Dear Education Leaders,

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This week's newsletter is sponsored by Target.

Target invites educators to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with free lesson plan downloads created by the Smithsonian Institution. Learn more at Scholastic.com/dreamincolor. This is just one of the ways Target supports education. It’s part of our commitment to give 5% of our income to communities. That’s over $3 million a week.

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Volume 11, Issue 41
October 14, 2009

Pumpkins Across the Curriculum
Pumpkins are the ultimate October icons -- the fruit of the month, if you will. (Yes! Pumpkins are a fruit.) This month, celebrate pumpkins with these across-the-curriculum activities. Included: Art, science, language, and math activities.

More for Halloween
Spook-tacular lessons and fun activities.

Celebrate Dictionary Day
Build skills every day -- and on Dictionary Day, October 16.

Current Events
Young Americans today know less about what's going on in the world than students of previous generations did. So what can be done to raise students' interest in and awareness of news headlines? These 25 activities will help you make use of -- and help students make sense of -- the news. Included: Ideas for connecting current events to all subjects.

Once Upon a Time...
Fables, fairy tales, folktales, legends, myths, and tall tales -- six literary genres to engage student interest.

Lesson Plan of the Day Click the link above to see dozens of recent Lesson Plans of the Day, including the lessons below that were posted last week.
The Alphabet Game - Play a small-group spelling game. (Grades K-8)
News on News - Write news reports about a visit from a news reporter. (3-12)
Holocaust Rescuers - Read rescue accounts, write reflective essays. (6-12)
Saying No! - Celebrate Red Ribbon Week (October 18-26) with plays. (3-12)
Favorite Reading - Survey classmates' reading preferences. (K-8)
http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/archives/dailylp.shtml

Education World's Work Sheet Library includes hundreds of free printables for use across the grades and across the curriculum. You will find a sampling of our printables below. Visit our Work Sheet Library for a complete selection. Math Fact Practice Math Fact Practice Work Sheets Use these printables for addition, subtraction, and multiplication math fact practice. Free Work Sheets From TLS Books Animal Families A three-column actvity: Draw lines between each animal name and it baby and group name. Every-Day Edits Primary Edits Animals A to Z: Gecko. Ele-Middle Edits Picasso, Statue of Liberty, Nevada… Writing Bug Story Starter A Halloween Who, When, Where. Choose one item from each category below. Then write a scary story based on your choices. Hunt the Fact Monster Primary Hunt October hunt #3 Ele-Middle Hunt Hunt #7 Build a Fab Vocab Vocab-u-lous! Activity Halloween words. Geography A to Z Places That Begin With the Letter D Can you name all seven places? Math Cross Puzzle Math Puzzle #1 Addition and subtraction; multiplication by a single-digit number. Make Your Own Work Sheet Worksheets for Columbus Day and Halloween Create an activity for any subject. More Printables Work Sheets from Highlights for Children Hidden pictures, rebus stories, more. Mystery State Use the clues to find the state.

News for Kids
Kid Heroes Use the Heimlich Maneuver
Three youths made headlines last month by saving kids who were choking on food.

Learning Game of the Week
Memorize quotes in teams in the "100 Famous Quotes" game.

Friday Fun
"Wax museum biographies," a great Halloween alternative.

From Our
Early Childhood
Activity Bank

Special Activities for This Week: Pumpkins and More...
Make a Pumpkin Pie
Pumpkin Fun: Smallest to Largest
Measure a Pumpkin: How Big Is It?
Pumpkin Fun: How Many Seeds?
Pumpkin Life Cycle
Great Games for Halloween
Pumpkin Pies (Art)

From the Learning Machine
Explore the coolest resources on the Web.
From the Reading Machine
Synonym Sam's Lab reinforces synonyms. (Grades 2-4)
From the Math Machine
Reversi is a fun Web site for teaching strategy, logic, and problem solving. (Grades 1-12)
From the Science Machine
Use The Periodic Table to explore the topics of chemistry and the elements. (Grades 6-12)

The Math and Science Corner

Box Cars and One-Eyed Jacks Math Games With Joanne and Jane
This week: "Snap Two It - Addition."

Vicki Cobb's Show-Biz Science
Watch a battle as two liquids struggle for supremacy.

Math Mnemonics
Borrowing in subtraction.

The Science Lab
Why No Flood?
A demonstration of the effects and influences of air pressure on surrounding materials.

The Writing Center

A Week in the Life of...
Penny Lowe's fifth graders chronicle their year -- week by week.

Writing Bugs
A Halloween to Remember
As I ran scared, my Halloween candy...
Success and Failure
Is failure a better teacher than success?

The Reading Room

Reader's Theater
Good to Be Green
Will Little Gerry Green Thumb be accepted into Nursery Rhyme Kingdom -- despite his unique appearance?

Cathy Puett Miller:
The Face of Effective Vocabulary Instruction
Did you know that student vocabulary should increase by 2,000-3,000 words a year -- and about 400 of those words should be taught directly? But how do you do it?

Reading Feature
The Authors' Picks: Must Read Books for Elementary Students
Are you looking for the best books to read with your elementary school students? Those in the know -- the authors of some of today's best-loved children's books -- share their personal favorites.

More Lesson Planning Ideas

Teacher-Submitted Lesson Plans
Teacher Lesson #1
Great Kapok Tree and Three Little Pigs teach about conflict.
Teacher Lesson #2
Present 10 homework challenges. Will your students survive?
Teacher Lesson #3
Students "discover" the Pythagorean Theorem using this lesson.

Bulletin Boards That Teach
Batty About... -- What are your students batty about? Create a showcase for their work.

5-Minute Fillers
Volume 21.

Just for This Month!
See our October Month of Fun, October Word Search, and October Coloring Calendar. PLUS! Create your own work sheets for this month's holidays and special days.

Best Books for Teaching About… Each week, Education World presents our Editors' Choices for the best books for teaching about popular classroom themes. Check out our choices and add your own recommendations to the Readers' Voices section of this week's themed booklists. Best Books for Teaching About...The Alphabet Best Books for Teaching About...Games See more great books for students and classroom teaching themes.

Fred Jones's Tools for Teaching
Making "Say, See, Do Teaching" Affordable
In the Say, See, Do Teaching method, you tell students what to do, you show them what to do, and then you have them do it. Students learn by doing...one step at a time.

Emma McDonald: The New Teacher Advisor
How to Involve and Engage Students
Student misbehavior isn't always caused by bad attitudes. Often students misbehave out of boredom. Keeping students involved and engaged is the very best solution.

Eric Baylin's Songs to Brighten a Teacher's Day
There's a Hole in Their Thinking
Excuses! Excuses! You've probably heard them all through the years. The gaps in their logic, though, seem a lot like the proverbial "hole-y" bucket: They never hold much water.

Leah Davies: The Teacher Counselor
Solutions Through Peer Mediation
Peer mediation offers schools an alternative to traditional disciplinary practices. The goal of such programs is to reduce conflict and teach problem-solving skills.

Mr. Ivan:
The Principal Poet
Education World's resident poet, Mr. Ivan, presents a poem that is sure to bring grins to school leaders everywhere. This week's poem is...
"Wearing Costumes to School"
I'd like to wear my costume
For Halloween...to school.
But my teacher says to leave it home.
She said that is the rule...
Read more...

Strategy of the Week
Student-Led Conferences
Student-led conferences help students take responsibility for their own learning, as they reflect on what they have learned and set goals for themselves.

Wire Side Chat
Film ‘War on Kids' Calls for Scrapping Schools as We Know Them
The documentary film The War on Kids argues that public schools have become overly restrictive and ineffective due in part to an irrational fear of young people's potential for violence. The film's creator said he is not certain the existing system can be reformed. Included: Examples of the "repressive" nature of public schools.

Cinderella Around the World
Teaching literary concepts is a "Cinderella story" for Kay Jackson.

Focus On...
Special School-Wide Events
Special school-wide events that get parents and the community involved are tremendous opportunities to shed light on the great work your students and teachers do every day. Those events are excellent PR opportunities too. The articles in this archive will help you plan and get the most out of special school-wide events.

Classroom Management Article of the Week
99 Ways to Say "Very Good"
Start off the new school year on the right foot. Choose -- and use -- these 99+ ways to say "very good" to your students.

Bright Ideas
Gwynne Isaacs kindergarten students "see the light."

Computer Rules Prevent Problems
Student computer use often involves situations not covered by regular classroom rules -- and the rules those situations require might not occur to you ahead of time. Our experts share their rules with you.

