Doors of Fame

Yay!  Summer’s here!  Did you have a great school year?  Did you remember to write your teacher a thank you note?  If not, don’t worry—it’s not too late!  I once wrote a thank you to my second grade teacher—thirty years later!  She loved getting my note and even wrote back.

Teachers love getting letters from their students.  I get several emails a week from former students.  Did you know teachers even save these letters sometimes?  I do—they’re on the inside of my cabinet doors near my desk.  I call this my “Doors of Fame.”  I like to open the doors and reread them and remember wonderful times with wonderful students.

What should you say to your teacher in your note? 

·        You can start off by saying thank you for a wonderful school year. 

·        Then go on to mention a few specific things that your teacher did that made the year so great.  Did he make learning fun?  Were there lots of hands on activities?  Was there a favorite read aloud book that you enjoyed? 

·        The important thing is to let your teacher know exactly what you liked about the school year. 

·        You can include a drawing, if you wish, or a picture of you as a remembrance.

Go for it!  Write in your neatest handwriting and be sure to proofread!  (I recommend writing a draft first.)  Your final copy should be your ultimate best work.  After all, your note may end up on the “Doors of Fame!”

How to Get Smart(er)

Do you feel smart? Did you know you can train your brain to be smarter? There are some interesting sites on the Internet to get you started (be sure to have your grownup help you if you need it) Here’s one site that has the Stroop test on it! (http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/neurok.html) It’s a test where you have to say the color that a word is printed in, not the color the word is spelling. It’s not as easy as you might think!

One of my favorite sites to practice math facts is http://studymaths.co.uk/games/beattheclock.html. It’s fun to try and beat the clock! The following link has some great math resources: http://www.homeschoolmath.net/online/. Check them out! It’s so much fun to learn your basic facts using the computer!

There is so much to learn about in this world—people, places, animals, inventions, you name it! The bottom line is that learning takes work/effort. If you want to get smarter, work harder! You’ll be glad you did!

July is National Ice Cream Month!

Do you scream for ice cream? Do you like to eat ice cream from a cone or a dish?

What’s your favorite flavor? Have you ever had your ice cream plop out of the cone and onto the ground? Has your cone ever sprung a leak and you got covered in sticky ice cream? If you were ice cream, what flavor would you be?

Write a poem or a few paragraphs using any of these questions to get you started (Original compositions only, please!). Send them to me by June 30th  and I’ll publish them on my website in time for National Ice Cream Day (Third Sunday in July).

I can’t wait to hear from you! In the meantime, eat some ice cream for “research purposes!”

Summer Reading

What’s better than reading a book? Reading a book and earning prizes! Every summer your area library sponsors a summer reading program. It’s free! You can participate in activities such as arts and crafts as well as attend special events with various entertainers (clowns, magicians, storytellers, etc.).

What if you’re at camp all summer and can’t get to the library? Scholastic.com has a free summer reading program http://www.scholastic.com/summer. All you have to do is sign up, read like crazy, and then log your reading minutes.

But that’s not all! According to Scholastic, “The 20 schools with the most minutes logged will receive recognition in the 2012 Scholastic Book of World Records.” How awesome! Can it get any better than that? Yes! All you have to do is participate in weekly reading challenges, earn digital rewards, enter sweepstakes to win fabulous prizes, and more.

Kids who read succeed! What’s your plan for success this summer? Please leave me a comment. I’d love to hear from you!