NEWS FROM BURNS AVENUE

HOME ACTIVITIES FOR JANUARY

Primary Grades

1. Watch a television program together.  After the show is over, discuss the program and ask your child his/her opinion of the show.

2. Make flash cards with addition and subtraction facts and make cards with the answers to the facts.  Play a game with your child in which he/she matches the facts and answers.

3. Take your child grocery shopping.  Ask him/her to read the prices of the items that you want to buy.

4. Ask your child to look out the window and describe all of the things that he/she sees.  Make a list of the things and ask your child to read the words on the list.

5. Give your child some coins and ask him/her to figure out the value of the coins.

6. Ask your child to count all of the windows and doors in your house and find the difference between them.

7. Ask your child to find and read fifteen frequently used words in the newspaper.

8. Read a story to your child and ask him/her to draw a picture about the most interesting part of the story.

9. Ask your child to describe the weather one day.  Ask him/her to make a prediction about the weather for the following day and check to see if he/she is correct.

10. Discuss the meaning of the term New Year’s resolution.  Ask your child to make a resolution for the New Year.

Intermediate Grades

 1. Using coins, ask your child to show you different ways to make the same amount of money.

2. Have your child use the Table of Contents in the newspaper to locate different sections (Sports, Entertainment, Editorials, etc.).

3. Read a short article from the newspaper and ask your child to describe three of the most important facts in the article.

4. Have your child draw a picture with as many geometric shapes as he/she knows.

5. Show your child an electric bill and explain how the bill is calculated.  Discuss the reasons for the differences in your winter/summer electric bills.

6. Take your child grocery shopping and ask him/her to compare prices on different brands of the same item (e.g. yogurt, spaghetti sauce).  Ask your child to decide which item to buy based upon price and quality.

7. Watch a television show with your child.  During the show, ask him/her to tell you ten unfamiliar words that are used in the show.  Write the words down and discuss the meaning of the words after the show.

8. Discuss the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the contributions of Martin Luther King Jr.  Ask your child to describe some ways that discrimination can occur.

9. Ask your child to use a newspaper and locate the high and low temperatures for different cities in the world.  Have him/her find the country where the cities are located. 

10. Ask your child to compare the calories and carbohydrates in cans of regular soda, diet soda, and a can/bottle of fruit juice.  Discuss the nutritional value of each drink.

HOME ACTIVITIES FOR FEBRUARY

Primary Grades

 1. Have your child use a metric ruler to measure the length of a table, the height of a chair, and the width of a book.

2. Write ten words from a book your child is reading and ask him/her to put the words in alphabetical order.

3. Read a story to your child and ask him/her to tell you, in order, four things that happened in the story.

4. Review the sounds made by the letters sh, th, wh, ch, and ph.  Have your child draw pictures that begin with the sound.

5. Discuss some of the jobs of the President of the United States.  Ask your child to name some of the contributions of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

6. Go to the public library and check out a book about a tall tale (e.g. Paul Bunyan).  Read the tale to your child and ask him/her to make up an original tall tale.

7. Discuss the differences between hibernation and migration.  Ask your child to make a list of animals that migrate and hibernate.

8. Have your child write down the prediction made as a result of Groundhog Day.  Have your child check to see if the prediction comes true in March.

9. Play a rhyming game by giving your child a word and asking him/her to list words that rhyme with the word.  Have him/her construct a short poem using the words.

10. Using a newspaper, have your child keep a record of all the days in February that contain temperatures below the freezing point.

Intermediate Grades

1. Have your child create a commercial for a new video game.  Before he/she begins, discuss some of the features of an effective commercial.

2. Have your child cut out graphs that appear in newspapers/magazines.  Discuss the graphs and ask your child questions about the contents of the graphs.

3. Ask your child who was the greatest American President and discuss the reasons for his/her choice.

4. Have your child mix a small amount of vinegar and baking soda.  Observe and discuss the results.

5. Plant a bean seed and keep a chart which shows the rate of growth during the month.

6. Show your child a world map and ask him/her to show you the location of rainforests, deserts, grasslands, and tundras.  Discuss each type of region and its relationship to distance from the equator.

7. Ask your child to read a selection from his/her Science textbook and write some important facts that were stated in the selection.

8. Have your child watch the weather forecast for five consecutive days and ask him/her to write down the predictions.  Compare the actual weather with the predictions.

9. Have your child measure his/her pulse for one minute.  Ask him/her to perform some exercise for two minutes and then measure his/her pulse again.

10. Have your child read a cartoon on the editorial page in a newspaper.  Ask him/her to describe the meaning of the cartoon.