This activity is used to help children with reading comprehension. When a child is done reading a book, have them make a book cover. On the front, the child draws a picture of their favorite part of the book. On the back, the child will write a brief review of the story of the book. The middle is a timeline of the key events and the order they happen in the book. You could also add more pictures to the timeline if you would like as well. This is a great exercise and can be used for children as young as kindergarten all the way through high school. I would allow the child to reference the book if needed , the review and trying to remember all the details will help them understand the story even better. 

These are an easy fun way to help kids work on facts. For valentines day I cut up 26 hearts, and wrote a capital letter on one side, and a lower case letter on the opposite side. You then cut a zig-zag through the heart. Lay all the lower case letters out, and give the student the capital letters, then they go through and find the matches. You could use this same activity for more advanced skills, such as math facts, reading comprehension, character matching, etc. Hope you all have a fun Valentines Day!

Studies have shown the benefits of children practicing matching skills stimulates learning at an early age. It helps them start using the process of elimination, and other simple reasoning skills to solve the task at hand. This particular game is easy and free! I just picked up some free paint strip cards at walmart and cut the rectangle end off the sides, glued that onto a clothes pin. The child needs to match the colors by clipping the pin onto the correct color square. 

I love these ideas for sending treats on Valentines Day. My boys would love these monster boxes. 

As your kids stay home from school for the holiday, I thought I would post some fun activities to do with the kids over the holidays.  I have been searching pintrest for my own kid ideas and thought I would share with you! Check out some of these fun activities:
http://creationcorner.blogspot.com/2009/10/christmas-kid-crafts.html
http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/easiest-christmas-craft-ever-134225
http://www.thecraftycrow.net/2010/12/ornament-advent-day-5-borax-crystals.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+typepad%2FiTVx+%28The+Crafty+Crow%29

We have have some great teachers around us!  I so appreciate the tutors and teachers that invest in letting our children into their hearts.  My son's teacher recently came up with a great positive tool to help him focus in class.  He is a very visual learner and loves rewards and so she placed a schedule of the day's activities on his desk.  As each activity passes, she gives him a face on the schedule that represents how well he did during that section of the day.  He is so motivated to do well and earn all happy faces.  His confidence is so much better when he comes home from school as well.  It is helpful for him to have a visual reminder of how well he is doing in school. 
It is amazing the success that can happen when teachers find what makes a student tick and builds on their positive skills.

_I am already working on my next video........."How To Get Kids Organized For School".  If only organization were genetic, this one would not be so personal for me.  I am realizing that I did not do my oldest son a lot of favors by organizing his folder, lunch and backpack for him everyday.  Now I get notes home on how his desk is a disaster and he can never find what he needs.  I am now making him do the work to organize at home and I am having fun assembling great tips for you in the process!

I just created a new video for you with some ACT prep tips.  When students prepare for the ACT they really can make great strides in improving their score.  We currently have an average gain of 5 points!  Here are some ghttp://www.youtube.com/user/AcademicAdvancement#p/a/u/0/CoHW8eqyCYU

After Halloween, try taping treats to a reading calender for kids to eat after they finish their reading.  I know I am motivated by chocolate!  It is fun for kids to see how many days they have read while the chocolate disappears too. 
My other Halloween treat with my own family is that I pull out the non-seasonal candy and freeze it to put in Christmas stockings later.  It saves on money and calories!

I just can hardly believe that the first term of school is nearly over!  The other day, I ran into one of my students from my first year of teaching.  He is now half way through college.  It is a good reminder to me to slow down and remember how wonderful it is to have children near you.