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| Volume Two Issue Eleven | |
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Global Connections Inspiring Stories Featured Themes Teacher Discoveries Student Explorations The Lighter Side |
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Global Interactions Foster Talented Students
Welcome!
Another school year is upon us! As a classroom teacher you are fully aware of the challenges this busy time of year presents. New students, courses, curriculum and, in some cases, settings make this time of year one of the busiest for both students and teachers alike. The staff of Vital Knowledge extends best wishes for a successful and fruitful school year.
In our August newsletter we identified several resources for students and teachers to make the transition to a new school year easier. You can access that newsletter through our archives.
This month marks a solemn anniversary in our global community. It was three years ago that the world was shocked with the acts of terrorism directed at our American neighbors. Our newsletter, therefore focuses on resources you can use in the classroom to mark this occasion as well as other resources relevant to events and themes in the month of September.
In addition to this newsletter, keep checking Vital Picks. We have been highlighting resources teachers will find useful for the classroom. We have also been highlighting accomplishments of teachers and urge you to nominate teachers for our Vital Award.
Don't forget to visit our new resource links! Visitors may now search for resources based on the grade level and subject they teach. We've included the best we can find on the World Wide Web. We will continue to add more and welcome any sites you may wish to submit.
This month we also have a special gift awaiting you and your students in the Activity section of Teacher's Corner. Check it out, and if you have activities that you would like to share with other teachers, please send them along. We'll make sure to post them immediately and to give you credit.
Send your ideas to teachers_corner@vitalknowledge.com.
"I was stricken by news and television pictures coming from the United States this morning. It is
impossible to fully comprehend the evil that would have conjured up such a cowardly and depraved assault
upon thousands of innocent people. There can be no cause or grievance that could ever justify such unspeakable
violence. Indeed, such an attack is an assault not only on the targets but an offense against the freedom and
rights of all civilized nations."
- Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, September 11, 2001.
Although the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 were aimed primarily at the United States of America, victims of this violence included nationals from across the globe. The reverberations of the attack were also felt well beyond the North American border. Indeed, people from all over the world will stop and pause in solemn memory as the one-year anniversary arrives.
As a classroom teacher you most likely examined this sensitive issue with your students a year ago and you will probably do so again this month. We searched the World Wide Web for resources that may assist you in doing so and found the following:
USA WEEKEND Magazine's September 6-8 cover story is an exclusive letter to our nation from President Bush. As part of their Newspaper in Education program they offer a Teacher's Guide to assist you in teaching about the issue.
The National Association of School Psychologists has put together a wide variety of quality resources for marking this day. Their goal is to promote the ability of children and youth to cope with the anniversary of September 11.
The C-SPAN in the Classroom series offers sets of materials designed to foster critical thinking and learning about the aftermath of September 11th.
The Center for Social & Emotional Education (CSEE) suggests a number of activities you can involve children in to remember September 11.
CNN has a Daily Classroom Guide with activities based on daily top news stories. As the September 11 anniversary approaches you may wish to check this site on a daily basis.
The National Education Association created a special "Remember September 11th" Web site. "It brings together in one place an abundance of ideas, lesson plans, discussion points, and much more to help young people learn from the September 11 tragedy." You will find similar resources at the Clarke Center, the National Center for Children Exposed to Violence, the Constitutional Rights Foundation, and PBS.
Attitude Not Aptitude Determines Altitude
Virgil was one of those students every teacher has had and every student has seen. While other students were busy doing math, history, and conjugating verbs, Virgil sat in the back of the classroom coloring pages. While other students sat in the cafeteria discussing weekend social calendars, Virgil sat alone playing with his food. Then, almost as if the gods said, "That's enough." fate stepped into his life in the most bizarre way.
If Charles Dickens had been a student he would think it was the "best of times and the worse of times." This was the day every student was looking forward to and the day every student at Podunk High School dreaded. This was the day every student of Podunk High School would be given the annual SAT Test.
While the students pondering the questions, Virgil sat there humming to himself, "Dum, dum, de dum, dum," not reading the questions, and marking his paper A-B-C-D-A-B-C-D. He was getting on everyone's nerves, but they had learned to tolerate him, not ever really expecting anything productive out of him.
Suddenly, the teacher stood proclaiming, "Time is up. Put away your pencils, put your answer sheet inside the test booklet, and pass them to the front." That afternoon the School Secretary packaged the tests and sent them off to the Testing Center at Princeton, NJ for scoring.
