Tag: elementary

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Virtual Field Trips: Bringing the World to Your Classroom

As a student, field trip days were highly anticipated days— a break from the “normal” school routine and schedule, eating lunch somewhere other than the cafeteria, and a chance to ride the bus with your friends! What more could a student ask for?! 

For teachers, though, it’s a bit more involved than just hopping on the bus and going somewhere fun. You’ve got to coordinate and pay for the bus. You also have to arrange with the lunchroom staff so they can plan accordingly and have sack lunches made for the students who need them. There’s also a need for chaperones, so you’ve got to plan in advance and get volunteers worked out. It’s definitely more work than staying in the classroom teaching a lesson. Even though field trips are a lot of work for teachers, there are good educational benefits that come from the experiences students have while on them. Field trips give students hands on learning experiences and let them learn in ways that are sometimes hard to do in the classroom. 

While unlimited field trips would be an amazing thing for schools, that just isn’t the case— there are budgets that must be adhered to and it just isn’t feasible in so many ways. Today, however, technology has made it possible for teachers to “take” their classes on field trips all over the world, allowing students to experience places they likely wouldn’t have had the chance to otherwise. 

Zoos and other wildlife facilities across the planet have set up cameras to livestream various animals for people to watch. Museums around the world have filmed tours of their sites. Historic places have filmed and set up interactive tours to allow students to get an up close look at things of the past. It’s really quite incredible! 

When learning about our nation’s symbols, important government buildings, and so on, my son’s kindergarten class took a virtual tour of Washington DC. My son came home so excited to tell us all about the things he had learned and seen on his field trip. As a parent, I was so grateful he had that opportunity, because taking him to actually see those places in person wasn’t an option at the time. 

Many of the places that provide virtual field trips also provide lesson plans and activities that teachers can use to teach about the places, people, and things at their location. Not only do students get to experience somewhere new and exciting, but teachers get to enjoy preplanned lessons! 

There are so many places that offer these virtual field trips, and a simple Google search will provide you with a list of possibilities to choose from. That being said, below you will find a list of links to various places that offer these virtual experiences for your students. Feel free to explore and share any that you find interesting! Happy field tripping!

The Monterey Bay Aquarium offers livestreams to many of its animal enclosures.

Great Lakes Now provides videos, lesson plans, and other educational information about the Great Lakes.

The Nature Conservancy allows students to visit and learn about various aspects of nature all around the world. 

Not everyone will have the chance to visit Amsterdam to see the Anne Frank house in person, but you can watch a virtual tour of it here.

If you’ve ever wanted to experience what life in colonial Williamsburg, Virginia was like, you can explore the town here.

The Natural History Museum provides an expansive look at many aspects of the people, places, and animals of past years. If you want an up close look at some of their exhibits, past and present, you can experience that here.

If you’ve ever wanted to visit the White House, here’s your chance!

Visiting the Louvre might be a little out of reach for many, but this virtual tour makes it more accessible for people all over the world!

If you’re doing a unit on space and planets, you can virtually visit Mars!

For your students who are interested in the way Amazon fulfills orders, this virtual tour might be an exciting opportunity for them to see how it all works!

Students can learn all about what happens to our garbage and recycling through this virtual tour shared by Republic Services.

Visit Dublin Ireland’s zoo through this virtual tour.

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Falling into Traditions by Reading

There are so many opportunities to create and carry on family traditions during the holidays. We don’t have to create traditions that are a huge production— sometimes a quiet night at home with people you love is the best way to spend your time. Have you ever considered making books or reading part of your holiday traditions? There’s not much that is better than finding a cozy corner in your house, curling up with a soft blanket, and reading some good books, and Fall time is the perfect time to cozy up with your family and read some fun books together! 

To get you started, I’ve selected a few books about Fall that will get you in the spirit of Autumn!

It’s Fall! by Linda Glaser with cut-paper illustrations by Susan Swan

This darling book follows a little boy as he explores and experiences Fall, learning about all the things that happen during this time of year. He notices the leaves changing colors, the animals starting to get ready to hibernate, the leaves falling, and the temperatures cooling. They plant bulbs in their yard in preparation for next Spring, snd he plays in the piles of leaves that have fallen off the trees. 

The illustrations in this book are phenomenal— they were all created out of paper then photographed for the book. 

Sammy in the Fall by Anita Bijsterbosch

Sammy is a curious little tiger who loves going on adventures with his stuffed horse, Hob. Together, they do all sorts of fun Fall activities, like picking apples, raking leaves and jumping into the piles, collecting acorns, doing crafts, and playing in the rain. 

The illustrations are adorable and the story is fun and engaging for younger kids.

The Roll-Away Pumpkin by Junia Wonders and illustrated by Daniela Volpari

Marla Little finds herself in quite a predicament: her giant pumpkin has started to roll away, and she can’t catch it. As she runs behind it, trying to stop it from rolling any farther, she exclaims, “Diddle-dee-doo! Oh, what shall I do?” She follows her pumpkin through town, and with every place her pumpkin rolls by, she gathers a new towns person to help her stop the pumpkin. Soon, the baker, the butcher, the farmer, the milk man, and the parade marchers are all running after the roll-away pumpkin with Marla. The pumpkin starts to get close to where some people are trying to cook a feast for the townspeople. Acting quickly, Marla flips a giant cauldron onto its side just in time for her giant pumpkin to roll right into it, where it stays until it is made into a delicious soup for all the people.

This story is a fun one to read with little kids, and is easy to get them involved in it with the repetition of Marla exclaiming “Diddle-dee-doo! Oh what shall I do?” every time she adds a new person to her pumpkin rescue efforts.

Full of Fall by April Pulley Sayre

This book features photographs of all the beauties that Fall holds. It highlights the rich, vibrant colors of the changing leaves, describes the sounds and sights of the leaves falling from the trees, and what happens to the leaves as they fall, dry up, and begin to decompose. The photographs capture the textures of nature during this time of year, and show just how beautiful and wonderful Fall is.

Apples and Robins by Lucie Félix

This book is so unique! Rather than traditional illustrations to tell the story, the author uses shapes cut out in the middle of the pages to form pictures. This format helps readers to see that everything around them is made up of shapes, put together to form new shapes and objects. The story is very simple, telling about picking apples and building a bird house for the robin. A storm comes and blows the leaves, apples, and birdhouse out of the tree, and again, uses shapes to rebuild the birdhouse. 

This book was so fun to read. The cut out shapes made it engaging and fun to follow!

_____________

Reading is truly one of the best ways to connect with people around you— especially younger kids. It’s a great way to build language skills as well as build relationships and establish traditions. I hope you take some time soon to pick up a good book and share it with someone you care about! 

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Counting Practice, but Make it Fun

Learning to count is an essential skill for kids to learn, so why not make it fun?! Last November, I created and shared a printable Thanksgiving themed I-Spy page. You can find it here. Since last year’s page was only in color, I thought I’d share a black and white I-Spy printable this year! 

These I-Spy/ Find and Count pages are great for early finishers, class parties, fun math activities, or even as a game. Parents can also print them for their kids for long car rides, waiting rooms, quiet time, or to be used to keep kids entertained while the turkey is cooking! 

**Printable is free, but is intended for classroom or home/personal use only. It is not to be sold, reposted, or claimed as your own.**

Thanksgiving Find & CountDownload
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The Wild World of Dress Up Days

School dress up days— the bane of every parent’s existence. These days range from super simple (I see you, Crazy Sock Day) to wildly outrageous (Dress Like Your Favorite Book Character Day I’m looking at you!). The students love them, the teachers tolerate them, and the parents could do without one more thing to add to the calendar. 

Why even have special dress up days? Will crazy hair day teach kids to stay drug free? Probably not. Will they remember the dress up days when they are adults? Again, probably not (unless it was extra cool and memorable). So if they don’t really serve any sort of educational purpose, why have them? 

I think the easy answer to that is that dress up days are fun. They bring a silly, creative element to a normal school day, and students thrive on fun and creative. In addition to that, there is usually a “punny” saying that is made up to help students make a connection between the dress up day and the lesson/theme for the day— such as “Team Drug Free!— wear your favorite team’s color or gear!”

