Fall Is Coming...isn't It?

image provided by seemann

After one of the HOTTEST, DRIEST summers I can remember in the Midwest we are ready for Fall. Football games, drinking cider, pumpkin picking, cool breezes and comfortable weather are all things I look forward to in the Fall (especially this fall). I also always enjoyed doing Autumn based activities with my students. Here are some resources that will help you & your students explore all the wonder of this wonderful season.

Solving Math Word Problems:
Challenge students to solve  word problems based on the pictures and information on the Pumpkinfest Winners Web page (using the wayback machine). Here are some sample questions:

• How much more did Gary Burke's winning pumpkin (1998) weigh than the pumpkin grown by Harry Willemse (2000)? (130 pounds)
• How much more did Gary Burke's pumpkin weigh than the one grown by Andrew Papez? (172 pounds)
• How many pounds did five winning pumpkins between 1998 and 2002 weigh altogether? (4,949.5 pounds)
• In 2000, how much heavier was Harry Willemse's pumpkin than the squash grown by Dave McCallum? (19 pounds)

If you want to go totally paperless, create a Google Form for student to submit their answers.

Editing Practice:
A great way to teach students how to use Track Changes in Microsoft Word by having them copy and paste the following article  in a Word document (or Google Doc) & use Track Changes to find the 10 mistakes in the document.

Science/Photosynthesis:Students read this article about Why Leaves Change Color then have the students take a poll that you create using Poll Junkie using the questions here about the article.  Poll Junkie is a great polling site that allows you to create polls without registering. Students could also take this article into a Word document (or Google Doc) & use track changes (or comments) to allow students to make connects to the text (text to text, text to self, text to world).


Making a Word Cloud:
Having students think about Fall & what the associate with this season. In pairs have students use Wordle or Tagxedo to create World Clouds. If students type their list of words in Microsoft Word or notepad they can check their spelling & have a copy of it. This is helpful a glitch takes out their work on the web or if they create their cloud and don't like it.  As an extension, students could use this word clouds to write a story or poem about fall.


Ideas adapted from Education World

Another School Year for the Books

provided by: ppdigital

Well another school year is about to begin and I wanted to share some tools that will make your classroom more interactive & engaging.

Mathwire.com Is a great math site that has back to school activities that will help you & your students get to know each other while reviewing math standards. They have also posted problem solving activities & daily math routines to help you integrate math more easily in your classroom.

21 Ideas for 1st Day of School  This site as 21 ideas for you to use in your classroom to help break the ice on those first days. I really liked the 2 Truths 1 Lie (but I prefer to call it 2 Truths & a Fib) for the older kids & Kindergarten Color Helpers for the little ones.

10 Guiding Principles for the Beginning of the Year  This article from Teacher Vision reviews 10 things that will make for a successful school  year for you.

Classroom Management Ideas  This blog is created by Principal Kendrick who offers simple advice to teachers that will help them create a successful community in their classroom. He highlights information from the editors at Education World with tips for taking attendance, motivating students and rewarding good behavior. 

Tammy Worcester's Tech Site This site has a plethora of awesome resources & ideas for incorporating technology into your classroom. I want to share a couple right now. The first one is the All About Me Scavenger Hunt for 3-12 grade. This activity uses the power of the internet & the ability of your students to search for answers about themselves that they might not have known. I also love her blog, Technology Time Savers it's just what the name implies...tools that will help you save time. Some tools she showcases are Delicious, Fir.ly & File Dropper. 


I hope that these sites will help make the 2011-2012 school year the best yet!!!