Family Literacy Day 2021 Theme: Travel the World Together!
“Use your imagination to go exploring and travel the world together as a family – you never know what you’ll learn! Plan your dream trip, learn about another culture and open your mind to the world.”
Celebrate Family Literacy Day 2021 Virtually with Honorary Chair Barbara Reid!
Join us online on Wednesday January 27, 2021 from 4:30-5:00pm ET for a special event with author and illustrator Barbara Reid.
Barbara will be doing a demonstration on how to use clay to create a picture. She will share unique techniques you can use to make different things. The event will end with a Q&A.
This event is ideal for children in grades 1 to 6. To register, please click here. Spaces are limited, so be sure to register as soon as possible to secure your spot.
Looking for additional ways to participate in Family Literacy Day? Here are some ideas for inspiration:
“An activity created by the Canadian War Museum to help students understand the First World War from a soldier’s perspective. The activity’s interactive nature and its animation-based format will appeal to younger students. Includes a glossary of terms. (Recommended for ages 10 and up.)”
No matter what, we’re determined to celebrate #InternationalDotDay in 2020. When the going gets tough, the creative get going. Join us!
Make your mark this school year! September 15th-ish is International Dot Day! Join the celebration of creativity, courage and collaboration! Based on the story “The Dot” by Peter H. Reynolds, this is a great way to start the year by celebrating the creative talents of children.
Watch the videos below to see examples of students collaborating creatively and get inspired to create:
“We hope that this theme will inspire conversations, poems, and dialogues about the many ways poetry is expressed and honoured around the world, as well as the cultural impacts of poetry in different regions. We encourage poets from around the world to speak and write about what poetry means for their life experiences, perspectives and identity as well as the roots of poetry in their culture or country.
“What will you read this National Poetry Month? Will you start your own poetry writing project? Will you write your first poem? Will you share your poetry on stage for the first time?
Tumblebooks has some fun poetry video books to read online: (username: tumble735, password: books)
A Cat Named Haiku: Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry. Haiku is also a little cat who can’t seem to stay out of trouble. “A Cat Named Haiku” tells the story of the day in the life of a mischievous little cat, as he learns a valuable lesson on love told completely in haiku. After disobeying his owner, Haiku discovers at the end of the day even if someone is mad at you it doesn’t mean they don’t still love you. From climbing the curtains to trying to eat the pet goldfish, all of Haiku’s antics are chronicled in the three line poetry of his namesake in this 40 page children’s book intended for ages 6 and up.
Ook the Book seems like it’s been around forever, dog-eared from decades of readings and rereadings. It could be the jaunty Seussian rhythms at play, but it has a classic quirkiness all its own–a blend of Calef Brown’s Polkabats and Octopus Slacks and the good Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat. With poem titles from “Ug the Bug” to “Eep the Sheep,” you can see that the rhyme is not exactly subtle. Therein lies its charm. While its simple rhymes make it perfect for building early reading skills, Shannon McNeill’s action-packed illustrations (awash in a delicious color palette) give readers of all ages plenty to snicker over. In “Ake the Snake,” for example, the snake has a cake, because he can bake. The snake, coiled by the lake (sporting a cupcake chef’s hat) is surrounded by baking ingredients and two tiny green traumatized bugs, who have indeed tried to take the snake cake, and therefore are being flung screaming into the lake, much to the dismay of another bug hiding behind a sack of what might be flour. We think it’s gutsy to write a poem as simple as “I am At, / At the cat. / Do you see Pat? / He is my rat. / I sat on Pat, / so he is flat.” And we like it. (Pat the flat rat doesn’t look too happy about it, however.) A wonderful primer for wee ones just starting to have fun with words. (Ages 2 to 5) –Karin Snelson —
Ideas for Teachers: (from the League of Canadian Poets)
Poetry Play Stations
Poetry play stations use different techniques to encourage young readers to craft poems. Here are some great stations to include:
Erasure poetry: Using a page of existing text, use a black marker to complete cross out sections of the text — the words or phrases that remain can be strung together to form an original poem! Part of the beauty of erasure poem is how the entire page looks when completed, blacked-out sections and all. Try it with a newspaper article!
Found poetry: Found poetry is very similar to erasure poetry — well, erasure poetry is a kind of found poetry — but with a little more freedom. Again using an existing text, participants select words or phrases from the text that they think will make a great poem: using the found words and phrases, they can play with line breaks, stanzas, and other ways of construction an original poem from the found text!
Book spine poetry: This is a great poetic experiment that takes over Twitter every April — using as few as three or as many as… well, as many as you can stack, create a poem using the titles of books as they appear on the spines. These make excellent photos and are great for sharing!
Magnet poetry: A classic! Choosing words from a pile of individual words to string together an original poem. This could be from a magnetic poetry set, but you could also simply prepare an assortment of words for participants to choose from.” (Source: League of Canadian Poets)
“Black History Month is an opportunity for all Canadians to learn about the many contributions Black Canadians have made to Canada. This year’s theme for Black History Month is “Canadians of African Descent: Going forward, guided by the past”. This was inspired by the theme of the United Nations’ International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024).
Feet forward, head turned backward, the Sankofa bird reflects on the past to build a successful future.” (Government of Canada)
“The League of Canadian Poets invites you to celebrate the 21st annual National Poetry Month in April with nature – whether it’s mountain ranges, deserts, forests, oceans, or plains; whether it’s a cityscape or a landscape. Read, write, and share poetry that translates the emotional, practical, and reciprocal relationships we build – as individuals and communities – to the natural world onto the page.”
“What will you read this National Poetry Month? What events will you organize, attend? Will you start your own poetry writing project? Will you write your first poem? Will you share your poetry on stage for the first time?
Ideas for Teachers:
And now, let’s make a poetry party!
Poetry-palooza
Organize a poetry-palooza for a group of young readers to engage them with the many sides to poetry. Participants can read a poem aloud — original or not — to the others, or they could distribute their favourite written poem–again, original or not. But there’s more to poetry than the poems! Encourage young readers to write fanmail to their favourite poets, or take the fun even farther away from poetry and hide poems around the room (book spine poetry, anyone?), or have other poetry game stations for participants to engage with.
Poetry Play Stations
Poetry play stations use different techniques to encourage young readers to craft poems. Here are some great stations to include:
Erasure poetry: Using a page of existing text, use a black marker to complete cross out sections of the text — the words or phrases that remain can be strung together to form an original poem! Part of the beauty of erasure poem is how the entire page looks when completed, blacked-out sections and all.
Found poetry: Found poetry is very similar to erasure poetry — well, erasure poetry is a kind of found poetry — but with a little more freedom. Again using an existing text, participants select words or phrases from the text that they think will make a great poem: using the found words and phrases, they can play with line breaks, stanzas, and other ways of construction an original poem from the found text!
Book spine poetry: This is a great poetic experiment that takes over Twitter every April — using as few as three or as many as… well, as many as you can stack, create a poem using the titles of books as they appear on the spines. These make excellent photos and are great for sharing on social media!
Magnet poetry: A classic! Choosing words from a pile of individual words to string together an original poem. This could be from a magnetic poetry set, but you could also simply prepare an assortment of words for participants to choose from.” (Source: League of Canadian Poets)
November 5 to 9, 2018 is Media Literacy Week! This year’s theme is Fact or Fake: Help the World Stop Misinformation in Its Tracks. The week will highlight the importance of verifying that online information is true, unbiased and relevant.
Here is a sample video from the ‘Media Minute’ series – a unit of videos and lessons designed specifically for elementary students.
“An activity created by the Canadian War Museum to help students understand the First World War from a soldier’s perspective. The activity’s interactive nature and its animation-based format will appeal to younger students. Includes a glossary of terms. (Recommended for ages 10 and up.)”
Make your mark this school year! September 15th-ish is International Dot Day! Join the celebration of creativity, courage and collaboration! Based on the story “The Dot” by Peter H. Reynolds, this is a great way to start the year by celebrating the creative talents of children.
Watch the videos below to see examples of students collaborating creatively and get inspired to create:
“Canadians have a proud history of bravely serving in the cause of peace and freedom over the years. A name from Canada’s First World War military heritage that still stirs emotions is “Passchendaele.” On a muddy battlefield in northwest Belgium, Canadians overcame almost unimaginable hardships to win an impressive victory in the fall of 1917.” (Source: Veterans Affairs Canada)
“An activity created by the Canadian War Museum to help students understand the First World War from a soldier’s perspective. The activity’s interactive nature and its animation-based format will appeal to younger students. Includes a glossary of terms. (Recommended for ages 10 and up.)”
You are a valued member of this learning community!
It’s a great time of year to set goals for new learning challenges and adventures. Watch the videos below for an introduction to the idea of using a ‘Growth Mindset’ as you learn new ideas this year.
