The Blue Willow Journal

Table-top Maps are Great!

Recently I did a workshop for pre-service and classroom teachers. Our main activity that day was trying out the new table-top map kits from National Geographic. These are the smaller version of the huge tile maps NGS intoduced a few years ago, some of which needed a gymnasium wall to display their full glory. All of these tile maps are now called Nat Geo Mapmaker Kits, and are available in the large wall version or the new table-top version. What is great about the small maps is that they require photocopying only eight pages (tiles) while the big maps could be 120 to 180 tiles in size.

Here are some teachers working with the Water Planet and World Political map kits:

The detail on these maps is superb and the possibilities are endless for grades 3 to 12. Check them out on the National Geographic website. You'll find them under "Geography Awareness Week" in the LEARN ABOUT FRESHWATER section.

Full Circle

Every year, here in Rhode Island, when Geography Awareness Week is on the horizon, the Rhode Island Geography Education Alliance (RIGEA) tries to come up with something motivating and fun to involve kids and adults in the year’s theme. One year we had a cooking contest, another time we held a dinner with the menu coordinating with the GAW theme. This year we decided to focus on the creative arts, so in October we announced a “Rhody Freshwater and YOU” contest. Entrants were asked to create something which represented a form of Rhode Island freshwater and then explain what that particular freshwater meant to them.

We were excited to receive quite a few entries, and although the contest was open to any Rhode Islander, all the entries came from either elementary or middle school students. The elementary students sent in projects which seemed to emphasize freshwater conservation, while the middle school students reflected more on specific rivers or lakes or ponds that had provided them with fond memories.

We are pleased to see so many Rhode Island kids learning about freshwater and growing up to be careful consumers of this limited resource.

Here are the winners and their projects:

1^st Prize:

Miranda Peloquin  “Memories of My Lake”   V. J. Gallagher Middle School , Smithfield, RI

Honorable Mention:

Joshua Hersey   “Water, Water…..Boy I Wish I Had Some”   Winsor Hill Elementary School, Johnston, RI

Madalyn Moore   “Ahhh! Refeshing”   Sarah Dyer Barnes Elementary School, Johnston, RI

Ashley Shilko   “Stump Pond”   V. J. Gallagher Middle School, Smithfield, RI

Alison Izzi   “The Brook in My Backyard”   V. J. Gallagher Middle School, Smithfield, RI

 

Here is Miranda’s prize-winning entry, a great poem superimposed over an artistic background.  Included in her comments about what this lake meant to her is the following: ”I have so many memories here it’s way too many to count but I know one thing is that I love this lake and all the people who enjoy it. I would love for other people to come enjoy this lake just like I do”.

The honorable mention winners made conservation posters, created artwork and poetry:

Ashley writes: “The sparkling of the water as the sunlight shines, Is the most beautiful thing, I could watch it all the time”.

Alison says: In everyone else’s view it is just a brook, but I look at the small stream of water in my backyard as a part of my home”.

Madalyn reminds us on her poster to “save water while you can, don’t waste it”.

And Joshua includes information about estuaries (of particular importance here in Rhode Island because we live on Narragansett Bay, a huge estuary) in his entry.

In examining who entered this Geography Awareness Week contest, something interesting is afoot here. And something that should not surprise any of us. All the children who entered are students who work with educators who are active in promoting geography education.

The V. J. Gallagher Middle School kids have Cathy Pleau (cpleau@smithfield-ps.org), as their assistant principal. Cathy and I were roommates back in 1993 when we trained for two weeks during the summer to become Rhode Island Geography Education Alliance Teacher Consultants. Cathy has conducted countless geography initiatives and events for kids, parents and colleagues over the years and is presently a member of our alliance strategic planning team.

The Sarah Dyer Barnes Elementary School winner is the student of Deb Ramm (rid21594@ride.ri.net), another long-time Rhode Island Geography Alliance teacher consultant. She, too, has spent her career infusing her classroom days with connections to geography. She told me this year her 4^th grade class will focus on water all year. Her kids will be testing pond water quality and studying watersheds, pollution tolerant animals and water treatment. She’s also planning on an Electronic Field Trip with the National Park Service during this year’s water study.

Rayna Ciano (rid26156@ride.ri.net), teaches at Winsor Hill Elementary School, where another winner goes to school. I see Rayna at almost every event RIGEA puts on, and she always comes up afterward to talk, sign up for something or ask questions. In September at our annual Kick-Off meeting for the year I was telling the audience about a terrific Japanese international friendship project involving an ambassador doll traveling around the world, stopping to stay with hosts three weeks at a time. Rayna not only had signed up for the program but she had her Japanese ambassador doll with her to so she could take photographs with the little fellow and our members.

The effort these educators put in every day is working to produce geographically literate people here in Rhode Island. And that is exactly what is supposed to be happening.

Congratulations to all our winners!

 

 

The Elephant/Kid Connection

About a year ago I became a docent at the Roger Williams Park Zoo  in Providence and as I've mentioned in a previous post, it's been a joy.

Recently one of the more experienced docents asked if I'd be interested in participating in a collaborative project between the zoo and a school in Massachusetts and of course I said "yes". When I heard a full description of what this was all about I was smiling from ear to ear.

Someone working at the zoo with connections to this Massachusetts school system came up with this idea about four years ago. One of the schools has all its second grades (about 8-10 classes) study elephants. Then a team of docents and the head elephant zoo keeper from RWPZoo travels to the school and works with the students telling them all about our three elephants, Kate, Ginny and Alice, showing them many current photographs and answering LOTS of questions.

Here comes the great part. After the zoo team leaves the school schedules a math family night. As part of the evening there are questions on elephants. For every question the kids get correct they raise money from sponsors to benefit the RWPZoo elephants.

The first year this school did this they presented the zoo with a check for $4,000.00 !!! These kids, teachers and parents have made it possible for the zoo to provide enrichment equipment, special dirt (a very important and expensive item the elephants love) and a host of other provisions for these beloved creatures.

After their fundraising each year the teachers bring the second grade classes to the zoo for a field trip so they can see both Kate, Ginny and Alice and many of the things their work has provided for these animals.

As an educator I find this to be such a terrific model of exactly what we ought to be doing in educating children. First we have kids learning about an endangered and fascinating animal species. Then we have real world people who work with and educate others about elephants visiting these kids, talking with them and answering their questions. Then we have the school showing the kids how they can take some action - through their own hard work - and do something positive for these animals. And finally, these children come and see the fruits of their efforts and enjoy the animals themselves.

I call this brilliant as the English would say!

Here's Alice having a great time in the elephant pool and Kate enjoying the dirt:

Summer and School

I am an advocate of year-round schooling. The idea of school being held throughout the calendar year with several multi-week breaks makes a lot of sense to me.

Why?

There's an enormous amount of "gearing up" and "winding down" time in the present September to June schedule. Teachers and parents spend September and October acclimating their students and children, once again, to the world of school - getting them to bed early and on time to school in the morning, sustaining attention and productivity during the school day, doing homework and reviewing content material and study habits forgotten over the summer months.
As soon as warm weather arrives in April teachers and parents face an often losing battle keeping children on track and achieving as dreams of the complete freedom to come in June takes over. And let's not forget the holiday period from Thanksgiving through Christmas vacation when distractions from, and interruptions to, the curriculum are many. This all adds up to only a fraction of the September to June school year being the full learning experience it should be.

If school was a consistent part of kids' and families' lives rather than the stop-and-start schedule it is now I think it would be much more beneficial to all involved. It's almost as if school and teachers are the "bad cops" in the lives of children and families. With three months of complete freedom from a rigid bedtime and morning schedule, daily sustained attention and cooperation as a member of a group and the responsibility of homework, it's easy to see that when school rolls around it can be viewed as "no fun" and the culprit in robbing families of a much easier life-style.

Does everyone need a break from the school scene? Of course they do - and teachers are at the top of that list, believe me. If school were year-round that could still be achieved, and in a fashion that I think would be much more sensible. How about four significant breaks during a calendar year - say two 3 week breaks, one in the summer and another during the holidays. In addition, schedule two 2 week breaks somewhere in the period of January to June. The amount of time away from school would be the same as one long summer vacation but would be spaced to allow for refreshing breaks rather than a complete cessation of learning and family schedules for a whole summer. Teachers could stop spending two months of the school year reviewing and procede with no interruption in the curriculum and they could sustain progress and learning in warm weather without losing their classes to daydreaming about getting out of "prison" (school)!

I live in New England and people here are very devoted to their summers, so I imagine my views don't stand much of a chance being implemented any time soon. So here's my 2 cents on what kids should be doing over our long American summer vacations:

1. Read consistently, and make most of those books sufficiently challenging and of fine caliber. Have the child keep a dictionary nearby and look up unfamiliar vocabulary as they read. Draw or write about what they've read or discuss their books with others.

2. Review last year's math skills and be sure there are no problem areas - if there are, remedy them. Use math skills in everyday situations such as cooking, map reading, planning a party or working on a project. Be sure math facts appropriate to the upcoming grade are solid.

3. Read the newspaper or find something online or on TV that peaks an interest. Follow up on it and learn more about it. Write about it in a journal or letter to a relative.

4. Two weeks before school starts begin having children go to bed at their school-night bedtime and in the morning getting them up at their school-day time.

5. Day One of the new school year - SMILE - and remember that children are going to be working with a new teacher as a member of a group - a group that can achieve great things if everyone in the class has a positive, cooperative attitude.

Creativity!

I have been having fun the last few weeks participating in a decorative painting class - something I knew nothing about before beginning the class.  I have learned a lot due to a great teacher who gives us much attention and support.
Below are a few scenes from her terrific studio space where, although we are all working on the same project, we are each producing something unique.

