TEC196

From Your Friends at The MAILBOX®

A Month of Ideas to Support Your Curriculum

®

®

• Target key skills with hundreds of curriculum-based ideas

• Simplify planning with easy-to-scan skill lines and a timesaving index

• Capture student interest with a variety of popular themes

Grades

1–3

ReadingDeputy

Usethisguidetoplanyourclassroomthemesthroughouttheyear!Withallthesegreatideastochoosefrom,you’llwanttoownevery oneoftheterrificbooksinthisseries!

Themes Grades 1–3A Year’s Worth of Planning at Your Fingertips!

January TEC196

NewYearMartinLutherKingJr.WhalesBillPeetPolarAnimalsPenguinsBenFranklinDinosaurs

February TEC197

ChineseNewYearPresidents’DayDentalHygieneClifford®

FairyTalesValentine’sDayCandyRedBlackHistoryMonthGroundhogDay

March TEC189

LionsandLambsSt.Patrick’sDayLeprechaunsNationalPeanutMonthDr.SeussKitesandWindBubbleGumPlantsNutrition

May TEC191

CincodeMayoFrogsBeesLeoLionniWildWestOceanRocksEndoftheyear

April TEC190

RaindropsRainbowsHansChristianAndersenEarthDayTreesEasterJellyBeansRabbitsEggsNationalLibraryWeekBaseballBirds

September TEC192

Back-to-SchoolAutumnGrandparentsTomiedePaolaOpenHouseApplesOwlsMexico’sIndependence

Day

October TEC193

November TEC194

NationalChildren’sBookWeek

ElectionDayTheWhiteHouseMarcBrownTurkeysThanksgivingNativeAmericansColonialAmericaPioneerLifeAnimalsinWinterQuilts

December TEC195

GingerbreadHanukkahJanBrettInternationalChristmasKwanzaaSolarSystemTeddyBearsWinterWonderlandMittens

June, July, & August TEC759

FriendshipsNatureAviationInsectsWatermelonVacationsUSAKevinHenkesIceCreamSafariBeginning-of-the-YearMath

HarvestPumpkinsGermanyFireSafetyColumbusDayStevenKelloggNationalPizzaMonthNationalPopcornMonthSpidersHalloween

About This BookFrom Your Friends at The MAILBOX®

®

®

About This Book

©2002, 1996 by THE EDUCATION CENTER, INC.All rights reserved.

ISBN# 1-56234-125-1

Managing Editors: Scott Lyons, Deborah G. SwiderEditor at Large: Diane BaddenContributing Writers: Sherri Beckwith, Stacie Stone Davis, Michele Gunther, Susan Hoh-bach, Cynthia Holcomb, Susie Kapaun, Nancy Matthews, Sharon Murphy, Kelly O’Connor, Doug L. Poage, Kathy WolfCopy Editors: Sylvan Allen, Lynn Bemer Coble, Gina Farago, Karen Brewer Grossman, Karen L. Huffman, Amy Kirtley-Hill, Carol Rawleigh, Jennifer Rudisill, Debbie ShoffnerCover Artist: Clevell HarrisArt Coordinator: Theresa Lewis GoodeArtists: Jennifer T. Bennett, Cathy Spangler Bruce, Pam Crane, Theresa Lewis Goode, Nick Greenwood, Clevell Harris, Ivy L. Koonce, Sheila Krill, Gary Mohrman, Clint Moore, Greg D. Rieves, Rebecca Saunders, Barry Slate, Donna K. TealTypesetters: Lynette Dickerson, Mark RaineyIndexer: Laurel RobinsonThe Mailbox® Books.com: Kimberley Bruck (manager); Debra Liverman, Sharon Murphy (as-sociate editors); Jennifer L. Tipton (designer/artist); Troy Lawrence, Stuart Smith (production artists); Karen White (editorial assistant); Paul Fleetwood, Xiaoyun Wu (systems)

President, The Mailbox Book Company™: Joseph C. BucciDirector of Book Planning and Development: Chris PoindexterBook Development Managers: Cayce Guiliano, Elizabeth H. Lindsay, Thad McLaurin,Susan WalkerCurriculum Director: Karen P. SheltonTraffic Manager: Lisa K. PittsLibrarian: Dorothy C. McKinneyEditorial and Freelance Management: Karen A. BrudnakEditorial Training: Irving P. CrumpEditorial Assistants: Terrie Head, Hope Rodgers, Jan E. Witcher

It’s hard to believe we could improve on our best-selling series of month-ly idea books—but we have! In this edition, you’ll find the following excit-ing new features added to our irreplaceable collection of curriculum-based ideas! • A Web site containing even more classroom resources complements

the hundreds of activities provided in each book. (To access this incred-ible site for free, follow the simple instructions found on page 1.)

• A skill line for each idea provides a curriculum reference at a glance. • A comprehensive index makes selecting and planning activities a

breeze! We think you’ll agree that these new features make this series of monthly books the best ever!

Except as provided for herein, no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or storing in any information storage and retrieval system or electronic online bulletin board, without prior written permission from The Education Center, Inc. Permission is given to the original purchaser to reproduce patterns and reproducibles for individual classroom use only and not for resale or distribution. Reproduction for an entire school or school system is prohibited. Please direct written inquiries to The Education Center, Inc., P.O. Box 9753, Greensboro, NC 27429-0753. The Education Center®, The Mailbox®, the mailbox/post/grass logo, and The Mailbox Book Company™ are trademarks of The Education Center, Inc., and may be the subject of one or more federal trademark registrations. All other brand or product names are trademarks or regis-tered trademarks of their respective companies.

Manufactured in the United States10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Table of Contents

Inven

tion

:

Inven

tor:

Inven

tor:

Date:

Fo

r:H

A

LL OF FAM

E

IN

VENTORS

The airplane

About This BookFrom Your Friends at The MAILBOX®

®

®

About This Book

Online Extras ................................................................................. 1

About This Book ............................................................................ 2

New Year .............................................................................. 4 Celebrate a brand-new year with a resolution to teach calendar concepts, creative writing, and basic skills.

Martin Luther King Jr. ................................................................ 14 Introduce this famous civil rights leader using literature, values clarification, and creative writing.

Whales .......................................................................................... 26 Have students practice basic skills while on a whale watch.

Bill Peet .................................................................................... 44 From junkyard cats to knotty-pine gnats, students will take a shine to this literary star and his lovable animal characters.

Polar Animals ............................................................................... 49 Join a classroom expedition to discover polar animals and study their habitats.

Penguins ................................................................................... 63 Here’s a parade of penguin ideas to help you encourage students’ self-esteem and help them develop basic math skills!

Ben Franklin .......................................................................... 69 Where do inventors get their bright ideas? Your students will discover how even small inventions can make history.

Dinosaurs ............................................................................... 77 Dig into a “dino-mite” unit on dinosaurs that’s sure to spark creative thinking. You’ll uncover some colossal creative-writing, math, and art projects.

Answer Key .............................................................93

Index ........................................................................94

Peoplefromallovertheworldcelebratethefirstdayofthecalendaryear,orNewYear’sDay.Usherinanothernewyearwiththesefunandfestiveactivities!

ideas by Sherri Beckwith and Cynthia Holcomb

Roman RitualsLearning about the past

NewYear’sfestivitiesrangefromreligiouscelebrationstomidnightgatheringswithnoisemakers.TheancientRomanscelebratedNewYear’sDaybygivinggiftsofcoinsimprintedwiththelikenessofJanus, thegodofgates,doors,andnewbeginnings.Janushadtwofacesthatlookedinop-positedirections—onetowardthepastandtheotherintothefuture.Janu-arywasnamedforJanus,whosenameisderivedfromtheLatinwordforgate.AskstudentsiftheyseeaconnectionbetweenJanuaryandtheRo-mangod.Leadadiscussionaboutwhatitwouldbeliketobeabletosee

intothefuture,asJanuscould.HaveeachstudentwritealettertoJanus,askinghimsomequestionsaboutthefuture.

Next,createRomancoinswithyourstudents.Giveeachstudentapieceofgoldwrappingpaperandasix-inchcircletemplate.Havestudentstraceandcutout

theirgoldcoins.Usingfine-pointmarkers,haveeachstudentdrawalikenessofJanusontohiscoin.Displaythecoinsandlettersasareminderthatthefutureholdsmanysurprises!

Colonial TraditionsWriting invitations

AmericancolonistsinNewEnglandcelebratedthenewyearbyfiringgunsintotheair,shouting,andcheering.Manypeoplewent“calling”onfriendsandneighborswhowereholdinganopenhousewithfoodanddrink.TodaymanypeoplecelebratewithnoisemakersandstillholdopenhouseforNewYear’sDay.PlanaNewYear’sOpenHouseforparentsandfamilies.Preparebymakinginvitationswiththepatternonpage10.Determinehowmanyinvitationseachstudentneeds.Havestudentscolorandcutoutthepatternsandthenmountthemon8”x10”constructionpaper.Invita-tionswiththispersonaltoucharesuretobringlotsofvisitors!(SeetheNewYear’sOpenHouseideasonpage9.)

