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Exercise is Brain Food for Learning

6/25/2014

Hi everyone. Are you or someone you know having difficulty learning facts for a test or quiz? Do you study and study, but it doesn't seem to sink in? Are you feeling sluggish and not up to studying much at all?
Try studying while exercising! Studies have shown that this is an effective way to learn. Or, if you are not great at multitasking, study just after you exercise.
Let's say that you want to learn and practice multiplication facts. Some ways you can incorporate your learning with your exercise could be:

*Record the facts into a recorder and listen to them while walking
*Have someone quiz you while playing doing some free throws
*Bring interesting videos like the one on this blog post to watch while using an exercise bike
*Toss a ball/play catch with a friend or parent while they say multiplication fact and you echo them

Remember, exercise is brain food for learning! If this still doesn't work, please feel free to contact me. Some tutoring may turn out to be a useful tool!

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To, Too, or Two? When Do I Use Too?

6/18/2014

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Hi everyone! I have to admit that grammar is not one of my favorite subjects. It never has been. However, I have learned some cute little ways to remember grammar rules and usage throughout the years. I continue to learn.
So, I thought grammar would be a great topic for today. How do you know when to use the word "too?" Do you know? Even if you do, you might be surprised to hear how many people don't.
Think of "me too." You want to do something or believe something as well. You use "too" instead of the word "also." It is like you are showing a togetherness. "I want to play cards and watch a movie too." You want to do both of those things. It is almost like playing cards and watching movie go together. "I want to go shopping too." You want to go shopping as well, or even with someone. It is a togetherness with someone or a camaraderie of sorts. It is like the old saying, "They go TOGETHER like two peas in a pod." Well, think of the "oo" in "too" as the two peas in a pod to remember that "too" is used to show togetherness.
I hope this helps. Let me know what you think.

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Learning with Quotes

6/4/2014

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Hello everyone! Before I start, I want to thank Betty Jo for giving me the idea for my post today. You can read her educational post that inspired me here. To read more of her posts, go to her blog, Still Learning Something New. (I love her blog title, because she did teach me something new today. It is very fitting.)
Anyway, while Betty Jo's post was about homeschooling plans about Aesop and retelling his fables, mine focuses on quotes. (She did have a link to some of his quotes, which is really what gave me the idea for my post.)
Quotes are a great way to teach life's lessons and concepts. They are short and to the point. Often, the quotes "pack a punch" with their message. It doesn't matter where you find the quote. However, if you can find a powerful source, it makes it all the more powerful of a lesson.
For example, if you want to teach your child a lesson or drive home a principle, instead of saying "this is the way it is" or "you should do this," you can find a quote and build a lesson around it. Maybe read one of Aesop's fables as an example. Get your child excited about the author. Then, show him or her the quote that drives home the message that you wanted to share. It could be one like, "We would often be sorry if our wishes were gratified." (Aesop) Ask your child what that means. Have him or her look up any words that he or she doesn't understand. (I am thinking that "gratified" might be difficult for some children to understand.) After doing a little research, I have found that "The Tortoise and the Eagle" might teach that lesson. Maybe, have your child read it. It may be more exciting for a child to say, "Aesop said…" or "this story said…" instead of Mom told me to "be careful what I wish for."
Note, if you teach in a public school and want to teach values, you may want to send a note home to parents to make sure they are fine with the values that you plan on teaching. Not everyone shares the same beliefs. However, sometimes it is good to teach a quote just as a fact of what someone has said. Let the right and wrong of it, be up to each individual student and his or her family.
Whether you are a classroom teacher, a homeschooler, or a parent looking for a way to drive home a specific point, quotes are great resources and wonderful teaching tools. What are some of your favorite quotes?

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Videos, Songs, and Humor are Often Used to Make Learning Fun

3/12/2014

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Hello everyone. I am always talking about making learning fun. Everything is easier when you can make it fun. Learning is no different.
So, "how do you make learning fun," you might ask. Well, in today's 21st century learning world, many educators will call on games, videos, songs, and humor.
I have used the DVD and book to this first video. The video is not sung by the original artist. However, it is sung very much like the original and it has the words on the screen. "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" is an alphabet book and song by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault. It is illustrated by Lois Ehlert.
My students used to enjoy listening to the story and hearing the song. They would even chime in. We would get up and kind of dance along as we sang. It has a catchy tune. So, it made learning fun! (It is things like this that made teaching kindergarten really fun. Well, most of all, I enjoyed the awe and wonderment of the children.)

Yet, kindergarten students are the only ones who enjoy catchy learning songs. This second video is called, "50 States That Rhyme Song." I wouldn't use it for a rhyming lesson. I didn't really get any rhymes in the video. However, it did have a catchy tune and it listed the states in alphabetical order. Also, when the states were listed, you could visually see where they are on the map. It is a neat little cartoon. It would be great for a geography lesson for a class studying the location of the 50 states.

And, just so you don't think that I would leave us older students, adults, and lifelong learners out… I came across this video titled, "Bloom's Taxonomy according to Andy Griffith." It uses humor to "explain" Bloom's Taxonomy. It was an extra treat, because I enjoy the "Andy Griffith Show."
I learned Bloom's Taxonomy in college when I got my degree in education. It categorizes the different levels of thinking and learning.

Yes, I have some announcements today.

*I am trying a new idea in hopes to get more interaction. Please check out the educational discussions page. I hope to have various discussions on educational topics. (I would love to know what you think of this new feature on DUO Education.)

*I have made some changes on the site. Please take a moment to explore it. Also, I would love to hear what you think of the site and the changes. I welcome any ideas, suggestions, and questions as well.

*My books, "Clarinda Cloud" and "Johnny's Adventure Makes Reading Fun" will be free on Kindle today and tomorrow. I hope you will take advantage of this and pick up your copy. Both books have some great reviews already. If you enjoy the books, please consider leaving one as well. Thank you.

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Water Cycle Word Search and Word Searches as Teaching Tools

1/22/2014

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Hello everyone! A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that I was starting to work on units and themes. I shared a poster I created on the water cycle. If you haven't read it yet, please feel free to do so here.
Today, to add to the water cycle fun, I thought I would share a word search I created using words and concepts often discussed while studying the water cycle.
Some people may feel that word searches are "filler activities." You know what I mean. It is one of those activities when you want to keep the students busy and out of trouble when a substitute is there. It is one of those activities where you don't expect the substitute teacher to do any "real" teaching. And, if you give a word search to the students and say, "Here, complete this word search," that may be what it is… just a filler activity.
Yet, I think word searches can be great teaching tools. As a matter of fact, I think they can reinforce reading skills, spellings skills, and knowledge in various content areas. Word searches helps people focus on the spelling of a particular word, because they are looking at the word and often checking and double checking the word while searching for it. They have to often read it and reread it while looking for the word. Not only that, but, if you talk about the words on the page…or ask students to write the words on the page in a sentence as another activity… it reinforces the content knowledge as well.
So, I guess, as in many other things in life, it is all in how you approach it. To me, learning should be fun. It should be something that people want to do, instead of something force upon them. Finding fun and creative ways of teaching, such as in the use of a word search is a wonderful way to motivate and encourage students to learn.

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Sandra Portman Shares her Interactive Ebooks on "Learning the Numbers" and "Learning the Alphabet" as well as Her Thoughts on Learning Those Things When She Was Younger

11/27/2013

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Hello everyone! Today, I have a guest blogger. Please give a warm welcome to children's author, Sandra Portman! She is here to tell us about her educational children's books! And...what caught my eye is that they are interactive! Sandra, please tell us a little about yourself and your books.

Now that I am retired, I get to play and do things I couldn't do while I was raising a family and working. I guess it's not so much that I couldn't do them, but there never seemed to be enough time and I really wanted to concentrate on my children and my husband. I worked long hours and I spent most of my free time cooking and baking fresh food for the family.

