VOTING DAY

Tomorrow is thesecond Tuesday in November and the official “Voting Day.”  I know many schools will be closedtomorrow, so today is the perfect time to discuss what it means to be anAmerican and the privilege that we have to vote.  Here are some good questions:

         Howold must you be to vote?

         Canmen and women both vote?

         Doyou have to pay to vote?

         Whatdoes “secret ballot” mean?

         Howdo you determine who wins?

The “majorityrules” is a key concept to our democracy and something that you can practice inyour classroom on a daily basis. Let children vote on the game they want to play, the song they want tosing, or the story they want to hear. The teacher will still be in charge by selecting two or three options(the outcome of which will achieve her goals), but the children will buy intothe idea because they have some voice in the matter.  Voting can also contribute to the feeling of community andteam spirit in your classroom. 

In mykindergarten I set up a cardboard box on a table to be the voting booth.  Children took turns checking off aclass roster as their friends voted in the booth.  The ballot had two options for each of thesecategories:  game, story, song, andsnack.  There were picture cluesalong with the words so children could “read” and mark their choice.  A shoebox became the ballot box and theexcitement increased as we tallied results at morning meeting.

I remember in myhistory of education class that the purpose of schools in the United States wasto “educate to perpetuate a democratic citizenry.”  You can plant the seeds in your classroom today and everyday by providing children with the opportunity to vote!

VETERAN'S DAY

VETERAN'S DAY WILL BE CELEBRATED ON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, THIS YEAR.

Veteran’s Day

(Tune:  “Danny Boy” - HAPPY EVERYTHING CD Disk 1))

Today’s the day wecelebrate our veterans,

The men and womenwho fought for our great land.

We’ll raise ourflags and hold a moment of silence

And we will carrypoppies in our hands.

Because we want tothank you for your service;

You traveled farto keep us safe at home.

You fought withpride and honor for our country.

Our veterans, ohhow we love you so.

Here’s the link todownload this book:

www.drjean.org/html/monthly_act/act_2007/11_Nov/1booksNov/veteransDay2007.pdf

Our daughter Holly wrote this song and I can hardly sing it without getting goose bumps!

Vocabulary– What is a veteran?  For homework,have children interview their parents to find out about veterans in theirfamily.

Poppies –Take three 7” circles cut out of red tissue paper and fold them like a fan.  Twist a green pipe cleaner around the middle.  Open layers to resemble a poppy.  Do a search on the internet to discoverwhy the poppy is symbol for Veteran’s Day.

Guest Speaker– Call a local military recruiting office and invite a guest speaker to sharewith the children what it’s like to have a job in the armed forces.

NAEYC UPDATE

If you ever getthe chance to go to a conference in Orlando – GO!!!  It’s the best place for a conference in the world.  I just returned from the NAEYCConference and it was awesome. Attendance was down, which is not surprising, but the enthusiasm of theteachers was up.  Loved, loved,loved meeting all the teachers from across the United States and othercountries.  That’s why I do what Ido!  And I would do anything tohelp you enjoy your job and help give children a smile and a happychildhood!!!  And that’s the truthfrom the bottom of my heart!

We were blessedwith great weather, and I was blessed to get to present with my daughterHolly.  Of course, Kalina and K.J.came along and got a taste of “Disney Magic.”  My husband had a special day at Universal Studios with K.J.and now my husband can’t stop talking about the Harry Potter ride.  It must be out of this world! 

 Kalina in herMinnie Mouse dress and K.J. in his Thing Two shirt.

We stayed at the HiltonConvention Center and it was incredible! The facilities, pools, views, and food were outstanding.  But, it was the friendly staff thatmade our trip so wonderful.  Fromthe parking attendant to the housekeeper to the front desk…everybody had a smileand acted like they were happy to be working there and making our visit amemorable one.  Those peopleprobably all have problems like the rest of us, but they put a smile on theirfaces and did their jobs.  Everyday when you go in the classroom you have to be part actor or actress.  Leave your worries outside, put a smileon your face, and act like you are luckiest teacher in the world!  Pretend like it’s going to be the bestday ever and your feelings will follow!!!

MONTHLY MUSIC MIX

Did you know that each month I offered a “monthly music mix” with a wide variety of songs that you can introduce to your class?  There’s always a song for gathering the children, transitions, phonics, math, movement/fun, and special holiday and seasonal picks.  Here’s where you’ll find some tunes for this month:

www.drjean.org/html/monthly_act/act_2009/06_Jun/pg07.html

Here are two examples of simple tunes that teach.

Pencil Grip

(Tune:  “Where Is Thumbkin?”)

Where is Pointer? 

On the top. 

Ready to write.  

Start at the top.

Where is Thumbkin? 

On the side. 

Ready to help

Your pencil glide.

Where is Tallman? 

On the bottom. 

Keeps the letters

Where you want ‘em.

Five Little Letters

(Tune:  “Five Little Ducks”)

Place five magnetic letters on the board before you begin singing.

Seven little letters went out one day

Over the hills and far away.

When the teacher called /m/, /m/, /m/, /m/,

Only the letter “M” came back.

Continue with other letters.

*Hint!  Those "letter pops" that I wrote about several days ago would be great to use with this song.

