Tag: High School

Literal Interpretations from a Child’s Mind

One day when my children were young and couldn’t sit still I commented on how they were acting like they had “ants in their pants”. I didn’t think literal.int.picmuch about the phrase until my then preschool aged daughter literally checked her pants for ants! This is when I realized that children don’t always interpret the true meaning behind some of the common phrases that have been around forever; they actually interpret them literally. This lesson has students illustrating common phrases based on how a preschooler might interpret or visualize the phrase literally.

Literacy & Reading to Children Lessons

I read to my children ALL the time when they were young, and if nothing else, I wanted them to be readers! And, fortunately, they are! There Read.to.Childrenare so many benefits associated with reading to children at an early age from bonding to improved vocabulary (which helps now that the SATs are right around the corner). This lesson explores the amount of time students spend reading to other screen and electronic device activity and encourages them to research and explore why reading to children is so beneficial to their growth and development. I’ve also included a fun component for students to learn the do’s and don’ts of reading to children while encouraging them to enhance their own oral presentation skills by reading aloud a children’s book.

“Cupcake War” Inspired Lesson

Students love the variety of food related shows that are on TV. One of the most requested is the Food Network show, “Cupcake Wars.” I personally don’t like to have competitions be graded but rather to be fun and to…

Vegetarianism

How could I say “no” when my students wanted to learn more about vegetarianism?  We had already covered major nutrients so they knew the ins and outs of complete and incomplete proteins and how to make complementing protein combinations.  Still, they wanted…

The Power of Purple: Shaken Baby Syndrome & The Period of Purple Crying

While Shaken Baby Syndrome might be a familiar term associated with child abuse, the Period of Purple Crying may not be. The two terms are closely related as the constant crying associated with purple crying may lead one to violently shake their child. This lesson educates students about both to hopefully decrease the risks of both occurring in the future. This lesson also includes a fairly quick and easy community service project for students of all ages and abilities to complete to help spread information about the important cause.

Baking & Pastry Equipment Tips

Sometimes there are seemingly obvious tips and tricks that we know about baking and pastry equipment that might be really helpful for others. I know when I was developing a brand new baking and pastry arts class, I knew nothing about commercial baking and every tip and “obvious fact” was hard to come by. So here is a list I’d like you all to contribute to so we can make it easier for new teachers.

Ideas for Teaching Safety in Child Development

Child proofing is essential to a house or day care center when little ones are involved. It’s amazing what little ones can get into once they become keeping kids safemobile. You’ll want to make sure you’re taking every precaution to keep your little one’s environment safe. Trying to decide what to teach about the safety of children can be difficult as all of the topics are important.

Navigating the Brain

The brain is fascinating to teach but simplifying it down to a level that high school students will grasp can be difficult as it can be a little overwhelming. I have been teaching this topic for years as I am the only teacher and department in my building to teach about the brain…Woo Hoo! The lessons and activities included are tried and true and have been tweaked and revised as I find new ways to teach this material. So if you’ve always wanted to teach about the brain in your child development class, challenge your dendrites to learn something new and give it a try!

Cake Decorating Unit

There are lots of cake decorating classes students can take at the local craft store so I thought I was off the hook when it came to cake decorating, but my students begged me so I gave in. I didn’t want it to be so complex and more of an overview so I planned a week (3 blocks) of instruction with practice then I had them work on their own cake for another 3 blocks and present the final results. In fact there was so much excitement from this unit, students actually came to class early. Ha!