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Tag: classroom

  • Bubble Gum Day: The Story of Bubble Gum Day

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    Author Bio: Ruth Spiro is the author of Lester Fizz, Bubble-Gum Artist, as well as Baby Loves Aerospace Engineering! and Baby Loves Quarks!, forthcoming from Charlesbridge Publishing. Her essays and articles have appeared in many national magazines and popular anthologies. She frequently speaks at schools and conferences. Visit her online at www.ruthspiro.com. Learn more about Bubble Gum Day at www.bubblegumday.com.

    Previous Bubble Gum Day Post: Celebrate Bubble Gum Day by Shannon Miller.

    My name is Ruth Spiro. I’m a writer, children’s book author, and bubble gum fan. I have two kids, and it seemed they were always participating in school fundraisers that required them to sell things to people, and they were uncomfortable with that.

    Bubble Gum Day is a way for schools to raise money, without kids having to sell stuff. I thought it would be cool to have lots of kids all chewing gum and raising money on the same day, which is why I created the holiday. It’s held on the first Friday in February, so it always falls on a school day.

    The idea is simple: On Bubble Gum Day, kids pay fifty cents to chew gum at school, with the proceeds used for any project or charity the school chooses. Kids have fun, teachers can incorporate lessons related to gum, and money is raised for many worthy causes.

    Nine years later, this holiday has been celebrated in countless schools, public libraries, children’s museums and community organizations. It has also been featured in the media, including The Washington Post Express, The New York Daily News online and Good Day Sacramento.

    Most importantly, schools and community groups have used Bubble Gum Day to do some wonderful things. Once school raised enough money to buy a goat for a village in Africa through Heifer International. Another used their proceeds to purchase snacks, which they sent to soldiers in Iraq. Yet another school collected used books instead of money, and wound up with over one thousand books, which they donated to local women’s shelters.

    When Bubble Gum Day is over, the fun doesn’t end, at least not for me. I eagerly anticipate the emails, photos and packages of letters I receive over the following weeks, as schools tally up their proceeds and continue to make Bubble Gum Day a sweet success!

     
     

  • Strategies for Struggling Readers

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    We have had many conversations with teachers and tutors of older students. The tutors are often working with children who are reading below grade level but have content standards to meet on grade level. The children are presented with grade appropriate texts but are unable to access the content because they cannot decode the words.  We have put together some of the suggestions we have offered during these conversations. We hope they help you as you work with your struggling readers. Fry Words Fry words are the 1,000 most commonly used words in the written English language. Children who do not have these as a base will struggle with reading.  We have spent a great deal of time creating materials to help children learn these important words. You will find our resources here: http://www.thecurriculumcorner.com/category/reading-block/word-work/fry-word-lessons/. We suggest beginning with the Fry checklists so you can access your student’s knowledge of the Fry words. You can then use our suggested activities to help children master the unknown words. The activity we find most successful is word stacks. Use index cards to create a “just right” stack of words. On separate cards, write a ratio of three known words to one unknown.  These are then used like flashcards. According to research, the ratio of 3:1 is best for student word retention. Building Schema Expose a student to the content in as many ways as possible before presenting the text. Find pictures, diagrams, maps or other visuals the child can look at and analyze with you.  Make use of the technology you have by sharing video clips or other on-line resources that connect with the content. Activate Prior Knowledge / Making Connections It’s always a good idea to begin lessons by making content applicable to a child’s world.  Students who think about what they already know and make personal connections during their learning, tend to be more engaged and retain more of what is being taught.  We have created Making Connections printables that can be found here:  http://www.thecurriculumcorner.com/2012/09/08/making-connections/. Preload Vocabulary Words As students grow older they are expected to read science and social studies lessons that contain many new vocabulary words.  These new words add a new hurdle for struggling readers.  To help students as they tackle more difficult vocabulary, work to preload vocabulary words.  Preloading words occurs when you help students understand the meaning of important words before they encounter them.  Students might work on creating their own definition, finding synonyms, illustrating or using them in sentences.  We have created word maps and other printables to help make these tasks easier here: http://www.thecurriculumcorner.com/2012/06/06/vocabulary-work/.) We hope that the strategies we have suggested help you the next time you are working with a struggling reader! Bio: Jill McEldowney and Cathy Henry are elementary teachers who have a passion for creating and sharing resources for the classroom.  They are founders of The Curriculum Corner (www.thecurriculumcorner.com), a site that is geared towards weaving Common Core standards into the curriculum.  Their newest venture is The Curriculum Corner Family (www.thecurriculumcornerfamily.com). This site focuses on learning at home and in a preschool setting.  Their resources include lessons, centers and printable activities.  All of the resources they design are always free.