Category Archives: Learning Opportunities

#58: Jesse Owens

Early Enrichment

Jesse Owens, son of a sharecropper and grandson of a slave, achieved what no Olympian before him had accomplished.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your early enrichment mini spark recording page #58: Who was Jesse Owens?

2. Read this information and make a mini timeline. You can print this timeline or make your own on your recording page.

Who was Jesse Owens?  Track-and-field athlete Jesse Owens won four gold medals at

the 1936 Olympic Games. His achievements were important for himself and for many other people at the time. The Games were held in Berlin, Germany. Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was in power there. Nazi banners draped the sports field. The Nazis believed white athletes were best. But Owens proved that they were wrong.

James Cleveland Owens was born in Oakville, Alabama, on September 12, 1913. His family later moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in search of better opportunities.

Jesse became a track star at a young age. In 1928 he set track records in the high jump and the running broad jump (long jump). In 1933, while he was in high school, he broke three other records. He then went to Ohio State University.

In the 1936 Olympics Owens won gold medals for the running broad jump, the 100- and 200-meter races, and the 4 × 100-meter team relay. He also set new Olympic and world records.

Owens graduated from college in 1937 and worked for the Illinois Athletic Commission. He later got involved in guidance activities for young boys. He also made goodwill visits to countries in Asia for the U.S. government. Owens died in Phoenix, Arizona, on March 31, 1980.

3. To learn more about Jesse Owens, watch the video below.  Record 1 idea you would like to remember, 2 words to describe Jessie, and 3 facts.

4. What is the most important thing you learned about Jesse Owens? Add this to your recording sheet.

5. Share your Early Enrichment mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

 

 

Social Studies Spark #48: African-American Athletes in the Winter Olympics!

Social Studies Enrichment

Source: https://news.yahoo.com/7-notable-black-athletes-made-184117774.html

February marks the beginning of Black History Month, and it is also the month when the Winter Olympics of 2022 kick off! This post honors both of those events.

There have been some big moments for Black athletes in the Winter games. Of course, the Winter Olympics is not historically known for its racial diversity, but that hasn’t stopped a few superstars of color from making their mark, like figure skater Debi Thomas, who became Team USA’S first Black athlete to win an Olympic medal! It was in 1988 in Calgary that she took home the bronze.

And it wasn’t until 2002, just 20 years ago, that Vonetta Flowers became the first Black athlete from any country to win gold in the Winter Olympics. She was a Team USA bobsledder at the Salt Lake City games.

In Beijing, keep an eye out for Erin Jackson, who is back at the Olympics after becoming the first Black woman to qualify for the US Olympic Long Speed Skating Team four years ago.

And one of my personal favorites, the Jamaican four-man bobsled team, they’re back at Beijing– this time around, their first Winter Olympics in more than 20 years. And if folks recall, “Cool Runnings” may have an opportunity for a comeback.

As you watch the Olympics this month, who do you think is an outstanding athlete of color?

Comment below!

#68: National Opposite Day

Reading Enrichment

We celebrate national opposite day on January 25th. We don’t have to only celebrate opposite day on January 25th. Check out some of these resources to celebrate any day of the year!

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #68: National Opposite Day

2.  Watch this video. Oh, SpongeBob! Write about your favorite part on your recording sheet.

3. On your recording page, make a list of 10 things you could do today that are the opposite of what you would normally do. Examples: eat breakfast for dinner, greet your friends with “goodbye” instead of “hello”, or write your name backwards all day.

4. Palindromes are words written the same forward as backward. Mom and Dad Are Palindromes, written by Mark Shulman, has many examples palindromes. Watch the video and write down your 5 favorite palindromes from the story on your recording page.

5. Contronyms are words that have contradictory or opposite meanings.

  • CLIP can mean to “cut off” (as in clipping a coupon) or “attach” (as you do with a paperclip)
  • DUST can mean to “to remove particles” or “add fine particles” (as in dusting a cake with sugar)
  • LEFT can mean “remaining” (as in one piece left) or “departed” (as in “she left ten minutes ago.”)
  • SEED can mean ” seeds put in” (as in “seeded with native grasses”) or “to remove seeds” (as in “seeding a watermelon”).

