2030 by Amy Zuckerman and James Daly is the coolest book I’ve seen in awhile. It’s about “a day in the life of tomorrow’s kids.” It’s awesome for 9-12 year olds, especially.

This book is thought provoking because it explores so many interesting ideas as to what the not-too-distant future might be like. It shows us communicating with each other via orbs, composting our food scraps, and jumping on a “smart” trampoline.

After each member of my family read it, 2030 brought on a variety of discussion as to which of the futuristic predictions we thought were a good idea and which we thought were unnecessary. As a person who is concerned about our planet, it was interesting to see some of the concepts that might help us combat climate change.

I was able to find a copy at my library. Have you read this book yet?

~Carrie

P.S. Here are some extra materials to go along with the book, in case you’re interested:

Linked with:

As you build up to the 100th day, why not celebrate the 50th day of school? The number 50 is an important building block for Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd graders as they increase their number sense. I calculated our 50th day to be November 2nd, but it will vary of course.

Here are some possible math and literacy activities to celebrate the 50th day:

• Students write about what they’ll be doing when they’re 50 years old
• Students can collect 50 autographs in their classroom and around the school
• As a class, brainstorm to see if you can name all 50 states
• Show what 50 items looks like with math manipulatives or small snacks
• Do different actions, such as clapping your hands 50 times

Many of these ideas and more are available in this 50th Day of School resource:

Have a fantastic 50th day!
~Carrie

Linked with:

Could handwriting practice be the next trend in relaxation similar to adult coloring books? I think it’s possible.

Cursive handwriting is a lost art. We should make sure our children have the opportunity to learn it and practice it. Research shows it’s good for our brains, especially increasing connections in the brain.

Writing in cursive can be relaxing, whether you slow down and pay attention to each letter or whether you quickly scribble out your bottled up feelings.

Schools have so many different standards to teach, there’s little time to practice cursive as much as they’d like. Third grade is usually when many kids are ready to begin. Kids can continue working on improving their form in 4th, 5th grade, and beyond.

If you want your child to benefit from the confidence of being able to do this skill well and the brain connections cursive promotes, you can add it to your routine at home.

First, find out how your child is doing with cursive. Ask them to write the lowercase abc’s in cursive. If they can do that and can form most capital letters without a problem, they may not need additional practice. If they struggle, you can take some time to practice at home.

Even if your child doesn’t struggle with cursive, this can still be a great activity. Intentionally writing is a similar relaxing experience to adult coloring books. And you only need a pencil or pen and paper. I suggest printing out two practice packets and doing this right alongside your child. Don’t forget about circling your best letter for each line. Did you do that when you were a kid? (=

Summer Larsen has a great freebie for practicing the uppercase and lowercase alphabet in her TPT store:

One of the TPT resources that I think is really helpful after you’ve gone over each letter is this Jokes Cursive Practice resource:

Being able to quickly scrawl out your feelings in a journal can be a very stress-relieving experience, no matter your age. Let’s not let this generation miss out on knowing how to write in cursive!

~Carrie

If you’d prefer a workbook instead of downloading and printing your practice, here are a couple of affiliate links:

Linked With:

My Teacher For President is a cute book by Kay Winters. With our election season in full swing, it’s a great time to read this story. It highlights some of the different responsibilities our president has. It also shows respect for teachers everywhere.

The storyline is pretty simple and can be read fairly quickly. It leaves lots of time for discussion afterwards. It’s also a great opportunity to discuss who secret service agents are. They can be spotted in the illustrations throughout the book.

I hope you get the chance to read this story. I think you’ll enjoy it, especially the underlying shout out it gives to teachers. (=

I think it’d be an especially great read aloud for a parent to read to an elementary class.
Thank you to Sunshine Readers for first introducing this book to me.
~Carrie

(Affiliate Link)

Linked With:

Billie B. Brown and Hey Jack are hands down the best first chapter book series’ I’ve encountered!

They are awesome! I have been searching for easy early chapter books for awhile for my six-year old. My nine-year old has been enjoying them too.

The top reason I love these books by Sally Rippin is that they have just the right amount of text per page. They’re especially great to transition from picture books to chapter books. Kids love knowing they can read an official “chapter book”. Each book is around 40-45 pages in length. Children will feel successful because it won’t take them weeks to read these books!

The topics are engaging for kids ranging from Kindergarten to 3rd or 4th grade. Some of the themes include playground issues, swimming, friendship, and siblings. Billie is a girl and Jack is a boy, but both characters are great for boys or girls.

These should be available from many libraries as well as online via amazon, etc. Our library had many of the books from both Hey Jack and Billie B. Brown. I highly recommend these to help kids feel confident as they transition to chapter books!

Do you have other easy chapter books you’d recommend or are these your favorite too?

~Carrie

 

Affiliate links:

Linked With: