Wednesday, December 31, 2014

20 Best Posts of 2014

There’s a linky party going on at Elementary Matters for the best blog posts of 2014.  She asked for either the most popular or your favorite, but I did both!  The top list ranks the 10 posts from Raki’s Rad Resources with the most page views this year and the bottom list ranks out my favorite posts to research & write.

 

Top 20 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014

 

10 Most Popular Blog Posts of 2014 

10 – Top 10 Science Websites

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Top 10 Science Websites for Kids - Great online resources to get kids engaged in learning science.  Suggestions made by Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

 

9 – Why Don’t Our Students Remember What We Tell Them?

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Why Don’t Students Remember What We Tell Them

 

8 – Online Books for Kids

 

  Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - free online books for kids

 

7 – 10 Authors That Should Be in EVERY Elementary Classroom

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - 10 authors that should be in every elementary classroom: Dr. Seuss, shel silverstein, chris van alsburg, eric carsle, chris van alsburg, mary pope osborne, david weisner, judy blume, patricia polacco, judy blume, roald dahl

 

6 – I Don’t Do Center Rotations – Here’s Why

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Centers do not have to be rotations

 

5 – Introducing Greek Roots – Free Packet

 Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - free greek word work packet

 

4 – Online Video Creation Tools

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 -Video creation should be a part of every elementary classroom - programs and website suggestions for the elementary and middle school classroom.  Suggestions from Raki's Rad Resources.

 

3 - Online Graphing Tools

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - websites for online graphing

 

2 – Give Kids Control Over Their Writing

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Give kids control over their writing and build strong writers

 

1 – Math Projects for Your Classroom

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Seven math projects for your elementary classroom

 

 

 

Heidi’s Top 10 Favorite Blog Posts of 2014

 

10 – How to Create an Internet Scavenger Hunt

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Internet scavenger hunts are a great way for students to preview or review knowledge while exploring quality websites about a topic.  Raki's Rad Resources

 

9 – Four Alternatives to Presenting in Front of the Class

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - alternatives to presenting in front of class

 

8 – Centers are Not One Size Fits All!

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Centers are not one size fit all!  All instruction should be differentiated to meet the needs of students, including math and literacy centers.  Stop by Raki's Rad Resources for ideas and resources.

 

7 – The Purpose Behind Bulletin Boards

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Bulletin boards should be educational, not decoration.  Stop by Raki's Rad Resources for ideas on how to make your bulletin boards more educational.

 

6 – Keep Them Moving While Learning Geometry

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Keeping kids active while learning geometry 

 

5 - 15 Ways to Use Sidewalk Chalk in the Classroom

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - 15 ways to use side walk chalk as a teaching tool - ideas from Raki's Rad Resource

 

4 - Technology Accounts to Create at the Beginning of the Year

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 -Technology accounts to set up for students at the beginning of the school year.  Setting up accounts at the beginning of the year makes the rest of the year's technology go much smoother.

 

3 – Student Created Videos

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 -iPad apps for making movies with kids

 

2 – Use Skype to Connect Students to Experts

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Using Skype to Connect Students to Experts

 

1 – Eggstraordinary Learning About Heat

 

Top 10 Blog Posts from Raki's Rad Resources of 2014 - Using eggs to cook science - conduction, convection, radiation, etc. - from Raki's Rad Resources.

 

Did I miss YOUR favorite post from this blog?  If so, please feel free to leave it in the comment section.

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Why are Projects Better than Tests?

Projects are better than tests for both teachersand students.  Stop by Raki's Rad Resources to read arguments about why this is true.

