Thanks to Education World for use of my Mrs. Waffenschmidt illustration.

Thanks to Education World for use of my Mrs. Waffenschmidt illustration.
Click on icon to go to my website: http://www.gailhennessey.com

Friday, April 30, 2021

Using the News in the Classroom: Camel Brings Library Books to Remote Villages in Pakistan

camel 1


This could be an activity for a Friday or for a Substitute.


Using the News in the classroom: 

A most unusual “ bookmobile” has come to villages in the country of Pakistan. Roshan, the camel(name means “ bright light” ), brings library books to kids in remote villages in Pakistan. With the pandemic closing schools, a program was established to have Roshan, a 12 year old camel(and his herder), bring books to the children to keep up on their reading skills. The "Camel Library" operates in a village for 2 hours. Kids exchange books with Roshan’s following visit. Every week, the camel travels the rough terrain, roads too narrow for vehicles to six villages. Started as a pilot program, Roshan and the books he carries has been extended. A principal and her sister came up with the idea. A book society(Alif Laila Book Bus Society) has donated the books. In just 6 weeks, more than 150 children have benefited from the program.


1. Pretend to be Roshan and write a day in your life of bringing books to village children. What do you see? do? hear? etc.


2. Look up the country of Pakistan and write 3 facts learned. https://www.kids-world-travel-guide.com/pakistan-facts.html and https://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/countries/pakistan.html


3. Draw a picture of Roshan, the camel, and write 3 facts learned about camels.


FUN FACTS about CAMELS!

  1. Dromedary camels have beautiful long, two rows of lashes. They are important for keeping sand out of their eyes and their eyes clean.
  2. The word “camel” comes from the Arabic language and means “beauty”.
  3. “Camels are known to spit when upset or excited. Not just saliva, their spit contains their stomach contents, too. Guess you can say it’s more like throwing up on people.
  4. A camel has thick leathery gums, making it easy for a camel to eat thorny plants. 
  5. Did you know a camel can run up to 40 mph?
  6. 6.  Camels are called the “ship of the Desert” in their native lands of Asia and Africa. They can go about a week without water and about one month without food.
  7. The average size of a dromedary (one hump) camel is between 7-11 ft. tall! They can weigh a whopping 800-1300 pounds!
  8. George Washington brought a camel to Mt. Vernon for the Christmas holiday, in 1787. He spent about 870 in today’s money for the camel visit.


Additional Resources on Camels: 

https://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/animals/camel.html


https://www.coolkidfacts.com/camel-facts-for-kids/


http://animalia.bio/dromedary-camel


https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/bactrian-camel





Reading Passage on George Washington and the Camel:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/George-Washington-and-the-Camel-1787-A-Reading-Passage-6401974



Teachers Learn more about this Topic:(and to see photographs of Roshan) 

Photograph from: rte.ie
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Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Rhino Day is MAY 1st!

 Save the Rhino Day is May 1st! 



FUN FACTS about RHINOS!
1. A crash is what you call a group of rhino
2. A Black rhino can run up to 40 mph...on its toes!
3. About 50 pounds of manure is produced by an adult white rhino EVERY day.
4. A white rhino isn't really WHITE. It's name comes from an Afrikaans word meaning wide(for its mouth). The word is wyd. White rhinos are really grey.
5. A black rhino isn't really BLACK. Also a grey/brownish color, it got its name for the dark wet mud that they often have covering their bodies.
6. Did you know that a rhino is a relative of the zebra, tapirs and horse?
7. The word, rhinoceros comes from the Greek words-rhino(nose and ceros(horn)
8. After the elephant, the white rhino is the largest land mammal. A white rhino can weigh up to 5000 pounds.  
9. Eating only plants, a rhino is a HERBIVORE.
10. The horn of a rhino is not ivory but keratin, a material found in fingernails.
11. Rhinos have VERY bad eyesight! They do have great hearing and a great sense of smell.
12. Rhino have wandered the earth for over 50 million years(and haven't changed much in their appearance)
13. Did you know that there are 5 species of rhino? (White, Black, Javan, Sumatran, Indian)

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:
Use a world map and have students locate the areas of the world where rhinos live in the wild. (Rhino can be found in Africa countries including South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Tanzania,Kenya and Uganda. They can be found in  India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Burma, Nepal and Vietnam. Rhinos are found on the island of Java. There may still be rhino in  Sumatra and Borneo.

