Tag Archives: special days

Thanksgiving – Been There, Done That

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As we move along on our “special days” studies through November, I see Thanksgiving looming coming up in the not so distant future.  I thought seriously about not teaching Thanksgiving lessons this year.   How could I not want to teach Thanksgiving?  We’ve always had wonderful Thanksgiving lessons in November.  Yes, that’s it.  For 17 years – 17 Novembers, I’ve been teaching a week or two or three of Thanksgiving.  The who, what, when, why, and how of those Mayflower pilgrims and the natives that they encountered, Lincoln’s proclamation to make a Thanksgiving holiday,  Bible studies that focus on giving thanks and gratitude, nutritional studies of squash, pumpkins, turkeys, sweet potatoes, and corn, Thanksgiving celebrations around the world, tons of cooking projects, and craft activities to go along with it all – we’ve been there and done that over and over again.

In addition to my grumpy mood about Thanksgiving lessons,  our primary history focus of the year is Modern World History so the Pilgrim/Indian theme just doesn’t seem to fit or apply.   I look over the recent additions to our timeline and see WW1, the stock market crash of 1929, WW2 – hard and fearful times, but still were thankful times, too.  Hmmm …

Below are some of the online resources we’ll be using as we begin a new Thanksgiving  study with a modern history twist, and the cure for my Thanksgiving lesson planning grumpiness.  I’m actually getting excited about these lessons now!

During WW1, food was rationed and that had quite an impact on that Thanksgiving dinner.  This article does a terrific job explaining American Thanksgiving during WW1.   I love the photos of the newspaper ads from 1917 and 1918.   http://blog.genealogybank.com/rationing-thanksgiving-dinner-during-world-war-i.html

And what of the troops on Thanksgiving 1918?  Read about the football, feasts, and entertainment the Red Cross planned in this old Stars and Stripes magazine article  http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/Thanksgiving_in_WW1_France#.VGRLisnbGi0

Macy’s Department Store held their first parade in 1924.  Read about the history of this famous parade here  http://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/holidays-other/macys-thanksgiving-day-parade1.htm

Watch a short video of Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade history with some actual film footage from the first parade  http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving/videos/history-of-the-thanksgiving-day-parade

View this Macy’s Thanksgiving Day photo gallery from Time  http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2100160_2324105,00.html

Thanksgiving Radio Show 1935

Jack Benny Thanksgiving Radio Show 1939

 

A wonderful account of the Thanksgiving that came early  http://www.farmcollector.com/farm-life/thanksgiving-during-the-great-depression.aspx#axzz3IpQaEi9v

And more about that early Thanksgiving which became known as “Franksgiving” from this historic letter collection  http://www.lettersofnote.com/2009/11/unhappy-franksgiving.html

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That famous Norman Rockwell American family portrait of Thanksgiving dinner is still a popular work of art today.  But back in 1943 it was a political statement.  Find out more about that here  http://bigthink.com/Picture-This/what-norman-rockwells-thanksgiving-pictures-really-about

Details of WW2 Thanksgiving in a pdf from  America in WWII Magazine http://www.americainwwii.com/files/2012/11/thankful-anyway-dec-2009.pdf

A delightful article about Thanksgiving at home and at war  http://www.sarahsundin.com/thanksgiving-in-world-war-ii/

Thanksgiving writings from WW2 veterans along with some pictures from  Time Magazine 1940’s Thanksgiving photo album  http://www.skylighters.org/thanksgiving/

Armed Forces Radio Thanksgiving Show 1944

And with that fantastic swing music, some Charleston and Swing Dance instructions may be in order!

 

 

 

And back in those days, math was practical and so are these Thanksgiving themed math lessons  http://www.yummymath.com/?s=thanksgiving

The common thread of Thanksgiving celebration during these times seems to be making the most with whatever resources were available and finding blessings in any circumstance.  With this in mind, our Thanksgiving Bible studies will focus on contentment.