Tests, especially multiple choice tests don’t tell me whether students understand a concept.  As inconvenient as it is to notice, students taking a standard multiple choice test have a 20 – 25% chance of passing a multiple choice test if they can’t read any of the questions, just depending on how lucky they are in their guesses.  In fact, I’ve had students do better on a test when they didn’t read the test than when they took the time to try and read the words on a test.  As a teacher, a multiple choice test given to a set of silent third graders tells me:

1.  How good of a reader my student is

2.  How good my student is at making inferences

3.  How much vocabulary my student has

4.  How good my student is at using test taking strategies like process of elimination

5.  How good my student is at sitting still and quiet for long periods of time

 

And all of this is on a good day.  If students are having a bad day, a multiple choice test may tell me:

1.  Who had a good nights sleep last night

2.  Who ate a nutritious breakfast

3.  Who had a fight with a sibling, parent or friend this morning

4.  Who isn’t feeling well due to a virus or cold

5.  Who is distracted by the class playing outside on the playground, the kids fooling around in the halls, or the clock ticking away

 

Okay tests aren’t perfect, but they’re convenient and time saving devices, right?  This allows us to take away less instructional time, right?  Not really.  When you figure in:

1.  We spend a lot of time preparing students for a test – teaching them the specific skills, vocabulary and type of questions will be on a test.

2.  We stop all learning to take time out for tests and require students to sit still and be quiet until every child is done.

3.  Because we require students to sit still for so long, we have to take further instructional time to let them “unwind” after a test.

4.  Children who did poorly, or who are anxious that they might have done poorly on a test, may shut out everything done in class after the test until they receive their score.

5.  We still need to spend time grading the tests and reviewing the scores with students.

Tests often give teachers skewed and unclear information.  Stop by Raki's Rad Resources to read arguments about why this is true.

 

Alright, but the argument goes that students still need to take tests so that they will be prepared for their future.  Think about your every day life.  When was the last time you took a test that WASN’T part of a class?  In Cosmo magazine?  At the doctor’s office?  Probably the last time you took a test that impacted your life was when you took your teacher certification test, which is a whole other can of worms!  However, when was the last time you completed a project?  Wrote an article?  Created a presentation?  Taught others about something you had recently learned?  As a teacher and a business person, I am much more likely to do the projects, the presentations, the teaching the staff about what I learned at a conference than I am to take a test.  The same could be said about 99% of the jobs that our students will hold in their future.  So a good generalization would be to say that 99% of success in life is based on project completion and 1% is based on test results.  Unfortunately, in many classrooms today at least 75% of a child’s grade is based on tests and quizzes while only about 10 – 20% is based on projects.  How exactly is this helping our students?

The solution?  PROJECTS!  And not always close ended, follow the steps to a set conclusion projects.  Students need time for open ended inquiry projects, research projects, present my learning projects and create something completely new projects.  But, projects are time consuming and teachers have so much to get through, so how do you find the time?Projects are better than tests for both teachersand students.  Stop by Raki's Rad Resources to read arguments about why this is true.

1. Integrate!  Cover multiple standards with a single project.  My new Create Your Own Cookie Science Inquiry project covers math, science and literacy standards.  My African Folktales Online Poster Project covers social studies, literacy and technology standards.  Even projects like my Balanced Checkbook Project covers math, social studies, literacy and technology standards.  This means that instead of giving three or four tests, one project can cover all of those standards and actually save you time.

 

2.  Let students evaluate themselves.  Many of my projects, including the Build Your Own Vocabulary Game project and Math Video Creation project give students a chance to evaluate their own work before you sit down and conference with them.  This means that the conversation is geared up and ready to go. A simple two minute conference is all that is needed to explain to students where they are strong and what they need to work on next time.

  3.  Use a rubric.  Scoring a rubric with 5 – 10 categories often takes less time than grading a 30 question test.  Also, if you go over the rubric with students BEFORE they begin their project, they have a clear idea of what you are looking for and there is so much less of the “I didn’t understand what it was asking of me.” conversation at the end of an assessment.  All of the projects I have available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store come with some sort of a rubric.  However, I also use rubrics in my Reading Response Journals, Math Problem Solving Journals and Writing Journals.  So, by the time we get to a project, my kids are so used to looking at rubrics, they can often grade themselves.  In fact, sometimes I have students grade themselves on the rubric using a green pen and then go through their work and mark my own grades with a red pen, so that they can see how I look at their work versus how they look at their work.  Often you will find that kids are harder on themselves than we are on them.

Rubrics make project expectations clear and simple.  Stop by Raki's Rad Resources to read arguments about why this is true.

