, or simply sit.  The sunshine will help you create valuable Vitamin D, and nature is, well, a natural, healer!
6. If all else fails, hire a wellness coach to adjust your diet, lifestyle, and other ways to make your life easier to handle.  

You're probably wondering where I'm going with this list of ways to relax, rejuvenate, and revive yourself.  Check out my book, My Peaceful Place - A collection of stories to comfort and heal.  Each of the short stories has a happy ending, but not without a few twists and interesting plot elements.  Each story also has a painting or photograph that you can focus on while reading the story.   So, give yourself a gift and read one of these stories every week - you'll be glad you did!

FREE summer reading for you and your children

Get ready to be entertained while you educate your children.  Woody's World -the story of a boy during the Great Depression is a fictionalized account of my father's escapades growing up in Princeton, New Jersey, as his family went from comfort to poverty in a few short months.  Beginning with his carefree life with his friends, Woody's World takes readers on a trip through 1929 and 1930 as Woody evolves into a responsible member of the family while his father travels away from home to find work.  Sometimes his adventures are a bit dangerous, sometimes involve political commentary as his friend becomes hurt by Jim Crow Laws, and at other times they are funny. Picture an overturned train loaded with live pigs while Woody tries to bring one home so he can have real meat for dinner - yes this actually happened! In fact 90% of the events depicted in this book actually happened.  See the above link for a complete list of topics covered.

I offer this FREE to my parent and teacher friends for your summer enjoyment, but also so you can see how this might be used in your classroom or homeschool.  I have developed a complete 8-week learning guide for differentiated instruction that will help you to develop interesting plans and activities for your students.  The learning guide is available HERE.

After you run this valuable resource through your board (if necessary), the paperback books are available directly from me for $8.00 each plus shipping.  For more information, contact me through my store, All-American Teacher Tools (click on Ask a Question) - just trying to eliminate spamming from my email this way!

After you read this fun book, please post your comments so others can have fun, too!

Is a child's self esteem misunderstood?

Has your child's teacher told you that she has low self esteem?  What exactly does that mean?  It's possible that she is simply too shy to volunteer answers during a group discussion.  It's also possible that she feels dissatisfied with everything she does.  Which is the worse scenario?  Obviously the second. 

I've seen well-meaning parents attempt to make perfect children by requiring them to re-do incorrect homework assignments.  When that happens, a child sees that his work is not good enough to hand in to the teacher; nor is it good enough to satisfy a parent.  His self esteem goes down a few notches. Yes, we want our children to succeed, but not at the expense of their basic self-worth.  How then can parents get their children to do better in school while building on their self-esteem?  Simple - by focusing on what they did right, rather than what they did wrong.  Let's go back to the homework issue.  If you look at a math assignment and see four wrong answers but six right answers, focus first on what the child did right.  Then, when he sees that he has the capability for getting the right answer, show him that four answers could be improved. (Don't say they are wrong, simply say they can be improved).  Now here's the hard part, parents ... walk away!  Let your child figure out all by himself what he needs to do.  If he decides to hand in the paper with the wrong answers, then accept that maybe he was tired that night and simply couldn't think about math anymore. It happens!  Harping on him will chip away at that self-esteem problem the teacher mentioned.  Repeat the process the next night by again observing what he did right.  Eventually, your child will learn that he can get the rest of the answers correct if he builds on what he knows.

So, how then is self esteem misunderstood?  Because many parents and some teachers feel that every child needs a reward for good behavior.  Does anyone give you a reward to doing the dinner dishes, getting the kids ready for bed, and then putting a load of laundry in the washing machine before you collapse in front of the TV?  No?  I didn't think so.  You've formed your own intrinsic reward system because you know if you didn't do those things, your home would fall apart.  A child needs that same intrinsic motivation, and that's why it's so important to walk away after you tell your child that some of his math problems need to be reconsidered.  Certainly, you can welcome his smiling face when he fixes them, but then comment, "I'm sure your teacher will be just as pleased as you are with your progress."  Ah!  You found the magic words - just as pleased as you are (intrinsic motivation) - not how pleased you are (extrinsic motivation). 

A recent study has shown that low self esteem causes increased materialism and raising self esteem decreases materialism. So, by raising your child's self esteem through intrinsic motivation, you'll be saving yourself some money.  And that's wonderful motivation for any parent!

Happy parenting!