Add these words to a list on your recording page and think of 2 more on your own.

6. Check out more examples here and add a few more to your list.

7. Share your language arts mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Lesson ideas are from Big Ideas for little Scholars . 

#67: Literary Device Lesson-Personification

Reading Enrichment

Personification is when we give human traits or feelings to things that aren’t human. For example, when we say the wind “whispers” or the trees “dance,” we are making it seem like these things can act like people. It’s a fun way to make stories and poems more lively and interesting!

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #67: Literary Device Lesson-Personification 

2. Watch this video clip that illustrates the use of personification. Record 3 examples from the video on your recording page.


3. Check out how these examples of personification are illustrated.

Choose activity 4 or 5 to completez:

4. Draw and color an illustration to match each example of personification and then one of your own.  You can draw these on your recording sheet or click on image to open the document to print.


5. Write a story about a day in the life of an object, using plenty of personification. Include an illustration. You may do this on your recording sheet or on the template linked below (click on image).

6. Share your language arts mini spark recording page and any other pages with your teacher/EY coordinator.

#87: Palindrome Party

Math Mini Sparks

From time to time we are lucky and have a Palindrome “Week”. In May 2025 we had a 10 day stretch where the dates could be written as a palindrome!

The date reads the same forward as it does backwards.  This doesn’t happen often!

Spark your math thinking!

1. Set up your math mini spark recording page: #87: Palindrome Party

2. Check out these palindromes for kids: https://www.cbc.ca/kids/articles/palindromes-theyre-the-same-backwards-and-forwards. Pay special attention to any words that are new to you and phrases that are palindromes. These items should all be included on a taking page.

3. Watch the video about palindromes and pause the video as needed to record any new words/phrases that are palindromes.

 

4. Check out this AMAZING trick write about the patterns you observe and the steps you see: http://somethingorotherwhatever.com/sum-of-3-palindromes/. 

6. Check out some palindrome phrases at: https://kids.niehs.nih.gov/games/brainteasers/palindromes/index.htm

What is your favorite phrase from this post?

7. On a piece of paper, make a list of the answers to the following math problems.  You may use a calculator.  11 x 11       111 x 111          1,111 x 1,111.                   11,111 x 11,111           111,111 x 111,111     Based on these answers, can you predict what the answer will be to 111,111,111 x 111,111,111?

8. Where can you find 🅿🅰🅻🅸🅽🅳🆁🅾🅼🅴🆂? Look for these around your school, home, and when you are out and about. Write about what you have noticed.

9. Share your math mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Check out the palindrome badge at the EY website.

#66: How to use a semicolon

Reading Enrichment, Uncategorized

The semicolon might appear to be misunderstood. It resembles a combination of a comma and a period, which could explain why we often misuse these punctuation marks, treating them like grammatical confetti. This lesson aims to provide clear guidance and best practices for the correct usage of the semicolon.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #66: How to use a semicolon

2. Watch the video. Pause the video as needed to record notes. Pay special attention to any words that are new to you, rules, specific examples and sample sentences. These items should all be included on your recording page. You should have at least 5 items on your note page when you are done.

3. Write two sentences of your own using a semi colon  in each one and include them on the note taking page.

4. Share your language arts mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Lesson video by Emma Bryce, animation by Karrot Entertainment.

#57: Halloween Candy Sorting

Early Enrichment

Halloween only comes once a year.  It is sad, except that you probably have a lot of candy at home to cheer you up for a few weeks! For this early enrichment mini spark you are going to sort your Halloween candy in different ways! Talk with an adult to see if you are allowed to try out this project.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your early enrichment mini spark recording page #57: Halloween Candy Sorting

2. Watch this video to remind you how to set up a bar graph. On your recording sheet make a tiny bar graph as practice.

3. Decide how you would like to sort your candy. Look at the choices and record your decision on your recording page.

  • size
  • type
  • beginning letter
  • color of wrapper
  • size (big and small or small, medium, large)
  • chewy/crunchy
  • chocolate/not chocolate
  • like/not like

4. Sort your candy and take a picture.

5. Create a graph of your sort on your recording page. Use this graph as a guide.

6. Share your Early Enrichment mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

 

#47: The Black Sea

Social Studies Enrichment

In 2017, researchers off the Bulgarian coast discovered the oldest intact shipwreck ever found! This ancient Greek vessel was not only nearly 2,500 years old, but was just one of 65 shipwrecks found at the bottom of the Black Sea in remarkable condition. So, why does the Black Sea contain so many well-preserved shipwrecks? Helen Farr and Jon Adams dive into the depths of the unique body of water.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your social studies mini spark recording page: #47: Ancient Shipwreck.

2. Watch the video. Record 5 details about the Black Sea as you watch.

3. Find the Black Sea on a map and describe its location.

4.  Answers to at least 5 of these questions on your recording page. Remind your teacher that the key can be found in the social studies mini spark folder.

  1. Describe the condition of the shipwreck that was found. What features remained intact?
  2. How did researchers determine the age of the shipwreck?
  3. Why is the Black Sea referred to as “the world’s biggest pickle jar”?
  4. What role did the Black Sea play in historical trade and conflicts?
  5. Explain the significance of anaerobic bacteria in the preservation of the shipwrecks.
  6. What challenges do researchers face when attempting to recover artifacts from the shipwrecks?
  7. Discuss the importance of the discovery of the medieval Italian merchant ship. What does it tell us about trade during that time?

5. Share your social studies mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

#54: Bitsbox 3-Make your Own Stamp

Full STEAM Ahead

Spark your thinking! 

1. Set up your STEAM mini spark recording page:#54: Bitsbox 3-Make your Own Stamp

2. Read the Website Directions for coding challenge:  Creating your own stamp in Bitsbox Write the 6 steps on your recording page.

3. Watch the video directions for this coding challenge. Write 2 ideas that you want to remember on your recording sheet.

 

4. Step 2 gave the information in a written format and step 3 had you watch a video. On your recording sheet, write 2 sentences about how you like to get information-written or video format.

5. Log into Bitsbox. Remember to log in with google. Make 3 of your own stamps. Add a picture of your stamps to your recording page.

6. Share your STEAM mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Check out the bitsbox badges at the EY website.

#65: Spelling Bee Prep

Reading Enrichment

Get ready for spelling bee season by reviewing some strategies to help you spell new words.

Spark your thinking!

1. Set up your language arts mini spark recording page: #65: Spelling Bee Prep

2. Watch this video, pause to write the word on your recording page that you think is correct. Check your work as you go. Spend at least 3 minutes doing this activity.

3. Make sure you know how to pronounce all of the top 10 commonly misspelled words. Number your paper from 1-10.  At Safari, type in the word in the search bar and then word”dictionary” and the pronunciation will pop up for you.  Put a checkmark on your recording page after you have listened to the word a few times.

Advanced Option-

If you know all of the pronunciations, record the pronunciation with diacritical marks for each word.  Type the word in the search bar and the word “dictionary” and under the word you will see the pronunciations typed out with diacritical marks. Record these for each of the words on this list. For those of you typing , from Google Docs, go to Insert > Special characters to find the special characters.

4. Write each word from the list on your recording sheet two times.

5. Learn to spell all 10 words.

Start with the first five words. 

Step 1-Write each one 2 times on your recording page

Step 2- Whisper spell each one 3 times.

Step 3-Look at one word quickly then close your eyes and spell the word in your head. Open your eyes and check your spelling from the list.

Step 4-Keep practicing until you can spell all 5 correctly.

Repeat with the next 5 on the list.

Step 1-Write each one 2 times on your recording page

Step 2 -Whisper spell each one 3 times.

Step 3-Look at one word quickly then close your eyes and spell the word in your head. Open your eyes and check your spelling from the list.

Step 4-Keep practicing until you can spell all 5 correctly.

6.  Write the word on your spelling page that was the hardest for you to remember.

7. Share your language arts mini spark recording page with your teacher/EY coordinator.

Check out the Super Speller Set badge at the EY webpage.