Did you learn a second language when you were in school? How comfortable would you be using it now? Imagine for a moment, that you were thrust into a situation where you needed to communicate and the only language spoken was the one you learned years ago at school. I suspect you would be tongue-tied and maybe even a bit petrified to attempt to speak at all. But, there is hope. It can be like riding a bicycleLearning a second language can be tricky at first, but once you get the hang of it, it will be there in the future as you need it. Often people say it is like riding a bicycle. With a bit a practice it will come back from the cobwebs of our memories. It can sometimes be difficult to re-learn how to speak and write in a second language after not using it for a long time. Even the most experienced second language speakers feel shy or rusty when it’s been a while. However, like riding a bicycle, all of those skills you developed come back to you quickly when you start using the second language again. To help with confidence when speaking and writing in your second language, try taking an online course that reviews basic grammar and conversation topics. This can help refresh your memory and get conversations flowing again. Plus, we all need to practice our second language from time to time so that we don’t lose the skill entirely! Sometimes you need a reason whyI still remember when I started to refresh my French after not using it since high school. My kids were entering into French Immersion and I wanted to be able to understand what they were working on and help them out. I took a couple of courses through online university and with a bit of practice, I became comfortable with the language again. I started to help out in the classroom and this made it easier to see how to use simpler forms of the language to communicate with the kids. I also was able to practice my French with the kids without fear of any mistakes I might make with gender usage. Note: I still find it tough to remember which nouns are masculine and which are feminine. I often keep a dictionary nearby to check this out or I go to an online dictionary. I am so glad that I did brush up on my French, because when I first started teaching, I ended up in a long-term substitute situation where I needed to teach Grade 1 French Immersion for 4 months. With the help of my colleagues and with my knowledge of how to teach different subjects, I was able to create materials and lessons that worked. It was scary, but I realized that I could do it. That immersion into my own kids' classrooms helped me to learn simpler ways of communicating with my students and I was able to transfer that to my classroom situation. Following the 4 months in Grade 1, I ended up teaching French Immersion music for 9 years. This meant I needed to learn all the specific French jargon and terminology for music. Talk about choosing to jump into the fire! But I did it. Who knew that Frère Jacques could be sung so many ways in Kindergarten. I used it to teach emotions, beat, rhythm, echoing, and many other things when I first had the kids who knew no French. They thought that I was very silly, but they had fun joining me. You may need to refresh more than onceFast forward several years, and my French was rusty again from lack of use. I decided to do something about that because my grandchildren were entering French Immersion. I started to brush up on my French and volunteer in my grandson's classroom. I started creating resources for my older grandson who was going to go into Late Immersion and I started to tutor some other students who were going into Late Immersion. It was much faster getting my fluency this time. The grammar made sense and the vocabulary came back quickly. Creating the resources and using them with beginners also helped me to find out where things needed to be modified to make them work better. If you are interested in checking out some French resources that work for young learners or those beginning in Late Immersion or FSL, check out my French categories in my TPT store. Related Posts
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If you want excitement, watch how kids react to the first sign of snow. When I woke up a few days ago, there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. Little did I know when I headed to school, it would be a few inches by lunch time. The kids kept looking out the window and watching the clock waiting for recess break so they could get outside and play. Of course this meant allowing more time for bundling up and preparing to go outside, then unbundling and dealing with snowy gear when they came back inside, as well as the many stories they had to tell about playing in the snow. Teachable MomentsTeachable moments are rampant at times like this. I like to use these events as springboards into different activities. You can still meet requirements of the curriculum by adding them in, they just have a fun twist to capture the excitement and focus of the kids. I learned early on to take advantage of this excitement instead of trying to squash it so that they could get back to work. Here are a few different ideas that I would do. Story telling and writingI would build in time to allow them to share their stories and then I would use that to help them write stories. Story writing using the fun activities they did outside can help even the most hesitant writer to put pen to paper. Once I had my class imagine what it would be like if the city froze. We talked about all kinds of crazy scenarios and