Get Your Science On – Something for the older students

Can’t get out to summer camp this year? Want your kids to actually do something that will add to their lives and still, and primarily, have fun, and not be umbilical corded to their Play Stations?

Well, here’s Steve Spangler. He has science experiments that can be done at home. Most require simple materials from around the house. In fact, if you have a one-room school with several youngsters at different ages, you can appoint (If willing to be appointed) your preteen or teenager to be the leader and share the experiments with their younger siblings. Then just listen for the “oohs and aahs.” This can be hours of investigation and hilarity.

And what’s really great about these experiments is that Steve Spangler explains why they work. Now, don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t do a long theory lidden dissertation. These videos are free. He does support virtual summer camps with complete kits. But those cost money. I don't know about you, but I like the FREE STUFF! 

I’m including two sites that might be helpful. But be aware, not nearly all, but just some of these experiments require adult supervision. So, help your students select the ones they can do safely without you eagle-eyeing over them every minute. 

In fact, for those parents who are kids at heart and like to play. Some of these would be fun for you, too! 

https://stevespangler.com/science-at-home/

https://m.youtube.com/user/SteveSpanglerScience/videos

I invite comments, suggestions, ideas. 

If you have questions that I might be able to answer generally, please email me. Please, keep in mind that this blog is for suggestions that may or may not work. Here is the disclaimer, professional advice requires much more in-depth information and contact and is beyond the scope of this blog.  email: gail.coulter@outlook.com.

All Aboard! – Train rides for more exploration

What child ( of all ages) doesn’t love trains, magical. When David and Isaac were very little, we boarded the Cascade passenger train that travels along the Sound from Bellingham to Seattle. We stopped at Everett, not more than 60 miles, for just a taste of a ride. Grandpa met us at the end of our line and drove us back home. I had as much fun as my grandkids did. 

Sharing a real ride might be a little difficult right now. But you can still take a  virtual trip. Here’s one from Switzerland to Italy. Very scenic. (Just skip the ads.): 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mw9qiV7XlFs&feature=emb_rel_pause

After the ride, visit this site below. It’s really great for your youngsters, ages about four through seven. The stories are read from real books, pages turned. There’s about 15 stories with related activities. If I had known about this, we would have had more hours of fun.

B & O Junior Junction: Very cute! Your students will love it! Easy to access. New content added weekly. And - Yes! It is FREE!

http://www.borail.org/JrJunction.aspx

Field Trip: And you don’t even need a ticket

Schools often have field trips as the year winds down. Youngsters lining up to board on big yellow buses. Well, here’s a great virtual field trip for a little bit of break from academics that anyone can enjoy, especially your students in upper elementary. I know I liked it, even though I’ve left my preteen years far, far, far behind. I shared this particular FREE opportunity in a prior post called Resources! Resources! Resources! (Please, see that post for more ideas.), but was afraid it might have been lost in all the words. So, here it is. Load up those kids, pack a picnic lunch, and head out for a fun afternoon. 

American Museum: 

This is wonderful. It has virtual tours and a lot of interesting topics. Make sure you scroll down the homepage to the section for Families and Students. That is where you will find some interesting materials. Especially OLOGY! Very cool. After you check out that location, then explore further. You will find some wonderful things including art, science, history. The T-REX conversations and videos are really great. And right! IT IS FREE! 

https://www.amnh.org/explore

I invite comments, suggestions, ideas. 

If you have questions that I might be able to answer generally, please email me. Please, keep in mind that this blog is for suggestions that may or may not work. Here is the disclaimer, professional advice requires much more in-depth information and contact and is beyond the scope of this blog.  email: gail.coulter@outlook.com.

Beyond Goldilocks and the Three Bears - Developing preschooler's comprehension

Of course it worked! But, seriously, I am so happy that those who read my blog actually try some of the ideas! I’m going to share part of a communication from a parent who tried a suggestion on a trip to their cabin, and then I’ll share a little bit about how to extend the strategy to even make it better. The children are three and four years old.

If you haven’t read the post yet and want to know what we’re talking about, go to the post “The Three Bears and the Little Red Hen.”

There is no TV, no cell, and no internet. It’s wonderful up there. But we did bring books, and let me tell you, my little ladies surprised me!! As I read, I started asking questions like you suggested and they were answering them!!!! I read a page or two and asked a question. When they knew the answer, they say it, and then I kept reading. But when they didn’t know, they were quiet. I could tell they were thinking. I gave them time and then re-read the page and asked again, and they answered. I guess it surprised me just how much they can really comprehend at this age. 

She did this GREAT! And it is surprising what children know and can do. These “little ladies” are a little on the young side for this strategy, but each child is different and develops at different rates, so go ahead and try. If the strategy doesn’t work, that’s fine.  However, whether you use this story reading strategy or not, remember to play with language with your preschoolers. Play with language all the time. When you’re driving down the road, sing songs and recite nursery rhymes. Use the same simple rhymes and songs over and over so that the children memorize them. Use especially nursery rhymes (See the post Jack and Jill for more information about that strategy). 

