Our Advent Calendar

There is only one question in the minds of all children at this period of the year : "When is Christmas?" Our official advent calendar that shows the countdown to Christmas is up on the classroom walls and just about to show the day!

Christmas Tongue Twisters

Chocolate cocoa cravings cure colds
Santa sings shining star songs
Sally skis super slow
Big bright bells banish boredom
Grumpy Grinch goes grizzly gus
Pretty packages perfectly packed
Tip-top tiny tot toys
Sally's striped stocking's stuffed slightly
Santa's super souped sleigh swiftly slides sideways
Cheery cute caroling Christmas critters
Candy cane cookies keep kids coming
Santa's short suit shrunk

Christmas Activities

Theme-based syllabus design: Christmas celebrations and suggested EFL activities in Greek senior high schools from Vasso Papaioannou

Yλικό της Κυρίας Παπαϊωάννου Βασιλικής, ΠΕ06, για τα Χριστούγεννα.

Making Clothes for Dolls! It's fun!

Today, with my 8- year-old students, we learned about "strange"hobbies....like collecting tree leaves, collecting stamps, collecting football cards, making clothes for paper dolls and all those old-fashioned children's pastime activities that computer games have managed to make disappear...This post aims at teaching my young students the "girliest" hobby of all ! Paper dolls to print and make clothes for!

Color and Cut Paper Dolls of many famous characters like Disney princesses, Dora the explorer, etc
Myebook - Paper dolls
Slumber Paper Doll

http://paperthinpersonas.com/2012/06/25/marisole-monday-on-the-board-walk-in-color/

The Ginghams Paper Dolls! Beloved ones!

You can find many more online free templates to to print, cut out and play with, complete with costumes for all occasions, seasons and holidays! 
And a video-tutorial to make your own paper clothes! Learn how to make paper clothes 
Enjoy!

Myebook - The Little Pilgrims

 The students of  D'class of the 5th Primary School of Mytilene read a story about the Pilgrims, that travelled in the Mayflower to a new land, in 1620. They learned about the reasons they left, and all the difficulties they had to face during the journey and the first winter on the new land. They talked about the reasons the Pilgrims felt grateful and described how the first Thanksgiving dinner might have been. Then, the students talked about what they are thankful for and created
an e-book

Myebook - The Little Pilgrims

a poster

 and a "THANK YOU BOX"

where they will store their thank-you-notes throughout the school year and whenever they feel the need to say thank you to someone or for something. We will open this box in June and let you know what we are all thankful for!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING !

Our School Presentation

5th Primary School of Mytilene, Lesvos, Greece

To Know Us Better

More PowerPoint presentations from Angela

OUR "EUROBOOKS"

The Greek Eurobook

Greek Eurobook

More PowerPoint presentations from Angela

I spy.....bottles

 Make use of your summer holidays and all the things we collect on the beach....sand, pebbles, shells! I used the sand from the amazing beach of Vatera, one of the biggest and my most favorite on Lesvos Island, to create these "I spy" bottles in order to create vocabulary exercises and to revise linguistic items taught in the past. The students shake the bottles trying to spot the pictures and write down the words. If there are different teams of students they can alternate bottles the minute you blow a whistle! Then they can count their scores and find out which team knows most of the words! My students loved it!!

A Recycling Craft

The students of D' Class of the 5th Primary School of Mytilene decided to put paper back to where it belongs. So, after making promises to take care of Nature and to do our best not to waste natural resources, we made this tree of toilet paper rolls.
The name for our craft is : BACK TO THE TREE

Announcing our new e-Twinning project!

 We are happy to announce the beginning of our school trip!
 LIFE ON EUROPLANET
By the students of the 5th and 6th Classes
5th Primary School of Mytilene, Lesvos, Greece

Announcing the beginning of our journey! Life on Europlanet
by tsakangela on GoAnimate

Animation Software - Powered by GoAnimate.

An e-Twinning project created by  :
Angela Tsakiri, 5th Primary School of Mytilene, Greece
Maria Agrello, Istituto Comprensivo Statale "Giovanni XXIII" di Lauria - Scuola Primaria
"Cardinal Brancati", Italy
Roza Evrova, 144 Secondary School Narodni Buditeli, Bulgaria
Larisa Voronyuk, Jelgavas 2. pamatskola, Latvia
Anna Zdebiak, Szkoła Podstawowa nr 8 im.Bolesława Chrobrego, Poland
Dominika Svehlova, ZS T.G. Masaryka MNICHOVICE, Czech Republic
and our students!