On Finnish Schools

For public school teachers in NJ, I encourage you to read the article entitled "Why are Finland's Schools Successful?" in the October 2011 NJEA Review. (Now that I'm retired, I have time for such a luxury as reading a magazine!)  For my readers who are outside the state of NJ or too busy to read the article, here is a synopsis:

Schools in Finland focus on the student rather than the test scores.  What a novel approach to education! 

• They have no mandated standardized tests, except for one exit exam at the end of senior year in high school. (They don't have to teach to the test??)  
• There are no rankings, competitions, or comparisons between students.  (Your child isn't 117 out of 285 students in her class??) 
• The people in government who fund the schools are educators. (What - politicians don't control the schools??) 
• Every school draws from the same pool of university-trained educators.  (Students in small villages and larger cities have the same advantage!)

According to the Finnish Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, "Equality is the most important word in Finnish education."  All political parties agree on the direction of the children's education.  And yes, Finland does have teacher's unions, but they all agree that children come first before funding, testing, and any other distraction to education.

Ninety-three percent of Finnish children graduate form high school.  Compare that with the seventy-five percent of American children.  Sixty-six percent go on to higher education, the highest rate in the European Union.  Now here's the kicker:  Finland spends thirty percent less per student than in the United States.

What does this all tell us?  That teachers need to focus on the student, rather than the test scores.  Because when you focus on the well-being of the student, you will find that the test scores of those students will also increase.  Why?  Because when the student feels wanted and needed by the teachers, they will strive to succeed.

So, the next time you see a student failing, take the time to really get to know that student rather than giving him more work to do to pull up his grade.  Find out what he likes and dislikes; what life is like at home.  When you do that, you'll reach the child on a personal level, which in turn will cause that student to self-motivate, which is a life skill many adults failed to learn when they were in school.

Happy Teachingt!!

More on bullies

I observed that in one week, I got 42 hits on my previous blog posting about how to help children handle bullies. That's a staggering number of hits compared to the numbers for other postings.  When I shared this on my Facebook page, I got the following very intuitive responses:

From Vicki, a middle school special ed teacher: I think it's because parents refuse to believe their children can do wrong; they question the schools and by telling their kids not to listen to their teachers empower their kids to push boundaries. Add to that kids who are showered with expensive toys by preoccupied parents too busy with everything BUT parenting and you have attention- seeking, lonely and frustrated bullies.

And from my daughter Val, a 3rd grade teacher: I have found that kids actually need lessons on how to socialize and conversate correctly. With all this technology, parents and kids aren't socializing let alone kids with other kids. How do they know how to be polite/not bully/respect others when they aren't told or shown otherwise?!?! Hmmmm

So, from these two teachers who are still in the "trenches," I conclude with them that parents are the children's primary role models.  I was fortunate that my daughters were neither bullies nor bullied to the best of my knowledge.  That's because I taught them to be proactive about their relationship with other people, both young and old.  I showed them that each person, no matter how much that person annoyed them, deserved their respect. 

The writer in me decided to find resources to help parents and teachers understand the importance of teaching their children to be empathetic and accepting of others' differences.  I looked for books that showed parents/teachers how to form an anti-bullying strategy rather than how to help kids cope with bullies, which may be the bigger picture.  Here's what I found:

No Kidding About Bullying: 125 Ready-to-Use Activities to Help Kids Manage Anger, Resolve Conflicts, Build Empathy, and Get Along (Bully Free Classroom)

Bullying Prevention and Intervention: Realistic Strategies for Schools (The Guilford Practical Intervention in Schools Series)

The Bully, the Bullied, and the Bystander: From Preschool to HighSchool--How Parents and Teachers Can Help Break the Cycle (Updated Edition)

Happy Teaching and Happy Parenting!

"Green" school food

Children need to be more friendly - environmentally friendly, that is!  Green food means more than eating broccoli and string beans.  Here are some ideas you can implement at home for your own children and at school with your students:

