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

Sunday, February 8, 2026

Presidents' Weekend Is Coming!

  


PRESIDENTIAL TRIVIA






1. Dogs, cats and birds  have often found a home in the White House. 

2. There have also been some unique pets such as John Quincy Adams’ pet alligator,Martin Van Buren two tiger cubs and James Buchanan’s elephant. President Coolidge had a wallaby and a pygmy hippo and Theodore Roosevelt had a lion, hyena, five bears, a piebald rat, and a zebra. Only Presidents Arthur, Fillmore and Piece had no pets.

3. President Washington was an avid spelunker,enjoying exploring caves. 

4. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the only president to be elected  four times.The constitution was later changed to allow only two four-year terms.

5. President Theodore Roosevelt named the Executive Mansion or President’s House, the White House.

6. Only President George Washington did  not live in the White House. It was opened in 1800.

7. The Star-Spangled Banner became the National anthem under President Herbert Hoover.

8. President William Henry Harrison only served one month after taking the oath of office, dying from pneumonia.

9. President Van Buren is said to have started the expression OK, signing paper with his “Old Kinderhook” nickname.

10. Left handed President James Garfield  could write with both hands at the same time and in different languages such as Greek and Latin.

11. President John K. Kennedy was the first president who had been a Boy Scout in his youth.

12. President George W. Bush was appointed President in 2000 by Supreme Court after the election results gave him more electoral votes but his opponent, Al Gore won the popular vote. John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. hayes and Benjamin Harrison also won the presidency without the majority of the voters. 

13. The teddy bear was named after President Theodore Roosevelt. 

14 .President Richard Nixon was the first president to resign his presidency over a scandal called Watergate.

15.President Taft became chief justice of the Supreme Court after leaving the White House, saying he preferred this job to that of being President of the United States 

16. Gerald Ford was the only president of the United States to not be elected by the people. He was appointed vice president by President Nixon and later assumed the office of president when President Nixon resigned.

17. President John Quincy Adams liked to swims naked in the Potomac River ...in the early morning.

YOUR TURN:
1. Pretend you are the President of the United States. Write a diary entry about a day in your life. Who did you meet in the Oval Office? What issue do you address? Etc.

2. Which president would you like to meet and why? What would you ask of this President?

3. What are FOUR characteristics you feel that someone who is President should possess? Why are these characteristics important?

TEACHER PAGE:
Extension Activities:
1. Try this free web quest on the Presidents of the United States: 
http://www.gailhennessey.com/index.shtml?presidentcyberhunt.html

2. Have students illustrate a Presidential Factoid.

3. Have students share some of their responses from YOUR TURN.

You may wish to check out these resources:

The Election Process! (A Webquest/Extension activities)Students will learn about the election process including who the candidates are, requirements to run for office, requirements to vote, the Succession Act, the Electoral College and more. There are 12 web questions, a Did You Know?Comprehension Questions, Teacher page with extension activities, key, links. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Presidential-Election-2016-A-WebquestExtension-Activities-2695264

Do YOU Know Your Presidents is a series of three challenges. Each challenge worksheet has 25 questions(with 3 choices). The first challenge is the easiest with the third, the hardest.There is also a Presidential Did You Know? https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Presidential-Facts-To-Challenge-Your-Students-2586425

Did You know that President John Quincy Adams had an alligator? Martin Van Buren had two tiger cubs and President McKinley's pet parrot could whistle, "Yankee Doodle". Did you know that President Franklin D. Roosevelt served HOT DOGS to the King of England? Did you know that President Garfield could write with both his right and left hand at the SAME time? Presidential Webquest/Extension Activities: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Presidents-A-Presidential-Webquest-338700

Learn about the White House with 10 informative web questions, comprehension and discussion questions and several extension activities.NEW:Check out all my resources(summaries) in one place: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Learn-about-the-White-House-Webquest-359868


I also have internet activities for students to learn about the IMPEACHMENT process and its history, INAUGUARATION DAY and its history and the history of the STATE of the UNION ADDRESS.

