Central Skagit Library District

History Lessons includes selections from textbooks and teaching materials used in Russia, France, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Canada, and others, covering such events as the American Revolution, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Iran hostage crisis, and the Korean War-providing some alternative viewpoints on the history of the United States from the time of the Viking explorers to the post-Cold War era. By juxtaposing starkly contrasting versions of the...

Kelly Gallagher's Twenty questions is an alternative to traditional high school homework assignments that fosters greater text comprehension. The simple design - students write twenty questions as they read assigned text - belies the complexity of the discussion fostered by the student-generated questions. On this day, students use the assignment to respond to George Orwell's 1984 in small-group and whole-class discussions. About the author: Kelly...

Rhyming makes reading easier and more fun for kids that are just getting started. When rhyming words are included in a story, they make sounding out (decoding) easier. Kids have reading success sooner and faster, build confidence, and they have fun too. Bob Books Rhyming Words is a great next step after Bob Books Set 1.

This video shows how Jeff Anderson uses playful strategies and mentor texts to engage writers in grammar and editing. In the "Apostrophe-thon," Jeff's sixth-grade students in San Antonio, Texas search through a mentor text excerpt to find examples of apostrophes and then categorize them as possessives or contractions based on a wall chart the class has compiled. Using real text, the students never fail to come up with some interesting examples such...

In Go Figure! Jessica Shumway takes viewers into first-, second-, and fourth-grade classrooms where teachers have set up daily opportunities for developing, nourishing, and expanding students' number sense. See number sense routines in action as Jessica, author of Number Sense Routines, and three other teachers engage students in these quick yet numerically rich experiences that, over time, help build a strong foundation for understanding mathematics....

Maths is a numbers game - at least it can be! This program shows how to encourage students to learn and develop their numeracy skills through fun and challenging activities. Activities are designed with a clear purpose, helping students to explore and think for themselves, share strategies, and gain understanding. Time to practise and discuss enables students to learn from each other and share their experiences. As students explore the activities,...

Effective schools develop strategies to ensure learning is the key focus and the school is a friendly place. They use open communication and focus groups to engage students, staff and parents in the planning process, to review and develop ideas for improvement. Effective schools have practical strategies for managing bullying and difficult students. Peer mediation is an innovative way to develop student leaders, and to help students manage conflict,...

Sales is the life blood of every company. Developing the product can pale in comparison with getting out there and trying to sell it. Yet selling is a footnote in the curriculum of many MBA programs. As Jim Healy points out, if you underestimate the critical importance of selling, you can lose opportunities and risk getting sidelined by the competition. You need a fundamental understanding of the four dynamic and interactive aspects of selling: analyzing...

What is a market economy? How does it work? This lively, wide-ranging film examines the theory and reality of economics. --THE MARKET ECONOMY: Economists divide the modern economy into primary, secondary and tertiary sectors. Some organisations are owned by the government - the public sector. Some are based on free enterprise. The combination of private and public industries is called the mixed economy. What can microeconomics and macroeconomics tell...

This film looks at businesses, what they are and how they work. And how are they changing under social and environmental pressures? --TYPES OF BUSINESSES: Key to the development of businesses is the idea of limited liability. There are two main types of limited companies - public and private, but there are many other kinds of organisations, too - from sole traders to co-ops. The film examines how businesses are divided into functional departments...