My students make model

Egyptian mummiesout of clay and

self-stick gauze.It affords them the

opportunity to become theembalmer and the craftsman:

From wrapping the mummy,drawing the hieroglyphics,drafting miniature jewelry, it’s

a hands-on trip through time. I require that the kids use realancient Egyptian designs andthemes learned throughout theunit. —Kathleen Havens,Houston Museum of NaturalScience, Houston, TX

Our first graders and preschoolershad a blast working together to learnabout shapes. The older kids helped theyounger ones identify basic shapes, use activitycards to replicate drawings, read shape books,make three-dimensional shapes with strawsand pipe cleaners, and glue shapes to make artwork. Now we want to plan more hands-onexplorations across the grade levels.—Stacey Conroy, preschool, Harker-WylieElementary School, Browns Mills, NJ

Our animal sculptures are theperfect ending to our farm unit.

As a class we brainstorm whatmaterials would be best suitedfor each animal based on howthey look and feel. The proj-ect enables students to gainproblem-solving skills,demonstrate the animalanatomy lessons they’ve

learned, and strengthen theirrelationships with their class-mates (they work in groups of three) while being creativeand having a great time!—Kimberly Shapiro, firstgrade, Greenville, NY

No one can enter our classroom without saying the

“secret password.”Each day I put a high-

frequency word in the window. Every time our class walks intothe room, each child has to say the “password.” Kids learnto recognize and read those words and are always anx-ious to find out what the password will be the nextday! I’ve found it’s a unique and fun way toreview vocabulary. —Wendy Chang,first grade, El Sobrante, CA

I’ve discovered the best classroommanagement tool: popcorn! I fill paper plates, glass jars, and plasticbowls with popcorn kernels. Whenever Ishake one of the containers, the students“stop and pop”: They stop whatever they’redoing, pop their heads up, and look right atme. They love it, and it’s a unique way to getstudents’ attention. —Erika LaPort, firstgrade, Lockport, NY

The best ideas comefrom teachers like you!

ideaswap

INSTRUCTOR AUGUST 2006 13

BAA-BAA LESSONS

PLAYING WITH SHAPES

MINI-MUMMIES

Bulletin Board BONANZA!

VACATION MEMORIES: “Our choir played an extended gameof Survivor. When they returned from a tour, we posted theirteam flags, along with photos of places they’d visited.”

Patti Hertzog, teacher at the Mountain Mission School inGrundy, Virginia, shares her best bulletin board ideas.

WORDS OF WISDOM: Have students find and illustrate anuplifting quote from literature or history. Your resulting“Inspiration Wall” will offer a visual pep talk all year long.

PROOFREADING POWER: Deputize students to investigateand nab grammar goofs in print. Paste offending passages(from newspapers, fliers, and magazines) for all to see.

THINK ABOUT IT: Ideas, com-plaints, daydreams? Here’s theperfect spot for classroom shar-ing. As a treat, you can readaloud from a week’s worth ofthoughts on Friday.

Make your own “hungry caterpillars” during yourstudy of life cycles. Start by reading The Very HungryCaterpillar. Then ask kids to draw a leaf on a sheet of cardstock. Have them tear tissue paper into small pieces and applythe pieces to the leaf with glue and water. Use pompoms tomake the caterpillar’s body and card stock to make wings.Toilet paper tubes covered in glue and string form the chrysalis. Simply roll the butterfly up and slip it into its cocoon. —Wilma Arbaugh, Woodbury, TN

14 INSTRUCTOR AUGUST 2006

Our fourth-grade class learned about their state, its symbol, and its history! We chose the sego lily, our stateflower, as the subject of our piece. The students first did theirown smaller lily, then moved on to work collaboratively on thislarge canvas, using tissue paper and watered down white glue.—Karen Kelley, fourth grade, Layton, UT

UTAH STATE PRIDE

ideaswap

GREAT FOR LIFE SCIENCE!

Pretend you’re at the beach whileyou grade papers. Put a tray of sandunderneath your desk. When you’redoing paperwork at the end of the day,slip off your shoes and run your toesthrough the sand. It’s so relaxing, and itreally takes away the stress of the day. —Cindy Zalkin, retiree, Charleston, SC

I teach my first graders to writeme letters about everything—whether they need to inform me aboutan incident, ask me a question, orexplain why they didn’t bring in home-work. This rule accomplishes severalgoals, including practice writing aboutand analyzing specific situations. Kidsalso get the feeling that they can alwayscome to me with help on “important”issues that they cannot solve on theirown. —Orquidea Wilcox, first grade,Riverside, CA

We’re always “on TV” in our classroom. At the beginning of theyear the kids and I made a television outof a cardboard box. We cut a hole in it(the screen), then covered the TV bodywith paper and stickers. Now studentslove to give book reports, do “advertise-ments,” and give oral reports, becausethey get to be “on TV!” Actually, they arejust behind the TV, but their classmatessee their head framed in the screen. Thestudents love it and I’m planning onusing it next year, too. —JeannieHarries, first grade, Perry, KS