possibilities and after brainstorming as a group, each person did some more brainstorming on their own. Then, they wrote stories and tried to add in many details and descriptive words to paint the picture in the reader's mind. Sharing the stories later was so much fun. Here is the template we used for the stories. Grab a free copy of Frozen templates by subscribing to my newsletter. Math And Science ActivitiesSometimes, I would take a math or science approach. This might include measuring the snow, seeing how long it takes to melt when brought inside, building a fort outside, seeing who can throw a snowball the farthest, making snow families, or checking the temperature at different times of the day to see if it gets colder or warmer. Snow AlternativesIf you live in a place that doesn't get snow, you could try doing some activities that might mimic those we did. For example: Use rolled up socks as pretend snowballs and see who can throw them the farthest. Shave up some ice and form snowballs and try to make a small snowman. Use ice cubes to build small forts Check the temperatures in different parts of the world for a few days in a row and then graph the results. Imagine what a snow day would be like and write about it. There are several winter language and math activities that you can do, but adding in the real life moments just makes them so much more fun. Here are some other winter resources that might be of interest as the cold, white days continue. Winter Sports Bundle Winter Word Work Language Activities Winter Parts Of Speech Silly Sentences For lots more ideas, check out my winter math and literacy category. Winter novel studies are also a great way to include a winter theme into your language arts. Here are some novel studies that might interest you. Emma's Magic Winter The Kids In Ms. Coleman's Class - Snow War Stone Fox Horrible Harry And The Holidaze Grab the excitement and wonder of winter and add it to your lessons for more engagement and motivation. I would love to hear some of the other ways you weave winter into your lessons. Don't forget to grab your free copy of Frozen writing templates. Related PostsFrom the time children are babies, we talk, sing, and make gestures to get them to respond to us and we are so excited when we hear them squeak and coo. This is oral communication at its best. We've made a connection and started the process of language development. Importance of oral communicationOral communication is such an important way to develop language and literacy skills. It is through oral communication that children learn to articulate their thoughts and experiences, to engage with others, and to build their vocabulary and comprehension. Oral communication doesn't begin when a child goes to school. It begins from the time the child is a baby. The more we interact with kids when they are infants, the better they are able to communicate their feelings and needs. Teachers can build on those early communication skills when the children begin school, but the richer the experiences as infants and toddlers, the more successful they will be with their educational experiences. Though oral communication is sometimes viewed as simply talking, it is actually a complex process that employs all the language arts skills. When we oral communicate effectively, we are able to share our thoughts and feelings with others in a clear and concise way. Oral communication is so much more than just speaking. It is an oral language activity that uses all the elements of Language Arts including listening, viewing, speaking, writing, and critically thinking. When we communicate orally, we are not only using words but our whole body to express ourselves through intonation, facial expressions, gestures, and body language. Oral communication helps children to develop language skills, and it also encourages them to be creative and expressive. There are many different ways to encourage oral communication in the classroom. We communicate orally when we tell stories, sing songs, read books out loud, enact scenes from plays, and present oral reports. In the classroom, oral communication activities can range from choral reading and readers theater to storytelling and circle time discussions. Choral reading and readers theaterWith choral reading, the whole class reads a book together, taking turns to read different parts. This is a great way to get everyone involved, and it can also help to build confidence in those who are less confident readers. Because they are reading as a group, the fear of making mistakes and struggling with reading is lessened. Another way to encourage oral communication is through readers theater. This is where children take on the roles of different characters in a play and read their lines aloud. This is a great way for children to practice their oral reading skills, and it also allows them to be creative and have fun. They can sometimes add different actions and voices as they read. Plays and puppetryPuppetry and class plays are great ways to promote oral communication skills. These activities provide opportunities for children to practice speaking in front of an audience, to listen to others, and to develop confidence in their oral communication skills. The actors are able to use body language and actions to further emphasize the words and voices they use for their roles. The audience practices the skills of listening and viewing to make sense out of what is being expressed on stage. Audio books and musicListening is a big component in oral communication. It is important