As the new semester unfolds, teachers across the globe are gearing up to welcome a fresh cohort of students into their classrooms. The start of a new term is a golden opportunity to establish routines that not only instill discipline but also promote academic growth. One such effective routine is the integration of daily reading […]
Category: developing background
Field Trips–Three Virtual Options
Field trips make learning real and give students an opportunity to learn outside the classroom. If you want to take your students on a trip to a place far away or without the hassle of permission slips or worrying about COVID, a virtual field trip might be just the answer you are looking for. One […]
Developing Background Information to Improve Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension is a very complex task. The background knowledge and vocabulary students have relating to what they are reading makes a huge difference in how they understand a text. I have no clue what I just read! As adults, we have all experienced this. Even with college degrees and as an avid reader, there […]
Day In History: January 9-15 Free Resources
Share a historic event each day with your students. This is a great bell-ringer! Post on Smartboard or write on white board and discuss with your students to develop background knowledge. If you are searching for a way to develop reading skills, check out the differentiated passages (with comprehension questions) at the bottom of the […]
Day In History: January 1-8 Free Resources
Share these events for each day in history with your students. Use the free resources to supplement your instruction. Differentiated comprehension passage available at the bottom of the page from Reading Specialty! January 1–New Year’s Day and History of Calendar Julius Caesar 45 BC decreed January 1 the beginning of the year. This YouTube video, […]
Day In History: December 16-31 Free Resources
December 16 Boston Tea Party The Boston Tea Party was held in protest against “taxation without representation” on December 16, 1773. Secondary students in AP or US History Classes or in AP Economics classes will benefit from the lesson “From Tea to Shining Sea: A primary Document-Based Unit on the Boston Tea Party.” The unit […]
Day In History: December 1-15 Free Resources
More free resources from Reading Specialty! Check out these topics! Eli Whitney Nuremberg Trials Alfred Nobel and the Nobel Prize UNICEF Marconi Nobel Prize Saddam Hussein Three Gorges Dam Bill of Rights December 1 December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus beginning a boycott which became important to […]
Days In History: November 16-23 Free Resources
Free Resources corresponding to a Day in History for each of these topics/people: Alaskan Pipeline, Chichen Itza, NAFTA (North America Free Trade Agreement), Gettysburg Address, International Space Station, Iran-Contra Affair, Battle of the Sexes (Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs), and the Marx Brothers. November 16 President Richard Nixon asked Congress to pass a bill […]
Day In History: October 1-8 Free Resources
The Watergate Scandal, Gandhi, Berlin Wall, Henrietta Lacks, Steve Jobs, The Cuban Missile Crisis and Bomb Shelters, Edgar Allan Poe, Department of Homeland Security Sharing these days in history will develop background knowledge and stimulate interest in a variety of topics. Share what happened each day in history and use the free online resources to […]
Day In History: September 24-30 Free Resources
Supreme Court, Benedict Arnold, Federal Trade Commission, Henry Ford, Confucius, John D. Rockefeller, Hoover Dam Below is listed an event in history for each day, September 24-30. Share these with your class and use the free resources with your students. (Disclaimer: Always check the resources to be sure they are appropriate for your students/level.) Scroll […]
Day In History: September 16-23 Free Resources
The Great Seal of the US, Mount Rushmore, the US Capitol, History of Hot Air Balloons, Don’t Ask–Don’t Tell, Stonehenge, Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Equinox and Solstice all have related events in history this week. Use the event in history to teach your class important background information. Keep a section of the board (or […]
Day In History: September 8-15 Free Resources
Ford Pardons Nixon, Elvis Presley, History of the Rickshaw, 9/11, Lascaux Caves,Walter Reed, the Star Spangled Banner, Sandra Day O’Connor If you are not familiar with the idea behind the Day In History resource, please check out my earlier blog post. Today’s post features the 7 topics listed above. Each is based upon an event […]
Day In History: September 1-7 Free Resources
Titanic, V-J Day, Frederick Douglas, Little Rock Desegregation, Voyager I, Princess Diana, Panama Canal Background: As a classroom teacher at the high school level working with struggling readers, I found many of them were missing BASIC background information. Discussing current events or events which had occurred in history helped my students fill this enormous gap. […]
DogoNews
The website indicates DOGO Media is a “network empowering kids to engage with digitial media in a fun, safe, and social environment. It states DOGO translates to young or small in Swahili, but there is nothing small about this free website. (Note all information in this review is about their FREE resources. Check the website […]
You-Tube Channels for Teachers
Hip Hop History Using hip hop to explain history, Emcee Hero-D has an amazing resource for teachers! Not only does he use informative and upbeat lyrics, but he adds images which will engage your students. This is a great source for middle through college students or just someone wanting to learn more about history. Click […]
Virtual Field Trips
Budget cuts, curriculum demands, and the emphasis on standardized testing have all resulted in a decline in the number of field trips students are taking. Students do not have an opportunity to see first hand the diversity of ideas, peoples, places, and historical times which a trip to a museum or historic site might provide. […]
Two Alternative Daily News Online Resource
Most teachers are familiar with Newsela. Another alternative current event website for high schools is Student News Daily. This is a non-profit organization which is provides daily news articles followed by comprehension and critical thinking questions. Another website with categories for K-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 9-12 is Smithsonian TweenTribune. Student News Daily There are six categories of articles. Daily […]
Google Cultural Institute
The Google Cultural Institute was started in 2011 and was formally the Google Arts Project. The purpose is to make institution and exhibit content available digitally. The mission is to “make important cultural material available and accessible to everyone and to digitally preserve it to educate and inspire future generations.” It features high-resolution photography of […]