What is a Growth Mindset?
Growth Mindset for Students (video series by ClassDojo.com)
Mindset Kit: “The Mindset Kit is a free set of online lessons and practices designed to help you teach and foster adaptive beliefs about learning.”
The Growth Mindset Coach: Recommended by Adrienne Gear as a Professional Development resource. The messages, books and videos in this post are recommended in this book.
The goal of this day is to raise awareness that “Museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples.” (International Council of Museums)
Do you have a favourite museum that you like to visit? What is it that you like about the museum?
Here are some virtual museum exhibits that you might like to visit:
A Scholar’s Garden(available in English, French and Chinese) (Creator(s): Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden)
Canada Under the Stars(available in English and French) (Creator(s): ASTROLab du Mont-Mégantic)
Video Clips from Canadian Museums:
The Canadian Stamp (Canadian Museum of History)
Nature Scoop Playlist: (Canadian Museum of Nature)
Begins with: Forest and seaside lichen adventure in Kejimkujik
For Teachers:
“On May 18th, through the celebration of International Museum Day, museums around the world will raise awareness of the important role they play in the development of society. Established in 1977 by the International Council of Museums (ICOM), this day reminds us that museums are “an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples”. *
This month’s resources allow students to think critically about the decisions that museums and historians make. Younger students can begin by examining local historical landmarks and the clues they offer about their community. For older students, considering the rightful ownership of historical artifacts, the naming and dedication of museums and the techniques experts use to detect forgeries will assist them in recognizing and thinking critically about some of the issues museum curators may face.” (Source: The Thinking Teacher, The Critical Thinking Consortium, April 19, 2017.)
This Earth Day, take all of that learning and hold an extra or extended recess. Or go all out – host an Adventure Play Day!
Hold an extra or extended recess: Demonstrate your school’s commitment to outdoor free play. Support accessible and inclusive play by bringing out loose parts. Consider setting up a temporary mud kitchen!
Host an Adventure Play Day: Provide an opportunity for students to connect to nature through outdoor play by hosting an Adventure Play Day! Provide a variety of natural and upcycled materials (loose parts), and transform your schoolyard into an adventure playground where all sorts of neat and unexpected things can be created, constructed, and organized.
How to host an Adventure Play Day
Set up a play day team
Gather a core group of five to six staff to facilitate this fun day! Put together a team of play champions: two teachers, an administrator, a couple of parents, and maybe a caretaker to lead the collection and organization of loose parts and event delivery.
Announce the day
Let the whole school know! Spread the word via student-made posters, social media, newsletters, and morning announcements.
Start a loose parts collection
Four loose parts per child will likely ensure you will have enough loose parts for everyone. They should be easy-to-source, free, or reusable materials that can ideally be recycled after the day.
Plan to cycle between 60-100 children through 60-90-minute play sessions
Play should not be rushed. The reality of recess and lunch hours will hopefully not have to apply to your play day. Depending on the size of your school, we also recommend mixing age groups!
Assess the space you will use for this event
It’s helpful to designate an adventure play section in the playground – about a baseball diamond size space (excluding the outfield), preferably including sand/mud, and not too far from a water source. Supervision won’t be spread out too far and the rest of the playground will be available for other children during the day. Identify the perimeter of the play area and where loose parts will be placed (e.g. a cardboard tube placed near a sandpit will often become a tool for digging and exploration).
On the big day, consider how you will lay out the loose parts
Avoid creating obvious play stations but spread out loose parts with hints as to how they might be used. Not all of the loose parts need be laid out on the site initially. Try introducing new parts as some things become too worn for play.
Supervising play on your big day
When given the freedom to play with loose parts, students will surprise you with new and creative ways to play! This can be a challenge to supervise, and requires that you balance the opportunity for students to direct their own play with the rules of the playground and risk of injury. Rather than over-policing play, focus on three simple rules: stay within the boundaries, everyone helps clean up, and have fun!
Tidy up
Be sure to include tidy up time in your schedule. Have students re-organize the play field for the next group. Make sure supervisors have transition time between groups to rest and regroup. At the end of the day, sort the waste from the stuff you need to return or store. Be extra nice to your caretakers as they will have the extra work of making sure that waste is properly recycled or disposed. Thank them!
A Cat Named Haiku
Ook the Book
Rukhsana Khan
Rob Scotton
Ame Dyckman