Monday morning the Test Evaluator was busy putting all of Podunk's answer sheets in order and sending them through the $100,000 computer when the dark clouds began gathering outside. He pushed the button, sending all the answer sheets through the computer in rapid fire order. At the same instant Virgil's test was entering the $100,000 computer that never made a mistake, BAM! a lightening bolt hit the modem, marking every answer on Virgil's test correct, giving him a perfect score!
In the history of test taking, no one had ever scored 100% on this test, but the $100,000 computer never made a mistake so it must be correct. The Director of Testing at Princeton called the Superintendent who, in turn, called the Principal of Podunk H.S. who, in turn, called the teacher saying, "Virgil scored 100% on the SAT!
The next morning the entire staff at Podunk High was all aghast! This couldn't be a mistake because Princeton and their $100,000 computer never made mistakes. They began looking at Virgil with different eyes. They began talking to him, smiling when he talked, and welcoming him into their cliques. The students and staff began welcoming Virgin into the school and classroom. They began making room for him in the cafeteria.
The boy who had been just tolerated was now the center of everyone's admiration. The boy who had been the scorn of the school was now its star, and all because a test score changed everyone's attitude about him. Virgil began feeling better about himself, believing he was welcome, invited, and was part of the school body.
All this came about solely because of everyone's attitude toward Virgil.
Isn't it a shame that the life of every social outcast can't be indirectly hit with a proverbial lightening strike, thereby changing attitudes about them?
By Lawrence Brotherton
From: Inspirational Mail
Like other months of the year, September has special days that teachers incorporate into curricular studies. We've identified a few of these days as well as other issues prevalent during this month and searched for resources you may choose to use with your students.
Many students across North America will be returning to school after the Labor Day weekend. You may wish to look a little closer at the origins and meaning of Labor Day, or find activities to mark this holiday by visiting There's No Page Like Home for the Holidays, Fact Monster, the Holiday Spot, Kid's Labor Day, or the Illinois Labor History Society (great for high school history or social studies).
At the time of publication of this newsletter a Major League Baseball strike was once again threatening to bring an early end to this season's schedule. Ironically enough the players could walk out on the Labor Day Weekend. You may wish to further examine this issue with your students by visiting PBS News Hour. After examining the issue you may choose to have your students participate in a poll on whether or not the players should strike by visiting Scholastic News Zone. For great general resources for implementing baseball into your curriculum you may want to visit the Baseball Classroom, the Baseball Almanac, Baseball: The Game and Beyond, or the official site of Major League Baseball.
September 8 is International Literacy Day. Find ideas for promoting literacy by visiting the International Reading Association, UNESCO, or Human Resources Development Canada.
The Fourth Sunday of September is National Good Neighbor Day. Find great resources for teaching about what it means to contribute to you neighborhood and community by visiting National Good Neighbor Day, send an e-card to you neighbors at Lycos, or get involved with Make a Difference Day, which is celebrated on the same weekend.
If you are a regular subscriber to our monthly newsletter, or if you regularly surf the Internet for resources you will probably be familiar with some of the following sites. The Internet is a virtual treasure chest full of great resources for the classroom teacher. The following are just some of the more popular sites. You may wish to bookmark them for easy access throughout the school year.
Discovery School has a multitude of great resources for parents, teachers, and students of all ages. Find lesson plans, teaching tools, units of instruction and much more!
ABC Teach contains resources for all subject areas. Find teaching extras, fun activities, forms, portfolios, basic skills resources and much more!
Ed Helper contains lesson plans, worksheets, web quests, and more! For all grades and subject areas. Many resources are free, but you must purchase a subscription for others.
The Lesson Plans Page has a variety of lesson plans for the classroom teacher. Broken down by subject and grade levels. Contains a searchable database. Similar resources can be found at A to Z Teacher's Stuff.
Education Place has resources for elementary and middle schoolteachers, students, and parents. Includes Reading/Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies Centers, Intervention, Professional Development, a searchable activity database, educational games, and textbook support.
Billy Bear's Playground is a wonderful site for children. Games, holiday resources, puzzles, storybooks, clip art and much more! Kid's Domain is also loaded with great resources for young children. Games, crafts, clipart, contests and more!
Looking for other great resources? We have only given a few samples of the many wonderful education sites on the World Wide Web. Visit our resource section for a much more extensive listing. We've identified hundreds of site by grade level and subject area! And be sure to check out our Vital Pick's Archive where you will find other great resources!
