I taught for 33 years and I have my MST in the teaching of Social Studies. In 1988, I was awarded the Elementary Social Studies Classroom Teacher of the Year Award from both the New York State Council for the Social Studies and the National Council for the Social Studies. My shop contains mostly social studies materials including web quests, and reader's theater scripts on famous people in history, science and literature.
I taught for 33 years and I have my MST in the teaching of Social Studies. In 1988, I was awarded the Elementary Social Studies Classroom Teacher of the Year Award from both the New York State Council for the Social Studies and the National Council for the Social Studies. My shop contains mostly social studies materials including web quests, and reader's theater scripts on famous people in history, science and literature.
Looking for something for the upcoming 2024 Paris Games? Check out this webquest on the country of France. From famous landmarks, to famous people, to contributions of the French to the world, this 14 question webquest gives a great introduction to the country. It is packed with lots of interesting facts! There are 10 Did You Know fun Facts, 5 comprehension questions and a Teacher page with extension activities and the key. Additionally there is a map skill activity. Could be used as a Friday activity, before a vacation or for a substitute resource. You could also give it to your students for a “summer” activity to keep the learning going!
Use this Test Your Knowledge Challenge Activity for students to learn about U.S. Landmarks. There are 20 statements and several extension activities in this resource. Could be used as independent work or small group work. Great for a Friday resource, before a vacation or for a substitute day.
If you would like a student version OR a resource in Word, please let me know and I would be happy to provide these for you.
Other Test Your Knowledge Challenge Activities: (more coming)
Candy and Sweets:
Women Trailblazers:
Presidents:
Maps and Geography:
Ireland and St. Patrick’s Day:
World Capitals:
Learn about Ireland and St. Patrick’s Day with this “Challenge Activity”. There are 25 informative text questions where students test their knowledge on the answers about the country of Ireland and the holiday, St. Patrick’s Day. There are a few extension activities, too. Great for around St. Patrick’s Day or when you have a substitute or for a Friday activity to introduce students to a country of the world.
There are many women who have made contributions that have shaped our world. Learn about some of these fascinating women with the following activity. There are 32 questions in the resource plus some additional information on women who have impacted our world. If you’d like a student version, just contact me. Also, if you’d like a version in Word, just ask for this, too. Great for a Friday activity and especially for Women’s History Month in March.
Use this free Interactive notebook resource to learn about Martin Luther King Jr.
Check out my Reader’s Theater Script on the life of Martin Luther King Jr. and my webquest on the life of Martin Luther King Jr.
I continue to add to my new series, Let’s Meet… people from the Ancient World includes several women who have made contributions in history. Now, I am beginning a series, Let’s Meet…people in the Middle Ages.This particular reading is on Hildegard of Bingen. Hildegard was a Prophet, abbess, composer, religious leader, writer of the Middle Ages. Her play may be the FIRST known musical! Her writings are still read today. The short reading shares(in the first person) a recounting of the person’s life(in this case Hildegard). There are several Did You Know? fun facts, comprehension questions, a map skill activity for the area of the world the person lived, a teacher’s section with extension activities, the key and additional links.
This resource includes the following:
Unit of Study on the Middle Ages(notes, suggested activities and resources).
Secret Message Review Game on the Middle Ages
Bayeux Tapestry Reading
Black Death: A Reader’s Theater Script
The Crusades: A Reader’s Theater Script
The Vikings: A Reader’s Theater Script
You can go to each of the resources to see a preview…
All resources are also available individually.
Gail
Share this STEM reading resource with your students. This particular reading is on Ada Lovelace, thought to be the world’s first computer Programmer. The short reading shares(in the first person) a recounting of the person’s life(in this case Ada Lovelace) There are several Did You Know? fun facts, comprehension questions, a map skill activity for the area of the world the person lived, a teacher’s section with extension activities, the key and additional links.
Great for a STEM reading on a women mathematician, a Friday activity, for Women’s History Month, Pi Day, a substitute lesson and more.
STEM
Woman Mathematician
Reading Passage
Looking for a reading passage and activities on Sir Edmund Hillary? If, so, check out this resource which is part of my Let’s Meet Series. Done in the first person, students will learn about the life of Sir Edmund Hillary, mountaineer, humanitarian and explorer. Also included are Did You Know? Fun Facts, Comprehension Questions, a Map Activity and a Teacher Page with extension activities.
