Wednesday, August 17, 2005
March of the Penguins - A Fun Learning Tool
Everyone loves penguins. And now, everyone has a chance to see how penguins live in the highly entertaining documentary March of the Penguins.
Beyond taking your kids to see the show, there are lots of fun activities you can do before and after the presentation to enhance your enjoyment of the film.
Learn more about the penguins and the land in which they live at the movie’s web site. There you can find a Kids Activity Guide, a National Geographic Activity Guide and coloring pages. You can also hear to sounds of the penguins and watch video clips.
Another great source of penguin information and activities is the teacher guides at the
Sea World web site. Sea World is dedicated to educating the public about the animals they house at their parks and they spend a lot of time and effort developing educational materials to make that happen.
By visiting the teacher’s area, you have access to numerous teacher guides in downloadable PDF format. Two guides are offered covering the topic of Arctic Animals, one for grades K through 3, the other for grades 4 through 8.
Everyone loves penguins. And now, everyone has a chance to see how penguins live in the highly entertaining documentary March of the Penguins.
Beyond taking your kids to see the show, there are lots of fun activities you can do before and after the presentation to enhance your enjoyment of the film.
Learn more about the penguins and the land in which they live at the movie’s web site. There you can find a Kids Activity Guide, a National Geographic Activity Guide and coloring pages. You can also hear to sounds of the penguins and watch video clips.
Another great source of penguin information and activities is the teacher guides at the
Sea World web site. Sea World is dedicated to educating the public about the animals they house at their parks and they spend a lot of time and effort developing educational materials to make that happen.
By visiting the teacher’s area, you have access to numerous teacher guides in downloadable PDF format. Two guides are offered covering the topic of Arctic Animals, one for grades K through 3, the other for grades 4 through 8.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Create a Great Homework Space
At our house, the kitchen table doubles as homework central. Whether your children complete their homework in a common area or secluded in their bedroom, it is vital that you create a special space for this important activity.
What makes a great homework space?
Adequate space - Textbooks, notebooks and supplies take up a lot of room. Make sure each child has enough space to comfortably complete their activities.
Quiet - This is just so important. I used to attempt to watch the evening news (on a small kitchen TV) while I made dinner and my children competed their homework. I was always amazed when they had questions regarding the news stories that I was barely listening too. It really was a distraction for them. Homework time is much more effective now that it��s quiet.
Supplies - Each of my children has a ��homework box��, one of those plastic pencil boxes you probably purchased for back-to-school. They each have their own supply of pens, pencils, colored pencils and white-out which is kept in their room and brought to the kitchen table at homework time. Extra paper, rulers, a stapler and pencil sharpener are stored in an armoire near the kitchen table. No more searching for supplies!
Lighting - Inadequate lighting at your child��s study area can make homework more difficult than it needs to be. The chandelier over the kitchen table may not provide enough light for reading and writing (mine certainly doesn��t). Usually task lighting is necessary when performing tasks requiring visual concentration. Task lighting provides focused light in addition to the ambient lighting provided by an overhead chandelier. At our house, a desk lamp on the kitchen table reduces eye strain.
Let the Children Choose - Allow your kids to choose special pencils, storage boxes or folders for homework time. These little things make a big difference to children.
There��s just no substitute for parental involvement in children��s homework activities. If parents treat homework as an important daily activity, the children will treat it as such.
What are your favorite homework time tips? I��d love to hear from you!
At our house, the kitchen table doubles as homework central. Whether your children complete their homework in a common area or secluded in their bedroom, it is vital that you create a special space for this important activity.
What makes a great homework space?
Adequate space - Textbooks, notebooks and supplies take up a lot of room. Make sure each child has enough space to comfortably complete their activities.
Quiet - This is just so important. I used to attempt to watch the evening news (on a small kitchen TV) while I made dinner and my children competed their homework. I was always amazed when they had questions regarding the news stories that I was barely listening too. It really was a distraction for them. Homework time is much more effective now that it��s quiet.
Supplies - Each of my children has a ��homework box��, one of those plastic pencil boxes you probably purchased for back-to-school. They each have their own supply of pens, pencils, colored pencils and white-out which is kept in their room and brought to the kitchen table at homework time. Extra paper, rulers, a stapler and pencil sharpener are stored in an armoire near the kitchen table. No more searching for supplies!
Lighting - Inadequate lighting at your child��s study area can make homework more difficult than it needs to be. The chandelier over the kitchen table may not provide enough light for reading and writing (mine certainly doesn��t). Usually task lighting is necessary when performing tasks requiring visual concentration. Task lighting provides focused light in addition to the ambient lighting provided by an overhead chandelier. At our house, a desk lamp on the kitchen table reduces eye strain.
Let the Children Choose - Allow your kids to choose special pencils, storage boxes or folders for homework time. These little things make a big difference to children.
There��s just no substitute for parental involvement in children��s homework activities. If parents treat homework as an important daily activity, the children will treat it as such.
What are your favorite homework time tips? I��d love to hear from you!
Get a Jump Start on Math Facts
Here in South Florida, school is already into its second week. My third grader has a math test already, and I��m wishing we would have spent more time over the summer reviewing math facts.
Neither of my children enjoys traditional flashcards, so I have searched and searched for ways to make learning math facts more fun.
Our favorite math site, www.Aplusmath.com is an easy to use site offering a worksheet generator, online flashcards and games including Matho, Concentration and Hidden Pictures. Matho combines both bingo and math facts in an exciting timed game. Match the math problem to the answer in concentration. Discover beautiful photographs by solving math problems in the hidden pictures game.
Another good math site, SuperKids, allows you to generate printable worksheets. Using this site, you can select minimum and maximum values to be used on the worksheet. You can even produce a worksheet using one number in all problems. This is especially valuable when learning new math facts. Select the number of problems per page and generate your worksheet. Customize your worksheets to fit your specific needs. It��s a great way to review.
Both of my children enjoy music, so tapes and CD��s are perfect for us. Rock n Learn makes fun audio programs featuring ��cool music that teaches��. I was pleasantly surprised at how much my third-grader enjoyed the music.
Get the school year off to a great start. Helping your child learn math facts now will make more advanced math so much easier. Have fun!
Here in South Florida, school is already into its second week. My third grader has a math test already, and I��m wishing we would have spent more time over the summer reviewing math facts.
Neither of my children enjoys traditional flashcards, so I have searched and searched for ways to make learning math facts more fun.
Our favorite math site, www.Aplusmath.com is an easy to use site offering a worksheet generator, online flashcards and games including Matho, Concentration and Hidden Pictures. Matho combines both bingo and math facts in an exciting timed game. Match the math problem to the answer in concentration. Discover beautiful photographs by solving math problems in the hidden pictures game.
Another good math site, SuperKids, allows you to generate printable worksheets. Using this site, you can select minimum and maximum values to be used on the worksheet. You can even produce a worksheet using one number in all problems. This is especially valuable when learning new math facts. Select the number of problems per page and generate your worksheet. Customize your worksheets to fit your specific needs. It��s a great way to review.
Both of my children enjoy music, so tapes and CD��s are perfect for us. Rock n Learn makes fun audio programs featuring ��cool music that teaches��. I was pleasantly surprised at how much my third-grader enjoyed the music.
Get the school year off to a great start. Helping your child learn math facts now will make more advanced math so much easier. Have fun!
