6 Attempts to Friend “Dear Mr. Leprechaun”
To Maryellen: “Wishing you good luck and true friendship forever!” This was the inscription that author Martin Nelson Burton wrote in November 2004, on Maryellen’s copy of Dear Mr. Leprechaun, Letters From My First Friendship. This is a delightful, true tale based upon the author’s childhood writings to his leprechaun friend. The original letters and the responses (written by the author’s father, aka The Leprechaun) are presented in the book. On each page, there is a leprechaun that younger children will enjoy searching for. The beautiful artwork of Clint Hansen was created with paper sculpture. The last page of the book gives a brief description of the sculpture process that children and adults will find fascinating...
Dr. Seuss Lessons and Links for Read Across America Day
Our baby cousin Avery
celebrating Dr. Seuss!
This week brings us to an exciting yearly event…
Read Across America Day, March 2nd, created in honor of Dr. Seuss’ birthday. Dr. Seuss—Theodor Seuss Geisel—was born here in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1904 and grew up on Mulberry Street, just a short walk from our MindWing office. We are looking forward to the completion and opening of the Dr. Seuss Museum here in Springfield! It will be such an exciting destination for children as well as adults who grew up loving Dr. Seuss stories! “The more that you read the more things you will know. the more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” With this quote in mind, please enjoy reading and sharing the following links to Seuss-related information!...
Tech Tuesday: Snow Stories
Just about any topic can be a context to develop narrative and expository language with Story Grammar Marker®, Braidy the StoryBraid®, and Thememaker®’s narrative and informational language icons and maps.
Right about now, snow is big on everyone’s mind in the Northeast, having just endured a blizzard and with another snowy week on the way. So, though I don’t love it, snow can provide a good example of working within a theme and identifying and pairing activities to build narrative and other language skills while immersing students in a context...
Working Around the Clock: 12 Lessons to Begin Using the Story Grammar Marker®
Because collaborators come from different points of view in terms of their view of the students’ needs, the contents of this listing may be something to use as a discussion tool fostering collaboration among general education teachers, special education teachers, speech/language pathologists, school adjustment counselors and those focusing on social communication growth!...
6 Ideas for Perspective-Taking, Character Traits & Conflict Using “Wonder” by R.J. Palacio
My daughter’s book club chose “Wonder” by R.J. Palacio and she recommended it to me. This is a book that would support discussions centering on feelings, living in a community and what it means, developing empathy towards others, and the acceptance of differences, to name a few. The format of the book definitely lends itself to teaching perspective taking. There are many ways to approach this book within classrooms or therapy settings. Of course, the deciding factor would be the goals and objectives for your particular students...
High Stakes Test Results: An Opportunity for Collaboration Using SGM
After receiving many positive comments regarding a recent post, Using Data Collection and Collaboration to Enhance Instruction, I wanted to share two other ideas that you may find helpful when first using the SGM® in your school. If you are not using the SGM® school-wide, then try working with a colleague as the SGM® is the perfect vehicle to establish collaboration and a common language around student comprehension questions and the thought processes involved in answering those questions...