Gail Hennessey

Photograph from Pixabay
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Chocolate Fun Facts!

 



Chocolate Fun Facts
by
Gail Skroback Hennessey
Do you love chocolate? If you do, you may want to hide a few bars away for a future date. Seems that chocolate may be running out and, in the not so distant future. Researchers says that chocolate, which comes from cacao beans, may be a thing of the past in less than 40 years! The reason, the warming of our planet is making for less and less places for the bean to thrive. Additionally, the demand for chocolate is growing, especially in places such as China where people are  developing a “sweet” tooth. More and more people are also especially sweet on dark chocolate, which requires more cocoa than other types of chocolate. Still another problem is that a fungus is attacking the cacao beans as they grow on the trees. Let’s hope that we can solve the chocolate problem, so we can all continue to enjoy its yummy taste! 

Click here for the free downloadable version of this Interactive Notebook Activity:


Chocolate Factoids:
1. Now THIS is a chocolate bar. Weighing 12,770 pounds when made, it earned the title of world's largest! A ton is 2000 pounds. Approximately, how many tons of chocolate was this bar? _______________

2. To make one pound of chocolate, you need about 400 cocoa beans.

3. Did you know that one of the things sold in Ben Franklin’s printing shop was chocolate? Write TWO facts you know about Ben Franklin:_____________and___________

4. Do you like white chocolate? Actually, it doesn’t have any cocoa and really isn’t chocolate!

5. Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, is said to have had 50 cups of a chocolate drink every day. He drank out of a golden goblet.

6. Originally, hot cocoa was served without sugar and was a very bitter drink.

7. An amazing 23 million Hershey kisses candies are made every day.

8. Milton Hershey had tickets for the maiden voyage of the Titanic but cancelled due to a meeting. Do you know anything about the Titanic? _________________

9. At one time, people in Meso-America(Central America) used cacao beans as money. What might be two problems using cacao beans as money?____________ and ___________

10. “Chocolate” comes from the word, “xocolatl, a Mayan word for “bitter water”.

11. If you have a cough, you may wish to try eating chocolate to get rid of a cough. Seems to work!

12. Chocolate is very dangerous for dogs and cats!

13. For a time in 2013, the country of Belgium made a stamp which had a chocolate flavor.

14. The candy M and Ms were developed as a treat for soldiers during World War 2. The hard shell kept the chocolate from melting too quickly.

15. The chocolate chip cookie was first baked by Ruth Wakefield. The year was 1930. In exchange for a lifetime of chocolate, she gave her recipe to the Nestle’s Company.

16. Did you know that two countries in Africa produce half the world’s chocolate? Those countries are Ghana and the Cote d’Ivoire.

17. On Columbus’ fourth visit, he is credited with bringing back  to Europe the first cocoa beans(1502-1504)

Your Turn:
1. What do you think this saying means? "Life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're gonna get.”( From the movie, Forrest Gump.)
2. What is your favorite chocolate treat? Write a descriptive paragraph describing your favorite chocolate treat to a Martian who has never experienced the treat.
3. Illustrate one of the chocolate factoids.
4. Using a world map, locate the countries mentioned in this information.
5. Find 7 nouns. Find 7 verbs. Find 4 pronouns.


Teacher Page:
  1. Before reviewing the facts on chocolate, ask the students to share any prior knowledge they may have on chocolate.
  2. Have students review the factoids on chocolate and do the Your Turn section. Put the handout away and ask the students to write 5 facts they remember from the list.
3.  Review the responses to the Your Turn section.
Check out these resources:
The first in my series, Everything Has a History, check out my History of Candy Internet activity. 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! https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Candy-History-of-Candy-Webquest-516787

Candy and chocolate are very popular on Valentine’s Day. Check out this resource. Valentine’s Day is February 14th. The symbol of the holiday is a heart. What do you know about the human heart and the Valentine’s Day holiday? Grab a red pencil and use this web quest to find out some very interesting facts about the human heart and the holiday of Valentine’s Day!There are 9 web questions, a 20 All things Red Activity, lots of fun facts and 9 extension activities: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Valentines-Day-A-WebquestExtension-Activities-1659788



Illustration from: wpclipart.com
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Happy Valentine's Day!