TURKEY TALK

Here's a great handshake for you to use to greet your students this month.  One person opens her palm to make the feathers on a turkey.  The other person makes a fist, sticks out her thumb, and places it inside the palm to resemble the body and head.  Gobble!  Gobble!

I know you'll want to share this finger play with your students this month.

Mr. Turkey 

Mr. Turkey went for            (Start with hands behind your back.)

A walk one day                     (Bring right thumb out in front of you.)

In the very best             

Of weather.

He met Mr. Duck                 (Bring left thumb out in front.)

Along the way

And they talked                   (Have thumbs look at each other.)

Together.

“Gobble, gobble, gobble.”        (Wiggle right thumb.)

“Quack, quack, quack.”           (Wiggle left thumb.)

“Good-bye.”                           (Bow right thumb.)

“Good-bye.”                           (Bow left thumb.)

And they both walked back!   (Wiggle thumbs behind your back.)

HandprintTurkey – Have children place their hand on a sheet of paper extending allthe fingers.  Trace.  Children turn the thumb into the headof the turkey and color the other fingers to look like feathers.  Add legs, and there’s your turkey!  You can also do this with paint.  Paint brown paint on the child’s palm,red on the thumb, and a different color on each finger.  Press firmly on a sheet of paper.  Add legs and other details.

Lunch BagTurkey – Make turkeys from lunch sacks by drawing 6" lines from the top ofthe bag to the middle.  Havechildren paint or color the strips. Cut on the lines to make tail feathers.  Fill a zip baggie with 1 cup rice.  Put it in the bag. Twist the sack around the bag of rice to make the body.  Add a head and dangly feet.  Attach the recipe for turkey and ricesoup and send home for a table decoration.

Turkey and RiceSoup

remains of turkey

3 quarts water

1 medium onion,chopped

1 cup celery,chopped

1 carrot, diced

1 ½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

1 cup rice

1 cup frozen peas

Place turkey in alarge pot with 3 quarts water and bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down and simmer 30-45 minutes until the meatfalls off the bone.  When it cools,debone the turkey and strain the broth. Cook the onion, celery, and carrot in the broth for 30 minutes.  Add turkey meat, rice, and peas andsimmer 30 minutes more.

How to Cook aTurkey - Let each child dictate how to cook a turkey.  Write down exactly what they say!  Type their recipes up and run off acopy for each child to take home and share with their families.  Or, save paper and post their directions on your class website.

SOMETHING'S COOKING!

This month atdrjean.org you’ll find some of my favorite “kid-tested” recipes.  They’re simple, fun, easy, andhealthy.  (Well, most of them arefairly nutritional!  All things inmoderation is my motto!) 

Cooking is anideal way to learn because it involves all five senses.  Math, language, science, nutrition,social, small motor, and emotional skills are all enhanced with cookingexperiences.  Cooking as aprofession has certainly been elevated in recent years with all the masterchefs and cooking shows.

I know many of youstruggle to find the time (and resources) to cook in your classrooms.  One suggestion might be to invite oneor two parents to be “chef of the month” and come in and cook with yourclass.  If you can relate the foodexperience with learning goals (science, math, reading, etc.) youradministration will be much more supportive.  It would also be good to send home copies of recipes sofamilies can repeat the experience with their children.

Here’s an exampleof a recipe that is simple, economical, nutritional, and offers a wide range oflearning experiences.

LETTER BREAD

You will need:

         multi-grainbread

         milk

         foodcoloring

         Q-tips

         butter

         toaster

Directions:

1.     Wash your hands.

2.    Take 4 cups and put a little milk in each.

3.    Add 2 drops of food coloring to each cup.

4.    Use the colored milk like paint and draw aletter on the bread with a Q-tip.

5.    Toast.

6.    Spread with butter.

Hint!  Serve with honey, jelly, or cinnamonsugar.

Adaptations:  Make shape bread, numeral bread,monster bread, etc.

CANDY WRAPPER READING AND MATH

Children can have almost as much fun learning with their candy wrappers as they actually did eating thecandy!

Count the wrappers.  Challenge childrento sort their wrappers.  Can theyregroup them?

Use the wrappersto graph their favorite candy bar.

Look at the foodvalue on each wrapper.  How manycalories?  How much sugar?  Rank the candies by calories.

Find descriptivewords on the wrappers.  Make a listof the words and use them in sentences.

Fold 2 sheets ofpaper in half and staple to make a book. Children write “I like…” at the top of each page and glue a candywrapper underneath.  This is a bookevery child in your room can read! Older children could write descriptive sentences about each candy.

Use the wrappersto make a class book called “The Sweet ABC’s.”  Write alphabet letters on 26 sheets of paper.  Children glue their wrappers to theappropriate letter.  Bind pagestogether to make a book.

Hint!  If you don’t have a wrapper for eachletter, let children suggest “sweet” words for the page.

Glue candywrappers to a file folder.  Write acoin value by each wrapper. Children count out the appropriate amount and place it on the wrapper.

Hint!  For young children, price the candiesfrom 1 cent to 10 cents and give them pennies.  Make the amounts higher for older students.

Let children usewrappers to make a collage.  Youcould use geometric shapes for collages or you could let children make a coverfor a journal with the wrappers.

Finally, takeadvantage of this “teachable moment” by discussing why sugar is not good fortheir bodies.  What happens if youeat too much sugar?  Make a list ofhealthy snacks that would be better food choices.