Skip Ribbon Commands
Skip to main content

Quick Launch
Home > Lake Teacher Blogs and Sites > Hartville Elementary Teachers > Mrs. Swindell's Learners
February 18
Is It Spring Yet?
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 2/18/2011 3:28 PM

​ It feels like Spring!  I’m so happy to finally see the grass! However, I’ve been told that the cold weather hasn’t left us for good.  Oh well – I’ll take the sunshine anytime I can get it!  I think the warmer weather made it easier to get to Parent-Teacher conferences last night.  I enjoyed touching base with many of you over the last two weeks.  If we did not have an opportunity to talk, please don’t hesitate to email me and we can arrange a conference.  In addition to sharing your child’s progress, Parent Teacher conferences also provided the opportunity to learn more about the proposed bond issue that is on the ballot on May 3rd.  To see more information about this important issue, please click onto the attachment I have included with this email!

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

Our vocabulary word this week was CONSEQUENCE, as in the following example:  Luke forgot that for every action there is always a consequence.  A few of the creative sentences form this week included:
        * My consequence for not getting a violation is getting a charm.
        * My consequence for kicking my brother was getting grounded.
        * A consequence for getting an A+ on my test was getting an ice cream.

Weekly Riddle

The kids really enjoyed the riddle from last week – I hope your son/daughter shared it with you!  What is artificial snow made out of?  SNOWFAKES!  This week, I just couldn’t make myself write another winter themed riddle (I’m so tired of the snow!!!)  Instead, we’ll think about creepy crawlies:  What do spiders like with their hamburgers?  HMMMMMM..................

Tip of the Week

Are you dreading those long car rides this Spring with the endless cries of, “Are we there yet?” Use these simple and fun ideas to turn your children’s boredom into wonderful language learning opportunities:
        Naming Objects in Categories (And They Won’t Even Know They’re Doing It!):  Play a version of the game “I’m going on a trip and I’m going to take___.”  Set the stage by going first and giving an example such as, “I’m going on a picnic, and I’m going to eat a sandwich.  What are you going to eat?” Have your children name as many food items as they can.  Variations of this game include the beach, park, pool, mountains, toy store, etc.  
        Another fun game to play in the car is the “category game”.  This game works by one person thinking of a category and everybody trying to name things that fit in that category.  Take turns and start a new category when someone can’t think of anything to name.  Use broad categories like colors, toys or things in the sky.  For more of a challenge, narrow the categories by adding two or more criteria (i.e. Green vegetables).  Make both these games into memory games by having each person attempt to remember the items and name each item before adding one of his/her own.  These games enhance a child’s ability to think of and name items in specific categories.

Favorite Website

http://www.gamequarium.com/  “The site the swims with learning fun.”  This website has a nice variety of learning games, including math and reading for all levels!  In addition to a website recommendation, I would like to share with you my suggestions for an“app of the week”.  I have had several parents ask me about applications that would be appropriate for their child on an iPod or iPad.  My first recommendation is an application called “Toontastic”.  This application was released January 18, 2011 for the iPad and has won several awards already.  For $2.99 it can’t be beat – my students love it!  “Lights, Camera, Play!  Toontastic is a creative learning tool that empowers kids to draw, animate, and share their own cartoons through imaginative play.  Making cartoons with Toontastic is as easy as putting on a puppet show- simply press the record button, move your characters onscreen, and tell your stories through play!  Once you’re done, Toontastic will play back your animation and voice as a cartoon for you to share with friends and family around the world.  Designed in partnership with Stanford’s Graduate School of Education and Zeum:  San Francisco’s Children’s Museum, Toontastic teaches key storytelling principles that help to promote creativity at a young age.....”

Random Fact of the Day

Did you know that beavers have orange teeth?

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
February 04
Happy February!
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 2/4/2011 10:27 AM

​

Happy February!  It is difficult to believe that it is February already!  It is also hard to believe that Spring is right around the corner.  It has been an unbelievable winter so far.  I hope your driveway is in better shape than mine!  We are continuing with many of our winter-themed activities this month, but with Valentine’s Day coming soon, I may begin to incorporate something other than snow into our therapy sessions!  Mrs. Lupo (graduate student clinician) has met the majority of the students and is looking forward to being here full time after President’s Day.  You should have received her letter of introduction, but if you have any questions, please feel free to email me.  Parent Teacher Conferences start next week.   This time, the conferences will be student led and the kids are really excited about sharing their classroom progress with you.  I will try to touch base with you as best as I can, however, with one less day, I will not be able to sit in on all the conferences.  If you have specific concerns, please feel free to email me and we can arrange a time to talk or visit.

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

Our vocabulary word this week was PROMINENT, as in the following example:  Every time Pinocchio told a lie, his nose became more and more prominent.  A few of the creative sentences from this week included:
    * The Empire State Building is prominent when you drive by it because it is very tall.
    * I had to wear glitter on my eyes so they were prominent.
    * The player was prominent because of his injury.
    * Mt. Everest is prominent because it is the tallest mountain in the world.

Weekly Riddle

Do you remember the riddle presented the week of January 14?  Of course not!  To jog your memory, here it is again:  What kind of bird can write?  (The answer:  A “pen”guin!)  Our riddle from last week was as follows:  What do you call a snowman in the summer?  Did your child try to quiz you?  Did you know the answer?  (A puddle!)  This week’s riddle is also winter themed:  What do snowmen eat for breakfast?  Do you know the answer?  You just might have to ask your child for a clue.....HMMMMM........

Tip of the Week

Does your child experience difficulty naming or giving more information about pictured objects?  If so, try these simple, language building strategies while reading with your child:
    * If your child progresses past choosing an object from two, but still has difficulty with direct naming, try saying, “Look, a red _____!” while pointing to the object.  This technique, called cloze, allows a child to take the clues you give from the sentence’s context and provide the correct answer.  If your child has difficulty, provide another clue by giving the first sound of the desired word. (i.e. “Look, a red b____!”)  Again, this task may be too difficult for some children  If you see or sense any frustration, try adding more details.  For example, you could say, “It’s something that you throw, kick, or roll.  It’s a b_____!”  Provide your child with the correct answer if he or she is still having trouble.  Children with language delays often avoid looking at books because, in the past, the activity has been frustrating or stressful.  Teach your child that reading is a wonderful opportunity!  Be his/her guide, but above all, be patient and enjoy your time together.

Favorite Website

This week’s “Pick of the Week” is a great site :  http://www.funbrain.com/  Your child may know about this site already because, as the name implies, it is a lot of fun!  This site is loaded with a ton of learning games that are educational and fun.  A new options on this site is its ability to download games (without advertising) and play them offline – very nice!  Check it out, it is worth your time!

Random Fact of the Day

Did you know that mosquitoes are attracted to people who just ate bananas?  As a talk-about, the students and I are discussing the difference between a fact and opinion.  What is your opinion of mosquitoes?

Remember.... If you ever want to revisit a past email from me, I have them posted to my teacher blog:  http://www.lakelocal.org/teacher/he/speech%20language%20therapy/default.aspx !
Thank you for your time and have a wonderful weekend!

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
January 14
It's January 14th!
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 1/14/2011 12:53 PM

​

Happy 2011!  I am glad to be back into a semi-regular routine once again (let’s forget about that snow day!) and I think the students are too.  Even though the holidays are over, the snow continues.  To take advantage of the pretty scenery, during the month of January and February, I will be incorporating into some therapy activities winter themes, which allows for the introduction of new vocabulary (yeah!).  Speaking of February ~ mark your calendars!  Spring conferences will be held on February 10 and February 17 for Hartville Elementary and Lake Elementary.  Look for information from your child’s teacher to be coming home soon.  I also wanted to introduce you to Amy Lupo.  Amy will be completing her student teaching semester with me this Spring.  She will be in my classroom two days a week until mid February at which time, she will be starting five days a week.  Mrs. Lupo will gradually start working with the students as she progresses through the semester.  Your child will be bringing home a letter of introduction Mrs. Lupo provided some time next week!

Weekly Riddle

Our riddle from last week was as follows:  Why do birds fly south in the winter?  Did you get quizzed?  If you did, were you able to provide the correct answer (because it is too far to walk!)?  This week’s riddle is also winter themed:  What kind of bird can write?  Do you know the answer?  You just might have to ask your child for a clue... HMMMM.....

