Education Station Newsletter
Vol. 4 #2 Summer 2005
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Welcome to the Education Station monthly newsletter! Here we take
a look at great teacher tips, useful teaching links to great sites
and helpful ideas and activities for celebrating holidays, seasons
and special days in your classroom. Our great specials section will
help you save money and we have also included articles that look at
the latest practices in education. We hope our newsletter will help
inspire you to be the best teacher you can be! This newsletter is produced
by the Education Station web site, which is located:
http://www.educationstation.ca
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In This Issue
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1. Quote of the Month
2. Teacher Tips
Students without Pencils
McDonald’s Division
3. Great Links
Learning up to the Last Minute
End of the Year Printables
End of the Year Poems
4. Current Specials
5. Celebrate!
Father’s Day
End of the School Year
6. Article
It's Summer!
Rest your body, restore your soul & have some fun!
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1. Quote
I am not a teacher but an awakener. - Robert Frost
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2. Teacher Tips
I Need Three Pencils
From Mary Mollerskov, Racine, Wisconsin:
Type and print, 'I need 3 pencils' on address labels. When the ‘I
don’t have a pencil’ problem occurs, students can get a
sticker off the posted sheets at the end of the day and wear it home.
Older children can stick the reminder in their notebooks.
McDonalds Division
From Cassandra Hamilton, Hampton, Virginia:
When teaching long division, I use the DMSCBS acronym. The sentence
we use is:
Does McDonalds Sell Cheeseburgers & Shakes?
D-Decide Where to Place (The first digit goes in the quotient and
then divide.)
M-Multiply
S-Subtract
C-Compare
B-Bring Down
S-Start Over Again
I make a chart showing a hamburger with all the fixings to represent
the steps.
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3. Great Links
Learning Up to the Last Minute
We know how it is. As the days get warmer and the end of the year
draws near, it's a challenge to keep the learning going and the kids'
energy inside the classroom. Make the most of this last month by breaking
routine, celebrating the achievements of your graduating class with
reflective, rewarding activities and encouraging your students on to
new challenges….
http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/instructor/learningtilllastmin.htm
http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/instructor/movingonup.htm
End of the Year Printables
Looking for a nice poem for the year end report card? A summer home
learning sheet to send home or a few fun recipes to keep kids busy
this summer. Check out AtoZ teacherstuff’s great page.
http://atozteacherstuff.com/printables/cat_endyear.shtml
End of the Year Poems
Here is a great list of poems to use for the end of the year.
http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/songspoems56.html
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4. Current Specials
The following products are currently on sale at Education. Check
back often as the sale products change every week. http://www.educationstation.ca/index.php
For those in the Edmonton area, Education Station will celebrate
the end of the school year with a School’s Out Blow Out! Sale.
Stop by our new store (13204 137 Ave, Edmonton) during the week of
June 10-19, 2005 and enjoy many specials. Buy one Bulletin Board Set
at regular price and receive a 2nd one at half price. Buy one Border
at regular price and receive a 2nd one at half price. All Pocket Charts
25% off. All Charts will be on sale for $1.99. Save $0.50
on every package of stickers. $0.20 pencils. Many items throughout
the store will be priced to clear. Hope to see you there!!!
Print this coupon out for 50% off one regular priced item
of your choice
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50% OFF ONE REGULAR PRICED ITEM
valid June 10-19, 2005 In store Only
13204 137 Ave, Edmonton, AB 780-475-4680
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Also, don’t forget about our Annual Trade-In-A-Trimmer Event!
Simply bring a small piece of old, ugly trimmer to Education Station
from August 15-31, 2005 and trade it in for a Brand New Package of
Trimmer for FREE! There is a contest searching for the oldest, ugliest
border so dig out those duds!!!
Also, remember Education Station is the best place to order Live
Butterfly Raising Kits and Volunteer Appreciation Gifts every Spring!!!
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5. Celebrate!