    



Valentine’s Day and the Heart Factoids
Possible Interactive Notebook Activity
by
Gail Skroback Hennessey



1. At one time, Valentine’s Day was also the day to celebrate Groundhog Day! 

2. Ever wonder why lace is associated with Valentine’s Day? Seem the word comes from a Latin word, “laques”meaning “net.” Someone tries to capture  someone’s heart on Valentine’s Day.

3. Because blood is red and people once thought the heart was the center of feelings, red became the color of Valentine’s Day.

4. The first Valentine’s Day card dates back to 1415. It was in that year France’s Duke of Orleans send a love message to his wife while a prisoner in the Tower of London. He was captured in the Battle of Agincourt.

5. It is believed that Valentine’s Day began around 270 AD in ancient Rome.

6. One of the legends of Valentine’s Day says that the Roman emperor, Claudius 11, banned marriage during war time.  A priest named Valentine(some say a Bishop) continued to marry and was arrested and jailed for his “crime”.  While in prison, he sent the jailor’s daughter a note and signed it “from your Valentine.” He was eventually sentenced to death on February 14th.
7. Did you know that over 8 billion candy hearts are made each year for Valentine’s Day?

8. In 1537, King Henry VIII, of England, made February 14th, an official holiday.

9. On Valentine’s Day, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell patented his idea of the telephone!
10. Valentine’s Day is celebrated in Italy, Denmark, Canada, Mexico, France, Great Britain, Australia and the United States.

11.Back when most people couldn’t write, people often signed their name with an X. Another person would witness their “signature”. The person would then kiss their X . Today, people sign notes with Xs to stand for kisses.

12. Have you heard the expression, “to wear your heart on your sleeve”? This saying dates back to the Middle Ages when men and women would draw a name and wear their  “valentine” on their sleeve for a week.

13. Did you know that the human heart is about the size of a fist?

14. In a lifetime, a person’s heart pumps about 1 million barrels of blood! That’s about 2,000 gallons each day or 5 quarts a minute!

15. Arteries are blood vessels that carry blood from the heart throughout the body. Veins are blood vessels that carry blood back to the heart.

16. People used to believe that your heart stopped when you sneezed. That’s why people started saying “bless you”. Actually, the heart does NOT stop. It just isn’t pumping blood as well. 

17. The heart is a MUSCLE. It is found in the MIDDLE of your chest, between your two lungs. 

Extension Activities:
  1. Have students write a paragraph stating any prior knowledge they have about Valentine's Day.
  2. Illustrate one of the facts.
  3. Make a chart showing 3 of the countries which celebrate Valentine’ Day. Write 2 facts about each country.
  4. Pretend you are a human heart. Write a day in your life. What are you doing today? What are you thinking? Include 2 facts about the human heart in your story.
All things RED!
Test you “red” knowledge:


1. Name a jewel that is the color red:__________________________
                      2.   Who is the famous cartoon dog of this color?__________________________
3.                   3.   A story about a girl and a wolf: ____________________________
4.                   4.   Name a traffic sign which is red: ___________________________
5.                   5.   Name a red bird: _______________________________________
6.                   6.   Name a red insect: _____________________________________
7.                   7.   Name two red fruits: ______________________________________
         8.   Name three red vegetables:__________________________
9.            9.  Which large planet has several big red    spots__________________________page2image10520 page2image10680Teacher Page:

1. Have students watch this short video and write 3 facts learned about Candy Hearts:  http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/holidays/valentines-day-ideas/a26945/candy-heart-facts

2.  Show the nutritional information of Candy Hearts:
Calories
60

Fat
0g

Carbs
15g

10 Candy Hearts contain 60 calories.
Have students bring in a candy wrapper and discuss the nutritional information.

3. Have students review the heart diagram at this link: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/anatomy/heart/labelinterior/label.shtml

4. Check out my webquest on Valentine’s Day and the human heart: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Valentines-Day-A-WebquestExtension-Activities-1659788