Another announcement from the Italian school and Maria Agrello
 project announcement by maria.agrello on GoAnimate

Animated Presentations - Powered by GoAnimate.

THE  MAP  OF  OUR  PROJECT

 

TIME FOR SCHOOL !

Back to school ! Plenty of different feelings for the little students! Maybe we are able to read them in their eyes but nothing is better than being able to express how they feel! We can help them ! It is a good opportunity to teach "feelings" and make a "feelings chart" !

Kissing hand from http://onceuponafirstgradeadventure.blogspot.gr/2011/08/back-to-school-with-kissing-hand.html

 

Hello! How are you? A song to express how they feel.

Click to LOOK inside! A teacher's reflections.....

        Now that August has come, the final countdown for going back to school has started. August has  always been the month for me, when I have relaxed enough to think back nostalgically. So, it is time for reflection on all the feedback I got throughout the school year. It is "wondering" time.
        Many years have passed since the first day I walked into a classroom. I have walked a long way, I think, and still have a long way to go. But many things have changed, on the way. Actually, that was not a long journey in teaching, but a long journey in learning. I have decided on what kind of teacher I would like to be, through this process. There has been a list of personal inquiries all this time :
"What do I want my students to understand?"
"Am I doing things right?"
"How does my attitude affect the students?"
"Do I feel bad about anything that went wrong?"
"Did my students feel bad about anything that happened?"
"Have I taken into account all their personal needs and characteristics?"
"If I change my attitude towards their learning, do they change their attitude towards my teaching?"
"Am I facilitating the students' learning process? "
"Was my focus clear to them?"
"Did I listen to what my students had to say?"
"Am I following my planning and learning goals?"
"Has their work improved?"
"Do they feel happy?"
 ...................
...................
...................
 "Can I please CLICK on their brains to look inside?"

         Well, I never got an apple from my students but I sure hope, although they may not be able to realize it now, that a tiny "explosion" took place in their brains!     
         Nevertheless, I am in the most advantageous position as their teacher. I have the chance to rethink, to plan again, to reform and reframe, to examine deeply any gathered information, to research and find any new, useful ideas, to change whatever went wrong and make things right, to REFLECT !
         And all this must be done in August, before going back to school. Because then, I must be well-prepared to face a schoolyear full of challenges and small "inquiring" faces! How can I answer any of their "inquiries" if I haven't answered mine first?.......

Sites to help you plan and find useful teaching practices shared by the teaching community.
http://www.proteacher.org/
http://notjustcute.com/2012/08/06/planning-a-new-school-year-10-tips-to-give-you-a-head-start/

Happy Summer Holidays!

The Adventures of Teachers 4 Europe in Brussels

A free picture slideshow by Smilebox

A free slideshow design by Smilebox

WAY TO GO TEACHERS 4 EUROPE !!!!!!!

William Shakespeare's Birthday Party

 On April 23rd in the Primary School of Thermi we celebrated the would-be 448th birthday of the most prominent figure in English Literature, William Shakespeare. We did a number of activities to learn more about this special person and to celebrate his memory.

Shakespeare's Birthday Party on PhotoPeach

The students recited quotes from his plays and sonnets

Useful links in case you want to have such a special party!
http://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/resources/shakespeare-facts/
http://www.william-shakespeare.org.uk/facts-about-william-shakespeare.htm
http://absoluteshakespeare.com/trivia/facts/facts.htm
http://www.squidoo.com/hands-on-shakespeare
How to make Stretch books :
 http://teachingyoungsters.blogspot.gr/2012/05/how-to-make-stretch-books-for-your.html

Coloring pages :
http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/shakespeare-printables.htm
http://www.education.com/worksheet/article/shakespeare-coloring-page/?cid=50.300&utm_source=Worksheet+of+the+Week&utm_campaign=df9f430e2a-worksheet&utm_medium=email
http://www.hellokids.com/c_27056/coloring-page/famous-people-coloring-pages/famous-british-people-colouring-pages/british-authors-colouring-pages/william-shakespeare-coloring-page

A lesson plan on Shakespeare
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/language-assistant/essential-uk/shakespeare?utm_source=facebook-teachingenglish&utm_mediu%C2%ADm=wallpost&utm_campaign=bc-teachingenglish-facebook

