Second Story Window

Get it Done!: Summer Bingo

I was smitten when I saw Stacy Julian's delightfully fun Summer Bingo idea to keep her kids active and entertained this summer. Go to her blog to get the details and a free download of the bingo rules and her basic bingo card. I know as a kid this would have really motivated me!

Get it Done!: Time Limits

As teachers we know how hard it can be to help young children accomplish a task in a timely manner. We suspect you mothers feel the same way at home! This week we'll offer some tips on helping your children accomplish work, chores, and tasks in a way that will make you both happy!

Our first tip is to set a time limit! You can do this the simple way by setting a timer. It's always a good idea to give warnings too, such as "only 5 more minutes!"

One way I did it in my classroom was with music or poetry. During transitions, for example, when we recited the monthly poem aloud as they cleaned up one task and came to the carpet, the students knew that they needed to be at the carpet by the time we finished the poem. Since they were familiar with the poem before this time they knew how long they had to make it there. It worked like a charm!

And another way I've seen it done in the classroom is with an end of the day clean-up song. I recommend a fun, silly song that you will all be happy to hear each day. The kids get familiar with the length of the song and when it's nearing the end so they'd better hurry!

Come back tomorrow for some more ideas to help your little ones accomplish a lot this summer. (We'll be showcasing some fun ideas like using tickets and a summer bingo!)

Summer Sale

We're having a HUGE blowout sale in our shop right now! We have a stash of already assembled games that need to go to a new home. If you've wanted to order from us before but weren't interested in doing the printing, now's your chance to snag some assembled games for an awesome price.

The sale is buy 2 (at $6.00)/get 1 free, or 3 for $12 basically, which is a steal. The games will come to you already printed and assembled into a clear, zippered bag. They each include any game pieces, dice, or spinners the game may require.

This is a great chance to stock up on activities for literacy and math centers or summer activities for the kiddos. But act fast because several of these games have very limited qualities.

Here are the games you can choose from in the sale:

Alphabet Fish
Lunchtime Lions
Welcome to the Neighborhood
Falling Leaves
Fill the Mailbox
Reindeer Feed
Chinny, Chin, Chin
Doubles Parade
Terrific Teeth
R Express
Soaring Through Space
Race You To The Top
Magic Lamp
Place Value Pool
Double Sound Dominoes

But wait, you want to get some more freebies?? Since you are our loyal blog readers we have something special for you too!

To earn 1 additional free game for every 3 for $12 purchased, do one of the following and let me know at the time of your purchase:

- Blog about our sale
- Follow us or subscribe in a reader to our blog

** Please indicate your free selection in your messages to seller, do NOT add the free selection to your cart. Thank you! **

Printable Bookplates by Helen Dardick

I love the delightful illustrations on these free, printable bookplates by Helen Dardick. Download them here.

Authors Week: Other Sites

Here are some other authors websites with fun activities for your little ones this summer.

Roald Dahl - Register for fun online activities
Jane O'Conner & Robin Preiss Glasser (Fancy Nancy)- Quiz, games, print & play
Kevin Henkes- Character information, coloring sheet, mazes, dot-to-dots, word searches, puppets
Judy Schachner (Skippyjon Jones)- Coloring pages
Laura Numeroff (If You Give a Mouse...)- Character information, games, printables, listening corner, recipes, classroom activity guide

Author and Illustrator Websites from Harper Collins

We hope you enjoyed this week and found many exciting activities!

Authors Week: Shel Silverstein

With a sense of humor like Shel Silverstein has, you know he's going to have a fantastic website, which he does.

Check out the "Let's Have Some Fun" section.
Here are some examples from the Kids Section.

Games & Puzzles: Matching titles to Shel's poems, memory, finishing Shel's poems correctly and also creatively, coded puzzles, and character names.
Printables: Cuttin' Kate Drawing and Activity Book (LOVE this, it has a wonderful reader's theater), make your own bookmark, and a poetry kit (word search, word finder, poetry puzzle, and more.)
Downloads: Screensavers and wallpapers

Much like the other sites I've highlighted this week, Shel's website has an awesome Teachers & Parents section!
There are several drawing, activity, and event kits! They include beautiful illustrations and activities rich with creative poetry and writing. I'm so excited to have found these kits. Please use them!! Poetry is a great way to help your child/students with their creative writing but reading it is also great for fluency!

Here's an example of one of the awesome activities in the National Poetry Month packet.

I hope you spend some time on Shel's site today!

Authors Week: Robert Sabuda

Robert Sabuda makes some of the most visually interested childrens books available today. I always love getting a new pop-up book from him. He has such talent. There isn't much variety in what's available on his website, but there is a lot of what he's good known for: pop ups!

First you can check out the Pop-Up Gallery to see lots and lots of pop-ups! The International Gallery contains examples of pop-up art from all over the world, including some from children. You can find tips for making pop-up books and awesome simple pop-ups that you can make!

Go make a cool pop-up with your kids!

Authors Week: Jan Brett

Who doesn't love the enchanting artwork in Jan Brett's many childrens books? She has written and illustrated some of my favorite books including "The Gingerbread Baby," "The Hat," and "Hedgie's Surprise."

Jan Brett's website has a multitude of resources! It's hard to know where to start. I'll break down some of the highlights for you.

The Activities tab is overflowing with great ideas for little ones. Here is a list of some of our favorite activities from her website:

• Book in a Hedgehog Shape
• Bake Hedgehog Cookies
• Friendly Letter Stationery
• Gingerbread Baby Board Game
• Readers Theater: The Hat

And there are many more amazing activities available from her website. Such wonderful ideas for your little ones!

The Coloring Pages tab is full of great pictures just waiting to be colored. You could put together your own coloring book for the summer!

On the Videos Page you can watch and listen to Jan Brett read some of her books and also watch her draw some of her characters!

The Interactive Tab has links to Email Postcards, Printable Cards and Envelopes, Computer Games, and Printable Games (and flashcards).

We love Jan Brett's work and all the fantastic resources on her site.

Authors Week: Mo Willems

Mo Willems is the author of "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!," "Knuffle Bunny," and "Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed," as well as many other charming books. Young children, especially, tend to love the silly stories and playful pictures in Mo Willem's books. My copies of his book were constantly checked out of the classroom library.

In addition to a fun blog, Mo Willems has a fantastic website full of activities for kids! Let me show you around his site.


When you visit Mo's site, I recommend going to "Pigeon Presents" for lots of activities! Here's a breakdown of what you can find.



1- FUN: Here you can find interactive games like "The Elephant & Piggie Dance Game" and "Hot Dog Dress Up." There's also a mothly coloring page here.

2- BOOKS: This is a peek at the books Mo Willems has created and links to purchase them.

3- PALS: Here you can meet all of Mo Willem's pals from his books. On each pal's page you can find several printable activities from coloring pages, drawing directions, recipes, word searches and more. You can also find out more information about each of the characters such as their birthdays, favorite colors, and hobbies.

4- GROWN UP STUFF: This is the place to get some really fantastic FREE resources for your classroom and children. There are several teacher's guides and event kits that are full of great ideas for teaching concepts with Mo's books, printable activities and more. In the Naked Mole Rat even kit you can learn more about naked mole rats too! This is the best stuff on the site!

?- Go here to learn more about some cool buses!

We hope you make some time to visit Mo Willem's site this week and enjoy using these activities!

Welcome to Authors Week

Welcome to Authors Week here at Second Story Window. We're going to take time to highlight some of our favorite childrens book authors each day this week. It's incredibly hard to narrow the list but we're specifically choosing our favorite author's who also have great websites with fun activities for your children. We know many of you are searching for fun and educational activities to keep your children busy this summer and we've found some authors who have filled their websites with activities we know you're sure to love.

Come back tomorrow to check out one of our favorite authors!