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ETC Newsletter: December, 2002

December 1, 2002

I just now received the following e-mail. The Teachers First newsletter provides many excellent links this week and I thought it best to forward the newsletter to you directly. If you don't subscribe to it, it is worth subscription and I highly recommend it. I don't often forward something like this, but I believe it's worth it this week.

I hope your Thanksgiving holiday was peaceful and wonderful .

Marsha Rogers
Educational Technology Consultants
http://www.msrogers.com

Many Lands and Cultures
This is a season that is especially well suited to studying customs in other cultures. Take your cue from the students in your class. Ask where they or their ancestors were from. Then turn them loose on our World Cultures resources to find out what holidays and holiday celebrations are common in these lands. We’ve broken world cultures up geographically, so it’s easy to find resources on specific countries. Your starting point is our Content Matrix: http://www.teachersfirst.com/matrix.htm 

It’s Hanukkah
Hanukkah arrived early this year and continues throughout this week. You can learn more about the history and religious significance of this holiday from our Hanukkah resources page: http://www.teachersfirst.com/hanukkah.htm 

Giving Tree Lesson
Based on Shel Silverstein’s book about a very generous little tree, our Giving Tree lesson offers your students a chance to share their ideas about what giving really is. While the lesson works fine for a single class, we hope you’ll share your students’ reactions to the story with us, and the lesson makes this easy. This one works at almost any grade level, and it’s a wonderful writing assignment. The Giving Tree lesson is at: http://www.teachersfirst.com/lessons/givingtree.htm 

Interplanetary Christmas
Even science teachers can get into the act for the holidays. Our friends at NASA created this great holiday space travel lesson, and it’s a neat way to review the solar system while speculating about what a holiday might be like on Mars,… or Neptune… (You get the idea.) You can find Interplanetary Christmas at: http://www.teachersfirst.com/lessons/planet-xmas-start.html 

Victorian Christmas
If you’re working with middle or high school students, try our Victorian Christmas ideas as a starting point for an exploration of nineteenth century England, Dickens, and all manner of Victorian customs. This lesson can tie to literature, social studies, an art project, or even be a comparison of how holiday customs change and evolve over the years. Our Victorian Christmas begins at: http://www.teachersfirst.com/lessons/vic-xmas.htm 

Features
This week’s features include a great introduction to engineering for girls, an inside look at the White House, much more math, and several others. They’re in the usual spot: http://www.teachersfirst.com/feature.htm 

Holiday Shop
Finally, we’re delighted to announce a wonderful new gift resource, the TeachersAndFamilies Holiday Shop. We’ve gathered up a great selection of whimsical holiday and greeting cards, original posters, and even a coloring book. They’re great for holiday occasions or for general use. You won’t find these anywhere else, and each card is hand-made. Your purchase of any of these items will help support our free web sites. You can visit the Holiday Shop at: http://www.teachersandfamilies.com/sitedirector/site/index.cfm 
…and if you like to shop at Amazon.com, remember to start from the Amazon search box on our home page. http://www.teachersfirst.com 

That will do it for today. Happy December, and remember that you do make a difference.

David Shively
Senior Editor

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December 8, 2002

Depending on where you are, Christmas vacation starts within the next couple of weeks. Some of you even have a longer "Winter Holiday" time. It's time to get ready some of those emergency holiday activities.

Kids Domain is one of my favorites. There are so many activities here that you could just browse the site and have enough activities for the entire season.
http://www.kidsdomain.com/holiday/xmas/print.html 

There is even a Grinch site. I did have some problems with the download into the PDF format, but the site is worth a look and probably it was my computer that was having problems.
http://www.seussville.com/seussville/grinch/activities.html 

Check out the other links from the Kids Domain page.

Marsha Rogers
Educational Technology Consultants
http://www.msrogers.com 

December 29, 2002

Happy New Year! Welcome back from the winter break. Whether you celebrate Chanukah, Christmas, Kwanza or the Winter Solstice, the New Year has begun. Have a great one.

A friend recently sent me the following puns. Some are more appropriate for older students. But it is an example of a good writing assignment. 
Using one of my most unfavorite terms, creating puns challenges students to "think outside the box.." As a lesson, collect a series of puns that are appropriate for your class. Once students understand what a pun is, let them loose on creating their own. This is one of those assignments that can be done in one day and, once students understand puns, as a way to fill a day or two during the year.

http://www.punoftheday.com/ 
http://go.to/puns 

If you are really into puns, there is even a newsletter available:
http://www.workinghumor.com/jfp/newsletter.htm 


A GOOD PUN IS ITS OWN REWORD

Energizer Bunny arrested - charged with battery.

A pessimist's blood type is always b-negative.

Practice safe eating - always use condiments.

A Freudian slip is when you say one thing but mean your mother.

Shotgun wedding: A case of wife or death.

I used to work in a blanket factory, but it folded.

If electricity comes from electrons... does that mean that morality
comes from morons?

Marriage is the mourning after the knot before.

A hangover is the wrath of grapes.

Corduroy pillows are making headlines.

Dancing cheek-to-cheek is really a form of floor play.

Banning the bra was a big flop.

Sea captains don't like crew cuts.

Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?

A successful diet is the triumph of mind over platter.

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

A gossip is someone with a great sense of rumor.

Without geometry, life is pointless.

When you dream in color, it's a pigment of your imagination.

Reading whilst sunbathing makes you well-red.

When two egotists meet, it's an I for an I

Marsha Rogers
Educational Technology Consultants
http://www.msrogers.com

msrogers@mchsi.com

For other educational links, please visit my column at Backwash

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