Celebrating July the Fourth's Freedom

July the Fourth Sale--20% off all TpT products July 4-6!

Freedom! As a kid, celebrating July the Fourth meant fireworks, fun and games. The holiday started with a trip to the local firework stand where I purchased as many goods as allowed. Afterwards came the big event--the July Fourth celebration at the town's park. The event took place where the baseball and football fields sat east of the elementary school. In front of the baseball field and to the north of the stadium was a detached kindergarten building with a park behind it. The grassy area was shaded by large, mature trees and when not being used for public events the park hosted horseshoe players and families of picnickers . 

A favorite of July the Fourth celebrators was a donkey softball game with teams made up of families and friends. Donkeys are so unpredictable, and scoring was difficult. Some stopped dead in their tracks as riders sailed over their heads or slipped off their backs. Other times, donkeys ran one direction while being urged otherwise. Getting donkeys to round bases was no easy feat. If you have never been to a donkey softball game, you don't know what you've missed! 

There was an egg toss with two-person teams carefully chosen--some participants were more in demand than others based on prior years performances. This was largely attended since throwers were sure to come away with splattered eggs on their hands and faces. 

When I was young, I scoured dirt and two-lane roads weeks in advance to find a tortoise for the turtle race. It was a challenge to keep a turtle around the homestead for more than a week, so on many July the Fourths I had several

different ones before the big race arrived. I can't remember having a winning turtle, but it was always a toss up which animal would win. There was no advantages in turtle racing. Still, I tried to train one each year.

Perhaps one of the best things about July the Fourth was homemade ice-cream. Every family seemed to have an ice cream maker--rectangular steel containers that went inside wooden buckets, later on plastic holders. Ice and rock salt was layered in between the steel containers and buckets. Once tops were placed on, people turned crank handles which rotated the buckets. In later years, crank models were discarded in favor of electric motors, which rotated steel containers when plugged into electrical outlets. People brought flavors of all kinds--banana, chocolate, peach, vanilla. It was free as long as your family brought a bucket of icre cream. Yum! I wish I had a cupful of each flavor right now...

Finally, there was time between park events and the night's firework's display for sandwiches at  home. A few personal fireworks were set off before the mad dash to the football field at dusk. Aluminum stands were filled with families and young children. But, on a hill that overlooked the stadium sat carloads of teenagers and young adults; some drinking, some not, and late night parties were planned around ponds in pastures. Then, night signaled the first bang and "ewww" and "ahhhh" echoed across the town as colorful lights glowed in the dark sky.

July the Fourth is about freedom. Whether attending a celebration, partying with families and friends, or relaxing alone at home, it's your choice...it's all about freedom.

Have a safe and wonderful Fourth of July!

Check out:
Fifteen July the Fourth Coloring Sheets for Young Learners 

and
Fourth of July: 24 Fun, Interactive Activities

Much Ado about Summer

Summers are made for fun, learning activities! Whether attending summer camps, going to library events, or visiting museums, education in the summer takes a hands-on approach. For example, the Houston Children's Museum hosted Super Hero Day, and kids made their own super hero capes. The local colleges, such as UHCL's Kids U, offer nature adventures, poetry writing, and robotics, to name a few, while city parks give swim lessons and outdoor hiking excursions. Many activities are free, and for those that require registration and supplies fees there are often scholarships available.

My kids stayed busy with baseball, Boy Scouts, library programs, and vacation bible schools in the summer months. In fact, they would probably say they were "too busy" and would have preferred to sleep in more often than allowed. But, summer was enrichment program time!  

(Photo by Mark Pierce)            
                                           Oklahoma's abundance of parks

contributed to perfect outdoor learning environments. We camped, hiked, fished, and swam on an almost daily basis. We jet-skied and water-skied on man-made lakes, such as Arbuckle, Murray, or Texhoma. On weekends, we packed picnic items and trekked to Turner Falls or Chickasaw National Park. After we plunged from the rocks of Lil' Niagara into the ice cold water, our limbs turned purplish-blue. Then, we climbed onto the banks and shivered in the warm sunlight as we waited to jump again and again into the clear, blue, spring water. We observed nature at its finest during Oklahoma summers.  

Taking learning outside classroom walls is refreshing for everyone. There is so much to experience, learn, and watch--digging for worms, exploring caves, hiking along trails, walking through forests... Outdoors brings learning alive, and summer is made for fun, learning activities!

Fun, learning activities for summer: 

Top Ten Kid Movies to Decipher 

 

















Wacky Wayne's I-Spy 

 If I was President

Time for Father's Day Fun

It seems like Father's Day arrived quickly! When I was a child, my dad used to say, "Just wait until you get older then time will really fly...", and, of course, Dad was right. Looking back, where did the time go? Once again, it's Father's Day--time to honor Dad.

With care, cards are chosen, dinners are planned, and gifts are mulled over. A humorous or sentimental card? Dinner in or out? Homemade or bought gift? Ahhhh...so many decisions. What do dads remember the most about Father's Day? 

Remember making bird feeders, clay pots, colorful cards, and more for Father's Day? Since the holiday falls after most public schools have let out for summer, it's left to caregivers, moms, siblings, and relatives to help little ones come up with Father's Day memorabilia. Here's some Father's Day activities to help make the holiday a festive one:

Father's Day Cards: 30 Make and Give Activities

Father's Day Activities for Elementary Grades (right click to save):

More Father's Day activities at Educator Helper!

Being an Oklahoman

Teachers across the state of Oklahoma have lost years of accumulated teaching materials. How, as educators, can we lend helping hands to our fellow teachers?  As soon as the news of Moore, Oklahoma, hit television stations, TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers) participants came together to donate teaching units to make four teaching bundles. These include lower and upper elementary. The bundles are for sale at TPT for $25, and all proceeds go directly to help teachers in Moore, Oklahoma.  There is more information and a listing of the products at Teachers Care for Oklahoma. 

