www.Bookadventure.com - created by the Sylvan learning center. This site's book finder matches kids with reads they'll enjoy. (It's like match.com only with books!!) Acing book quizzes lets them win prizes!
www.Teenreads.com - this extensive site posts lists of upcoming books and interviews with popular writers like Anthony Horowitz and Judy Blume. it also gives tips on how to start a reading club.
www.Guysread.com - This site was launched to connect boys of all ages with literature relevant to them. he urges guys to expand their definition of reading, pointing out that nonfiction, comics, and magazines count, too.
Info about books and authors: http://www.bestlibrary.org/cool/
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Great Language Arts Practice
All Skills:
This is a great site to practice all sorts of Language Arts skills. It provides instant feedback. It is very helpful in a number of different topics!
Vocabulary and Editing...and Saving the World:
Also, try Free Rice to develop vocabulary and practice editing and grammar skills.
Spelling:
This is a great site to practice all sorts of Language Arts skills. It provides instant feedback. It is very helpful in a number of different topics!
Vocabulary and Editing...and Saving the World:
Also, try Free Rice to develop vocabulary and practice editing and grammar skills.
Spelling:
Spelling Practice: Spelling City ...
What do you think of this:
Spelling? Deos it rlleay mttear? I cdnuolt blveiee it!
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid! Aoccdrnig to a rseaerch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deson't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? And I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt?!
Enjoy!
What do you think of this:
Spelling? Deos it rlleay mttear? I cdnuolt blveiee it!
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid! Aoccdrnig to a rseaerch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deson't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? And I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt?!
Enjoy!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
PK for Book Burning Exhbit
Prior Knowledge building for Book Burning exhibit.
Germany from 1933-1939...building up to the Holocaust.
Book Burning in English!
Germany from 1933-1939...building up to the Holocaust.
Book Burning in English!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Historical Fiction Lit Circles
Ladder #1: Individual Activists -
fighting societal injustices
Iqbal: A novel about a true story. This book is set in Pakistan and shares the plight of children sold into slavery. Read more about the nonprofit, Free the Children, that was founded after reading Iqbal.
1. Go to Issues and Controversies (jackson/hole). Type in Child labor and choose the one titled “Child Labor and Sweatshops.”
2. Google Iqbal Masih: There are a lot of great websites dedicated to him.
a. Read Wikipedia article
b. There are some great links at the bottom of the article! Feel free to check them out. Children's World and Who Was Iqbal Masih?
3. Check out Free the Children
4. Go to Culture Grams (jacksonbronc/hole)– build prior knowledge about Pakistan
a. Find information about child labor, Iqbal Masih
5. Wondering what you can do? Visit the International Center on Child Labor and Education (ICCLE) site to find out more about child labor facts and myths, and explore links between child labor, education, and poverty. You'll find true stories of child workers turned advocates - like Iqbal. There is poetry and art and a lot of students - like you - who are walking their talk!
6. After reading chapter 4, check out Bukhara rugs. Consider what Iqbal's rug may have looked like.
7. Check out this activity regarding Child Labor issues today.
The Breadwinner: This book is set in Afghanistan during the time of the Taliban. Learn how one young woman becomes the breadwinner despite the laws against such an act.
1. Go to Issues and Controversies (jackson/hole) – search Taliban, choose the first article.
a. Consider the first picture. What would life be from this point of view?
2. Go to: Taliban Rules for Women
3. Go to WorldBook Online (Teton1/schools) - Taliban
4. Go to CultureGrams (jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of Afghanistan
5. The Taliban is now an issue in Pakistan. Check out this article from cnn.com about a Girl Poet who is taking on the Taliban TODAY. There are also many current events links on this site.
Homeless Bird: This book is about a young girl who becomes a widow in India. Learn about what this means for her life at a 15 year old and her future.
1. Go to United Streaming Videos
2. Article about widows in India by CNN.
3. Information about Amar Bari, "My Home" - a refuge for widows in India.
4. So much informatin - WOW - from Widows International.
5. Another non-profit that works for marginalized women and children in India: The Guild of Service.
6. Link to the movie blog: The White Rainbow Project (I ordered the movie; it should be here soon!) and for more about the movie, click here.
