One of my favorite ways to celebrate the 4th of July is to read the Declaration of Independence with my kids. It's a great reminder of how our country was formed and why we celebrate. Its not about barbecues, fireworks, family gatherings, or an extra day off from school or work. Its much more than that and I want my kids to know the true meaning. We are planning a fun school day full of Independence Day projects and your invited to do the same. Below are some suggestions and ideas on how to create a meaningful lesson plan revealing the truth about why Americans celebrate the 4th of July.

Click here to view or purchase this 43 page download.

Learning the names of all 66 books in the bible will help your children find scripture verses much faster. This download set includes:

• Books of the Bible Copywork. Your child can practice their best handwriting as they become familiar with the books of the Bible names.

 

• It also includes 3 worksheets which will help them memorize all 66 books of the Bible in 9 days! They will memorize them through a process of elimination where some of the letters are missing so they are only left with prompts.  The first worksheet has all the letters for each book of the Bible. The second worksheet has all the books of the Bible, but they only show the first couple letters and the last letter for a prompt, the missing letters are replaced with a dash. The last worksheet only includes the first letter of each book of the bible with dashes that replace the missing letters.
• There is also a link for my favorite Books of the Bible song video on YouTube.

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Sometimes you just need a simple list of the 50 states found in the USA! So, here you go. No bells and whistles, just a plain black and white list. This was actually quite difficult to make because the artist in me wanted to spruce it up with a border, photo, a splash of color and a fun font...it was painful but I resisted.

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Children bicker, especially two of my boys who are very close in age and who have very different personalities. They are in a constant competitive battle to be the biggest, strongest, fastest and smartest at everything which often leads to “he said, she said” anecdotes. Sometimes I feel like I’m watching superhero rivals, though both are good, they each have their own agenda in life. Each one needs their own separate island to control and until they get that I have to find peace while we live in our small kingdom together. So, I dedicate this chart to them.
So far, it’s been working. It's a visual reminder of their poor choices which prompts that sleepy conscience of theirs to wake up and choose better. If my boys bicker, argue or fight, then by the third check they receive their due consequence. Over the years my consequences have varied, as of now, my boys loose evening screen time (this is the only time I allow TV or electronics, with the exception of a learning movie) and have an earlier bed time. If they are having a not-so-good day and get 3 strikes early on, I will have my child shadow me. This just means they follow me around and do not have the freedom to do as they wish. Do you find yourself wandering into a kingdom like mine? If you do, then you just might like this consequence chart. I grant you wisdom as you rule your kingdom!

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This download has two variations: colored and black and white.

Make your "3 Strikes & You're Out" Chart reusable by laminating it. Here is an Amazon link for the same laminator I use at my home. I have also included links for extra laminating sheets and a wet-erase marker.

Poetry is an artistic style of writing that expresses your thoughts, ideas, and feelings.  They use rhyming words and rhythm in a fun and creative way. They can describe things with beautiful descriptive words, or by arranging words in a specific pattern. This helps the reader understand and imagine what the author is trying to communicate.  There are many kinds of poetry such as: acrostic, couplet, and haiku.  This 9 page lesson plan will walk you and your students through the process and art of writing a couplet poem. It includes two samples as well as a rhyming words chart and more.

Click here for a link to this Free Language Arts Lesson Plan.

Please share your students couplet poems by posting in the comments. Include their first name and age.

Do you remember when you were 5? I do. I remember having little understanding about the world around me. I also remember sitting with my kindergarten teacher and the other students in a circle on the grass at school one day. A daddy long-legged spider was crawling on a student. She grabbed the spider off the terrified girl and began talking and sharing facts about it as she showed everyone. I was intrigued.