Educational videos


Friday, February 26, 2016

Teaching Than or Then

Make learning fun! In the early grades, children learn to read the words than and then.  These words sound the same but have very different meanings and should be used as clues to help your child know what to expect. Use interesting and/or familiar pictures to teach the words than and then to children. The pictures used in this activity are from Lake Merritt in Oakland, CA.
Then is used to compare the strength of the wind to the strength of the base of the tree
Then is used to sequence the order of events - tree standing, windstorm brings tree down
Then is used to compare the size of the pelican to the size of the duck

Then is used to sequence the order of events - the duck is standing alone, the duck is standing with a pigeon
Than or Then Reference Chart
Activity - Comparison or Sequence

Activity = Cloze Activity
Video - Than or Then?

Saturday, February 20, 2016

Green Eggs and Ham You Say? What A Wonderful Way To Start the Day

Green Eggs and Ham You Say?   What a Wonderful Way to start the DAY!  Fun activities to promote reading, sequencing, cooking, graphing and writing.  Kids will have fun while learning!

How Will We Eat Your Green Eggs and Ham?

Reading and Following the Directions to Make a Green Eggs and Ham Soufflé

Writing Activity

Graphing Favorite Ways to Eat Green Eggs and Ham.

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Learning How To Alphabetize

Alphabetical Order - learning how to alphabetize is a needed skill.  Bibliographies, indexes, glossaries, and organizing files are a few examples of how alphabetizing is used in everyday life. I have found that many second, third, and fourth grade students do not know how to alphabetize. Students are often amazed how easy it is.  I begin with a few simple words that begin with different letters. I then introduce alphabetizing to the second letter and beyond when students have to look at the second letter or third letter of each word to alphabetize the words.
Reference Chart - Introducing Alphabetical Order (words with different beginning letters) 
Reference  Chart  - alphabetizing to the second letter

Practice Paper - Students write the words in alphabetical order on a separate sheet of paper.  They cross off each word they write.  They can also use the alphabet chart below when alphabetizing the words.

Monday, February 8, 2016

Valentine's Day Cooking and Crafting Activities

Cookware used for baking
Next, apply frosting and then be creative with the sprinkles
Now you are ready for a fabulous Valentine's Day!

 Baking Video

Saturday, February 6, 2016

Find the Code

Find the Code - Begin by Introducing our shape friends apple, ball, can, cube, diamond, egg, heart, insect, moon, noon, octagon, plus sign, sun, triangle, and up.  Explain that their beginning sounds will help us spell, decode, and read short vowel words. 
First Grade Student Work
Model the Activity
Have fun finding the code
Find the code for short vowel a words.  Children will find the code by writing the letter that represents the first sound heard for each shape represented.  As in the example below, children write the first letter for each shape sound represented, h for heart, a for apple, and t for triangle, spelling the word hat.  Next, children blend the sounds together /h, /a, /t/ to read the word hat. Reproducible practice sheets are available for short vowels a, e, i, o, and u.     
Completed Example - Find the code for short vowel a words
Reproducible - Find the Code for short vowel e words
Reproducible -Find the Code for short vowel i words
Reproducible - Find the Code for short vowel o words
Reproducible - Find the Code for short vowel u words
Resource for children
Video of Activities and Review - Pause for children to answer