From the Editor

Thanks for all of the fantastic feedback on the first issue of VariQuest eNews! We loved hearing from you and look forward to your thoughts on this month's issue as we share creative ways to use your VariQuest tools from schools around the country, lesson plans to participate in National Physical Fitness and Sports Month and more. We hope you enjoy this issue as much as we enjoyed putting it together. Feel free to send your feedback, questions, and suggestions or nominate your school or a colleague to be featured in a future issue. Please click here to send us your feedback.

Teacher Feature

Stacy Ernst
Kindergarten
Woodland Primary School
Greenville, OH

Give an example of a lesson you teach that incorporates visual learning?
A: In math, we have a lesson where the students pick what sea creature they want to be to make addition story problems. I cut out a variety of large sea creatures to wear around their necks and then the students act out story problems. After that, I cut out smaller sea creatures and they get to make a story problem on their own. The story problems are then made into a book and taken to Waves of Pride, a showcase of student work, for the community to see the excellent work that is done by kindergarten students.

Who or what motivates and inspires you to be a teacher?
A: My parents, along with my uncles and cousins, are teachers. Listening to them talk about teaching and how they made a difference in children's lives inspired me to become an elementary teacher.

What teaching strategy do you find helps your students best grasp a lesson?
A: Along with many hands-on activities, I find visual learning activities work well. With the different learning styles that kindergarten children have, using a variety of teaching methods is crucial so they understand what is being taught.

Name the most important thing you hope students take away from your class.
A: I hope the children see that there is not just one way to learn a concept, but many. I also would like them to realize that learning is fun and will continue throughout their lives.

What’s your favorite quote or comment from a student?
A: When we were making Christmas presents for parents, I used the Cutout Maker to create picture frames for the children to put their picture in. While they were decorating the frames, one little boy told a girl sitting beside him that, "My mom is going to think that I am the cutest and awesomest person ever. Just look at me."

Events

This month you can find the VariQuest Visual Learning Tools at the Maryland Association of Elementary School Principals Conference where AVI-SPL, an authorized VariQuest dealer, will be hosting a booth (#45 & 46) at the Rocky Gap Conference Center, May 13-15, and at the California Title 1 Conference, Northern California where Spinitar, an authorized VariQuest dealer, will exhibit the tools at the Doubletree Hotel Sacramento, May 24-25.

Stay Connected

If you have an idea for future content, feedback, questions or comments about this issue, we’d love to hear from you. Please click here to send us your feedback. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

School Spotlight

Mission Valley YMCA at
Toler Elementary School

Mission Valley YMCA's PrimeTime Program offers more than 100 students at Toler Elementary School the opportunity to expand their academic, artistic and athletic skills. Students in grades K-5 attend the Monday through Friday, before- and after-school program located in San Diego, California. With students in six different grade levels all in the same program, the staff utilizes the VariQuest Visual Learning Tools to easily adapt lessons and activities for various skill and ability levels. Read more.

Southwest
Middle School

A large blue and white poster stating "Sum 350 CST" with a picture of a bull's-eye hangs on a wall at Southwest Middle School, a diverse bi-national border community in San Diego, California, where more than 700 seventh and eighth grade students attend.

"What's 'Sum 350 CST'?" the students asked when multiple posters with similar slogans were placed around the school. Administrators and teachers alike were eager to share that 350 and above is the goal for the students' scores on the California Standards Tests (CST). Read more.

Official Rules

In the Know

Boost Your Students' Retention by 42 Percent

With standards and standardized testing at an all time high, you're busy trying to teach a classroom full of students with individual interests and learning styles. In the article "Teaching Students, Not Just Standards, with Visual Literacy," ASCD author Dr. Lynell Burmark explores the importance of using images to reach 21st century learners. Read the full article here to learn how to boost your students' retention by 42 percent and improve transfer (applying learning in new situations) by 89 percent.

Three Tiers to Valuable Word Walls

Many of you already use word walls in your classroom, but are yours as effective as they could be? ASCD author Judie Haynes recently wrote a post on the blog "ASCD Edge" about how to use word walls to teach English language learners, but the points are applicable for all learners. Haynes summarizes the highlights of a presentation by another ASCD author, Debbie Zacarian, including the three tiers you should divide vocabulary into and tips on TWIPs (key terms, words, idioms and phrases). Read the full blog post here.

Differentiated Instruction:
What does it really look like?

Do you know where to begin when it comes to differentiated instruction? Rebecca Alber, online educator at Stanford and an Edutopia consulting online editor, recently wrote a blog post on the magazine's website about where to start with differentiated instruction, examples of how to use it and the matter of fairness. Read the full post here for advice on incorporating differentiated instruction in your classroom.

Lesson Activities from Julia

Julia is a VariQuest content specialist and former teacher.

May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month and a great time to focus on healthy decisions in your classroom. Use the fun classroom activities below to teach your students about nutrition and the importance of daily activity.

Grades K-5

Eating Healthy: An introduction to food groups and recommended servings that will help students make healthy eating decisions.

Cut out food shapes for each of the six food groups in the food pyramid (grains, vegetables, fruits, oils, dairy and protein). You can find these shapes by using the "Search by Keyword" feature under the Cutout Maker tab in the Design Center software. Print and display the food pyramid poster (VIS180), attach Velcro to the back of each food shape and to the corresponding food shapes on the food pyramid poster. Read more.

Grades 6-8

Healthy Recipes: Group presentations of healthy recipes that students can make with their families at home.

Divide the class into groups of 3-4 students and have them research healthy recipes. Each group should pick a recipe to prepare for the class. Model how to convert the recipe to the desired number of servings using a sample recipe. Read more.

Grades 9-12

Star Workout Challenge: Use this fitness challenge activity to keep students motivated during a weightlifting or other physical education course.

Divide students into groups of 2-4 and have them list their physical education activity goals for the class. Activities included on this list can be completed both in class and outside of school. Challenge students to aim for 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Depending on the facilities and equipment available, these goals can range from weightlifting with specified number of reps and weights to walking for a specified time. Read more.