After learning about Dr. Salk, students interview a family member or someone they know who remembers the polio epidemic.
Dr. Jonas Salk, who developed the polio vaccine, was born in 1914.
Celebrate the 100th day of school!
As a class, students work in small groups to create a "100th Day" book.
Groundhog Day is February 2.
A celebration is held for Groundhog day where students engage in a shadow-watching activity, make predictions, and listen to news reports to compare what happens with Punxsutawney Phil.
Snowflake Bentley illustrator Mary Azarian was born in 1940.
Students catch snowflakes outdoors and sketch some of the structures, or grow their own snow crystals and examine them using magnifying glasses or microscopes.
Explore and Write About Nature
In this activity, children look closely at living things in their natural environments and then make books about what they see.
Blast Off to Learn New Words
Boost vocabulary by taking an imaginary trip into space. After a lunar "landing," children return to Earth with a galaxy of new words.
Add Seasons to Rhyming Poems and Songs
Choose favorite rhyming songs or nursery rhymes then replace the rhyming words with seasonal themes.
It's Raining Cats and Dogs! Make a Children's Book about the Weather
Kids learn about weather sayings throughout history while writing and illustrating a book for younger children.
Follow the Word Trail: Organize a Treasure Hunt
Create a treasure hunt out of word-puzzle clues hidden around the home or yard.
Send a Smile: Make a Card for a Special Occasion
Everyone loves getting a greeting card, especially if it's homemade. Make a funny or thoughtful greeting card or invitation with pictures and a poem, joke, or riddle.
The Natural World as Inspiration: An Outdoor Art Show
Children incorporate materials from outdoors with paints or crayons to create pieces of art to display on their clotheslines, fences, or porches for a neighborhood art show.
Hispanic Heritage Month begins today.
Students brainstorm all the various aspects of Latinx culture and compile topics to research. Groups then research topics and present their information to the class.
Patriot Day is celebrated today on the anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 2001.
Students write about the name "Patriot Day" and how it marks the anniversary of a huge disaster. An alternative assignment could be to ask students to record their reflections about 9/11.
The Smithsonian Institution was founded in 1846.
After exploring an exhibit online, students use the information they learned to write "A Day in the Life" narratives that tell about a person, animal, or object they saw in the exhibit.
Monarch butterflies begin their migration in the fall.
After exploring the ways that monarch butterflies react to seasons, students complete an inquiry study to examine how other things change because of the seasons and create a class anthology.
The first picture of Earth was taken by the U.S. satellite Explorer VI in 1959.
After students view the first picture from the Explorer VI Satellite, they discuss the differences between this first image and the images of the earth that we typically see today.
The prototype for the World Wide Web was created in 1990.
Students look at pictures from the past using the WayBack Machine and brainstorm a few websites to explore to think about how they have changed over the years.
Today is Cinco de Mayo.
Students choose to research a piece of art, music, dance, literature, or food that suitably represents Mexico and create a presentation for the class.
Let's Go On A Poetry Walk!
The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and you're surrounded by brilliant shades of green! Observe and collect sensory images from nature and use the sights, sounds, smells, and textures to create original nature poetry.
Go Wild with Webcams!
Can't make it to a zoo? After reading a book about apes, observe animal habits and habitats using one of the many Webcams broadcasting from zoos and aquariums around the United States and the world.