We have had a lot of customers in the store recently who are looking for ways to help their children work on their reading skills over the summer. One of the best websites I have found to help early readers is Starfall. This website allows children to select an early reader on-line story. They can then read the book on their own, or they can have the computer read it to them. Kids can also click on the illustrations to see a fun animation appear. This is a great way for pre-readers and early readers to practice crucial reading skills over the summer. Check out Starfall today by clicking on the link below:

Click Here To Visit Starfall

The challenge for most teachers during that last week of school is the same for everyone no matter what grade level or subject you teach. How do you keep your students learning up until the last day of school?

I always found that I had to plan some engaging activities for my students during that last week of school. I had to find things that we normally wouldn't do during the rest of the year. This was a great time to bring in a group project that would last a couple of days or a creative project that students could work on individually and then share with the class. Here are some tried and true end-of-the year activities that I have used in the past:

•Reader's Theater: Break your class into small groups and give each group their own script. Have them spend a few days creating props and simple costumes from the art supplies you have left. Let them rehearse their play and then have them preform it for the class or for a younger grade level. There are some really great reader's theater scripts that you can download for free at Education World. Just click on this link and scroll towards the middle of the page:

Click Here To Visit Education World

•Take A Virtual Field Trip: Use your classroom computer to sail around the world with the modern day explorers at Reach the World. This sailing crew takes several journeys throughout the year, and they bring all the details to your students through their website. You can map out their journey with the latitude and longitude clues that they give in their logbook. You can read their field notes which give a ton of information about the places they have visited. You can also read each crew member's travel journal. Visit this website by clicking the link below:

Click Here To Visit Reach the World

•Make a Fun Review Game: Create a game to review all of the skills your students have learned over the past year. Here's a terrific website that has tons of Power Point game templates. Just type in your own questions and answers, and you're ready to go! Play Jeopardy, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?, Deal or No Deal, and many more. This website also provides sound clips from each of the shows so you can play the theme song and sound effects. Just click the link below:

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Have fun during these last days of school!

The weather is finally getting warmer, so we've been spending a lot of time out in the backyard at our house. Here are some fun outdoor games and activities that you can try while you're hanging out in the yard this week:

1) Make sidewalk paint: Mix 1/4 cup of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water. Add food coloring of your choice and mix until you have a watery consistency. Use paint brushes to paint your sidewalk or driveway. This paint washes away with water.

2) Play Sardines: This is a fun game to play with a group of friends. One person is "it". This person finds a hiding place while everyone else hides their eyes and counts to 100. When the counting is over, everyone tries to find the person who is hiding. Whenever someone finds the person who is "it", he or she must hide with that person. Play continues until everyone but one last person is hiding with the person that is "it". At the end of the game, everyone is packed like sardines in the hiding spot. The last person to find the group is "it" for the next game. 

3)Play Driveway Baseball: Draw a baseball diamond on the driveway like the sample below. Have children take turns kneeling at home plate and tossing a stone or bean bag at the diamond. Try to get your stone to land on one of the indicated spots for a hit. If you miss the mark, it is considered an out. Players can play as many innings as they wish.

4) Make a Nature Rubbing Book: Take a walk around the block with some pieces of paper and a few crayons that have no paper covering on them. When you see something that has an interesting texture, take a piece of paper and a crayon and make a rubbing of the object. Some interesting things to do rubbings of are: sidewalks, tree bark, leaves, etc. When you get home, you can staple your pages together to form a book.

Have fun outside this week and enjoy the sunny weather!