  4.  Multitask!  Projects don’t have to be done when the entire class is sitting still in one place, like tests do.  Instead, you can be teaching a mini lesson in one area of your classroom while students work on a project in another area.  In fact, projects can be a regular part of your math or literacy centers, making one less center for you to have to plan each week.

  5.  Get rid of the fluff.  Projects – when done right – are fun for kids.  So, instead of inserting craftivities or other “fluff” to make our lessons more fun, let students work on a project.  They will have fun, learn a lot and give you a good idea of where they are in a variety of different areas.  Kids will agree too.  I have had kids give up recess to build virtual field trips to the desert for my Deserts of the World project and forgo watching a movie to work on designing projects for their Earth’s Materials projects.  Kids like projects, simple and easy.

 

Finally, according to the constructivist school of thought, kids learn more doing the project than from reading an article, listening to a lecture, watching a video or working on a math problem.  Now, I think that all of those are great ways to build up background knowledge, but students won’t truly understand anything if we ask them to absorb it and spit it back out on a test.  However, if they take that information, use it in a project, process it and then are asked a question on those end of the year tests that unfortunately public schools cannot avoid, they might just remember the information. 

Food for thought.  What do you think about projects?  Do you use them?  How much?  Why or why not?  I’d love to see a conversation about this begin in the comments.

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

 

 

 

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Create Your Own Cookie Recipes

Baking is a huge part of our holiday traditions.  This year we started a new tradition.  My two older sons designed their own cookie recipes.  For the past few weeks, we have done a ton of baking, exploring different cookie and candy recipes.  During this “inquiry” my sons realized that most cookie recipes include the same ingredients and asked me if they could design their own cookies with these base ingredients.  So of course, me being me, I went and designed a “planning sheet” to help make the project a bit more manageable.  (Even with just 2 or 3 kids projects like that can drive me crazy if I approach them with out a plan.)  I’ve made this plan for creating your own cookie recipes available to others in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

First, we talked about those things all cookies have – fats, sugars, flours, binders and flavors.  Then the kids planned out their recipes. 

   Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources

 Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources

Then, the kids went ahead and prepared and baked their cookies.

Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources

 

Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources

Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources

Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources

And of course their favorite part was taste testing the results!

Create your own cookie recipe - science inquiry project from Raki's Rad Resources.

This project helped us talk about chemical changes, heat and ingredients.  It was also fun and gave the kids a chance to be really creative in a new way.  It would be a great activity for homeschoolers, in a classroom or even with your kids over the holiday break.  In the spirit of the holidays, I am offering the Create Your Own Cookie Science Inquiry project up for FREE for the next week.  Download your copy between now and December 31, 2014.  Once the calendar changes to 2015, the price on this project will be $5.00.  Merry Christmas!

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Friday, December 19, 2014

Holiday Baking Projects Produce Learning Experiences

Those of you who follow me on Instagram have seen some of these pictures lately in my feed.  (If you don’t follow me on Instagram yet – my handle is simply rakisradresources.)

Holiday Cooking Projects

At this time of year, baking and making candy is a HUGE part of the holiday traditions in my household.  Some of the recipes we make are recipes that I made with my mom as a child, like Kris Kringles (cut out cookies with frosting) and Mexican Wedding Cakes.  However, each year we try some new recipes.  This year, we made lollipops and fudge!

As a homeschooling family, baking is about more than just spending time together and building traditions (although those things are awesome too!)  We also work on a wide range of math and science topics including measurement, doubling, and heat.  We work on safety and talk about the chemical reactions that are going on while we are cooking.  Sometimes we talk about how cooking and ingredients have changed throughout history or why certain foods are considered holiday foods.  For example, pumpkin and apple pie are traditionally cooked for Thanksgiving because they are seasonal produce of the season, just as watermelon is seasonal to Independence Day.  The conversations that we have while baking are priceless for building background knowledge and understanding. While it is slightly easier to do these projects with my small group of 3, I have done cooking projects in the classroom setting too, with groups as large as 30 or 40 kids. 

Last year, I worked with a group of teacher bloggers to put together a Holiday Cookbook for Kids.  The recipes inside are perfect for classroom or homeschooling atmospheres.  The cookbook is available as a free download from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

holiday cookbook

What cooking or baking projects will you be doing with kids – in school or at home – this year?

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Student Interest Project Website – DIY.org

For two years, I was the Technology Specialist at a school in Georgia. During that time, I amassed a large collection of websites that I use with my students. You can download my E-Book of Websites for the Elementary Classroom for free from Teachers Pay Teachers or Smashwords, or, you can check back here each week for the website suggestion.

Use DIY to increase student led learning and encourage students to develop their interests into learning experiences.  Suggestion from Raki's Rad Resources.

Looking for some experiential learning activities for your students to work on over the holiday break?  Try out DIY.org.  A friend of mine recently suggested this amazing website to me for my personal children.  She described it as “virtual scouting”, which is pretty accurate.  Kids can work towards earning badges on any variety of topics by submitting photo or video “proof” of activities they complete.

Use DIY to increase student led learning and encourage students to develop their interests into learning experiences.  Suggestion from Raki's Rad Resources

In order to get started, children must have an account linked to an adult account.  This could be left up to individual families or could be created as a teacher account.  Once children have accounts, they explore all the different skills that might interest them, like art, athletics, building, business, hacking or science.  Each skill has different badges available for children to earn.  For example, within the skill of art, you will find badges like actor, painter, leatherworker, papercrafter, photographer or puppeteer.

Use DIY to increase student led learning and encourage students to develop their interests into learning experiences.  Suggestion from Raki's Rad Resources

For each badge, there is are 6 – 12 possible challenges.  Children must do 3 or four challenges to earn the badge. For example, if you are working on the badge of puppeteer, you can choose to do things like make a hand puppet, develop a voice for your puppet, make a movie with your puppet or create a marionette.

Use DIY to increase student led learning and encourage students to develop their interests into learning experiences.  Suggestion from Raki's Rad Resources

For each challenge, there are links to photos and videos from different members who have completed this challenge.  Additionally, there are How-To videos from YouTube showcasing professional who have created similar projects.  For example, if you are working on the ‘make a hand puppet’ challenge, there are videos of how to sew a hand puppet and how to paint your hand as a hand puppet.  

Use DIY to increase student led learning and encourage students to develop their interests into learning experiences.  Suggestion from Raki's Rad Resources

Once children complete their challenges, they must upload a photograph or a video of their project.  These photographs or videos are evaluated by someone on staff before they are posted on the website and before the children are given credit for it on their badge.  However, the turn around is quite quick and generally within 24 hours their activity is posted.  Once it is posted, other members can “favorite” their activities and even leave comments.  Students collect their badges virtually, but they can receive real patches in the mail if their adult chooses to order them (for a $4 a patch).

 Use DIY to increase student led learning and encourage students to develop their interests into learning experiences.  Suggestion from Raki's Rad Resources

This website was suggested to me as way to give my children a “scouting” experience while we are full time RVing and moving around the country.  However, it is really an amazing site for anyone looking to make a solid virtual/ hands on connection.  It also allows students to build skills and work together with children around the world.  This website is perfect for homeschoolers, especially unschoolers, but it would also easily be included into standard classrooms.  It would be a great spring board for 20% Time or Genius Hour.  It would also be fabulous for early finishers or indoor recess.  Additionally, it would be great to send home over the holiday break as “homework” along with a reading log or an online book report.  It’s a simple and easy way to keep kids learning and engaged in topics that are interesting to them.

How could you use DIY.org in your classroom?

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

ESL Students Need to Read Over the Holidays

As a teacher at an International School, many of my students were English Language Learners. Even my native English speakers were living in a non-English speaking country. In addition to having Vocabulary Packets designed specifically for ESL students, I also write weekly blog posts with tips on teaching English Language Learners. Here is this week’s Tuesday TESOL Teaching Tip:

Make sure students read regularly over holiday breaks by offering a sweet treat.  ESL Teaching Tip of the Week from Raki's Rad Resources

Two weeks off!!!  The kids are excited.  The teachers are excited.  The holidays are a time for families and fun and children should be encouraged to spend that time with their families.  If your students are going home to families where they are going to receive books as holiday presents and reading stories with their parents in English each night, then you aren’t likely to see much of a regression in two weeks.  However, for students who will not hear a word of English for two weeks or who may never read or be read to on their own, assigning reading homework over holiday breaks is vitally important.  During the winter holiday, send home a reading log – or a variety of them – and ask students to read every day.  I emphasize to my ESL students that they do not have to read in English every day, as this is often a time for students to strengthen their skills in their home language.  Instead, I ask that 50% of the reading be in English and 50% be in their home language.  I send home both fiction and non-fiction reading logs, in order to give students a chance to read whatever they enjoy.

Make sure students read regularly over holiday breaks by offering a sweet treat.  ESL Teaching Tip of the Week from Raki's Rad Resource

 

Make sure students read regularly over holiday breaks by offering a sweet treat.  ESL Teaching Tip of the Week from Raki's Rad Resource 

Of course, many students forget about reading and homework with the excitement of the holidays.  So I often offer a special treat to each student who returns two completed reading logs.  Then, I stop by Target in the few days after Christmas and pick up some clearance Christmas candies.  Students who bring back their work get a handful of candy that they are allowed to eat during the day when they return their reading logThe benefit of reading in any language and working in English for any amount of time makes the transition back into the classroom in January so much easier.

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Friday, December 12, 2014

Let the Students Teach the Vocabulary Lesson

Teaching kids vocabulary is a critically important skill.  If you understand the vocabulary of any given subject, you will better be able to understand articles or textbook pages on the subject, lessons taught by the teacher, videos watched online and even the tests given on that subject.  There are tons of ways to practice vocabulary – practicing flash cards, playing games, writing sentences, etc.  However, we need to stop and ask ourselves, how much of this vocabulary do we want our students to remember?  In order to truly remember vocabulary words, students have to be doing more than reading the words, copying the definitions, or writing sentences with them.  True, a combination of these different activities will help memory.  This is the reasoning behind my ESL Vocabulary Packets and my Spelling Patterns Vocabulary Packets, giving students the ability to work with words in at least 5 different ways.

However, for key vocabulary words, especially in a content area like Math or Science, the best way for students to truly remember important vocabulary words is to create with them.  Students who create lessons, videos or games with their vocabulary words cement those words and their meanings into their memories because they have had to think about them to such an extent that their brain has carved out a special neurological path for them. 

vocab game

My sons created vocabulary games this trimester for key Math words.  My second grader created board games and memory games using the pieces in my Vocabulary Game project.  My 5th grader, however, got fancy and used an iPad app called GamePress to create three short video games with key vocabulary words in each of his languages.  Each of the kids tried out their games with each other, and with some friends who came over.  This gave them a chance to be the teacher, the expert and the one cementing these words into their memory.

Since my sons are learning Math in three languages – English, French and Arabic – vocabulary is especially important for them to understand what questions are asking of them.  The same can be said of our ESL population in public schools in the US.  Without these key words, students loose meaning in problem solving, on tests and in general lessons.

What vocabulary words could your students benefit from teaching others?

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Document Student Learning with Stop Motion Studio

Create Stop Motion videos on your iPad.  Easy to do in your classroom.  Suggestions from Raki's Rad Resources 

Lego animation, claymation, stop motion animation.  These all seem like complex types of movies that we shouldn’t attempt in a classroom.  In an after school club, maybe, but definitely not in a classroom.  However, I recently discovered that these types of videos can be created quite simply with an iPad, using the app Stop Motion Studio.  This iPad app can also be used to document the creation of structures and art projects by students. 

With the free version of this app, students can take pictures of their project within this app, edit the pictures, add music and narration.  For a dollar upgrade, students can upload pictures that they have previously taken with the camera.  This upgrade doesn’t seem very important, but it allows multiple students to work on their projects using the same iPad, and when resources are limited, those little upgrades can be amazingly helpful.