Constant Communication from the White Rainbow Project (newsletter sent out regularly!)
Journey to Jo’berg: This book is set in South Africa during the time of Apartheid. Learn about how a brother and sister risk their lives to simply get their mother home to her sick child. Along their journey, they learn what apartheid really means for their family and their futures.
1. Go to BrainPop (teton/tcsd): Social Studies – Apartheid
2. Go to WorldBook Online (teton1/schools) - Apartheid
3. Go to: Apartheid Museum
4. Great site to understand Apartheid better.
5. Go to CultureGrams (jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of South Africa
a. Look at timeline for information about Apartheid
6. After reading about Grace's brother and her stories about students fighting back, watch these United Streaming Movies.
Ladder #2: Survival stories - surviving man-made &
natural disasters.
Read Hiroshima and Sadako: These are stories about the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima at the end of WWII. They also help us to understand the deadly consequences.
1. Go to United Streaming Assignment.
The Bomb: This is the story of a small group of islands, very isolated from the rest of the world. The US government chose Bikini Atoll to do further testing on their nuclear bombs. Read about how this island fights back.
1. Go to United Streaming Videos for The Bomb
Under the Blood Red Sun: This story is set in Hawaii and takes place in 1941 as America responds to the attack on Pearl Harbor. Experience the fear and racism of the time.
1. Go to WorldBook Online (teton1/schools) - Pearl Harbor (good pictures and videos)
2. Go to American History (jackson/hole) – search Pearl Harbor (videos)
3. Go to Navy Pictures of Pearl Harbor
4. For information about the internment camps of the Japanese-Americans, go to Japanese Internment Camps
a. Toward the bottom there is information about Sand Island, Hawaii.
5. Read So Far From The Sea by Eve Bunting.
The Killing Sea: This story is set in Indonesia in 2004. The story begins the day before the Tsunami hits. It is a survival story that brings together two characters from very different cultures.
1. Go to BrainPop (online databases (teton/TCSD)): science – Tsunami AND animated explanation of Tsunamis from BBC. More to understand Tsunami/Earthquakes.
2. Go to WorldBook Online (Teton1/Schools) - Tsunami (2004), good pictures
3. Go to CultureGrams (Jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of Indonesia
4. Go to :Tsunami Videos
5. Go to : United Steaming Videos
6. Other videos
7. National Geographic video - from Mr. Wiley
8. Japan's March 2011 Tsunami: Before and After pictures, BBC article & videos, and more videos,
9. A lot of great resources for Japan's earthquake and tsunami
10. More on Japan's March 2011 earthquake and tsunami:
8. Japan's March 2011 Tsunami: Before and After pictures, BBC article & videos, and more videos,
9. A lot of great resources for Japan's earthquake and tsunami
10. More on Japan's March 2011 earthquake and tsunami:
- Latest global earthquake, GPS, etc. data at the GEO supersite
- The USGS web page has compiled very detailed earthquake and related information.
- And more amazing before and after pictures of the NE coast of Japan. Note the run up from the tsunami has been reported at 6 km inland.
11. Ways to donate.
Ladder #3: Individuals fighting against a government. Understanding propaganda and oppression.
Kiss the Dust: This story is set in Iraq. It is the story of a Kurdish family that must flee to Iran due to persecution against the Kurds in Iraq. It tells the story of refugees in a way that will break your heart.
The Year of Impossible Goodbyes: This story helps us to understand Korea's history from the end of WWII to the beginnings of the Korean war. It's a story of a family that is forced to live in an occupied country for many years. This story shows the power of propaganda.
Red Scarf Girl: This is a memoir of a family living in China during Mao's Cultural Revolution. It is a story of living with propaganda and conflicting beliefs. It helps us to understand how difficult it is to live with fear.
