Spring Break!

Don't shut off your brain for the week!  Here are some fun (fun-ish) activities to do over Spring Break.

For the 8th graders going to Washington DC:

          Really take in the history and sights you are visiting.  There is so much to see while you are there. My favorite places on this trip are Williamsburg, the Lincoln Memorial and the Mall (no, not a shopping mall!).  Take lots of pictures, be goofy and have fun!  Feel free to send me pics while you are gone that I can update on here to share with the other students.

Going somewhere else?

          It is always awesome to travel to new places (or places you have been).  What can you learn about that place?  What sort of geography are you seeing?

If you happen to be going to Disneyland (my favorite!) don't forget to check out Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.  It is near the front gate and is pretty interesting, plus a nice place to relax inside and get away from the crowds.  

Going out of the country?  Lucky!  Absorb all you can and try to learn a few new words each day of your trip.

The best part of traveling is seeing new sights, trying new activities, meeting new people and even sampling new foods.  Just don't forget to take pictures!

Relax and Read!

Vacations are also a great time to catch up on some reading.  Pick up a fun book for you to enjoy, no need to torture yourself with something dull or "educational."  Check out my previous post that links Miss Kono's sister's reading blog.  She can direct you to great books.  Sit by the pool, sit on the beach, grab a magazine or book and relax!

Games:

1.  Draw Something!  Seriously!  Unless your opponent isn't a challenge at all, playing games like this actually make you think and be creative.

2. Words With Friends:  Obvious brain activity here... words, spelling, vocabulary...

3. Mine Sweeper:  This game may just seem like an addictive time sap, but it makes you look for patterns, and uses your math neurons.

4.  Trivial Pursuit and other trivia games, challenge your family for who has to do the dishes.

5. Apples to Apples: Nouns! Adjectives! Creativity!

Other ideas:

Go for a hike, how many trees can you identify?  See the wildlife...

Go out stargazing at night.  (There are good apps you can download that will help you locate all of the visible constellations in your area).

Amusement Park?  Try to figure out exactly how those rides work without crashing, that is Physics in action.

Hit the beach:  Check out tide pools, watch the waves, dig for sand crabs.  

Stuck at home?  Make Ms. Paulson proud and try a new recipe, watch some videos on Discovery.Com, or help out in your family garden.

Vacation time is for having fun and spending with friends and family.  Enjoy your time, just don't shut off your brain!

In the comments of this post, share what you learned over vacation, top answers will get a ticket.  Remember that this is a public blog, so if you leave a comment, just post your first name and last initial for your on-line privacy.

Ms. Lawver will be stuck at home, reading : )

Need help finding a book?

In case there are a few of you who have already read everything on Ms. Lawver's bookshelf... check out Miss Kono's sister's blog.  She is a librarian with an affinity for teen lit (especially dystopian).  Lots of great book reviews to check out!

Library Lady!

Civil War Projects from Core 2!

Here are some more awesome Civil War projects from my other 8th grade class:

If Abraham Lincoln had facebook, he should have un-friended John Wilks Booth.

The Battle of Gettysburg.

Another scrapbook that explains the fashion of the Civil War.

Here is a link to a site that compares and contrasts the life of civilians:
http://www.wix.com/tophetalk/civil-war-project#!home|mainPage

Great Job, Core 2!

Civil War Projects from Core 1

For the Civil War project, the 8th graders have a lot of choices, they can also design there own projects.  Here are some fun examples from Core 1!

Here are some examples of slave quilts.  The girls also researched what each pattern meant to slaves escaping to the North.

A model of the battle between the Merrimack and the Monitor.

Some examples of clothing/fashion from the Civil War.

You can also check out this amazing stopmotion video on the First Battle of Bull Run:

Perspective Art

7th graders this week are studying the Renaissance so we are working on our own perspective art... take look!

The Hunger Games Video Review Contest

Check out this contest sponsored by Common Sense Media about the new Hunger Games movie (Midnight Premere is tonight!!!)

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/hungergames

WOD

What is the best way to study for a WOD Quiz?

1.  Don't wait for Monday night to cram the words!

2.  Make flash cards, these can be paper flash cards, or they can be electronic.  You can use different apps to make your own and then flip through them on your phone.

3.  Instead of memorizing the parts of speech for each word, learn what the parts of speech are.  Then instead of trying to recall the pos for each word, you will be able to quickly identify them.

4. Practice writing sentences with context clues.

5.  A little at a time... if you study for 5-10 minutes per day, you will learn the words better than if you try to cram them in at the last moment...  you can even keep your flash cards in the car so that you study on the way to school, soccer practice, or other errands.