Category Archives: Social Studies Themes

Memorial Day Activities

Posted on May 23, 2016 by Sandie

Memorial Day gives us all a chance to remember and think about those who serve and protect us in some of the most horrific conditions imaginable.  Much of the time they are thousands of miles away from home, family, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Art Themes, Holidays, Language Arts, Literacy Activities, Memorial Day, Social Studies Themes | Leave a comment

Christmas Stockings

Posted on December 14, 2015 by Sandie

Here’s a simple, fun, and educational  activity for your kiddos.  Students learn some of the common design elements of the Pennsylvania Dutch style, and use the information to create a cut-and-paste Christmas stocking.  Directions, tracers, and background information are all … Continue reading →

Posted in Art Themes, Christmas, Colonial America, Holidays, How To..., Integrated Instruction, Project Based Learning, Social Studies Themes, Thematic Teaching | 2 Comments

The Power of REAL

Posted on December 7, 2015 by Sandie

I learned about the power that REAL learning can have on motivating students during my Master’s Degree training and later experiences with my own students. I started my Master’s Degree in Special Education after I had been teaching elementary school … Continue reading →

Posted in Classroom Publishing, Instructional Planning, Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, Learning, Native Americans, Project Based Learning, Real Life Projects, Social Studies Themes, Special Education, Thematic Teaching, Thinking About Teaching, Writing | Leave a comment

Egypt: Lesson Accommodations

Posted on November 2, 2015 by Sandie

For the next few weeks I’m going to share some lessons which I’ve used with groups of students of widely varying ability and achievement levels. Since I teach thematically (no matter what grade or type of class I may be … Continue reading →

Posted in Egypt, How To..., Instructional Planning, Integrated Instruction, Project Based Learning | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

All About Me–Writing Lesson Plans

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Sandie

For the next few weeks I’m going to share some lessons which I’ve used with groups of students of widely varying ability and achievement levels. Since I teach thematically (no matter what grade or type of class I may be … Continue reading →

Posted in Classroom Publishing, How To..., Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, Literacy Activities, Project Based Learning, Social Studies Themes, Special Education, Thematic Teaching, Thinking About Teaching, Workshop Style Teaching, Writing | 2 Comments

Inquiry, Project Based Learning

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Sandie

I have always found children learn better, faster, deeper, and stronger when they do stuff, real stuff. Curiosity, interest, desire, and control are the bedrock upon which true learning grows. Children who build, create, construct, and design in order to … Continue reading →

Posted in Integrated Instruction, Learning, Native Americans, Project Based Learning, Social Studies Themes, Thematic Teaching, Thinking About Teaching | 2 Comments

May Day Flowers

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Sandie

https://thematicteacherblog.wordpress.com/file-cabinet/science-files/may-day-flowers/ Just in time for May First, Mother’s Day, and all those blooming flowers during the month of May—here comes May Day Flowers, a language arts thematic unit that will immerse your children in the history of European May Day … Continue reading →

Posted in Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, May Day, Plants, Science Themes, Social Studies Themes, Thematic Teaching | Leave a comment

Colonial America Natural Resources–Magnetic and Flannel Board Materials

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Sandie

I love flannel and magnetic board materials.  I’ve used them for LOTS of things.  Here’s a set of Magnetic Flannel Board pieces of resources used by the early American colonists.  Set them out for center play, group activities, and story telling.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Colonial America, Flannel Board, Integrated Instruction, Language Arts, Literacy Activities, Magnetic Board, Natural Resources, Plants, Thanksgiving, Thematic Teaching | 3 Comments

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Posted on January 15, 2015 by Sandie

I always loved “spending time” with my students and Dr. King.  There’s something about him that really resonates with children, even young ones.  There are so many things I never knew anything about as a child that were important for … Continue reading →

Posted in Heroes, Martin Luther King, Jr., Social Studies Themes | 3 Comments

Planning a Thematic Unit

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Sandie

Planning an individual thematic unit is not much different from regular lesson planning, and because of the work you’ve already completed in selecting and organizing the themes, and listing the resources you have available, you can just start filling in … Continue reading →

Posted in Colonial America, How To..., Instructional Planning, Integrated Instruction, Social Studies Themes, Thematic Teaching | 1 Comment