Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhardt, Garden City, LI, 1936
Originally uploaded by QBPL-LID.

On this day in 1935, Amelia Earhart became the first person—male OR female—to fly solo (all by herself) from Hawaii to California. This was a monumental achievement in the history of aviation, and it helped make Earhart a national hero by showing that a woman could do things men hadn't been able to.

What's your definition of a hero? Is it someone with superhuman strength or the ability to fly, like Superman or other comic book characters? Is it a firefighter who rushes into a burning building when everyone else is rushing out? Is it a father or mother who works multiple jobs to ensure a better future for their kids? The fact is, anyone can be a hero, and a hero to one person is not necessarily a hero to another.

For your assignment, due next Thursday, I'd like you to ask three different people these questions:

1. Who is someone you think of as a hero?
2. Why do you think that person is a hero?

If possible, ask someone who is younger than you, someone who is your age and someone who is older than you to see what kind of different answers they give. If you'd like, have them read and respond to this post themselves by leaving a comment (click link at bottom of post). Have them include their name, their age (optional), their responses, and your name (so you can get credit). Remember, first names only.

Other options for completing this assignment could include:

Writing down the responses and typing them as a comment to this post

Writing or typing the responses and bringing them in to school/emailing them to school

Recording the responses (audio, video or both) and bringing/emailing

Presenting the responses orally for the class

Or come up with your own way (check with Mr. C. or Mrs. C. first to make sure it's o.k.)!

Click here for more info on Amelia Earhart.

(source: http://readwritethink.org/calendar/calendar_day.asp?id=394)

"Calling Elvis..."

"Calling Elvis..."
Originally uploaded by Tapio Hurme.

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a great winter break and that you are excited to get back to school!

Seeing as how our last day of school in 2007 was marked by our fantastic 50's party, I thought it was a pretty interesting coincidence that today, your second day of school in 2008, is Elvis Presley's birthday. He would have been 72 years old today - that's almost as old as me! ;-)

Did you know that more than one billion (that's billion with a 'B'!) of his records have been sold. Not only that, but Elvis also acted in 31 movies and played more than one thousand concerts. His former residence, which is named 'Graceland', still gets more than 600,000 visitors every year! No wonder Elvis is still called the "King of Rock n' Roll"!

Click here to view Elvis' biographical page on the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame website.

(Source: http://readwritethink.org/calendar/calendar_day.asp?id=390)

Two famous Smiths share this birthday

Two famous Americans, John Smith and Jedediah Smith, were born on this day, January 6. Both these famous men were known for their exploration of different parts of North America. John Smith, famous for his presidency of Jamestown and interactions with the Algonquin, explored and mapped the Chesapeake Bay. Jedediah Smith, an explorer in the west, used the “South Pass” through the Rocky Mountains to lead some of the first white settlers to new lands. Born over 200 years apart, both shared a love of exploration, experience with Native American relations, and—a common last name.

Learn more about Captain John Smith here.

Learn more about Jedediah Smith here.

Did you know the surname (last name) Smith is the most common in the United States (more than 3 million people, or 1% of the U.S. population)? The name Smith means “a worker at the smith—a metal-worker, blacksmith or farrier.” Visit this site to see what your last name means. Once you've done that, check out this site to see where your name ranks among the most popular in the U.S.

(Source: http://readwritethink.org/calendar/calendar_day.asp?id=623)