Staying Connected to Learning
Week 4 - April 13-17, 2020
Keeping students happy, healthy, and learning at home
Reading and Writing
Reading Strategy for Parents and Children: R.E.A.D. - Grades K-5
Snuggle up and bond with your child while developing his/her language and literacy skills. The R.E.A.D. strategy is easy to remember and powerful for young readers. Here's how:
1. Watch the PSA Video about how to use the R.E.A.D. strategy to read aloud with your child. R.E.A.D. stands for R-Repeat the Book, E-Engage and Enjoy, A-Ask Questions, and D-Do More.
2. Watch the R.E.A.D. strategy read-alouds and practice along with them.
3. For extra practice, show “The Little Engine That Could” read by Dolly Parton (if needed). You can subscribe to “Goodnight Dolly” for more read-alouds.
4. Select a book to read-aloud together to practice the R.E.A.D. strategy. Be sure to stop and
5. Use the R.E.A.D. bookmark.
6. Help your child practice each step of the read strategy.
7. Help your child to fill out the K-3 Journal or 4-5 Journal pages. (Feel free to download and print or just make your own journal at home and use the linked journal to help guide you).
8. Be sure to remind your child to use their writing non-negotiables (Capitals and periods).
9. Repeat the next day with another read-aloud.
10. Continue practicing the R.E.A.D. strategy with your child using all types of text (books, movies, Twitter postings, news reports, etc.)
For more read-aloud fun, check out this collection of famous people reading various texts aloud or the Big List of Children’s Books: Read-Alouds.
For more literacy activities to do every day of the year, check out our Student Success Calendar.
Volume and Fluency in Reading and Vocabulary - Grades 6-12
Writing Notebooks/Journals: Generating Ideas- Grades 6-12
The best way to learn how to write is by writing. To motivate your child to write, provide plenty of opportunities to write about topics that are meaningful to him or her. Once way to generate meaningful writing prompts is through the exploration of Writing Territories.
Writing Territories are areas in your life that you want to write about. It can include people, places, events, passions, hobbies, worries, dreams, milestones, and other subjects that are close to your heart. They can be a list in your notebook or they can take on a more visual display. Have students generate ideas to write about by creating at least one “writing territory map.” Here is one strategy to help kids explore ideas of interest using their own hands:
1. Tell your child to draw or trace around his/her hand and in that hand, write/draw things he/she has held or touched that mattered to him/her. See if he/she can land on some rich memories that can spring specific concrete details
2. Have your child select a topic to write about in greater detail in his/her notebook/journal
Writing Notebooks/Journals: Writing Fluency and Character Study - Grades 6-12
1. Have your child think, and step inside the thoughts and lives of a particular person during this time of staying at home. Some suggestions are: a nurse, doctor, grocery store worker, mailperson, parent, etc.
2. Then, have your child write about a day in that person’s life from their perspective. Have them imagine and create what it would be like to be living their life and write from that point of view.
Mathematics
Data and Measurement: What's Going On Outside Your Window? - Grades K-8
1. Have kids think about some of the things you might see outside your window - people walking by, cars driving by, birds flying by, trees blowing in the wind - whatever you might see
2. Choose a time of day (and a number of days) to keep an eye out the window - it could be for 5 minutes, an hour, a full day, or another length of time
3. Record your observations in a notebook
4. Make the data visual - choose a graph that will best communicate findings
5. For extra fun, share your findings by using #YoucubedAtHome on social media
Basic Facts: Math Cards - Grades 3-8
1. View the video explaining and demonstrating the activity
2. Read the activity directions
3. Download and print the cards
4. Begin matching!
Science
Observation: The Magnification Observation - Grades PreK-3
1. View the video instructions
2. Find a magnifying glass, or other magnifying lens; here is a video showing one way to create a magnifying glass using objects from around the house or this DIY project using common household items
3. Gather drawing materials: paper, markers, pencils, other
4. Pick up the lens and begin magnifying! Look through the glass at your hand. What do you notice? Observe the details, then draw your hand
5. Observe those you live with - look at their eyes and ears - what do you notice? Draw what you saw
6. Explore the world around you through the lens. What do you see? Draw your observations.
7. Head outside and find some bugs or other small items. Draw what you observe.
Austin's Butterfly
In addition, parents and kids can watch this video together to learn how to give feedback and reflect on scientific drawings. The video takes you through one child's experience of the different drafts of a butterfly drawing.
Earth Day: Clean Water Challenge & No New Water- Grades K-5
1. WaterSense for Kids - learn about the importance of conserving water
2. Clean Water Challenge - utilize common household objects to "clean" dirty water from a local pond, muddle puddle, or other dirty water source
3. There's No New Water - learn how much water is on the planet and where it is found
Experiments & Collecting Data: Science Journal by Google - Grades 6-12
1. Download the Science Journal by Google app from the Apple Store or Google Play
2. Once inside the app select “Find Activities to Try”
3. Browse activities by level, equipment available, time available, location (indoors vs. outdoors)
4. Select any activity and follow the instructions
5. Have fun!
S.T.E.M.
Engineering: Build a Robotic Hand - Grades 4-8
Other activities to try:
Robot, Make Me a Sandwich! - a funny activity to understand how complicated it is to make robots do simple actions
Mars Rover Obstacle Course - a glimpse into what it is like to help a robot navigate unfamiliar terrain
Robotics & Coding: Amazon Future Engineer - Grades 5-12
Elementary Grades - Coderz Adventures
Middle School - Cyber Robotics 101
Middle School - Cyber Robotics 102
High School - Python Gym
Career and College Corner
College Exploration: Explore Michigan's Colleges and Universities - Grades 6-12
Do you and your kids know how many colleges and universities are located in Michigan? The whole family can engage in this challenge to test your awareness of the colleges and universities in our home state. Here's how:
- Challenge 1-10 friends or families (in-person, phone call, FaceTime, etc.)
- Gather materials for each participant: pen or pencil; piece of paper; MLive article
- Follow the instructions on the Michigan College & University Challenge Guide
Mindfulness & Self-Care
Understanding and Managing Anxiety in Healthy Ways - Grades K-12
Grades K-5 Explaining Anxiety to Children (video) Resources and Coping Skills for Calming Anxiety in Children Grades 6-12 Explaining Anxiety to Teens and Adolescents (video) Grades K-12 Coping Skills specific to COVID 19 For Parents St. Clair County Community Mental Health Covid Support Line