Another GREAT source for language play are the Dr. Seuss books. Just be careful with selecting Dr. Seuss books. Some of his books are pure nonsense and fun and a type of play with language, They are great for developing phonological awareness, structure of language and sounds in words. Some of his book are real stories with a distinct beginning, middle, and end, with characters and settings. They have a plot. These types of books are great for asking questions. 

Now, how to extend this story reading strategy. Here’s just a few suggestions. 

1.   The four questions apply to the overall story. For example, there is usually only one main character in the story. So, in Goldilocks and the Three Bears, the answer to the question of “Who is the story about” is Goldilocks. The three bears are not the main characters. For the setting question, after the Goldilocks goes to the bear’s house, ask the question: “Where does the story take place?” Sure, Goldilocks goes through the woods to get to the bear’s house, but the real plot of the story is in the house itself. This helps children to be able to sift through relevant and irrelevant information.  By asking just these four questions for books that have a plot, we can extend the strategy to be more meaningful and helpful for children. 

2.   Begin story time with a summary using the questions that will be asked. For example, “We’re going to read a story about Goldilocks. She goes to the bears house and gets into trouble. The bears find out and she jumps out a window and runs away. Let’s read the story.” In this way, you are linking the questions to the summary and highlighting the important components of the structure of all stories. 

3.   After you have read the story, summarize it again. “We read a story about Goldilocks. She went…..” You get the idea. This summary once again emphasizes the important points of the following: (a) who is the story about, (b) where does the story take place, (c) what was the problem, and (c) how did the story end.” And remember why you are doing this. It is because all stories, narratives, have the same structure and you are sensitizing the little ones to a strategy that they need for comprehension. 

4.   Finally, link today’s story to yesterday’s story. Hold up the book from the day before and review the same set of questions. For example, “Remember, yesterday we read a book about Goldilocks. She went to a bear’s house and got into trouble. The bears found out, and Goldilocks jumped out a window and ran away. TODAY we are going to read a story about the Little Red Hen. She lives on a farm. She asks for help from the other farm animals to make bread, but they refuse. She ends up making the bread by herself and eating it all up.” 

Remember, each child develops at different rates. Some will benefit from this story grammar strategy early on and some not until they are around five years old. Be careful not to push the child into something when they are not developmentally ready. Do not be afraid to adapt the strategy to a simpler form or to extend it as you see the child learning. (A simpler form is just summarizing the story before you begin reading. “Today, we’re going to read a story about….” without asking the questions.)

Remember also, even if you don’t get this strategy exactly right. For example, you forget to ask a question or choose the wrong type of book. Don’t worry. It’s all good. You have done something really wonderful with your child anyway. You have read a book together and shared time. That is the most important thing you can do.  

I invite comments, suggestions, ideas. 

If you have questions that I might be able to answer generally, please email me. Please, keep in mind that this blog is for suggestions that may or may not work. Here is the disclaimer, professional advice requires much more in-depth information and contact and is beyond the scope of this blog.  email: gail.coulter@outlook.com.

Appreciate the Teacher Week – To the professional and accidental teacher

I’m sure that most parents have hand delivered flowers and thoughtful thank you cards to your children’s teachers during Teacher Appreciation Weeks in the past. And they deserve that thank you. 

On good days, a teacher’s job in school is demanding, physically and emotionally and mentally. They are not only doing the job of teaching a subject, but also are nurturing the most important people in your lives for significant hours in a day. 

Right now, we want to completely and thoroughly acknowledge that teachers have been placed in a very difficult situation with this COVID-19 environment. Teaching from home is an upheaval of so much they do. (Just ask me. I’m doing the same thing at the university level.) It takes additional and heroic planning, adaptations, organization, and implementation, which all takes additional time and thought in order to provide meaningful content to students across virtual forums. This is uncharted territory and looks very unlike what a teacher does in a classroom. And then, on top of that, teachers deal with tricky, unfamiliar technology, internet interruptions, and software that freezes. 

Furthermore, in many cases, teachers are not only teaching your children, but they are also teaching their own and experiencing much of the same frustration as you, of helping with content outside their third grade expertise. They are also trapped in the same kind of difficult situation of trying to get their work done, as a professional, as well as staying on top of assignments, geometry problems, and writing prompts of the inhabitants of their own one-room school house.

So, as a recipient of those cards and flowers over the past more than 30 years, I send to all of you teachers out there virtual flowers and thank you cards for those of you who have taken on these new multiple responsibilities and challenges. It is not easy.

This thank you includes, you, too, parents. Those of you who are doing sometimes up to three jobs: jobs of being a parent, an accidental teacher, and in many cases, the job of supporting your family by working from home.

Here’s to you all of you teachers. 

I invite comments, suggestions, ideas. 

If you have questions that I might be able to answer generally, please email me. Please, keep in mind that this blog is for suggestions that may or may not work. Here is the disclaimer, professional advice requires much more in-depth information and contact and is beyond the scope of this blog.  email: gail.coulter@outlook.com.

