Five Speeches by Martin Luther King Jr.

Did you know that Martin Luther King, Jr. gave an average of 450 speeches per year? When we ask our students about Martin Luther King, Jr. and which of his speeches they are most familiar with, the vast majority of them will say I Have a Dream. I Have a Dream may be his most famous speech... but it's definitely not his only. Keep reading to learn about five of his other significant speeches. Excerpts from each speech are included.

This is an updated version of a blog post I wrote in 2016.

Minecraft Math Halloween Pixel Art

Anybody who knows me will be able to tell you about my love for the game Minecraft. In a previous post, I wrote about how you can use Minecraft to teach finding the area of an object in math. With Halloween right around the corner, I’d like to share another fun STEAM activity with you in today's post… how to use math and technology skills to create Halloween pictures in Minecraft. In the Minecraft community, these types of pictures are called pixel art. But in the classroom, teachers often refer to them as graph art.

This is an updated version of a blog post I wrote in 2016.  Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

What's an Og? by Mary Barry

Learning about letters and the sounds they make... phonics/phonetics... are important parts of learning how to read.  Engaging children in wordplay with rhyming words is one strategy parents and teachers can use to help their students become more proficient in reading.  In today's guest post, children's author Mary Barry talks about her recently released children's book called What's an Og?... a book full of wordplay and rhymes for the /og/ sound. Keep reading to learn about What's an Og? and how Mary Barry came up with her idea for the story!

This is a guest post by Mary Barry. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.  Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

 

How to Upcycle and Reuse Old Books to Make Beautiful Bookmarks

Reduce, reuse, recycle.  Have you ever wondered what to do with your old, well-loved books that are falling apart?  Instead of tossing them into a trash bin and sending them to a landfill, upcycle and reuse them into something useful.  In today's guest post, veteran librarian and homeschooling mom Shecki Bernard shares with us one way to upcycle and reuse old books to create beautiful bookmarks for your students and children to use.  Keep reading to learn more!

This is a guest post by Shecki Bernard. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.

13 Halloween Treats for Your Class Party

Trick or treat!  Every year, children look forward to their Halloween parties at school.  Traditionally, children bring Halloween candy to school to share with their friends, get to wear their Halloween costumes, and march throughout the school in a Halloween parade.  Good times!  

The Halloween snacks featured in this round-up would be perfect for a Halloween party at school.  They were created by moms and teachers from all over the internet and are made from fresh fruit and/or prepackaged items.  These treats can be made at home or as a Halloween craft at school.  There are lots of tasty treats in this post, so let's dive right in!

Helping Children Make Friends

I recently read an online article from Parenting Science called How to Help Kids Make Friends by Gwen Dewar, Ph.D.  This article describes strategies parents can use to help their children develop positive relationships. Although Dr. Dewar wrote this article with parents in mind, many of the strategies can be utilized by teachers in the classroom as well.  Keep reading to learn more!

This is an updated version of an article I wrote in 2015.

Helping Preschool Students Identify and Express Their Emotions

Sometimes little children have difficulty managing large emotions. They don't always have words to describe how they are feeling or why they are feeling a certain way. Children may also need guidance about appropriate ways to express their feelings.  

Yes, it's OK to be mad... but it's not OK to throw toys when you are mad... what can you do instead?  

Tatiana Green is a preschool teacher at Alphabet Kids Preschool. In today's guest post, Tatiana Green shares her thoughts about the importance of talking to children in preschool about their feelings. Keep reading to see what she has to say!

The following post was written by Tatiana Green. This post originally appeared in the Homeschool Whisperer Facebook group.

Three Important Children's Learning Styles

As parents and teachers, we want our students to do well in school and to feel confident about themselves and what they are learning.  One of the most important things we can do to help our students is to identify what their individual learning styles are.  In today's guest post, educator Djew Bennis introduces three main learning styles and encourages us to reflect on what our learning styles may be.  Keep reading to learn more!

The following is a guest post written by Djew Bennis. To learn more about guest posts, please visit the Authors, Publishers, and Sponsors page.

Minecraft Math Find the Area

With Minecraft being the rage among children... and adults... of all ages, teachers are wondering how they can tap into the excitement and use Minecraft as a teaching tool. Believe it or not, Minecraft can be used to teach math skills such as finding the area, volume, and perimeter of shapes. 

For the purpose of this blog post, I’m not going to teach you how to play Minecraft. There are many resources online and books you can read to learn how to play it. Rather, I’m going to show you how to use Minecraft to introduce finding the area to your young students.

This is an updated version of a blog post I wrote in 2016.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.

How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman

When I first starting teaching many years ago, studying Japan was a major component of the second-grade social studies curriculum I needed to teach.  We would spend roughly a month learning about Japanese history, geography, and culture.  At the end of the unit, my students and I would read How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman together, go to the Japanese restaurant nearby, and learn how to eat with chopsticks.  Good times!

This is an updated version of a blog post I wrote in 2016.

Disclosure: Affiliate links to Amazon are included in this post.