The Royal and Most Pleasant Game of Goose

The Royal and Most Pleasant 

Game of Goose

           In 5th grade we learned about life in Colonial Williamsburg.    In our journey, my students went to the Raleigh Tavern on the Duke of Glouchester Street.   Along with discussing politics, eating, drinking, and socializing were popular at these local gathering spots.    One way to socialize in Colonial times was to play board games.

          The Royal and Most Pleasant Game of Goose was introduced to my students.   I wasn't quite sure how the kids would react to a black and white piece of paper as a game.    No Ipads or computer games.    They came to realize that they could have an great time playing a simple board game rolling the dice and moving a simple marker with their classmates.

        The game is played with one die and a marker for each player.

          There are a few interesting spaces on the game board to make the game fun.   A space that no one wants to land on is the Death Space.      I could always tell when someone landed on the Death Space.      The kids would moan, yell, and laugh.   This is where the player has to go back to the beginning of the game board to space number 1.   A few spaces featuring a goose will send a player ahead.    You might also land on the Jail space where you will lose a turn.     They learned that it was all in great fun.

     The students even wanted to take the game boards home!     This game was in my TCI Social Studies Alive! America's Past teacher's manual. I cannot take credit for this game.

          I have taken this game to our school's book fair at Barnes and Noble.    Children always want to play and want their parents to watch.

      The Royal and Most Pleasant Game of Goose has become one of my favorite games.    In my minds eye, it is a very early version of Candy Land, if you know what I mean.   Give it a try with your kids.

      Please leave a comment if you have a minute.    Let me know if you could use my ideas in your class.

Beti 

Roanoke, The Lost Colony Flip Chart

    

       I LOVE FLIP CHARTS!!!
           
      The 5th grade curriculum in Michigan includes a  lesson on the Lost Colony of Roanoke.     Along with reading the lesson in our text, taking notes, a Study Stack, and a short video clip I added a flip chart to make a short lesson summary.    My students like the hands-on work of a flip chart.  

        I found that children need the tactile experience when learn even in Social Studies. Turning the flaps back and forth, opening and closing reinforces learning.   These are easy enough to make in a class period.     If you choose to make a second or third flip chart for a later lesson, your students will feel confident and comfortable making  flip charts and the instructions will be minimal. 

            😀 Happy teacher  = 😁 happy students!
                         It's a win - win situation!

       As you an see,  I have the kids glue their flip charts onto loose leaf paper.    This way 
the flip chart can be clipped into their Social Studies duo-tang so it  does not get "lost ".

     My students enjoy doing a little added decoration to their flip chart.  
I'll do just about anything that will give an incentive to study.      Some students use more color and symbols, while others draw stick figures, add speech bubbles, captions, and arrows to enhance their work.     Each child learns by using their own style.       What works for one might not work for their neighbor. 

      The inside of the cover flaps can be used to write additional facts.    The student is able to write pertinent information on the lines of the loose leaf paper.   After the flip chart is complete my students enjoy sharing their work with their classmates.     In this way the next student can possibly learn additional information by reading a different flip chart than their own.    They can also learn from looking at the illustrations.

Please leave a comment.  I love to hear if someone can use my ideas.

Beti

King George Character Traits

           King George

    In order to integrate 5th grade Social Studies and Language Arts I read the story, Can't You Make Them Behave, King George?    By Jean Fritz to my Social Studies class.    We had just learned about the events leading up to the Boston Tea Party and the First Continental Congress.  

          I thought this would be the perfect book as a read aloud.    The kiddos participated by saying, "God save the king!" very enthusiastically with an  "English accent".    They also chimed in with a loud, "Huzzah"  after the American colonists dumped the tea into Boston Harbor. 

       After listening to the story, I asked the students about the character traits they could think of that reminded them of King George III of England.    How did he act, speak, feel, and act towards other people?    This was my jumping off place.

         This is the worksheet that I gave to my students.   The character trait is written in the box  on the left side of each section.    I like to add some kind of graphic to my worksheets. A picture is worth a thousand words.

         Here are some samples of my students' work.

        I do hope some other teacher can use this idea in their Social Studies  or Language Arts class.    It helps the students understand that this was a real person, not just another character in a story.     King George made a huge impact on the American colonists.

 You can also find this featured on Teach Junkie.com
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      Please leave a comment if you have an extra minute.  I'd love to hear from you.  Enjoy your day!

Beti  

Pueblo Project

  Southwest
Native American
Pueblo 

         All 88 of our 5th grade students participated in making our pueblo.  This project completed our unit of study of Early American Native Indian Tribes. My students didn't realize that this really was helping them study for their test. I didn't want to tell them or it would have spoiled the fun. The assignment for each child was to make a box, ladder, or kiva  for the desert southwest pueblo village.  I stressed that this was a child made project.

            
      
   

       This is only a small part of the items crafted by my 5th grade students this year.  Everyone had an opportunity to add something onto the pueblo because the Anasazi Indians  or the Pueblo People would have worked together to construct their pueblo to live in under rocky cliffs of the desert southwest region. 

        
      Here are close up pictures of the construction. Jello boxes, cardboard toilet paper rolls, and toothpicks were our building materials. Small pebbles and tiny twigs were added to the landscape after the building phase was completed.

          Many parents who come into the school commented on the pueblo project.  They were excited to see the results of the individual student work come together as a finished project.

       Finally,  I will have my students become TRAVELING HISTORIANS.  They will take the challenge, if they choose, to write about the pueblo and how the early Native Americans would have made it.  After reading over their information, students will be chosen to travel to other classrooms in the school, with the pueblo, to teach about the Indians of the Desert Southwest. By teaching others, my students don't realize that they are learning the information more in depth in order to to someone else. It is a win - win situation! My students get so much joy and and a sense of accomplishment by talking to the younger students about what they have learned.  The younger students learn that when they move into 5 th grade they will have these opportunities, too. 

      I have traveled to the southwestern United States and viewed some of the pueblos.    Exploring  the cliff dwellings of Mesa Verde was an experience of a lifetime.  Climbing a 30 foot ladder to get into the cliff dwellings was a real heart stopper.  My students are so intrigued that their pueblo looks so much like the real pueblos. 

       This project is so much fun for the kids to make in school. Every time it turns out to be different but yet the same. The great thing is that nothing has to be perfect.  Give it a try in your classroom. You won't be disappointed.

        
       Thank you parents for bringing your children to St. Michael Catholic School.  You are doing a great job raising incredible young ladies and gentlemen.  It is a real pleasure to teach our children each day.


 Please leave a comment if you have a moment, I'd love to hear from you.

Beti

Study Chart for Jamestown, Roanoke, & Plymouth Colonies

        When we finished the chapter on the English settlement of Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth Colonies I like to do a wrap up.  Before the chapter assessment I like to have the kids make some kind of  chart to compile their knowledge.  I came up with a chart which complies most of the important information introduced in the chapter.

     This is the work of one of my students.  We made the basic chart with the three headings, Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth together as I modeled the directions. Then I give the students time to "talk with their neighbor"  to fill in the names of the leaders.  This strategy gives the students an opportunity to share ideas and information.  I feel this gives the more shy and timid children the opportunity to absorb more information that they haven't grasped yet. These kids can offer information to one or two peers rather than the class as a whole.  As we all know, some students aren't confident enough to share with the entire class.  As the year goes on their confidence level begins to soar by working with students with whom they comfortable.
    After each section, children were able to share what they had filled in. The shy or timid child now has an answer that they can be confident to share with the entire class.  Then we moved on to the next category( location, Native American tribes, problems,  help, ships, etc.)

