Remember Our Soldiers
Materials for experiential,active learners
Bell Ringers!
Updated regularly
Mrs. Portulaca Purpilopilis
and the Purple Adventure Goggles
Facts to Wow your Friends!
Teaching Ideas!
Mrs. Waffenschmidt
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Mail Gail:
Gail Hennessey
DogoNews: Fodder for Young Minds
WPClipart.com
BBC Website for Kids
by The JavaScript Source
Welcome to My Website for Educators!
Teach PEACE and TOLERANCE
"If I can not do great things, I can do small things in a great way."Martin Luther King
Try doing an act of kindness for someone, today!
"The purpose of life is to amount to something and have it make some difference that you lived at all."(Dear Abby)
"Remember no one can make you feel inferior without your consent."
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Mrs. Paddington and the Silver Mousetraps
Freebies for DECEMBER:
2. Aviation Fun Facts: Remembering a Historic Day in History: Wright Brothers Fly over Kitty Hawk, NC!(Dec. 17th):Fun Facts about Aviation 3. Snow Factoids:Snow Factoids 4. Happy New Year! New Year's Eve Customs 5. Rockefeller Center Tree: Rockefeller Christmas Tree Fun Facts
Highlighted Resources for DECEMBER:
1. What exactly is impeachment? In U.S. History, only two presidents have had charges of impeachment. Those presidents were Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. Neither were convicted and finished out their terms of office. A third president, Richard Nixon, was going to be impeached but he resigned, pressured by members of his own Republican party, before he was impeached. There are 10 web questions on this topic(including the Order of Succession and the Checks and Balances between the three branches of government). There is also a short Did You Know? section and several comprehension questions. The Teacher Page includes the key and several extension activities.What is this Word Impeachment?A Webquest
2. Rosa Parks Day is December 1st. Check out this Ms. Bie Ografee Reader's Theater Script on Rosa Parks! Rosa, called the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement", helped to change the way things were on a bus ride home from work. The fun/informative play uses the format of Rosa Parks being a guest on a talk show and the studio audience asks questions about her life and contributions. Great for Black History Month in February or Women's History Month in March. Comprehension questions/extension activities, key. Rosa Parks, A Reader's Theater Script
3. Holiday Traditions from Around the World Webquest: Whenever different cultures meet, ideas are exchanged. Did you know that skiing was started by the people of Norway? Did you know that the kite and fireworks were invented by the people of China? The idea of Trial by Jury and the idea of Democracy come to us from the Ancient Greeks. During the holidays is a great time to share with kids the many traditions which have been shared with different cultures. Learn the history behind some popular holiday traditions with this webquest. Holiday Traditions from Around the World, A Webquest
4. Charles Dickens :With this being the time of year for the story, A Christmas Carol, it's a great opportunity to learn about its author,Charles Dickens. One of the most famous writers of all times,Dickens also wrote Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield and more. My webquest includes 8 fun/informative questions to learn about Dickens. Additional activities/links,too: Charles Dickens, A Webquest I also have a Ms. Bie Ogrefee Reader's Theater Script on Charles Dickens: There are 11 questioners in the play as well as a Did You Know? section of fun facts, comprehension questions and a teacher page with extension activities, additional links and the key.Charles Dickens, A Reader's Theater Script
5. Which president didn't allow a Christmas tree because he was an environmentalist? Which president organized a snowball fight in the White House for kids(using cotton balls). Which president hired a camel to entertain kids at Christmas time? Learn 12 informative facts about the Holidays at the White House with this possible Interactive Notebook Activity: Holiday Traditions at the White House, A Webquest
6. Learn about the History of New Year's with this fun/informative web quest. There are nine questions, lots of interesting customs of how people celebrate New Year's around the world, comprehension questions, extension activities and the key. Great activity for reading for information and research/computer skills. Included are also other holiday New Year's celebrations including Diwali, Chinese New Year, Songkran and Rosh Hashanah. The resources also mentions how April Fool's Day originated over when to celebrate New Year's!New Year's Eve Customs from Around the World, A Webquest
7. History of Candy:The first in my series, Everything Has a History. Why not show your students that even candy has a history with this fun/informative web quest! Learn facts including marshmallows date back to 2000 BC and King Tut's Tomb contained licorice. I also have included several additional resources and extension activities. Great for a Friday, a day before a vacation activity or just when you'd like to share with kids that...everything has a history! History of Candy, A Webquest
8. The Wright Brothers first flight was December 17th . Did you know that people actually thought that the airplane would have not real purpose? Less than 10 people showed up for the Wright Brothers attempt to make history on that December 17, 1903, morning. This informative web quest will help students learn about the Wright Brothers and their first flight. Extension activities as well as additional links for information are also provided as is the key. Wright Brothers, A Webquest I also have a Reader's Theater Script on the Wright Brothers: The Wright Brothers, A Reader's Theater Script
Additionally, I have a Reader’s Theater Script on Female Pilots during WW2, Amelia Earhart, Bessie Coleman and the Tuskegee Airmen. I have a reading passage on Aida de Acosta. 9. Teaching American History and want to introduce your students to First Ladies of the United States? Try this fun and information play based on the Mark Goodson Production To Tell the Truth Game Show on Mary Todd Lincoln. Students in grades 4 and up will have fun acting out their parts and learning some interesting facts about First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln whose birthday was December 13th. Discussion questions, comprehension questions and activities are also included: Mary Todd Lincoln, A Reader's Theater Script
10. If you live where there is snow, you have probably built a snowman. The snowman has been around for quite a while. In fact, the earliest drawing of a snowman was found in a book dating back to 1380! The book, "Book of Hours" was found in a library in the country of the Netherlands. Read about a famous sculptor hired to make a snowman, a snowman which helps predicts the weather in Switzerland and two more stories about snowmen! Four short reading passages that have to do with snowmen with questions and extension activities:Snowmen,Four Reading Passages
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Use my THINGY letters to have kids write spelling words, vocabulary words or as an art activity! Have students try and guess what some of the THINGY Letters are.(also have Black/White option):ClipArt: Alphabet Thingy Letters!
