Early Elementary Resource Packs
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009

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1. DAILY WAKEUP! ACTIVITY

SHHHH!! DON'T MOVE EVEN A MUSCLE!
Have all your students lie down on the floor, then instruct them that they have to lie as absolutely still as they possibly can -- without moving even a muscle. Tell them you're going to time them, and students who start moving will be "out". You'll have to start the "caught you!" process, and then help up moving students to help you, in turn, catch other students who are moving, until the last one. Everyone will be watching very closely to catch the last ones, with lots of hilarity and laughter!

2. DAILY INSPIRATION

"Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks."

- Johann G. von Herder

DAILY QUOTE JOURNAL WORKSHEET:
Use our quote of the day to get your students thinking... We'll always find something inspiring, and you can use the accompanying worksheets for an accessible, daily student writing exercise.

CLASSROOM QUOTE POSTER:
You can change out your classroom posters weekly (or even daily) with our quotable posters series. Today's printable poster features a quote from Johann von Herder.

3. ON THIS DAY

September 1ST, 1985
It was on this day that an expedition led by Ballard discovered the wreck of the RMS Titanic.

TITANIC WEB TREK:
[LINK2]
Primary students will learn more about the tragic ship and journey of the Titanic. They will also read about modern-day explorer Robert Ballard, and answer a worksheet of guided questions using the National Geographic web site; for grades 3-4.

TITANIC COLORING PAGES:
After your students have completed their Web Trek on the Titanic and they learn some facts about the ship's fate and its rediscovery, you can print off any of these coloring pages that recount the glory and tragedy of the ship. They go beyond the usual primary coloring sheets with great detail and sophisticated renderings.

4. INTERNET ACTIVITIES

FALL FUN HIDDEN PICTURE COLORING:
Each time your students locate a hidden object in this fall picture, it will colorize and animate. You may wish to have them work in pairs; the objects can be pretty tricky to spot! Three levels of play are available.

A VISIT WITH JOHNNY APPLESEED:
[LINK2] [LINK3] [LINK4]
Students will learn all about John Chapman, aka Johnny Appleseed, in this brief online exhibit from the Library of Congress. Use the 2nd URL above for further reading, then ask your students to draw a picture illustrating what they think Johnny Appleseed may have looked like. For an easy reading and interactive comprehension quiz exercise, try the 3rd URL above. At the 4th link above, students can create their own timeline to print out the key events of the life of Johnny Appleseed.

5. TEACHING RESOURCES

WELCOME CARDS:
In bold and beautiful color, these appealing notes will welcome your students immediately to their elementary classrooms. Print them out onto cardstock and fill one out for each incoming student to your class this year.

BACK TO SCHOOL PROCEDURES AND FORMS:
What do you do first thing in the morning? What message is on your classroom board? Are all areas of your classroom clearly marked? Find some tips to get your classes off to a great start this year, then scroll to the bottom of the page to download lesson plans for the first, second, and third days of your classes.

ALL ABOUT LIFE -- A PRIMARY SCIENCE CURRICULUM:
Hands-on science is the name of the game for this primary science curriculum. Find out how to create and use science tables, explore the seasons, enhance curiosity with bugs, and integrate science into your curriculum.

TOP 5 IDEAS FOR PARENTS' NIGHT:
Here are the winning ideas submitted from teachers to host a great Back-to-School Night, establishing warm relations with parents and getting them to volunteer as well.

OPEN HOUSE IDEAS:
Again, these tips are teacher-tested, and shared here to help make your own Open House Night a success -- you've got to love the idea for taking the temperatures of goldfish!

BRIGHT IDEAS FOR BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT & BEYOND:
Practical and to the point, this site offers strategies for planning and carrying off your Back-to-School Night in style.

APPLE WISE-GUY COLORING BOOK:
This printable coloring book for elementary classes includes guiding students through the different seasons of an apple tree, with loads of different varieties of apples to color, according to the directions.

APPLE LIFE CYCLE MAZE & CROSSWORD:
[LINK2]
Both a maze and an early elementary crossword are included in the links above, as printable worksheets to top off your fall unit on apples.

APPLE WORD MATCH:
These words go together like salt and pepper, baked potatoes and chives, or lakes and canoes... Students must match up the corresponding pairs on this printable fall worksheet. Then ask them to come up with their own fall pairs of words.

OPEN HOUSE INVITATIONS:
We offered some of our own printable Open House Invitations last week, but if you're looking for a bit of variety, here's another version.