         My students also like to use a strategy I call "Do you know".  I have the kids write "Do you know" statements about the information that they have learned.  Then the students find a partner and ask their partner their question.  The partner has to repeat the statement saying, "Yes, I know that ..." back to their partner.  The students switch roles and the continue.  The repetition of the statement back to a partner reinforces the information. If the student can not repeat the statement his or her partner will repeat it again for clarity.
      This concept is a take on the Whole Brain teaching concept where the teacher makes a statement and the students repeat the information.
The students become the teacher in this case.
       Here are some "Do you know" statements that one of my students made up to use in class.

      Give this one a try with your Social Studies or Science students.

      Feel free to leave comment if you find any of my strategies helpful in your classes.  I would love to hear from you.

Beti

Martin Luther and the Reformation

Martin Luther 

       I taught a Social Studies lesson on Martin Luther, the Reformation, and the Protestant Religion.  I have had real success with interactive notebook pages this year with my students. So, this is my attempt to explain the concept.

      The homework tonight was to teach your parents about Martin Luther, the Reformation, and the Protestant Religion.  
      
       These are the church doors... When the paper is folded the students were instructed to write 15 in the left side door near the edge of the door and 17 on the right side door near the edge of the paper.  When the doors are closed you can read the date 1517.  In the same way, the words Catholic and Church are written.  The door handles were added next.  Finally, the sheet with 95 reasons that Martin Luther was dissatisfied with the Catholic Church are mailed to the door.

      
        This is the inside with the picture of Martin Luther. Sorry for the blurry picture.

The center section where the students had to fill in information.

        This is my model of the outside flaps which became the doors.  After  I drew the nail on the paper with the 95 reasons, of course I hammered  on my desk, just for the effect.  The boys loved it and pounded on their desks, too.
   
     Here you can see the finished product glued onto loose leaf with the title included.

       The students' homework is to used this Flip chart to explain to their parents who Martin Luther was and what he did. If a child can explain a concept to an adult or another student they have the knowledge of the material and information. 😃  

          Flip Charts are a fun way for the students to learn information with a hands on project.

Beti

Adding Illustrations and Color in Notetaking

           

 Many students doodle while in class. Flowers, spaceships, airplanes, animals of all kinds, squiggles, stars, hearts, etc. We've seen it all.  Kids like to color.  But teaching your students to add little pictures and color to their notes can be very beneficial for your kiddos.  The pictures can help a person stir a memory of a piece of information during a test or sometime later in life. 
             
    My Social Studies class was making a flip chart about the Lost Colony of Roanoke.  I suggested that they add some pictures to their flip charts by telling them, " A picture is worth a thousand words".  

        This student drew an island on the Roanoke flap and a crown on the Queen Elizabeth.

        The flaps continued with a helmet and sword for Sir Walter Raleigh.

     This student took a different approach with stick figures and speech bubbles.
Sir Walter Raleigh is saying, " Go to Roanoke".  On the Captain John White flap, he wrote, You can't go back!" referring to John White leaving Roanoke to go back to England for supplies. 

    I love teaching these kids. They help me learn something new every day.  I hope I can do the same for each of my students.

   Please leave a comment if you have a spare minute.  I love to hear from my readers.

    This post is featured on Teachjunkie.com     Take a minutes to check out all the great ideas on the blog!  
    www.teachjunkie.com

I have linked up with Forever in 5th Grade for Show and Tell Tuesday.
www.foreverinfifthgrade.blogspot.com 

 

Enjoy your day!

Beti

Indians of the Pacific Northwest

  

Cedar 

Dugout 

Canoes

          Native American people is a unit of study for my 5th graders.  The topic of the Indians of the Pacific Northwest Coast is quite interesting for my students.  We discussed location, climate, natural resources, transportation, and crafts.
     To bring the construction and designing  of a cedar dugout canoe to life I used paper and colored pencils.  The construction of a cedar dugout canoe was very interesting o to my students. I found it a student has an object in hand, they learned the information easily.  This is the inspiration for the student work.

 
      For the children to get a hands on feel for the dugout, we made folded paper dugouts. To bring in the concept of Symmetry,  we discussed that both sides of the dugout canoe were the same. While the paper was flat and uncut, the students needed to plan their design and colors to be used. The back side of the paper was also colored brown to indicate the inside of the canoe was wood. finally, the dugout canoe was cut from the paper, folded on the dotted lines, and glued together on the paper tabs found on the pattern.  As you can see they were very cool.