Now that I have "all the time in the world," I wanted to explore my childhood love of reading and writing. Back then, I spent a lot of time with friends making up stories and games for our never-ending list of clubs. I don't remember why this was so important to us, but we always had a new club for some new adventure or hobby. We even made invitations for the new club and went through the neighborhood inviting other kids to join.

LOL! That sounds like fun! I wish I was in your neighborhood back then.LOL!

Children love colorful, fun, and silly books. Funny rhymes, silly situations, and the stories that make them laugh need to be in a child's little reading library. With the emphasis on early learning and the fierce competition to succeed today, digital books are an excellent choice for parents who want to introduce concepts to their children.

Children are curious and with the levels included in these books, many children will want to read further. Some will find the buttons and have fun with them, just to see the page move. Other children will be happy to look at the same pictures until they have matured to the cognitive level to learn more. I encourage parents to help their children to learn the joy of reading by interacting with the books they have. At the same time, their children will become curious to learn more, ask questions, and be open critical thinking as they grow and mature.

My second venture into writing for children came with a new series for pre-school children. I wanted to explore the use of interactive functions within digital books. I could just imagine the fun kids would have choosing the correct answer and clicking on a button. All I needed was bright, colorful pictures ad buttons. Starting from birth, these books could start out with just the pictures from which the kids would learn subliminally.

This would have been a nice series of books for each stage of learning up to kindergarten, but I thought it would be much more fun to have all the books in one volume. Each of my children had a favorite book during those years that they wanted to read all the time. As parents, we quickly become bored and tired of the favorite book, but they don't.

To take advantage of this favorite reading habit of young children, all I did was extend the early concepts to take advantage of the levels of learning from birth to age four. This meant children would have their favorite book with all their favorite pictures that grows with them.

There are two books in the series to learn the numbers and the alphabet. Each book has four levels of learning:

Birth to age one: The goal is to respond to pictures by copying sounds and pointing and patting the pictures.
Up to age three: Answer questions, identify pictures, and attempt to read with "pretend reading."
At age three, children are ready to read by themselves, and perform activities for longer periods of time.
Age four is when children begin to recognize familiar signs and labels, and make up silly phrases and rhymes. At this age, most children can count to ten

Developing the Books

I don't use fancy software or tools when writing my books. All my books are written using Microsoft Word. In this series, the first two levels mainly use pictures and pointing to introduce children to the concept of numbers and the alphabet. In "Learn the Numbers," level 3 is used to teach children to point to each number in a collage of numbers and say the number.

In level 4, children are introduced to counting. They are presented with multiple pictures on a page and given a multiple choice answer. To answer the question, they press the correct button that corresponds to the number of pictures. If the correct button is pressed to answer the question, they proceed to the next question. If the answer is not correct, they are given the opportunity to answer the question again.

In my "Learn the Numbers" book, each multiple choice answer must lead the reader to a function; either the answer is correct or it is not. One answer will take the reader to a new section for the next question; the other two buttons will take the reader to the error message section.

Interactive Fiction Books

My new series, "Nathan, Family & Friends" are fiction stories around 2K words. In 2014 I am going to explore the use of interaction to have the reader decide where the story should go. For example, what happens to a character when different choices are made? This simulates real life and will help children learn to think before taking actions which could negatively affect their life.

I have one quick question for you before we reveal your books and sites to people, Sandra. Do you remember what it was like to learn the alphabets and numbers when you were young?

When I was in school, the process of learning the numbers and the alphabet was so tedious. There wasn't much time spent on these concepts before first grade. Once we started learning about them in school, it was very academic, repetitive, and I thought - very boring. I remember using flashcards; they were black and white and strictly used to test our ability to identify what was on the card. I also remember being very shy as a child and how embarrassing it was for me when I couldn't keep up with the flashcards.

