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Your Green Pages March 2005
By Elizabeth Swartz
63 Skill-Building Activities You Can Use Right Now!
- Primary Grades
- Inside/Outside
Math Secure a dollhouse, toy barn or another type of structural toy. Prepare a set of cards and write on each either inside or outside. Be sure to have a set of related objects nearby. Give each child an object and have them draw a card. The child should place the cow, doll or chair wherever the card directs. Play again with upstairs, downstairs, etc. to practice directionality. - Birthday Hats
Reading/Art In preparation for Dr. Seuss' birthday on March 2, create the traditional Cat in the Hat striped hats with variations. Make the stripes different colors and have children label the colors. In each stripe, list the title and author of a book read, or the characters, setting, plot, genre of the book. You can also use this favorite decoration as a teaching tool. - Amazing Wheels
Science/Poetry Ask your students to collect pictures of various kinds of wheels. They can also draw wheels and explain their different jobs. Then, read this poem together. Does it make sense? Do the wheels on a clock always seem to go slowly? When? Why? - Colors, Patterns and Math
Math/Art Get a box of rigatoni or any pasta that will lay flat. The kids paint the pasta using two or three colors. Each piece should only be one color. After the pasta dries, use it for patterning on yarn, chenille sticks or flat surfaces. With a black marker, make a plus sign on one unpainted pasta and a minus sign on another. Your students can use them to create addition and subtraction sentences. - Rainbows and Leprechauns
Art/Reading Read leprechaun stories and teach your students the order of colors in the rainbow. Provide colorful supplies such as buttons, ribbons, chenille sticks, candies, etc. Pass out large pieces of blue or white drawing paper on which each child may make a textured rainbow with a pot of treasure. - Can You Do It?
Physical Education Mark a distance using yarn or tape. Prepare a set of cards: jog, skip, hop, crab walk, etc. During inside recess, have each student select a card and do what it directs. - Analogies Are Fun
Read/Poetry Read the following poem to your students. See if they can create new analogies themselves. - First Time Drama
Reading When teaching kids how to read a play, try Donna Jo Napoli's How Hungry Are You? (Atheneum, 2001). The short parts are labeled with rebus type figures. It's a fun way to introduce a first play. - Characters Alive
Reading/Drama Provide a box of costumes and dress-up clothes. After reading a story or play, encourage your students to go to this collection and pick clothing appropriate to the characters they just read about. What were the clues in the story that lead them to pick these clothes? Do the story characters remind them of real people? In what way? - Sprouting Seeds
Science Prepare some clear plastic bags with a small amount of soil and have the children place two seeds of the same kind in each bag. Try various seeds such as pumpkin, bean, marigold, etc. Number the bags. Apply a couple of drops of water to each bag and then staple them to a bulletin board that gets sun. Keep records as to the number of days before sprouting is seen, days when water is added (with eye droppers), bags that don't require as much water, etc. Graph your findings and transplant seedlings as they become ready. - Parents Activity
Perception/Reading Pass out assorted pictures or photos to the students to take home to show their parents. Have each student make a complete list (with descriptions) of all the details in the picture. If he or she was a detective, what could he or she surmise from the photo? What is the setting? What could have happened just prior or just after the photo? What questions would he or she need to ask witnesses about the actual happening? Challenge the child to find another photo at home to exchange with a partner in the classroom. - Join the Fun
Reading/Writing/Geography Before beginning this activity with the class, visit the website www.flatstanley.com to find other teachers in the U.S. and Canada who are willing to exchange "Stanleys" as part of a language arts and geography project. Read Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown (HarperTrophy, 2003 – 40th Anniversary Edition) to your class. Then ask them to make Flat Stanleys of their own, to write letters and make maps of their own city or town to send along to their new pen pals. - Fishing for Figures
Math Make a set of paper fish and attach to paper clips. On each fish write a numeral. Use rulers, string and magnets (as hooks) to make fishing poles. The children "fish," then read the numeral on their fish and put it in the proper order with the other fish on the board. - Seeds from Soil
Science/Poetry Place this poem on the bulletin board with the blossoming seeds (see activity #10) to illustrate how science can be described in poetry. - Will It Float?