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

Our vocabulary word this week was ANXIOUS, as in the following example:  Ben was so anxious about failing the math test that his teeth chattered.  A few of the creative sentences from this week included:
    * I was so anxious because my brother kept antagonizing me!
    * My coach was very anxious during the basketball game because it went into overtime.
    * I was so anxious about getting my report card.
Challenge your child to use this new word in at least one sentence this week.  Feel free to email me your sentence!

Tip of the Week

Does your child experience difficulty naming or giving more information about pictured objects?  If so, try these simple, language building strategies while reading with your child:
    * When looking at a page, name the objects pictured on that page (i.e. Ball, table and puppy).  As children begin to recognize the objects, expand each by adding descriptive words, or  adjectives (i.e. Yellow ball, long table and small puppy)
    * Children with language difficulties often become stressed or frustrated when asked to name objects.  When reading a story with your child, give him/her hints to help name objects and provide details.  Instead of saying, “What is this?”, try saying, “Is this a shoe or a ball?”  This gives your child a choice of two, decreasing the anxiety.  If this still poses difficulty, simplify it further by stating, “Is this a ball?” while pointing to the correct object.  If your child doesn’t answer, provide the correct response by saying, “Yes it is a ball!”

Favorite Website

I hope you were able to explore some of the web during our holiday break.  If so, I would love to hear from you about some of the websites I have found!  This week’s “Pick of the Week” is a wonderful site called:  Word Central ~ located at:  http://www.wordcentral.com/.  Beef up your vocabulary!  Look up words in the Student Dictionary!  Check out the Daily Buzzword!  These are ways this site will help with school and homework.  Just enter the Hallway and you’ll find yourself in one of he coolest rooms on the web.  The Cafeteria serves up the Daily Buzzword, the Bulletin Board links to other worthy word resources, and the Music Room lets you write poems and find rhyming words.  This site is set up by Merriam-Webster, the dictionary people.

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
December 17
It's December 17th!
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 12/17/2010 4:16 PM

​

The time this month has just zoomed by!  The school building has been full of holiday happenings and outside, we’ve had lots of snow with very cold temperatures.  I hope next week the weather is more cooperative so the kids can get some outside play time!  In fact, I hope at this time next week, we will all be at home, enjoying a very relaxing Christmas Eve.   With that said, this will be my last post of 2010!

Weekly Riddle

Did you figure out the answer to our last riddle?  Did you have to ask your child for a clue?  Did he/she help you {wink!} ?  What two things can’t you have for breakfast?  LUNCH AND DINNER!   This week’s riddle is holiday themed and since I don’t want to make you wait until January for the answer, I will post it at the bottom of today’s message.  Why does Santa have three different gardens?  HMMMMM........

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

Our vocabulary word this week was BRILLIANT, as in the following example:  None of the reindeer had ever seen such a brilliant nose in the herd.  A few of the creative sentences from this week included:
    * The Christmas lights on the tree and house are brilliant.
    * The sun shining in the sky is a brilliant thing.
    * In Science class, the light bulb we used as the sun, is brilliant.
Challenge your child to use this new word in at least one sentence this week!

Tip of the Week

Have you ever found yourself unable to remember a specific word – a word you normally know well – in the middle of a conversation?  You might remember something about the word, such as the sound it starts with or whether it’s a long or short word.  When this happens, you may feel like the word is “on the tip of your tongue”.  Children and adults with language with language disorders may struggle more frequently to find words, which can cause frustration and interfere with communication.  When a word finding or word retrieval problem affects daily communication, it will also impact academics, social communication and self-esteem.  The following are a few ideas that can help your child if he/she has difficulty retrieving words that are already known:
    * Give a visual cue such as a picture or gesture.  If the visual cue doesn’t help, try an auditory clue (the first sound is..., it rhymes with...., it goes with....)
    * Read books that contain rhymes, opposites, classifications, animals, names, repetitions, and predictable text.
    * Use “cloze” activities that ask your child to recognize contextual meaning.  For example, ask your child to complete the sentence:  “I gave my teacher the ___ I did the night before.” (homework)

Favorite Websites

Because the students will be at home for almost two full weeks, I thought it would be appropriate for me to provide you with two websites to visit.  The first can be found at:  http://www.magickeys.com/books/.  This site includes illustrated children’s stories for kids of all ages:  young children to young adult.  Some books include audio with the story!  Another great place to visit is:  http://www.vocabulary.co.il/.  “Vocabulary is Fun is a leading vocabulary website worldwide with the best flash online word games. The vocabulary games include an online word search, an online crossword puzzle, and hangman online (our version is called HangMouse). Users choose the vocabulary list that the online word game will use in the word game. The vocabulary games are popular for use on smart boards for word games to build vocabulary skills in classrooms.  Many people build their English vocabulary through a blend of methods — by taking English classes, reading books, watching movies in English, and studying English with English language software. Playing word and vocabulary games is a valuable part of learning English. There are thousands of vocabulary words in our vocabulary lists.  Vocabulary.co.il is a fun educational website dedicated to helping you build reading, phonics, or English language skills. We offer Free Online Word Games which are specifically designed to build vocabulary skills and to motivate people to learn through fun practice in spelling, phonics, and vocabulary.”  

I wish everybody a very happy holiday filled with laughter and joy!


(answer to riddle:  Because he likes to Ho-Ho-Ho!)

I’m looking at the calendar and can’t believe it is December 10th already!  The days are really zooming by (so quickly in fact, that I missed my newsletter last week!).  I hope all of you are enjoying the pretty scenery outside, as it looks like the snow is going to stay for awhile.  The students are itching to play outside, but unfortunately they have had indoor recess for the last several days due to the wind chill.  It is definitely that time of year when snow, a man in a red suit and stockings abound.  As I walk down the hallway, I can see that the students have been busy creating many holiday themed projects.  Next week, I may pull out several of my own holiday oriented activities!

Weekly riddle

Did you figure out the answer to our last riddle?  Did your children give you any clues?  Can a turkey jump higher than a school building?      YES – SCHOOL BUILDINGS DON’T JUMP!!!  The riddle that we have this week is actually the same one from last week so they should know this answer well:  What two things can’t you have for breakfast?    HMMMM.............

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

Our vocabulary word this week was CONSCIENCE, as in the following example:  Andrew wondered if his conscience would allow him just a tiny piece of cake.  A few of the creative sentences from this week included:
  * My conscience told me to NOT talk to strangers.
  * My conscience told me to tell the truth instead of lying to my  mom.
  * My conscience told me to NOT slap my brother.
    
Tip of the Week

Here are some additional strategies that you can use with your children to help them learn and remember important information:
    *Chunk it:  Chunking is a way of learning information by breaking it up into related pieces.  Telephone numbers are often learned through chunking, by grouping the numbers into sets of three or four.
    *Acronyms:  Acronyms can help children remember information they’ve learned by using the first letter from a group of words to make a new word.  For example, the Great Lakes are Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior – or HOMES.
    *Acrostics:  Acrostics use the first letter of words to make a saying.  Acrostics are especially useful when you have to remember information in a specific order.  For example, you can remember how to spell “rhythm” by using the acrostic “Rhythm helps your two hips move”.
    *Stress. Sleep, and Brain Overload:  It is more difficult to remember information when we are stressed-out, tired, or have overloaded our brains with information.  Children should get plenty of sleep and should take study breaks before they reach the point of overload when learning a lot of new information.

Favorite Websites

My pick of the week is a website dedicated to the advancement of speech and language skills in children with a hearing loss (although the activities are appropriate for children without a hearing loss too!)  “The Listening Room is a steady stream of FREE activities and resources to support the development of speech, language and listening skills in children, adolescents and adults with a hearing loss.”  Please visit http://www.hearingjourney.com/Listening_Room/index.cfm?langid=1.  You may need to register to explore the site, but all of the activities are free and downloadable.  I have downloaded , assembled and laminated many activities from this site.  It has activities geared towards Preschool through Adult.  It is well worth your time to visit!

