Leap Into Leap Year!

February 29, 2012 is right around the corner. How will you celebrate it in your classroom? After all, it only happens every four years! Leap Year! It's a fascinating topic for your students.

Resources for Leap Day/Leap Year:


Leap Day Party: Activities for younger kids like Pin the Crown on the Frog Prince; Musical Lily Pads; Frog Hunt and more.

Leap Year Coloring Page

Fun Facts About Leap Day - for Kids: contains poems; Leap Day/Year Age Chart

Leap Day Trivia: for Older kids-Trivia about events that occurred on Leap Days.

Leap Year eCards: Send an eCard to a friend or loved one on this fun day. Send via email, Facebook or Twitter

Why Leap Days are Used? - For adults to use as background knowledge.

Leap Year Calculator: Find out how to calculate a leap year or use the calculator.

Leap Year/Day Books: A compilation of books about Leap Year/Day. (These are for purchase)

I would like to hear how YOU will be celebrating Leap Day/Year!

Halloween Activities for Kids

Halloween is nigh upon us! The weather in the northeast finally feels like autumn! Ghouls, ghosts and witches are suddenly finding their place on front lawns and porches in our neighborhood.

My students are abuzz over what costumes they are wearing and which parties they are attending.

Here is a perfect time to capitalize on the children's excitement and provide them with some fun and engaging Halloween activities that are educational too!

Halloween Math Activities:
Spooky Sequences: Skip counting by 2's (by Oswego.org)
Spooky Sequences: Find the missing 3-digit number in the sequence.
Spooky Sequences: Count backwards by 10!
Spooky Sequences: Find the missing SQUARE Number!
Ghost Blasters: Find the ghosts with EVEN numbers.
Ghost Blasters: Find the ghosts that are MULTIPLES of ten

Language Arts Activities:
Creepy Crossword: Online Crossword Puzzle (for older children-no word bank)
Spooky Night Mad Lib: Fill in the blanks to create a silly story.
Halloween Joke Bookmarks:  Print and share these halloween joke bookmarks for kids.
The Magic Pumpkin by HilaryWilliamson - This online story is about a boy and a magic pumpkin.
FrightBytes Halloween: Halloween stories that you can change the ending. (Some pictures may be scary for young children).

Coloring Pages:

Crayola Halloween Coloring Pages: Print out and color on your own!
The Color.com Halloween Pages: Choose a page to color online, print or share with a friend via email!

Virtual Pumpkin Carving: Practice Symmetry
Jack-O-Lantern Creator: Choose from different sets of eyes, noses, and mouths to make your own pumpkin.
Virtual Pumpkin Carving: Try your hand at designing your own pumpkin - you can print this out by taking a screen shot.
Pick A Pumpkin: Choose from 4 pumpkins and carve your own design at this Bloompetals site.



Halloween Tips:
Many sites remind parents about safety on Halloween night like this one, Fire Engineering which quotes the National Fire Protection Association.

Scary Movie Tips: This video from Common Sense Media talks about effects scary movies have on young children, young teens and older teens. (The video is not appropriate for young children).

Just for Fun:
Your local Bass Pro Shops are offering Halloween activities during the weeks previous to Halloween 2011. Check it out HERE!

DLTK'S Halloween Crafts Bat, Frankenstein, Ghost, Pumpkins and other fun crafts at this wonderful site!

Halloween Songs on Youtube: Some fun and funny songs with sound effects too for kids! See below!



Other Resources:  Cybraryman's Halloween Page


Please feel free to add your favorite Halloween sites in the comment section! Happy Halloween!

Memorial Day

My father, an Iwo Jima survivor.

In honor of this upcoming Memorial Day...some poems:


This poem was written by my cousin's 17 year old daughter:

this is for the soldiers
theresa soya

this is for the red
the red that beats through the heart

and bleeds through the clothes
of every american citizen,

of every american soldier
this is for the white, the black, the yellow,
the red, the brown skin of the soldiers
who fight not for the respect of a man
but for the love of a brother,
this is for the blue,
the blue and the hope that comes with tomorrow,
the hope that tomorrow comes
with the sky a little brighter
this is for the flag that waves through that sky
this is for the stars
and this is for the stripes
whipping through the wind and ripping
but never falling in the fight

this is a thank you,
this is from the kids who aren't quite sure what to say

and pray with shaky words but stable ambition,

this is from the kids who know what sacrifice means

but haven't quite felt it yet

and this is from the kids who have every reason to hate war

this is from the kids who've ever lost a soldier before
this is from the kids whose only connection to that breach

is that flag that they wave
this is from the kids who know all too much
and this is from the kids who know nothing
but regardless,

they care

this is for the troops that stand taller everyday

this is for the service that speaks for itself

this is for the wake-up call, the trumpets that sound every morning at 5

and the alarm that forgot to ring back in the states

this is for the gift santa couldn't bring

this is for the freedom

and this is for the safety,

this is for the soldiers stationed in Iraq, Iran, and Haiti
this is for the soldiers who wrote "home" on their wish list
this is for the ones who won't make it back for Christmas
this is for the honor and the bravery showed
this is for the valor and the courage bestowed

this is for the strength it takes to run and to train

this is for the pride it instills to stand and salute
this is for the soul that aches and writhes with pain

this is for the ones wearing the boots
this is for the ones with the insignia holding up the world on their shoulders
this is for the heroes
this is for the soldier



These poems were written and recorded by some fourth grade students.

