Archive for February, 2010

Mark Twain's First Place Cake

John Marshall's First Place Cake

The second annual George Washington Cake Contest was a success!  We had entries from Beggs, Seminole, Holdenville, and many more communities across Oklahoma.  The finalists were selected by an arts expert and an authority on Colonial America.  The six finalists were brought to the Oklahoma Department of Education’s Art and Social Studies Conference where the participating educators voted for the top cakes.  The winner of the 6^th-8^th grade category was Jennifer Lynch’s class at John Marshall High School.  Mark Twain’s art teacher, Beth Howard’s afterschool art students created the 3^rd-5^th grade winner.  I have included photographs of those two cakes as well as others from across the state.  Reita Adam’s art classes from Bartlesville did not participate in the competition because of all their snow days but she sent in pictures anyway.  So enjoy all the cakes created for our first (and in my opinion GREATEST) President George Washington! 

A Bird’s Eye View—Lessons with Washington’s Weathervane

Just in time for teachers to create a lesson for Washington’s birthday on February 22, I promised I would add a little to Reita Adam’s lesson on making weathervanes.  The following are some of my ideas for history math, science, art, language arts, and even a song.   I love Washington’s “Dove of Peace” weathervane!

Language Arts:  Have students write a story, “A Bird’s Eye View” about what the weathervane saw on a certain day at Mount Vernon.  The weathervane might see Washington leaving for the presidency or Lafayette coming to visit, or something happening on the Potomac, or observing the animals on the grounds, or????

Art: Have students create a weathervane of one of Washington’s animals—Ossabaw Hogs, Hog Island Sheep, Nelson (his horse) , Sweet Lips (one of his dogs), Snipe (Martha’s parrot), etc.  There are many versions of how to make weathervanes online—from paper to tin ones.

Math:  Put degrees of a circle  around the weathervane and have students figure the degrees of East, South, and West or even northeast, southeast, etc.    

History:  Many online sites tell the history of weathervanes.  The ancient Greeks used one in Athens and the Vikings also had a version.  Early Christian churches were required to have a rooster on them to remind Christians of Peter’s betrayal “before the rooster crowed three times.”  “George Washington ordered his Dove of Peace weathervane from a Philadelphian named Joseph Raikstraw in 1787. It is made from copper with an iron frame and a cast lead headpiece. In a letter dated August 12, 1787 George Washington specifies that ‘the bill of the bird should be painted black … and the olive branch in the mouth of it must be green.’  While no record remains for the original body color, tradition and two paintings by Edward Savage in 1792 strongly suggest that it was covered in gold gilt. Unfortunately, because of the increased air pollution around the metro D.C. area, the original Dove of Peace had to be permanently removed in 1993. Today an exact replica rests in its place (Mount Vernon web site).”

Science:  The website http://ferroweathervanes.com/kids_vanes/science.htm has a wonderful chart for students to record the direction of the wind each day and the weather.  After several weeks the students can discuss any conclusions that they observed.  Did a certain direction of wind indicate warm weather?  Cold weather?  Inclement weather? 

Song to Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind.”  (Feel free to change my lyrics—I am not very musical!)

How many times did George view his roof

Before he began every day

How many times did he check his gold dove

To see which way the wind strayed

How many times did he check the wind vane

Before boating the Ches-a-peake Bay

The answer my friend is blowin’ in the wind

The answer is blowin’ in the wind.

How many times did George look up

To see the vane in the skies?

How often did he check directional wind

By looking at the way the vane flies?

How many times did it take ‘til he knew

With east winds a storm might arrive

The answer my friend is the ever-changing wind

The answer is blowin’ in the wind

How many times did George look above

Proud of what he perceived

How many times did he ar-rive home

Glad at Mount Vernon to be

How many times did he gaze at the dove

Above the land of the free

The answer my friend  is blowin’ in the wind

The answer is blowin’ in the wind

Some interesting sites on weathervanes:

http://www.ummbf.com/MTJHA/09.%20Weather%20Lesson.pdf

http://www.denninger.com/history.htm

http://www.weathervaneandcupola.com/history.html

Recently I had the honor of spending several days with Martha Washington.  Yes, it was Mount Vernon’s re-enactor of Lady Washington, but she prefers to use that persona rather than announcing her real name.  She was just like the REAL Martha, the “worthy partner of the worthiest of men.”  Kind, unassuming, engaging everyone in conversation, and has a special sparkle in her eyes whenever she talks of the General.  Like Martha Washington, she is beloved by almost everyone with whom she comes into contact.  When I showed her two Photo Stories I created about Martha and George Washington, she wept with emotion. 

So as Valentine’s Day approaches, I thought I would write a little about Martha and George’s life-long romance.  Many people say it “was a marriage of convenience” and perhaps that is how it started—for both of them.  It quickly seems to have changed into something much deeper.  From the day Martha married George Washington in 1759, her great concern was the comfort and happiness of her husband and children. When his career led him to the Revolutionary battlegrounds, she followed him bravely. During the war Martha spent 52-54 months of the roughly 114 months of the Revolution either with her husband in camp, or nearby, in the hopes that they could spend more time together (Mary Thompson).  It is believed that during the war Washington wore a locket of his “Patsy” (He called her “Patsy” although as a public figure she was referred to as “Martha”) around his neck as Martha did of him.  Of the few notes and letters that survived between the two of them, Martha begins the notes with, “My love” and “My dearest.”  Perhaps the most telling corrrespondence about their love is reflected in the letter Washington penned to Martha after he had been voted General of the Continental Army.  Here is an excerpt:

“My Dearest, 

I am now set down to write to you on a subject which fills me with inexpressible concern—and this concern is greatly aggravated and Increased when I reflect on the uneasiness I know it will give you—It has been determined in Congress, that the whole Army raised for the defence of the American Cause shall be put under my care . . . .I should enjoy more real happiness and felicity in one month with you, at home, than I have the most distant prospect of reaping abroad, if my stay was to be Seven times seven years. . . . it was utterly out of my power to refuse this appointment without exposing my Character to such censures as would have reflected dishonor upon myself, and given pain to my friends—-this I am sure could not, and ought not to be pleasing to you, . . . My dear Patcy . . . I retain an unalterable affection for you, which neither time or distance can change.”*

Martha once declared, “I am fond of only what comes from the heart.”  She surely knew this message from her husband came from deep within his heart.

What a beautiful love they cherished. 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

(Letter quoted from Peter R. Henriques, Realistic Visionary, pg. 90)

Colbert Schools painted Washington in a prominant place.

You just realized that “Presidents Day” is looming and you want to do something, but all those snow days have put you so far behind you cannot spend a week or even a whole day on a lesson about George Washington.  Never fear, here are some ideas that will still be quick, meaningful, and hopefully fun:

1. Use aluminum foil to make artworks that reflect different aspects of Washington’s life.  It is easy for even the “artless” to create sculptures out of aluminum foil.
2. Write a campaign song for GW emphasizing his skills or experiences that would make him a good president.
3.  Math- Use the dimensions of Mount Vernon…make an exact scale using ratios and proportions-pick a scale and stick with it.
4. Create a time machine—-How would Washington react to current events?
5. George Washington’s men caught over one million fish a year which they salted and put in barrels and shipped to many places.  Create a poster for selling Washington’s fish.
6. Art-create a rumper sticker for Nelson (Washington’s war horse during the Revolution).
7. GW-timeline-give students dates-hand them a piece of paper cut in half (hotdog style).  They must overlap…or connect by morphing from one design to another…i.e. maybe the fictitious cherry tree story hatchet handle with continue onto the next student’s drawing by morphing into his fictitious wooden teeth.  Once the timeline is put on the wall it becomes one continuous artwork that transforms across the timeline. 
8. Science-Have students study the crossing of the Delaware.  After they know the story, each group of students creates a boat made of aluminum foil. From a specific height, the each group drops a George Washington Quarter into their boat.  This continues until only one boat is left floating.  Discuss scientifically why that boat is still floating.
9. Language Arts-Have students write a conversation between the Presidents that are on Mount Rushmore. 
10. Give students paper that is cut into the shape of a cross (so that it can be folded and taped into a cube.  Have the students draw something on each part of the cube (while it is still a flat piece of paper) that represents George Washington.  Once they put the cubes together have them in pairs roll the cubes to each other and discuss what the drawing represents.
11. The French Artist Houdon used plaster to make a mask of Washington’s face.  Have the students make masks of George Washington during different times of his life (He had DARK RED hair most of his life).
12. Language Arts-become a cannonball on Dorchester Heights.  Describe what and who you see.
13. Create Paper plate puppets on Popsicle sticks of Martha and George Washington.  Make a slit for finger as tongue.  Have students create a conversation between their Washington puppets.
14. OR create Potatoes head puppets-use clothespin (insert) as handle into a real potato.
15. Make a report card for George Washington including the categories in which he will “make grades (i.e. Courage, honesty, loyalty, integrity).”
16. Have students create fake cakes that represent Washington’s life.
17. Language Arts-Write a point of view from Washington’s horse.
18. Make a scrapbook for George and Martha Washington.   Assign different students different parts of his life.  Put the whole thing together and let younger grades look at it to learn about his life. 
19. Since they did not have campaigns, create a campaign button for Washington.
20. Runs off outline copies of Washington’s face.  Have students draw hair and clothes of what he would look like today.  Discuss how and why styles have changed.  Why did Washington wear a plain suit to be sworn in to office (like an American or a King?). 
21. Lee Ann Harrelson from Prague Middle School and Pam Hammon from Shawnee Middle School created a lesson on “George is Green.”  I am sure they would share it with anyone that requested it.
22. Paint a life-size (6′3″) portrait of Washington in a prominant place in your school like Colbert Schools did.  Every time students walk by the painting, they will be reminded of our first GREAT PRESIDENT.
23. Make a comic book about “SUPER GEORGE!”

I will be putting on a longer lesson later this week.  If anyone has some more great ideas, let me know and I will try to post them.  Celebrate Washington’s Birthday!