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
November 24
Happy Thanksgiving
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 11/24/2010 4:09 PM

​

It’s hard to believe that tomorrow is Thanksgiving!  My taste buds are already craving the turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes that will be consumed!  I hope you have a wonderful holiday.  I know that when counting my blessings, included in the list is the opportunity I have to work with your children.  What are you thankful for?  That very question was posed to several of my students instead of our weekly vocabulary challenge.  Their answers might put a smile on your face!

*My family
*My Mom and Dad
*My food and my family and my games
*My Mom, my pets, my DS, my stuffed animals, my games and   my songs
*My DS and my new games for my DS
*Holidays and sports
*My toys, my DS, my family, my books, my cats, my dogs and my games
*Presents and my DS and my Wii
*Being super athletic and for good parents
*My turtle because he makes me happy and I am thankful for all of the sports and animals and my happy family 

*My Wii, food, my bed, family, my computer and my pets:  Sugar, Spice, Lizzy and  Joe
*There being a 25th anniversary of Mario
*My family, food, pets and water
*My Dsi and my food and my 2 dogs and 3 cats
*Having my brother, food, games and my Dsi
*Being good at sports
*My dog, my mom, my dad, Joey, food, Speech, birthdays, friends, choir, everything
*My family, food, birthday, Dsi, TV, friends, music, sports, my trumpet
*Being athletic, food, my health, my parents, my sister, TV, friends, my PS3, my laptop, my bed and my home

*Cheeseburgers – for the delicious cheese and the tasty lettuce and the yummy onions
*Food, a family, a bed to sleep on, a computer and a TV
 *Food, water, family, animals, science, video games, candy, TVs, computers, houses, books, and sports

*My family, food, my family’s health and safety and for water and a house and my cats and dogs and my hermit crabs
      

Weekly Riddle

Did you figure out the answer to the riddle last week?  Did your kids give you any clues? What smells the best at a Thanksgiving dinner?   YOUR NOSE!!!  The riddle for this week is also Thanksgiving themed:  Can a turkey jump higher than a school building?  HMMMMM...... (Maybe for an extra piece of pumpkin pie your kiddo will give you a clue!)

Tip of the Week

Here are some more strategies that you can use with your children to help them learn and remember important information:
    *Tell a story:  Stories allow us to create a picture in our minds that is easy to remember later.  Children can make up a story using the information that needs to be remembered.
    *Prediction:  If children are actively involved in learning, they are more likely to remember what is being taught.  One way to involve children in learning is through prediction.  Ask children what they know about a topic and what they would like to learn.

Favorite Websites

My pick for this week is a wonderful website called:  www.dotolearn.com .  In their own words:  “For over ten years Do2Learn has, through funding from several sources including the National Institutes of Health, used technology and the web to provide special learning resources for individuals with disabilities and the professionals and caregivers who serve them. We have worked with leading educators, clinicians, teachers and parents to develop serious games and learning material targeting specific deficits of individuals with neurological disorders including autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, fetal alcohol effects, OCD, attention disorders, learning and communication disorders and others.  The deficits we address include risky and disruptive behavior as well as lack of appropriate social, communication and daily living skills.

Do2learn.com freely offers, for your personal use, thousands of pages of the best of the resources we have developed and tested.  You do not need to register to use the site nor do we use cookies or any other tracking devices to intrude on your privacy. We find ads to be distracting and therefore do not put them on our pages. Our goal is to create a site that provides resources you may need in a respectful way.”

One of my favorite places to visit on this site is called the “Facial Expressions” program.  Go to the home page, click on the song & games tab, scroll down to emotion games and click on facial expressions.  This game allows a player to experiment with the different effects of moving separate facial parts – how a face conveys emotion.  This is a great activity to reinforce the understanding of nonverbal communication.  I have also used this game to enhance the comprehension of grade level text when discussing how a character might react or feel in a certain situation (Show me what she would look like if her balloon popped, etc.).  Explore the site, there’s so much to do!

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
November 17
Weekly Message!
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 11/17/2010 4:24 PM

​ The end of the week is fast approaching and Thanksgiving will be here before we know it (seven days?  Yikes!).  The students have enjoyed various activities which have incorporated some of the Thanksgiving vocabulary that has been introduced this season.  Through some online research, today some of my fifth grade students learned some new Thanksgiving facts.  Did you know that the governor of the Pilgrims was named Bradford or that the Native American tribe that shared the first Thanksgiving feast were the Wampanoags?  Interesting facts!