So my kids don’t have to keeptheir hands in the air, we use question cups. I used a hot-glue gun to connect two sturdy, plastic cupstogether. Using a permanent marker, Idrew question marks on one of the twocups. At the beginning of group worktime, each group puts their cup blank-side up. When a group has a question,they turn the question-side up as a signalto me that they need help. This gives mea silent, visual clue to help them as soonas I can, plus they can continue to workon other parts of the project while theywait. —Vaishali Chinn, third grade,Winston-Salem, NC

Now my students always turn theirwork in on time. After struggling foryears with excuses, I decided to elimi-nate any particular day as the due dateand to instead make due dates an entireweek, with presentations on Friday.Now I write on the board, “Project dueweek of...” This has not only eliminatedforgetfulness and absenteeism, but also

lack of motivation! Students see othersbringing in their projects and very oftensneak theirs out to re-do them, becauseof the competition as the days go by.This has been such a wonderful solutionto my problem that I only wonder why it took me so long to think of it! —Susan R. Ferguson, sixth grade,Leominster, MA

Island Right

16 INSTRUCTOR AUGUST 2006

I wear cheap cotton gloves so I canerase my white board quickly andeasily. They protect my hands fromstaining and to erase, it’s merely a “wipeof the hands.” Students have given medifferent pairs of gloves and created acolor code for the activity depending onwhich gloves I use. —T. Haste, eighthgrade, Albuquerque, NM

My kids give me a report card. At the end of each semester I providethem with an anonymous feedback formfull of questions related to my teachingand classroom environment. I alwaysinclude space for comments, and askstudents to use a scale of 1 to 10 to tellme what they think. I view the forms asan opportunity to make needed changesand to continue to provide my studentswith quality education. —LaTishaGholston, special ed, St. Louis, MO

The theme of my kindergartenclass is “responsibility.” To kick-offthe theme, I invite parents and incomingstudents to my room before the schoolyear begins. We go on a tour and, as agroup, come up with class rules for theyear, which I record on a poster. We alsodiscuss consequences for not followingthe rules. This evening gives kids andparents a sense of ownership, which hashelped to build a positive school climate.—Velma Parsons, kindergarten,Novinger, MO

Class parties are a breeze whenyou plan them in 15 minutes. I write down the parties we will have forthe year on slips of paper. Next I let thestudents draw from a cup, and I list theirnames on a sheet under the parties theydrew. I send a completed list home to allparents to let them know when they areto furnish snacks. Parents sign the formletting me know if they agree to partici-pate. I have had great success with thisidea and it takes the pressure off of me.Parents love it! —Debra Matthews, third grade, Gordo, AL

Want to get to know your studentsin a flash? I use a questionnaire forstudents to fill out on the first day we

Roaring Twenties,

Maria Mast, Quincy, IL

Dragon Puppets,

Jackie Howes, Weatogue, CT

Milk Jug Animals, KarenSkophammer, Ft. Dodge, IA

It’s easy! Here’s how:1E-MAIL US: Send your quick teaching ideas and photographs to

instructor@scholastic.com at any time (why not right after your top-notch lesson?). Remember that large, bright, and clear photos work best.

2SEND A FAX: If it’s easier for you to fax, go ahead and do so to 212-343-4799. Don’t forget to include all of your contact information!

3SNAIL MAIL WORKS, TOO: In fact, if you have a sample of a cool projectyou’re willing to part with, we’d love to see it! Send crafts, photos, and

more ideas to Idea Swap Editor, Instructor, P.O. Box 713, New York, NewYork 10013-713. Keep ‘em coming!

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are together. Questions include “threethings about the best teacher I ever had,”and “three things I want to know about.”I read every student’s paper and type areply to each child, responding to one oftheir questions or commenting on some-thing we have in common. I place theresponses on the students’ desks soeveryone has a note to read. It’s a greatway to welcome and get to know a biggroup of kids. —Colleen Thrailkill,fourth grade, Cornelius, NC

Buy inexpensive “tap on” lights tomake an instant trivia game.I have two of them from the dollar storeand use them for spelling. I divide theclass into two teams, have the first playerfrom each team step up to the lights, andsay a spelling word. The first person totap the light and spell the word correctlyreceives a point. We end by all enjoying aroll of Smarties candy—because we’re allsuch smart spellers! —Marla Crawford,second grade, Grand Island, NY

In honor of our troops serving inIraq, our class learned patrioticsongs and made colorful hats.We also made yummy flags using grahamcrackers, frosting, licorice, and candies(one child remarked, “freedom tastesdelicious!”). Then we had a groupsinging sesssion. As you can see, the kids had a blast! —Courtney McDonald,kindergarten, Utica, KY

We learn about telling timethrough reading Grandpa’s Eyes, by Patricia MacLachlan. The story isabout a little boy who learns to see theworld through the “eyes” of his blindgrandfather. The grandmother serves

meals in a clock pattern for the grandfa-ther so he knows how his food isarranged on the plate. I give each stu-dent a plain white paper plate, construc-tion paper, crayons, scissors, and glue. Iask them to draw and cut out some oftheir favorite foods, which they then glueonto their paper plates. Next they writeout the clock directions for the food,

according to their plates. For instance,“The piece of pizza is at six o’clock andthe brownie is at nine o’clock.” Finally,students partner up and read their direc-tions to their partner, who closes his orher eyes and points to where the foodshould be and then looks to see if theyare correct. —Brenda Wilke, thirdgrade, via e-mail nn

Island RightPATRIOTIC PARTY