Good morning folks! August 1st is a full day of Calendar History starting with the birthdays:

August 1, 1770 William Clark, American explorer and

coleader of the Lewis and Clark expedition, was born.

August 1, 1779 Francis Scott Key, author of

"The Star-Spangled Banner", was born.

August 1, 1818 Maria Mitchell, American astronomer who became

the first woman elected to the American Academy of Arts and 

Sciences, was born.

August 1, 1819 Herman Melville, American author whose works

include Moby Dick, was born.

August 1, 1944 Gail Gibbons, children's author, was born.

Book (1) writes in "At the zoo( by the way, this ties in with June's lessons on the zoo)-Tell your (children) that Gail Gibbons was 4 years old when she created her first picture book. It was four pages long. Since then, Gibbons has written and illustrated more than 50 books. Many of her nonfiction books--including Clocks and How They Go, New Road, Sunken Treasure, and Zoo--have won awards. Before reading Gibbon's book Zoo to younger (children), help them list the kinds of responsibilities they think a zookeeper might have--for example, feeding animals, cleaning their cages, sweeping walkways, and answering visitors' questions. Have the children compare the list of responsibilities they come up with and those mentioned in the book."

Now we fall into the Events of August 1st:

August 1, 1774 British scientist Joseph Priestley successfully

Isolated Oxygen from Air.

August 1, 1790 The First U.S Census was taken.

It showed a population of 3,929,214.

August 1, 1834 An Emancipation Bill outlawed slavery in the British empire.

August 1, 1873 Inventor Andrew Hallidie successfully tested the

Railroad Cable Car he'd designed for San Francisco.

August 1, 1876 Colorado became the 38th state.

August 1, 1907 The U.S Army established the Aeronautical

Division of the Army Signal Corps, forerunner of the U.S Air Force.

August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia, and

the First Fighting of World War I began.

August 1, 1946 The Atomic Energy Commission was

established to promote peaceful uses of atomic energy.

August 1, 1981 MTV(Music Television) premiered.

Book (1) says in "Music videos for young children-In honor of MYV's premiere, invite your students to create "music videos" for younger children. Different groups of (children) can perform old favorites--such as "Old MacDonald Had a Farm," "Animal Fair," "If you're Happy and You Know it," and "The Hokey Pokey"--while you operate the video camera. Encourage the children to create appropriate background scenery for their performances."

Next we move onto August 2nd with the following birthdays:

August 2, 1754 Pierre L'Enfant, American soldier and architect

who created the city plan for Washington, D.C., was born.

August 2, 1900 Holling Holling, children's author, was born.

August 2, 1946 James Howe, children's author, was born.

Book (1) writes in "Childhood dreams-When he was growing up, James Howe, the author of Bunnicula and Howliday Inn, often wondered about his future--where he might live, what he might do, and who his friends might be. He dreamed of many possibilities, but he never imagined he'd become a children's book author. Ask your (children) what they dream about. Then have them write dated letters to themselves about their dreams, seal the letters in envelopes, and give them to you. At the end of the school year, return the letters and ask the students to note how their dreams have changed, if at all. Encourage the kids to hold on to these letters for periodic "dream checking" and updating as they get older."

Next are the events for August 2nd:

August 2, 1776 Fifty members of the Continental Congress

signed the Declaration of Independence.  

August 2, 1858 The First on-the-Street Mailboxes were

installed in Boston and New York.

Book (1) has comments and an activity called "Red-letter days-Tell your (children) that before on-the-street mailboxes were introduced, people had to go to the post office to mail their letters. (People at some time might have even had to go to the post office to pick up their mail. In San Luis Rio Colorado people even prefer to get someone who has a green card pick-up their mail on the United States side of that border city from their mailboxes because they do not trust everything sent directly to their homes in Mexico. Those mailboxes that are in United States are also shared with two other people. It really is very scarey. Many people use others means of protection like Western Union, etc. to help them.

Another reason on-the-street mailboxes may have been nice because many houses may have been quite a walk from the road for the mailman to deliver from therefore these boxes made it easier for him.)

Older (children) might like to investigate other postal innovations., such as postage stamps, the pony express, and airmail. Younger (children) will enjoy having a classroom mailbox, which you can make by cutting a slot in the top of a large cardboard box. The kids can "mail" letters to you or to (other people in the family). And you can send letters to your (children). Each week, appoint a "letter carrier" to empty the box and deliver the letters.(This is the beginning of responsibilities and volunteering.)

August 2, 1909 The First Lincoln Penny was issued.

August 2, 1923 President Warren G. Harding died in office.

August 2, 1943 Navy lieutenant John F. Kennedy Rescued

Members of His Crew after their boat, PT-109, was sheared

in half by a Japanese destroyer.

August 2, 1977 Congress approved a bill to establish a

Federal Department of Energy.

August 2, 1978 The Movie Star Wars Surpassed Jaws as

the all-time leader in box-office receipts.

August 2, 1983 The U.S House of Representatives voted to

designate the third Monday in January a Federal Holiday

in Honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.

August 2, 1990 Iraq invaded its neighbor to the south, Kuwait.

The next day from Book(1) is August 3rd starts with the following birthdays:

August 3, 1887 Rupert Brooke, English poet, was born.

August 3, 1905 Maggie Kuhn, founder of the Gray Panthers, was born.

August 3, 1926 Mary Calhoun, children's author, was born.

Now for the Events:

August 3, 1492 Christopher Columbus Set Sail from Palos,

Spain, on the expedition that resulted in his discovery of America.

August 3, 1610 British navigator Henry Hudson entered the

body of water now known as Hudson Bay.

Book (1) writes about it in "Hudson's discoveries-Tell your (children) that between 1607 and 1611, Henry Hudson made four voyages to the New World in search of a passage to China around North America. During these voyages, Hudson discovered not only Hudson Bay but also the Hudson River and Hudson Strait. Pass out copies of a map showing the northeastern section of North America. Have students' locate the bodies of water discovered by Hudson on their maps, then color them." (Remember to include this in the lessons on explorers in the first part of the years lessons.

August 3, 1780 Benedict Arnold was put in charge of the

fortifications at West Point, N.Y., during the Revolutionary War.

August 3, 1852 Harvard defeated Yale in the First Intercollegiate

Rowing Race, on Lake Winnepesaukee, N.H.

August 3, 1882 Congress passed a Law to Restrict Immigration

imposing a 50¢ tax on all new arrivals.

(This could be used with the lessons on Ellis Island, where immigrants had to go through to be accepted into the United States.)

August 3, 1923 Calvin Coolidge became the 30th president

of the United States after the death of Warren G. Harding.

Book (1) writes in "The way to the White House-Calvin Coolidge, like such other vice presidents as Lyndon Johnson, Harry Truman, and Theodore Roosevelt, assumed the presidency after the death of the chief executive. Challenge your (children) to name the only vice president to take over for a president who was still alive. (Gerald Ford, who became president when Richard Nixon resigned.) Then ask the class to predict who would become president if the president and the vice president were unable to serve. Have the kids check their predictions by researching the line of succession. Afterward, have them illustrate their findings with a flowchart."

August 3, 1984 Mary Lou Retton became the First American

Woman to Win the Olympic Gold Medal in the All-Around

Gymnastics Competition.

August 3 is also of National Smile Week(first Monday in August through the following Sunday)

as Book (1) writes in "When you're smiling-To celebrate National Smile Week, hold a contest to see who can get the most people to smile. All during the week, have (children) nod and smile at people they meet (everywhere, which will teach what a difference it makes and why most towns like that are tourist stations or considered very happy towns, for it reflects). Encourage them to each keep scorecards noting the number of people who return their smiles. At week's end, give each child a certificate with smiley-face stickers."

Next is August 4th starting with the birthdays:

August 4, 1861 Jesse Reno, American engineer who invented

the escalator, was born.