      My students drew illustrations of their concept of a village belonging to the Chinook tribe. Each child could refer back to their book, powerpoint presentation, as well as the illustrations in the room for reference. I tell my students, "A picture is worth a thousand words".  For some children, they need a picture in their head to tell a story or remember information.  ( I was one of those kids, and am still like that today.)  This is why I have my 5th graders do so many hands on related projects.

    Have a great day!

Beti

Tepees

Miniature Tepees

     My 5th graders have been working on a unit of study concerning Native Americans in several different locations of the United States and North America.  The Plains Indians was a favorite of the girls in my class.  Several of my girls decided to construct a miniature tepee or two while out on the playground during recess.  They were very excited to tell me all about the structure that they built.   After lunch, I took my homeroom back out on the playground to see for ourselves.

     
    The tepees were set up along the exterior of the fence of our play structure.  If you didn't know they were there, you would just walk on by.  

     After a few days, more miniature tepees were constructed.   The girls knew that the early American people made their homes from the resources that were available.  That is exactly what my students had done. 

    We had a tepee in our classroom.  Three students are able to sit in the tepee at one time. 

 
      This would be a great at home project this summer.  Take the kids in a nature walk to find small sticks and branches. You could begin by making small towers like my girls made.  You could even move up to a child size tepee!  Have a wonderful time creating and building! 

       Enjoy your summer!

    Great job girls! 

    Please leave a comment.  I would love to hear from you.

Beti  

1400's Ships

      1400's  Ships

 

       I needed to introduce my new unit on European explorers.   Student illustrations of these sailing ships  seemed like a good idea.   I printed up a worksheet with the following instructions.
   
Draw and color an illustration of a sailing ship used in the 1400's when sailors crossed the ocean. 

      I love how hard my 5th graders worked on their illustrations of these wonderful ships. By having the students draw their own illustration instead of just coloring a picture, they are able grasp the image of caravel, a small highly maneuverable sailing ship developed in the 1500's by the Portuguese.  This will be a great springboard in learning about such explorers as Columbus, Hudson, Cortes, Ponce de Leon, Cartier, and John Cabot.

    My kids always enjoy learning about European explorers and the stories of their lives.  I bring out all the explorer books from the school library and the classroom library.  

    Please leave a comment if you get a spare moment.  I love reading your emails.
   Today I linked up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for the November linky.

www.doodlebugsteaching.blogspot.com
Beti
    

Who am I? Explorers Flip Chart

  Flip Charts!

       If you know me, I LOVE to make  flip charts with my 5th graders!

As a study guide for the chapter on early exploration, we made this flip chart.  On each outer flap the students wrote "Who Am I?"  Then they wrote several "I  statements" to give clues to the explorer's name.  You can see that my kiddos use their notes to make sure their information is correct.

         This sample is the basic layout of the explorers' flip chart. I try to explain to the students that each statement must be specific to each person.

           The pictures of the explorers are from a set of reading comprehension sheets we used to study Christopher Columbus, Ponce deLeon, John Cabot, Hernando Cortes, Jacques Cartier, and Henry Hudson.  The pictures can be colored. By coloring the illustrations the students spent more time on each explorer and hopefully learn more in the process.

       After the flip charts are completed, the students "share or trade"  their flip chart with another student in class. Each student reads the  "Who am I?" questions and tells who the explorer is.  This can  also be used as a whole class activity where each student comes to the from of the room to place their flip chart under the projector for everyone to view at the same time. Students can then raise their hand if they know the correct answer. Some students like to try and stump their peers with difficult questions. 

        Today I linked up with Forever in Fifth Grade for the  Show and Tell Tuesday.  

www.foreverinfifthgrade.blogspot.com 

       Please send me a comment if you use flip charts or these are of any help for your students.

     

Beti