to be able to listen and understand when someone is speaking or sharing information through other mediums. Using audio books and music is a great way to help develop listening skills. Messages are being shared without the visual part, so it is necessary to listen more closely to understand what is being shared. More ideasDoing interviews is another great way to develop oral communication skills. Not only does it require being able to speak, but also to listen so that both parties are able to understand and share ideas and thoughts. Being part of a podcast involves listening and speaking as well. The difference is, you can't necessarily see the other person, so you need to be able to figure out meaning from the words and intonation of the speakers. These are just a few of the many ways you can help your students build their oral communication skills. So have fun and get creative! Related PostsHave you ever reflected back on why you teach the way you do? What made you use that story? How did you know what to do when a certain situation arose? Could you have approached things in a different way? Teaching kids language skills so they are able to communicate effectively can be complicated at times. There are so many different experiences and abilities to take into consideration. I started to do some self reflection and realized that some of my most valuable lessons and ideas have come from raising my own children. As I stumbled through those first few years helping them learn to talk, read, write, and self regulate, I found myself creating a toolkit of skills and resources that would ultimately go with me into the classroom. Who knew those constant "why ......? questions would shape my teaching for years to come. I have 4 children and as might be expected, they all learn differently. What worked for one child didn't necessarily work the same way for the others. Sounds like most classroom situations, right? That means that we need to have multiple ways to approach each situation so that we can help all our students to be successful as they learn. Language developmentLet's focus on language development for today. Language development requires being able to recognize sounds, letters, and how all of this goes together to communicate. One of the best ways to help children develop strong language skills is to combine oral communication with phonemic awareness and phonics instruction. By combining all of these elements, you can create a powerful tool for teaching language development. When it comes to teaching language development skills, phonemic awareness and phonics are two of the most important concepts for primary teachers to understand. Simply put, phonemic awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words. Phonics is the relationship between those sounds and the letters that represent them. How we approach teaching these skills will vary depending on the abilities of our students, our teaching styles, and of course access to resources and support available. There are many different ways to approach phonemic awareness and phonics instruction. Some teachers prefer to work on phonemic awareness activities first, and then move on to teaching phonics. Others teach phonics from the beginning, using games and activities to make it fun and engaging for students. Whichever approach you choose, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, it's important to make sure that your students are comprehending what you're teaching them. Second, be sure to provide plenty of opportunities for practice. And finally, don't forget to mix things up now and then- kids learn best when they're having fun! Phonemic awareness and phonics activitiesThere are a variety of phonemic awareness and phonics activities that you can do with your students. Here are a few ideas. Word work activities are a great way to practice phonemic awareness and phonics skills. Word family activities, segmenting and blending, for example, help students learn about how individual sounds come together to form words. These activities are essential for helping students develop phonemic awareness and phonics skills. One way to introduce phonemic awareness is through rhyming games. You can start by saying a word and having your child say a word that rhymes with it. As they get better at identifying rhyming words, you can start saying a series of words and have them identify the word that doesn't rhyme. This will help them to start thinking about the individual sounds in words. Another popular activity is called "sound swapping". To do this, you'll need a list of words that all begin with the same sound (for example, hat, ham, hog). Write each word on a separate sheet of paper or index card. Then mix up the cards and have your students draw one from a pile. The goal is for them to read the word aloud and then swap out one of the phonemes (sounds) to create a new word. For example, if they draw the word "hog," they might change the /h/ sound to a /t/ sound to create the word "tog." This activity is great for practicing phonemic awareness skills while also reinforcing letter-sound relationships. Word families activities are a great way to reinforce phonics skills. A word family is a group of words that share the same ending sound (-at, -an, -ig, etc.). You can introduce word families by reading aloud a list of words from the same family (-at words: cat, hat, rat, bat). Then challenge your students to come up with additional words from that same family (-at words: mat, sat). Once they've had some practice with this, you can start mixing things up by having them create words from different families (-am words: jam, ham) . Word family activities not only help students understand how different letter combinations can create new sounds; they also provide valuable practice in blending and segmenting words - two essential skills for reading success! My son loved to try and read words he saw around him and he liked to have me make word lists and tape them to his closet door from the time he was a toddler. I still remember all the "ss" word lists. He would read through them and try to figure out other words that might go in each list. Read alouds are a great way to model phonemic awareness and phonics skills for students. When you read aloud, pay attention to the rhythm and flow of the words. Point out how the different sounds come together to form words. You can also do some fun language activities together, like clapping out the syllables in words or finding words that start with the same sound. My daughter used to listen to me read books to her and then she would record herself reading the books. I was amazed at how well she was able to copy the intonation and fluency from an early age. It goes to show the importance of reading aloud to help with language development and oral communication. The concept of print is also important for primary students to understand, as it helps them to make connections between what they see on a page and the words that correspond to those images. Sight word games help students to learn how letter-sound relationships work. For example, students might be asked to match pictures with words or to identify words that begin with a certain sound. These games are not only fun for students, but they also help them to develop a better understanding of how written language works. Here are several themed sight word sets and activities that may be helpful. The importance of phonemic awareness and phonics cannot be overstated. These skills are essential for language development and reading comprehension. Without them, students would have difficulty understanding spoken or written language. The ultimate goal of phonemic awareness and phonics instruction is to improve reading comprehension. So go ahead and get started on some fun phonemic awareness and phonics activities with your students today! This is a sampler of alphabet sounds game board that is free for my newsletter subscribers. If you are interested in the full resource, you can find it here. Related PostsTeaching kids reading nowadays is a juggling act, balancing a wide range of abilities and skills with confusion, engagement, and boredom. Differentiation is a must, not a suggestion anymore. Full class lessons are often replaced with guided reading groups. Planning guided reading groupsGuided reading can be a bit daunting for primary teachers. When you consider all of the different guided reading activities, it's no wonder we sometimes feel overwhelmed! But guided reading doesn't have to be complicated. In fact, planning guided reading groups is actually quite simple, and the benefits are well worth the effort. Here are a few tips to get you started. First, do some pre-assessment to decide on appropriate reading levels to start with. Then, choose texts that are appropriate for the levels of your students. Next, decide what you want your students to focus on during guided reading. Finally, don't forget about word work! Choose appropriate textsOnce you have decided on the levels for each reading group, it's important to have a variety of materials and topics available so that all students can be successful. You want to make sure that the texts are interesting and engaging. It's important to select books that are not too difficult or too easy, as this can lead to frustration or boredom. Fortunately, there are now many leveled readers available, so finding the perfect books for your groups should be a snap. Decide on the group focusThe needs for each group will be different. You will need to decide on what the focus will be based on these needs. Do you want them to work on fluency? Comprehension? Vocabulary development? Once you know your goals, you can choose activities and games that will help your students meet those objectives. Don't forget word workYou'll need to prepare your guided reading materials. This includes creating sight word lists, preparing word work activities, and generating questions for each group. You'll need to select language activities and games that are appropriate for each group. This is an important part of guided reading, and it's a great way to help students build their vocabulary and sight word recognition skills. There are many fun and engaging ways to incorporate word work into guided reading, so get creative and have fun! Setting up guided reading groupsGuided reading is a great way to help your students improve their reading skills. But how do you set up guided reading groups? And what should you do with the different groups? Managing multiple guided reading groups can be a challenge, but there are a few things you can do to make it easier. First, make sure you have a clear plan for each session. This will help you stay organized and keep the groups moving along at a good pace. Second, provide clear instructions and model each activity before jumping into small groups. Build in some flexibility into your schedule so that you can adjust as needed. Finally, it's important to monitor the groups and adjust as needed. This might include changing the texts or activities based on student progress or adding in intervention or enrichment activities. If you would like more specifics about setting up groups, check out these posts. Guided Reading - Getting Started Running A Guided Reading Program Keeping kids on taskOnce you get your guided reading groups set up, you need to make sure that kids are staying on task. Here are five guided reading activities that will help keep your young readers engaged: 1. Read the first sentence of the story together and have them predict what will happen next. This is a great way to get them thinking about the story and making predictions. 2. Ask them questions about the characters and what they think the characters might do next. This gets them invested in the story and thinking about the characters' motivations. 3. Have them illustrate a scene from the story. This allows them to use their imagination and really visualize what's going on in the story. 4. Have them retell the story in their own words. This helps to solidify their understanding of the story and gives you an opportunity to check for comprehension. 5. Put together a class book with illustrations from each student. This is a great way to end a guided reading unit and gives everyone a chance to see their work in print! Guided reading is a great way to support your students' literacy development. By taking some time to plan and prepare ahead of time, you'll be ready to make the most of this instructional approach! By following these tips, you'll be well on your way to success with guided reading! Get a free copy of this sight word set by signing up for my newsletter. Related PostsWhen it comes to teaching beginning young writers, there are a few essential tools that every teacher needs in their toolbox. What's in your toolbox?1. Patience First and foremost, patience is key. It can be frustrating for beginning writers when their ideas don't always come out perfectly on paper, but it's important to remember that they're still learning and growing. Try to provide encouragement and positive feedback whenever possible. 2. Sense of humor Secondly, a good sense of humor can go a long way. When beginning writers make mistakes, try to see the humor in it and help them to see the silver lining. 3. Story telling Lastly, story telling is a great tool for beginning writers. By providing examples of stories that have been successfully written, beginning writers can see what is possible and be inspired to create their own masterpiece. With these tools in your toolbox, you'll be well on your way to teaching beginning young writers. Tips for getting startedThere's nothing more rewarding than seeing a beginning young writer find their voice. But getting started can be tough. That's why I always tell my students that the best way to become a better writer is to write every day, even if it's just for a few minutes. One of the best ways to get started is to keep a journal. Write about anything and everything - what you did today, what you're thinking about, what you're feeling. It doesn't have to be perfect, and no one else has to read it. Just getting your thoughts down on paper can help you to clear your head and see things in a new light. Another great tip for beginning writers is to read as much as you can. Not only will this help to improve your writing skills, but you'll also get some great ideas for things to write about. So go ahead and crack open a book (or two, or three!) and start exploring the world of writing today. Remember that every writer has to start somewhere. So don't expect perfection from the beginning. Just encourage them to get their thoughts down on paper, and worry about editing later. I often tell my students to use approximations to get their ideas out, and then find the "dictionary spelling" when they are ready to polish their work. If they fret too much about correct spelling, the stories will never be as developed and wonderful as they could be. Use scaffolds and graphic organizersScaffolds and graphic organizers can be extremely helpful for beginning writers. By providing a structure for their thoughts, beginning writers can more easily organize their ideas and put them into words. Scaffolds also help beginning writers to stay on track, keeping their focus on the task at hand. Graphic organizers can be used to plan out a story or to brainstorm ideas for an essay. They can also be used to keep track of characters and events in a story. By using scaffolds and graphic organizers, beginning writers can become more confident and proficient in their writing. Here are a couple of scaffolds that I have used successfully over the years for the fall. If you would like a copy, click on the images. Finally, be sure to offer plenty of compliments and encouragement along the way. Let them know that you're proud of their progress, and that you believe in their ability to become great writers. Remember: With a little support and guidance, beginning writers can achieve anything. Related PostsThere's nothing quite like the feeling of struggling to read or write. It can be frustrating, overwhelming, and even a little bit scary for kids. But there's hope! I often hear the question, "What can I do to help my struggling readers and writers?" While there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, there are a few strategies and activities that can be used to help struggling students. Supporting your studentsIf you have a wide range of reading abilities in your class, it is important that you find ways to support all your students in developing and expanding their skills and knowledge. One of the best ways to do this is to create reading groups of similar abilities so that you can target the instruction to the specific needs of each group. Note: There can be many high achieving readers and writers in the class, but for this post, I will be focusing on those who struggle.) Ideas for struggling readersDo guided reading groups. This can be done with just a few students at a time, so everyone gets the individual attention they need. Choose books that are at the right level for each group, and then take turns reading aloud. As you read, stop and discuss vocabulary words or tricky concepts. This will help your students build their comprehension skills and confidence. Create some reading center activities that complement what is happening in the reading groups to help kids to remain engaged and motivated to keep trying. For example: 1. Provide a variety of books of a similar level for kids to choose to read quietly alone or with a partner. Make sure you have a variety of different genres of books for your struggling readers. This will help them find something that interests them and that they can read at their level. 2. Create word lists or anchor charts with high frequency words or sight words. The students can use the word lists to help them read the books. 3. Provide word games and activities that they can use to improve their decoding and fluency skills. Be sure to set realistic goals for struggling readers and help them celebrate their progress along the way. Ideas for struggling writersGetting started is one of the most difficult things for struggling writers. There may be a variety of different reasons for this, but it is a barrier that they need to get past in order to become good writers. Sometimes it is hard to come up with an idea, or maybe it is a fear of not knowing how to spell words, or maybe it is the motor skill of writing itself. These are only a few examples of things stopping the writing from happening. If we provide support to help with these roadblocks it is amazing what can happen with our struggling writers. Here are a few suggestions that might help our writers to get started. For those who have difficulty coming up with ideas1. Try using favorite interests, hobbies, events, or things that are important to them as starting points. Work on brainstorming ideas and organizing thoughts. 2. Encourage them to draw pictures or create a graphic organizer before actually writing. Provide a variety of different writing supports such as sentence starters, word banks, scaffolds, templates or prompts to support getting their ideas down on paper. 3.Encourage them to write for 20 minutes each day and help them brainstorm ideas for stories or poems. Give struggling writers plenty of opportunities to practice writing, whether it's through daily journaling or regular writing assignments. For those who worry about correct spelling1. Provide word banks or word lists and dictionaries. 2. Encourage them to use approximations to get their ideas down and then go back and check for the "dictionary spelling". (It is important to get the ideas out first and then edit.) 3. Have someone scribe for them at first and gradually get them to write on their own. Don't forget to provide plenty of praise and encouragement! For those who have motor issues1. Create an area with paper, pencils, and crayons. The students can practice writing their names, letters, and words. They can also draw pictures and tell stories. These activities will help the struggling writers to develop their skills. 2. Set up a dictation area where they can orally tell their stories and then have them transcribed. Set up a writing centerEstablish a writing center where struggling writers can go to work on their skills. Here they can work on different writing strategies. They might work on brainstorming ideas, organizing their thoughts, or using descriptive language. They might work on specific writing goals with your guidance. For example, you might have a student who is working on adding more detail to their writing. Give them some sentence starters that they can use, and then have them add as much detail as they can. Alternatively, you might have a student who is working on editing their work for grammar mistakes. Give them a list of common mistakes to look for, and then have them edit their own work or someone else's. Writing centers are flexible, so you can tailor them to meet the needs of your students. Help struggling writers set realistic goals and celebrate their progress along the way. Be sure to praise their efforts and provide specific feedback on their work. Assess how they are doingFinally, make sure you have a plan for monitoring the progress of your struggling readers and writers. This will help you know if they are making progress and where they need additional support. By taking these steps, you can help struggling readers and writers get the support they need to be successful in your class. Organizing reading and writing groups can seem daunting, but it's worth it! Your struggling students will benefit from the extra attention and support. And who knows - you might just see some strong readers and writers emerge. Grab a free copy of this set of templates and scaffolds for your young writers by signing up for my newsletter. Related PostsRound Up Of Tips, Ideas, And ActivitiesDuring the summer, there are lots of opportunities to do activities that blend academics and fun. This helps kids to practice and maintain concepts and skills already covered and also gives them chances to see how these concepts matter in