August 4, 1912 Raoul Wallenberg, Swedish diplomat

who is credited with saving at least 100,000 Hungarian

Jews from deportation to Nazi concentration camps, was born.

August 4, 1958 Mary Decker-Slaney, American track star, was born.

August 4, 1962 Roger Clemens, American baseball star, was born.

Now for the Events:

August 4, 1790 The U.S. Coast Guard was established.

Book (1) writes in"Coast Guard crosswords-Tell your (children) that the U.S. Coast Guard began with a fleet of just 10 ships, called cutters. Now the Coast Guard uses cutters, small boats, airplanes, helicopters, lighthouses, and radio beacons to carry out its many responsibilities, which include preventing smuggling; locating and rescuing victims of accidents at sea; inspecting equipment and enforcing safety rules on merchant ships; icebreaking; monitoring compliance with environmental regulations; conducting oceanographic research; and aiding navigation. Have (the children) do a little reading about the Coast Guard and incorporate key terms they learn in a crossword puzzle. Then have (them) match wits by exchanging their crosswords.(Grandma feels this fits in with the safety learning of the children quite well.)"

August 4, 1875 Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen died.

As an activity in honor of Hans, Book (1) says in "Finger-puppet fairy tales-In memory of Hans Christian Andersen, get your (children) to read his famous fairy tales. Then have the children work ...to create finger-puppet characters and act out the stories. After some practice, your (children) might perform their finger-puppet plays for younger children."

August 4, 1916 The United States bought the Western Virgin

Islands from Denmark.

August 4, 1922 The nation's 13 million telephones were silent for a moment

in tribute to Alexander Graham Bell on the occasion of his funeral.

August 4, 1944 The Nazis captured Anne Frank and seven others

who were hiding with her in a house in Amsterdam.

August 4 is also National Clown Week (the first full week in August) and Book (1) says in "Be a clown-During Clown Week, invite your (children) to brainstrom for words besides funny to describe clowns--for example, playful, jolly, clever, lively, amusing. Next have the kids come up with a list of words to describe how clowns make them feel. Their suggestions might include cheerful, merry, lucky, delighted, and thrilled. Write the words (down on a chart or something). Then have (the children) use the word lists to write poems about clowns. They can recite their works during "Be a Clown Day"--when (they) can ...(dress) as clowns."

Next is August 5th starting with the Birthdays:

August 5, 1850 Guy De Maupassant, French short-story writer, was born.

August 5, 1902 Robert Bright, children's author, was born.

August 5, 1930 Neil Armstrong, U.S. astronaut and the first

person to set foot on the moon, was born.

August 5, 1962 Patrick Ewing, American basketball player, was born.

Next are the Events for the day:

August 5, 1833 Chicago was incorporated as a village-with

43 houses and 200 people.

August 5, 1861 The U.S. Government Levied an Income Tax for the first time.

August 5, 1884 The cornerstone was laid for the Statue of Liberty.

Book (1) says in "Monumental tasks-Ask your (children) to explain what a monument is .Perhaps they'll suggest that a monument is a lasting symbol of a significant person, event, or ideal. Next, tell them that the Statue of Liberty, a gift to the United States from the government of Franco, symbolized friendship between the two nations as well as liberty under a democracy. Have your students name other local, national, or international monuments. What do these monuments honor or recognize?If your (children) were to have monuments symbolizing them, what would these monuments look like? Encourage each child to draw and color--or even build--a personal monument."

August 5, 1914 The First Electric Traffic Lights were installed in Cleveland.

August 5, 1924 The comic strip "Little Orphan Annie" first appeared.

August 5, 1957 "American Bandstand" Premiered on network television.

August 5, 1963 The United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union

signed a Treaty Banning Nuclear Tests in the atmosphere, in space,

and under water.

August 5, 1989 The observation deck of New York City's World

Trade Center received its 20 Millionth Visitor.

August 5 is also Halfway Point of Summer (45 or 46 days after the solstice) and National Greeting Card Day along with National Mustard Day. Book (1) has three following activities to carry out these events:

"Going halfway-Challenge your (children) to find other "halfway" points today. For instance, what's the halfway point of the school day, a story they're reading, lunchtime, or their (trip) somewhere?"

"Original greeting cards-Have your (children) brainstorm for all the occasions for which there are greeting cards. List these ideas .... Next, ...ask (the children) to think of occasions in people's lives for wihcih there aren't any greeting cards. Finally, have each (child) select one of these occasions and make an appropriate greeting card. Post the cards (somewhere)."

"Cutting the mustard-On National Mustard Day, conduct a survey to find out how many children like regular, spicy, or dijon mustard. On which foods do (each in the family) use mustard? Do any (of the family) not like mustard at all? Have the (children) graph the results."

The next day to learn about is August 6th with the following Birthdays:

August 6, 1809 Alfred, Lord Tennyson, English poet, was born.

August 6, 1881 Alexander Fleming, British bacteriologist who

discovered penicillin, was born.

August 6, 1909 Norma Faber, children's author, was born.

August 6, 1946 Frank Asch, children's author, was born.

August 6, 1965 David Robinson, basketball player, was born.

Now for the Events:

August 6, 1825 Bolivia declared its independence from Spain.

Book (1) has the following activity to follow it called "Name that country-Ask your (children) whom Bolivia was named for (Simon Bolivar, the Venezuelan general and statesman who liberated much of South America from Spain). Then challenge the kids to think of another South American country named for a person (Colombia, named for Christopher Columbus.)"

August 6, 1890 Cy Young, baseball's winningest pitcher, appeared in

his first game.

August 6, 1926 Gertrude Ederle became the First Woman to

Swim the English Channel.

August 6, 1945 The United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.

It is also considered Hiroshima Day. However, Book (1) writes it as "Contemplating Peace-On Hiroshima Day, use videotapes, films, or literature to introduce students to the cases and effects of America's use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. After a discussion, share with (the children) copies of books containing quotations, poetry, stories, or essays about peace. Encourage the children to review the books, then select a quotation, poem, or passage that holds meaning for them. (The children) can then write these words on strips of white paper. Post the strips (up somewhere.)" August 6 is also Peace Festival for Japan.

August 6, 1962 Jamaica gained its independence after more than three

centuries as a British possession.

August 6, 1965 President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act,

protecting the rights of black voters.

August 6 is also National Sandwich Month in which Book (1) gives an activity in "Class sandwich book-During National Sandwich Month, help your (children) develop a class sandwich recipe book. Gather a collection of cookbooks, and allow your (children) to browse through them for sandwich recipes. ... . (They should each copy the recipe for a sandwich they like (or would like to try) and illustrate it. Have them categorize the sandwiches--for example, meatless sandwiches, Hot sandwiches, exotic sandwiches--then compile the illustrated recipes into a ... book. Invite the kids to make their sandwiches ...and...one day this month (have) a ...taste test."

Next is August 7 and following are the Birthdays:

August 7, 1742 Nathanael Greene, Revolutionary War general, was born.

August 7, 1779 Carl Ritter, German geographer considered one of

the founders of modern geographic science.

Book (1) says in "Geography in the news-Help (the children) discover how geography affects their daily lives. First, have them guess how many geographic references, maps, and charts they'll find in an edition of the daily newspaper. Then have them check their predictions by counting and clipping all the geographic references they can find from today's paper. Afterward, discuss how the news would be different without the science of geography."

August 7, 1903 Louis S. B. Leakey, English anthropologist and paleontologist,

was born.

August 7, 1928 Petsy Byars, children's author, was born.

Next comes the Events for August 7:

August 7, 1782 George Washington established the Badge of

Military Merit (Purple Heart) to honor wounded soldiers.

August 7, 1789 The War Department was created.

August 7, 1888 Theophilus van Kannel patented the Revolving Door.