  • Philippians 4:11-12   I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.  I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
  • 1 Timothy 6:8   But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
  • Hebrews 13:5   Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Just for fun and a little about the mindset of the times here’s a  Classic Thanksgiving cartoon  playlist.  One of these is from 1933 and one from 1945.  The rest are a little more recent, 1950’s-70’s.  http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRgLrYQQYdPr9xb8HiRXaJZAWiKmp4wQ6

What about science?  How about human anatomy and the digestive system?  Seems to fit the theme of “Thanksgiving dinner”, right?

Digestive System Facts – http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/humanbody/digestivesystem.html

Human Body Interactive Map of the digestion system – http://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/digestive-system/male

Label the Digestion System  printable with a vocabulary and definition list  http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/anatomy/digestive/label/

This National Geographic video is NOT for the squeamish!  It is actual footage of the digestive process filmed by a scope procedure.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QYwscALNng

A little more pleasant to watch,  an animation of how the digestive system works  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwrsL-lCZYo

There is even a digestion song!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sDMVgw9d-c

Online Digestive System Quiz  http://www.lrn.org/Content/Quizzes/Qdigestive.html

Hopefully our appetites will still exist after this science study!  We have a lot of cooking and eating to do!

I wish you happy learning this Thanksgiving!

betty jo

Peanuts

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October 2 marks the anniversary of the very first publication of Peanuts (1950)!  This is one of the October “special days” the kids were interested in.  Yeah, I’m interested, too.  I grew up on Peanuts.   Below are some resource links to follow as we learn and have fun with Peanuts.  

See the first Peanuts Comic!   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:First_Peanuts_comic.png

Peanuts History Article   http://content.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,2022745,00.html

Charles Schultz biography and printables  http://makingartfun.com/htm/f-maf-art-library/charles-m-schultz-biography.htm

Faith Based Video https://www.museumofthebible.org/book/minutes/147

Read Peanuts comic strips free online  http://www.gocomics.com/peanuts

Character Profiles   https://www.peanuts.com/characters/

Step by step instructions for how to draw Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and other Peanuts characters  http://www.dragoart.com/tags/tuts/1/2945/how-to-draw-charlie-brown-characters.htm

Blank Comic Strip Printables for making our own comics  http://www.printablepaper.net/category/comics

The Peanuts  theme song   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQybajU2GNk

Theme Song Piano Lesson   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bh5C1F1QNAg

Theme Song Piano Tutorial   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tidspc7AYkE&t=24s

Easy Theme Song Piano Tutorial for Beginners   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8ASSPA8OLE

Peanuts Quiz (easy)-

http://brainfall.com/quizzes/whats-your-peanuts-iq/

Peanuts Quiz (difficult) –

http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/arts/artwork/peanuts-quiz9.htm

And in case you’re wondering, I am going to give this study credit for literature (winks), art, music, history, and creative writing.  We may get a PE credit too  –  football kicking and baseball pitching seem to go along with the whole Peanuts theme.

Good Grief!

betty jo

Learning Resources for October, 2014

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October is always a favorite time of the year for my family.  It’s also a favorite month for learning!  October has a good variety of themes, foods, and daily historic events.  This link will take you to the list of Special Days in October, 2014  https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2014/09/27/special-days-in-october-2014/

Below are the resource links to take you to special day studies we’ve done with our homeschooling through Octobers in the past.  I’ve also included some links that I’m thinking we’re about to use with this October’s lessons.

October Prayer Calendar Printable http://cherilynngamble.wordpress.com/2014/09/24/october-prayer-calendar/

October Writing Prompts  http://www.theteacherscorner.net/daily-writing-prompts/october/

Octbricks  –  31 Days of Legos  –  http://www.educatinglaytons.com/2014/09/31-days-legos/

Autumn and Halloween Background Lined Paper printables  http://www.teacherfiles.com/resources_background_paper.htm

Fall Themed Interactive Games  –  http://www.primarygames.com/seasons/fall/games.htm

Bats! Cross curriculum resources   –  http://www.franw.com/2011/10/bats.html

Fire Safety  –  A “Must Read” article  http://www.unplannedhomeschooler.com/2014/08/how-my-kids-reacted-to-night-time-fire.html   And,  http://repurposemylife.com/teaching-children-fire-safety/   Also,  Fire Facts http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/fire.html

The Salem Witch Trials was one of our best studies last year.  Though not a “special day”, it was a nice tie in with a Halloweenish theme.  Also, this resource post has been one of the most popular posts I’ve put together.  https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/10/30/salem-witch-trials/

Human Anatomy can be another Halloweenish theme.  Here’s some creative learning ideas  http://www.homeschool-activities.com/human-body-for-kids.html

Crafts are great all year long, but the autumn ones are some of the best!  http://www.artistshelpingchildren.org/autumnfallartscraftideaskids.html

October offers some of the best “food themes” of the year!