5. Check out my activity, The Red Game(also included in my Webquest activity): https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Valentines-Day-The-RED-GameActivity-1666108

6.  Show kids that everything has a history with my web question on the History of Candy: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Candy-History-of-Candy-Webquest-516787
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Friday, January 30, 2026

Happy Chinese New Year 2026 ( Begins Feb 17th)

    



Note: Download the free resource at this link:


Chinese New Year Factoids
by
Gail Skroback Hennessey

Kung Hei Fat Choy! "Kung Hei Fat Choy" means Happy New Year in Chinese! 2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse. People born under this Zodiac sign are thought to be adventurous, honest, hard workers and talented. Fire Horse people tend to be positive even when dealing with difficulties and are great problem solvers.They are fast learners. Fire Horse people can also be a bit stubborn and have a temper. On the Chinese calendar, called Yan Tan, the new year is 4723. Chinese New Year is not always held on the same day each year. It depends on when the second new moon of the winter solstice occurs. In 2026, Chinese New Year starts on February 17th. It is the beginning of a 16 day celebration!



Some of the following are Chinese good luck foods and customs:
Long, uncut noodles are a symbols of long life and friendship.

Giving oranges and tangerines are symbols of wealth and good luck.

Dumplings are eaten as a symbol of a happy family.

Wearing red is thought to bring good luck.

People put up lights and decorate windows and doors with red and gold paper. Messages of good fortunes are written.

The Chinese word for fish is similar in sound to the word for plentiful, so fish are important in the Chinese New Year.

Using knives or scissors on New Year's Day are considered bad luck as they may cut your good luck for the new year.

It is also considered bad luck to wash your hair on New Year's Day.

It is considered good luck to hear a bird sign on New Year's Day.

The number 4 sounds like the Chinese word for death, so people try not to use the number on New Year's Day

Fireworks are shot off on New Year's Eve to send away the old year and welcome the new.

Before the new year, it is a custom to clean the home from top to bottom to sweep away any bad luck from the previous year.

It is considered bad luck to own money from the previous year, so people try to pay any bills before the New Year.

It is bad luck to clean on New Year's Day. You might sweep away any good luck!

At exactly midnight on New Year's Eve, all windows and doors are opened to send away the old year and welcome in the new.

If a flower opens on New Year's Day, it is considered good luck.


The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac
Several stories are told about how twelve animals came to be honored with a year in the Chinese calendar.  One is that Buddha was having a party and invited all the animals of the world to come. It was very cold and only twelve animals braved the weather to attend the party. Buddha was so grateful to those that attended his party, that each that came got a year named in their honor. The rat was the first to get to the party, with the ox being second. If you look at the 12 year calendar, which animal arrived last? Man didn't brave the weather to come to the party and is the reason that a year isn't given to man on the calendar.

There are twelve animals in the Chinese calendar and everyone has a year in their honor. The year just ending was the year of the rat. Other animals  include: pig, monkey, snake, dragon, goat, rabbit, dog, tiger, rooster,and horse.

*Purple Annie at the Great Wall of China

•Write 3 things you learned that you found very interesting about Chinese New Year.
•Write a paragraph describing Chinese New Year. Include 4 facts learned from the information listed.




Teacher Page:
Extension Activities:
  • Give students a handout of the information on Chinese New Year.  Have small groups use the information to make 5 comprehension questions to exchange with another group to answer. Regroup as a class and discuss the information presented.
  • Check which animal you were born.  Draw a picture of your sign and write three character traits you feel you have. Give an example to back up your traits. http://china.mrdonn.org/zodiac.html
      • Illustrate/color one of the customs of Chinese New Year.

 • Chinese animated folk story: The Three Monks. Write a summary of the story:  chinese4kids.net/classical-chinese-animation-three-monks/
  • Check out my Purple Annie bear’s photographs of our trip to China: http://www.gailhennessey.com/index.shtml?purpleanniestravels.html  Write a  post card pretending to be visiting the country of China. Include 3 facts learned about China from Purple Annie’s Travel page.
  • Dragons and bats are considered good luck. Draw/color a picture of either a dragon or bat. Pretend your dragon or bat could grant you three good things to happen. What would you choose and why?