1. Go to WorldBook Online (teton1/schools) - Cultural Revolution
a. Check out some of the Back in Time articles
2. Check out these United Streaming movies (follow the directions telling you which movies to watch first)
3. Go to CultureGrams (jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of China
a. Pay attention to the time line – China under Communism
4. Explore Ji-Li's company, East West Exchange, to promote cultural exchanges between the United States and China. "If I can help Americans to understand China, and the Chinese to learn about the United States, even a little, I will feel very rewarded. I will have contributed something to my country, China, and my home, America (p 271)."
~Other~
MAROO OF THE WINTER CAVES:
1. Go to United Streaming Videos for Maroo
2. Go to BrainPop (online databases (teton/TCSD)): Science-Earth System- Ice Age
Go to ACTIVITIES-->Graphic Organizer-->Print--> Take notes on this activity sheet as you watch the movie-->Go back to movie-->Press CC button and read along --> Play the quiz-->Graded Quiz--> View your results --> OK --> Record your score --> Review answers --> If you missed more than 2, take the test again.
3. Go to BrainPop (online databases (teton/TCSD)): Science-Earth System- Avalanches
Go to ACTIVITIES-->Graphic Organizer-->Print--> Take notes on this activity sheet as you watch the movie-->Go back to movie-->Press CC button and read along --> Play the quiz-->Graded Quiz--> View your results --> OK --> Record your score --> Review answers --> If you missed more than 2, take the test again.
4. Go to WorldBook Online (Teton1/Schools).
Go to My Backpack-->Maroo and Wolf Brother--> Stone Age-->
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Elyssa ~ "Niagra Falls"
New York
Two years ago my dad and I planned a vacation to go to New York. We went to New York to see my dad’s side of the family in New York. The family members were his brothers my uncles, sisters my aunts and my cousins. We went on three great trips and saw a lot of cool sites. But I had to said this was one of the best trips I have ever gone on. Beside going to Florida with my mom. We were going to Niagara Falls Canada with my dad and all my family members in New York. When we got to New York, I felt reunited again because we had not seen them since I was two years old. It had been eight long years!
The morning we went to Niagara Falls everyone was anxious to leave the house, so they were running up and down the stairs. After that we all dashed to the car and drove for about an hour, my cousin Cody’s breakfast of bean soup started kicking in! He was stinking the car up terribly. The car ride was especially bad, too, because there was seven people in one small car. I couldn’t move my legs and was stuck in one spot for 2 1/2 hours. I felt trapped.
About an hour into the car ride, my aunt and uncle started asking me question after question. “So Elyssa how was your school year?’’ asked my aunt Dee.
‘’It was good. I had a lot of fun and we went on a lot of field trips.” Right after that lead to the next question. But before my uncle asked me the next question, I yelled, “Niagara Falls, here we come!’’
This didn’t distract them, and the next few questions popped out like fireworks. “Did you like your teacher?’’ My Uncle had to yell at me because my three cousins were singing in the back seat. I love my cousins and I am happy they are part of my family, but they can get very crazy and out of control. To make matters worse, every once and a while my uncle would slam on the brakes to avoid hitting the car in front of him. It scared me a lot.
Once my aunt, uncle, and cousin stopped asking questions, we all listened to my cousin’s music, which was rock. I did not like that his music, but it was entertaining and distracted them from asking more questions!
Finally, we arrived at Niagara Falls. We all jumped out of the car, relieved because we had been in there for a long time. My uncle bought us all tickets for a boat ride. I couldn’t wait.
The boat was huge. It was two stories tall and the top part was full. Additionally, the whole bottom was so full you could not even turn around without seeing a person at your side. The boat surprised me how big it was. Before we got on the captain said, “ Everyone who is going on the boat please come and get your rain coat on.’’
“ Why do we need rain coats?’’ It took him a while to reply. When he did, his answer was, “You’re going to get wet.”
After that my dad said, “You need rain coats because you get really close to the waterfall and might get really really wet!’’ If I did not want to get really wet, I would just hide behind all the people. So if you want to go on the boat sometime, just know you will have to be ready to see a lot of people and get really wet. Besides getting soaked and being crushed, it is a beautiful view. It surprised me of how close we got to the waterfall. The water sprayed in the air and when it is was sunny, it looked like glistening snow after the first snow fall of the year.
Once we got off the boat there was a ton of people exiting all at once and a lot of walking to be done. I had to be careful not to lose my dad and the rest of my family. So I was holding on to my dad’s sweatshirt with all my might.
We walked for long time just to get to lunch. Lunch tasted so good because we had not eaten for a long time. We finally had to walk back to the car and drive for another 2 1/2 hours. It was kinda light in the car because my cousins were playing their video games. Every one of us was awake until my aunt, uncle, and dad said, “All four of you kids should close your eyes because it is a two and a half hour drive and you will be very tired when we get back to New York.” We all fell asleep even though we did not want to when we left Niagra Falls. I still dream of going back to Niagra Falls!
Two years ago my dad and I planned a vacation to go to New York. We went to New York to see my dad’s side of the family in New York. The family members were his brothers my uncles, sisters my aunts and my cousins. We went on three great trips and saw a lot of cool sites. But I had to said this was one of the best trips I have ever gone on. Beside going to Florida with my mom. We were going to Niagara Falls Canada with my dad and all my family members in New York. When we got to New York, I felt reunited again because we had not seen them since I was two years old. It had been eight long years!
The morning we went to Niagara Falls everyone was anxious to leave the house, so they were running up and down the stairs. After that we all dashed to the car and drove for about an hour, my cousin Cody’s breakfast of bean soup started kicking in! He was stinking the car up terribly. The car ride was especially bad, too, because there was seven people in one small car. I couldn’t move my legs and was stuck in one spot for 2 1/2 hours. I felt trapped.
About an hour into the car ride, my aunt and uncle started asking me question after question. “So Elyssa how was your school year?’’ asked my aunt Dee.
‘’It was good. I had a lot of fun and we went on a lot of field trips.” Right after that lead to the next question. But before my uncle asked me the next question, I yelled, “Niagara Falls, here we come!’’
This didn’t distract them, and the next few questions popped out like fireworks. “Did you like your teacher?’’ My Uncle had to yell at me because my three cousins were singing in the back seat. I love my cousins and I am happy they are part of my family, but they can get very crazy and out of control. To make matters worse, every once and a while my uncle would slam on the brakes to avoid hitting the car in front of him. It scared me a lot.
Once my aunt, uncle, and cousin stopped asking questions, we all listened to my cousin’s music, which was rock. I did not like that his music, but it was entertaining and distracted them from asking more questions!
Finally, we arrived at Niagara Falls. We all jumped out of the car, relieved because we had been in there for a long time. My uncle bought us all tickets for a boat ride. I couldn’t wait.
The boat was huge. It was two stories tall and the top part was full. Additionally, the whole bottom was so full you could not even turn around without seeing a person at your side. The boat surprised me how big it was. Before we got on the captain said, “ Everyone who is going on the boat please come and get your rain coat on.’’
“ Why do we need rain coats?’’ It took him a while to reply. When he did, his answer was, “You’re going to get wet.”
After that my dad said, “You need rain coats because you get really close to the waterfall and might get really really wet!’’ If I did not want to get really wet, I would just hide behind all the people. So if you want to go on the boat sometime, just know you will have to be ready to see a lot of people and get really wet. Besides getting soaked and being crushed, it is a beautiful view. It surprised me of how close we got to the waterfall. The water sprayed in the air and when it is was sunny, it looked like glistening snow after the first snow fall of the year.
Once we got off the boat there was a ton of people exiting all at once and a lot of walking to be done. I had to be careful not to lose my dad and the rest of my family. So I was holding on to my dad’s sweatshirt with all my might.
We walked for long time just to get to lunch. Lunch tasted so good because we had not eaten for a long time. We finally had to walk back to the car and drive for another 2 1/2 hours. It was kinda light in the car because my cousins were playing their video games. Every one of us was awake until my aunt, uncle, and dad said, “All four of you kids should close your eyes because it is a two and a half hour drive and you will be very tired when we get back to New York.” We all fell asleep even though we did not want to when we left Niagra Falls. I still dream of going back to Niagra Falls!