Apples  –  Cross curriculum research project  –  http://www.franw.com/2013/09/apple-research-project.html

Pumpkins  –  Here’s a “big ole’ list” of pumpkin themed resources  –  http://www.blessedbeyondadoubt.com/pumpkins-free-printables-activities-recipes/

Candy  –  Play, Invent and Explore  –  http://www.housingaforest.com/candy-potions/

Popcorn  –  http://www.franw.com/2014/10/popcorn-project.html

Presidents Born in October:  (This link takes you to our family’s resources used for studying any president.  https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2014/02/14/resources-for-presidents-day/)

  • Oct. 1    –  Jimmy Carter born 1924
  • Oct. 4    –  Rutherford Hayes born 1822
  • Oct. 5    –  Chester Arthur born 1829
  • Oct. 14  –  Dwight Eisenhower born 1890
  • Oct. 27  –  Theodore Roosevelt born 1858
  • Oct. 30  –  John Adams born 1735

Oct. 2  –

Oct. 4  –  Fall Astronomy Day  This link takes you to my “go to” site for all things astronomy.  http://www.kidsastronomy.com/

Oct. 11  –  Elenore Roosevelt born 1884  –  Here’s a nice short biography, reading comprehension quizzes and language arts printables  http://www.gardenofpraise.com/ibderoos.htm

Oct. 13  –  Columbus Day  –  Resources and Printables  http://embarkonthejourney.com/christopher-columbus-resources-printables/

Oct. 15  –  Poetry Day  –  Homeschool Poetry Resource List  –  http://homeschoolencouragement.com/poetry-ultimate-homeschool-resource-list/    And, since October is at times spooky and odd,  here’s a link to study guides, summaries, and quizzes to Edgar Allen Poe’s Poetry  http://www.gradesaver.com/poes-poetry/study-guide/short-summary/      Also, here’s a research guide and resources for a Poe Study  http://www.franw.com/2013/10/edgar-allan-poe-research-project.html

Oct. 16  –  Noah Webster born 1758 and Dictionary Day (this site has much more than a dictionary!  You’ll find games, Webster biography, language history, daily buzz words, and a way to add your own made up word to a dictionary!)   http://www.wordcentral.com/edu/index.htm

Oct. 16  –  World Food Day  –  Photo Collection What the World Eats  –  http://foodmatters.tv/articles-1/what-the-world-eats-shocking-photos

Oct. 19  –

Oct. 20 –  Monster Mash Day  –  The Monster Mash song is the first one on this  Youtube Halloween song playlist  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0R_oDEvYUY&list=PLA8F349F78FC52532     And, these kids can teach you the dance moves!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ8DOL-KeWw

Oct. 22 –  Daniel Boone born 1734  (We’ll definitely be playing the pioneer games again. They were awesome and they were outside!)   https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/10/22/daniel-boone/

Oct. 30  –  Radio Broadcast of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds 1938  –  Read an article and listen to the recording here  http://www.ibtimes.com/war-worlds-radio-broadcast-turns-75-listen-orson-welles-famous-hoax-1447470

Oct. 31  –

I’ll be posting some other resource links as our studies for October develop.  I’m thinking owls and perhaps spiders.  Haunted places and monsters are being considered, too.  What are some of your October themed lesson plans?  And got links?

Happy October Learning

betty jo

 

 

 

 

 

9/11 Remembrance

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mr_rogers_helpers_quoteA couple of years ago our Patriot Day studies were geared a little more toward the younger boys than my big kids.  Here’s the link to that study and the resources we used.  https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/09/10/teaching-resources-for-patriot-day/

And, for this year, I’ve found the following resources to further our studies.

