Can you guess where Blazer is?

Hi Blazers!

Use these 5 clues to guess where I am now!

1. The capital is Berlin.

2. The country's flag colors are black, red, and gold.

3. This country is famous for their sauerkraut, brawtwursts, and pretzels! Yummy!

4. NBA superstar, Dirk Nowitzki is from this country.

5. And Miss Z's favorite fun fact....somebody from this country invented...GUMMY BEARS!  :D

Where in the world is Blazer?!

Blazer loves books!

Hey Blazers!

Miss Z and her friend Mohammed had a great time Skyping with the 4th graders last week! Miss Z thinks they have all grown big over the summer and she misses them very much!! :) Mohammed says to tell you hello. He would love to get to see America one day!

I have had a great time in Bahrain. Just the other day I stopped in at the library. I found some neat books. Did you know that in Arabic you read from the right to the left? That is opposite of how you read! Here I am in the Bahrain Children's Library enjoying a book about....ECAPS! Did you get that?

The library here is very nice. I found a book that I know the third graders have read before:

 And below is the area that kids can come to hear stories or read with their friends and family.

Reading is important no matter where you live in the world! If you could make a list of books for kids in Bahrain to read, what would you suggest to them? Leave your answers as a comment and I will give your suggestions to teachers in Bahrain!

Do the bookshelves in the picture above look a little empty compared to your library at home? There are lots of places in the world where kids just like you need books to read. Have you ever thought about what to do with your books after you read them? Maybe you could start a fundraiser in your own school or city to send books to kids that need them! Sometimes we take things we have for granted, meaning, we don't take the time to think about how lucky we are. Miss Z and I have seen schools on our trip where kids just like you would cry happy tears just to have a book to take home and keep as their own.

Kids like you can make a huge difference all around the world. If you are feeling motivated, ask your teacher to look at some of the links below to get started!

http://www.thebookmama.com/how-to-donate-books-seven-places-that-want-your-used-books/
http://www.edutopia.org/aid-international-schools
http://www.sarahlamstein.com/share.html

!!srezalB gnidaer yppaH

What do you do when you lose a tooth?

Congrats to Isabella for answering Blazer's question about the difference between a king and a president! You are so smart! Blazer sends you 5,000 virtual hugs :) (I think Miss Zalenski sends lots too!)

Isabella is right that the people get to vote for president, but not for the king. Which would you prefer?

Today's question: What do you do when you lose a tooth?

Children here in Bahrain have a tradition when they lose their teeth. The pictures below are from the Bahrain National Museum. Read to see what kids here do as tradition!

Blazer wants to know....what do YOU do when you lose a tooth??? Share your answers here!

 

Where is Blazer?

Hi Kids!

I hope you had a great first day of school! I sure wish I was there to see all of your smiling faces.

Right now I am in the country of Bahrain which is in the Middle East. It looks like just a tiny dot on your map. If you are having a hard time finding it, look between Saudi Arabia and Iran. It is actually just a little island that is not very well known around the world!

The official language spoken here is Arabic. The people are very friendly, and most of them can speak with me in English too. They have lots of questions for me about life in America! Lots of people I meet tell me they have only seen America in the movies. And when I tell them I am from Texas, they ask me where my cowboy hat is! Click the link below to hear the Arabic alphabet!

http://youtu.be/0xYy3D6zYgY

Most citizens of Bahrain are Muslim. I got here during the month of Ramadan, where the Muslim families fast from dawn to sunset. Fasting means they do not eat or drink anything at all during sunlight hours. It was very hard for me to get used to not eating or even drinking water in public during the day! As a visitor, I was allowed to eat in the comfort of my home, but not out where others could see me. Even restaurants were closed during the day. It was very neat for me to see and understand the Muslim traditions and I know there are many Muslim families at Bolin, too. The families I have met here are very dedicated to their religion and were very excited to teach me about their lifestyle.

Bahrain has what is called a constitutional monarchy, which means they have a King. Their current king is Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Below is a picture of him.

In the United States, we have a president. Can you find the differences between a king and a president?

The first kiddo to respond with an answer will get a special shout out from me, Blazer, on my next blog!

Thanks for reading!
Love,
Blazer

 

Happy First Day of School, Blazers!

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL, BLAZERS!!

 

Map Skills!

Dear Blazers,

Mrs. Scott made my day by sending me a picture of this amazing bulletin board for you to follow my travels! Make sure you thank her at the school for taking the time to make this for us. I just love it!

 

To freshen up on your map skills, try some of these fun websites for kids!

 

http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/multimedia/interactive/maps-tools-adventure-island/kd/?ar_a=3

 

http://www.mywonderfulworld.org/toolsforadventure/games/index.html

 

http://www.wartgames.com/themes/geography/maps.html

 

Some of Blazer's friends have already spotted the map!

 

Teachers: Head over to Teachers Pay Teachers and check out this ADORABLE map unit for sale by One Extra Degree. It is oh my goodness adorable! In fact, I think I will have to purchase it myself & keep it for next year :) http://oneextradegree.blogspot.com/2012/02/exploring-maps-pirate-style-basics.html?showComment=1345759316719#c1569373251647709589

Love,

Blazer







First Day of School Ideas

Hey teachers! Here are a couple of my favorite back to school ideas I've seen lately. I sure miss being at school to do these things ;)

 

 

Magic Playdough from youmightbeafirstgrader.blogspot.com

Follow the link for directions on how to make the magic playdoh and for the poem document. Attach this cute poem and wham! Instant smiles! http://www.youmightbeafirstgrader.blogspot.com/2012/08/favorite-back-to-school-activity-linky.html

One of my favorite first day of school activities is to read the story "Jitter Juice" by Julie Danneberg and then make Jitter Juice to send our first day jitters away! I saw this cute idea on Pinterest last summer and my class loved it! The Jitter Juice is just sherbet, Sprite, Hawaiian Punch, and one cherry to top it off. I recreated the cute poem to go with it and the kids glued it in their journal and wrote about their first day jitters. This is my *FIRST* creation as The Wise Young Owl....but I'm struggling with getting it to upload in Google Documents, so just email me if you want the page and I will send it to you! (hollyzalenski@hotmail.com)





 

I also found this cute idea on Pinterest from monarchmadness.blogspot.com. You write the kiddos' names on a balloon and tie it to their chair, a new pencil, etc. Not only does it make the room super cute and exciting to walk into, but it also makes for a very inexpensive goodie for the kids to be excited to take home! I would so do this if I was in the classroom this year!

 



 

 

One last idea I saw that was super cute, and usable, was this adorable magnet board  from diaryofasecondgradeteacher.wordpress.com to help keep up with who is where. You know this gets crazy, especially at the beginning of the year when you are adjusting to a new set of schedules :) You could easily make this with some fun ribbon to match your classroom theme. Love it!

 

 

Just a few ideas that I had to share since Blazer and I are getting the itch to set up a classroom this time of year!! Have a great Meet the Teacher night, friends!!