1. As a PTO parent, volunteer to use reusable plates for the next party. Naturally, you will be in total charge of bringing them and picking them up to sanitize in your dishwasher.  Another green party idea is to use cloth napkins that you wash with bleach and store with the plates for the next party.  I know this sounds like a lot of work, but it will save much space in the local landfill!
2. If you send your child with water for lunch, use a green reusable bottle.  Make sure it is BPA free like this Water Bottle.  During warm weather, fill it the night before and freeze it for a frosty drink at lunch the next day.
3. The rest of the lunch can be green also: Use reusable containers for sandwiches and snacks.  Avoid using packaged items that have plastic trash associated with them.  My favorite is the Fit & Fresh Fruit and Veggie Bowl.  When I was working, I could take my veggies and dip with me!
4. Remember that the lunch bag itself can be green.  Here are the directions to make a reusable canvas bag at the top of my recipes page: http://reneeheiss.com/Recipes.html.  If you can't sew, then consider buying a reusable lunch bag: Equinox Organic Cotton Lunch Bag.  The neat thing about both of these options is that your children can personalize them with fabric or permanent markers :-)

By the way, this product has the tote, bottle, and containers: New Wave Enviro Products Lunchopolis Lunch Box.  It gets mixed reviews, so I guess it depends on how hard your kids treat their lunch box!

Happy green parenting and green teaching!

How to avoid being "that" kind of parent

As a parent, I always wanted the best for my children.  That meant hoping they'd get the "best" teacher in the grade level during the lottery that occured in August.  If they didn't get what everyone in the PTA considered the "best" teacher, I didn't reveal this information to my girls.  We simply went with the flow.  And you know what?  Because of their personalities, we seldom had a problem. 

However, there are those parents who tthink it is their patriotic duty to confront teachers when they feel that their little Elroy has been wronged somehow.  The review sheet did not include something that appeared on the test or in the format in which it was tested?  What?  The teacher gave a pop quiz and he failed it?  Aren't we teachers trying to instill adaptability with our curriculum?  Yes, these scenraios really happened and I won't reveal the source, but some parents can get in their children's education so deeply that they lose sight of the fact that kids need to learn from their mistakes.

When I was teaching, I had a sign on my desk that read Prepare the child for the road, not the road for the child. How true!  As parents, our obligation is to help our children understand that life's roads has bumps.  Sometimes those bumps take the form of mountains that need crossing during a blizzard.  Other times, those bumps cave under pressure, making the road smooth again.  If you have prepared your child to anticipate the pop quiz, prepare for unusually worded questions, and understand that life sometime isn't always fair, you'll raise strong, independent children. If however, you pave the way for them by arguing with their teachers, requesting a new teacher, or complaining about that teacher in their presence, you'll raise wimpy children who wait for someone else to solve their problems for them.

So, parents, I encourage you to think twice before confonting a teacher about her methods that she likely learned in college.  He or she knows the best way to present her curriculum material to your child.  It's your job to let your children know that you love them no matter what they do. And if that means hugging your child when she gets a 55 on a test that she studied for, then hug your child.  She knows she disappointed you.  Together, you can figure out how you can bring that grade up for the next test or do extra credit work to bring up the cumulative grade.  However, will you be the one to ask for that extra credit?  What do you think????

Happy parenting!  

The Kinetic Classroom

Allow me to blow my own horn here!  I've worked for several years to get this book published so teachers around the world can move children around the classroom rather than sort them in neat  little rows all day long.  Research shows that children's brains need oxygen for stimulation.  The only way to provide that oxygen is to move them around so their little blood vessels carry it to their brains. 

The Kinetic Classroom provides the background research, implementation suggestions, and 34 activities that can be used by teachers of all levels, abilities, and curriculum topics.  This book is also available in kindle edition if you want a more portable, digital copy :-)  

Please comment below if you buy this book and let me know which activities worked best for you and explain how you used them.

Happy Teaching!

What is a digital native?

Today's young generation is the first to have digital media at their fingertips.  Their teachers and parents likely joined the digital age in elementary school.  Their grandparents or great grandparents probably didn't even have a TV until elementary school.  Children today are "digital natives" - they don't know a world without technological devices.

How does this make them different from previous generations?  First, they find fact-gathering easier and probably more fun.  My daughter assigned a research project to her students.  She said they would love it because they would get to use the laptop cart.  Kids loving research? Say what?  In my 7th grade class oh-so-many years ago, the teacher would have extracted a chorus of groans and complaints from this announcement.  Now, they eagerly look forward to the discovery process because a search engine has facilitated the process.

Neela Sakaria, Senior Vice President of Latitude explains that the research is “focused on giving children a real voice in the broader, often very adult, discussion of future technologies and real-world problem solving. We believe that kids are architects of the future – they’re creative, have an intuitive relationship with technology, and have proven that they think in extraordinarily sophisticated ways about how tech can enhance their learning, play, and interactions with the people and things around them.”