River ~ "Middle School"
I almost sprinted to my new locker in my new school, the Jackson Hole Middle School! I nodded to my new teachers standing in the hallway. I nodded to some of my old friends, but I had no time to talk! I was so excited about middle school! When I finally got to my locker, I spotted one of my old friends, the one I had done Jungle Book with the year before who also has the same birth-day as me. She was my best friend. “Cheyenne!” I yelled.
“River,” Cheyenne responded nearly yelping. Excited was my only feeling until I found out what homeroom she was in.
“What?” I questioned, “You are barely in any classes of mine,” I whined, and then a question occurred to me that hurt me even more. What if it was like this for all my friends?
Panic showed up and started pacing while whispering in my ear, “Oh great! NO FRIENDS! You are on your own!” He paced faster and faster and whispered louder and louder.
That’s when Worried showed up. “Oh no, no friends that’s not good at all,” he muttered in my other ear. Worried and Panic get along just fine. They love these types of situations most.
What if it was like this for all my friends? What if I have no friends in middle school? What if I have no one to trust? No one to be there for me? My head hurt from all of these terrible thoughts that were running though my head. Then the bell finally rang and I hurried to my new class.
Nervousness was just like Worried but acted like it was a horror movie going on. “Don’t do it River” “Don’t go though that door!” it was my homeroom door but Nervousness made it seem as if I was walking to the house of a killer. Happiness pushed Nervousness out of the way and pushed me though the door, there was a smile on my face with happiness at my side. There were some of my old friends I knew, Heather, Kinzel and Catlin, and some new people like Nicole, who is a great listener and Hailey, who has just about the same crazy level as me. They had gone to a different school then me, but these new people I met were my friends quickly! It was the end of 5th period and I was walking past the rather tall 8th graders…
That’s when one more of the emotion's friends showed up; his name is Scared. He was hiding behind me shaking, and pointing at the 8th graders saying stuff like, “ You know some of them.” This caused more shaking and hiding. “They could make fun of you”… Easy”. But I had my new AND old friends including Cheyenne by me.
“I love middle school,” I told my friends almost in a whisper. But then almost a yell at the last bell, and skipped thought the halls I thought to myself, “Why was I even scared in the 1st place?” I was in middle school, grown up, and had awesome, outrages friends!
“River,” Cheyenne responded nearly yelping. Excited was my only feeling until I found out what homeroom she was in.
“What?” I questioned, “You are barely in any classes of mine,” I whined, and then a question occurred to me that hurt me even more. What if it was like this for all my friends?
Panic showed up and started pacing while whispering in my ear, “Oh great! NO FRIENDS! You are on your own!” He paced faster and faster and whispered louder and louder.
That’s when Worried showed up. “Oh no, no friends that’s not good at all,” he muttered in my other ear. Worried and Panic get along just fine. They love these types of situations most.
What if it was like this for all my friends? What if I have no friends in middle school? What if I have no one to trust? No one to be there for me? My head hurt from all of these terrible thoughts that were running though my head. Then the bell finally rang and I hurried to my new class.
Nervousness was just like Worried but acted like it was a horror movie going on. “Don’t do it River” “Don’t go though that door!” it was my homeroom door but Nervousness made it seem as if I was walking to the house of a killer. Happiness pushed Nervousness out of the way and pushed me though the door, there was a smile on my face with happiness at my side. There were some of my old friends I knew, Heather, Kinzel and Catlin, and some new people like Nicole, who is a great listener and Hailey, who has just about the same crazy level as me. They had gone to a different school then me, but these new people I met were my friends quickly! It was the end of 5th period and I was walking past the rather tall 8th graders…
That’s when one more of the emotion's friends showed up; his name is Scared. He was hiding behind me shaking, and pointing at the 8th graders saying stuff like, “ You know some of them.” This caused more shaking and hiding. “They could make fun of you”… Easy”. But I had my new AND old friends including Cheyenne by me.
“I love middle school,” I told my friends almost in a whisper. But then almost a yell at the last bell, and skipped thought the halls I thought to myself, “Why was I even scared in the 1st place?” I was in middle school, grown up, and had awesome, outrages friends!
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