Partners for Student Success
Red Ribbons and Walking Shoes
During Red Ribbon Week (October 17-25, 2009), activities at one Virginia elementary school get parents involved as they emphasize their commitment to helping kids stay drug-free. A week of special events includes a group walk and a Drug Free Pledge Day.

Of Principal Concern: A Blog for School Leaders
New Study Identifies Self-Control as One Key to Student Success
Teaching kids the skills of self-control used to be a parent's job, but most educators realize they play an important role in developing this skill. You can play a role too, with these valuable resources for your teachers and your students' parents.

Education World Introduces RSS! Want to be alerted whenever Education World updates one of your favorite Channels or adds content related to a subject of interest? Subscribe today to our RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds to get new content delivered directly to your desktop! Learn about the latest new content posted to our Lesson Planning, Professional Development, Administrator's Desk, or Technology Integration Channels. Be notified when we add new content related to the teaching of Reading, Math, Writing, or Science. Be the first to see new Classroom Management resources. Sign up for a special RSS feed especially created for New Teachers. See new content related to Parent Involvement. Let us inform you when we add new resources to our Tools & Templates area. Sign up today for one or more of Education World's RSS alerts Learn more about RSS

Each week, we ask readers to cast their votes in The Weekly Survey. Cast your vote in this week's question of interest to all educators.

This Week’s Survey Question
What do you think of President Obama's plan to extend the length of the school year in order to make America more competitive globally?

Last Week’s Survey Results
Has the flu hit your school this year?  

Each week, Education World spotlights books of interest to educators. This week, read a brief summary of two more of our "top 50 books for educators."

Shakespeare: To Teach or Not to Teach -- Teaching Shakespeare Made Fun From Elementary to High School
Shakespeare probably accounts for more shelf space than any author in history, including lots of books about teaching Shakespeare at all levels. This book focuses on making Shakespeare fun to teach and to learn, and on elementary through high school. It's a particularly good book for the non-drama specialist or for a teacher who might feel reluctant to tackle Shakespeare "too early."
Click to learn more or to purchase this book.

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace One School at a Time
Greg Mortenson is an American who tried to climb K2, the world's second-tallest mountain, but didn't make it. Dangerously ill after this effort, he was sheltered for seven weeks in a Pakistani village and promised to return to build its first school. This grew into the Central Asia Institute, which has built more than 50 schools across Pakistan and Afghanistan. An engaging story about reaching across cultures through education.
Click to learn more or to purchase this book.

Click the icon to the right to see more books and many other products that are available in the Education World MarketPlace.

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The Best of LEARNING GAMES

If you enjoy Education World's weekly LEARNING GAMES feature, you'll love this book! Education World and the National Education Association (NEA) have joined forces to create a handy, pocket-size booklet of more than 30 of our most popular learning games. PLUS an extra bonus -- ten more games for classroom fun!

These classroom games span the grades and the major subject areas -- and inject a healthy dose of fun into the serious business of teaching and learning. Looking to fill the end of a hectic day with something fun and educational? Looking for a great reward for students that will make valuable use of free time? Looking to reinforce basic skills with a fun activity? These games will fill the bill!

Included in this 80-page booklet you'll find these games and more:

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Education World now incorporates www.SchoolNotes.com ~ "everybody on the same page!" The leading school-to-home communications platform, with FREE pages for teachers and automatic notification of parents and students when new homework is posted!

For a modest $24.95 PER YEAR, upgrade to Personal Edition, "Super SchoolNotes," with thousands of resources linked to your state's standards.

Click here for more information.

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MORE FEATURES OF INTEREST
Reader's Theater More than two dozen scripts, perfect for the classroom.
Best Books for Teaching About... Booklists for 30 popular teaching themes.
Sign Up for Our Newsletters Ten free newsletters full of practical ideas.
Special Education Center Tools for the special education community.
Techtorials Tutorials take the terror out of tech.

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LEAVE 'EM LAUGHING
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Cheaters Get Their Due

A seventh-grade teacher was giving a test that was right out of the Teacher's Manual. Two students had managed to snitch the manual and made copies of the answer key for the test. They were well on their way to making good grades on the test until the teacher read the answer "Answers will vary" on both their papers. Needless to say, both students earned zeros for their efforts.

More (Politically-Incorrect) Report Card Comments