August 7, 1927 The International Peace Bridge, commemorating

longlasting peace between the United States and Canada,

was dedicated. It connects Buffalo, N.Y., and Fort Erie, Ontario.

Book (1) established an activity around this called "Peaceful posters-To mark the dedication of the International Peace Bridge, ask your students to develop commemorative posters. Show the children photos or illustrations of the bridge. Next, have them brainstorm for images that symbolize peace, then work ...to create their posters. Make sure each poster includes the date the International Peace Bridge was dedicated and the signatures of the ...artists. Display the posters (somewhere)."

August 7, 1959 The United States Launched Explorer VI,

which took the first pictures of earth from space.

Book (1) has and activity called "Travel tips for extraterrestrials-Share with your (children) photographs of earth from space. Then ask the kids to imagine how earth might seem to beings from other planets. Have them prepare a 7-day travel itinerary to help the aliens get acquainted with our planet. Mode of transportation: flying saucer, of course." ( In doing this activity take into consideration this book was made in 1993 and not much evidence was out in the open then. Now may be a different story and is worth the research if you can find the stories-start with You-tube. I tried to get a picture to save on my computer, it would not do it. I do not know why yet.)

August 7, 1963 The U.N. called on the South African government

to Abandon Apartheid.

August 7, 1990 President George Bush ordered a military buildup

in the Persian Gulf following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

The operation was called Desert Shield.

(Grandma has those few days put on tape-I may put them on DVD's)

August 7 is also National Scuba Diving Day which may be explained to the children.

The next day of interest  is August 8th with the following Birthdays:

August 8, 1763 Charles Bulfinch, American architect who designed

the state houses of Massachusetts, Maine, and Connecticut and

who succeeded Benjamin Latrobe as architect of the U.S. Capitol,

was born.

August 8, 1799 Nathaniel Brown Palmer, American sea captain believed

to be the first explorer to sight Antarctica, was born.

August 8, 1866 Matthew Henson, African-American polar explorer who

was a member of Robert Peary's North Pole expedition, was born.

August 8, 1896 Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, children's author. was born.

Book (1) says in "Authors and animals-Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings's bokk The Yearling is a poignant story of growing up. In it, a young boy learns to accept the tragic necessity of getting rid of his pet deer. Ask your students how they'd feel if they had to give up their pet. Encourage them to write a story about their pet." (Ask if a pet deer could be pinned up away from crops and kept-Grandma does not know. They do keep similar animals in zoos. Name other animals that have and could be a problem to keep.Do some research if you wish.)

August 8, 1937 Dustin Hoffman, American actor, was born.

Now Grandma will give you the Events for August 8:

August 8, 1588 Under Sir Francis Drake, The English Fleet Destroyed

the Spanish Armada off the coast of France.

August 8,  1786 The Silver Dollar and the Decimal System of Money

were adopted by an act of Congress.

August 8, 1911 Membership of the House of Representatives was fixed at 435.

August 8, 1974 President Richard Nixon Announced His Resignation, effective

the next day.

August 8 is also International Good Character Day and Middle Children's Day in which there are a couple of following activities:

"Displaying good character-For International Good Character Day, have your (children) brainstorm for positive character traits. Do these traits apply to people all over the world? Next, have the kids design character-trait license plates. Ask them each to print their first name in the center of an 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 sheet of paper, then write their character traits along the edges to create a border. The (children) can tape their plates to their (doors or the refrigerator, etc.)"

"In the middle-Are there any middle children in your (family)? Ask these (children or people) to describe the positive and negative aspects of holding this position in their families."

Next is a review of August 9th starting with the following Birthdays:

August 9, 1776 Count Amedeo Avogadro, Italian chemist and physicist who developed the table of atomic weights, was born.

August 9, 1914 Tove Jansson, illustrator, was born.

August 9, 1931 Seymour Simon, children's author, was born.

August 9, 1944 Patricia McKissack, children's author, was born.

Book (1) says "Family folktales-Patricia McKissack said her writing career began when she was in 3rd grade. She recalled the thrill of having a poem she'd written displayed on the bulletin board for others to read. Since she began writing professionally, McKissack has authored more than 40 children's books. One of her picture books--Flossie and the Fox--is based on a tale her grandfather used to tell her. (He named the characters after people in their family.) Read Flossie and the Fox to your (children). Then ask them to share tales told to them by their grandparents or other family members. Or have them make up their own folktales based on people in their families. Compile their stories into a "Family Folktales" booklet.

August 9, 1963 Whitney Houston, American singer, was born.

Now for the Events of August 9:

August 9, 1638 Jonas Bronck became the first European settler

in what is now the Bronx, N.Y., which was named after his family.

August 9, 1936 Jesse Owens Won the Last of His Four Gold

Medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. 

Book (1) says in "Olympic triumphs-Tell your (children) that in the years preceding World War II, German leader Adolf Hitler and his Nazi propagandists proclaimed the superiority of the "Aryan race." Hitler believed that the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin would support his racial theories. He was wrong, Jesse Owens and nine other African-Americans--whom HItler had called members of an "inferior race"--led a U.S. team that dominated the sprints, hurdles, and field events. Owen's brilliant performances in particular deflated the Aryan myth. Ask your (children) to find out the events in which Owens's brilliant performances in particular deflated the Aryan myth. Ask your students to find out the events in which Owens won medals. Then challenge them to find out the other African-Americans who won medals at the Berlin Olympics. (John Woodruff, 800-meter run; Cornelius Johnson, high jump; Ralph Metcalfe, 400-meter relay and 100-meter dash.) Have the kids use their information to make posters honoring Jesse Owens and his fellow African-American Olympians."

August 9, 1945 The United States dropped its Second Atomic

Bomb on Nagasaki, Japan, during World War II.

In honor of this event and sorrow there is now a service observed in Peace Memorial Park in Nagasaki, Japan called a "Moment of Silence".

August 9, 1974 Gerald Ford became the First Nonelected

President to assume office after the resignation of Richard Nixon.

August 9, 1988 The First Night Baseball Game at Wrigley field in

Chicago was played.

August 9, 1989 General Colin Powell became the First Black Chairman of the

Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Next is August 10th beginning with the Birthdays:

August 10, 1753 Edmund Randolfh, General George Washington's

aide-decamp during the Revolutionary War, was born.

August 10, 1874 Herbert Hoover, 31st president of the United States,

was born.

August 10, 1959 Rosanna Arquette, American actress, was born.

Following are the Events:

August 10, 1519 The First Recorded Around-The-World Voyage began

in Seville, Spain, under the command of Ferdinand Magellan.

August 10, 1821 Missouri became the 24th state.

Book (1) says in "Statehood status-Tell your (children) that Missouri gained statehood only after Congress engineered the "Missouri Compromise" of 1820. This compromise, which maintained the ratio of non-slave states and slave states--allowed Missouri, a slave state, to simultaneously enter the Union with a non-slave state. Challenge your students to find out which state entered the Union with Missouri."

August 10, 1845 The U.S. Naval Academy was established at

Annapolis, Md.

August 10, 1846 Congress Chartered the Smithsonian Institution,

founded with $500,000 bequeathed by English scientist James Smithson.

Book (1) writes in "Student-run"Smithsonian"-To celebrate the chartering of the Smithsonian Institution, invite your (children) to create a "mini-Smithsonian" exhibit at (your home). (The children) can ask (your family and friends) to temporarily loan appropriate items from their personal memorabilia and collections. (If items can't be loaned, (the children) can photograph them and display the pictures (maybe keep them in a book later.) (Give special tasks to each child) to handle various aspects of the exhibit. Duties might include maintaining an inventory of exhibit items, preparing an exhibit catalog, designing the exhibit space, selling admission tickets, publicizing the event, installing the exhibit, and ensuring that the exhibit is guarded. Hold a by-invitation-only opening for (family, and friends)."

August 10, 1949 The War Department was renamed the Department of Defense.

August 10, 1972 The Only Meteorite Known to Have Entered the Earth's

Atmosphere and Left it flew in over Utah and departed the atmosphere

over Alberta, Canada."

(This seems awfully strange to Grandma that they

even just consider it a Meteorite.)

Book (1) gives "Mysterious meteorite-Ask your (children) to speculate about the meteorite that flew in and out of the earth's atmosphere. Where did the meteorite come from? Why didn't it hit the earth? What happened to it after it left the earth's atmosphere? Encourage the kids to conduct some background research. Then have them create fact-based science fiction stories about this mysterious meteorite."

(This will be all Grandma will give you now-I am so sorry for not getting it to you sooner. The next 10 days should be right away and then the last eleven days.)

Here we are moving int the August Calendar History Lessons for Summer at the end of the Year.

The Project of the Month for August is what Book (1) called" American Artists-Celebrate American Arts Appreciation Month by having your (children) learn about American painters, poets, and authors.

August is the birthday of my other son, one of his sons, and my mom; making both my sons, a grandson, and my mom all Leo's, well enough my brother born in April; no wonder I am so overpowered. They just haven't figured out that Aquarious which is what I am is the water they drink or the knowledge of learning. Enough of that considering many are going to tell me it is all hogwash.

August's Monthly Observances are the following:

American Arts Appreciation Month

National Catfish Month

National Sandwich Month

Romance  Awareness Month(A lot can be done here in teaching children the difference in sexual relationship's and those in true love and what makes good romance. It is what puzzles a boy more than anything and it will teach girls how to make their lives more fullfilled, warning them not to get tied up into  fake romantic words boys or men may play on them. Teach them how to get to know each other and not fall wrong directions with fake romance. Teach them how to know who they are and if they want involved.)

Water Quality Month (Ties the month to the beginning lessons of pollution, etc. and our Earth along with the lesson in June and July.)

Weeklong Events are the following:

National Smile Week(week beginning on the first Monday)

National Clown Week(first full week and ties to the lessons in June on circuses)

Elvis International Tribute Week(week ending with Aug. 16)

National Aviation Week (week that includes Aug. 19 and it could tie Aviation to the study of Space)

Special Days and Celebrations are the following:

American Family Day (first Sunday)

Friendship Day (first Sunday)

Daughter's Day(second Sunday)

We will start with July 17th Calendar History with activities all from Book (1). First we have the birthdays:

July 17, 1859 Luis Munoz-Rivera, Puerto Rican patriot and poet, was born.

For now it is known as Munoz-Rivera Day in Puerto Rico.

July 17, 1932 Karla Kuskin, children's author, was born.

Book (1) says in "Word lover-Author Karla Kuskin once said that her love of words was so great that she couldn't even bear to discard fortune-cookie fortunes. Have your (children) write their own fortunes or words of wisdom on 6-in-long strips of adding-machine tape. Tape the strips together and post them in the hallway for others to read. Later, introduce your (children) to the works of Karla Kuskin by reading The Philharmonic Gets Dressed."

July 17, 1935 Donald Sutherland, Canadian actor, was born.

The Events will be now:

July 17, 1850 The Fist Photograph of a Star was taken.

July 17, 1897 The steamship Portland arrived in Washington with

the First Major Gold Shipment from the Klondike.

July 17, 1938 Pilot Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan left

New York for California. He eventually landed in Dublin, Ireland.

Book (1) writes in "Wrong-way day-When Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan landed in Dublin, Ireland, he got out of his plane and asked, "Isn't this Los Angeles?" Invite your (children) to have a "wrong-way day." For example, (children) might wear their shirts backward, or you might mix up the schedule. You might also include some "wrong ways" into social studies. Have students consider how U.S. history would be different if certain events came out the "wrong way." For instance, what if the South had won the Civil War or we would have lost the Revolution War against England? What if the Pilgrims had landed in California?"

July 17, 1954 The First Newport Jazz Festival was held in Newport, R.I.

July 17, 1975 U.S. Astronauts and Soviet Cosmonauts

Joined Hands after linking their Apollo and Soyuz spacecrafts.

July 17, 1987 The Dow Jones Industrial Average Closed

over 2,500 points for the first time in history.

Book (1) says in "Stock market speculators-On the anniversary of the Dow Jones 2,500-point milestone, begin this (nearly) hands-on stock market activity. ...give each (child) $500 in play money. Explain that for the next 2 weeks, (they) will be seeking "profit" by investing their "money" in stocks. You will be the broker. For their initial investments, (they) can buy $500 worth of shares in any stock or stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange.Each morning, (look at ) the business pages of the newspaper so the (children) can check the previous day's closing prices. Give the (children) the opportunity at this time to sell and buy stocks at the closing prices. At the end of the 2 weeks, total the value of each (child's) stocks to determine who earns the title of Wall Street wizards."

Next is July 18th starting with the birthdays:

July 18, 1918 Nelson Mandela, South African civil rights

activist and longtime leader of the African National Congress, was born.

July 18, 1921 John Glenn, U.S. astronaut

who was the first American to orbit the earth.

Book (1) has this to say about it in "Firsts in space-Have (the children) conduct research to find out about other "Firsts" in space exploration--for example, the first rendezvous in space, space station, space walk, U.S. astronaut, black astronaut, woman astronaut, space shuttle(, etc.) Armed with their data, the (children) can each make a rocket-shaped time line depicting these important events."

July 18, 1954 Felicia Bond, children's author, was born.

Now for July 18th Events:

July 18, 1792  American naval hero John Paul Jones died.

July 18, 1874 Tennis was introduced to the United States.

July 18, 1925 The American Automobile Association

Declared Women Drivers to be as Competent as Men Drivers.

July 18, 1940 Franklin Roosevelt was Nominated

for an Unprecedented Third Term.

July 18, 1947 President Henry Truman Signed the Presidential Succession Act.

July 18, 1955 Disneyland opened in California.

Book 1 tells about it in "Disneyland adventures-(Have your family visited Disneyland? If you have and your children haven't share your experiences with them. If they have with you talk about your memories.) Encourage them to (look) at park maps and souvenirs to enhance their presentations. ...obtain brochures from local travel agents. Share these with (each other), then invite (them) to write about what they'd do if they could spend a day with their favorite Disney character."

July 18, 1971 Brazillian soccer star Pele ended his

career with the Brazillian National Soccer Team.

July 18, 1974 Bob Gibson became the First National

League Pitcher to Strike Out 3,000 Batters in a career.

July 18, 1980 India became The Sixth Nation to Put a Satellite into Orbit.

July is also Read an Almanac Month; therefore, Book (1) has this to say in "Reading the almanac-

Teach (the children) how to locate information in an almanac by using the general index. Have them each identify their favorite hobby, vacation spot, or other topic, then locate it in the almanac. To test their newfound skills, have the kids list and share five facts about their topic that they gleaned from the almanac."

Next is July 19th with the birthdays first:

July 19, 1814 Samuel Colt, American inventor of the Colt revolver, was born.

July 19, 1834 Edgar Degas, French Impressionist Painter, was born.

(Learn about Impressionist Painters here also.)

July 19, 1865 Charles Mayo, American surgeon, was born.

July 19, 1916 Eve Merriam, children's poet, was born.

Book (1) has this to say about it in "Provocative poetry-Read aloud selections from Eve Merriam's It Doesn't Always Have to Rhyme, Blackberry Ink, and The Inner City Mother Goose. Have the children select their favorite poems and pick up Merriam's beat either by drawing pictures to go with the poems or by writing poems to reflect their own neighborhood experiences."

July 19, 1922 George Stanley McGovern, American politician

who ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in 1972, was born.

Book (1) has the following to say about it in "Forgotten politicians?-To mark George McGovern's birthday, have your (children) compile a list of unsuccessful presidential and vice presidential candidates from the second half of the 20th century. Ask each child to research the postelection career of one of these candidates,, then write a one-paragraph summary on an index card. Post the cards on a (poster board or wall) titled"American Politicians: Where Are They Now?""