This week is “Healthy Choices Week” at my kids’ school, and boy were they excited for the week to start! I started to grumble and mumble about it as soon as I saw the email in my inbox. My feelings changed, though, when I opened the email to find that the dress up days were incredibly easy— still fun— but easy enough that we didn’t need to do any extra planning or creating, and easy enough that little thought or effort has been required of my thinking skills… and that’s a win in my book!  

I appreciate when the school staff doesn’t go too overboard with these kinds of days. It truly makes my mornings easier! This week’s dress up days include:

Drug Prevention Monday: Be “RED”y to say no to drugs— wear red

Tasty Tuesday: Add colorful fruits and veggies to your diet— wear the color of your favorite fruit of veggie

Workout Wednesday: Get up and move— wear your favorite workout clothes

Online Safety Thursday: “Hats off to online safety!” — wear your favorite hat

Get Good Sleep Friday: Help your body grow by getting enough sleep— wear your pajamas

These kind of dress up days involve the kinds of things my kids wish they could wear to school more often, especially the hats and pajamas! It makes it easier for them to want to participate when it’s stuff they already have, actually want to wear, and doesn’t cause them any extra attention. There are many students who don’t enjoy participating in dress up days when they involve them going beyond their comfort zones and doing wacky and crazy things. 

While dress up days don’t typically serve an “educational” purpose, they do give something fun for students to look forward to and provide them an opportunity to get involved in a school wide community. They may not be for everyone, but that’s ok! What’s your take on dress up days?

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Thanksgiving Word Activities

Turkey Day is just a couple of weeks away, and I can hardly believe it! The days leading up to holiday breaks are often filled with excitement— which is fun, but also sometimes translates into extra energy for the kids and extra exhaustion for the teachers (and parents!). Holiday themed activities are always a fun way to engage your students and attempt to wrangle the chaos a bit during those days. 

I’ve created a couple of fun word activities you’re welcome to use. These are geared more for upper elementary, but can definitely be used for kids of other ages if they are able to do them! Below you will find a downloadable word scramble as well as a Thanksgiving word making activity. 

Print them off and use as a sanity saver on those crazy days, as an activity for the car ride to Thanksgiving dinner, or print them off for the kids to work on while the turkey cooks on Thanksgiving Day! However you choose to use them, have fun!

**Printables are free to download, but may not be sold, reposted, or claimed as your own. For classroom and personal home use only.**

Thanksgiving Word ActivitiesDownload
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Veterans Day Remembrance

Today is Veterans Day in the United States. It’s a day we pause to honor and pay tribute to the brave men and women who have so diligently served our country and sacrificed so much for the citizens of our nation. Because I have family members who have served in the military, and a husband who works with veterans suffering from service connected disabilities, I understand the levity of this day, and have always done my best to think about and honor military members, past and present. 

We can do our part to honor service members by talking about them, their bravery, and their service. Were it not for our brave service men and women, we would not be able to enjoy the freedoms we enjoy. Our lives would be much different than they are. In order to ensure that our military continues to receive the honor and thanks they deserve, we must teach our children and our students to respect and honor this day. 

This can look like many different things, but all are appreciated by those being honored. Some ideas include:

  • Writing thank you letters to soldiers who are currently deployed
  • Writing thank you letters to veterans who are no longer actively serving
  • Create a video montage with students expressing their gratitude
  • Visiting with retired veterans and listening to their stories
  • Schools can hold an assembly to show pictures of, share memories of, and even hear from service members
  • Talking to our students about the profound impact that members of our military have made

Every year, I would have my students take some time to make a card or write a letter that would be sent to a soldier currently deployed. It always amazed me how much thought they would put into the words they wrote. There were even a few years we got some letters back, and it made the students so happy! There are many organizations who will collect letters and send them for you— a simple Google search will usually guide you in the right direction.

Not every student fully understood the magnitude of what soldiers do for us. Others, however, did, as they had a parent actively serving in the military. But regardless of their depth of understanding, they did know that soldier are important and that they ought to be honored and remembered, and that’s a lesson I hope they have carried with them as they have grown into adulthood. 

