Quick and Easy Classroom Christmas Cards

Don't throw away those Christmas cards you received this year. Tear off the fronts and save them for next year.

When it comes time for the kids to prepare their gifts for their parents, give each child a sheet of construction paper or tag. Let them pick a card cover to glue on the front. Then inside, let them copy a simple message you've written on the board. A piece of single-folded construction paper makes an excellent envelope.

Reading Chart - Week 19

The 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Challenge

Meet Zen Kweli, the five-year-old girl who read a thousand books before the first day of class. Zen participated in the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten challenge, a national program adopted by the Louisville Free Public Library in Kentucky to promote early reading. 

Many Kindergarteners show up to their first day of school with no reading experience, making Zen’s achievement even more notable. “Long-gone are the days where you can start kindergarten without having some of the basics,” says education specialist Marco Munoz. “We’ve got so much work to do. If you don’t start on the right foot, it can end up being a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

Read more via The Courier-Journal 

Little Kindergarten in the Demolition Site

A kindergarten is surrounded by rubble at a demolition site in Xi’An, Shaanxi province. According to local government, the kindergarten has been operating without license and will be forced to shut down.

Picture: Reuters

Reading Chart - Week 18

Education, 1917

The lone teacher in charge of a room where 123 Kindergarten and First Grade children are enrolled. Dunbar School. Teacher said: “There are only 70 here to-day. There must be an epidemic around.” Principal in background. Muskogee, Oklahoma / Lewis Wickes Hine, 1917.

Reading Chart - Week 17

Happy New Year

Have a fabulous 2015!

Childhood Memories

These are adorable.

A Very Thought-Provoking Photograph

This is a photo taken during the Great Depression, showing four children celebrating Christmas with a dinner of turnips and cabbage. This could start a discussion among your students about how children celebrated the holidays then, and compare them with the way they celebrate today.

Don't Forget to Leave Santa a Treat

Believe