Write a Day in the Life of a rhino. What did you do? What did you see? Feel? Smell? 


Read an interview with a Rhino ranger/keeper: https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/discover/animals/general-animals/how-to-be-a-rhino-ranger/ Pretend you work with rhinos and write a diary, including 3 facts learned about rhino.

Make a poster and share 3 facts about the rhino to create awareness for Save the Rhino Day!



Look at a photograph of a rhino. http://www.savetherhino.org/rhino_info/species_of_rhino Write a description of what you see.

Link:





Gail
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Space Day is May 7th!

 







In 2021, Space Day is May 7th. Held the first Friday in May, the day to recognize space and spark young people in science, was in 1997. In 2001, astronaut John Glenn promoted the day as International Space Day.

1. Write THREE facts you know about space.
2. What are three character traits you would give an astronaut and why?
3. What would be your biggest fear as an astronaut?
4. If you could bring ONE personal item with you on a space mission what would it be and why?
5. Do you think there may be life on other planets?
6. Write TWO questions you’d ask an astronaut.
7. Illustrate one of the Did You Know? factoids.





Did You Know?
1. Dennis Tito, became the first  space tourist in 2001.He paid $20 million to spend 8 days at the International Space Station.

2. Snoopy, the Peanut character, is the safety mascot of NASA astronauts

3. Wan-Hu, a Chinese man that lived around 1500 AD, may have been the first in space. 47 Rockets were attached to a chair with two large kites. He was never seen again!• The word astronaut is Latin for “star sailor.

4. The first person to walk in space was Russian, Alexei Leonov(1965).

5. The first American to walk in space was Ed White(1965)

6. President Nixon called Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin while they were taking photographs of the flag on the moon. Nixon said of the telephone call that it “was the most historic phone call ever made from the White House”. 1969

7. Scientists hope that there will be a manned mission to MARS by 2025.

8. Venus is the hottest planet. Although Mars is closest to the sun, its atmosphere can’t regulate temperatures. Venus is about 450 degrees C. on its surface.

9. Pluto was demoted from being a planet(2006). It is called a dwarf planet. Ceres, Haumea, Makemake and Eris are the four other recognized dwarf planets

10. The first man-made object in space was launched by the Russians in 1957. It was called Sputnik. It was the beginning of the “Space Race” between Russia and the USA.

11. Famous Halley’s Comet returns to our solar system every 76 years. It will be visible in 2061.

12. A Latin word, “alien” means “stranger” or “foreign”.

13. The planet Saturn has officially 53 moons. Another 9 haven’t been confirmed as moons.

14. Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system.

15. About 4.24 light years away, the sun is the closest star to the Earth.

16.Stars don’t really “twinkle”. The light of stars is distorted by the Earth’s atmosphere making the appearance of twinkling.

17. A group of solar systems is called a galaxy. We live in the Milky Way Galaxy.

18. It is estimated that there are 500,000 pieces of junk floating around in space! 

19. The first person to believe that the Earth revolved around the Sun was Nicolaus Copernicus. People at the time believed the EARTH was the center of the universe and the sun revolved around the Earth.

20. The ONLY person to walk in Space AND travel down into the deepest trench on Earth, the Mariana Trench, is Dr. Kathy Sullivan!(2020)

Resources of Possible Interest:



Check out this resource: https://www.nasa.gov/stem/forstudents

Illustrations from WPClipart and NASA
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Thursday, April 22, 2021

Everything has a History, Even Pretzels! National Pretzel Day is April 26th



 Everything has a history, even pretzels! Thought to be one of the oldest snack foods, the pretzel had its beginnings in the country of Italy. 




April 26th is National Pretzel Day! 

The phrase “tying the knot” comes from a Swiss tradition where at a wedding, the couple would make a wish and break a pretzel. 

A 1581 German cookbook shared a recipe for pretzel soup. It was made from water and puree of pretzels. 

Baldies are what pretzels made without salt are called. 

The state of Pennsylvania is called the nation’s Pretzel capital, since 80% of all pretzels made in the United States are made in Pennsylvania. Learn more with this Reading Passage on the History of Pretzels, including a map activity, Additional Fun Facts and activities.





Learn more about the History of Pretzels with this reading passage which includes a map activity, additional fun facts, comprehension questions and a teacher section with activities.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/PRETZELSReading-Passage-2484346?st=607b59453b1d1eaf0eec108a613a4e35&fbclid=IwAR3AJ5J99nudBNmPtzXDqA26_IN4UaihKjhkpSGvgvNWvsFRV62g2DhdgPw


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Arbor Day is Friday, April 30th! Factoids about Trees(INA)

 






* Feedback appreciated

TREES!  
Interactive Notebook Activity
 by
Gail Skroback Hennessey

Arbor Day 2021 is April 30th 
It’s a time to celebrate trees!

Can you think of THREE ways in which TREES are important to us?




Did You Know?

1. The Botanical Gardens Conservation International  announced that there are 60,065 different species of trees in the world.(2017)

2. The most endangered tree species according to the Botanical Gardens Conservation International is the karma gigs. Found in the country of Tanzania, there are only six trees left. Where in the world is Tanzania?

3. The tallest tree in the world is the Hyperion. The tree is 379.4 ft.(115.6m) tall and is located in California’s Redwood National and State Parks. The tree is taller than the Statue of Liberty (305.6ft or 93.1m) and the famous Big Ben(316 ft or 96 m) found in London, England.

4. The largest tree in the world is the General Sherman. The giant sequoia stands 275 ft.(or 83.8 m). Twenty people holding hands would be needed to circle the base of this tree!

5. For many years, the oldest individual tree in the world has been a bristlecone pine named Methuselah.It’s location is a secret but it is located in the White Mountains of California. It is estimated to be about 4,,848 years  old. In 2013, another bristlecone was found to be about 5,066 years old. This tree may now be the world’s oldest tree.The unnamed tree is located in the same forest. What would YOU name the tree? http://www.livescience.com/29152-oldest-tree-in-world.html

6. There is a clonal tree in the country of Norway which has a root system estimated to be about 9552 years old! It is called Old Tjikko. A clonal tree grows when their branches touch the ground and start new roots.

7. The beautiful cherry trees, found in  Washington, D.C., were a gift from the people of Japan. Back in 1912, 3000 trees were gifted by the mayor  of Japan. Interestingly, in 1981, the United States gifted cuttings of some of the cherry trees back to the people of Japan, after many of their trees were destroyed in a flood.

8. Did you know that Guinness World Records says the manchineel tree is the “most dangerous tree” in the world? Just getting the sap of the tree on your skin can cause blisters. Getting the sap in your eye could actually cause blindness! This tree is found in tropical regions of North and South America.  Can you name 2 countries found on North America? Can you name 2 countries found on South America

9. There is a tree called the Great Banyan Tree, found in the country of India that is called the “widest tree in the world”. If you look at the “tree” it looks like a forest as the “tree” covers 3.5 sq. acres of land in the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden. Its branches reach the ground and sprout new growth. Is the Banyan tree a “clonal tree”?

10. Did you know that one tree can inhale about 48 pounds of carbon dioxide a year?

11. Some people like to grow trees in a small dish. Called bonsai, the word means “tree in tray”. Growing living trees in this way is an art form from Japan. China also developed a similar type of art, too. Name ONE Fact about the country of Japan.  Name ONE fact about the country of China.

Your turn:
1. What do you think these quotes mean? Illustrate on of the quotes.
A. “The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn”.  Ralph Waldo Emerson
B.“A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people. ” 
2. List 7 products we get from trees.
3. Write a diary entry about a day you took a walk into the woods. What did you see? Hear? Smell? Feel?
4. Draw a picture of a tree. Write three ways in which trees are important.


Teacher Page:
1. Have students learn about bonsai trees with this reading passage. Write 4 facts learned: http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/virtual/bonsai/bonsai01.html
2. Show students the Great Banyan Tree: http://unbelievablefactsblog.com/post/75501683200/the-great-banyan-treeb  Write a poem about the tree.
3. Have students illustrate one of the Did You Know? facts.
Links for additional information teachers:
Resources of Interest on this Topic:
1. Learn about the history of Arbor Day and all about trees with this web quest. There are 11 web questions, a Did You Know? section, comprehension questions and a teacher section with keys, additional links and lots(11 extension activities).This could also be something to use with EARTH DAY, when you are studying TREES and, of, course, for ARBOR DAY!
2. A Biologist and marine zoologist, Rachel Carson’s books shared her love of nature, especially the ocean and its inhabitants. Her book, Silent Spring, sparked concern in how chemical pesticides were harming our environment. Carson helped to start the environmental movement in our country, which led to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This Reader's Theater Script on Rachel Carson could be used as a STEM biography any time of year or especially during the time of Earth Day.https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Rachel-Carson-A-Readers-Theater-Script-3071478




Illustration from wpclipart.com
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Thursday, April 15, 2021

National Shakespeare Day is April 23rd!

 



William Shakespeare
In Great Britain, Shakespeare Week is celebrated in the middle of the month of March!
The anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death is April 23rd. It is called National Shakespeare Day. Trinity Church, in Stratford -upon-Avon, where Shakespeare was born rings bells on this day and the mayor of the town leads a procession to the grave of Shakespeare where flowers are placed.

What do YOU know about this world famous writer?


Did You Know?

An estimated 1700 words which we use all the time were first used in the plays of Shakespeare.

Words such as eyeball, hurry, lonely, frugal, majestic and generous are just a few. Shakespeare also used lots of expressions that are common today. Examples include: “Knock,knock, Who’s there?”, “green eyed monster”, “vanish into thin air”, “wild goose chase”, “makes your hair stand on end”, “so-so”, “good riddance”, “tongue tied”, “night owl” and “eaten out of house and home”.

Another interesting fact about Shakespeare you may not know is he is the reason there are millions and millions of starlings in North America! Native to Europe and parts of Asia, the story goes that a person named Eugene Schiffelin really loved the work of Shakespeare. He was called a “bardolator”. He decided to bring the songbird to the United States. In fact, he was part of a group that wanted to bring all the birds mentioned in Shakespeare’s works, to North America, that weren’t native to this continent. The year was 1890. The place was Central Park, in New York City. Schieffelin released 60 starlings in the famous park. Today, there are over 200 million of the birds flying over the skies of North America!

Did you Know?

1.Shakespeare wrote the words found on his tombstone. At the time, it was common to remove buried bones in a cemetery to make room for new bodies. Shakespeare’s tombstone has a curse to anyone who would dare to move his bones. Shakespeare's bones were never moved! See his tomb(and read the curse) located inside the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon. http://poetsgraves.co.uk/shakespeare.htm

2. Did you know that pencils were a new invention when Shakespeare was born?
In one of his most famous plays,”Romeo and Juliet”, Shakespeare uses the word love 150 times.

3. It is thought(based on a 17th century portrait of him), that Shakespeare wore a gold hoop in his left ear.

4. During the time of Shakespeare, plays were only performed in the afternoon.

5. Women were not allowed to participate in plays during the time of Shakespeare so all the roles were performed by men.


Your Turn:
1. Illustrate an expression of William Shakespeare. See examples below in 3.  Place three of his expressions into sentences.

2. What are 2 character traits you think a writer needs to have?

3. Select one of the quotes of Shakespeare and illustrate it. Write a short paragraph explaining what you think the quote is saying.
A. "Better three hours too soon than a minute too late."
B. "It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves."
C. " I would challenge you to a battle of wits, but I see you are unarmed."
D. "What's done can't be undone."
E. "Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none."

4. Create a compliment using Shakespeare's words. Go to this link: https://www.folger.edu/sites/default/files/QuotesScripts_Compliments.pdf

5. See the grave of William Shakespeare and what he had written on it: http://poetsgraves.co.uk/shakespeare.htm Interestingly, recent scans seem to suggest that Shakespeare's skull is missing from his grave! Why do you think someone may have stolen it?


Check out my Reader’s Theater Script on William Shakespeare.  Shakespeare is a guest on a talk show and the studio audience asks questions about his life. Part of my Ms. Bie Ografee's Talk Show Series. Comprehension/Did You Know?section, LOTS of extension activities/links/key. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/William-Shakespeare-A-Readers-Theater-Script-2299401


Note: Other Reader's Theater Scripts on Famous Writers:



Note: Illustration from wpclipart.com Photograph of Shakespeare’s home was taken by Gail Hennessey


*37 plays are what most believe Shakespeare wrote in his lifetime.
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Sunday, April 11, 2021

Earth Day is Coming!




PLANET EARTH:
FUN FACTS
by
Gail Skroback Hennessey

Did You Know?



1. Scientists say that it takes about 500 years for plastic to decompose.

2. The Ring of Fire located in the Pacific Ocean is the largest zone of active volcanoes. 75% of the world’s volcanoes are here!

3. There is enough salt in the oceans that if you could collect all of it and spread it, it would cover all the continents in 5 ft. (1.5m) of salt.