7. WEEKLY FOCUS

THE FABULOUS FOUR SEASONS:
What kinds of clothing are necessary for each season? Which activities are available in winter? Which ones are more often relegated to summer? Students will be answering these questions in this lesson plan on the four seasons, reading appropriate literature, creating charts, acting out activities, and illustrating and writing about their choices. Rubrics and related forms are attached.

FALL PHOTO FASHIONS:
Bring in a collection of photographs for students to flip through. They will be looking for evidence of fall clothing, discerning which articles comprise the seasonal wear and contrasting them against clothing for other seasons. Find further directions here.

AUTUMN POETRY:
Several poems have been collected by various authors here to celebrate that most gorgeous of seasons, autumn, with coloring pages, worksheets, and posters attached for each one, as well as a few related crafts. Share them with your class, recite them, memorize them, act them out -- then share the songs listed here as well.

FALL WATERCOLOR LEAVES:
You'll be tracing fall leaves onto paper, then outlining the actual leaf on its veins and ridges with watercolor markers. Students will then use water and a paintbrush to spread the marker ink, with beautiful results.

FALL LEAF GRAPHING:
Find some ideas here for using the season and its gorgeous leaves to integrate a math lesson on graphing. Ask students how many categories they can come up with to create graphs with.

8. EXPLORE

CELEBRATING JOHNNY APPLESEED:
If you have an enthusiastic tech coordinator to help you out, you'll have a great time with this media lesson plan. Students are encouraged to use various media to help them put together a "MediaBlender" of the life and times of Johnny Appleseed, as well as the life cycle of an apple. Find a suggestion as well to make Excel pictographs to show everyone's favorite varieties of apples.

JOHNNY APPLESEED: TIMELINE AND FACTS:
[LINK2] [LINK3]
Early elementary students will be creating a timeline of Johnny Appleseed's life, retelling his story and analyzing it, and filling in the blanks for a factual quiz to celebrate the September birthday of this legendary American hero. Use the 2nd (younger grades) and 3rd (grade 3) URLs above for narratives on Johnny Appleseed's life.

A VISIT TO THE APPLE ORCHARD:
A storyline, complete with script, takes students on an imaginary trip through an apple orchard. Students will relax and respond by wiggling their fingers, stretching their arms, etc. Discussion questions follow the orchard tour and story.

APPLE SCIENCE & ART:
Learn about the life cycle of apple trees with this lesson plan, with illustrations and a glossary, as well as student activities. Your classes can create picture books, make an illustrated glossary, draw diagrams, dissect blossoms, or follow an apple tree through the four seasons, while art activities include making apple creatures, printing with apples, or making apple dolls.

APPLE CRATE ART:
Access this website to find beautiful, old packing crate labels for apples, as well as other fruits and vegetables. Then ask students what their favorite apple is, and have them design their own labels for a fruit crate.

9. LITERACY

APPLE VOCABULARY WORKSHEET:
Students are challenged to create as many words as they can from three apple related words, in this printable fall worksheet for elementary students.

FIVE APPLES UP ON TOP:
[LINK2] [LINK3] [LINK4] [LINK5]
Print and assemble these mini books for a new take on the famous "Ten Apples Up On Top" children's book, where 1st grade students can color and read their stories, and perhaps even create a new version of their own.

10. MATHS

APPLE COUNTING WORKSHEETS:
[LINK2]
Questions lead student through math worksheets with apple themes, in these download and print apple orchard counting problems.

BASIC MULTIPLICATION FLASHCARDS:
You might want to print these cards onto cardstock, and give a pack to each student to take home for practice with his or her family. Keep a deck of these cards in your math centers as well.

CLOCKWISE:
Select your grade level for students to work on recognizing analog time, matching up the requested time to the clock face by moving the arms.

11. IN THE NEWS

SCHOOLS ON FRONT LINE OF FLU FIGHT:
There's much talk of another flu epidemic this fall. The swine flu, or, more properly, H1N1, is the potential culprit. Schools could be a possible hotbed for spreading the virus, so the CDC is looking at mass immunizations of school children. School campuses may even be used as sites for vaccinations for the general public, though it hasn't yet been decided which segments of the American population will receive top priority for obtaining the vaccines. Whatever the outcome, look for an enormous immunization program the size and scope of the 1960s polio vaccination program. You may want to discuss the issue with older students: who should get the vaccines? Why aren't there enough for everyone? How do we decide which segments of our population deserve the vaccine over others?

12. SUBSCRIPTION & CONTACT INFORMATION

This Resource Pack is offered only to our members on a subscriber basis. We always appreciate your recommendations to your colleagues.

Our Resource Packs choices include:
MON: Early Education,
TUE: Primary 1-3,
WED: Upper Elementary 3-6,
THU: Middle-High School 6-12,
FRI: Art, Holidays, & Events

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