Baptism - Eight is Great Donuts

This is a cute idea that is floating out there in Pinterest-land.  You put two mini donuts in a bag and it looks like an 8.  Then put a cute topper on the bag to seal it shut and give them to your baptism guests.  I wish I had known about this when my kiddos were baptized.

I wanted to copy this creative idea and make pink and blue graphics with this theme.  You fold the paper in half and then staple them on the bag of two mini donuts.  Feel free to use them if you'd like.

Math - Metric Conversion Trick

When I was subbing in 6th grade I was able to teach a fun lesson about metric conversions.   We read a story and introduced a sentence to help students remember the order of the metric units.  The original story was a little different than the one below.  It used the sentence "King Henry Does Usually Drink Chocolate Milk," but the students and I decided that was a boring sentence and we preferred the more interesting one that read, "King Henry Died Unusually Drinking Chocolate Milk."  So I edited the story to fit our memorization tool sentence.  Then when I subbed in 4th grade and taught the same lesson, I decided to make this detailed chart which is a mix from the math textbook and things I've learned from other teachers.

Click HERE to go to Google Drive and print the PDF file. (Note, I do not allow people to access the PDF for editing)

Click HERE to access this chart in Google Slides for editing purposes.  PLEASE MAKE YOUR OWN COPY BEFORE EDITING IT.

The arrows at the bottom of the chart show kids that you DIVIDE by ten when you are converting toward the larger units (I say "toward the giant") and that you MULTIPLY by ten when you are converting toward the smaller units (I say "toward the tiny bug").  I gave each student a copy of this chart.  The giant and tiny bug references are from the story listed at the end of this post.

Another trick to show the kids when to multiply or divide by ten involves using your arms.  True, I probably looked like a crazy person teaching the kids, but it really worked.  When you are converting from the smaller units to the larger units, you stick your arms out wide (like you are stretching bigger).  The outstretched arms look like a division symbol.  When you are converting from larger units to smaller units, you cross your arms in front of you putting one arm on each shoulder so that it looks like an "x" for multiplication.  For each square you move in whichever direction you will either multiply or divide by 10.  I tell them that 10 is the magic metric number.  I put the chart up on the smartboard/doc cam and literally did the arm motions and walked back and front of it to show kids how to do it.

The following story about Metric Conversion may help students understand how to convert between the different metric units.  I had personally always struggled with metric conversions (probably from lack of interest and from lack of a clear explanation from my teachers when I was young).  This story and technique clicked in my brain and I TOTALLY get it now, as did the kids in the class.  So I had to share.

King Henry's Story

Once upon a time in a faraway land there lived a king who loved chocolate milk. His name was King Henry.

Throughout his kingdom, King Henry made sure that all of the cows were fed great supplies of chocolate to continue to provide him with his beloved chocolate milk drink.

King Henry drank chocolate milk with his breakfast. He drank chocolate milk with his lunch. He drank chocolate milk with his dinner. He even drank chocolate milk for his bedtime snack. King Henry drank chocolate milk by the liters!

King Henry wanted all living creatures in his kingdom to enjoy chocolate milk as much as he enjoyed chocolate milk. However, a liter was not the best serving size for every creature. The Royal Carpenter was called for and the command was given for new serving vessels to be created to fit every creature in the kingdom.

For the creatures smaller than the king, the Royal Carpenter designed deciliters that were 1/10th the size of a liter, centiliters that were 1/100th the size of a liter, and milliliters that were 1/1000th the size of a liter. The milliliters were just right for the Royal Beetles and Bugs of the kingdom.

Math - "Mr. Gallon" - US Standard Conversion Help

I learned about this from some 4th grade teachers when I was subbing at their school last week.  It is a great visual image to remember when learning to convert cups to pints to quarts to gallons and so forth.

Some people call this "Mr. G" and others call him "Mr. Gallon."  Call it whatever you'd like but I tell you, IT WORKS!

Draw a giant G (for gallon).  Within the G, draw 4 Q's (for quarts).  Get it?  Four quarts in a gallon.  Draw 2 P's in each Q.  That means there are two pints in each quart.  Inside each P, draw two C's.  So the kids can easily see that there are 2 cups in each pint, 2 pints in each quart, 4 quarts in each gallon.  They can solve a myriad of word problems using this simple memorization trick.