4. Scientists say the earth travels at 66,700 mph through space or 18.5 miles per second!

5. The name "Earth" is the only planet named for an Angle Saxon word("erda") and not from Greek or Roman mythology.

6. In 1961, the first man in space, Russian Yuri Gagarin, was the first to call Earth, “the Blue Planet”.

7. Scientists say that the average person makes about four pounds(1.8kg) of garbage every day!

8. Did you know you are heavier in certain places on Earth? There is less gravity near the coast of India and more gravity in the southern part of the Pacific Ocean.

9. The earth isn’t round. It is an oblate spheroid, or “pear shaped”.

10. It is estimated that the earth weighs about 6, 588,000,000,000 million tons.

11. 25,000,000 plastic bottles are thrown away every hour in the United States. You read correctly!

12. Don’t throw away the tinfoil of a Hershey’s Kiss. About 133 sq. miles of tinfoil are used to wrap 20,000,000 of the sweet treats every day!

13. Yellowstone National Park, was the world’s first national park. It was established in 1872.

14. The Peace Bell, rung at the United Nations every Earth Day, was made from coins collected by kids in Japan to promote peace on Earth.

15. Scientists say that the jellyfish is older than the dinosaur and dates back at least 650 million years.

16. One recycled aluminum can saves enough energy for a television to run for three hours.

17. Scientists say there are more living organisms in just ONE tablespoon of soil than all the people living on the earth(and that’s over 7.4 billion people)

18. One inch of topsoil, the very most fertile layer of soil, takes over 500 years to create.

19. Seen from outer space, the Great Barrier Reef(off the coast of Queensland, Australia), is called the “single largest animal being of the world”.

20. Mt. Trashmore, in Virginia Beach,VA, is a hill 60 ft(18 m high) 800 ft, long( 240m) made from trash.(That’s why it’s called Mt. Trashmore!)


TEACHER PAGE:
Extension Activities:

1. Illustrate one of the Did You Know? facts.

2. Have kids select a photograph of the earth from space and write a paragraph as to what they see. 
3. Discuss Haiku(3 line poem with 5-7-5 syllable pattern). Write a Haiku about Earth day or something about the earth(trees, ocean, river, trash, etc.)

Links for teachers: 
http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/ very cool! See the world population continue to grow every second!


Check out these resources:
1. NOT JUST FOR EARTH DAY.Learn about the history of Earth Day and, our planet, EARTH, with this informative web quest. There are 15 web questions as well as comprehension questions and a Did You Know? fun fact section. The teacher page includes extension activities, the key, and additional links. Great for a Friday activity! https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Earth-DayWebquest-on-the-Blue-Planet-1790891


2. Learn about Mt. Everest, Nepal and the Yeti with this fun web quest! Activities,interesting facts and comprehension review,too.Skills include:reading for information and using research/computer skills. 

3. Learn lots of fun facts with this Exploring the Ocean Blue: A Web quest.There are 9 informative web questions. Fun Facts, comprehension questions,extension activities,links.Use as part of a unit on oceans,a Friday activity for a Friday or before a vacation.Skills include:reading for information and using research/computer skills. 
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Oceans-Exploring-the-Ocean-Blue-A-WebquestExtension-Activities-705943

4. Studying the ocean? Looking for a resource for Earth Day or World Ocean Day? Introduce your students to Jacques Cousteau with this informative Reader's Theater Script. Oceanographer, photographer, scientist, inventor, writer and filmmaker, Cousteau spent his life studying the oceans and the marine life that lived in the oceans. Part of Ms. Bie Ografee Talk Show Series(extensions/comprehension questions, Did You Know?, key) 
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Jacques-Cousteau-A-Readers-Theater-Script-2458467


5. Antarctica! Geographical web quest which introduces kids to the continent of Antarctica. There are 10 web quests(with lots of information in the questions), 14 Did You Know? facts, comprehension questions(including several "thought question"), a teacher page with a number of extension activities, additional links and key. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Antarctica-A-Webquest-2389374

6. Geographical web quest which introduces kids to the region of the Earth known as the Arctic. There are 14 web quests(with lots of information in the questions), Did You Know? facts, comprehension questions(including several "thought question"), a teacher page with a number of extension activities, additional links and key. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Arctic-Learn-about-the-ArcticWebquest-Distance-Learning-2889672



Gail 
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