Saturday, May 30, 2015

Freebies for National Donut Day on June 5

Fresh, gooey, hot, baked or fried dough glazed with varieties of sugary frostings--who can resist donuts? June 5 is National Donut Day! 

My grandma used to make fried donuts covered with powdered sugar frosting, and no one could "eat just one"! Make National Donut Day extra special and fun with the free activities listed below. 

Start the day off with fresh donuts for students then learn some history:



Step back in time to the 1980's when donut sales were on the decline. Have students design billboards to increase sales! Be sure to vote on the best billboard...


Take time to reflect on donuts--students can choose one of the prompts below and do some writing:


Want a great homework assignment that involves donuts? Will the home-ec department partner with you to let students make donuts? Can you make a video production about making donuts? 


After making all those donuts, it's time to do some decorating! Have a Donut Decorating Contest:



Some people spell "donut" as "doughnuts". How many words can you make from "doughnuts"?


What kind of donuts do your students like? Let students conduct surveys for an across-curriculum math project:


Now, it's time to become an entrepreneur! Start your own donut shop...


Complete National Donut Day with a crossword puzzle:



National Donut Day on June 5 can be a fun, educational adventure for everyone! For more activities and ideas, go to the comprehensive website for National Donut Day

Find out where to get FREE donuts on June 5 by heading over to Stacey Fisher's
Freebies blog on "Free Donuts on National Donut Day". 
Related Products:

     Includes:
            History timeline
            Billboard advertisement to make
            Calendar and Symbolism
            Coloring sheets
            Discussion Starters/Writing Prompts
            Doughnut decorating contest and matching activities
            Doughnuts make a word activity
            Doughnut Recipe activity 
            Maze
            Order of Operations cut and paste
            Word Search








Thursday, May 14, 2015

It's Time for "The dog ate my homework!"

It's the end of the school year, and by now you've heard some tall tales as to why assignments weren't turned in. "The dog ate my homework" no longer suffices in today's technology world, so in comes "my computer crashed" or "my internet was not working". The real reason for most late or missing assignments is--drum roll, please--poor time management skills!

It happens to the best of us no matter how well laid out our plans are. For example, during Finals Week on campus the weather refused to cooperate! It flooded in surrounding neighborhoods, so local schools started late or were closed--we scrambled to alter schedules. Also, professors who commuted long distances were unable to make it to campus, and their classes had to be covered. Next, both elevators on the campus went on the blitz! Therefore, those of us who were unable to climb stairs but had classes and offices on upper floors were sent to alternate first-floor locations.

"Someone will bring you your items..." said an employee.

"I wasn't prepared for something like this," I said. "I left my work scattered across my desk."

Images of piles of paperwork filed in an organizational method that made sense only to me flashed through my mind. I didn't even know where to begin with telling someone what I needed out of my office, much less where to find the items. After all, I had shut the door on the paperwork nightmare with no forewarning of an elevator emergency. I had rushed out of my office the afternoon before without preparing for the next day's classes. My poor time management skills equaled frustration.

There are many beyond control circumstances that affect time management skills. I thought back to my senior year in college at the University of Oklahoma. In May, one day before finals, an F5 tornado leveled Moore, Oklahoma. Most professors cancelled their final exams, but my instructor was new and had moved from California to the state at the start of the Spring semester. He knew nothing about tornadoes and the destruction they left behind; therefore, he chose not to cancel his exams. "That's no excuse!" he said when confronted by students who were unable to make it the final exam due to the tornado's destruction. Students who lost everything but their lives, and some lost their family members, in the tornado were forced to file grade appeals. Even the best time managers could not avoid being affected by such a horrific weather event. Valid emergencies happen, and they affect all aspects of our lives.

It's true that car wrecks occur, computers crash, internet services fail, tires go flat, traffic gets snarled, and, sometimes, dogs eat homework. The next time your students give excuses, such as: "But, my dog ate my homework/my computer crashed/my internet wasn't working..." be prepared to use common sense and logical reasoning to understand the dilemma and its impact from students' viewpoints. Even people with the best time management skills cannot always avoid legitimate emergencies.

Are you prepared for a national emergency? Here's some free activities to get you and your students ready for National Preparedness Month: