#multiple day

Dia Del Muertos/Day of the Dead 

   Students (Grades 2-5) will be creating candy skull portraits for the Day of the dead.

  Planning: Students will need at least 2-3 days to complete this assignment. Students will learn about what Dia del Muertos is and how it is celebrated. Students will need pencils and crayons as well as white construction paper. Students will sketch out their skulls and create designs. Students will then finish coloring their skulls. 

  Promotion: A few weeks before The Day of the Dead  decorations will be put up throughout the library. The book display will have books about Dia Del Muertos on display.

  Preparations: 8x11 ½ inch Construction paper, buckets of crayons for students who don’t have their own pencils. Students will follow along with the video via YouTube on creating their sugar skull. Students will also view several videos explaining the Day of the Dead. 

  Dia Del Muertos Celebrations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLjG4d4ePcM

  National Geographic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sSawpU81cI&t=35s

  Brain Pop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_fEeVr2ykY 

  Procedures: 

  Day 1: Students will listen to the following dia Del Muertos video. Afterwards I will explain the symbols that they will notice used for decorations and explain that we will be making Sugar Skulls. Students will watch the video and follow along to sketch their skulls and begin their designs.

Day 2: Students will continue creating their skull designs and start coloring their skulls.

Day 3: If needed students will complete their skulls and submit final drawings to the librarian.

Multiple Day Program #1

Read the book Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran and Illustrated by (One of my all-time favorite books.) Use the Interactive Reading Aloud strategy with questions embedded as we read. After reading, students will create their own make-believe villages.

Preparations:

Students will brainstorm words to use to describe the village they will write a descriptive paragraph to explain the concept of the village they wish to create. After writing the paragraph, let students read their descriptions to the students at their table groups.

Day Two

Planning:

Students need: -Brown Paper -Crayons or Art pastels

Promotion:

Review the story Roxaboxen with the class. Pass out the descriptive paragraphs the students wrote the last time they were in the library.

Using the descriptions, give students brown paper and crayons or art pastels. The students will make maps of their villages that include the different areas we brainstormed about before writing their paragraphs. Along with creating a map of their town, have the students give the town a name.

Day 3 (Optional): Planning:

Students need: -Maps they created of their towns -small stones or pebbles -pieces of cardboard in various sizes -tacky glue -crayon or art pastels

Promotion:

Revisit Roxaboxen or similar story. Look at descriptive writings and maps the students made in previous lessons. Today, the students will make a 3D model of at least part of their village.

Procedures:

Pass out maps and pieces of cardboard to students. (In the middle of each table group, have a collection of stones and rocks along with crayons, pastels, and any other items the students request. Sketch out the village before the students start gluing things down. Continue until the students have a model of part of their own imaginary village.

Payoff:

Multiple Day Project #2 Fables into Reader’s Theater

Collaborate with other students Create an original Reader’s Theater based on a Fable

Day One

Preparations: *Gather versions of “The Tortoise and the Hare.”

Promotion: Read the original fable and then provide others for the students to browse.

Day Two/Day Three

Planning *Multiple copies of Fables by Arnold Lobel *Notebook paper *Pencils

Preparation *Divide students into small groups and give each group a fable to rework into a reader’s theater. *This is a great activity to differentiate. For your higher students, have them take the fable and change the setting and the characters while keeping the theme and moral the same. For lower students, have them use the original fable but break into speaking parts. A narrator is permitted, but the students must use their own words instead of just copying straight from the text. (This part will take several class periods.)

Day 4

Payoff/Assessment: *Students will perform their original Reader’s Theater for classmates. *Students may also record their performances and librarian can share with other students

Multiple Day Assignment 3: Blockbuster Movie Posters

*To create visual advertisements for books in the library to encourage check-out *Provide student made decorations for the library

Preparations:

*Student’s book of choice *Pencils *Blank paper (for rough draft) *Markers

*Colored pencils *Half Sheets of Cardboard (I like the rectangular shape a half sheet makes.)

Planning:

Have students choose a book from the library that they”ve read

The posters must include: the title, the author’s name, illustrator (if

the book has one), a visual element, a short review with the student’s name as the one giving the review, and quotation marks around the review)

The students will create a rough draft on the sheet of paper in pencil before they can receive the poster board. The rough draft will most likely take one or two library periods. I always make sure that everything is spelled correctly on the rough draft as well.

Once the rough draft is approved, students will get half of a sheet of poster board.

5. Students must first draw the poster with a pencil before tracing over all the pencil marks with a marker. Once this is done, they can fill in their drawings with colored pencils. (Some students might say they cannot draw or want to trace the cover. I encourage students to just do something as simple as possible. I also suggest that students don’t try to color the whole poster since it is hard to make the coloring even. If they do color, we look at shading instead of coloring.)

Promotion:

After the posters are finished, I invite some other teachers to pick the best ones to put up around the school and/or library. In the past, students have been excited to see whose posters get picked and hung up for all to see.

Payoff:

Even though this project is fairly simple, it does take multiple days to finish, even in a regular classroom. In a library setting where the students are able to work on the posters for a shorter period of time, I would plan to use at least three class times to get the posters completed. I generally don’t let the students take the posters home because they get folded or bent in a backpack.

Monopoly/Board Game Creators

  Planning: Students will be learning about how monopoly was invented. Then students will spend a couple days creating their own board game. I will need a copy of the book “Pass Go and Collect $200: The Real Story of how Monopoly was Invented,” pencils, crayons,etc., cardboard, and construction paper.    

  Promotion: Students will receive a flier to take home letting the parents know the materials that are needed for the project.   

  Preparations: Cardboard will need to be collected for students to put their final project on. (I typically will get pizza boxes from Dominoes or you can have students bring in a certain size of cardboard or boxes.) You can send a flier home with students to ask for donations. This activity may take 3 days depending on how often you see your students. I have students for 45 mins a week so this will take at least 3 class sessions to complete. The amount of cardboard will depend on how many groups or individual students will be creating a game.I prefer groups because I have over 400 students and limited space to keep track of projects in the library.   

  Procedures:

 I will read the story” Pas Go and Collect $200: The Real Story of How Monopoly was Invented” to students. 

  I will then explain to students how they will be creating their own board game.

  Students will be partnered up into groups of 4 or less and then be given drawing paper to sketch out and plan out their board games.

  Next Students will begin planning out their games, deciding the rules, characters, and board design.(This may take more than 1 day) 

  For the final product students will create their and color and decorate their piece of cardboard. Students can create player pieces out of paper or excess cardboard. If you have modeling clay that also can be an option. Students can also create game cards with construction paper. (This will take likely 2 days or more depending on your students and how often you meet.)

Poetry/Poetry Slam

  Planning: Students will be creating poems and performing them in front of the class in a poetry slam. I will find videos on YouTube of students performing poetry slams and a video on what a poetry slam is. I also found a powerpoint or you can create your own about poetry and its elements. 

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMmSnZKSPI8

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1b4NHBl3ujE 

  Promotion: As students come to the library I will explain what a poetry slam is and show video examples of students performing in a poetry slam. This gets the students excited for performing and gives them a visual to better understand the assignment. 

  Preparations: You will need college or wide ruled lined paper and pencils. This activity requires very few supplies which is the great part if you have limited supplies.  If you have musical instruments such as drums, taborines, sticks etc, that would be great for students to incorporate in their performances. 

  Procedures: Students will get a short lesson on poetry (what it is, and some of the elements) and then I will explain to the students where the poetry books are located in the library. I also want to mention the poetic novels that can be found in the fiction section. I will explain what a poetry slam is and show a video of students performing team and individual poems. I will then instruct students to create a poem about anything (no violence, swear words, slang, or anything that would be school appropriate. Students will get together with their partner or work independently on composing their poems. (For 2nd & 3rd grade students I did not allow them to work alone. They can choose groups of 2, 3, or 4) Students will work on their poems over the course of 2-3 days. Then students will perform their poems. I decided to only have the students perform in front of their class because some of my students are extremely shy. But if you want you can have some of your students perform during a family night program or music performance. 