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One Size Fits Most Doesn’t Work in the Classroom

Last week, while getting my kids ready for school, I checked my weather app to see what the day was going to look like. I was shocked to see that it was a mere 30 degrees Fahrenheit outside, and that it wasn’t going to get warmer than the high 40s during the day. I wasn’t prepared for such low temperatures quite yet, so I sent my husband down to dig out our winter bin. In a frenzy, we began digging through the bin, searching for the appropriate sizes of coats and gloves we would need to keep our kids warm. We were soon met with a pile of gloves of varying sizes and colors. The tags on each glove were ominously labeled with the ever so (not so) precise “one size fits most” sizing. All the gloves were youth sized, yet they were all different sizes, but all labeled that they would fit most kids. The problem with that sizing? My ten year old’s hands are much larger than my four and five year old’s hands. So no, one size didn’t fit most, and it left some of my kids with floppy-fingered or stretched to the max gloves. 

At least they had something on their hands, though, right? I guess.

We frequently see a similar problem in education. So often, we deliver instruction and curriculum that is sized as “one size fits all”, when really, it doesn’t fit all in the same way. Our instruction may fit “most” and might serve the middle ground of our classroom, but there will always be students who don’t fit into that middle ground. Teachers will encounter students who are accelerated learners, needing more of a challenge than their peers. On the other end of the spectrum, teachers will have students who find the material too challenging and sometimes inaccessible entirely. It creates a tricky situation.

As teachers, we have the responsibility to see that all of our students are making progress, regardless of their intellectual abilities. And if a student is not making the progress that would be expected, the best practice would be to get that student placed in the most appropriate learning environment with the kind of help they might need.

With upwards of 40 students in a classroom for some teachers, what do you do for those students who don’t fit into the “most” category of your curriculum sizing? Making 40 different assignments wouldn’t be realistic, and you certainly can’t just leave them behind— the repercussions of such an action would be frustrating and discouraging for the students who get left behind. 

When we are faced with situations like this, we have to think back to our college days when we were learning all about differentiation and accommodation. We’ve got to pull that mental file out of the back of our minds, dust it off, and figure out ways to best serve our students. 

How we do that looks different for each student that needs different instruction. One student might need a reduced number of questions on a test. Another might need questions worded differently and more simply. One might need more rigorous work, requiring a higher level of thinking. Some students may need an assignment that is completely different than the rest of the class, but still assesses the same learning goals. 

I recall a time during my first year of teaching when I had a student who had just moved to the United States. Her knowledge and understanding of the English language was very limited. She most certainly did not fit into the “most” category. When it came time to do a class novel study, rather than expecting her to be able to read and understand the novel in English, I was able to find the novel in her native language, and give her assignment that had been translated into her language. This way, she was able to still participate and learn the concepts we were focusing on, but it was accessible to her and what she needed. 

Another time comes to mind later in my teaching career when I had a student who was very much academically ahead of her peers. Unfortunately, her schedule didn’t work out to have her placed in my accelerated class. Rather than have her get bored with what I was teaching her class period, I assigned her what I was teaching to the accelerated class. Again, she still was able to participate and learn what I needed her to, but it was at her level and gave her the appropriate amount of challenge. 

If a student was on an IEP and had specific goals about test accommodations or differentiation, I would often reduce the number of questions they had to answer so that the test didn’t feel so overwhelming. Sometimes I would eliminate questions on assignments or rewrite them in a simpler way to help my struggling students to be able to access the information more easily.

These things didn’t take a lot of extra time for me to do, but they made a world of difference to the students who needed the help. Some of my other students would see these accommodations being made and would complain to me that “it wasn’t fair” to the rest of the class. At that point, I would remind them of the quote I had hanging in the back of my room that said, “Fair isn’t everyone getting the same thing. Fair is everyone getting what they need to succeed.” They would usually stop complaining at that point and would move on, realizing that their complaining wasn’t going to get them anywhere. 

Providing all students with a chance to succeed is our job as teachers. We aren’t there to make students feel like failures. We’re not there to make their lives frustrating and miserable. Our goal is to create a learning environment that is welcoming, safe, and one that leads to success. As you plan your next lesson, unit, assignment, or test, take a minute to think about who in your class doesn’t fit into the “most” category, and see what you can do to help them feel more successful in your classroom. I promise it will be worth your time, energy, and thought.