Tag: summer

Art, Creative Thinking, Education, K-12, Music, Parenting, Websites

Summer Art

Terri Eichholz
from: "Strike up the Band" on ArtsEdge
from: “Strike up the Band” on ArtsEdge

This week, I am focusing on providing resources to “Squash the Summer Slide” as ReadWriteThink puts it. Parents often ask me at this time of year for ideas to keep my students challenged over the summer.  ArtsEdge is a great site for classroom ideas, but here are a few links to articles that might be especially interesting to parents who are looking for unique activities to occupy all of that extra time.

5 Activities for the Car and Grocery – I especially liked the idea of transforming a magazine photograph.

Summer Boredom Busters –  I did not see a lot of new ideas in this article, but there are a couple of website resources that could be helpful for finding art events happening around you.

Strike Up the Band; Creating Homemade Instruments – I think I might actually be able to make the straw oboe!

Set a Poem to Music  –  This is an actual lesson for 5th grade and up, but I think it could be modified for any age.  Wouldn’t it be fun to pick a picture book written in verse and make it into a song?

For other summer suggestions, you might want to visit my posts from Monday and Tuesday.

Apps, Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking, Education, Games, K-5, Parenting, Websites

Summer Enrichment Flyer

Terri Eichholz

Screen Shot 2013-06-03 at 9.03.43 PM

 

This week, I am focusing on providing resources to “Squash the Summer Slide” as ReadWriteThink puts it.  Parents often ask me at this time of year for ideas to keep my students challenged over the summer, and here is a treasure trove of resources.

Kacie Germadnik, a colleague of mine, created this awesome flyer with Smore that offers excellent ideas for keeping children engaged in learning throughout the summer break.  It suggests activities, websites, and apps that will encourage higher level thinking.  I’m really bummed because I can never get these things to embed correctly on this blog, so you will have to visit this link to see it – but it will definitely be worth your while!  She plans to update it as she finds more resources, so don’t forget to keep checking back!

Yesterday’s “Summer Slide Squasher” can be found by clicking here.

3-6, Education, Language Arts, Parenting, Writing

Summer Superheroes (Reblog)

Terri Eichholz

This week, I am focusing on providing resources to “Squash the Summer Slide” as ReadWriteThink puts it.  Parents often ask me at this time of year for ideas to keep my students challenged over the summer, and here is one that would be great for students who enjoy writing.  

Summer Superheroes is a “Parent & After School Resource” on ReadWriteThink.  It offers an interesting twist to the concept of creating your own superhero by challenging the author to invent a superhero whose powers are somehow dependent on the warmest season of the year.  The detailed instructions for motivating the child and for helping him or her to develop the story include interactive resources on the ReadWriteThink site.  This would be a fun idea to share with parents, or to use in the last month of school – when everyone’s mind is on summer anyway!

Art, Creative Thinking, Education, K-5, Student Products, Teaching Tools

SCAMPER Summer Pool Party

Terri Eichholz

My students love doing S.C.A.M.P.E.R. activities.  It gives them the chance to be creative – and a bit silly.  I’ve made a couple of S.C.A.M.P.E.R. packets for different themes, and my fourth graders got their first glimpse of the Summer Pool Party packet yesterday.  I currently have the Summer Pool Party packet on sale for a $1.00 (.50 discount) at Teachers Pay Teachers.  You can also purchase other S.C.A.M.P.E.R. packets at my TPT store.  They are a great activity for the last weeks of school!

Doesn't this look like a fun invention?
Doesn’t this look like a fun invention?
5-8, Education, K-5, Websites

Bright Ideas for Summer

Terri Eichholz

Read, Write, Think has a page of recommended summer activities that would be good to share with parents.  “Bright Ideas for Summer” includes links to four activities that could be used with students in 2nd-8th grades.  I’m already planning to use “Can You Convince Me?” with my 9 year old daughter!  All of the activities have recommended links, resources, and plans for implementing.  Bookmark this site for something different to do on a hot summer day!

3-6, Creative Thinking, Education, Language Arts, Parenting, Student Products, Writing

Summer Superheroes

Terri Eichholz

Summer Superheroes is a “Parent & After School Resource” on ReadWriteThink.  It offers an interesting twist to the concept of creating your own superhero by challenging the author to invent a superhero whose powers are somehow dependent on the warmest season of the year.  The detailed instructions for motivating the child and for helping him or her to develop the story include interactive resources on the ReadWriteThink site.  This would be a fun idea to share with parents, or to use in the last month of school – when everyone’s mind is on summer anyway!