Next are the following events for July 19th:

July 19, 1812 The United States Declared War On England

over the issue of British interference with American

trade and shipping on the high seas.

July 19, 1848 The First Women's Rights Convention met

in the home of Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

July 19, 1969 John Fairfax arrived in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.,

after Rowing Across the Atlantic.

July 19, 1984 At its convention in San Francisco, the

Democratic Party nominated Geraldine Ferraro for vice

president. It was the first time a woman had been

chosen for a major-party ticket.

July 19, 1985 NASA chose teacher Christa McAuliffe

from among 11,000 applicants to be its first civilian

crew member on a space shuttle.

July 19 is also National Ice Cream Day (third Sunday in July) therefore Book (1) says in "Ice cream poll-To celebrate National Ice Cream Day, have each of your (children) ask at least 10 people the following question: "Does ice cream taste best served in a cone or in a dish?" Encourage (them) to create a pictograph to display the results. As a culminating activity, bring in ice cream, cones, and dishes--and invite your (children) to serve themselves."

Next is July 20th with only two Birthdays:

July 20, 1919 Sir Edmund Hillary, New Zealand explorer and

mountain climber who was the first to reach the summit

of Mt. Everest, was born.

July 20, 1947 Carlos Santana, Mexican rock musician, was born.

Now for July 20th Events:

July 20, 1810 Columbia declared its independence from Spain.

July 20, 1859 Baseball Fans Were Charged Admission (50¢)

for the first time, to see Brooklyn play New York.

Book (1) has an activity for this in "Batting for dollars-Ask your (children) to find out the cost of the cheapest ticket for a major-league baseball game at the park nearest their hometown. Then ask them to calculate the percentage increase in admission price since 1859."

July 20, 1881 Sitting Bull surrendered to federal troops at

Fort Buford in the Dakota Territory.

July 20, 1944 President Franklin Roosevelt was Nominated

for an Unprecedented Fourth Term at the Democratic convention.

July 20, 1964 NASA tested the First Successful Rocket engine.

July 20, 1969 Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz

Aldrin became the First Men to Set Foot on the Moon.

Book (1) writes in "Moon memories-Have your (children) ask their parents or grandparents to recall where they were and what they were doing when astronaut Neil Armstrong stepped onto the moon. Your (children) will themselves remember other historic happenings--including, perhaps, the smashing of the Berlin Wall, the liberation of Kuwait, and the Challenger accident. Have the children each make a chart that consists of historic events they recall and where they were, who they were with, and what they were doing the day each event occurred."

July 20, 1976 The U.S. space probe Viking 1 landed on Mars.

Book (1) says in "Searching for signs of life-After landing on Mars, Viking 1 sent back television pictures of the planet's surface. It also conducted experiments, one of which involved searching for life. The lander scooped up a soil sample, then added certain chemicals to trigger an organic reaction. None was observed. Perhaps Viking 1 wasn't able to recognize what Martian life looks like. or maybe the site was, indeed, devoid of life. Have your (children) discuss what it means to show signs of life. Make a list of places a spacecraft could land on Earth and what signs of life would be found there. Next, make a list of places on Earth that wouldn't show any signs of life--for example, inside a volcano. Take your (children) on an indoor field trip at (home) to search for signs of life. Be sure to include bacteria as a type of life."

July 20, 1985 A diving expedition off the coast of Florida located

the remains of the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de Atocha,

sunk in a hurricane in 1622. The expedition recovered $400 Million

in Gold, Silver, and Copper Treasure.

July 20, 1987 Wilma Mankiller became the First Woman

Elected Chief of the Cherokee Nation.

July 20 is also considered Moon Day.

Now we move on into July 21 with the following birthdays:

July 21, 1899 Ernest Hemingway, American novelist, was born.

July 21, 1920 Isaac Stern, Russian violinist, was born.

July 21, 1952 Robin Williams, American comedian and actor, was born.

Book (1) says in "Stand-up comedy-Have your (children) seen Robin Williams on TV or in movies? To celebrate his birthday, ask the kids to choose a favorite comedian. Why do they like him or her? Are there any potential comedians in your (family)? Let those who wish prepare a short comedy skit and perform it in front of the family. Nonperformers might like to join forces with the (family comics) and help write the skits."

Now we will add the events for July 21:

July 21, 1834 The Liberty Bell was Muffled to toll the

death of the Marquis de Lafayette.

July 21, 1861 At the Battle of Bull Run, the first

major encounter of the Civil War, Confederate General

Thomas J. Jackson gained the nickname "Stonewall."

Book (1) writes in "Stonewall and other nicknames-Tell your (children) that Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson earned the nickname "Stonewall" during the first Battle of Bull Run. Despite overwhelming odds, his brigade stood firm--"like a stone wall"--against attacks from Northern troops. Ask your (children) to name other prominent Americans and the actions that have earned them recognition--for example, Alexander Graham Bell, Martin Luther King, Jr. , Sally Ride, Carl Lewis. What nicknames might your students give these people?"

July 21, 1873 Jesse James committed the World's

First Train Robbery, near Council Bluffs, Iowa.

July 21, 1925 Tennessee biology teacher John Scopes was found

Guilty of Teaching the Theory of Evolution, which was against

state law. He was fined $100.

July 21, 1930 The U.S. Veterans Administration was established.

July 21, 1959 The United States launched the Savannah,

the First Nuclear-powered Merchant Ship.

July 21, 1961 U.S. astronaut Virgil Grissom became the

Second American in Space. His flight lasted 16 minutes.

Book (1) says in "Flying in space-To mark the anniversary of Virgil "Gus" Grissom's space flight, turn off the lights in your (home) for 16 minutes. During that time--the length of Grissom's flight--ask your (children) to imagine what they might see or do or think about if they were flying in space. When the lights come back on, have the kids quickly write all their thoughts on scrap paper. Finally, have them use their ideas to write poems about space flight. (Make articles in your family newspapers also.)"

July 21, 1969 Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin

Returned From the Moon to the command module,

manned by Michael Collins.

July 21 is also National Independence Day in Belgium.

Now we will start on July 22 with the following birthdays:

July 22, 1822 Johann Gregor Mendel, Austrian monk who

discovered the principles of heredity, was born. 

July 22, 1844 William Archibald Spooner, English clergyman

after whom the spoonerism was named, was born.

Book (1) explains in "Sunny flips of the tongue-Have your (children) look up "Spoonerism" in the dictionary. Next, (...challenge competition with your children by taking turns reading aloud a favorite poem. Afterward,...write down your poems, intentionally transpose the initial sounds of some words, Then ...read the spoonerism-filled results.)"

July 22, 1849 Emma Lazarus, American poet who wrote

the sonnet "The New Colossus," which is engraved on

the Statue of Liberty, was born.

July 22, 1881 Margery Williams Bianco, children's author

who wrote The Velveteen Rabbit, was born.

July 22, 1898 Alexander Calder, American artist

considered the originator of the mobile, was born.

Book (1) has the following to say in "Nature mobiles-Share some photographs of Alexander Calder's mobiles with your (children). Then encourage the children to make nature mobiles, " using leaves, twigs, tree bark, and other natural objects. First, take the students for an outdoor walk to gather their objects. Next, ask them to tie or glue their objects pieces of string cut to varied lengths, then tie the strings to coat hangers. Suspend the mobiles from the (home") ceiling."

July 22, 1898 Steven Vincent Benet,  American poet, was born.

Now we well cover the events for July 22:

July 22, 1587 More than 100 English colonists founded a

Second Colony on Roanoke Island off North Carolina, the

site of the first attempted English colony in America.

When supply ships returned 3 years later, the only

trace of the colony was the word Croaton carved on a tree.