Weekly Riddle

Did you figure out the answer to the riddle last week?  Did your kids give you any clues?  What kind of cup doesn’t hold water?   A CUPCAKE!!!  Our new riddle is as follows (It’s a tricky one!):  What smells the best at a Thanksgiving dinner?   Hmmmmmm............

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

I am always impressed with the students’ creative sentences incorporating our new vocabulary word!  This week our vocabulary challenge word is:  CAVERNOUS, as in the following example:  The interior of the church was cavernous.  Ask your child if he/she/ remembers what his/her sentence is.  Try to challenge your child to use this new word at least once this week!

Tip of the Week

Here are some strategies and tips you can use with your children to help them learn and remember important information:
     * Personalize It – Children are more likely to remember information if it relates to them.  If they can relate it to something they already know and have experienced, they are more likely to remember it.
     *  Rhymes and Songs – Rhythm, rhyme and music can help us remember information.  For example, many children know that “In fourteen hundred ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue”. because it has rhythm and it rhymes.

Favorite Websites

This is one of my favorite websites to use especially for students in grades K-2.  They offer a variety of activities and crafts, many of which are theme related.  It’s a fun place to visit!  “DLTK's Crafts for Kids features a variety of fun, printable children's crafts, coloring pages and more including projects for holidays, educational themes and some of our children's favorite cartoon characters..”  http://www.dltk-kids.com/

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
November 10
It's Wednesday!
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 11/10/2010 4:00 PM

​

I don’t know if you are like me, but with the time change, don’t the days seem so short?  The weeks are zooming by, as well.  Beginning next week in therapy, we will be introducing more of the Thanksgiving vocabulary that your children have been exposed to in their classrooms.  I can’t believe it is that time of year already!

Weekly Riddle

I hope your child shared with you our riddle from last week:  What has four legs and a back, but no body? .................................... A CHAIR!  (I received some really interesting guesses about that one!)  Our riddle this week is as follows:  What kind of cup doesn’t hold water?   HMMMMMM.............

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

I’m always impressed with the sentences our students create in response to the weekly vocabulary challenge.  This week’s vocabulary word is:  OPPORTUNITY, as in the following example:  Digby the ram finally saw his opportunity to get back at Farmer Brown for keeping him locked in the barn.   Can your child tell you what it means?  Try to challenge your son/daughter to use this new word at home!  I would love to hear about any opportunities you had to use this word.....

Tip of the Week

Learning to Learn:  Strategies for Improving Memory....
     * Review and Repeat – The more you repeat information, the more likely it is that you will remember it.  It also helps you remember new information if you  
        review it along with information you already know.
     * Say It, Write It – Involving multiple senses (i.e. Seeing, hearing, touching, doing) helps you learn and remember information by giving you different ways
        for your brain to get the information, as well as by repeating the information.

Favorite Websites

I would like to share with you a website that a colleague of mine shared with me this week:  http://www.fcrr.org/index.shtml.  As I was navigating through, I noticed activities for teachers (which would be appropriate for home too) ,as well as, information for parents.  In their own words:  

“The Florida Center for Reading Research was established in January, 2002. It is jointly administered at Florida State University by the Learning Systems Institute and the
College of Arts and Sciences.
The Center’s Four Part Mission:

To conduct basic research on reading, reading growth, reading assessment, and reading instruction that will contribute to the scientific knowledge of reading and benefit students in Florida and throughout the nation.

To disseminate information about research-based practices related to literacy instruction and assessment for children in pre-school through 12th grade.

To conduct applied research that will have an immediate impact on policy and practices related to literacy instruction in Florida.

To provide technical assistance to Florida’s schools and to the State Department of Education for the improvement of literacy outcomes in students from pre-K through 12th grade.”

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
November 05
It's Friday Already?
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 11/5/2010 3:56 PM

​

I can’t believe it is Friday already!  This week went by so fast.  I guess this is a “week in review” post rather than a preview!



Weekly Riddle

Some of you have probably been quizzed by your children already regarding last week’s riddle.  At this point, some of you have probably been quizzed regarding this week’s riddle!
   

Last week:  What goes up and down, but doesn’t move?   THE STAIRS!
   

This week:  What has four legs, and a back, but no body?  HMMMMMM....  (I bet if you ask your child, he/she can help you!)

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

The students were very creative using this week’s vocabulary challenge word:  OBSTRUCT, as in the following example:  Evan could barely see he film because the person in front of him obstructed his view.  Ask your child if he/she remembers what this word means.  Try to challenge them at home to use it at least once this weekend!

Tip of the Week

Interaction and conversation during everyday activities are the keys to excellent language skills.  Talk to your child about everything and they will talk back!  Talk to your child during mealtime, driving the car, bathing, dressing, cleaning, shopping, and watching TV.  Ask him/her to label or describe the objects in the environment.

Favorite Websites

A great resource to try at home this upcoming week can be found at:  www.readwritethink.org.  I have found it to be teacher and parent friendly with a wide variety of activities for a variety of ages.  Click on the tab labeled:  Parent and Afterschool Resources.  There is a drop down menu in which you can choose the grade level that most appropriately describes your child.  Here is some information about the site from the International Reading Association:  

“The mission of the International Reading Association (IRA) is to promote reading by continuously advancing the quality of literacy instruction and research worldwide. The Association provides outstanding professional development and supports excellent teaching, critical research, and promotion of the lifetime reading habit.”

If you would like information about a certain topic, please feel free to email me (You are probably not alone!).  Thank you for your time and have a great weekend!

Mrs. Swindell

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
November 01
November Already?
by  Sharon SwindellNo presence information  on 11/1/2010 2:16 PM

​ Did you figure out the answer to the riddle from last week?  When a dirty kid has finished taking a bath, what is still dirty?  THE BATHTUB!
Our new weekly riddle is as follows:  What goes up and down, but doesn’t move?   Hmmmmm.........

Weekly Vocabulary Challenge

The students did a fantastic job with last week’s vocabulary word.  However, a new challenge is before them.  This week’s vocabulary challenge word is:  HUMOROUS, as in the following example:  The family never realized that Bingo had such a humorous personality.  Ask your child if he/she remembers what his/her sentence is.   Try to challenge them at home to use this new word at least once this week!

Tip of the Week

Use your own speech as a model.  Children learn speech and language through imitation.  Being aware of your own speech production, including grammar, helps your child improve his or her own skills!

Favorite Websites

I often receive very valuable information from sources outside my room or classes that I may take.  Frequently, this information comes from a website.  As your child’s SLP, I value the partner relationship that is so important to your child’s continued communication progress.  I want to share these resources with you so that you are able to work from home with your child, as I work from school with him/her.  My favorite website at the moment is:  http://www.readingresource.net/        

“This website is dedicated to helping children learn to read.  For anyone who cares about reading and helping those with dyslexia and reading difficulties, ReadingResource.net is for you.  In the course of working with thousands of children in the public schools, giving lectures, teaching at the university level, and consulting with parents, we have experienced first hand the importance of learning to read.  Fortunately, we know now, more than ever, what to do to ensure every child becomes a good reader.  Best of all, we know what to do when reading does not come easily.

ReadingResource.net is a trusted source for information, for explanations, for guidance and for support.  We can explain why children can't read and tell you what you can do to improve their reading skills. Whatever you are seeking, be it reading strategies, teacher resources, reading activities or just a better understanding of the causes of dyslexia and reading problems themselves, you have come to the right place.  Most of all, we hope this site helps readers of all ages and skill levels and introduces the world of literacy to many children who may not have found it otherwise.”

Permanent Link to Post | Email Post Link | Number of Comments 0 Comment(s)
1 - 10Next
Alert Me Alert Me
 

 About this blog

 
About this blog
Welcome to SharePoint Blogs. Use this space to provide a brief message about this blog or blog authors. To edit this content, select "Edit Page" from the "Site Actions" menu.

© Copyright 2004-2010 - Lake Local School District
11936 King Church Avenue NW  |  Uniontown, Ohio 44685
Voice: (330) 877-9383  |  Fax: (330) 877-4754