“Teach and Learn” from the 9/11 Memorial Museum  https://www.911memorial.org/teach-learn

President Bush’s Address to the Nation from 9/11   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbqCquDl4k4

For OLDER Students :

Video Facts and Timeline of 9/11 Attacks   http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks

Post 9/11 and Terrorist Attacks Articles   http://www.factmonster.com/spot/sept11features.html

Mathematical Perspective of 9-11 and After   http://scottberkun.com/2012/the-math-and-aftermath-of-911/

Writing Prompts for Teens  https://writeshop.com/writing-prompts-911-september-11/?fbclid=IwAR1RrIpeTmiJfqUrIuXHXmZ3vVhodpzDw21k0ZJliyLGYRmCL6a2M5S1www

Patriot Day Lesson Plans, Articles, Videos, and Teaching Tips   http://www.uen.org/core/socialstudies/patriotday/

How to Prepare for a Terrorist Attack and Links to Other More Detailed Preparedness Plans and Facts  from The Dept. Of Homeland Security     http://www.nationalterroralert.com/default/

Summary of The Patriot Act – History Article

The Patriot Act: Liberty or Security, or Both?   Lesson Plans about The Patriot Act 

Conspiracies?  Yes, there are many.  Here’s a video listing the “Top 10” 

 

9-11-memorialRemembering with you all,

betty jo

 

 

 

 

Resources For Learning About Skyscrapers

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“SKYSCRAPERS” is one of the themes for the month of June and September 3 is “SKYSCRAPER DAY”!   Below are the links we’ll be following as we learn about skyscrapers.  This study will cover the subjects of science, math, language arts, history, geography, literature, and art.  Most of the resources will apply to all ages.

Skyscraper Day Information http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/September/skyscraperday.htm

Fun Facts About Skyscrapers http://www.factmonster.com/spot/skyscraperfacts.html  (there’s related links on the right side of the article)

How Skyscrapers Work Articles with Diagrams http://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/structural/skyscraper2.htm

Time-lapse Construction Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hdpf-MQM9vY

Virtual Field Trip – 360 degree Panoramic View from the Empire State Building http://www.nylocations.com/360-panorama/empire-state-building/

Skyscraper Emergency Engineering Lab Interactives  http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/skyscraper/challenge/index.html

Videos, Lesson Plans and Printable Resources, and More http://skyscraper.org/home_flash.htm

Video Algebra Lesson  http://threeacts.mrmeyer.com/dominoskyscraper/

Window Cleaning Skyscraper Math (multiplication) Interactive Game http://www.multiplication.com/games/play/math-wash

Another math lessons will be skyscraper word problems game.  I’ll make up and write some math problems on cards. The kids will be making some too.   For example, “If the elevator travels 30 seconds between each floor and does not stop until it reaches the 37th floor.  How many minutes will it take to reach the 37th floor from the ground floor?”  We’ll each be able to come up with construction time and cost problems too.  Once there’s a stack of question cards, we’ll take turns drawing and answering.  With each correct answer, the player gets a Lego block.  The player with the highest Lego Tower will be the winner.

Skyscraper Building Activity Challenge http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Skyscraper-Challenge-A-Team-Building-Activity-279407

To add a Bible study to our lessons, I entered “skyscrapers” into the search feature at Bible.org.  I was pleasantly surprised to see more than the Tower of Babel to choose from!  https://bible.org/gsearch?search=skyscrapers

The Runaway Skyscraper , written by  Murray Leinster, is a  science fiction novelette , originally published in Argosy magazine (a general-interest fiction magazine) in 1919,  now it’s a free read from Project Gutenberg  http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17355/17355-h/17355-h.htm

The Two Skyscrapers Who Decided to Have a Child is one of the short stories of the Rootabaga Stories written in 1922 by  Carl Sandburg and is a free read here  http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/carl-sandburg/rootabaga-stories-the-two-skyscrapers-who-decided-to-have-a-child/2206/

Skyscrapers are tall. “Tall” isn’t a greatest choice of adjectives for describing a skyscraper.  Here’s the link to synonyms and words related to “tall” for a grammar, writing, and vocabulary lesson. http://www.thesaurus.com/browse/tall

A Word Mining Game  will be another language arts connection.  After we have as many words made as possible from the letters in “SKYSCRAPER”, we’ll categorize them into the relative parts of speech they belong to, noun, verb, adjective, etc.  Then we’ll try to put those words together for silly sentences.

How to Draw a Cityscape http://www.dragoart.com/tuts/link/4534/1/1/how-to-draw-a-city.htm

Print, Cut, and Fold Skyscraper Models –

I’ve been on my local library’s web site and reserved a few skyscraper books  to pick up this week and while we’re out, we’ll take a close look at our city’s 2 tallest buildings – 19 stories and 10 stories.

betty jo

Mother Teresa

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According to Special Days in August (https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2016/07/26/special-days-in-august-2016/), the 26th is Mother Teresa’s birthday.  This means that she will be our study and timeline addition of the day.  Below are the online resources I found for us as we learn about this wonderful lady and perhaps one of the greatest and most inspiring humanitarians of modern history.

A short biography for kids http://www.pitara.com/magazine/people/online.asp?story=16

Timeline – http://www.softschools.com/timelines/mother_teresa_timeline/48/

Worksheet Printables – http://www.schoolexpress.com/fws/cat.php?id=2655

The Life of a Healer a video biography – http://www.watchmojo.com/video/id/10485/

A wonderful selection of quotes – http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/mother_teresa.html

And because Mother Teresa will be such an inspiration to us, we can’t complete the study without trying to feed the poor and hungry. We’ll cover all the rest of our subjects (math, geography, science, art, grammar) through this site today  http://freerice.com/category

Just in case you don’t know about about the Free Rice site…
To simply explain, you play educational quiz games (lots of subjects to choose from) and for every correct answer you can collect rice. Real rice that goes to real people! The questions start off easy and get harder and harder. There is an option to join that would keep track of progress and your place in the games so each time you visit you may play from where you last left off. Or you can just play without sign up/sign in. Also, they offer a couple of printables and lesson plans (I liked the creative writing idea).

betty jo

 

 

Aviation Week Learning Resources

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According to Special Days in August , “Aviation” is one of this month’s themes.  And, “Aviation Week” is the week with the 19th.   The reason behind “Aviation Week” is in celebration of the accomplishments of Orville Wright who was born Aug. 19, 1867.

The following links are to the online resources and activities to learn about the Wright Brothers and aviation.

A biography of the Wright Brothers along with printables – http://gardenofpraise.com/ibdwrigh.htm

Learn about the Wright Brothers. See their house and shop as well as their famous flight in Kitty Hawk, NC. with this old and brief educational movie.  http://www.havefunwithhistory.com/movies/wrightBrothers.html

We’ve been watching some of the animated series Adventurers – Masters of Time so we’re excited to see a Wright Brothers episode  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJud1QjUvo8&list=PL608A5B35B7419A93&index=15  If you haven’t seen these before, I recommend you start with the first episode so you’ll understand the theme, then you can skip around to match them with your studies.

Aviation history timeline, projects, and more for kids –  http://www.aviation-for-kids.com/

Exhibits from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum  http://airandspace.si.edu/exhibitions/

Airplane parts and functions – http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/k-12/airplane/airplane.html

Victory Through Air Power – by Walt Disney – A History of Flight from the Wright Brothers to  WW2 Aerial Defense Campaigns –  (produced in the1940s, this contains some war propaganda that may seem wrong by today’s standards, but adds another historic learning element.)

 

Step-by-step instructions and videos of varying levels of difficulty for folding paper airplanes  – http://www.foldnfly.com/#/1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-2

A Bible based lesson which uses paper airplanes as a object lesson http://www.christianitycove.com/youth-bible-study-lessons-object-lessons/854/

Awesome links to aviation themed interactives  and games  http://www.2learn.ca/kids/listSciG6.aspx?Type=57

Airplane coloring pages and craft projects  http://www.artistshelpingchildren.org/artscraftsideaskids/coloringpages/airplanescoloringpages.html

Airplane Party Ideas 

So often I feel that our learning plans for a week are left “up in the air” and we just follow where the week takes us….

However, this time “up in the air” is all planned out!

betty jo