Yes, there were quite few flashcards around when I was growing up today. There are still some today and at times, I think they have their place. I think they are better for self-study than group study though. And, I think they are probably better for learners who are older than the little ones who are learning the alphabet and numbers for the first time. But... I agree, I believe that there are far more fun and exciting ways to learn things besides using flashcards! I am all about the fun in learning here! And, I think interactive books are a great way to make learning fun!

Sandra's blog: www.sandralportman.com

You can also find Sandra on her social media sites:
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Pinterest

Here are Sandra's two educational books. Please push the book cover images for the direct links on Amazon:

Notes and Announcements:

*My character, Clarinda Cloud, has her own blog now! She will be blogging on Wednesdays, just like me. Her blog is mainly about feelings! Please feel free to explore her site at www.ClarindaCloud.com and also visit her "Clarinda Cloud's Feelings Blog."

*There is still time to win a free copy of the "Clarinda Cloud Activity Book." You can find out more information on the contest on this post. Also, there is a list of names of waterfalls that gives you a hint to the answer. And, Clarinda Cloud gives a couple of new hints in her blog post this week. Good luck!

*I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Hanukkah this week!

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Factor List: A Helpful Learning Tool

4/10/2013

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A factor list is a great teaching tool. You can do so many things with it and start some wonderful conversations about patterns and high order thinking. You can also teach basics with a factor list as well. Not only that, but it is a great reference tool.
Here, I have provided the first page of the factor list from one to one hundred. What fun would it be for you if I provided the entire thing? Although, if there is enough call for it, I will make it available either for free or for a small fee. Just let me know if you are interested. Thank you.
Anyway, I will tell you how to create your own or have students create their own. What I do is number four pages one through one hundred. (That makes 25 numbers on each page. This can also be done in two pages with two columns on each page.) Then, it is just a matter of counting off. I start with the ones and go down the rows.... one, one, one, one, one, one..... and on and on. (All the numbers have one as the first factor.) Then, I start with two and on every second number put a two... all the way to one hundred. Then, I start with three and on every third number put a three.
If you are doing it with a class, it might be a good time to talk about prime numbers. Help the students to see that two and three only have two factors. Maybe have them guess how many prime numbers there will be between one and one hundred. Ask how they came up with their guesses. Maybe ask if two other consecutive numbers will be prime numbers and ask why or why not.
Then, I go onto to four. I start with four and put a four on every fourth number. This goes on and on until the whole factor list is filled out.
To me, this is the most organized way to create the factor list. It can be done by just writing the factors for each number. However, it may be easier to miss a number that way. Although, it might be fun to do it one way during one class and the other way during a second class to compare. Find out which way the students found easier.
The factor list can be used in talking about LCM (least common multiples) or in discussing GCF (greatest common factors.) It can be used for discussing composite and prime numbers, or even multiplication and division facts. Yes, these are basic facts. Yet, the higher order thinking comes in the quality of pre-questioning you pose, like in the case of how many prime numbers between one and one hundred. Have students try to find patterns with the factor list. Another good pre-question that may be interesting is to ask students which number will have the most factors and how they came to their conclusion. Some students may guess that the higher the number the more factors it has. But... as they will see, that isn't necessarily the case.
Don't feel rushed through a lesson like this. It has so many skills it can address and reinforce. It is worth while to take your time as long as you present it in a way that holds the attention of your audience.

Please, Tell Me Your Thoughts

I would like to know your thoughts. Was this helpful? What other skills would you like me to address?

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Exercise is Brain Food for Learning

To, Too, or Two? When Do I Use Too?

Learning with Quotes

Videos, Songs, and Humor are Often Used to Make Learning Fun

Water Cycle Word Search and Word Searches as Teaching Tools

Sandra Portman Shares her Interactive Ebooks on "Learning the Numbers" and "Learning the Alphabet" as well as Her Thoughts on Learning Those Things When She Was Younger

Notes and Announcements:

Factor List: A Helpful Learning Tool

Please, Tell Me Your Thoughts

Jodi Desautels

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