The reading passage activity could also be a lesson for a substitute or for a Friday activity.
Check out my resource on Mt. Everest, too.
In 1923, English mountaineer George Mallory was asked,”Why do you want to climb Mt. Everest?” HIs response, “Because it’s there.” Thousands has been trying to summit the world’s highest mountain peak since this time. Learn about Mt. Everest, Nepal and the Yeti with this webquest! Lots of extension activities,interesting facts and comprehension questions are included. arts.
Check out my Let’s Meet Series:
I have a number of similar reading passages on famous people in this series, “Let’s Meet…” including: Phillis Wheatley(poet), Sojourner Truth(abolitionist, Women’s Rights Activist, Author), Mary Anning (paleonotologist) ,Joan of Arc(military leader),Caroline Herschel(Astronomer), Hildegard of Bingen(writer/composer), Artemisia(Female Naval Commander during the Battle of Salamis), Sophie Brahe(Astronomer), Enheduanna(first known Poet),Hanno(Sea Explorer of the Phoenicians), Agnodice(First Female Doctor of Ancient Greece), Hypatia(First female mathematician), Aglaonike(astronomer), Alexander the Great(famous general), Aesop(Fable Writer of Ancient Greece), Hannibal(famous general), Ramses(Great Pharaoh), Hatshepsut(Female Pharaoh) and Socrates(Philosopher of Ancient Greece).
Other Reading Passages:
George Washington and the Camel
Calvin Coolidge and the “Pennsylvania Avenue Zoo”
John Quincy Adams Takes a Swim
Thomas Jefferson and the Mammoth Cheese
Sojourner Truth
Santa Fe Trail: Wind WagonThomas
Revolutionary War Heroine: Catherine “Kate” Moore
Barry(Battle of Cowpens)
Enheduanna, First Known Poet in History
Artemisia(Female Naval Commander during the Battle of Salamis)
Hanno: Phoenician Explorer
Ramses the Great
Hatshpsut
Hammurabi
Alexander the Great
Aesop
Socrates
Hannibal
Hypatia: First Woman Mathematician
Aglaonike(Greek astronomer)
Agnodice(First Female Doctor of Ancient Greece)
Julius Caesar
Archimedes
Sparticus
Diocles
Joan of Arc
Phillis Wheatley
Mary Anning
Caroline Herschel
Sophie Brahe: Astronomer and Horticulturist
Hildegard of Bingen(Middle Ages)
Aida de Acosta(First Woman to Fly a Powered Aircraft)
Women’s Suffrage: The Silent Sentinels
History of Pretzels
History of Marshmallows
History of Tulips
Snowmen in History
History of April Fools’ Day
Great Wall of China
Eiffel Tower
Ayres Rock(Uluru)
Taj Mahal
Travel to Iceland
Travel to Greece
Travel to Japan
Price
Learn about Jules Verne, called the “father of science fiction”. Note: This is also given to H.G. Wells. The Ms. Bie Ografee Reader’s Theater Script has Jules Verne as a guest on her talk show. Lots of interesting information on his life and contributions to literature. Also includes a Did You Know? section, comprehension questions, a teacher page with some extension activities, links and the key.
Mrs. Bie Ografee Talk Show Reading Theater Scripts:
Vikings
Ferdinand Magellan
Marco Polo
Christopher Columbus
Leonardo da Vinci
Michelangelo
Visit with a Crusader
Visit with a Victim of the Black Death
Martin Luther King Jr.