Here are some websites that have a story to go with this memorization trick.  THIS WEBSITE  has a fun story about the Gallon Kingdom and also a picture of Mr. Gallon that works well too.  THIS OTHER WEBSITE tells about the Kingdom of Gallon too with a slight variation from the other website's tale.

The kids all have the chart memorized and when they got their tests on unit conversion and word problems, I saw them writing this on the top of their papers to help them visualize it and more easily convert throughout the test.

Enjoy!

Menu Chart

I created this menu form yesterday to write down my dinner plan for the week.  Since I put it up on my fridge and have to look at it every day, I wanted it to be cute.  I know, I know, not really necessary but it makes me happy.

I left it pretty generic so that I could use it a variety of ways.  This week I just put the days in each little label spot and wrote my dinners in there.  I could also put lunches and dinners on there if I felt like it and have it only last for 4 days.  At any rate, I thought I'd share.  Feel free to try it out and give me feedback.  Since I designed it, I can make changes.

Article - The Contagion Called Pornography

I saw this great article entitle The Contagion Called Pornography on The United Families International Blog.  It really is a plague that is affecting individuals and families in all nations.  Here is one analogy I liked from the article.  I know that some people are uncomfortable even discussing this, but if we are going to fight this contagion, we need to acknowledge that it is a huge problem and fight it.

"Years ago I heard a morality tale about a young man at the top of a mountain. As he descended the mountain, he noticed a rattlesnake curled on a warm rock. The snake spoke to him and asked him to  carry him to the bottom of the mountain. The young man was hesitant, “But you’re a rattlesnake. You might bite me and I would die.” “I promise I will not bite you. Please just carry me down.” The young man conceded to the request and carried the snake down the mountain. As he put the snake down, it bit him on the hand. “Why did you do that?! Why did you bite me? You promised you wouldn’t!” The snake then replied, “You knew what I was when you picked me up.”...As I said before, do not touch pornography. Don’t think that viewing it one time for kicks or out of curiosity will be a harmless thing to do. Think of the snake. Don’t pick it up. Don’t touch it. It is a damning practice in every way, meant to destroy the beautiful spirits of men and women by debasing them into objects of lust. It only harms. It is the most fatal poison to a normal mind in the way it warps and twists what is beautiful, meaningful and miraculous: the human body and the act of intimacy between a married couple."

Website - Fight the New Drug, Educating on the Harmful Effects of Pornography

I learned about this great website from a friend on Facebook.  Looks like a great one!  I am a big believer in the damage and chaos that come from pornography and have seen it destroy individuals, marriages, and families.  I applaud this group for fighting the good fight and helping people overcome the destructive affects of this "new drug."  Almost every family I know has been affected by pornography addiction in some way.  They say there is a Pornography Pandemic but people are afraid to discuss this "taboo" topic.  Let's expose this problem and fight it face on.

Here's the pledge that people can sign on their website:

"Now is the time for me to stand and help others overcome that which has affected my family, my friends and my community.  I will avoid exposure to this powerful drug called pornography.  I will be a source of strength to those who need support and accept help when I am in need.  I will be a voice of reason among the clatter of self serving opinion.  Too many have suffered.  Too many have sacrificed.  I must be open about a topic no one wants to discuss."

Click HERE to read about the harmful effect of porn.

If you are addicted to pornography or have a loved one who is struggling, there is hope.

Book - Armor Up

“Take upon you my whole armor that ye may be able to withstand the evil day, having done all, that ye may be able to stand.” —Doctrine & Covenants 27:15

I am excited to buy this book for my teenagers.  All six of these youth speakers are amazing!  I've heard several of them speak at "Time Out for Women" and my kids have heard some of them at "Especially for Youth" conferences.  The website says that this book will "explain how wearing that spiritual armor can not only help youth face those difficult challenges in life, but also conquer them."

Sounds awesome to me!  By the way, I am in no way compensated or associated with the sale of this book.  I just like it and want to promote good things.  And how on earth could I resist posting about this book when it totally fits with my blog name! :)

Contents
• “Girt About with Truth” by Brad Wilcox
• “A Bulletproof Breastplate” by John Hilton III
• “Put on Your Gospel Shoes” by Anthony Sweat
• “Shields Up!” by John Bytheway
• “Buckle On Your Helmet” by Hank Smith
• “Your Spiritual Sword” by Laurel Christensen

Click HERE to visit the blog about this book.  Click HERE to purchase the book.