March 2018

Historical Reenactments

When you watch our Video Read Aloud, point out that the war footage comes from war reenactments. Explain that reenactors are people so fascinated by a certain time in history, they’ll put lots of effort into recreating it. They’ll wear the clothing of that time (or the closest they can get to it), they’ll eat the food from that time, and even fight the battles of that time, with old-fashioned weapons. And it’s not just for adults—there are children’s programs where kids learn and practice games and chores of the Revolutionary era! 

Further Reading

Two books will keep the learning going: George vs. George: The American Revolution as Seen From Both Sides is filled with colorful, detailed illustrations and authentic quotes. You Wouldn’t Want to be an American Colonist!, with its humorous take on the era, is praised for being ideal for reluctant readers.

Life in Colonial America

Don’t miss our Time Machine video about what life was like in colonial America! After reading the story and watching the video, ask students: What was it like living in the time of the Revolutionary War? Would you want to live back then? Why or why not? These questions can also serve as writing prompts.

No More Kings!

Leave it to Schoolhouse Rock to come up with a video that sums up why the colonists wanted to have “No More Kings” and fight the British in 3 catchy minutes. 

Child Soldiers

Students might be surprised to learn that Joseph wasn’t the youngest of the American soldiers during the Revolutionary War. Kids as young as 12 served!

A Virtual Field Trip to the Museum of the American Revolution

Beyond the Battlefield, hosted by I Survived author Lauren Tarshsis, is available for streaming February 7, 2018. 

Impact of Weather

It’s worth discussing with students that because of the devastating weather events of the past year, many families’ vacation destinations may be or may look quite different this year. Can you, or anyone in your class, relate to this? 

Making Connections

This story can be linked to the Paragraph Power feature in this same issue, which is also about taking something that doesn’t belong to you. Read both articles and have students compare and contrast the two situations.

What Would You Do?

This story can lead to an interesting class discussion. Ask your students: What would you do in Trevor and Laurel’s situation? Would you keep the treasure or give it to the museum?

Protected Land

The concept of protected land might be new to your students. This awesome, simple lesson plan from National Geographic makes for a great extension activity for this story and the Paragraph Power feature, Volcano of Doom.

Graphic Novel with a Deaf Protagonist

We highly recommend El Deafo, a graphic novel by Cece Bell in which she describes her life as a young deaf child.

ASL 101

Want to show your kids some basic signs? This video, led by a young girl, is one of the few free resources that isn’t geared toward baby sign language. And it’s filled with school-related terms like desk, chair, and “Pay attention.” (Handy!) 

Signing Around the World

Your students might be wondering whether there are other sign languages, aside from American. The answer is yes! Sign language often develops organically—just like American Sign Language developed at Alice Cogswell’s school. Even England has a different version of sign language, even though English is the primary spoken language of both England and America.

Championing Deaf Education

Alice Cogswell continued to help deaf children after she graduated school: She traveled all over the country as an ambassador, spreading the word about her school and helping people throughout the U.S. understand that deaf people could—and should—learn. 

Schools for Deaf Children

There are more than 100 schools for deaf children in the U.S. today. Take a look at this list and see if you can find the one closest to you. 

20th Century Context

See Julia Butterfly Hill up close in this 8-minute Dateline clip from 1999. The quality is poor, but we recommend it anyway because of the fantastic background info and context it provides. 

Shaken and Determined

An interesting fact: Julia was inspired to take a stand for the environment after she was involved in a near-fatal car accident. Almost losing her life showed her that she had to commit her life to what she truly believed in. 

Close Call

The year after Julia came down from Luna, someone tried to cut down the tree. The person (or people) cut through about two-thirds of Luna’s trunk, but, according to Julia, “some really smart scientists, tree experts, and lots of loving friends were able to protect her with metal cables, and filled her cut with a special clay mixture.” 

Luna Standing Strong

Show your students this short video that shows Luna as she stands today. The man in the video, Stuart Moskowitz, is Luna’s caretaker, which means he makes sure that Luna is safe and healthy. (Mr. Moskowitz is also a math teacher at a nearby college!)

Butterfly

Wondering where Julia got the name “Butterfly”? When she was six years old, she was on a hike with her family and a butterfly landed on her finger. It stayed there for the whole hike, and Julia was nicknamed “Butterfly” from then on.

Plays in the Classroom

These tips from teacher blogger Michelle Divkey for incorporating reader’s theater into your classroom are applicable to any Storyworks Jr. play—try them out yourself and see how they work for you!

Can't Get Enough of Barbara?

The author of this poem, Barbara Juster Esbensen, wrote 19 books, including seven poetry collections. Check out Words With Wrinkled Knees: Animal Poems, considered one of her best, with its creative descriptions of animals and clever examinations of the words used to describe them. 

Celebrate National Poetry Month!

April is National Poetry Month—check out their site for a fantastic list of 30 ways to celebrate!

Book Brackets

On the subject of basketball, if you or your class is into the March Madness tournament, you’ll be wowed by one teacher’s literary take on bracketology: She created a book bracket, where students nominated a favorite book and then had to persuade their classmates why they should read it, too. She details it wonderfully here.

Poetry In The Classroom

Check out this post on the Storyworks Ideabook for some fabulous ideas for incorporating poetry into your classroom!

Crested Black Macaque

To see the crested black macaque in action, check out this video from BBC. Please note that the video includes shots of a dead bat at the 3:05 mark—we suggest you pre-screen it to make sure it’s appropriate for your students.

Nature Photography

Check out some of David J Slater’s other stunning nature photography on his website!

Class Discussion

This short piece opens a lot of doors to interesting class discussions! Ask your students: Do you think your pet likes getting its photo taken? Do you always like getting your photo taken? How would you feel if you took a selfie and someone made money from it?

Another Endangered Macaque

Naruto is a crested macaque—one of 22 different types of macaques. Check out this fact-packed, simple infographic about the Barbary macaque, which lives in Northern Africa, and is also endangered. 

Lovely Lava

Check out this incredible short video of a “fire hose” of lava pouring out of Kilauea back in early 2017. The color is absolutely amazing!

Volcano Fiction

For a fun read-aloud or simply as an addition to your classroom library, check out The Volcano Goddess Will See You Now by Dan Greenburg. It tells the story of Zack, a young boy who buys a piece of volcanic rock on his trip to Hawaii and finds himself cursed!

Connecting Themes

Our fiction story in this issue, "Lost and Found," is about siblings who have to decide whether they should take a treasure they found at the seashore. It’s a great way to connect to the theme of this nonfiction article, which is about what happens when you remove an item from its natural environment.

Not Our First Volcano

This isn’t the first volcanic tale we’ve told this year in Storyworks Jr.! Venture back to our October/November issue and check out the feature nonfiction story, “Mountain of Fire,” about the eruption of Mount. St. Helens in 1980.