�

12

6

39

Counting the DaysMaking and using a calendar

ThecomingofthenewyearhasnotalwaysbeencelebratedinJanuary.Atonetimeitwasobservedduringtheharvestseason.ChristiansusedtocelebratethenewyearinMarch,onAnnunciationDay.TheancientRomansdeclaredJanuary1tobetheofficialbeginningoftheyear.TheChinese,Muslims,andJewscelebrateondifferentdates.Onereasonforthevarietyofdateswastheabsenceofastandardcalendar.In1600,manyWesternnationsadoptedthe12-monthGre-goriancalendar,whichwestillusetoday.Familiarizeyourstudentswithcalendarcon-ceptsusingthereproducibleonpage13.Provideacopyforeachstudent.InstructeachstudenttolabelthecalendarpageforJanuary.Havehimnumberthedays,takingcaretobeginonthecor-rectdayandendonthe31stday.BesuretolabelNewYear’sDayandanystudentbirthdaysinJanuary.Extendthelessonbyprovidingacalendarpageforeachoftheothermonths.Havestudentscompletecalendarsfortheentireyear.Whentheyhavecompletedthepages,helpstudentsstaplethembetweenconstructionpapercovers.Havestudentskeepthesecalendarsintheirdeskstokeeptrackofbirthdays,assignments,andspecialupcomingevents.

A.M. or P.M.? Understanding a.m. and p.m. times

Midnight,or12:00A.M.,marksthebeginningofabrand-newday.ThisistheperfecttimetodiscusstheconceptofA.M.andP.M.withyourstudents.Useafaceclocktoshowstudentsthepassageoftimefrommidnighttonoon,andbacktomidnight.Makeachartwithyourstudentsastheybrainstormalistofactivitiestheydoeveryday.Includeactivitiesthattakeplaceatschoolandathome.Whenseveralac-tivitieshavebeenlisted,askchildrentoidentifythemasA.M.orP.M.activities.Toreinforcethisconcept,haveeachstudentusethisinformationtomakeascheduleofhisschoolday.EachstudentshouldsequencethesubjectsorclassesinhisdayandthenwritethetimefollowedbyA.M.orP.M.Allowthestudentstotaketheirsched-uleshomesothattheycansharetheirnewknowl-edgeaswellastheoutlinesoftheirbusyday.ForadditionalpracticewithA.M.andP.M.,usethereproducibleonpage12.WhatatimelylessonfortheNewYear!

�

8+8=

�+6=

�+6=

We’re Having a Ball!Motivating students to reach a class goal

OnNewYear’sEve,acrowdgathersinTimesSquareinNewYorkCityforaspecialwelcometotheyear.Peoplewatchexpectantlyasanelectronicallylightedballdropsduringthefinalcountdowntomidnight.Astheballdropslowerandlower,theexcitementbuilds.Whentheballreachesthebottom,thecelebrationbegins. Createasimilaratmosphereinyourclassroomtomotivateyourstudentstoreachaclassroomgoal,suchaseveryoneturninginhishomework,usingthecorrectheadingonpapers,orreadinganumberofbooks.Astheyworktowardthegoal,loweraballtoshowtheirprog-ress.Tocreateacountdownball,cutalargecirclefromcraftpaper.Havestudentsdecoratetheballwithcolorfulmarkers,confetti,andglitter.Next,usesentencestripstocreatea“pole”fivefeethigh.Markthestripinsix-inchin-crementstomaketen“steps.”Mountthepoleonawallordoor.Placetheballatthetopofthepole.Foreverydaythattheclassmeetsthegoal,movetheballasteploweronthepole.Whentheballhasdroppedalltheway,celebratethestudents’successwithaclassparty.Replacetheballatthetopofthepoletogettheballrollingtowardgoodworkhabits.

Countdown MathReinforcing math facts

Yourstudentswillenjoyworkingonmathdrillswiththiscountdownapproach.Duplicatethepatternsonpage11andprogramtherect-angularstripwithmathproblems.CutalongthedottedlinesontheballshapewithanX-acto®

knife;thenthreadthestripthroughtheballshape.Asstudentslowertheball,newmathproblemsareuncovered.Haveeachstu-dentcopytheproblemsandanswerthemonasheetofpaper.Whentheballhasreachedthebottom,thestudenthascompletedhiscountdown.Re-wardhimwithapieceofcandytocelebratehissuccess!

6