Grade Level:  Upper Elementary – High School

  Information & 21st Century Skill Objectives:   

Learners engage with new knowledge by following a process that includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate questions. 2. Devising and implementing a plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating products that illustrate learning.

Learners construct new knowledge by: 1. Problem solving through cycles of design, implementation, and reflection. 2. Persisting through self-directed pursuits by tinkering and making

Materials:

https://prezi.com/4nxjxd8bkvzu/speed-racer-science/

https://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/scientific-experiments/newton-law-of-motion1.htm

toilet paper tubes (I punched holes for the wheel axles and the mast)

small dowels cut to 3″ (use 1/4″ or 3/8″ dowels, depending on your hole punch size)

washers (four per vehicle, to serve as wheels)

modeling clay (to keep wheels on their axels)

bendy straws (the masts)

cardstock (for the sails)

tape (to affix sails to the masts)

scissors (for cutting the sails)

markers (for decorating the vehicles)

 Procedures: 

  Discuss Newton’s First Law of Motion using the Prezi.

Have students pair/share about the various outside forces that cause various vehicles to “go fast”.

Give students time to build a speed racer that includes a sail using only the materials provided.

Set up a table where students can test their vehicle by blowing air to move it down the length of the “track” using a timer and a written log to record the amount of time it took to reach the end.  The race track can be set up for students to run their vehicles one at a time, or it could be set up for students to race against each other. 

Give students an opportunity to adjust their sails and vehicles to improve their speed if needed.

Display books about motion, speed, and racing, and encourage students to check them out.

Allow students to take home their racers.

   Assessment: 

 Students will move their speed racer by air using their breath.  Their time will be recorded.  They will then have a chance to change their speed racer design and race it again to increase the speed and beat their original time.

Resources: 

Information & 21st Century Skill Objectives:

Learners act on an information need by: 1. Determining the need to gather information. 2. Identifying possible sources of information. 3. Making critical choices about information sources to use.

Learners gather information appropriate to the task by: 1. Seeking a variety of sources. 2. Collecting information representing diverse perspectives. 3. Systematically questioning and assessing the validity and accuracy of information. 4. Organizing information by priority, topic, or other systematic scheme.

Learners construct new knowledge by: 1. Problem solving through cycles of design, implementation, and reflection. 2. Persisting through self-directed pursuits by tinkering and making.

Learners develop through experience and reflection by: 1. Iteratively responding to challenges. 2. Recognizing capabilities and skills that can be developed, improved, and expanded. 3. Open-mindedly accepting feedback for positive and constructive growth.

Materials: 

Chromebook, iPad, or other electronic device with internet access

Boxes of toothpicks

Glue

Wax paper

Permanent markers

Prizes (gift cards, snacks, off campus lunch pass, etc.)

Bridge Basics handout

Bridge Interview Research handout

Bridge Project Reflection handout 

(Handouts available at the link listed under related resources.)

Instructional Procedures:

Give one half of the class a "Bridge Interview & Research Handout." They will find a partner in the class to interview.

After the interview, the partners will progress through the steps of the handout. They'll read the "Bridge Basics" article and do some further online research.

Once they have background information, they will join another partnership (to make a group of 4) to develop a plan to build a 1-2 foot long bridge out of toothpicks and glue.

Groups will work together to construct a bridge. The next day (after the glue has dried) a variety of objects will be placed on the bridge to test their strength. The group whose bridge holds the most weight without breaking will win a prize.

Assessment: 

Bridges will be tested for how much weight they can bear. Students will also be asked to write a reflection on the process when they are done.

Related Materials & Resources: