National Geographic Kids....

Today I came upon a web site that has lots of interesting videos and other fun stuff. It's National Geographic Kids. One of the videos I watched was on swarms of locusts that used to be in America and suddenly disappeared. Check out the video "Lots of Locusts" to learn why! Personally, I am not a big fan of bugs, but I found this bug page to have some fascinating photos of bugs.
Another interesting spot on their website offers Green Tips. Remember this past school year we made a list of things we can do to "Go Green". I have really cut down on the number of plastic/paper shopping bags I get when I am out and about. Hopefully you have too! Several stores now sell re-usable shopping bags like the ones we got from Jewel, one of our local grocery stores. I continue to replace my regular light bulbs with CFL bulbs, like the ones donated from Home Depot. We have to keep in mind that even a small step toward being green is still a positive step. Back to National Geographic Kids...they have a craft section where they show you how to make your own Re-Usable Grocery Bag. Maybe you can give it a try.
Go to the site and see what other fun things are waiting for you at National Geographic Kids! Maybe you can leave a comment to share your favorite parts of the site too.

Another Counting Book...

I love sharing books with you! Nothing beats curling up in a comfy spot and reading a good book, but books online can be fun too. I like the fact that some books can be shared online. There is a site called Big Universe that shares books online with you. If you really like the book, you can choose to buy it for your own library. If you want to share the book, you can also email a link to your friend. If you find a book you think I might like, send me the link in email or include it in a comment below. I would love to see what you like to read.

At Big Universe, I came across another online book that encourages you to use your math skills by counting things you may see in the city or wherever you live! You'll need to click on the link, I am not able to place the book directly on the page.

This book is called: Counting in the City. Another interesting book at this site is called: Counting at the Zoo.

 Again, think of ways you can use your counting skills when you are out and about town. Maybe you can find things that you can count by 2's, 3's, 5's or 10's.

Dog Tricks...

If you know me, you know I love dogs! My own dog, Coal is pretty good at doing all sorts of tricks. He can fetch specific toys by name, bring me my house-shoes,  hold a treat on his nose until he gets the command to eat, he even understands a few commands in Spanish, and more. While he's a good boy when it comes to tricks, he can't take commands over the Internet like this little guy.... 

Check out the I DO TRICKS DOG! How do you think that little dog knows the tricks you want him to do? Do you know a dog that can do fun tricks?

Opposites: A Fun Book

Here's another fun book from LOOKY BOOK. The author, Pamela Harris, uses lots of faces to show the concept of opposites. After reading the book, see how many opposites you can make in the mirror with your own face! ;-)

Math Challenge...

As part of our math curriculum, we learned how to tally, graph and use pictures to represent numbers in a graph. The activity below gives you a chance to practice your skills. You may need a grown-up close by to help you with the words. I am confident you can do the math. The tallies and bar graph should be very familiar activities. The pictograph presents a challenge. Be sure to pay attention to the details in the instructions. Have fun!

Happy 4th of July...

Celebrating some of the beauty of America:

Cool Book...

A big Thank you for Katlin her sister, Addison and mom, Sue for meeting me for dinner at the Dogfather  tonight! MMm love those chili cheese dogs! ;-)

 This is a really cool ABC Book from LookyBook. (I LOVE that site) Every time you think you've seen every kind of ABC book there is, another great one comes along. This one is called ABC3D. Be sure to turn up the volume on your computer for this one. It's a video of the book. Wait until you see how they move from "V" to "W"... pretty cool! What a fun way to review letters!  What is your favorite letter in the book? I think the "U" is pretty neat!