Letter of the Week {Xx}

Here is the next installment of our letter of the week series-- the letter Xx. The letter X can be challenging. It is so easy to identify but hard to think of what activities to do with this letter.  Check out the great things we came up with below. See all the rest of our letter of the week posts here.

Snack Ideas

How about making some hot cross buns!

Recipe for Hot Cross Buns

Or look at all the cute X ideas at Cookie Cutter Lunch.

X-Snack Ideas

Books
I love the Taxi Dog and books about X-rays are always fun.

Crafts
My favorite is this cute X-ray Fish Activity by Red Ted Art.  And look at this adorable Q-Tip Skeleton.

X-Ray Fish

Instructions for this simple handprint x-ray activity can be found at Almost Unschoolers. 

Handprint Bones

Learning Activities

Try this Criss Cross Chalk Game.
Draw a large letter X on the pavement with chalk then have the children position themselves on the end of each line. They have to run along the X without bumping into each other at the intersection.

Play a game of Tic Tac Toe.

Follow a Treasure Map- X Marks the Spot.

Make an X on a piece of paper with Painters Tape. Then completely cover the piece of paper with paint. Let the paint dry and remove the tape to reveal the hidden Letter X below.

Practice playing a xylophone. You could even play musical chairs using a xylophone for the music. Let the kids take turns.

Set up a doctor's office and have the kids practice taking x-rays. You can make a simple x-ray machine by cutting holes in a cardboard box and gluing cut outs of bones on the front.

The Measured Mom has instructions for making this amazing x-ray light box. Wow!

X-ray Light Box

Free Printables

Find your Letter of the Week tracing worksheets here.

Find your Alphabet Flashcards here..

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Native American Indian Projects

We recently finished up our Native American Indian unit at school. Here is a sampling of my favorite projects from that unit.

Indian Dioramas
The students were divided into groups to create some Indian Dioramas. They were to research their assigned tribe and then create a diorama that illustrated the following four things:
The Place the Tribe Lived
Their Houses (Hogans, Long Houses, Tepees etc.)
Their Clothing
Their Food
I provided scrapbooking paper and clay to help the students get started. I think the addition of the specialty papers with sky, sand, forests etc. really helped get their creative juices going. Everything else the students created with materials from home. Aren't you impressed?

 Pueblo Indian Tribe

Iroquois Indian Tribe

 Navajo Indian Tribe

Sioux Indian Tribe

Wampum Belts

We followed a fantastic tutorial by There's a Dragon in my Art Room. Click on the link above. The kids were crazy about this project and several students created two or three different headbands, arm bands, bracelets etc. We used meat trays donated by our local Fresh Market meat department. They worked out great. 

Indian Cave Drawings
Here are some of our cave drawings. Each of the students had to tell a story using the Indian symbols that I provided. They then wrote their story in a circle on a piece of large paper bag. Several of the students crumpled their bags to make them look more authentic!

Find a great printout of Native American picture symbols here.

Finally, here is a gorgeous Sacajawea puppet made by one of my students.

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{DIY} Cheap and Easy Puppet Stage

My students have been busy making puppets of different historical heroes. I knew I needed a cheap and easy puppet stage and hit upon the perfect solution.

First, I purchased a tri-fold science fair display board for about $2.50 in the school supplies area of our local Walmart. Then I cut out a square opening in the middle and attached some curtains with fabric I already had at home. Finally, I stuck on a bright paper valance and a festive sign. Voila! The perfect puppet stage was born.

The curtains were simply glued into place on either side of my opening with a hot glue gun. They do not open and close but nobody seems to mind too much.

I did have to bend the sides of the display board in the opposite direction than they were designed to go. I did this because I wanted the white background to face out. I was worried that I might rip the cardboard but it was resilient and bent in the opposite direction just fine. 

My students have loved acting out their puppets and sharing historical information about their heroes behind our stage. I simply set it up on a table and it is the perfect height to hide behind.

There is something about a puppet stage that brings out the dramatic side of everyone!

What creative puppets and shows could your kids create for this fun stage? Try it out and see!

We used the following Instructables for creating our amazing papier mache puppets. The puppet part wasn't easy as the puppet stage... but so much fun!

Papier Mache Head Puppets

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Violence in Movies and in Books

I am often asked my opinion about the super popular book series Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Is it too violent for younger students? I have read all the books in the series and I have seen the first two movies. I feel like the content of the books is appropriate for mature 11 and 12 year olds and this is why.

The books do not glamorize violence but show the devastating effects of violence on a family and on a nation. I do not feel that the violence is gratuitous. While Katniss is the book's hero, she is devastated by the violence of the Hunger Games and Collins does not shy away from showing the negative consequences in her heroine's life. Fans have been critical of the ending of the third book in the series Mocking Jay because it does not end "happily ever after." Instead, it ends with a sober reminder that the main characters continue to be affected by the violence as they continue their lives. 

Much of the research that I have read about the impact of violent movies and violent video games distinguishes between two types of violent media. The harmful type does not show any negative consequences for the violence that it portrays. "Shoot em up" video games that glamorize violence fall into this category. On the other hand, helpful media shows the negative consequences of violence even as it portrays that violence in some way. I loved the movie The Saratov Approach for this reason. 

The Saratov Approach is such a powerful film. It is based on a true story about LDS missionaries who are kidnapped in Russia. I love how the two main characters choose not to use violence even in an attempt to escape from their captors. Seeing this movie would provide such a powerful teaching opportunity for parents. Would violence have been justified in that situation? Would behaving violently have made the missionaries just like their captors? I know The Satatov Approach has just been released on DVD and should be available at Redbox and in Netflix soon. I think watching this movie as a family would provide a terrific opportunity to talk about violence in our lives. I love the part in the movie where members of many churches come together to pray and use nonviolence, peace, and love to combat the violence that has shattered their world. 

This is a choice we can encourage in our children whatever we allow them to read.

P.S. We use a Clear Play filtering system for the Hunger Games movies and many others. Find more about it here.

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Letter of the Week {Ww}

We are finally getting around to finishing our letter of the week posts. Here are some fun activities for you to do with the letter Ww. Stay tuned for X, Y, and Z in the next three weeks and find the rest of our Letter of the Week posts here.

Snack Ideas:

Watermelon is the most obvious choice. I love the idea of attaching popsicle sticks to make these watermelon wedges easy to hold.

You could also whip up a delicious watermelon fruit slush.

Or how about Waffles and Whipped Cream! It wouldn't get any easier than these mini Eggo Waffles. Yum!

Dirt Cups with Worms

Favorite Books:

Learning Activities:

Watermelon Seed Counting. I just use our leftover watermelon seeds from snack for counting. The kids love saving their seeds and washing them off before matching them to the correct watermelon in this fun and easy activity.

Water Activities:
You won't believe all the amazing activities to do with water over at The Measured Mom. Love them!

Water Math and Science Activities

I especially love her Water Balloon Math for Number Recognition.

And this fun activity to see what happens when different objects are left in the water for a period of time.

Crafts:

Paper Bag Whale

Watermelon Fan
I love this cute fan by Crafts By Amanda.

There are several cute worm crafts out there.
I love this one.

Doesn't this Wiggle Worm game sound fun?

Wiggle Worm Game

Free Printables:

Get your Letter of the Week Tracing Worksheets here.
Get your Alphabet Flash Card here.


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