I believe that this new digital revolution has brought a generation of very creative children to the future.  Encouraged by their teachers to develop technological solutions to non-technological problems, they see things differently than their predecessors.  For example, when asked what google can do to facilitate research, this was one young problem-solver's reply:

What fun!  What potential!  I love the thought process that developed this concept and I can't wait for google to figure out how to implement it.  I wish I could be around in 50 years to see what the future holds for these children and thier grandchildren!

Happy teaching!

Contests for Kids - Part III

Here is the end of the list I compiled that shows you all the many ways you can motivate children to learn through contests.  Remember to click on the title link for more information.

Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Awards
The Nicholas Green Distinguished Student Awards are sponsored by the Nicholas Green Foundation and administered by the National Association for Gifted Children. One $500 US Savings Bond is awarded to a student from each state. Candidates should be students in grades 3-6 who have distinguished themselves in academics, leadership or the arts. The deadline is June 1.

Olive Garden Pasta Tales Essay Contest
The Olive Garden Pasta Tales essay contest is open to students in grades 1-12 from the US and Canada. Essays are 50 to 250 words on a topic that changes each year. The deadline is in early December.  The new topic has not yet been posted, but the website tells you to return this fall for the information.

Patriot's Pen
Patriot's Pen is an essay writing contest (patriotic theme) sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). It is open to US students in grades 6-8.  Deadline is November 1. Definitely click the link to watch her deliver her essay - what poise and creativity in a 7th grader!

Prudential Spirit of Community Awards
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards recognize children in grades 5-12 who have engaged in volunteer activities and have demonstrated exceptional community service. Deadline is late October.

Red Vines Drawing Contest
Sponsored by the American Licorice Company, the Red Vines Drawing Contest is open to children in three age groups (as of May 1): kids (ages 6-12), teens (ages 13-18) and adult (ages 19+).  Get ready now for next year's contest - the deadline is in August.

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are open to US and Canadian students in grades 7-12. It is sponsored by Scholastic Inc. and administered by the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, Inc.  Guidelines will be available at their website soon.

Team America Rocketry Challenge
Team America Rocketry Challenge is a national model rocket competition open to US junior high school and high school students (grades 7-12). It is sponsored by AIA and the National Association of Rocketry.  Deadline for application is Nov. 30, but there are subsequent deadlines for demonstrating the ability to fly the rocket.

ThinkQuest
ThinkQuest is an annual team competition in which students under age 19 create innovative and educational web sites. There are three age divisions: 9-12, 13-15, and 16-19. Teams may have three to six student members. Entry deadline April 25, 2012.

Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards
The Toshiba ExploraVision Awards is a competition for teams of 2-4 US and Canadian students in grades K-12. The goal of the competition is to encourage students to explora a vision of a future technology. The teams research a technology or device and project how it might change in the future. They identify necessary breakthroughs to enable the development of the technology and discuss the positive and negative impact of the technology on society.  Deadline is February 1, 2012.

Young Naturalist Awards
The Young Naturalist Awards is a research-based science essay contest open to US and Canadian students in grades 7-12. It is sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the Chase Manhattan Foundation.

Youth Service America
Youth Service America offers the State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Grants to US children age 5-25 to implement service-learning projects for National Youth Service Day in April.

American History Essay Award and Christopher Columbus Essay sponsored by local Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR)chapters.  To find your local chapter, visit the website.

Happy Parenting, Happy Teaching, and Happy Home Schooling.  And good luck if you enter any of these worthwhile contests!

Contests for Kids - Part II

Here is the next batch of awards I found for young contenders.  All are particularly good for after school and enrichment programs.  (Note: each title hyperlinks to the contest.  I added other helpful links)

• Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes
  The Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes is awarded annually to ten US and Canadian students, aged 8-18, who have developed an extraordinary service project that helped people and the planet. The website has lots of resources.  Students must be nominated by an adult.
• Jif Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich Contest
  The Jif Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich Contest is open to children who are age 6 to 12.  Deadline October 12, 2011: http://contests.about.com/od/cashsweepstakes/p/111012-jif-most-creative-peanut-butter-sandwich-contest.htm
• Kohl's Kids Who Care Program
  The Kohl's Kids Who Care Program (www.kohlskids.com) honors students age 6-18 who are involved in community service. Candidates enter by being nominated by an adult age 21 years or older. Nominees are considered in two age groups, 6-12 and 13-18, with three prize levels within each group.
• Letters About Literature
  Letters About Literature is a national reading/writing contest sponsored by the Center for the Book in the US Library of Congress in partnership with Target Stores. The contest is open to US students in grades 4-12. Entries consist of a personal letter to an author, living or dead, from any genre, explaining how the author's work changed the student's way of thinking about the world or themselves.  Info about this year's competition:  http://www.lettersaboutliterature.org/
• MATHCOUNTS
  MATHCOUNTS is a national math competition for middle school students (grades 6-8). Individuals and teams of four mathletes from each school compete on a local, state and national level.
• National Marbles Tournament Scholarships
  The annual National Marbles Tournament awards $5,000 in scholarships to mibsters (marble shooters) aged 8 to 14. The tournament is held in June each year.  What fun!
• National Geography Bee
  The National Geography Bee is sponsored by the National Geographic Society. It is open to US students in grades 4-8 who are age 15 or younger by the date of the national competition. The National Geography Bee is a three stage competition, starting at the school level (competitions from mid-November through mid-January), followed by state competitions in April and the national competition in May.
• National High School Oratorical Contest
  The National High School Oratorical Contest is sponsored by the American Legion. It is open to US students in junior high school or high school (grades 7-12) who are under age 20 as of the date of the national contest. State contests are held no later than mid-March, and the national contest finals are held in April. The American Legion pays for the travel and lodging expenses of the state winners and their chaperones.
• National History Day Contest
  The National History Day Contest is open to students in grades 6-12 in the junior (grades 6-8) and senior (grades 9-12) divisions. The projects relate to a specific historical theme or topic.  This year's theme is Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History.
• National Spelling Bee
  The National Spelling Bee is sponsored by the E.W. Scripps Company. It is open to students in grades 1-8 as of their school finals (February 1) and who are under age 16 as of the date of the national finals (June 1).
• NewsCurrents Student Editorial Cartoon Contest
  The NewsCurrents Student Editorial Cartoon Contest is sponsored by Knowledge Unlimited, Inc. and is open to students in grades K-12. There are three divisions: grades K-6, 7-9 and 10-12.

That's all for today.  Look for the rest of the list tomorrow.  I hope you find something of interest for your students.

Happy Parenting, Happy Teaching, and Happy Homeschooling!

Contests for Kids - Part I

Contests provide awesome motivation for children to learn new skills or hone already strong skills.  Here are a few contests for young entrants.  Most are for middle school students, but some apply to lower elementary and high school.  All have a very late in the school year deadline so you have time to work on them with your children.

• Action For Nature honors the work of young people between the ages of 8 and 16 who have done creative environmental projects. The winners of AFN’s International Young Eco-Hero Awards program receive a cash prize and a special certificate, as well as public recognition on their web site.  Here are the 2011 guidelines, but the website says that the 2012 guidelines will be available very soon: http://www.actionfornature.org/eco-hero-awards/2011-application-guidelines.  Also check out past winners to see what the contest judges look for: http://www.actionfornature.org/eco-hero-awards/past-winners/2010-winners
• The Angela Award honors one female student in grades 5–8, who is involved in or has a strong connection to science. It is sponsored by the National Science Teachers Association.  Deadline is November 30 and the guidelines are here: http://www.nsta.org/pdfs/awards/Angela.pdf
• BattleBots Awards is a robot building contest for teams of middle school, high school, and college students: http://www.battlebotsiq.com/BattleBots.com/Home/Home.html
• The BRICK Awards by Do Something provide community grants and scholarships to "change-makers" age 25 and under who work with Do Something to improve their communities. They will post their 2012 guidelines soon, but you can see who won this year's awards here: http://www.dosomething.org/programs/awards
• The Christopher Columbus Community Service Awards are open to teams of students in grades 6-8. The competition focuses on using science and technology to solve real-world community problems. The deadline is the second Monday in February.  Details here: http://www.christophercolumbusawards.com/
• Davidson Fellowships are awarded by the Davidson Institute for Talent Development to US students under age 18 who have completed a significant piece of work in the fields of Mathematics, Science, Technology, Music, Literature, Philosophy or Outside the Box. The significant piece of work should have the potential to benefit society. The focus of the program is on gifted and talented students. There is no minimum age for eligibility.  Deadline is February 1.  Click here for information and previous winners: http://www.davidsongifted.org/fellows/
• Dick Blick sponsors an annual contest for block prints made from linoleum. There are three divisions: grades 4-6, grades 7-9, and grades 10-12.  Info from last year's contest; new guidelines soon: http://www.dickblick.com/blockcontest/
• This is my personal favorite: Google is famous for the doodles that occasionally replace the Google logo. The Doodle 4 Google competition challenges children in grades K-12 to create their own play on Google's logo. Doodles are judged in four grade groups: K-3, 4-6, 7-9 and 10-12.  Look for new guidelines soon at http://www.google.com/doodle4google/press.html
• The DuPont Challenge Science Essay Competition is sponsored by the DuPont Center for Collaborative Research & Education in cooperation with General Learning Communications. The competition is open to US and Canadian students in grades 7-12 inclusive. The competition involves writing a 700 to 1,000 word essay about a scientific or technological development, event, or theory chosen by the student. Sign up here to get notification of new guidelines: http://thechallenge.dupont.com/entryform/
• The Girls Going Places Entrepreneurship Award Program is open to girls age 12 to 18 who demonstrate entrepreneurship and make a difference in their schools and communities. Info here: http://www.girlsgoingplaces.com/

More tomorrow.  This is just the list from A-G!

Happy Parenting, Happy Teaching, and Happy Homeschooling!

Something for PTOs

My friend made this as a raffle item for her PTO.  What an awesome idea for teachers!  It's easily made using smaller and smaller styrofoam rounds and a dome on top.  Simply wrap the rounds, add the supplies, hold together with giant rubber bands, and Whalla!   Post here if anybody decides to replicate this great idea.

On a love of teaching...

From Matt Damon (I have bolded the more significant portions):

"I don’t know where I would be today if my teachers’ job security was based on how I performed on some standardized test. If their very survival as teachers was based on whether I actually fell in love with the process of learning but rather if I could fill in the right bubble on a test. If they had to spend most of their time desperately drilling us and less time encouraging creativity and original ideas; less time knowing who we were, seeing our strengths and helping us realize our talents. I honestly don’t know where I’d be today if that was the type of education I had. I sure as hell wouldn’t be here. I do know that this has been a horrible decade for teachers. I can’t imagine how demoralized you must feel. But I came here today to deliver an important message to you: As I get older, I appreciate more and more the teachers that I had growing up. And I’m not alone. There are millions of people just like me. "

I couldn't have said it better myself!  How wonderful it would be if we could concentrate on developing a love of learning rather than the scores on standardized tests.  Maybe some day (not in my lifetime, and probably not in my grandchildren's lifetime) we'll learn to "test" children on their appreciation for the learning process and the ability to solve problems through exploration rather than their memory on standardized tests.  Ahhh....

Happy Teaching (anyway!)

Get those kids moving!

According to Science Daily, "researchers have found an association between physical fitness and the brain in 9- and 10-year-old children: Those who are more fit tend to have a bigger hippocampus and perform better on a test of memory than their less-fit peers."  In their test, The children who were in better physical condition also did better on tests of relational memory -- the ability to remember and integrate various types of information -- than their less-fit peers.

No surprise there!  I've long advocated that students in classrooms don't need to sit in nice neat little rows, copy notes from a blackboard or lecture, and then regurgitate that information two weeks later on a test.  (Excuse my yawn!)  Oh, right, that yawn was my body's way of getting more oxygen to my brain.  Here then, are some ideas for getting more oxygen into your students' brains throughout the day.

• Give them a true "activity" several times during the day to get them moving out of their seats.  Have them find clues you've hidden around the room, or ask them to stand up and join you around a table for a demonstration, for example.
• If you have long periods of time where they must stay seated for a test, give them physical exercise both before and after the test.  The first exercise (touching toes ten time, perhaps) gets the oxygen to their brains.  The sceond exercise gets the kinks out of their muscles and uses up some of that youthful energy.
• Establish active routines.  If kids know that an exercise session is approaching, they'll be more likely to endure the sitting time.  This is especially important for your little AD/HD learners.
• Add dance to your curriculum.  This links the kinesthetic intelligence with the musical intelligence as your work on their language and logic intelligences :-)
• Play active games.  Here are some marvelous ideas: http://www.kellybear.com/TeacherArticles/TeacherTip69.html

Happy Teaching!

Faculty Room Chatter

"If you can't say something nice about someone, don't say anything at all." 

