Thomas Jefferson - PowerPoint Presentation. A biography Thomas Jefferson, our nation's 3rd President and author of the Declaration of Independence. From his early years to his passing, follow the impressive accomplishments and achievements of a great founding father. Learn about his influence in American history and his relationships with other founding fathers, his role in the Revolutionary War and the Louisiana Purchase, and examine some of his inventions. Great for building background for President's Day activities. Updated February 2015 - HappyEdugator

George Washington's Breakfast by Jean Fritz PowerPoint Activities. Use this PowerPoint to go along with the book. Great for President's Day, or when introducing research. The book is about a boy who is on a quest to find out what his namesake had for breakfast. Includes information and links about the author, vocabulary, comprehension questions, photos from the Smithsonian and Mt. Vernon, and activities, including a recipe for hoecakes. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator

A Geologic Time Scale PowerPoint. A summary of the eras in Earth’s geologic history. Includes slides on Azoic, Proterozoic, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, Cenzoic, and Neozoic eras. Slides cover from the origin of the planet to the rise of humans. Timeline included. Quiz included with key at the end. - HappyEdugator

Africa Economic Terms Handouts. Defines economics, and the first page explains the four different types of economies: Traditional, Market, Command, and Mixed. The second page explains other economic terms such as Voluntary Trade, Specialization, Trade Barriers, Tariffs, Quotas, and Embargoes, and their importance in the study of Africa. - HappyEdugator

September 11. Patriot Day activity. A kid-friendly version of the events of 9-11 and a flag coloring sheet. Includes some photos of the fire department memorial at Ground Zero (taken by me on a visit to NYC) Students can read the story, or have it read to them, and look at the photos.(Can be projected for the whole class to see.) Then they can learn about how the flag became a symbol of strength during the crisis, and complete the flag coloring sheet. (This sheet is similar to the one I sell for Memorial Day) INCLUDES a word search for early finishers. Thanks! - HappyEdugator

Fourth of July PowerPoint. July Fourth - Independence Day - 4th of July. How and Why We Celebrate the Birth of our Nation. Great for summer camp. The Declaration of Independence made simple, Flag etiquette, Popular summer outdoor and indoor games and activities, Traditional food, How to make an American Flag cake, and Fireworks safety. American July 4th traditions for everyone to enjoy, for young and old, foreign or not. Goes with any Fourth of July unit. Great for introducing the summer activities of the Fourth to ESOL students and foreign high school students and adults as well. 15 Review Questions and Answer Key for self check.- HappyEdugator

Panama Canal Study Questions Webquest, Asks students to answer 10 basic questions about the Panama Canal. Questions are about location, climate, demographics, resources, etc. Students can complete as a webquest or do their own research to find the answers.Recommended sites included. Answer key is included, which can be used as a guide for class discussion as well. 2014 is the hundredth birthday of the Panama Canal! - HappyEdugator

Ancient Egypt Fun Activities - includes Ancient Egypt word search with key, mummy writing prompt, ancient Egypt pharoah writing paper, ancient Egypt True/False quiz, and an ancient Egypt coder breaker activity. Enjoy! - HappyEdugator

Ancient Greece and Rome Tic Tac Think. Differentiated assignment menu to use as an extension writing activity. In this activity, students choose a task from each horizontal row. Students have a choice but will focus on characteristics, impact and constructing support for the importance of these early civilizations. In some cases the teacher may want to specify certain tasks for individual students. You may challenge some students to complete all the squares for enrichment. PowerPoint format. You can display on whiteboard or print out slides as handouts. Included is a writing checklist for assessment. - HappyEdugator

Imperialism and Colonization of the New World Notes. Includes map of American colonization, and a graphic organizer showing cause and effects of the French and Indian War. Printable notes or handout outlining colonization and imperialism. The countries of Europe established colonies in the lands they had discovered but, in some cases, only after violently conquering the native people who lived there. South America and North America were colonized by Europeans known as conquistadors. This is a supplemental resource to your history of the colonies unit. - HappyEdugator

Memorial Day and Flag Day Coloring Activity. This print and go sheet for Memorial Day and Flag Day explains why we celebrate and what the colors of the flag symbolize. Students then follow the color codes to color the flag. Have them cut out and attach to a craft stick or paint stirrer to wave. - HappyEdugator

Writing an outline handout. What an outline is and why it is used, two types of outlines, and the rules for formatting an outline from general to specific with headings, subheadings, details, and specifics. Use when writing an expository paper such as a research report, biography, or essay. Includes an outline format template. You may also download my other Outline Template - Blank to help with scaffolding or differentiation. Thanks.

