Grades 3–5
Maggies's Earth Adventure activities are meant to be taught as
a supplement to your curriculum. Teachers can give specific activities
to do as a way to get extra practice in a skill set or as an educational
reward. For grades 3–5, the following activities are appropriate:
Grammar
Clean Up Your Grammar
Goals: Your students can practice with noun / verb identification
by "cleaning up the trash on the beach!" Level One contains
easier words and Level Two is made up of more challenging vocabulary.
This game is also good for reading and vocabulary development.
Classroom Use: Hand students the Progress Chart (PDF) to track
their progress. After playing this game, motivate your students
to practice their grammar skills by using their interests. They
can make posters showing nouns and verbs in different ways. For
example, a child who loves basketball might draw a basketball
court. He could draw several balls all containing nouns by one
basket and more balls containing verbs by the other basket.
Extension: For more language activities, visit www.missmaggie.org.
Click on the blue Weekly Activity bar on the homepage for information
on how to sign up for our weekly activities and learn how to get
our extensive archive of past packets. Many of these classroom-ready
activities feature language themes.
Edit Dan's Copy
Goals: Level One of this game gives your students practice in
finding and fixing errors in capitalization and final punctuation.
More advanced learners can practice correcting run-on sentences,
quotation marks, and apostrophes. This game also provides excellent
keyboarding practice.
Classroom Use: Assign students individually or in pairs to retype
these incorrect sentences. Then have them write their own copy
of a news story. They could even write one based on one of the
themes in the Maggie cartoons: over-fishing and coral reef problems,
"A Great Catch;" air pollution, "You Must Be Choking;"
endangered animals, poaching in Africa, "Herd of Elephants?
Parts 1 and 2;" and invasive species, "Rushin' River."
Extension: For more writing practice, Maggie's Postcard section
is the perfect place to visit. There you will find pictures of
African art, African wildlife, Ireland and much more. Students
can "snap" their own photograph using several pictures
we provide. They can use this photo as a postcard and write different
nonfiction paragraphs about it using the graphic organizers that
are provided. Post them on a bulletin board. You may even want
to tack up a large map and arrange the postcards on the correct
spots.
Short Circuit
Goals: Help your students to learn more about prefixes and suffixes
and their meanings. If your state's standardized tests include
vocabulary, then your students will benefit from the 4 levels
in this game. When a word like transpacific appears, your students
will have the knowledge to define it!
Classroom Use: Hand students the Progress Chart (PDF) to track
their progress. After playing the game several times, ask children
to start a log of prefixes and suffixes with their meanings. When
the logs have several entries, pair students to quiz each other.
To appeal to the many multiple intelligences you find in your
classroom, have children choose a prefix or suffix and create
a poster illustrating its meaning.
Extension: Interested in helping your students recognize
and understand prefixes and suffixes in context? You can download
and print several nonfiction articles found in The Teachers' Lounge
at www.missmaggie.org.
Just find the unit to accompany "You Must Be Choking."
Scroll down to the booklet, A Breath of Fresh Air. There
are many word lists and lessons on the prefixes and suffixes contained
in these articles. Not only will your students gain valuable practice
with understanding these words in context, but they will learn
about the many things people and companies are doing to prevent
air pollution.
Fish 'Em Up!
Goals: This version of Fish 'Em Up is great for fun spelling
practice. When playing this game students will spot when it is
necessary to add es to a word and when adding s is the acceptable
spelling choice.
Fish "Em Up 2: Now I'm Hooked gives needed practice with
another inflectional ending objective — when to double a consonant
or drop a y before adding the ending. These games give children
needed practice in making these syllable juncture decisions.
Classroom Use: These games integrate with the spelling/phonics
program, Word Study. Hand students the Progress Chart (PDF) to
track their progress. After presenting the appropriate rules and
pencil and paper activities, send your children to the classroom
computer to practice these skills. You can even encourage students
to make their own data bank of words for these games. Have them
design other possible interactive games based on new spelling
principles you may be studying.
Extension: Maggie's Earth Adventures offers many activities based
on Word Study principles. The interactive game, Password Puzzler,
found in the Games section at www.missmaggie.org, uses words from
Within Word in Level 1. Words from Syllable Juncture are featured
in Level 2.
Many word sorts can be found in different activities in The Teachers'
Lounge at www.missmaggie.org.
Take a look in the unit, "A Great Catch." There you
will find a guidebook to accompany Jean Craighead George's, Shark
Beneath the Reef. This guidebook features many word lists,
sorts, and ideas for spelling and phonics games based on Word
Study. Even if you are not using this trade book, you are sure
to find the suggested activities useful in your spelling program.
Math
Dude's Dilemma
Goals: This game gives your students practice in the four calculation
areas, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, along
with mixed practice. They will love rescuing Maggie's dog, Dude,
from a rooftop. Even older children love to watch the helicopter
come closer and closer to Dude as they correctly answer the math
problems. Within each area of play there are 3 levels: Easier,
Harder, and Extreme.
Classroom Use: As with many of Maggie's games, the several levels
offered allow you to differentiate for instruction. Students needing
review can be assigned to practice at one level, while those needing
a challenge can be assigned a higher level. Because all students
are playing the same game, they can still share the experience
of rescuing Dude!
Hand students the Progress Chart (PDF) to track their progress.
Extension: In The Teachers' Lounge section under the unit, "Herd
of Elephants, Part 2" you will find some of the many math
activities we have available for classroom use. Your pre-multiplication
students will benefit from completing the activities found here.
Several problem solving "stories" lay the foundation
for higher level math skills while engaging them with an African
theme. Amaze your higher level students with the many properties
of Fibonacci numbers. These activities can be downloaded, printed,
and duplicated. Perhaps you will want to use activities such as
these for extension assignments or center work.
Looking for ways your children can extend their thinking about
numbers? Send them to www.missmaggie.org. Click on the Games area,
click on Target Math. This game helps students understand there
are many names for one number (8 + 4, 20 - 8, one ten and 2 ones
are all names for 12).
Around the World in 80 Seconds
Goals: This game allows for practice in the four calculation
areas, addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, along
with mixed practice. Within each area of play there are 2 levels:
Easier and Harder. In this game, speed is emphasized. Your children
will get essential calculation practice while building speed.
The bonus is that children also develop a greater understanding
of geography!
Classroom Use: A good way to use this game is to have children
keep a Progress Chart (PDF) of each game's time. This way, children
are working toward their personal best. They have a visual record
of progress which is motivating. You also have a chart to share
with parents detailing a child's abilities.
Extension: There are many more interactive math games found embedded
in the cartoon section at www.missmaggie.org. Your primary children
may enjoy counting fish and then stating the third of the total
number of fish. This interactive activity can be found in the
cartoon, "A Great Catch." Intermediate students will
love helping the monkey jump from rock to rock in the carton,
"Herd of Elephants? Part I".
For problem solving activities involving pencil and paper, visit
the Teachers' Lounge at Maggie's Earth Adventures. Your intermediate
students will see the use of mathematics in real-life by completing
the Problem Solving Math Activities in the unit, "You Must
Be Choking."
Science
Science Labeling
Goals: Does your science curriculum include one of these topics:
layers of the Earth, structure of a flower, anatomy of a fish,
respiratory system, or layers of the atmosphere? If so, you'll
want your class to play this game that helps them learn the specific
labeling of these diagrams. Even if you are not currently studying
one of these areas, this game will help your students to improve
their memories. The game shows players the diagram and gives them
a time limit in which to memorize the correct labeling. The student
must then use their knowledge to play the game. It's a great way
to encourage efficient study skills.
Classroom Use: Hand students the Progress Chart (PDF) to track
their progress. After playing this game, ask students to write
their own quiz about one of the structures. You can even assign
your students to make their own diagrams of a topic of interest
related to your current science unit.
Extension: Maggie's Earth Adventures offers many interactive
science activities. When you click on Cartoons, choose a unit
pack, and you will see several choices. In "Herd of Elephants,"
one of these interactive devices is a microscope. Your students
use a dichotomous key to identify tree leaves or insects/spiders.
In "You Must Be Choking," students can view the carbon
cycle or play a game involving layers of the atmosphere.
Science teachers will love the 7 articles on the scientific classification
system. These are found in the lesson plans to accompany "Herd
of Elephants, Part 2."
Spanish
Spanish-English Cycle Race
Goals: Your budding Spanish speakers will have a chance to practice
new vocabulary on 2 levels. The Easy Level features many color
and number words, the Advanced Level reinforces other vocabulary
needed by the beginning Spanish speaker.
Classroom Use: This game is helpful in foreign language classrooms
to help children practice basic Spanish vocabulary. It is also
helpful for ESL students as they can practice English vocabulary.
Hand students the Progress Chart (PDF) to track their progress.
Follow up by giving your students a long piece of bulletin board
paper. Have them create their own bike race by writing Spanish
(or English) words on a bike path. Draw a bike with a basket and
duplicate. Children can cut these out and write the meanings of
the words in the bike basket. Glue them next to the correct word
on the bike path. Hang in a long hallway!
Extension: Most of Maggie's Earth Adventures is available in both
English and Spanish. Spanish and ESL teachers can have children
change the language toggler to Spanish. Maggie and her friends
will speak in Spanish in the cartoons, activities will appear
in Spanish, and you can even receive our Weekly Activity Packets
in Spanish. Be sure to check out this exciting feature!
Limpia tu gramática — See Clean Up Your Grammar under
Grammar
El Dilema de Dude — See Dude's Dilemma under Grammar
Alredor del Mundo en 80 Segundos — See Around the
World in 80 Seconds under Grammar
Diagramando a la Ciencia — See Science Diagram under
Science
Puzzle de Contarseña
Goals: This game offers two levels of vocabulary for the Spanish
learner. Unlike the Spanish/English Bike game students need to
guess consonants and vowels to create a Spanish word.
Classroom Use: This game is helpful in foreign language classrooms
to help children practice and learn new Spanish vocabulary words.
The design of the game allows students to quickly recognize many
of the frequently used consonants and vowels of the Spanish language
as they unlock each lock. They will quickly learning spelling
patterns too. Two levels are offered providing a range of Spanish
words for the new and advanced Spanish speaker. Have your students
design their own password puzzler using index cards. Hand students
the Progress Chart (PDF) to track their progress. Encourage them
to "trick" their opponent with some of the new words
they learned playing Password Puzzler in Spanish.
Extension: The sister game of Password Puzzler in Spanish is Password
Puzzler in English. Use this in your English learning classroom
for new vocabulary and in elementary classrooms for practice in
spelling. If you are using Word Study, Level One words are from
the Within Word stage of spelling and Level Two words are taken
from the Syllable Juncture stage of developmental spelling. If
you do not use Word Study, you will find these words likely correlate
as follows: Level One — second and third grade, Level
Two — fourth grade and above. Children also love this
game as they enjoy spotting letter patterns in words (s at the
beginning may be followed by h, etc.) and discovering which letters
are used most often in English.
All of Maggie's Earth Adventures Cartoons are available in Spanish.
Log on and have your students listen to the Cartoons. It's a great
way to introduce the ear to the Spanish language and if they don't
understand it all that's okay, just switch the language toggle
and view in English.
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