Rosa Parks
Harriet Tubman
George Washington Carver
Katherine Johnson
Tuskegee Airmen
Marian Anderson
Marie Curie
Galileo Galilei
Sir Isaac Newton
Albert Einstein
Jane Goodall
Moon Landing: Interview with first astronauts to walk on the moon
Rachel Carson
Jacques Cousteau
Thomas Edison
Visit with a Pilgrim
Revolutionary War Female Spies
Revolutionary War Tory
Thomas Jefferson
James Madison, Father of the Constitution
Pioneer Woman, Narcissa Whitman
Civil War Women Soldiers
Sacagaewa
Sequoyah
Lewis and Clark
Abraham Lincoln
California Gold Rush: Visit with a ‘49er
Wright Brothers
A Road trip Across the USA for Women’s Suffrage
WW 2: Women Pilots
Elizabeth Blackwell
Susan B. Anthony
Sonia Sotomayor
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Louisa May Alcott
Edgar Allen Poe
William Shakespeare
Charles Dickens
Johnny Appleseed
Visit with a Leprechaun
Visit with a Groundhog
To Tell the Truth Plays:
Hans Christian Andersen
Elizabeth Blackwell
Amelia Earhart
First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt
Elizabeth Blackwell
First Lady Edith Wilson
First Lady Florence Harding
King Tut
First Lady Hillary Clinton
First Lady Michelle Obama
First Lady Abigail Adams
First Lady Martha Washington
First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln
First Lady Dolly Madison
First Lady Lady Bird Johnson
My website for teachers/kids has lots of geography activities, short reads, factoids on different topics, news, career surveys, bell ringers and more.
A bundle of FIVE Reader’s Theater Scripts from my Ms. Bie Ografee Talk Show Series. The six scientists in this bundle include:
Galileo Galilei
Sir Isaac Newton
Jane Goodall
Albert Einstein
Rachel Carson
Use these fun/informative STEM biographical plays during a unit of study in science, for Women’s History Month or for a Friday Biographical person day or before a vacation.
The format involves an appearance on Ms. Bie Ografee’s Talk Show where audience questioners ask the guest questions about their life and contributions to science. It’s a great opportunity to have students role-play and show their acting skills.
Each play is also available for purchase separately.
I also have a bundle of SIX other Reader’s Theater Scripts: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/resource-11483934 This resource has plays on the following:
Elizabeth Blackwell
Thomas Edison
George Washington Carver(also in my African American Trailblazer bundle)
Jacques Cousteau
Marie Curie
Katherine Johnson(currently in the news as she is highlighted in the movie,“Hidden Figures”)
This resource includes seven famous writers in history.
Includes:
William Shakespeare: A Reader’s Theater Script
Charles Dickens: A Reader’s Theater Script
Hans Christian Andersen: A Reader’s Theater Script
Edgar Allan Poe: A Reader’s Theater Script
Louisa May Alcott: A Reader’s Theater Script
Sojourner Truth: A Reading Passage
Phillis Wheatley: A Reading Passage
Enheduanna, First Known Poet in History: A Reading Passage
Each resource is also available as an individual purchase.
Gail Hennessey
Considered to be the greatest writer of the English language, learn about William Shakespeare with this fun/informative play. Shakespeare introduced about 3000 words to the English language . It is said that next to the Bible, his works are the most quoted!
Great for Language Arts, study on the Renaissance or on a Friday or day before a holiday when you’d like to introduce your students to famous people with a biography activity.
The fun/informative play uses the format of Shakespeare being a guest on a talk show and the studio audience asks questions about his life. Part of my Ms. Bie Ografee’s Talk Show Series. Also includes: Comprehension/Did You Know?section, LOTS of extension activities/links/key.
Other resources of interest:
Check out my web quest on Charles Dickens:Today, a person who is very tight with money, is often called a scrooge, after, the main character in A Christmas Carol. Did you know that several other words and phrases were coined by Charles Dickens? Words such as abuzz, flummox, the creeps,round the clock and whiz-bang are credited with Dickens. Other words that Dickens helped to popularize include, kibosh, butter-fingers,boredom,messiness,squashed,bah humbug,and tousled.