Columbus Day Fun Activity Pack. Columbus Acrostic Poem, Writing Prompt, Word Search. Poem Handout, Mak-a-Word, and Fill-in Activity included. Twenty-six Columbus Day related words in wordsearch. October is a fun Fall month, and this is an engaging activity for building vocabulary and spelling skills. Also includes a reading handout of the traditional poem "In 1492" and a Christopher Columbus Fill-In the Blank Activity sheet. You can also use these as time fillers or as a substitute activity. - HappyEdugator

New Year Around the World. Happy New Year! PowerPoint on traditions and customs of the New Year's holiday in 21 different countries: United States, Canada, England, Scotland, Wales, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Japan, China, Vietnam, Australia, India, Israel, Iran, and Saudi Arabia. Good for first day back from break. Great follow up to your Christmas Around the World unit. Animation and lots of interesting fun facts! A nice way to start off your new year when you return from the Christmas break. Fun! Enjoy! - HappyEdugator

September 11 PowerPoint. Patriot Day, September 11th. PowerPoint on September 11, 2001 has over a hundred slides with photos of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the Pennsylvania crash site of Flight 93. I like to play it with the music of Paul McCartney's "Freedom" and Neil Young's "Let's Roll." (Music must be purchased separately due to copyright laws) The anniversary of that tragic day is coming up. This will help your students understand the immensity and seriousness of the attacks on 9/11. Most middle schoolers were not even born when it happened, and although some of them have heard about it, most of them think this is ancient history. Have your Language Arts students write about what they feel after watching the photo slide show. This is good for Social Studies or History teachers as well. Slides advance automatically, but you can pause if needed. Quick review questions near the end. EDITABLE...some images may be distrubing for little ones, so I have put it in an editable format so that you can remove slides as desired. - HappyEdugator

Thanksgiving Smartboard activity - Thanksgiving Now and Then. Venn diagram comparing the food of the first Thanksgiving to Thanksgiving today. Add to your Thanksgiving activities. Students drag the Thanksgiving foods to where they think they should go on the diagram. Then they can check the key to see if they are right on the next page, and link to an interesting informational article to read about the first Thanksgiving! Fun November activity! -HappyEdugator key words: Thanksgiving, Smartboard, Thanksgiving Venn Diagram, Thanksgiving activities, Thanksgiving interactive whiteboard, Thanksgiving critcal thinking, Thanksgiving history, Thanksgiving research, Thanksgiving food, Thanksgiving common core Standards RI.4.1, RI.4.2, RI.4.3, RI.5.1, RI.5.2, RI.5.3

Mesopotamia Crossword Puzzle. A cross word puzzle using the following vocabulary words: Paleolithic Neolithic Homo sapiens artisan Sumer ziggurat Mesopotamia polytheism Hammurabi Canaan Assyria There is a word bank at the bottom for struggling learners. Key included. - HappyEdugator

India Travel Brochure Project. Student project with rubric. Students create a travel guide on India on a tri-fold construction paper. Students imagine they are travel guides leading a tour of India and must give their group an overview of India's history, geography, language, government, economy, religion, climate and attractions. Student instructions for the project to handout, teacher directions, brochure template, and a detailed rubric included. Rubric measures use of class time, writing conventions, attractiveness, organization, creativity, relevance of graphics, required elements including sources, and knowledge gained. - HappyEdugator

Egypt - Ancient Egypt Game Show PowerPoint. Covers Egyptian topics of Gods and Goddesses, Tombs, Egyptian Life, Nile River, and Symbols. Fun review game for your Egypt unit! Give the question to the answer, like on Jeopardy. - HappyEdugator

Thanksgiving: A Thanksgiving Day Song. Get musical and teach your students this quick and easy Thanksgiving Day song. A fun song for all ages! Good Thanksgiving singing activity to fill some time around the holiday. You don't need a lot of musical talent for this Thanksgiving song. This fun little song about Thanksgiving is sung to the melody of "Santa Claus is coming to Town." It is easy to learn and to remember, and a great tune for all ages from preschool to adult. Includes score. Happy Thanksgiving! - HappyEdugator