Flying Wild

This past Saturday I attended an all-day workshop on bird conservation called "Flying Wild", developed by the Council for Environmental Education (CEE) in Houston, Texas. It's designed for middle school students but I found it readily adaptable to other ages, especially younger children. We received an extensive manual with plans for lots of activities as well as an outline for planning an all-school bird festival, along the lines of a geography night for families. Great stuff, and here are a few photos of teacher participants during the "bird walk" portion of the workshop:

Making Big Table Maps

I attended a summer institute on China some years ago and during that experience was introduced to the idea of making "big maps" with students. Educationally there are so many benefits for kids of any age in creating these and it is a fun process as well.
The basic idea is to project a map outline onto large paper on a wall and trace it. You can make almost any size map you would like doing this depending on the size of your paper and where you position your projector.
I recently came up with a neat modification of this method by cutting out the projected map outline and tracing it onto a foam 3-sided presentation board (the kind kids use at science fairs). This then gives you a rigid, foldable map that is easy to store and transport, and is perfect for adding 3-D map features.
Here's a big table map project just finished this week by the French classes at my old school. The school is celebrating their 50th anniversary and my good friend Phyllis, the French teacher, had her students create a "France in the 1950s" map for the occasion:

 

 

 

 

 

The Americas

In the geography education world the week of November 16-22 was a big one - it was Geography Awareness Week (GAW) which this year celebrated the Americas from Greenland south through South America.

This year the National Geographic Society produced a terrific toolkit for teachers - a theme map of "extremes" found in the Americas, a booklet of lesson ideas for K-12 and a CD with (among many other resources) a file which produces a 20 ft.x 10 ft. map of the Americas.

I went out to a middle school to see one of these completed huge maps - wow, was it something! The whole social studies department of this 600-student school , teachers and kids, had worked on it for three weeks. See a photograph of this great effort below.

Another aspect of this year's Americas theme has been the chance for students to become involved in some cultural expressions of countries new to them. I spent a morning working with a fifth grade on crafts from the Americas - fun and educational for both the students and me! (photos below)

Also, our state alliance, the Rhode Island Geography Education Alliance (RIGEA), came up with some inventive ways to spread the word about the GAW theme and recruit new members at the same time. Early in November we held an Americas Dinner for teachers new to our organization. The dinner featured an outstanding menu from North, Central and South America and was preceded by a social hour during which RIGEA members were on hand to share information about our organization. Today, we have scheduled the first in a series of lectures by Brown University professors on topics relating to the Americas - registration for both events has exceeded our expectations!

 

 

 

GAW

Next week, November 16-22, is Geography Awareness Week (GAW) all across the United States. The theme this year is "the Americas" - that's Greenland, Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and South America - wonderful subject matter for any age child or classroom. GAW is part of National Geographic's Geography Action program which strives to promote great geography education throughout each school year. This year's theme is the third in a tour of the world's regions - Africa and Asia have preceded this year, and Europe and Oceania will complete the sequence over the next two years.

Here in Rhode Island we have distributed curriculum materials to teachers to implement this year's theme, held a statewide Americas recipe contest for students, planned an Americas dinner for teachers new to geography action in the classroom, and worked with pre-service teachers to familiarize them with GAW and the resources available to them through the National Geographic Society.

Next week I will be getting out to classrooms to see some of the innovative ways Rhode Island schools are celebrating "the Americas" - should be fun!

Excellent Journey

By happenstance a few years ago I discovered the most wonderful online educational resource called Journey North. It is designed for teachers and their K-12 students but anyone would enjoy participating in its many interesting projects.

Here is their own description of what they offer:

"Journey North engages students in a global study of wildlife migration and seasonal change. K-12 students share their own field observations with classmates across North America. They track the coming of spring through the migration patterns of monarch butterflies, robins, hummingbirds, whooping cranes, gray whales, bald eagles - and other birds and mammals; the budding of plants; changing sunlight; and other natural events. Find migration maps, pictures, standards-based lesson plans, activities and information to help students make local observations and fit them into a global context. Widely considered a best practices model for education, Journey North is the nation's premiere "citizen science" project for children. The general public is welcome to participate."

For the last few weeks I have been working with a local second grade class on the Journey North project called "Symbolic Monarch Butterfly Migration". The kids designed and colored paper butterflies and we put labels on the back of each one with the child's name, school information and the following greeting: "gracias por cuidar a las mariposas monarcas este invierno, de parte de sus vecinos del norte", which means "thank you for taking care of the monarchs this winter, from your northern neighbors". These were packaged up and sent off, eventually to reside in a Mexican classroom located close to one of the  winter monarch butterfly sanctuaries. In the spring this Rhode Island second grade will receive paper butterflies back from Mexican children. In the meantime they can read weekly updates on monarch migration and see the butterflies' progress on an online map and on another map look at all the classrooms in the U.S. and Canada (including themselves) that have sent symbolic butterflies to Mexico.

I can't recommend Journey North highly enough -it's one of the best educational initiatives I have ever seen.

Here are the Rhode Island butterflies and a booklet in Spanish which we printed out on the Journey North website as a gift to the Mexican class receiving our butterflies.