Today and everyday...Celebrating the lives of those men and women who have shown courage and bravery by serving their country...We thank you!

To See or not to See (his Shadow that it is) - Punxsatawney Phil and Groundhog Day

photo © 2005 Silvers Family | more info (via: Wylio)
It's the age old question: Will we have 6 more weeks of winter? The only one that truly is equipped to deal with that is Punxsatawney Phil the Groundhog from Pennsylvania... !

Every February 2nd before sunrise Phil is brought out from his home at Gobblers Knob in Punxsatawney PA, to determine if he 'sees' his shadow. If he sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of winter. No shadow means ...Spring is around the corner.


Groundhog Day - February 2nd - holds fascination for many... especially children. Here is some information and activities for those interested in Groundhogs and Groundhog Day!

The Official Groundhog Club Site: Here you can find information about the history of Phil, past predictions and fun facts.


Hoghaven: Here you can listen to sounds of groundhogs.

Kaboose: This page gives craft directions to make a felt portrait of Phil.


Primary Games: Interactive games such as a Word Search, Puzzles, and Jumble can be found at this site.


Groundhog Day & Possum Nights: A talking storybook by Tom Tittle


Surfnet: This site has a fun concentration game for kids.

Treats: To celebrate Groundhog's Day perhaps you could make some fun treats like these cupcakes:

photo © 2009 Mark Levisay | more info (via: Wylio)


I'll let you discover if Punxsatawney Phil declares more winter or spring. One thing I will tell you....he predicted the Pittsburgh Steelers will WIN the Superbowl!


Please take a moment to share how you like to celebrate Groundhog's Day by placing your answer in the AnswerGarden.



How do you like to celebrate Groundhog's Day?... at AnswerGarden.ch.

No School - All Schools!

"No School - All Schools - Boston"
"No School - All Schools - Canton"
"No School - All Schools - Walpole"

Yippee! That's the one! I remember sitting in front of the television or listening to the radio with my brothers and sisters waiting for the No School - All School announcement! Living in the "W" town our anticipation kept building and building after each letter of the alphabet. Often times there would be several commercial breaks which would produce loud groans of "Oh No" and "Not again!"

There is something magical about a Snow Day off from School - UNLESS you are a parent. Today, with so many parents working it's a scramble to find someone to be with the kids. Superintendents often cancel schools early (even before the snow falls) in an effort to help parents make arrangements for the day.

That being said - there are many parents that are home with the kids and they may be wondering "what can we do today"? If you are looking for something to do on a 'snow day' with the kids, perhaps these resources can help you.

SNOWDAY: This site shares "25 things to do" Some ideas that could have been included:

#26: 'Break out the photo album and share stories of when you were a child (or share the stories of what was happening when you took the pictures of your kids.)
#27 'Put on a show'. My children used to use stuffed animals and do puppet shows.
#28: 'Take a Nature Walk' - You can walk through your yard and look for animal tracks and figure out who made them. We would wonder at how the squirrels seemed to make all kinds of designs.

40 THINGS TO DO ON A SNOW DAY: This site offers '40 things to do' with links or directions. These seem to be activities to do INSIDE. My favorites are:

#2: 'Make homemade Playdough' What child can not resist using play dough!
#26 'Color some Free Printable Coloring Pages' Coloring is such a relaxing activitiy Read this blog on the BENEFITS OF COLORING.
#29 'Make toys and Models from Paper'. Download these paper models from Canon. Some seem very involved but fun. Remember to be careful when using scissors.


WINTER SNOWMAN CRAFTS & RECIPES: This site offers several ideas for crafts and recipes. Some are more involved than others. One of my favorite crafts is a to make a No-sew SOCK SNOWFOLK. This article suggests using a tube sock and rice. I have done this with my class using toilet paper (body), plastic bags (head) and tube sock covering (not cutting the sock). The kids love it!

Let me know of other sites or ideas that could be added to this list!

And most of all - Enjoy your SNOW DAY!!!!!


*snow tracks provided by: (wylio)
photo © 2008 Arthur Kho Caayon | more in

The past is never dead. It isn’t even past...William Faulkner

"The past is never dead. It isn’t even past"...William Faulkner.

I agree with Faulkner and, today, I think there are 21 ten year-olds who might be of the same opinion as well.

While these fourth graders are still in the elementary stages of cursive writing, they braved the challenge of writing a letter with a quill pen. Simulating their peers of over 250 years ago, students used real feathers, parchment paper, ink and blotting paper to 'pen' a letter of thanks to their parents.

They were given instruction in the "art of the beautiful hand" or penmanship of Colonial Times and one hour to complete the assignment.

The challenge: writing on paper without lines; manipulating a delicate tool without breaking it; using (washable) ink from a pot

The reward: concentrating on a not-so-easy task; putting their learning into practice; a beautiful, endearing letter.

The comments: "I like writing with the quills!" "It looks easier than it is!" "I feel like a real colonial boy!"

Often an activity such as this is overlooked as it is not measured on MCAS or other standardized assessments. It is clear that it was a project worth the undertaking. When students 'experience' a piece of history in this way, it makes them compare that occurrence to events in their own lives of today. It is priceless and worth exploring.

Check out the following site to learn how to Make your own quill pen or try these Activities for School Days in Colonial Times to bring your history lessons come to life!

Providing first hand experiences to our children will not only further their education, but it will also ensure that the "past is never dead".