My son recently used Stop Motion Studio to create this video of the Buddha sculpture he created.  He created this sculpture as his final project for the “Symbols” section of his Year Long Country Study.  He is studying China and recognized Buddha as one of the most important symbols of the country.  Rather than simply taking a picture of his sculpture, this video shows us exactly how he made it.

What project could you enhance with Stop Motion Studio?

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources

Sunday, December 7, 2014

My Favorite Things – Blog Hop

The holidays are approaching and as we have been overseas in Morocco for 3 years, my boys and I are geared up to take advantage of a holiday season with that special holiday “feel”.  Here are a few of my favorite things about the holidays in the United States:

Favorite Things Blog Hop - Teacher Blogs - Christmas Decorations 1.)  Christmas lights and decorations – Even though I scoffed at the idea of seeing Christmas decorations in the stores a month before HALLOWEEN, I secretly got excited to see these things available.  Now that the holiday season is upon us, I love seeing trees and lights everywhere and can’t wait to drive around with my family the week of Christmas to see everyone’s lights.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Favorite Things Blog Hop - Teacher Blogs - Caramel Apple Cider 2.) Caramel Apple Cider at Starbucks -   For a long time I didn’t drink coffee.  Although this was cured by Moroccan cappuccino and espresso, when I walk into a Starbucks at this time of year, I still order that sweet and spicy Caramel Apple Cider that is generally on special at this time of year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Favorite Things Blog Hop - Teacher Blogs - Baking 3.) Easy to Find Baking Supplies -  You will never appreciate the things we can find at our regular old supermarket until you are searching for something like molasses, peanut butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract or food coloring while trying to do holiday baking.  For three years, I improvised and scrambled and convinced people to bring me things. So this time of year, a trip to Ingles where I can just pick up anything I need to bake cookies with ease and simplicity.  Since we have such easy access to supplies, my children and I have decided to turn our normal weekend of baked goodies into an entire month long affair.  We are using a few recipes from my Holiday Cookbook for Kids and a few recipes that associate with their Country Studies and baking ourselves silly!

 

 

Favorite Things Blog Hop - Teacher Blogs - Nivea Lotion 4.)  BIG Bottles of Nivea Lotion – For some reason toiletries in Morocco come in VERY small bottles.  Every winter I get very dry skin and last year I went through a TON of tiny bottles of Nivea lotion, so this year I bought a big old bottle and I am using it liberally!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Favorite Things Blog Hop - Teacher Blogs - Library Books 5.) A Library Full of Holiday Books – Besides a nice copy of The Night Before Christmas, most of our holiday books didn’t survive the cut in the move into the RV.  Luckily, we have access to a lovely public library with a whole section of holiday books.  This provides me with no end of FREE holiday stories and other books to use in my home school lessons with my sons.

 

To further celebrate this holiday season, I am participating in the Favorite Things Holiday Blog Hop organized by Laura Graham from Where the Magic Happens - with two things to make your holidays happy ones:

First, I donated a $20 gift card to KOA (Kampgrounds of America) to the Favorite Things Raffle.  As most of you know, we are currently living in our RV full time (and blogging about it at RVing with the Rakis).  When we are on the road, we often stay at KOA campgrounds.  They are consistently nice and clean, with friendly staff and good amenities.  Camping is one of my favorite things and I want to share it with you, so be sure to enter to win, there will be 5 different winners, and one should be you!

Second, another one of my favorite things is providing teachers with resources that help make their life easier.  So, from December 7, 2014 until December 14, 2014, the following items in my Teachers Pay Teachers store will be available 50% off:

The Great Plant Experiment Project

  plant experiment from Raki's Rad Resources

Deserts of the World Unit

deserts of the world unit from Raki's Rad Resources

Exploring and Designing Machines Unit

machines unit from Raki's Rad Resources

Year Long Country Study Project

country study project from Raki's Rad Resources

Because we value our followers and wanted to treat you to our favorite things Oprah style, we have put together the best giveaway of the season! My bloggy friends and I welcome you to the best, biggest, most cheerful event of the season:






7 winners for 7 prize packs!















Come and enter the giveaway and check out my bloggy friends' favorite things:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Holidays!

Heidi Raki of Raki's Rad Resources