July 22, 1796 Moses Cleaveland, a surveyor for the

Connecticut Land Co., founded Cleveland, Ohio.

Book (1) writes "Place names-Tell your (children) that in 1831, the spelling of Cleaveland was changed to Cleveland to better fit into a newspaper headline. What cities, buildings, businesses, schools, or streets in your (children's) area are named after people? Make a class list, and note any changed spellings."

July 22, 1881 In Seattle, Wash., Tom Clancy was Arrested

for Speeding on His Horse. He was riding more than

the legal limit of 6 mph.

July 22, 1933 American pilot Wiley Post completed the

First Solo Air Circumnavigation of the Globe. His flight

took 7 days, 18 hours, and 45 minutes.

July 22, 1975 Congress voted to Restore the American

Citizenship of Robert E. Lee, who had commanded the

Confederate forces during the Civil War.

Now we move onto July 23 starting with the two birthdays as follows:

July 23, 1926 Patricia Coombs, children's author, was born.

July 23, 1929 Robert Quackenbush, children's author, was born.

Not so many events as follows either:

July 23, 1827 America's First Swimming School opened in Boston.

July 23, 1829 William Burt received a patent for his

typographer,a Forerunner of the Typewriter.

July 23, 1903 Ford Motor Co. sold its first car.

Book (1) writes in "Classroom assembly line-Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor co., believed that the average person should be able to own a car. To make this possible, he developed one of the first assembly-line production systems. The assembly line allowed Ford to produce a greater number of cars at a lower price. The process proved so successful that other manufacturers began using it. Have your (children) conduct an experiment to test the effectiveness of an assembly line. Bring in a couple loaves of bread, several jars of Peanut butter and jelly, paper plates, and (a number of) knives. (Use the whole family to form an assembly line.) Tell the (family) that their goal is to make 12 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches as quickly as possible. (Divide up the work and put the jobs to work. Test yourselves with a timer. Than each of you make so many of the same sandwiches do some alone. Does it make it any faster?)"

July 23, 1958 Queen Elizabeth II named four women to the

peerage, making them the First Women members of the House of Lords.

July 23, 1962 Australia's Dawn Fraser became the First

Woman to Swim 100 Meters in Under 1 minute.

July 23, 1986 Britain's Prince Andrew married Sarah Ferguson.

They were titled the duke and duchess of York.

July 23 is also the time for Perseid Meteor Shower (Through mid-August). This is explained in Book (1) under "Seeking shooting stars-Tell your (children) that a meteor (also called a shooting star) is a streak of light in the sky that occurs when a meteoroid--a usually small, solid object from space--enters the earth's atmosphere and burns up. On a dark, moonless night, a careful observer might expect to see five or six meteors per hour. But at certain times of the year, when the orbit of a group of meteoroids intersects the earth's orbit, many more meteors are visible. This is called a meteor shower. Show your (children) a sky chart, pointing out the constellation Perseus and noting how to find it in the nighttime sky. Then encourage your (children) to observe the Perseid meteor shower, which begins about now but peaks around August 12. Tell them to go to a place away from bright lights, find Perseus, and note how many meteors they see in a 15- or 20-minute period."

Next is July 24 starting with the birthdays:

July 24, 1783 Simon Bolivar, South American patriot, was born.

Book (1) explains in "El Libertador-Simon Bolivar was born in Venezuela. As a child, he learned about the French and American revolutions and dreamed of the day his country would achieve independence from Spain. Bolivar became one of South America's greatest generals in the fight against Spain, managing to win independence for Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. Have your (children) locate South America on a world map. Then have them find the countries that were liberated by Bolivar." (This lessons should be infiltrated in the North American revolution history but tied to studies for South America in the Spring, that is why it is good in the summer as well.)

July 24, 1802 Alexandre Dumas, French novelist, was born.

July 24, 1898 Amelia Earhart, American aviator, was born.

July 24, Bella Abzug, American politician and feminist, was born.

Book (1) tells about her in "Women's rights-Tell your (children) that when Bella Abzug was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1970, she pushed vigorously for women's rights. Ask the children to list the kinds of rights women have been fighting for since the 19th century, when women such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony were leading the charge. How has the women's movement progressed? Who are today's prominent feminists?"(A little note of Grandma's opinion here. Grandma is very partial to the dignity of women and the direction they have been led into. Grandma believes women should have all the rights a man has; however, Grandma feels this bit where feminists or business officials, educators, or group of people that feel they know it all and everyone should live a certain way or be a certain way that are controling our world may not be doing the best by us. Grandma feels women should be proud they are women and live up to standards to be as strong as we can being exactly like men or being with many womanly traits God has given us.

Grandma does not feel we have to dress in pants when a dress or skirt was designed to handle our bladder needs better than the design of a man being able to open his pants or slip them down to go in an easier position.

Many men the same as women like the feel and look of satins, ruffles, and sheers. A man is attracted to a women for his neat appearance in more of a rustic dress because they usually like to be doing things outside and rough. Not to say that women at times like to get just as close to the Earth and doing things they can. However, each person must work out a balance with the people they live with and things they like to do. However, to say the only way is to wear jeans or pants and act like a man is the only answer because men really like to be in control and if a women overpasses them they have a tendency to sit back and not want to do anything because they feel she can handle it why not let her and a lot ends up falling on the women that way. I feel fathers and mothers that do not give their girls a chance to be as lovely as the other girls try to rob them of the benefit of being a woman, not to say they want to be loved for how sexy or even sensual they are, but it can be a lot easier on them if they are allowed to have the time with their children if they want to and take care of womanly chores if they want to as well as put make-up on, fix their hair the way they want, or look a little more appealing even though many feel jeans can be sexy. They really can be too tight, or constantly have to be pulled up, or downright sloppy. Dress pants are ok, but when some older women can have so many problems that they have to change a pair of pants to fit in with the crowd, Grandma does not feel comfortable with the crowd bit nor will she ever.

Not all women are born with the strength to handle all the jobs men do as well as some women and I do not feel it should be forced on them. Some men do not want to do all the jobs women have done or like to do. Some men like to see women dressed up sensually occasionally and women like to see men dressed up themselves too. I feel there should be a fair balance made and other women nor men should put one or the other down because they look nice for each other at times. It makes a better relationship in the end. If women don't like dressing up nor men and want to look junky who is to put them down, but business people do frown on a too junky or sexy of a look someone might have, but some of those people hung around others that felt it was all ok.

Grandma got tired of looking junky in a T-shirt and old ragged pants or jeans for work. She learned where she felt comfortable. However, if I am doing something that could ruin my clothes as home or work I definitely wanted old ragged clothes on. If  it is summer and she knows she is going to be hot she wants shorts or something cool on.

Grandma just had to put her 3 cents in. Grandma does not always go to a beautician for her hair or whatever because she has only had a small budget to live on. As I said people should dress the way they feel comfortable at the time, but not have to live a certain form of dress to be considered for a man's job. I do feel they should be considerate of their spouses feelings in the way they dress and understand that if they want to sell a product to the public, the public is not going to change for their feelings, they have to dress presentable in order to be accepted by other people. That does not mean they have to show off with the most expensive or newest fad on the market at the time either. People will always look at the appearance of a stranger selling something unless they are the type that don't care any better than than the person selling. Smaller towns are worse than the bigger cities because of the variety of people to pick from. If many of you disagree maybe our world has us all mental blocked or some women are just trying to hide their own sex problems.)

Now lets do the events for July 24 as follows:

July 24, 1679 New Hampshire became a royal colony of the British crown.

July 24, 1701 Antoine De La Mothe Cadillac founded a fort at the site of Detroit.

July 24, 1847 Brigham Young and his Mormon

followers arrived at the Great Salt Lake in Utah.

July 24, 1866 Tennessee became the First Confederate

state to be readmitted to the Union.

