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August 2009, Vol. 1

	Dear Teachers, Believe it or not, it's time to start thinking about going back to school! Make the transition exciting and smooth – for both you and your students – with help from our collection of tips and activities, including advice from veteran teachers, hints on how to prepare for the first day of school, and bulletin boards to decorate your classroom. Our icebreakers, simple and short "getting to know you" activities, are a great way for your students to introduce themselves to you and each other during the first week of school. Focus on families in your social studies class, with cross-curricular activities covering everything from genetic traits to an exercise in building a family tree. Teach students to read and create many different types of graphs and charts with a variety of lessons and printable worksheets. August marks the anniversary of both the eruption of Mount Vesuvias (A.D. 79) and Hurricane Katrina (2005). Discuss natural disasters in your classroom, including their cause, the amount of destruction they can create, and how to prepare yourself for any disaster. Best Wishes, The Editors of TeacherVision.com FEATURED THEMES Back to School It's officially back-to-school season. Start getting ready now! Back-to-School Printables Slideshow Top 10 Things Every Teacher Needs in the Classroom Back-to-School Printable Book (K-12) Bulletin Boards Printable Book (Grades K-8) Preparing for the First Day of School Back-to-School Principles and Tips for Teachers Popular Art Activities for Back to School A Back-to-School Conversation Curious George's First Day of School Teacher's Guide Handling the First Day of School Popular Back-to-School Printables Lesson Planning Advice from Veteran Teachers More Back-to-School Resources Families Study the many different types of families, animal or human, with these resources. My Family & Me Printable Book Family Tree PowerPoint Presentation Parents My History Inherited and Observable Traits Where'd You Get Those Dimples? How Families Grow: Venn Diagram Family Puppets Family Finger Plays Family Puzzle My Family's Favorite Puzzle All About My Family My Family Tree House Dot-to-Dot More Family Resources Graphs & Charts Include the study of graphs and charts in your mathematics curriculum. Migraines & Headaches Reading Record Chart Hundred Chart Frozen Yogurt Pie Graph Table of Measures How Does Alcohol Affect the Body? Famous African-Americans: Using a Grid Graph Paper Graphing Pitch Graph Roots (Set I) Sunspot Activity My Daily Timeline Explaining How to Make a Bar Graph Math with Candies PowerPoint Presentation More Graphs & Charts Natural Disasters Hurricanes, volcanoes, earthquakes, floods, and tsunamis are covered. Tsunami! Discussion Guide Earthquakes & Volcanoes Hurricane Song Discussion Guide What Is the Ring of Fire? Investigate Activity: Making a Model Tornado Earth Processes Earthquake! Science Fun: Volca-Knows Thin & Thick Lava Science, Technology, and Society: Quake Meters Science and Technology: Earthquake! Hurricane Basics River Erosion Activity: Storm Warning Flags More Natural Disasters TEACHING TOOLS Icebreakers Introduce community spirit into your classroom with these icebreaking activities. Classmate Book Report Icebreaker Icebreakers Printable Book Personal Mandalas Icebreaker Get to Know Your Students "Getting to Know You" Game Remembering Names Make a Giving Tree Friendly Interview Create a Scrapbook Icebreaker Postcards Icebreaker What Am I? More Icebreakers				Green Activities   Go "green" in your classroom with activities that focus on improving the environment! Alternative Uses for Common Trash Trash & Climate Change Waste Reduction Activities: Solid & Hazardous Waste Dr. Seuss and Resource Use Ways to Help the Environment Planet Protectors Calendar of Activities Recycling Facts Make a Difference in Your School Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle Coloring Packet: Reusing an Old Jar Global Warming Quiz More "Green" Activities & Classroom Resources   New Content   Alphabet Connection A Few Big States Math Vocabulary Symbols Book or Story Characters Instrument Families Couplets: Find My Better Half A Busy Woodpecker Bugaboo Sentences More New Content   Literature Guides Discussion guides, from the classics to new works of literature! Primary Literature Intermediate & Middle Literature Secondary Literature Teacher Guides to Online Books Popular Multicultural Literature Resources The Orange Houses Discussion Guide Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Of Mice and Men Savvy Discussion Guide More Literature Guides Hurricane Katrina   Four years after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, many communities are still rebuilding. Reading Warm-Up (Gr. 1 & 2): Hurricane Katrina Tracking a Hurricane Hurricane Resource: High Winds Supercomputers Can Track Super Storms Storm Trackers How to Prepare for a Hurricane More Hurricane Katrina Content   Timely Topics   Atomic Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) Nixon Resigns (August 8, 1974) Smile Week (August 9-15) Left-Handers Day (August 13) Panama Canal Opened (August 15, 1914) Women's Equality Day (August 26) Hurricane Katrina Devastated Gulf Coast (August 29) Back to School Month (August) Inventor's Month (August) Suicide Prevention Week (September 6-12) Labor Day (September 7) Patriot Day (September 11) Grandparents Day (September 13) Constitution Week (September 17-23) Rosh Hashanah (September 19) Banned Books Week (September 26-October 2) Yom Kippur (September 27) Library Card Sign-Up Month (September) Classical Music Month (September) National Sickle Cell Month (September) More August Events More September Events