Teaching Tips Archives

Behind the Movie: Scholastic War Horse Teaching Guide

December 14, 2011 by Momstart 3 Comments

WAR HORSE is based on the young adult novel by Michael Morpurgo, first published in 1982. While the film is rated PG-13, it’s a great way to educate older children. I saw War Horse over a week ago and I really can’t wait to see it again. I found it very well made as it presented World War 1 to me in a way that it had never been presented to me before. Scholastic has created a War Horse Teaching Guide and I suggest that you check It out.

The First World War is experienced through the journey of this horse—an odyssey of joy and sorrow, passionate friendship and high adventure. “War Horse” is one of the great stories of friendship and war— a successful book, it was turned into a hugely successful international theatrical hit that is currently on Broadway. It now comes to screen in an epic adaptation by one of the great directors in film history.

You can download these worksheets at Scholastic War Horse.

Scholastic also created a children’s version of the story War Horse. It’s a very quick and easy read.

How to Connect With Reading …. And Your Little Reader

July 18, 2011 by Momstart 7 Comments

School’s Out… It’s the Middle of Summer… Now What?!?

This is part of a series here at MomStart called Teaching Tips:

If you have kids who are in school, summertime can be great. Day after day spent loving every extra second that you are getting to spend with your little lovelies. Then, you hear those words… “I’m booorrrreed.” Whether you’re lucky enough to be living somewhere that is giving you hot sunny days, or are suffering through dreary cloudy rainy-ness, it seems like all kids (regardless of age)utter those famous words. I even remember doing it when I was a kid.

Well, here’s the teacher to the rescue. No, I’m not about to rock your world, or offer you any miracle solutions. What I can do though, is give you a little more to talk to your kids about. Reading, reading, reading… you all know how important it is. There are TONS of local reading log programs, summer reading clubs, etc. in almost every area. All of those are good, great, and fine… but what can you do to build your child’s comprehension of what they are reading (or if they can’t read on their own yet “listening”)?

Research shows that when children (and even adults) build a greater understanding of what they are reading when they discover and make connections to the material. There are 3 specific types of connections that are important:

– Text to Self – Something in the book or story that the reader can personally relate to.

– Text to Text – Something in the book that reminds the reader of another something they have read.

– Text to World – Something in the material that makes the reader think of something they have seen or that is happening on a community or global level.

So what does all this mean? It means that you now have a few things that you can talk to your reader (no matter the age) about when they are reading! Yes, reading is important. Knowing how to talk about reading is just as important though! Next time you read a bedtime story, choose a page and ask if they’ve ever felt the way a character is feeling. Maybe instead you can ask after the book if it’s similar to any other books they’ve read. You can even ask if the book reminds them of anything they’ve seen happening lately (That question is pretty broad and is a little tricky for very young readers).

Helping your kids learn how to connect to the material they are reading will help them build SERIOUS comprehension skills. It helps them grow from just kids reading books into real READERS… readers who think about what they’re reading… and know how to talk about it! Give it a try. There really are no age limits to this strategy… well it might be a little early for my little guy, but it will work for any kid who can talk! Leave some comments and let everyone know how it goes. You may be surprised at some of the insight kids of any age have.

About Ashley:

Ashley has a background in teaching Kindergarten and working with children K through 8th grade. She is now a SAHM and a very active member of our local MOMS Club chapter. She writes her own blog at Momicles.

Teaching Tips Sorting A Skill for Preschoolers, Kindergarteners, and Beyond

March 23, 2011 by Momstart 4 Comments

Welcome MomStart’s newest contributor, Ashley.

I’ve officially been a stay at home mom for almost 9 months and I have to say that I feel so lucky to have the chance to do this. I know there are other moms out there who would love the chance to stay at home and take care of their little ones, but can’t for a wide variety of reasons. Now, that’s not to say that there aren’t days when I really miss what I like to refer to as “my past life.” Before my current career, I was a teacher. I worked primarily with kindergarten, but spent a lot of time working with students through 8^th grade. My little guy is only 9 months old, so I haven’t really been able to get my “teacher fix” through him… YET! We’ve had a variation of centers at home, and there are enough children’s books to begin a small classroom library. Anyway, I’ve really been going through withdrawal lately searching for some outlet for all of the great ideas that I used to be able to implement in the classroom. I’m hoping that you will get some benefit out of this. I might be out of the classroom, but I’m hoping I can bring a little bit of the classroom to you. I’m hoping to bring you small, easy and simple ways to help your little learners.

Sorting: A Skill for Preschoolers, Kindergarteners, and Beyond

Did you know that most states require that kindergarteners be able to sort shapes objects according to a rule? It is a common standard that kindergarteners are expected to meet. This may sound simple, but for some kids it can be kind of tricky. You might have a kindergartener struggling with this skill, or have a preschooler ready to tackle it head on. Either way, here are some helpful ideas on how to help your child become a stronger sorter.

At home, there are tons of items for your little one to sort. ANYTHING can work: coins, buttons, blocks, bowls, or even the toys that haven’t been put away yet. Maybe your kids will even sort their trail mix at snack time! Do you have a junk drawer that needs some work? Stick some little hands on it with a mission. Sort that stuff! Since I think most people probably have some type of Legos hanging around their house, we’ll go with that. Just know you really could use anything.

Begin by working with your little sorter to sort the blocks by a simple characteristic, like color. Put all the yellow ones in one pile, red in another, and blue in another. Let your child keep it going. Then ask if your child can sort the blocks in another way (maybe by size). If this is easy for your child, ask them to create their own sorting rule. You can also play a game called “How Did I Sort?” In this “game”, someone would sort the blocks (or coins, or noodles, or buttons) in a certain way (maybe by size?), and then someone else would try to guess the sorting rule. It sounds pretty simple, but it can keep a little one busy doing something non-destructive… and isn’t that usually the goal?

You really don’t need any special supplies to play “How Did I Sort?” but if you feel the need to get more stuff in your home I’ve given some links for products that schools often use to practice sorting. The first are called attribute blocks. The second link is to a giant bucket of buttons. These can be pretty fun for sorting because you can even get really tricky and start sorting by the number of holes in the button! I know… you can tell I taught kindergarten. I’m excited about buttonholes!

Well, happy sorting! I hope that you think this is fun… and an easy educational way to entertain your little one!

About Ashley: