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EDUCATE TEACHERS NEWS
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May 2020
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We Remember
Memorial Day is May 25th. It’s a solemn day when we remember the men and women of the military who have given their lives in service of our country—our freedoms. As educators, it's also a reminder that we have students with active duty parents in our classrooms, as well as students who have lost their military parents.
According to the School Superintendent Association,
there are 1.2 million children of active duty members worldwide 
Military kids can face many unique challenges.
-Increased stress over family separation
-Increased anxiety and worry about a parent's safety -Anger over being separated from a parent -Behavioral challenges as they struggle to adapt to family separation and emotional upset -Increased sadness or depression over deployed parent -Coping with the loss of a military parent -Adapting when a military parent is transitioning home, is disabled and/or dealing with PTSD Military families move 3x more than other families adding more potential challenges.
-Adapting to new homes
-Disruptions in routines -Seeing new medical professionals -Adapting to new schools and teachers -Making new friends -Mourning the loss of old friends -Falling behind in academics or underachieving What can schools and educators do?
Schools should take the lead with military students and their families.
-Identify and reach out to military families
-Show support for the military -Conduct professional development on helping military students and families -Understand the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunities for Military Children that address the challenges of transferring students, including: enrollment, placement, attendance, eligibility, and graduation -Have a system in place for swiftly and smoothly providing and continuing behavioral, academic, and disability supports -Encourage participation in sports, clubs and other extracurriculars and wave sign-up deadlines -Be able to connect military students and families with community resources
For more information on military students and families,
check out the following links: May Featured Class of the Month
Express:
Stand By Me Connecting Our Students in Poverty with Hope (3 credit hour IA license renewal) ____________ 
Our hearts are broken daily as we watch so many students struggle with trying to meet basic needs. Food scarcity, homelessness, lack of good medical care, safe neighborhoods…it goes on and on and our children, and consequently our society, are suffering terribly.
In their book Disrupting Poverty, Kathleen Budge and William Parrett provide teachers with years of research and classroom know-how to form strategies that fight against the eroding power of poverty. They discuss the hallmarks of high achieving poverty schools which include caring relationships and advocacy, high expectations and support, commitment to equity, professional accountability for learning and the courage and will to act. Voices of experience from those who have “made it” out of poverty to become successful adults will merge with tried and true classroom and school practices as examined. Stand by Me: Connecting Our Children in Poverty with Hope takes what Budge and Parrett present in their book and place it within the context of the educator who is taking the class. Participants will learn what it means to live in poverty, and the toll it takes on the student, family and society. Participants will be asked to delve into their own consciousness and experience to determine how they can combat the effects of poverty and set up high achieving classrooms. The importance of relationships, rigorous curriculum and different learning approaches will be explored. Participants will examine methods proven to be effective in high poverty/high achieving schools and will be given the tools with which to implement these in their own classrooms and schools.
Recharge & De-stress with these April Classes!
Express: I'm So Tired! An Educator's Guide to Self-Care
(3 credit hour Iowa license renewal course) Course 1 in the Educators' Self-Care Series
It takes its toll on our quality of life and our performance. We need to take time for ourselves and to learn how to be healthy emotionally and physically; we need an action-plan.
I’m So Tired! An Educator’s Guide to Self-Care, provides realistic ways to become healthier and take care of ourselves. This class explains the issues, identifies the problems and helps to remediate and treat those issues that keep educators sick and stressed out.
Start the new year out right and make a plan for YOU! Class starts February 19th. Join us May 20th to July 3rd Click here to learn more or registration! I'm So Tired! An Educators Guide to Self-Care Express: I'm So Stressed!
Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students (3 credit hour Iowa license renewal) Course 2 in the Educators' Self-Care Series
Anyone in education is under a huge amount of stress in their school life. Added to that, most educators have family commitments and are squeezed in the sandwich generation raising kids and dealing with aging parents. As educators, we need now, more than ever, to practice mindfulness for ourselves, our families and our students. Mindfulness is a practice that can transform us, bring us peace, heal our bodies and our minds and allow us to enjoy our lives.
Express: I’m So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students explores the many facets of mindfulness and how to integrate it into our daily lives. It provides information for teachers, students and parents and gives examples and practices. Educators will understand the importance of mindfulness for themselves and for their students. The question is not “do we have time for mindfulness?” The question is “can we afford not to make the time for mindfulness?”
Express: I’m So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students is a class designed to bring into alignment the mental and physical self by promoting calm, self-discipline and patience through mindfulness practices and meditation exercises. This class will provide a look at the nature of mindfulness, the benefits of mindfulness and the how-tos of mindfulness.
Join us May 20th to July 3rd Click here to learn more or register! I'm So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students Coming in June...
Express: I'm So Vulnerable!
How to Be Resilient in a Chaotic World (3 credit hour Iowa license renewal) Course 3 in the Educators' Self-Care Series
As adults, we deal with the aging process in ourselves and our parents. We deal with each developmental level our children go through and hold on for the long ride through their adolescence. It’s tough enough when things go right, when we are healthy, our children are healthy and our parents are healthy. It is a real balancing act when things go wrong and we are caught in the cross fire of dual or even triple tragedies.
How do resilient people, adults and children, make it through? Why do some people get through trauma relatively unscathed and others end up with a life time of debilitating mental and physical problems? We will explore these questions and more in this class. I’m So Vulnerable: How to Become Resilient in a Chaotic World is a class designed to help participants define what it means to be vulnerable and how to achieve resiliency. The class will explore: Basic brain functioning and how neurons and synapses work to form our habits, as well as the neuroscience behind our thoughts.
* The key elements for building a healthy self-image and creating a resilient and strong self. * Managing anger, calming our minds and bodies, and using the red zone vs green zone strategy to understand how to control defensiveness. * How to fine tune and enhance our emotions for the positive with special attention given to how to deal with our negative thoughts and our inner critic. * How to build on the characteristics of compassion, mindfulness, grit, gratitude, confidence, motivation, intimacy, courage, aspiration and generosity within ourselves.
All courses are accredited. Choose from: EXPRESS Courses: 6 week Iowa License Renewal Courses Examining Courses: 8-9 week courses that can be taken for Iowa License Renewal or EDMA Graduate Credit Visit our website to learn more and register for upcoming classes https://www.educateteachers.org/
Follow us on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for upcoming class information, education articles & news and creative classroom ideas & strategies!
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Reader's Corner No Better Friend:
A Man, a Dog, and Their Incredible True Story of Friendship and Survival in World War II By Robert Weintraub 
Frank and Judy met during World War II while they were both POWs. From these dark times an unbreakable bond of trust and friendship grew.
Frank was a radarman for Britain's Royal Air Force and Judy...well, Judy was a purebred pointer! Get lost in this true story of friendship and survival adapted for young adults.
Follow Frank and Judy from their first encounter, and into the dangers of war, captivity, suffering, and survival that forged their iron bond.
Then experience V-J Day through their eyes, as the war ends and they return home to battle against PTSD and reclaim their lives. 
Judy aboard the gunboat HMS Gnat
(Source: "No Better Friend," p. 9)
This book is more than a good Memorial Day read for adults and young adults alike. There's a lot to be learned too! It teaches World War II history enhanced by author side-bars and includes:
-Maps
-Timelines -Vocabulary & -Discussion Questions No Better Friend is a perfect choice for independent reading, group study, supplementing the curriculum or just plain old enjoyment! Did You Know? Iowa's first male & female teachers were Mr. Berryman Jennings
and Mrs. Rebecca Palmer? In 1830, an Illinois doctor and lawyer named Isaac Galland crossed the Mississippi and established a settlement named National (also referred to as Nashville or Ahwipetuc.) Today, there’s a town called Galland where National sat. It lies along the Mississippi in Lee County, Iowa north of Keokuk.
Lee County, Iowa
Galland and his neighbors built a small cabin from roughhewn wood and mud. It was in this rugged, pioneer shelter that school was first held in what is now the state of Iowa.
The first teacher was Mr. Berryman Jennings. In 1830, he was 28 years old. He taught for 3 months and was paid with home goods such as furniture, firewood, and food. He later became a doctor, but made his living as a merchant until he joined a migration train to Oregon. From there he went to California to strike it rich mining for gold, but came up empty. He returned to Oregon where he made the first steam boat. He made a killing in the shipping business, but eventually lost everything in another venture. He led quite a life of adventure.
Old sketch of Iowa's first school (Source: Des Moines Register. Dec. 4, 1930; p.4)
A few years later, Iowa got it's first documented female teacher. Mrs. Rebecca Palmer taught from 1834-1835 in today's Fort Madison, Iowa. Her husband was an influential merchant. Mrs. Palmer's service predates Mrs. Susan Russel, another early female teacher, who began teaching in 1838. The Palmers eventually had a family and moved to Muscatine, Iowa.
Pioneer teachers played an important role in the future of Iowa. They were a special breed of pioneers who found ways to teach without sufficient resources and in poor conditions. They were creative and dedicated and found ways to overcome multiple hardships, often for food, room and board with little monetary compensation.
Learn more about the pioneering days of Iowa education at: Iowa PBS Pathways The Treasure Trove Educator Resource of the Month apples4theteacher.com
Resources for Teachers & Homeschoolers 
apples4theteacher.com is a wonderful PreK-6 resource for all subject areas, but we especially like it for its selection of holiday/event content.
Whether you need activities for topics as specific as Dental Health Month, or the Superbowl, or as general as spring and summer, you'll find resources here to enrich your students! Since our nation celebrates Memorial Day this month, we highly recommend apples4theteacher.com's Memorial Day resources.
Cemetery in Collevile near Omaha Beach
"Not for ourselves alone,
but for our country." This powerful quote comes from the adapted short story The Colonel of the Zouaves, by Noah Brookes. Short stories with Memorial Day themes are just one the resources you'll find!
Additional Memorial Day Resources Include:
-Coloring pages
-Fact sheets -Kraft ideas -Puzzles -Poems -Memorial day thematic reading list with descriptions and reviews & More 
If you need PreK-6 resources and activities that are perfect for the classroom, homeschooling, or posting online,
click here and check out apples4teachers.com today! ...And Remember Stay Home if You Can!
Wash Your Hands!
Stay Safe & Healthy!
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