I'm an Okie, no doubt about it, born, raised, and lived most of my life in Garvin county, Oklahoma... It's in times of distress and disaster that people come together--regardless of differences and origins.

I get lots of kidding for being an Okie in Texas. Yet, I've got so many family and friends who live in both states. It's almost as if the Red River line is blurred. The dirty, muddy red water runs through rather than divides the states. Going forward from today, we are seeing lots of blurring of lines.

I've seen lots of tornadoes in my time. They used to follow the creek behind our home in Maysville. We would watch the storms form then get to the Washita River and split into two tornadoes. Many days and nights we sat in the underground dirt cellar and waited for the all clear sirens. As I got older, tornadoes were simply a "way of life" in Oklahoma. We relied on great weather forecasting and eyes of police and storm watchers to relay information. The skies were watched with uncertainty during the spring and summer months. Now, like the blurred lines of the Red River, the dates for tornado season have also become blurred. Tornadoes can happen at any time of the year.

As educators, there is so much we can do to help our Oklahoma neighbors. Schools have been demolished, homes are gone, and families are left with uncertainties and fear. Where do they go? What do they do? How do they get their lives together again?

Reach out and help a neighbor...

The beginning of the Moore tornado that caused so much mayhem on May 20, 2013. Picture courtesy of Kristy Bell, Newcastle, Oklahoma.

Making Mother's Day Memories

My Mother's Day keepsakes rest on shelves and windowsills around my house. They are not expensive gifts nor are they mass produced or store bought. Instead, they are imperfect, unique items crafted especially for me by my children.

There are handwritten cards with stick figured drawings, ceramic hearts and mugs with inscriptions, and scribbled sayings on construction paper hearts. They were made with love and care, and to me they are as valuable as Monet or Renoir paintings.

In the past, I've had Mother's Day breakfasts in bed, buffet lunches at cafeterias, and candlelit dinners at expensive restaurants. Yet, none of those equaled the homemade gifts plastered across my refrigerator doors. I have wonderful memories of children's happy faces as I opened their works of art. Yes, Mother's Day is synonymous with love.

As an educator, I love holidays! They offer insight into cultures and traditions. They give students opportunities for researching and sharing. Holidays are special days of celebration. Mother's Day is cause for reflection--time to say "Thanks, and I love you!" A day to express gratitudes not otherwise communicated. 

What is your Mother's Day plan? A vase of flowers? A heart-shaped box filled with chocolate? Dinner at a fancy restaurant? Don't forget the handmade cards and gifts--those made with love. 

 

Happy Mother’s Day!
Beth

Mother's Day Products:
 
Mother's Day Activities to Make and Give

 

April is Jazz Month--Let's All Sing the Blues

Jazz and Rhythm and Blues lesson plans are credited with creating some of my most memorable classroom moments. It allowed artists, musicians, and writers to shine while it encouraged others to "word play" with rhyme and rhythm.  

Since a "picture is worth a thousand words", begin your Jazz and R & B unit with a history lesson at the Delta Blues Museum:

Tour the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Blues section to learn about artists who influenced the music genre, or learn about Langston Hughes and the Blues. 
Preview video recordings from Jazz and R & B artists:

B.B. King
Billie Holiday
Dizzy Gillespie
Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong
Ray Charles

From there, view and discuss important milestones in Jazz with a timeline of the history of Blues and R & B. Then,in small groups, have students choose specific time frames and build timelines to hang in the classroom for visual references. Bring in as many children's books about Jazz and R & B artists as possible. Children's books use figurative language, so they are good models for students who need to incorporate imagery and senses into writings. Also, simply stated facts are easy to comprehend, find, and remember. In addition, the unit is perfect for introducing and working with quotes and citations.  

Listen to the cd of Jazz Fly by Mathew Gollub, or watch a class interpret the text:

Students are ready to begin to write Scat, which brings patterns, rhyme, rhythm, and words to life. But, just what is Scat? It's a language of sounds, such as Za Zee Zay Za-baza, Boo-zaba, Zee-zah Ro-ni... Use the lesson plan Let's All Sing the Blues to introduce Scat writing. It's interactive and will have students' writing, singing, and moving! 

 


For free supplemental resources, visit The Blues, a lesson plan unit from PBS, or download Jazz Notes: A History of Music in New Orleans.  

Let's All Sing the Blues let's students create unique language combinations that are set to music while learning about the history of Jazz and R & B. It's fun for everyone...

 

Happy Jazz Month!

Wacky Wayne's I-Spy Origin

What do Wacky Wayne's I-Spy and Alabama football have in common? I-Spy is a favorite among early learners, and they help students with eye and hand coordination. I-Spy build specific skill sets, such as recognizing letters and shapes. When I decided to develop I-Spy handouts, I wanted a catchy name that was fun for students to say and relate to.

The tale began in Texas with a cellphone call from a native Alabama relative named Wayne. For as long as I can remember, "Roll Tide!" has been Wayne's battle cry. There's no bigger fan of Crimson Tide football than Wayne. He declared his team was "sure to be the next national champions". That's when it hit me--Wayne was wacky for Alabama football! Thus, a star was born, and Wacky Wayne's I-Spy was invented!

Product names are derived in many ways, and Wacky Wayne's I-Spy is a great example of bizarre ways teachers come up with titles. If you've got a great product title name and story to share, post it for all to read...

Here are some Wacky Wayne I-Spy examples:

Wacky Wayne's Camping I-Spy

Wacky Wayne's Valentine's I-Spy

Wacky Wayne's Fall I-Spy

Wacky Wayne's Halloween I-Spy

Wacky Wayne's Winter I-Spy