How often have we repeated that adage to our children?  But how often have we heeded that advice ourselves?  Many times, I would walk into a faculty room conversation that maligned a student who had just acted up in someone else's class.  Or I would overhear a hushed conversation about another teacher who was dating a married man.  ACK!  If anyone reading this worked with me, you'll understand now why I didn't frequent the faculty room.  Many years ago, I figured out that when I didn't add to that conversation, or worse, begin one about someone else, my life seemed to run smoother.  Why?  I don't have a good answer for that, but I definitely saw a connection between good things happening in my life and refusing to talk about another human being in a negative manner.  Maybe it was the universe gods (or God if you're a believer as I am) that showed me the error of my ways.  As a related sidenote, many years ago, I used a funny expression to describe my grandmother because she was "all bent over like a question mark."  Well, the universe gods got even with me for making fun of her because now in my 62nd year, I struggle for that erect stance I had in my 20s.  Oh well, lessons learned late are better than lessons never learned at all, I suppose. 

This blog post has turned out to be a bit of an Internet homily, and I apologize if I've offended anyone in the process.  However, I think it's important that we treat everyone with respect whether it's the nuisance kid in the back of the room, the back-stabbing colleague, or the needling administrator.  Do you agree with this logic?  If so, then either redirect the negative conversations you hear in the faculty room, or leave as I did to the sanctuary of your own room.  It's your choice!

Happy Teaching!

Shelfari...

What fun!  I recently joined Shelfari where I can posts the books I've read.  If I find time, I'll actually add a reveiw, but I've found that with the exception of one book I've reviewed before (Water for Elephants), I agree with the other reviews.  If it's on my list, I consider it a strong favorite. Here is why I've included it in my Parent-Teacher-Child Connection blog...

Teachers can "Start a New Group" and then add classroom books to the list - either required reading or for extra credit.  Add your students' email addresses to the group and you have an instant discussion group that can only be read by members of that group.  Only the administrator (you!) can add members.  And the administrator can monitor the posts for appropriate comments. 

Listen to how Shelfari actually began for classroom use: http://teachersteachingteachers.org/?cat=309 and a slideshow on the benefits of Shelfari: http://www.slideshare.net/eafinley/what-is-shelfari

Happy Teaching!

Educational Games

I was browsing Amazon the other day and found that there are many new educational games for the 2nd to 5th grade crowd.  If I were a kid, I'd enjoy playing these games:

1. Rory's Story Cubes Rory's Story Cubes- The writer in me loves this game because it involves creating stories from key words on the cubes.  It's also very similar to a game I played with my own kids years ago where we would take turns adding parts to a story while we drove on long trips.
2. ThinkFun Math Dice Jr. - The puzzler in me loves this game because the object of the game is to combine several numbers using any operation to get the key number on the white dice.  While this may not sound like fun in the true sense of the word, it will challenge young mathematicians to be creative in solving number problems.  This also an older version for more advanced students: Think Fun Math Dice
3. Angry Birds: Knock On Wood Game - I admit I'm addicted to the Angry Birds game on my tablet.  However, this real-life wood and slingshot version is definitely educational because the players must copy the structure shown on the card and then consider the most effective means of destroying it with the bird and slingshot. Make sure your kids play this on a carpet to keep down the noise level and that you have lots of room for flying wood :-)
4. Scrambled States Scrambled States- More than a simple map/puzzle game, this game gets participants noticing everything from colors and ABC's order to  comparisons and contrasts.  Players must find the right state in their pile that has a capital with three three syllables, for example.  A great American geography game and early SAT prep strategies!  This games links to the book The Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller.
5. Totally Gross The Game  - This isn't your average party game, but it sure looks fun for the younger crowd who delight in gross stuff like vomit, toe jam, and ear crud.  However, tossed into the hilarity of the game are cold hard science facts that are difficult to forget.  The games covers all the major sciences, not just human anatomy and comes with a container of slime, which you stretch in a number line each time a player answers a question correctly.  Tons o' fun!

I'm sure there are plenty of other educational games out there, but these seem to be the newest of the new and provides a cross-section of curriculum-related topics for parents and teachers.  Post here if you have any other educational games you and the children in your life enjoy playing. (PS - just for the record, I totally dislike games with timers because they force the players to think rapidly rather than consider all alternatives, which to me is a more desirable life skill... just sayin'!)

Happy Parenting and Happy Teaching!   ThinkFun Math Dice Jr.