Happy Halloween

                              
Check out these sites for history, facts, origin & meanings, and activities about Halloween:

History of Halloween - HISTORY.com

Halloween - The Fantasy and Folklore of All Hallows by Jack Santino - The American Folklife Center - The Library of Congress

Halloween in United States - Time and Date

Halloween Activities, Party Ideas, Games & Fun for Kids - familyeducation.com

Halloween Crafts and Children's Activities - DLTK's Growing Together

ESL Kids Halloween Games & Activities - ESL KidStuff

Resources for Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month

Check out Teacher Vision for resources for Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month:

                                         

American Indians & Native Americans - Teacher Resources

Look below for lessons, activities, and printables on Native American life and culture. Use these resources to teach students of all ages about the colonization of America from a different perspective. You'll find great educational resources for Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month in November. There are also plenty of activities to use throughout the year for music, drama, art, and language arts.

IDEAs That Work Site

On the IDEAs That Work site, there is information and resources under each one of these major topics:

Teachers - Academic - College and Career Ready Standards (CCRS) are rigorous academic standards that build from kindergarten through 12th grade to support students' preparation and success upon graduation from high school.  There are many factors that directly contribute to a student's academic success.

Teachers - Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills - In order to be successful and meet college and career standards (CCRS), students need support from their families and teachers who work collaboratively to meet both their instructional as well as their social, emotional, and behavioral needs.  In addition, the contect in which they are learning and developing is important, so creating a school climate where a student can feel engaged and connected is critical.

Families - Academic - College and Career Ready Standards, or CCRS, lay out the knowledge and skills students must have from kindergarten through twelfth grade.  The CCRS set high expectations for students and build on previous years’ knowledge and skills.  CCRS are designed to prepare students for college and careers after high-school graduation. You can support your child’s academic success by learning more about CCRS, even if your child has a disability that makes learning challenging.

Families - Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills - Your child’s engagement in school, and his or her social, emotional and behavioral learning play an important role in educational success. Explore these links for family resources to support your child’s engagement, growth, and transition to postsecondary education and employment.

Resources - Additional Resources - Teachers and parents may find these additional resources useful as they partner to support students in achieving college and career standards (CCRS).

Did you know about the SERC Library AT Corner...

Assistive Technology Corner

Want to learn more about assistive technology and how it can help your student or your child? Wish you could test some AT devices before choosing them? Feeling lost with the array of apps?

The State Education Resource Center (SERC) can assist you. Families and educators are welcome to visit the SERC Library’s Assistive Technology Corner, where they can see the display of low-, mid- and high-tech AT devices, try them out, and learn about the latest research and trends in the field of assistive technology.

In addition to demonstrating the use of the devices, SERC staff can provide information on how to create low-tech AT using everyday materials as well as the importance of AT in accessing, participating in, and progressing in the general education curriculum.  Educators can also reserve the space to conduct AT assessments and use the available AT devices for trials.

For more information and to make appointments for demonstrations of AT, please contact the SERC Library at library@ctserc.org, or call 860-632-1485 x4.

Great Thanksgiving Listen

NCSS is pleased to partner with StoryCorps in their announcement of The Great Thanksgiving Listen. On Thanksgiving weekend 2015, the acclaimed oral history project StoryCorps will work with social studies teachers across the United States to ask their students to record an interview with a grandparent or another elder using the free StoryCorps app. With permission from the participants, each of these interviews will be uploaded to the StoryCorps archive at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

Sign up to receive a special Teachers Toolkit and learn how to get started at thegreatlisten.org. 

TeacherVision

Hello - if you don't already know about this ---- you can sign up for Great Stuff for Teachers from TeacherVision - these are just some great stuff that has come through in the last two emails and there is much more, check out there site here and follow the links below:

Celebrate WorldSpace Week this October 4-10 by exploring space sciences: stars, meteors, planets, and more!

TeenRead Week is October 18-24. Celebrate the occasion by assigning some of our favorite books for teenagers. Don't teach high school? Our literature picks for the younger grades make great choices for reluctant readers.

Teacher-parent collaboration is an important step for running a classroom smoothly. Use our resources to establish great relationships with parents.

Happy Halloween! Okay, there are still a few weeks left until October 31, but that doesn't mean you can't start celebrating now! Kids love this holiday and all the spooky decorations, games, and stories that go along with it. (Not to mention the candy, of course!)

The United States is often called the melting pot because of our vast diversity—of races, religions, cultures, and languages. Teach students about their diverse country, and how to accept and celebrate our differences, this October: it's Diversity Month. 

Try out a new rubric this year! Rubrics are a clear way of grading: your students know exactly what is expected of them, and you have an easy template for evaluating work

Teachers and Librarians ---- Do you know about a couple of 'special gems' around the state like the SERC Library - but not like the SERC Library!

If you do not already know or are hearing about for the first time --- there are two 'special gems' like the SERC Library available to borrow resources from if you are a teacher or librarian in the State of Connecticut ----

The Library Service Centers located in Willimantic and Middletown!

Check out their web site and specifically - Service Center and Collections:  About the Service Centers

In addition, check out their social media sites for information:

https://twitter.com/csldld

https://www.facebook.com/CSLDLD

https://www.pinterest.com/csldld/

The State Library's new website is:  http://ctstatelibrary.org/

The Division of Library Development's website is:  http://libguides.ctstatelibrary.org/DLD/home

More resources to explore in addition to all the resources at the SERC Library -  The SERC Library loves to share additional resources available for teachers and librarians to help educate the children in the State of Connecticut ---- what are you waiting for ---- CHECK OUT THE LINKS ABOVE!