Here’s another interesting fact about Charles Dickens.Someone said that if you counted all the words which Dickens used in his writing, it was an amazing 4.6 million different words! One of the most famous writers of all times,Dickens also wrote Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield and more. My webquest includes 8 fun/informative questions to learn about Dickens. Additional activities/links,too. Charles Dickens, A Webquest
This reader’s theater play introduces kids to fairy tale writer,Hans Christian Andersen. His story, The Ugly Duckling, some say was actually about him. Great activity for Anti-Bullying Month in October to go along with reading of this fairytale. Comprehension questions, discussion questions, extension activities and resources are included. Hans Christian Andersen, A Reader’s Theater Script
I also have a fun/informative Reader’s Theater Script on Charles Dickens. Part of my Ms. Bie Ografee Talk Show Series, students will be introduced to the life of Charles Dickens, one of the most famous writers of all time. There are 11 questioners in the play as well as a Did You Know? section of fun facts, comprehension questions and a teacher page with extension activities, additional links and the key.Charles Dickens, A Reader’s Theater Script
Use this fun/informative play uses the format of Edgar Allan Poe being a guest on a talk show and the studio audience asks questions about his life. Part of my Ms. Bie Ografee’s Talk Show Series. Also includes: Comprehension/Did You Know?section, LOTS of extension activities/links/key.
Louisa May Alcott:
Studying the Romans? This resources includes the following products to assist in the teaching of Ancient Rome and the Romans.
Ancient Romans-Unit of Study with activities and links
Ancient Roman- Secret Message Review Activity
Italy and Ancient Rome-A Webquest with activities and links
Diocles: Famous Charioteer (Reading Passage with activities)
Spartacus: Roman Gladiator(Reading Passage with activities)
Julius Caesar: ( Reading Passage with activities)
All resources are also available to be purchased individually.
Gail Hennessey
There is a Black History Month, Native Americans Heritage Month, a Hispanic American Month and a Woman’s History Month. Asian American and Pacific Islanders Heritage Month is a time to highlight the contributions of these groups of people to the culture of the United States. It is celebrated in the month of May but could be used throughout a school year whenever you are wishing to highlight contributions of famous people to our world.
Other resources of Interest:
Native Americans Heritage Month:Webquest
Black History Month:(Webquest)
Hispanic Heritage Month: A Webquest
Women’s History Month:
In 1519, Ferdinand Magellan set out on an amazing adventure, in an attempt to voyage around the world. Although he did not complete the journey, several of his crew did complete the trip. This Reader’s Theater Script provides lots of information about the Age of Exploration and Magellan’s voyage in a fun/informative method. There are 13 audience questions, Did you Know? fun facts, comprehension questions and a teacher page with extension activities, key and additional links for teachers.
You may also find the following resources of interest:
1.Age of Discovery: A Webquest: Age of Discovery, A Webquest
2. Age of Discovery-Secret Message Review Activity: Age of Exploration, A Secret Message Review Activity
3. Columbus: A Reader’s Theater Script: Christopher Columbus, A Reader’s Theater Script
4. Learn about Michelangelo, one of the world’s greatest sculptor and painter, with this reader’s theater script! Included are 7 questioners, comprehension questions, a Did You Know? section, a teachers page with extension activities, links and the key.Great addition to a unit on the Renaissance,art history or for a Friday biography day! Ms. Bie Ografee’s Talk Show Series.Audience Questioners ask questions of Michelangelo:Michelangelo, A Reader’s Theater Script
5. Studying the Renaissance? Studying famous artists in history?Need a biographical play to use with your students? Try my Reader’s Theater Script on Leonardo da Vinci. Includes comprehension questions and extension activities. Great addition to a study of the Renaissance, art history or a Friday biography day! Part of my Ms. Bie Ografee’s Talk Show Series, studio audience questioners ask da Vinci questions about his life.Leonardo daVinci, A Reader’s Theater Script
Marco Polo: Use this informative Reader’s Theater Script to learn about Marco Polo. Marco Polo helped to start the Age of Discovery with his book on his adventures to China. The fun/informative play uses the format of Marco Polo being a guest on a talk show and the studio audience asks questions about his life. Great for a Friday biography, for a unit of study on the Age of Discovery or a unit of study on China.
Use these resource to share with kids that history is all around us. I start the year with Why Study History? These resources would be a great beginning of the year or end of the year activity. An activity I used to to with my students had the students writing a paragraph on their favorite childhood toy. What was it? Why was it important to you? What did it look like? What happened to it. This got the discussion started that even THEY have a personal history. I shared my Pinkie, a stuffed dog, that was my very favorite childhood toy( which I still have).
Use this handout to have students learn about endangered species. In 2024, Endangered Species Day is May 17th.
I also have webquests on Elephants, Giraffes, Rhinos, Leopards, Polar Bears.