Just a quick note of thanks to NCSS 2012 for a wonderful learning experience here in Seattle. Being chosen as the Elementary Social Studies Teacher of the Year has been one of the most rewarding and inspiring experiences in my 23 years as an educator. Thank you to all of the teachers and educators who [...]
Last year’s Little Longhorn Walk4Water was such a success that a non-profit organization, Students of the World, joined our Little Longhorns and made a Public Service Announcement that will be featured on a world-wide scale. So exciting! Go Lil’ Longhorns, H2O for Life, P&G, and service learning! Check it out! http://vimeo.com/47625824
Happy 2012 School Year! What a great time to teach social studies. With the upcoming presidential election and all of the events surrounding it and Constitution Day right around the corner, opportunities for integrated social studies and language arts are everywhere. In our first 2 weeks at UT Elementary, each and every classroom has established [...]
What are your thoughts? Is the value of historical simulations worth the extra effort it takes to plan, inform, prepare, adapt, and navigate the needs of students, parents, and school?
When and how do you use simulations, and how do you ensure that they are done with the care and sensitivity that they require?
It’s summertime and, as all teachers know, it’s PD time as well. I am excited and honored to get to return to Tyler ISD and share more ways that social studies can be integrated into language arts. I am updating my presentation to include the cool technology and performance strategies we piloted this year at UTES. As always, the kids are the stars and I’m the director of their learning.
Last week our UTES Little Longhorn 4th and 5th graders were the first elementary school students to see the documentary movie on energy, Switch, by Dr. Scott Tinker. http://www.switchenergyproject.com/screenings.html. This was a terrific culmination of 5th grade science and social studies units on energy and natural resources, and economics driven by supply and demand. Not only [...]
Please visit our kidblogs! http://kidblog.org/LittleLonghorn5thGrade2012/meledbetter/dear-fifth-graders/ I’ve written a letter to our students and their blogs about school are a hoot! Have a great summer, ml
Thanks to the our Dell Technology grant, and a host of technology experts who have shared their expertise, our fifth graders are officially Techies. Projects that our Little Longhorn students are working on include: Digital stories using their own Bio-Poems, Power Point Presentations on Energy sources for science, Apps4Good educational games for younger classes here [...]
Our UTES fifth graders, their families, and school community members have stepped up to the challenge of raising funds for H2O for Life again this year. I am so proud and thankful for the service learning values that our community members have embraced. We have raised $1404.90 as of today! When we were just over [...]
Our article is now published in the NCSS publication, Social Studies and the Young Learner. Elizabeth Bellows, Dr. Michelle Bauml, and Dr. Sherry Field did an amazing job of pulling my resources, lessons, and blog reflections to write this article. I appreciate all of the support I’ve received from everyone as I continue to share [...]