The Three Bears and the Little Red Hen – This is so easy for your little ones

The Three Bears and the Little Red Hen have something in common besides a good story. Helping your young children see the commonalities across stories supports their comprehension of not only these simple ones, but also of more complicated works, such as Moby Dick. (No! You’re not going to read to them Moby Dick, but someday, they may read it.) All narratives have the same structure, called story grammar. By familiarizing young children to story grammar, you are laying the foundation for later comprehension and analysis in later grades. You probably did something like this in school. And you can do this at home! 

No preparation needed. No special materials.

You just ask four little questions as you read the story. 

·      Who is the story about? 

·      Where does the story take place?

·      What is the problem?

·      How is the problem solved? 

Here’s an example using The Three Bears by Robert Southey, an earlier version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears from England. Children understand a great deal more than you would think. This version provides opportunities for the basis for other conversations. I like this version, also, because there are some “big words” in it that will extend a child’s vocabulary. Don’t be afraid to use big words and tell what they mean. After reading each section of the story ask the related question. If the child cannot answer or gets the answer wrong, just gently tell the child the answer.

In a far-off country there was once a little girl who was called Silver-hair, because her curly hair shone brightly. (Who is the story about? Answer: Silver-hair)

One day she started out into a wood to gather wild flowers, and into the fields to chase butterflies. She ran here and she ran there, and went so far, at last, that she found herself in a lonely place, where she saw a snug little house, in which three bears lived; but they were not then at home.  (Where did the story take place? Answer: The bears house.)

While Silver-hair was lying fast asleep, the three bears came home from their walk. They came into the kitchen, to get their porridge, but when the Big Bear went to his, he growled out: “SOMEBODY HAS BEEN TASTING MY PORRIDGE!” (What was the problem? Answer: The three bears came home and found their house broken into.)

At that, Silver-hair woke in a fright, and jumped out of the window and ran away as fast as her legs could carry her, and never went near the Three Bears’ snug little house again. (How was the problem solved? Answer: Silver Hair jumped out the window and never came back again.)

Now, there can be variations of this strategy, depending upon the skills and maturity of the child. You might read the story first through without the questions and then say, “I like this story, let’s read it again. This time I’ll ask some questions. See if you can answer them.” 

Or you might prepare the child before you begin reading by providing a brief summary, “We’re going to read a story about a little girl who is very curious, named Silver Hair. She breaks into a house and damages it. And runs away when she is caught.” Then you might say, “Let’s read the story. I’ll ask you four questions as we read: Who is the story about, where does the story take place, what is the problem, and how the problem is solved.”

Or you might say before you read the story. You know the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Here’s a different version. It is very similar to the story you know. This little girl’s name is Silver Hair.”  

And of course, any variation all depends upon the age of your child and what they already know. 

Adaptation: But, if this is too difficult for your child or the child is younger, then choose a simpler version of the story, gaging the degree of difficulty upon your own circumstances . Most fairy tales have multiple versions of the same story, some with less complicated language structure and vocabulary. In addition, instead of asking all four questions, choose just one “Who is this story about?” Then add the additional questions as you read subsequent stories, developing your child’s comprehension across time and stories.  

So, there it is, a simple way to lay a foundation for skills in comprehension. This is easily done with children four and five years old. So, the next time your child brings you a favorite book and slips up next to you for a good story, think about stretching their thinking, just a little bit. 

I have included the link to where you can download a copy of the pdf of The Three Bears, just in case it’s a rainy day and you want to snuggle down and read a good story this afternoon. 

https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/68/fairy-tales-and-other-traditional-stories/5105/the-three-bears/

I invite comments, suggestions, ideas. 

If you have questions that I might be able to answer generally, please email me. Please, keep in mind that this blog is for suggestions that may or may not work. Here is the disclaimer, professional advice requires much more in-depth information and contact and is beyond the scope of this blog.  email: gail.coulter@outlook.com.

ART LESSONS - For your children

Draw with Drew and Rosie: 

This is quality and fun! 

I didn't want this to get buried in a previous post, so I am highlighting this particular resource. It is truly a delight and can be so much fun for many of your kids. 

Drew Willis is a creative director for Time for Kids. He is also an accomplished children’s book illustrator.  Rosie, who is in 4^thgrade and is the daughter of the editor, has admired Drew’s drawing since she was little. The team has pared up to provide lessons that are as cute as a giraffe (the topic of the first lesson). 

Lessons can be accessed in two ways through the computer: (1) Live streaming in the actual art session where students can participate, and (2) The  accessing the session on-line at a later date. 

This is an opportunity to learn from a gifted artist. It is fun, educational, and engaging and so fitting for those of you who have young budding artists. The quality is much better than what I could find on You Tube. Lessons of this quality can cost a fortune. BUT THIS IS FREE.  

To access the first two lessons and learn more, see the link below. Time for Kids also has provided free resources for teachers. So, teachers, if you are interested, this link can also direct you to more information.

https://time.com/5820518/draw-with-us/