real life. Here is a round up of different tips, ideas and activities that I have shared in the past that I feel are still relevant and worth revisiting. Math is often thought of as lots of calculations, worksheets, equations and critical thinking activities, but in fact, math is used in almost every decision and action that we make on a daily basis. Math is everywhere around you. We use math for most activities without even realizing it. In my blog post Tips For School And Home:How To Help Primary Kids With Math, I suggested a few different activities for sorting and classifying, measurement, estimation, time, geometry, fractions, and basic operations. In Math Real Life Activities For Children I talk about math in the kitchen, math in the workshop, shopping and math, and working with money. These are only a few ways that math can be connected to real life situations at home as well as at school. Language Arts - Reading and writing are only a couple of the components of language arts. In my blog post Tips For School And Home: How To Help Kids With Language Arts, I share several different suggestions and activities for the various aspects of language arts. It is important to note that language development starts at home and then is refined at school. There are many different ways to promote language development with reading, writing, and oral communication activities. I shared ideas and resources for phonics and vocabulary development, reading, writing, and oral communication in the above mentioned post. If you are looking for more ideas that will help with reading and writing for students that struggle in these areas, check out the following posts: Motivatiing Reluctant Readers Tips For Helping Struggling Writers In The Classroom Just take a look around you and think about the various things you see and the things you do and if you start to analyze them, you will be amazed at how they involve science. Science is involved in every aspect of our lives. At school, kids are introduced to some of the basics, and various experiments and investigations are done. At home, more of these types of activities can happen and deeper learning can be accomplished. In my blog post, Tips For School And Home: How To Help Kids With Science, I break science down into different categories to help with providing a broad glimpse into the world of science. Hopefully, this will inspire kids to look further and continue to learn about the marvels around them. You will find some tips and ideas for chemistry, biology and life sciences, earth science, and several different areas of physics. Science Ideas For School And Home also gives some more ideas and possible activities that might be fun to try. Social Studies is the study of people and their relationships to other people and the world. For young children, it starts with family and then spreads out to community, regions, provinces, states, or territories, and from there, to countries and the world. It can be broken up into 5 different categories: geography, history, culture and society, civics and government, and economics. I wrote 2 posts last year because there was so much to cover. Tips For School And Home: How To Help Primary Kids With Social Studies talks about geography, history, and culture, heritage and traditions and gives some ideas and possible resources that might work. Tips For School And Home: How To Help Primary Kids With Social Studies Part 2 This blog post focuses on the rights and responsibilities of people and regional leaders, relationships between people and the environment, multicultural awareness and diversity, and the interactions of First Nations people and early settlers. Social Studies Ideas And Activities For Outdoors also provides some tips and activities for learning more about the area where we live and the surrounding environment. In my final instalment, Tips For Summer Support: How To Help Primary Kids, I focus on finding creative ways to do academic activities to make learning fun during the summer break. Well there you have a selection of tips and activities for the various academic areas that can be used to help kids keep learning throughout the summer while they are enjoying their holiday break. I hope that these tips and ideas have given you some inspiration for ways to keep the learning going while having fun during the summer break.
Understand Figurative Language By Using Idioms OutdoorsWhen I think about figurative language and idioms, I immediately think of Amelia Bedelia and all the things she did literally rather than as intended because she didn't understand figurative language. This made me think of how often we speak literally and what it must be like for those who are new to the English language. They must think we are completely crazy at times. As I was thinking about using this form in speaking and writing, I thought it might be fun to actually take things a bit further. Imagine pretending to be Amelia Bedelia and acting out the idioms literally. This could be a lot of fun for the kids and it would help them to better understand what we mean and what the literal translation would be for others. In Amelia Bedelia, Mrs. Rogers tells Amelia to "do just what the list says". This will be the message used for the following examples and activities. Have fun trying any or all of them out. After trying out some of the examples, do a follow up activity where you discuss the literal meanings of the phrases and how they were different from what was meant in the stories. Good Work, Amelia BedeliaMr. Rogers was angry and he said, "Go fly a kite". Amelia Bedelia was confused, but she did so.What did he really mean? Have a kite available and then in an angry voice say "GO FLY A KITE!" Have someone go and fly the kite. Mrs. Rogers left a list of jobs for Amelia to do. One of the jobs was to "pot the window-box plants". What did she really mean? Have a pot or two available along with some soil and hand shovels and let kids put some plants in them. Teach Us, Amelia BedeliaAmelia Bedelia filled in for the teacher while she was away. She was given a list of instructions to follow. Here are a couple that could be done outdoors. "Plant a bulb". Have some plant pots and soil available along with shovels and some old light bulbs. Have the kids prepare the pots and add the light bulbs to them. If you have a garden bed, perhaps they could plant the light bulbs there instead. Afterwards, these lightbulbs can be replaced with flower bulbs. "Practice our play" This would be fun to do as an extra recess activity. Afterwards, the kids could actually rehearse a play they might be performing. Math problems with apples would be fun to try outside, especially the subtraction ones. Play Ball Amelia BedeliaRight now is ball season, so many kids will be starting practices or playing ball as part of their gym classes. This would be a great time to have fun trying out a couple of the idioms from this book. "Tag ________ before he gets to second base". Have some ready-made name tags and use them as the person runs from first to second base. "Steal the base". If you have something that is the place holder for a base, you can have someone grab it and run with it. "Run home." This one could be running back into the building. This is only a small sampling of the activities that Amelia Bedelia did in the various books, but it is a fun way to see how literal and figurative language is different and get outside as well. It might be fun to try out some other activities that can be done in the classroom or at home as a follow-up activity. I have created a follow-up activity for some of the different idioms listed above. Click the image to check it out. I always had so much fun exploring idioms and other figurative language with my students. I hope you enjoy trying some of these ideas with your students. Related PostsWinter Celebrations Are ApproachingIt's time again to celebrate as we approach February and all the various celebrations and special days that are happening soon. We have Chinese New Year, Hundredth Day of School, Groundhog Day, Valentines Day and in some cases other special days as well. What better time to add a little fun and theme into daily lessons than now. First up is Chinese New Year. This celebration lasts for two weeks, so it can actually be a focus for more than one day. Kids love to hear the story of the animals in the Great Race and learn about the zodiac animals and the years they are linked to. This year is the year of the Tiger. Why not use a tiger theme when doing activities to do with Chinese New Year. I have a bundle of sight words that features each of the different animals of the zodiac. They are fun to use and they can be helpful as children learn to recognize high frequency words. You can check them out here. I also have a couple of other resources that work well for math and literacy. Chinese New Year Activities includes some math and literacy activities. Winter Fun Math Activities features special activities for Chinese New Year as well as Valentines Day and Hundredth Day of School. Groundhog Day comes right after Chinese New Year this year. It is fun to find out if the groundhog will predict more winter or an early spring. With all the snowstorms and floods we have had this winter, so far, where I live, an early spring would be welcome. Here is a Groundhog Day Activity booklet of math and literacy ideas that I created that might be fun to use for this day. If you are interested in Groundhog themed sight word cards, I have a set of them available also. For 2022, a special day is coming to celebrate twos. It is the second day of the second month of the twenty-second year of this century. Wow! What a great opportunity to work with numbers and enjoy this event. Maybe Groundhog Day could be combined with Twos Day. Here is a resource I created for this day. It can also be used at other times of the year. Of course, when you mention February, people immediately think of Valentines Day. There are so many different activities and crafts available to celebrate this day of friendship and love. Here are some that might be of interest to you. Valentines Sight words and bingo Valentines Day Math And Language Games Numbers And Number Words Match Themed Place Value Practice Do you celebrate the hundredth day of school? I know that this is a popular celebration at many elementary schools where I live. It is a day to do everything "Hundreds". At schools that I worked at, we would have tables set out in the hallways to display collections of a hundred. Primary classes would sometimes get together to do activities as well. Here is an activity resource that might be of interest for One Hundred Days at School. Well, there you have it. A bunch of ideas and resources to make your special days fun for your students. I hope you enjoy these days of celebration. Related Posts |
About Me Charlene Sequeira
I am a wife, mother of 4, grandmother of 9, and a retired primary and music teacher. I love working with kids and continue to volunteer at school and teach ukulele. Categories
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