Check out my series of Children's Books from Aadarsh Publishing!
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LOOK!
Stop Bullying!
To any young people visiting my website. Please,if you are being bullied, seek help...SPEAK TO AN ADULT today!And, if you SEE something that looks like bullying-SAY something to an adult!
Check out my Pinterest page to see all my resources in one easy place!Click here to learn more:Gail's Social Studies Emporium(and More)
IN THE NEWS TODAY:12/6/2019:
Miguel is helping to illuminate the holiday lights at the Tennessee Aquarium. Miguel is an electric eel! When searching for food, the eel send off bursts of energy. When he is eating or excited, Miguel releases more energy. The energy helps to power a Christmas tree outside Miguel's tank.
Photograph from USAtoday.comScientists say a recent discovery may be the oldest prehistoric puppy ever unearthed. Found in Russia's Siberia, the very well preserved pup has its teeth, fur and even its eyelashes. It is thought, Dogar, as it is being called, could be 18,000 years old!
Photograph from livescience.comVR(virtual reality) headsets are worn by humans but now some dairy COWS in the country of Russia are wearing them, too. Made specifically for their heads, scientists think that a sunny spring/summer experience will make the cows happier and produce more milk during the bleak winter months.
Photograph from BBC.co.uk/newsroundArchaeologists are roaring about a new discovery. Five lion cub mummies were recently found (plus cobras, crocodiles, cats and a mummified scarab beetle). Previously, only one lion mummified has ever been discovered(2004) but this is the very first time lion cubs have been discovered, mummified by the ancient Egyptians. The discovery was made in Saqqara, Egypt, an "ancient city of the dead"". The lion cubs, about 3 ft. long, believed to be about 2600 years old, were found in wooden boxes with ancient Egyptian writing, called hieroglyphics. Scientists also found two other mummified wildcats which may be a panther, leopard, cheetah or lioness. 
Photograph from smithsonianmag.com
Artificial intelligence has been used to help archaeologists,from Yamagata University in Japan,find new Nazca line patterns in the Peruvian desert. Given information about previous Nazca lines, some over 2000 years old, the IBM Watson computer reviewed satellite and aerial images. It discovered a new geoglyph, a human looking image. It spanned 16 feet. The character looks like it is wearing a headdress, has a rectangular head and is carry a stick. The face has three dots suggesting eyes and nose. Using AI by archaeologists may help make more archaeological discoveries.
Photograph from livescience.comThe National Zoo in Washington,DC, is saying goodbye to Bei Bei, a 4 year old panda. Pandas are native to the country of China and the pandas found outside of China are on loan. In 1984, China announced that all pandas when they reach the age of 4, must be returned to China. Bei Bei, named by former First Lady Michelle Obama and the first lady of China, will be going in style on his own Boeing private plane. Called the Panda Express, he will even have a song playlist to listen to during the long journey back to China as well as his special favorite foods including apples, sweet potatoes, biscuits and bamboo.
Photograph from ABC.comPAST NEWS STORIES
Special thanks to EducationWorld for letting me use this image of my "alter ego" as Mrs. "Waffenschmidt!
About Gail:
I have retired from teaching after 33 1/2 years in the classroom. Of that time, I taught Grade 6 Social Studies teacher for 31 1/2 years.I earned my BA in early secondary education with a concentration in social studies from SUNY Oneonta, New York, and my MST in social studies education from Binghamton University in New York. In 1988, I was awarded the Outstanding Elementary Social Studies Classroom Teacher of the Year Award from the New York State Council for the Social Studies. Additionally, in 1988, I was also awarded the Outstanding Elementary Social Studies Teacher of the Year Award by the National Council for the Social Studies. I am the author of 8 books for teachers and over 30 books for children(Purple Turtle Series by Aadarsh Publishing). In 2019, my new series of three books, "Odd History" will be published by Red Chair Press.
My work has appeared in most children's publications including:
Appleseeds,Scholastic's Super Science,Scholastic's Science World,Highlights for Children,Jack and Jill,National Geographic World, Ranger Rick, Cobblestone, Faces, Muse Magazine,Contact Kids, US Kids,Action Magazine(Scholastic),Girls' Life,Boys' Life,American Girl, Instructor,Creative Classroom,Middle Years,Time for Kids,Scholastic News,Scholastic News Zone, Time for Kids , Ask Magazine, Dig,Calliope, Cobblestone, FACES, Studies Weekly, Glo Adventurer, and more.