Science Begin with a large clear basin filled 2/3 with water. Have beside it a collection of everyday objects. Before testing each object, ask students if they think an object will float. Why or why not? Keep all the objects that float together on one towel and the objects that do not on another. When the experiment is finished, examine the two groups. What characteristics are the same among each group? Then introduce new items from a bag. Without testing but using what was learned, which of these objects do the children think will float and why? - How Do You Know?
Perception/writing Try to go beyond asking what your students already know and telling them what they need to or should know. Ask the children to instead explain or write about how they know something. Did the read about it? If so, where? Did they hear it? If so, from whom? Did they discover this fact themselves? If they did, ask them to write or explain how they arrived at that conclusion. - Silly Shamrocks
Perception/Math Post several shamrocks of various colors around the room. Talk about St. Patrick's Day and it's symbol of the green shamrock. Then send the students to find the green shamrocks and the "silly" shamrocks that are not green. Have them identify the colors and numbers found. Also, post the color words on boxes or bags and have the children put the appropriate shamrocks in the proper bags. - Ups & Downs of Life
Language/Science/Art Use this poem as a story starter, a science lesson, a vocabulary lesson or an art lesson. Share the following poem, then swap shopping stories. With the class, create a moveable elevator with a simple thread spool and thread pulley at the top. The students can then write their own poems about elevators. - Measurement Flights
Math During a unit on measurement, ask your students to each make his or her own paper airplanes. Many varieties and types of paper can be used. Place a starter line of tape on the floor then launch the planes. Measure where they land (not slide). Make graphs comparing the distances. Are there any conclusions to be reached about design or materials? - Spring Rains
Art/Math Make umbrella templates for the children to use. Have them make paper in the Eric Carle tradition of painting on tissue paper. Let it dry. Have students cut the paper to fit the pieces of the umbrella, sharing one another's papers. Glue the painted paper onto manila backgrounds. Then provide stencils or die-cut numerals and have the students put fact families on their umbrellas using whatever mathematical operation you are teaching at the moment. - Ready, Set, Action
Language Provide the class with several sports pages from the newspaper and sports magazines for kids. Have them search and mark the action words. Cut out pictures to match and make an "Action" collage. - Static Electricity
Science To create a static electricity experiment that really works, make an electrophorus using a styrofoam dinner plate, a piece of wool cloth, an aluminum pie pan and some masking tape. Go to www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/charge_carry.html for complete instructions. - Bodies in Motion
Physical Education Plan ways to increase the amount of motion in which your students engage during the day. Include music and curriculum-related vocabulary as you skip to the door for lunch, practice spelling words to the bounce of a ball, get in a circle and toss a ball to the person who is to spell next, etc. Set up an indoor exercise hall to be used during inside recesses. - Finish the Fish
Math/Art When teaching symmetry, provide the students with several half-drawn pictures and ask them to complete the drawing by taping a part of a picture to a new sheet of drawing paper and adding on the missing parts. Use plants, animals, designs, etc. Then have students make drawings of their own to cut in half. What things will work to prove symmetry? What things won't? - A Spelling Shillelagh
Spelling Bring in a shillelagh or some other walking stick. Practice spelling words while tapping out each letter. Rhythm helps children with memorization. Allow each child to spell one word with the shillelagh. Then practice with clapping hands. Separate words at the syllable break with a slight pause. - Friction Studies
Science With the class, set up a hypothesis about friction and moving objects. Then ask your students to plan the following scientific experiment to test your hypothesis. First, roll a ball down a specified length of tiled floor. Roll the ball down the same distance on a carpeted floor and again on the grass. What differences were observed? What were the conclusions drawn? - Poetry Riddles
Poetry Share the following poem together and, if possible, decide who is doing the mystery wash before the final two lines. Have students try to write a mystery poem for one another to solve. - Comma, Where?
Language For hands-on practice with commas, give the students scraps of yarn, ribbon, colored paper, fabric, aluminum foil and other bright materials. Ask them to cut the scraps into strips about one-half inch long and very narrow. Distribute worksheets of sentences with commas omitted and instruct the class to glue the 'commas" they've created in their missing places. - Gathering Gold
Time Management/Task Completion At some point in the beginning of March, place a plastic container on each child's desk. At a learning station in your classroom, place a roll of shiny gold wrapping paper and some 1" or 2" circle templates. As each student completes an assignment or activity, allow him or her to make a "gold coin" to put in his or her own pot. - Plot Box
Writing Ask your students to gather plots from books, movies, TV shows, etc. Write the plots in one or two sentences on individual slips of paper. Place them in a "plot box" for students to use when searching for a plot for stories of their own. - Stretching Stations
Physical Education Set up one learning station with illustrated cards for specific stretching exercises such as: a butterfly, seated L, straddle, etc. Have students select three cards for the session. On each card, suggest how many exercises to do and/or provide a quiet egg timer to tell students how long to spend at the station. - Harriet Tubman Day
History During your celebration of Women's History Month, read about Harriet Tubman, who has a day of celebration in the state of New York on March 10. Go to www2.lhric.org/pocantico/tubman/tubman.html to see some wonderful work done by a second grade class. It includes a timeline, a vocabulary quilt, crossword puzzles and a quiz. Get some ideas for making your own class an educational website. - Character Masks
Language/Art After reading a story or book together, assign students to make character masks. Provide a variety of materials. Then have them wear the masks while being interviewed by other class members about the events of the story. Staying within the character is important and can only be done when you really know the character. - Today Only
Math Make a bulletin board to look like a department store window. Have students put up pictures and prices of favorite items. One day put up a sign that says, "Today Only 10% OFF." On another day, use 25%, 40% etc., and have the students figure the prices. Use all simple numbers to start out this activity, then get more complex. - Parents Activity
Social Studies With your child, discover the many women who changed history. Go to the website www.historychannel.com to learn more. Talk about the women in your family and in your community. - Lunchroom Manners
Social Studies/Health By mid-year there are usually new problems in the lunchroom. Have your class brainstorm ideas such as holding your tray with two hands, not making any comments about another student's lunch, not excluding anyone from your table, etc. Use Emily Post's The Guide to Good Manners For Kids by Peggy Post (Harper Collins, 2004) to educate your class in manners for school, home and at play. - Let's Go Fly a Kite
Art/Math Fold two sheets of colored 8 1/2" x 11" paper into quarters. Keeping the first sheet folded, cut a straight diagonal line from the bottom center and fold to the outer top fold. Set aside. On the second kite, cut on all the folds to form four small triangles. Glue two of these on the first kite in opposing corners. Do the same with the other two triangle shapes. Glue the shapes down. Decorate the kite, add yarn or string ends and hang. Have students make fact-family kites by adding numbers or parts of speech being studied, etc. - In the News
Reading/Social Studies Contact your local newspaper to discuss their interest in Newspapers in Education. Newspapers will often send reporters and/or advertising people to instruct the children. Many will also give free multiple copies of the news to classes on a weekly basis. Read and discuss the news together. - Happy Birthday, Vincent
Art Youth Art Month is a good time to celebrate the birthday of Vincent VanGogh on March 30. Your students can see his work from your own computer lab by going to www.vangoghgallery.com. Also, read a copy of Katie and the Sunflowers by James Mayhew (Orchard Books, 2001) to enjoy some strange happenings at an art museum. - A Month of Music
Music During March, make time for singing in your class. Introduce a different song at the beginning of each week. Use a CD or cassette to aid the sing-along. Ask your students to illustrate the song, tap out the rhythm and study the lyrics. Researching the background of the song can also tie into a history lesson nicely. - If I Were
Writing Give each student a card with something from the outdoors written on it. For example, a tree, a groundhog, an eagle, etc. Ask students to write about what the designated life on the card would be like. Be sure they include habitat, food, dangers, etc. - Wood Garden
Art/Science Have each student bring in a small piece of a fallen tree branch. Place each piece of wood into a pie tin. Water the wood pieces well, allowing some water to sit in the bottom of the tins. Next, sprinkle grass seed over the watered branches. Be sure to keep the wood moist and out of direct sunlight until the seeds sprout. How do your students think that the grass was able to grow without soil? - World's Largest Concert
Music On March 10 your class can be part of the World's Largest Concert by turning on PBS at one o'clock eastern time for "Music; The Heart of Education." The music is available on the Music Educators website so get your class ready to participate by going to www.menc.org during Music in Our Schools Month. - Perfect Predictions
Reading Read the fly leaf from a chapter book to your class. Ask your students to write predictions about the story. Then collect their predictions. Read a few chapters, allow students to change predictions if they wish, by writing what made them change their minds. Collect again. Finish the book and discuss the predictions. What were the foreshadowing trends? - Crystal Balls
Science Take a bubble blower outside on a cold, windless day. Blow a large bubble, hold it on the blower and watch it turn from a liquid filled with a gas to a solid crystal ball. This experiment will also work in a walk-in freezer. - Parents Activity
Writing Get your child involved in an annual competition for K-8 students. This competition encourages kids to use their reading, writing and artistic skills to create their own books. Entry forms are at www.scholastic.com/kidsareauthors The entries must be postmarked by March 15. - Misunderstood Snakes
Science/Writing As St. Patrick's Day draws near, ask your scientists do some research about snakes in Ireland. Make a fact/fiction chart. Are there snakes in Ireland today? What is the story of St. Patrick? How do stories like this get started? How are they passed down? Are there stories like that in your area? Have students write their own conclusions after sharing results. - Everyday Activity
Health SPARK offers effective ways to incorporate more physical activity into everyday curriculums that can make for happier and healthier kids and teachers. Be sure to check out their suggestions on their website www.sparkpe.org - Springtime Helpers
Science Collect a bunch of colored threads (2" - 4"), yarns, ribbons, twigs, cotton balls, etc. Place little piles of these items near trees around your school. Make sure your students watch for the pieces to disappear as birds begin to build their nests. Have your camera ready to record progress. - Words About Birds
Reading/Social Studies Put the following poem on an overhead or handout for students to read. Then send them to research other state birds. Find connections such as which bird is shared by seven states? Six states? Five states? Three states? Why so much repetition? Find out what your state bird is, its habitat, favorite food and migratory habits, if any. - Book Club for Kids
Reading Thaddeus Rex, a popular Indianapolis musician has launched an online reading club for children who have parental permission to use the Internet and a valid e-mail address. On the first Sunday of each month, a new book is selected. A certain number of chapters is set as a goal and then it is reviewed and discussed by the students. Recent books have been The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper (Aladdin, 1999) and The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo (Candlewick Press, 2003). Be sure to visit www.think4fun.com for details. - Madame President
Social Studies Read A Woman For President, The Story of Victoria Woodhull by Kathleen Krull (Walker, 2004) and discuss this important woman who was a candidate for the U.S. presidency in 1872. What kind of qualities and qualifications would your students look for in a woman president? Do they think the time is right for another woman to run? Why or why not? - Nuts and bolts
Science Bring in some nuts and bolts as well as some wood with the corresponding size holes pre-drilled. Then have the class compare putting the nuts on the bolts with their fingers and then ask them to try putting on the nuts using pliers. Which is easier? - Puzzling Pronouns
Language Give each student a small section of a newspaper article and three different colored index cards or three different colored pencils. Ask the class to identify and write down each pronoun found in the article and label it as subject, object or possessive. Then ask the kids to write what the pronoun relates to in the article. This activity can be done with magazine articles or sections from textbooks as well. - Solutions or Suspensions?
Science Have students set up a hypothesis and experiment parameters to determine which of the following substances create solutions and which create suspensions. Use equal amounts of water, similar containers and one teaspoon of each substance. Try salt, pepper, flour, sugar, sand, brown sugar, coffee, etc. Record all results and write conclusions in report format. - Tips?
Math Bring in some menus from local restaurants, enlarge or make copies for students. Work together to select meals for families, adding up the cost and then calculating the tip. Get additional practice by putting your dinner order on the board and have students find the cost and the tip. Select others to come up and choose a dinner. - Color Symbols
Reading/Art On St. Patrick's Day, research to find out why green is the representative color. What are your school colors? Why? What is the significance of the red, white, blue of our American flag? Put each group in charge of research on a symbolic color. Have them prepare a short talk along with artistic representations of their findings. (orange & black for halloween, red and green for Christmas, pink for baby girls, blue for hospitals and handicapped parking, etc.) - Kites & Flight
Science Use this popular spring sport to teach about the yaw, pitch, roll, lift and drag that relates to kites as well as to aircraft. Visit the website www.nationalkitemonth.org to study kite designs and plans, and read the explanations for all of the above factors. Ask your students to make some kites, fly them and compare their flights. Also have the class read the article on the website about kite safety before heading out to fly them. - Know Your National Anthem
Music In 2005 the National Anthem Project was created to make sure that all Americans know the words, music and background of our National Anthem. Practice it and study its history with your class and have them carry that story home. For more details, please visit www.menc.org - Role Call
Reading Prepare an index card for each member of your class. On the card, specify a character they are to represent. It could be a person from history, a character from a recent story or the description of a general individual (such as a fourth grader new to the school from a different community). As each person goes to the front of the room, they must answer questions from the class in order to reveal the identity of the role they're assuming. - Strides Per Mile
Math Place a pile of talcum powder on the floor in your classroom. Ask your students to take off their shoes and walk through the powder with a regular stride. Then, measure the distance between footprints. Can your students figure out how many regular strides it would take to walk a mile? Next, time how many regular walking strides can be made in one minute. How many minutes would it take for students to walk a mile? Contact your school's track coach and ask for a measurement wheel. Mark off the distance of one mile outside your building and check against your students' findings. - Anaerobic vs. Aerobic
Physical Education Ask your students to research these words and then design their own exercise program that includes the words repetition, interval and duration. Have each student follow his or her own program for two weeks and then exchange programs with a friend. - Editor's Key
Writing Show your students how to make a key shape out of oaktag. On one side of the key, write the editor's symbols and what each represents in editing. On the other side of the key, write things you'd like a peer editor to check. This list may include the main idea, followed directions, conclusions, etc. Make the key template available to your students so that they may trace it and create a list for themselves.
Wheels Everywhere
by Martin Shaw
The wheels on trucks, trains, and cars,
Around and 'round they go,
Sometimes they turn so very fast,
Sometimes so very slow,
They help to move things here and there,
And up and down each hill,
Except the wheels that turn in a clock,
For, clocks stand very still.
Toolbox Talk
by Heidi Roemer
Who needs a screwdriver?
I do, says the screw.
I need a screwdriver like a window needs a view.
Who needs a hammer
I do, says the nail.
I need a hammer like a deck needs a rail.
Who needs a saw?
I do, says the board.
I need a saw like a ceiling needs a floor.
Who needs a screwdriver,
a hammer, and a saw?
I do, says the Handyman;
I need them all.
Hill of Dirt
by Heidi Roemer
Hill of dirt.
Pinch of seed.
Drink of springtime showers.
Kiss of sun.
Buds of green
soon blossom into flowers!
Riding High
by Heidi Roemer
I step inside the elevator
I love its gliding door.
Up and down and up and down
we ride from floor to floor.
Looking down from way up high
is oh-so-very fun.
Too soon we're finished shopping
Now our elevating's done.
Middle Grades
Mystery Wash
by Martin Shaw
It washed the sand from 'round my eyes,
And from my hands and feet,
It washed my knees and shoulders, too.
It also washed my seat.
It washed the sand from in my hair,
And every tiny pore,
And then the ocean rolled right in,
And washed away the shore.
Words About Birds
by Jacqueline Schiff
The state bird of Connecticut
Is Robin all the way,
From Florida comes mockingbird
Who'll copy songs all day.
This cardinal's a resident
Of Lincoln's Illinois,
This goldfinch lives in Iowa.
And sings of Midwest joy.
Montana has the meadowlark,
This bluebird's from New York,
The Arizona cactus wren
Won't dine with knife and fork.
New Hampshire loves the purple finch,
The seagull Utah claims.
Now do your research on the states
To find more state bird names.
Use any of the many reference books your library has, or take a look at the new The Train of States by Peter Sís (Greenwillow, 2004). This wonderful book introduces each state, illustrated by train cars, in the order of its statehood. The pertinent information for each state is included on one page.
Intermediate Grades
ABOUT THE GREEN PAGES: Green Pages activities are for use in teaching grades PreK through 8. Activities are labeled according to basic skill areas.
THIS MONTH'S CONTRIBUTIONS:
Carol Brown, Corvallis, OR, #28, #54; Helen Wubbenhorst, Mesa, AZ, #37; Marie Cechinni, West Dundee, IL, #42.
POETRY: "Wheels Everywhere," "Mystery Wash," by Martin Shaw, Bronxville, NY. "Toolbox Talk," "Hill of Dirt," "Riding High," by Heidi Roemer, Orland Park, IL. "Words About Birds," by Jacqueline Schiff, Moline, IL.
Illustrations by H. Robert Loomis.
March, 2005, Vol.35, No.6