July 24, 1959 U.S. vice president Richard Nixon and Soviet premier

Nikita Khrushchev Debated the Pros and Cons of Capitalism

and Communism on world television.

(Grandma feels this topic should be talked about because,

Soviet Unions idea of Communism was the incomes to be equal but far lower than the officials themselves therefore it left them in more power to decide who belonged there and what they should do.)

July 24, 1977 Dutch rider Henk Vink set a Motorcycle World Record

by covering a 1-kilometer course in 16.68 seconds from a standing start.

July 24 is also Pioneer Day in Utah therefore have some fun with it and it is also National Baked Bean Month in July. Book (1) says in "Best baked beans-Celebrate National Baked Bean Month by having your (friends and/or family) conduct a taste test of various (recipes and/or) brands of canned baked beans. Which brand tastes best? Which tastes worst? Afterward, challenge (the children) to create tongue twisters beginning with: "The best baked beans..."

Now we move onto July 25th beginning with the following birthdays:

July 25, 1750 Henry Knox, American military officer who served

as the first U.S. secretary of war, was born.

July 25, 1911 Ruth Krauss, children's author, was born.

July 25, 1954 Walter Payton, football star who set the NFL

career record for rushing, was born.

July 25, 1978 Louise Brown, the first socalled test-tube baby

(baby conceived through in vitro fertilization, was born.

Next are the events for July 25th:

July 25, 1814 The English inventor George Stephenson

first demonstrated a Steam Locomotive.

July 25, 1866 Ulysses S. Grant became the army's First Five-Star General.

July 25,  1909 The French engineer and aviator Louis Bleriot

made the First Airplane Flight Across the English Channel,

from Calais, France, to Dover, England.

Book (1) writes this in "Flying across the Channel-Tell your (children) that it took Louis Bleriot 37 minutes to complete his 20-mile flight. Help them appreciate Bleriot's aviation milestone by having them re-create it with paper airplanes. Have (the children) work ...to create a scale drawing of England. France, and the English Channel (somewhere else). They can use chalk or masking tape to lay out their design, (making France a good distance away from the drawing of England-maybe a foot 100-200 miles or as far as 500 miles to France.) Have the children mark the sites of Calais, France, and Dover England. Next have them each make a paper airplane. Students can then take turns flying their airplanes "across the Channel.""

July 25, 1934 Franklin Roosevelt became the First President to Visit Hawaii.

July 25, 1952 Puerto Rico's Constitution was proclaimed,

and the island became a self-governing commonwealth of the United States.

July 25, 1971 South African surgeon Dr. Christiaan Barnard Successfully

Transplanted Two Lungs and a Heart into a patient.

July 25, 1984 Soviet cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya became

the First Woman to Walk in Space.

July is also Recreation and Parks Month and July 25 of Book (1) says in "Passport to the parks-

The National Park Service offers a national parks passport book. Each time a passport holder visits a national park, the book gets stamped. Make a notebook-size version of this passport book for your students. List each national park or monument your students have visited on a separate page, and ask the kids to find an appropriate illustration or magazine photo. Then have students sign their names under the locations they've visited. Encourage those who will visit national parks or monuments in the future to send postcards for inclusion in the passport book. (Grandma will have some information for this later and she want to cover some of the National Parks in November to go along with the letter N for children.)

Now we will move onto July 26th starting with the birthdays:

July 26, 1856 George Bernard Shaw, British playwright, was born.

Book (1) writes under "Perspectives on teaching-Playwright George Bernard Shaw once observed, "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach. " Share Shaw's quote with your (children). Then share this quote from Christa McAuliffe: "I touch the future; I teach." Ask your (children) which quote they think more accurately describes today's teachers. After they've shared their views, explain quotes to survey family, friends, and community members about their perceptions of teaching."

July 26, 1892 Pearl Buck, American author, was born.

July 26, 1897 Paul Gallico, American author of The Snow Goose, was born.

July 26, 1923 Jan Berenstain, children's author, was born.

July 26, 1943 Mick Jagger, British rock star, was born.

Book (1) writes in "Classroom rock fest-In honor of Mick Jagger's birthday, have a parent-(child) rock fest in your (home). ...find favorite Rolling Stones recordings. (Children and yourself) also can ( find your own favorite artists.) After playing a sampling of the songs, ask ...what they think of the other generation's musical tastes."

Now we will move into the Events:

July 26, 1788 New York became the 11th state.

July 26, 1847 The West African nation of Liberia proclaimed its independence.

July 26, 1889 China's Hwang Ho (Yellow River) flooded, leaving the

surrounding countryside under as much as 12 feet of water.

July 26, 1908 The Federal Bureau of Investigation was created.

July 26, 1920 Oscar Swann, age 72, won a medal in rifle

shooting, thus becoming the Oldest Olympic Medalist.

July 26, 1969 U.S. scientists examined the First Moon Rock Samples.

July 26, 1986 Bicyclist Greg Lemond became the First American

to Win the Tour De France. His time for the 2,500-mile race was

110 hours, 35 minutes, 19 seconds.

(Do some math figuring with this as: How many miles an hour figuring approximately 110 hours into the 2,500 miles equals what?)

July 26 is also Hopi Niman Dance in United States as Book (1) explains it in "Native American legends-Share with your (children) the Hopi Indian legend of the kachinas--supernatural beings who leave their mountain homes for half the year to visit the tribe. The kachinas are believed to bring good health to the people and rainfall for the crops. For the Niman dance, dancers portraying kachinas sing and dance for almost the entire day. Ask your (children) to name other supernatural beings--for example, leprechauns and guardian angels--who some to earth and help people. Then have the children write stories featuring supernatural do-gooders of their own invention."

The next day is July 27th with only two birthdays as follows:

July 27, 1913 Scott Corbett, children's author, was born.

Book (1) says in"Titles of honor-Children's author Scott Corbett fulfilled a longtime wish when he joined two friends for a balloon trip. They traveled from northern Rhode Island to southern Massachusetts. Later, Corbett joked that he could sign his name "Scott Corbett, I.A. (Interstate Aerialist)." Ask your (children) what titles they could give themselves based on their accomplishments. Next, have them fold 8 1/2 x 11-inch sheets of construction paper in half to make "nameplates" for their desks. Have them each write their name and new title on their nameplate."

July 27, 1948 Peggy Fleming, American figure-skating champion, was born.

Now we have the Events for July 27th:

July 27, 1586 Sir Walter Raleigh returned to England bearing

the Virginia colony's first tobacco crop.

July 27, 1775 Benjamin Church was named Surgeon General

of the Continental Army.

July 27, 1789 Congress established the Department of Foreign Affairs,

which later became the State Department.

July 27, 1866 The Fist Underwater Telegraph Cable Between

North America and Europe was completed.

July 27, 1909 Orville Wright set a World Record by staying

aloft in an airplane for 72 minutes and 40 seconds.

Book (1) writes in "It takes teamwork-Tell your (children) that Orville Wright worked together with his brother, Wilbur, to build and fly the first power-driven airplane. Since the Wright brothers worked as a team, how did they decide who would fly the plane on this day in 1909? Ask your (children) to speculate. How do your students think Orville felt during his record-setting flight? How do they suppose Wilbur felt watching from the ground? Have each (child) write a narrative from the perspective of either Orville or Wilbur."

July 27, 1921 Insulin was isolated for the first time.

July 27, 1931 A Swam of Grasshoppers descended on the

states of Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota, destroying

thousands of acres of crops.

July 27, 1953 The Korean War ended.

July 27, 1974 The House Judiciary Committee passed its

First Article of Impeachment Against President Richard Nixon.

July 27 is also Take Your Houseplants for a Walk Day and Book (1) has this to say in "Walk the plant?-Today is Take Your Houseplants for a Walk Day. Ask your (children) to suggest a scientific reason why this might be a good thing to do. (Plants remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and generate oxygen.) What whimsical reasons can they suggest?"