Shakespeare for teens
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/articles/shakespeare-teens?utm_source=facebook-teachingenglish&utm_mediu%C2%ADm=wallpost&utm_campaign=bc-teachingenglish-facebook

A modern Hamlet comic book created as an e-Twinning project by students from Spain and Greece :
http://issuu.com/evibelogia/docs/comic_hamlet?mode=window&printButtonEnabled=false&backgroundColor#222222

Shakespeare extracts
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/activities/shakespeare-extracts?utm_source=facebook-teachingenglish&utm_mediu%C2%ADm=wallpost&utm_campaign=bc-teachingenglish-facebook

Elizabethan music and dancing lessons at :
http://youtu.be/q_RcMug23po
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_6nVRITxbY&feature=related




Learn more about his birthplace at :

Earth Day in our school!

The students of the Primary School of Thermi, Lesvos  celebrated Earth Day.

Earth Day in our School on PhotoPeach



Way to go children!! You are the future!

Flag Counter

Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee

Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee is celebrated in England from 2nd to 5th June on the occasion of her  60 years on the British throne.

The official website : http://www.thediamondjubilee.org/   

 

Born 21 April 1926 , the elder daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. At the time it was not expected that her father would become King, or that she would become Queen

The queen took the throne in 1952 on the death of her father, King George VI, and most Britons have known no other monarch.

                                                                           

                                           

A royal wedding  

In 1947, she married Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, with whom she has four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward. Her coronation service took place in 1953, and was the first to be televised.

On her Coronation Day

 On the balcony of Buckingham Palace with her family.

Celebrations in English schools

Activities for children : http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/diamond_jubilee.htm

Shopping for souvenirs in London

                                                    Limited edition Diamond Jubilee teapot

 

Prepositional....poster!

Something I found in "Pinterest". Excellent poster and it can be challenging if you give your students the post-its to stick on the lines.

Source: downsyndromecentre.ie via StephR on Pinterest

Source : http://downsyndromecentre.ie/advisorypanel/2010/jun/21/teaching-prepositions-positional-words-real-life-c/

Conditional Sentences in a fun way...

1st type  Conditional

2nd type  Conditional



 3rd type  Conditional






Zero Conditional

And then play the game adding conditional type sentences to be 
filled !

EUROPEANA

Published on 14 May 2012 by eutube
 

Europeana http://www.europeana.eu/portal/ is Europe's multilingual digital library, museum and archive available worldwide online. Now, Europeana is taking a new step to bring Europe's shared heritage alive by inviting people across the EU to put their own history online.

Mother's Day Present Pronto!

There's no one like a mother ! And a young child gets so happy if he/she can offer something back to a mother that gives everything to him! That is why the students of the 5th and 6th class of my school  made these cute bracelets. We made paper beads out of old magazines , then combined the colors and used silicon string to put together these wonderful bracelets to offer to mommies on Mother's Day. If you like them you can try as well! Happy Mother's Day to all the mommies in the world!

Don't be discouraged by the tools she uses in the tutorial. We used plain toothpicks!





                                                                                                                                       
And some cute cards and packaging ideas!

 You can write your own wish in the card or a special Mother's Day poem!


Made by the students of 5th and 6th class of the
Primary School of Thermi, Lesvos.

You can also make a special candle for Mommies! Draw on thin tissue paper, cover with baking paper and heat with your hairdrier until the baking paper seems wet. Then take it off the candle and what you get is amazing!

Candles by Vaso Vaitsi and the Primary School
of Polichnitos

How to make Stretch Books for your classroom

I found a very interesting idea in the Activity Village today. The video presents the instructions on how to make a different kind of book, a Stretch Book ! The students always find it motivating to make their own books and because this type of book is uncommon it is more motivating on its own! Try it out and have fun!

PROJECT PRESENTATION

On Saturday 21st April,  I was happy to present the project "Play By The Rules" , which was created by my students at the Primary School of Thermi for the Teachers 4 Europe, to my fellow teachers of English.The presentation was accompanied by Easter "tsoureki" and coffee organised by the English Teachers Association on Lesvos island. Thank you colleagues for the support and for being there!

HAPPY EASTER HOLIDAYS

http://www.sintagespareas.gr/sintages/polixroma-ayga-me-klosti-flos.html

Easter eggs by Vasso Vaitsi

 My Easter eggs!