Native American Lessons

Hey everyone! Tomorrow is Friday and I know we are all glad to see the week coming to an end. Here is another Through Time and Space Thursday! This week we are focusing on Social Studies and more specifically focusing on lessons in social studies focusing on Native Americans.
When I student taught in a 4th grade class Native Americans were a huge focus in Social Studies. We spent weeks going over power points about different kinds of Native American tribes and how they were alike and different. We discussed each group in depth with the class and at the end on the unit we did a project. The students were put into groups and given a specific tribe and they had to create a poster that discussed their tribe. Their poster included the things about the tribe we discussed in class. They also presented their posters at the end so that all the students were able to get a review of each tribe. I felt that this did teach the students about Native Americans. I just felt that more could have been done to help students remember more about these tribes.
What have you done with students to teach about Native American tribes?

~Manda

Class Pets

Now for our Through Time and Space post for the week! This week we are focusing on science. Something on my mind this week is class pets. I subbed in a class the other day and a students had brought tadpoles. I thought that was such a cool addition to the classroom. I thought it was a great experience for the students to be able to see a tadpole change into a frog. The teacher and the assistant  in the classroom seemed to think it was a bother to have in the class.
I understand it is some extra work to have a class pet but is it worth it?
While student teaching we had a student bring in two pet turtles for the classroom. The teacher felt the same way the teachers this week did. That it was an unwanted burden. I took care of them and when it was time to go home for the summer the turtles came home with me. (They are also now members of the family! lol)
I just want to hear some different opinions on class pets? Beneficial or Bother?

~ Manda

Great Depression

Hey everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying their week. Its time for another Through Time and Space Thursday. This week I have been thinking about students and social studies. There are so many students that only remember what we tell them about history long enough to take the test (if that long). Teaching history to young students is so hard because it is so many people, places, and dates that they just all run together.
As I have discussed before, I love social studies and history. I love teaching it in a way that students will not just remember history but enjoy learning about it. If students really get to experience the lessons then they are more likely to remember the information than if they just read about it.
One example for letting students experience a lesson is something I did during student teaching last year. While teaching about the great depression I did a lesson about life during the depression. I researched online and found that some students built their own Hoovervilles. So during my lesson my students split into families and we played a survival game type lesson. My student's "families" lost their homes and had to build a Hooverville to live in. We used actual cardboard boxes and newspaper. My students had a blast and it just helped all the information about that time in history for Americans make so much more sense.
What lessons like this have you done with your students? How do you feel about teaching social studies?

~Manda

Planets

Hey everyone! This week has been so crazy I am so glad it is Friday...that being said here is the post that should have been up yesterday. Sorry it is late!
This week we are focusing on Science and I wanted to share another fun activity that I've done in this subject.
I love teaching Science! It is so much fun to watch students as they explore so many abstract concepts. In science we study planets and the solar system. How do you teach students about something that they can't actually see or experience? One activity that I have done with students really helped students understand how far apart the planets are for each other. In this activity we used register tape and some planet pictures to place the planets in order. We also used a chart with the measurements of the planets and their distance from the sun. Students had to convert the distances on the chart to millimeters and such so that they would fit onto their register paper. My students could observe what planets were closer together and which ones had lots of space between them. It also helped my students remember the name of the planets. I think this activity really helps give the students a visual for Planets.
What types of lessons do you have for covering planets?

~Manda

Social Studies Review Game

Hey everyone it is time for Through Time and Space Thursday! This week we are focusing on Social Studies. I wanted to talk about an activity that is a fun way to review and gets the students out of their seats. This activity may seem a little crazy but my students loved it and it really helped me see what social studies things they remembered and what they did not.

My supervising teacher and I called this a Social Studies Snow Ball Fight. The first thing we did was put the students into pairs and give then a social studies term. It was a range of people, battles, and key terms. The students had to use two scrap pieces of paper. One sheet had the term on it and the other had a definition or explanation of that term. Once all pairs were finished these pieces were taken up and then passed out to random students. This way each student had a piece of a pair and then the students were split in half and put on opposite sides of the room. The students were then ready for the snow ball fight. They got to ball up their paper and throw it at the other “team”. Each person only got to throw their “ball” once and then they were to pick up a “snow ball” and their job was to find the other person that had the snow ball that matched theirs. Students were helping each other find their match and we played several rounds so that I was able to see what terms gave students the most trouble. It was a fun activity and the students enjoyed it so much I don’t even think they knew they were reviewing. I think it is a great way to review a wide range of topics and keep the students involved. 

What kind of crazy review games have you tried? 

~Manda

Picture Walk Drawings

Hey guys! It sure has been a crazy week around here for us but its time for Through Time and Space Thursday! This week we are focusing on Social Studies.
I have been thinking about some of my favorite activities I have done for social studies lessons. One that has stood out for me is an activity that can be used for most history topics in social studies. I enjoy doing a picture walk with students. This is where I use chart paper and markers and draw pictures as I give facts as if I am telling a story. It is a great way to introduce a certain event. I used it last year while student teaching. I discussed the beginning of WWII and how the US became involved in the war. I "told the story" about the Axis and Allied Powers and ended with Pearl Harbor and the US entering the war. The students enjoyed listening because I was drawing pictures to illustrate what I was discussing I also wrote little facts on my paper as well. My paper remained on the wall as we explored the events in more detail. The students often referred to what we talked about during the picture walk. I enjoyed doing this activity with them and I think it could be used to cover most events in history.

Has anyone done an activity similar to this? What are some ways that you enjoy teaching social studies/history?

~Manda~

Earth Science

Hey everyone it is time for Through Time and Space Thursday and this week we are going to focus on Earth Science. What kind of Earth Science topics do your students have to learn? Earth Science is a hard concept for many students to understand. It is a hard to think about the planet we live on and all the things inside it and all the things happening on it.

When my 5^th grade students had to learn many Earth Science topics last year we decided to create centers for the students to learn these concepts with a hands-on approach. We also wanted students to make a PowerPoint presentation of the concepts they were learning to present to the class at the end of the unit. These centers covered topics like earthquakes, volcanoes, erosion, weathering, constructive and deconstructive processes, sand dunes, and deltas. It was a two week long unit. It was not an easy task to pull off but we had the 3 teachers in the room at the time. It was really a great unit and the students enjoyed learning about Earth science.

For more information about our Earth Science centers take a look at our Earth Science Packet at our TpT store. (Coming soon...we'll update this post as soon as it's posted!)

~Manda

Social Studies

Hello Friends! It is time for Through Time & Space Thursday! We thought we would turn the focus to Social Studies since we focused on Science last week. I usually try to focus on a certain activity but this week I just want to discuss the subject itself. 

I have really found a passion teaching Social Studies and I think that is hilarious considering it was my least favorite subject when I was going through elementary school. I always felt that Social Studies meant that it was time to take out a book, write some notes, and answer some questions. Did anyone else feel this way in school?? Although when it came time to plan lessons to teach to my students I wanted it to be fun and engaging. I feel like I learned more social studies in my college years trying to teach it than I ever did when I was in school. I had a blast teaching Social Studies to my fifth graders last year and I really feel like they had fun learning it. My class was so passionate about the topics we covered and I feel like my enthusiasm helped them want to learn what we had to go over. I feel like it was completely different when I was in 5^th grade. Instead of sitting in our seats with a book reading, writing notes, and answering questions, my students were up moving around the room. It was as if we had to act out the events in history that we were learning about. We did everything from building a “Hooverville” to recreating the Berlin Airlift. I was amazed at how much fun Social Studies could be and I can’t wait to have my own classroom to teach some of those lessons again.

How do you feel about Social Studies? Do you feel differently about it as a teacher than you did as a student? What are some lessons that you will never forget? 

~Manda

What's with the Weather?

With all the crazy weather we've been having it seems a very fitting science topic to discuss this week. Here in Georgia lately it's been rainy one day, warm and sunny the next, and snowing (doesn't stick) the next.

Tie it all in...

Have your students keep a weather calendar for at least 2 weeks. They can do this individually or together as a group. Once they've collected the data, tie in math by graphing the information gathered. Depending on the grade level, you can extend even more on that by finding the mean, median, and mode. With the younger grades it's a good way to practice reading the information from the graph. Another thing I've done with younger ones is an online game What's the Weather? that practices reading thermometers. The student reads the temperature and decides what the fussy bear should wear to go outside. This game can help with the "but I don't want to wear my jacket to recess...it's hot" battle that we face as teachers. Tell your students what the temperature is and ask them what 'fussy bear' would wear to go out.

What do you do with weather in your classroom?

Have you been having crazy weather like us?


~Steph

Schedule

We're not happy with the lack of posting taking place. So we've decided to design a schedule of weekly posts to keep us on track, as mentioned in the Excitement post. (We're determined to start getting organized in life!)

Our posts will consists of information, ideas, stories, etc from Steph's adventure as a long term EIP sub, our student teaching adventures, things from our TpT store, and general experiences.

Here's what the schedule will look like:

Maniac Math Monday will consist of posts of math activities, worksheets, ideas, etc that we have seen, used, or made. Being an EIP math sub will play a big part in this. Also, both of us have spent a lot of time with math in student teaching! 

Too Much To Talk About Tuesday will be our random day. We'll talk about whatever this day! For things that don't seem to fit into a subject category such as classroom management or just the funny, crazy, and strange things we've seen and heard!

Tech Wiz Wednesday will be where we share ideas of how to implement different technology into your instruction. We'll also have weeks where we share technology tips from our many adventures. Computers, tablets, Microsoft Office, blogging, various websites, etc if it's technology you can bet there's a chance you'll find it here!

Through Time and Space Thursday will be our day to talk about all things Science and Social Studies. We'll discuss different activities and resources we've come across that help make learning (and teaching) these sometime seemingly tedious subjects.

Friend or Foe Friday will be our day to discuss Reading and Language Arts. Many people either LOVE or HATE one or both of these subjects. Teachers struggle with ideas for instruction and students struggle with remembering all the rules. Each week we'll discuss various topics for these subjects and you can decide if it's your (or your students') friend or foe.

We will be starting these posts on Monday, March 4th, 2013! If you have an idea for something you'd like for us to discuss, we'd love to hear it! Comment below or send us an email!

~Steph & Manda