(By the way Book (1) has a picture with this insert where the children are walking and the plants are actually walking beside them as humans-a good laugh for the day.)

Next is July 28 with only two following birthdays:

July 28, 1932 Natalie Babbitt, children's author, was born.

Book (1) says in "Character diary-Natalie Babbitt's popular book Tuck Everlasting deals with the theme of searching for oneself. Read it aloud to the (children). As (the children) listen, have them keep a diary of their reactions to Winnie, the main character. Following the story's conclusion, have (the children) make collages to illustrate their reactions. They might include pictures, drawings, words, or other creative ways to capture the essence of a character who faces difficult choices."

July 28, 1943 Bill Bradley, professional basketball player

and U.S. senator, was born.

Book (1) writes in "Looking at Legislators-Before entering politics, Senator Bill Bradley of New Jersey was a basketball star. He earned All-American honors at Princeton University, played on the 1964 U.S. Olympic team, and won two NBA championships with the New York Knicks during a 10-year pro career. Bradley said that his basketball experiences taught him lessons he could apply in his work as a legislator. In particular, he believed, he gained insights into race relations, an issue he frequently spoke on. Ask your (children) to list professions or personal experiences that they believe would prepare a person for a successful career in Congress. Do the kids feel Congress should contain members from diverse backgrounds? Why? Have your (children) write to your state's two U.S. senators, asking each about his or her previous professional experiences."

Now we will cover the events for July 28th:

July 28, 1821 General Jose de San Martin proclaimed

Peru's Independence from Spain.

July 28, 1868 The Fourteenth Amendment defining U.S. citizenship and guaranteeing due process of law, took effect.

July 28, 1914 World War I began when Austria declared war on Serbia.

July 28, 1945 The U. S. Senate ratified the United Nations Charter

by a vote of 90-2.

July 28, 1945 A B-25 Bomber Crashed into the 79th floor of the

Empire State Building.

July 28, 1959 Daniel Inouye of Hawaii became the First

Japanese-American elected to Congress.

July 28, 1973 Six hundred thousand people attended the

Biggest U.S. Rock Concert ever, at Watkins Glenn, N.Y.

Book (1) writes about it in "Concert calculations-Tell Your (children) that 4 years before the Watkins Glen concert, in the summer of 1969, 400,000 people attended another famous rock festival held in New York State. Ask your students to name this event (Woodstock). There were 200,000 more people at the Watkins Glen event than at Woodstock. Have students calculate this difference as a percentage increase."

Lastly:

July 28, 1984 The Summer Olympics Opened in Los Angeles.

Nineteen nations, including the USSR, boycotted.

Moving on into July 29th with Three birthdays:

July 29, 1869 Booth Tarkington, American novelist, was born.

July 29, 1905 Dag Hammarskjold, Swedish diplomat and

second secretary-general of the United Nations, was born.

July 29, 1938, Peter Jennings, Canadian-born TV journalist, was born.

Now we will list the Events and activities for July 29 as follows:

July 29, 1778 A French Fleet Arrived at Rhode Island to help the

American colonists in the Revolutionary War.

July 29, 1958 Congress authorized the National Aeronautics

and Space Administration (NASA).

Book (1) writes here in "What's next for NASA?-As early as 1915, the U.S. government supported organized research on aeronautics. That year, a congressional resolution established the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). By 1958, government officials agreed that NACA's work should be extended to include the region outside earth's atmosphere--and NASA was created. Ask your (children)  to predict how NASA's work will be extended 10 years from now. For example, what other regions or heavenly bodies might be explored? Have each (child) write a science fiction story describing what might happen."

(By the way while Grandma was in Mexico during August we sighted lights in the sky that were not stars or anything normal. They looked like airplane lights but they were not moving like an airplane. They were just there and then disappeared. First it showed in one place then it disappeared and shown in another space and then did the same two or three other places. They said it happens there occasionally. Grandma had never seen anything like it before. It was really strange.)

July 29, 1962 Seventy-five American historians and political scientists Rated U.S. Presidents as "great," "near great," "average," below average," or "failure."

Book (1) writes about it in "Evaluating the presidents-Have your (children) rate all the presidents who've served in their lifetimes using the same scale as the historians and political scientists used in 1962. Ask the kids to cite specific events and presidential decisions to support their ratings."

July 29, 1981 Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer were

married in St. Paul's Cathedral in London.

July 29, 1988 Javier Sotomayor of Cuba became the First

High Jumper to Clear 8 feet.

July 29th is also Chincoteague Pony Penning(last Thursday in July) and Book (1) writes about it in "Where the wold horses are-Tell your (children) that about 150 wild ponies live on Assateague Island in Virginia. These animals are descendants of colonial-era horses. Each year, the ponies are rounded up and made to swim across the inlet to Chincoteague Island, where about 40 of them are sold. Ask (your children) to locate these two islands on a map of Virginia. How far apart are they? invite the kids to speculate on why the ponies are rounded up annually. (With no predators, they would eventually become too numerous for the island's ecosystem to sustain.) (This is a good lesson in Biology for the children.)

Now we will begin July 30 starting with only two birthdays:

July 30, 1863 Henry Ford, American automobile manufacturer, was born.

Book (1) writes in "The family car-In honor of Henry Ford's birthday, ask your (children) to collect data about their families' cars, including how many cars their families own, the makes and models, the colors, and the safety features, such as air bags or antilock brakes. Have (the children) work...to compile their data and design graphs illustrating the results.

July 30, 1947 Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austrian-born

bodybuilder and actor, was born.

Next are the following events for July 30th:

July 30, 1619 The First Representative Assembly in the American Colonies

met at Jamestown, Va., and enacted laws against drunkenness,

idleness, and gambling.

July 30, 1729 Baltimore Town (later Baltimore) was founded by the

Maryland colonial government.

July 30,1909 The United States Bought its First Airplane for $31,250.

July 30, 1919 Missouri farmer Fred Hoenemann got a temporary

injunction Prohibiting Pilots From Flying Over His Farm.

July 30, 1942 President Franklin Roosevelt signed a bill creating

the navy Waves (Women accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service).

July 30, 1952 The Chesapeake Bay Bridge--third longest in the world--opened.

Book (1) writes about it in "Down by the bay-Tell your (children) that the Chesapeake Bay--which is 200 miles long and 4 to 40 miles wide--is the largest inlet on the Atlantic coast of the United States. Have the children locate the Chesapeake Bay on a U.S. Map. Various rivers flow into the bay. Challenge the kids to find as many as they can. (Among the rivers are the James, York, Potomac, Rappahannock, Patuxent, and Susquehanna.)"

July 30, 1956 Congress adopted the motto, "In God We Trust."

Book (1) writes in "National motto- Ask your (children) where the motto "In God We Trust" can be found--for example, on coins and paper currency. Then discuss the concept of mottoes and why they exist. What is your state's motto? Ask each (child) to adopt a personal motto, write it on a sheet of oaktag, and add a personalized border design. Tape the mottoes (onto something to display them.)"

July 30, 1971 Apollo 15 astronauts landed on the moon.

Their mission included deploying a jeeplike vehicle called

a Lunar Rover, which enabled them to explore much more

of the moon's surface.

This is the last day of July and the last day on this blog. Grandma will carry on tomorrow into August. This is also a very special sons birthday.) Therefore, we will start July 31 with the only two birthdays:

July 31, 1803 John Ericsson, Swedish-American engineer

who designed the Monitor, the famous Ironclad Civil War

ship, was born.

July 31, 1930 Robert Kimmel Smith, children's author, was born.

Now moving on into the Events for the day:

July 31, 1498 Christopher Columbus first sighted Trinidad.

July 31, 1790 The First American Patent was awarded to Samuel

Hopkins for his method of making potash, a substance used in

the manufactur