There are a wide variety of opportunities for students to collaborate with each other. We have often featured sites such as ThinkQuest, School World, ePals, and the Global Schoolhouse in previous newsletters and Vital Pick's. Perhaps one of the most heartwarming ways to collaborate with other students, however, is through the Flat Stanley Project. Jeff Brown will be spearheading this project once again for the 2002-2003 school year.
The Flat Stanley project has participants from all over the world. Students make a paper Flat Stanley and mail it with a blank journal to politicians, celebrities, and other students from around the world. He is treated as a guest by those who receive him and, after a few weeks, is mailed back along with a completed journal, pictures, postcards and other items. Your students plot his travels on a map.
The Flat Stanley project is an excellent way for your students to keep abreast of current events, learn geography, and create friendships with other people from around the world. Flat Stanley has met the President of the United States, has been to space on the Space Shuttle Discovery, has visited a volcano, and more!
Take some time this school year to involve your students in the Flat Stanley project. Your class will have fun and will embark on a wonderful learning experience!
English is Tough Stuff
Dearest creature in creation,
Study English pronunciation.
I will teach you in my verse
Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.
I will keep you, Suzy, busy,
Make your head with heat grow dizzy.
Tear in eye, your dress will tear.
So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.
Just compare heart, beard, and heard,
Dies and diet, lord and word,
Sword and sward, retain and Britain.
(Mind the latter, how it's written.)
Now I surely will not plague you
With such words as plaque and ague.
But be careful how you speak:
Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;
Cloven, oven, how and low,
Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.
Hear me say, devoid of trickery,
Daughter, laughter, and Terpsichore,
Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles,
Exiles, similes, and reviles;
Scholar, vicar, and cigar,
Solar, mica, war and far;
One, anemone, Balmoral,
Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel;
Gertrude, German, wind and mind,
Scene, Melpomene, mankind.
Billet does not rhyme with ballet,
Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.
Blood and flood are not like food,
Nor is mould like should and would.
Viscous, viscount, load and broad,
Toward, to forward, to reward.
And your pronunciation's OK
When you correctly say croquet,
Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,
Friend and fiend, alive and live.
Ivy, privy, famous; clamour
And enamour rhyme with hammer.
River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,
Doll and roll and some and home.
Stranger does not rhyme with anger,
Neither does devour with clangour.
Souls but foul, haunt but aunt,
Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,
Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,
And then singer, ginger, linger,
Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,
Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.
Query does not rhyme with very,
Nor does fury sound like bury.
Dost, lost, post and doth, cloth, loth.
Job, nob, bosom, transom, oath.
Though the differences seem little,
We say actual but victual.
Refer does not rhyme with deafer.
Foeffer does, and zephyr, heifer.
Mint, pint, senate and sedate;
Dull, bull, and George ate late.
Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,
Science, conscience, scientific.
Liberty, library, heave and heaven,
Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven.
We say hallowed, but allowed,
People, leopard, towed, but vowed.
Mark the differences, moreover,
Between mover, cover, clover;
Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,
Chalice, but police and lice;
Camel, constable, unstable,
Principle, disciple, label.
Petal, panel, and canal,
Wait, surprise, plait, promise, pal.
Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, chair,
Senator, spectator, mayor.
Tour, but our and succour, four.
Gas, alas, and Arkansas.
Sea, idea, Korea, area,
Psalm, Maria, but malaria.
Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean.
Doctrine, turpentine, marine.
Compare alien with Italian,
Dandelion and battalion.
Sally with ally, yea, ye,
Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, and key.
Say aver, but ever, fever,
Neither, leisure, skein, deceiver.
Heron, granary, canary.
Crevice and device and aerie.
Face, but preface, not efface.
Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.
Large, but target, gin, give, verging,
Ought, out, joust and scour, scourging.
Ear, but earn and wear and tear
Do not rhyme with here but ere.
Seven is right, but so is even,
Hyphen, roughen, nephew Stephen,
Monkey, donkey, Turk and jerk,
Ask, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.
Pronunciation -- think of Psyche!
Is a paling stout and spikey?
Won't it make you lose your wits,
Writing groats and saying grits?
It's a dark abyss or tunnel:
Strewn with stones, stowed, solace, gunwale,
Islington and Isle of Wight,
Housewife, verdict and indict.
Finally, which rhymes with enough --
Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?
Hiccough has the sound of cup.
My advice is to give up!!!
- Author Unknown
From: Educational Humor
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