Celebrate Father’s Day with hundreds of great ideas.
http://www.alphabet-soup.net/fath/father.html
http://www.perpetualpreschool.com/fathers_day.html
http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/fathers_day_page.htm
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/dad/
http://www.songs4teachers.com/fathersday.htm
Celebrate The End of the School Year!
http://www.allthedaze.com/summer1.html
http://www.britishcouncil.org/languageassistant-tips-end-of-term.htm
http://www.teachingheart.net/endoftheyearpage.html
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson184.shtml
http://www.abcteach.com/MonthtoMonth/June/JuneTOC.htm
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6. Article
It's Summer!
Rest your body, restore your soul & have some fun!
by Barbara Gruber, M.A. & Sue Gruber, M.A.
Use your summer break to relax and recharge---you will return to
school brimming with enthusiasm and energy. It's so easy for the summer
to whiz by---in the blink of an eye it is time for school to start
again! Don't let this summer fly by---schedule some good times for
yourself on your calendar! Treat yourself to a leisurely walk, browse
through your favorite antique store, window shop on ebay, rent a funny
video and pamper yourself with bubble baths on a regular basis.
Make sure those fun times actually happen---write them on your calendar
in ink! Treat yourself to a real break from being a teacher!
You need a "What's Happening?" Box
Here's a tip that will help you be organized and fit more fun into
your life. It's a "What's Happening?" box---if you don't have one already,
you can make one in five minutes. All you need is fifteen file folders
and a box large enough to hold the folders upright. Many shoeboxes
are just the right size to hold file folders! Label twelve of the file
folders with the months of the year and label the others:
Books to Read,
Videos/Movies to See,
Fun Things to Do.
Take a moment to jot a list of birthdays and important dates on
the fronts of the monthly folders. Now, place the folders in the box
in chronological order and pop the other three folders in the front
of the box. Voila---you now have a "What's Happening?" box! When you
read a don't-miss-this review of a book, film or restaurant, clip it
and pop it in the appropriate folder. When you see a magazine article
about lavender sachets you would love to make---clip it and pop it
in the Things to Do folder. When you are catching up on reading magazines
over the summer, often you are reading the February issues in the month
of July. Don't let those good ideas get away---just clip and file ideas
that pertain to holidays or certain months in the appropriate monthly
folders. Now that you have a "What's Happening?" box up and running,
let's think about school for a moment.
No matter how hard you try, it's almost impossible not to think
about school during the summer break! Try this---during the first week
of your summer break, take some time to reflect on the past school
year. Think about the high points and the low spots---every teacher
has some of each! What do you plan to do differently next school year?
What do you want to be sure to do again? Jot a quick list of things
you want to remember to implement during the next school year. File
the paper in your "What's Happening?" box in the folder for the month
when school starts. Now that you've jotted the ideas down, you don't
have to think about them any more until the start of school. Get those
school ideas out of your head so you can maximize your enjoyment of
your summer break.
Schedule these four important days on your calendar now!
Classroom Day---within a few days of the last day of school, go
back to your classroom on one day for four or five hours. Do the three
back-to-school jobs that dread the most. Get these tasks done, lock
the classroom and get out of there for the rest of the summer.
Reunion Day---plan lunch or a coffee talk session with friends you
haven't had a chance to see during the busy school year.
All About Me Days---schedule a special day for yourself in July
and in August. On these days, the entire day is dedicated to nothing
and no-one except you! Don't cook, clean, do laundry or any kind of
work---do fun stuff for the entire day! This is your day to be a prince
or a princess!
Outing Day---plan a visit to a nearby place you've always wanted
to visit and just haven't taken the time to do it. We plan to take
a tour of the Jelly Belly Jellybean factory and then go to the outlet
mall in that area. This is going to be a fun day---what could be better
than eating jelly beans and shopping for bargains?
Bring more laughter into your life!
Laughter is good medicine---it actually reduces stress and improves
our immune systems. How can you get more laughter into your life?