You may find these resource of interest. Take a look:
  1. Let’s Explore China!  Did you know that enough dirt was used to create the Great Wall of China to circle the earth with an 8 ft. high wall? Did you know that ice cream was probably first invented by the Chinese(frozen milk/rice)? Did you know that the yo-yo was invented by the Chinese or that the number 9 and the color red are considered good luck in China? I taught a unit on China for 32 years and would love to share some my notes, activities and resources I used with my students. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/China-Lets-Explore-China-520479
  2. Country in Focus: China. A Webquest/ Extension Activities: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Country-in-Focus-China-A-WebquestExtension-Activities-1085517



Note: Illustrations from wpclipart.com
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Friday, January 23, 2026

Snow FACTS: Possible Interactive Notebook Activity

 

SNOW FACTOIDS!





Get the free downloadable version at this link:



Snow Facts
by 
Gail Skroback Hennessey
Fun/Informative Interactive Notebook Activity!

1. One inch of water is about six inches of wet snow or 12 inches  of fluffy snow.

2. The world's largest snowflake was 15 inches wide and 8 inches thick. It fell in Fort Keogh, Montana, on January 28,1887.

3. Snow can be colors other than white, including blue, orange, green, yellow, and purple.  Actually, snowflakes are clear.

4. Air pollution caused orange snow to fall over an area of Siberia, Russia, in 2007.

5. Mount Baker,in the North Cascades, of  Washington State, holds the record for the most snowfall. 1140 inches fell during 1998-1999.

6. The record for the most snow in one storm, within 24 hours, was in Silver Lake, Colorado. Back in 1921, Silver Lake received  76 inches of snow.

7. Heilongjiang Province, China,holds the record for the world's largest snow sculpture. In 2007, a snow sculpture 656 ft. long and 116 ft. tall was made.

8. Snow flakes have SIX sides.

9. On average, a snowflake falls to earth at 3.1 mph.

10. One snowflake contains about 10 quintillion water molecules(that's the number 10 with 10 zeroes).

11. Did you know that Valdez, Alaska, averages 326 inches of snow a year? That makes it the snowiest state.

12. Wilson A. Bentley studied snowflakes for much of his life and is probably the most famous snowflake researcher. He was nicknamed "Snowflake Bentley. 

13.According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the world record for the most snowmen built in one hour is 2,036. The record set, on February 28, 2015, involved 1406 people. 

14. If you have  "chionophobia", you have a fear of snow.

15. Bethel, Maine, has the record for the largest snowman ever built. A 122 ft. snow-woman was built in 2008. The record still stands in 2026.

16. In the USA, the typical snowman is made up of three parts. In the United Kingdom, two parts are usually used to make a snowman.

Extension Activities:

1. Illustrate one of the factoids.

2. Pretend you are a snowflake. Tell about a day in your life. What did you do? What did you see? Feel? Etc.

3. Do a paper cutting of a snowflake. Write a poem using each of the letters of the word snowflake.

4. Locate 10 NOUNS and 10 VERBS in the factoid statements.

5. Pronouns are NOUN substitutes. Can you spot 7 PRONOUNS  in the Factoid statements?





Check out this resource: 

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. This resource has four snowmen reading passages:
1. Famous sculptor, Michelangelo, was hired to make a snowman for a wealthy person in Florence, Italy.
2. A snow man is used each April,to help predict the weather during a festival in the country of Switzerland.
3. One of the earliest written comments about snowmen dates back to 1690. Two snowman were left to guard Fort Schenectady, in New York, during a blizzard with very tragic consequences!
4. The world's record for the largest snowman, Olympia, was constructed in 2008. 13 million pounds of snow were used to make the amazing snow-woman! As of 2026, the record still stands.

Each short reading passage includes following directions to identify answers. There are also several extension activities and a Did you Know? section.





Illustrations from Pixabay and Guinness World Records
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