I know that we usually talk about accelerated learning resources, elementary school textbooks, or high school science textbooks, but I thought we’d take a short break today so I can introduce to one of Kendall Hunt Publishing's author groups, the Second and Seven Foundation.
The 2nd and 7 Foundation is all about literacy. It was founded by three former Ohio State University student-athletes: Mike Vrabel, Luke Fickell, and Ryan Miller. They were standouts on The OSU football team and decided that they wanted to give back to the greater Columbus, Ohio community once their playing days there were over. They started out by conducting a football camp in the summer of 2000, the proceeds of which were used to purchase books for second grade students in seven Central Ohio elementary schools (that’s where the name, 2nd and 7 came from), in an effort to tackle illiteracy. As its founders passion for promoting literacy has grown, so has the foundation.
2nd and 7 Foundation’s Tackle Illiteracy program now includes reading to second graders in classrooms all over the country, and provides each of the children in those classrooms with a book to take home. The foundation targets schools with economically disadvantaged kids and communities where its founders feel they can make the biggest impact. The Ohio State University, the University of Toledo, the University of Notre Dame, the University of Michigan, the University of Wisconsin and the University of North Carolina have all been involved in reaching out to the community through this program, by allowing student-athletes to participate in the readings.
In my next post I’ll tell you about the foundation’s books, how many they have distributed and how you can get them for yourself. But for now, check out their website and the great work they’re doing and please consider supporting their efforts!
Our efforts to volunteer this year in National Lab Day have been received with resounding enthusiasm. We kicked off NLD by visiting schools around the Dubuque area and several schools across the nation. (See guest blogger Charley Cook’s post). We continued the momentum of by visiting Aquin Elementary Catholic School and St Columbkille’s Catholic School. Wayne Schnier, Jane Nielson, Don Burks, and I visited Aquin and conducted fun hands-on and inquiry based science experiments with the students. The students and teachers all had a blast as we did experiments with Gloop, Musical Pipes and Balancing Nails. 
The students enjoyed the experience and learned some important science about the properties of materials (Gloop), frequency, kinetic and sound energy (Musical Pipes) and Center of Balance and Equilibrium (Balancing Nails) I think it really opens the possibilities for children when they see how much fun learning science can be. We came in and made this event as open ended as we could and had an outstanding guided learning experience prepared for each grade level we worked with.
At St. Columbkille’s we replicated the experiments done at Aquin Elementary, with more volunteers. Pam Roth and Don Burks (Gloop) worked with the K and 1st grade classes. Joe Haverland and Scott Wagner (Musical Pipes) worked with the 2nd and 3rd grade classes and Charley Cook and Chad Chandlee (Balancing Nails) worked with the 4th and 5th grade classes. Mrs. Barb Roling, Principal St. Columbkille’s was thrilled with our participation in NLD and invited us back anytime we could make time available.
Overall, our volunteering efforts for NLD were a resounding success. It was rewarding for the students and volunteers alike. We will absolutely do this again next year and I am sure all of our partner schools will definitely invite us back. An experience like this shows you the value science programs like Kendall Hunt’s when it comes to learning and having a lasting effect on content retention. Thanks to all of our partner schools and our volunteers. Without our willing school partners and volunteers we couldn’t have pulled this off as successfully as we did!
As a strong supporter of National Lab Day, Kendall Hunt Publishing and its employees decided to recognize the inaugural event by spending time in classrooms working with students on hands-on science activities. Kendall Hunt is known for publishing research-based, NSF-funded, and inquiry-based science programs, so National Lab Day was a perfect opportunity for us to step to the forefront and lend a hand. 
I had the opportunity to join fellow KH employees Joe Haverland, Pam Roth, and Wayne Schnier at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Dubuque, IA, where we conducted hands-on science activities with their 1st and 4th grade classrooms. Joe facilitated a Physical Science activity focusing on Equilibrium and Center of Gravity, which challenged the 4th grade students to work in groups to try to figure out a way to balance eight nails on the head of one nail. The students worked in pairs, which promoted teamwork that is critical to the inquiry process. It was great to walk around the classroom and hear students collaborating and sharing ideas. Although they were only 4th grade students, the problem-solving skills they exhibited are those they need to have to not only cope, but also be competitive as they advance through school and enter the working world. The students did a great job and by the end of the exercise, each group was successful in balancing all of the nails.
Investigating Properties Kit. Gloop is a mixture of glue, starch and borax that is sealed in a plastic container to keep moist and somewhat hardened that was made the day before the activity. Wayne and Pam made up 10 bags of Gloop for teams of two students to share. Before the students could open the bag, they had to guess what ingredients were in the gloop. That exercise provided an entertaining and informative classroom conversation. Next, the students were allowed to open the bag and then listed the properties of what was contained in gloop. They also tried to come up with ideas on how gloop could be used if it was manufactured for the public. The kids were having a great time with this activity. It is clear that the gloop itself adds to the excitement, but it makes science fun for kids and as you can imagine, they use all of their senses for this experiment. 
For Kendall Hunt, National Lab Day was a big success. I was proud of the fact that our employees volunteered to spend time in these classrooms to help students experience science in a hands-on way and gain problem-solving skills that will last a lifetime. As a nation, we are learning how important science is if our country and its citizens are going to remain competitive in the future. At Kendall Hunt, we want to make Lab Day an everyday event for all students, and we are eager to play a role in their success.
Anyway, it's called Getting Hired: A Student Teacher's Guide to Professionalism, Résumé Development and Interviewing. The book is designed to accompany a student teaching experience and provides step-by-step guidance through student teaching, interviewing, and into a job. It's set up in three phases: 
I'm pretty excited, we now have a complete line-up of gifted education books for grades K-5. You know about 
At home the other night we were hard at work on a Social Studies project when I got to thinking about social studies resources for gifted students. I know that these materials can be hard to find and many teachers create their own gifted and talented lesson plans.
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