Can you:
Hang out with people who are simply fun to be with
Rent funny videos
Read funny books
Watch children play
Buy a dozen or so funny birthday cards to keep on hand
Take life less seriously---try to be light-hearted and find amusement
in simple things in life such as watching birds fluttering in birdbaths,
watching children play, people watching and enjoying time with a pet.
Take yourself less seriously---learn to laugh at yourself!
Things to Do!
Grow something---plant some easy-to-grow flowers or buy a new houseplant!
Make something---(True stories from Barbara): a friend of mine makes
beautiful beaded bracelets and necklaces. When I went to the bead store,
I had no idea what to buy! If I bought beads, how many would I need
and how would the necklace look when it was done? I was overwhelmed!
So, I left the store without buying anything. Well, I found some inexpensive
kits on the internet for making necklaces that contained all the materials
and, most importantly, the directions. So, making a beaded necklace
is going to be my "learn something new" activity. If it turns out that
I don't like the necklace, I have a hunch my three-year-old grand-daughter
will love it!
The last "make something" activity I tried didn't work at all. I
saw some cute crocheted purses in a magazine---according to the directions
they were easy to make. (Not!) I liked the one that was decorated with
antique buttons. Well, I bought the yarn, found my long lost crochet
hook and made the weirdest looking purse I'd ever seen. Actually, it
didn't even look like a purse. When my husband said, "What is that
thing?" I told him it was a hat or a purse...depending on how it turned
out! Well it didn't turn out to be a hat or a purse, it looked more
like a dishcloth. So, I unraveled "it" and discovered that crochet
yarn is great for tying up plants in the garden. Every time I use the
yarn in my garden, I think about how weird that project turned out
and laugh about it. By the way, I decorated a cute purse I already
owned with antique buttons and it looks great! Why didn't I think of
that in the first place?
Eat something---try some new recipes or try an ethnic restaurant
that offers a cuisine you have not tried before. You just might discover
a new favorite kind of food!
Fix something---do you have a bracelet with a broken clasp or a
camera case with a broken zipper. Summer is a perfect time to take
care of pesky little jobs and get things fixed or replaced.
Take a class---that has nothing to do with school. Learn to take
better photographs, knit or make scrapbooks! We hear knitting is back
in vogue and lots of people are taking classes! Get a catalog of classes
from the recreation department and the community college in your area.
When you flip your calendar to August...more and more thoughts about
school creep into teachers' minds. Every teacher experiences the onslaught
of school thoughts and school dreams. Remember, no matter how early
you go back before you have to be there...you will never get everything
done! Once you go back, your vacation is over and the job of getting
ready for school start consumes the rest of your summer vacation. Donate
a limited number of days of your vacation time for working in your
classroom before school starts---it is a donation unless you are paid
to be there!
(A true story from Sue): I have a list of things I need to do at
back-to-school time. I use the same list every year---it saves me time
and helps me get organized quickly. If you don't have a Back-to-School
Things to do" list---start one this year. Just make the list as you
get your room ready for back to school. Every time you do another task,
add it to the list. Save the list and use it as a reference from year
to year. I keep my list in a Back-to-School folder in my file cabinet.
Thanks to the list, I don't have to reinvent the wheel and try to remember
everything I need to do! Just looking at the list makes me feel organized
instead of overwhelmed. Here is my system for maximizing my summer
break---at the end of the year, I do my plans and preparation for the
first two weeks of school. It is such a good feeling knowing I'm all
set for the first two weeks! During the last week of school, I do some
of the bulletin boards. Then, I don't go back until the first day we
are pa!
id to be there. I have my handy list of things to do and it's
amazing how quickly I can whip down the list and get things done!
Have a wonderful summer break from school. Be sure to find time
to smell the roses and spend time with friends and family.
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** If you find the Education Station newsletter to be a useful tool
for your classroom experiences, please forward it to a friend or two.
Thanks! **
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