8.26.2012

The Hunger Games Movie Moments...The Silver Parachute Charms


As I sat and watched "The Hunger Games" movie for the umpteenth time, I was reminded of my first thought when the silver parachute smoothly sailed to Katniss as she was perched in her tree: those charms sound familiar. Where have I heard them before? It was driving me crazy trying to remember.

And then it came to me: Mister Rogers' Neighborhood! Yes, the Neighborhood Trolley. I watched that show on PBS as I was growing up in the 70s and early 80s and my favorite part of each episode was always the trolley's journey into the Neighborhood of Make Believe. I couldn't get enough of the little puppet characters like X the owl and Daniel the tiger.

Watch an episode here. At about 10:36 you'll get to see (and hear) our little trolley friend take his journey. Now, tell me, does that sound a little like the silver parachute?

I remember how much joy watching the trolley brought into my life, and realize that the tributes in the Games obviously feel the same way when a silver parachute comes their way. [SPOILER ALERT] Which is why the use of the parachutes in the end of Mockingjay is all the more horrifying and twisted. And exactly why I could never be a "Team Gale" or a "Team Beetee" person. People who think of these awful ways to kill others are not the type of people I could be around. I know that may offend people in the military, but I would much rather see that creativity be put to use in a positive, constructive way--like thinking of ways to cure ailments or reduce our carbon footprints. If all our military efforts were redirected toward environmental concerns or medical treatments, imagine the possibilities.

But, maybe that is why the silver parachutes remind me of the Neighborhood Trolley: the "joy" is just a farce, not truly real. It's a make-believe reassurance. The tributes may feel especially grateful when they receive one, but it is only prolonging their ultimate deaths. And being able to eliminate the need for a military is just a fantasy. We will always have to defend ourselves from the evils of the world.

At some point, though, we need to realize--as Katniss finally does--that our own efforts could be the evil we are so desperately trying to combat.

Pin It

8.24.2012

Ultimate Middle Years Giveaway and Blog Hop



Welcome to the "Ultimate Middle Years Giveaway and Blog Hop"! 
Thanks for hopping over to Hunger Games Lessons! This event is being sponsored by two amazing middle school teaching blogs, Lessons from the Middle and Innovative Connections. Please go to one of their blogs to enter the giveaway and begin your blog hop.

Here are the specific details you might be interested in:
• The event is scheduled for August 25th - 27th.
• The giveaway has over $300 in prizes which will be broken up into three separate prize packages for three lucky winners.
• Everyone is winner! All entrants who complete the blog hop challenge will be emailed an amazing assortment of free teaching materials to be used in their classrooms.
• You can enter the contest and begin the blog hop by starting at either of the two blogs listed above: Innovative Connections and Lessons from the Middle
• One of the prizes is a $20 shopping spree from my store!

About my blog: Perhaps you've heard of the popular The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins? ;) I offer engaging lessons to harness that enthusiasm for the popular series in the classroom.

 I'd also like to introduce you to the next blog and blogger on the hop:


Meet Michelle Lundy from "Making It As A Middle School Teacher"!
"At Making It As A Middle School Teacher {and smiling about it at the end of the day}, you will find lessons and tasks for teaching math, science, and social studies, as well as ideas for all the other 'stuff' we have to handle on a daily basis.  Along the way, I'll also share ways to stay organized and motivated so you can not only Make It, but have a smile on your face at the end of the day!"

You can find loads of great teaching resources in Michelle's TpT store:

Thank you so much for stopping by on the Ultimate Middle Years Giveaway and Blog Hop! Send some love to all the blogs participating and to our great hosts, Ann from Innovative Connections and Krystal from Lessons from the Middle!






Pin It

8.23.2012

The Latest Pinteresting Pins


Here are my favorite Pinterest Pins this week. And, YES, we do have a Finnick Odair cast for Catching Fire! Am I happy about it? Well, I'm not sure. I've never seen Sam Claflin act in anything, so I don't feel I can judge him solely by his looks. If I were, I would say he doesn't look at all how I pictured Finnick. But I must trust Lionsgate, so I am going to stay neutral and hope for the best!

You can find all of these pins on my Hunger Games board. 
The links to the original pins are there, as well:
www.CatchingFireCasting.com



Some Hunger Games humor that made me laugh out loud this week. These are also found on my Hunger Games board:



And these I love...just because. They can be found on my Humor board:






As you can probably tell from my short posts lately, I am back in school! I promise once things get settled down I'll be writing more regularly. And make sure you check back this weekend for something EXTRA SPECIAL. ;)

Also, I have a fun post about elementary teachers vs. secondary teachers when it comes to getting ready for the first day of school on my Mrs. Orman's Classroom blog that I will complete later tonight. Enjoy!
.
Pin It

8.16.2012

Celebrate The Hunger Games Movie DVD/BluRay Release With Freebies and a Giveaway

HAPPY HUNGER GAMES!

*THANK YOU ALL WHO ENTERED MY GIVEAWAY* 
It is now closed and the VICTOR is... Pamela M.!
Congratulations! And thank you all for following & promoting!
Since Rafflecopter made it so easy to enter, I might have to do this more often. :)

Tonight at midnight "The Hunger Games" movie will be released on Blu-Ray and DVD. What I am most excited about is the extra features. Well, I am excited for the movie, of course. But the special features are sure to give teachers additional insight and a glimpse into the world of Panem. My friends in the fandom were able to take a sneak peek before everyone else, so you can read reviews on The Hunger Games Fireside Chat, Welcome to District 12, Victor’s Village, The Hob, HG Movie Site, Mockingjay.net, and Down with the Capitol.

The Hunger Games Novel Vs. Movie
I firmly believe in waiting to show the movie until after students have read the book and taken a final exam (if you plan to give them one). There are always differences between the movie and novel, so it will alleviate any confusion when they take the test. Also, it prevents students from using the movie in place of reading the novel.

To celebrate the release of the movie, I will be giving away a copy of The Hunger Games Book vs. Movie pack and a copy of The Hunger Games on DVD. Using my Hunger Games Book vs. Movie pack will give you plenty of engaging lessons to use with the movie. In addition, I will update it to include handouts for the extra features after I view them. To enter the giveaway, scroll down and fill out the online form from RaffleCopter.

I thought I would enlist the help of my fellow teacher-friends to offer you links to loads of Hunger Games freebies! We know how much teachers love freebies (because we love them ourselves!).

So check out all these great lessons that will make teaching The Hunger Games an even better experience:

From my store:

From Secondary Solutions:
The Hunger Games Pre-Reading Ideas and Activities

From Wise Guys:
The Hunger Games iPod Touch Reading Activity

From Arik Dufee:
The Ideal Hunger Games Movie - Group Activity

From Ruth S.:
100 Points Book Report

From Madame Aiello:
Hunger Games Tribute Comparison 
From Poetgrl78:
The Hunger Games Prediction Chart

From Rachel Lynette:
The Hunger Games Would You Rather Questions


Enter for the giveaway here:

You must be at least 18 to enter. Educators and education majors only, please.
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Pin It

8.14.2012

Mrs. Orman's Classroom: I Know What You Read This Summer



Mrs. Orman's Classroom: I Know What You Read This Summer: I Know What You Read This Summer

A simple way to encourage reading is to have your students suggest good books to their peers. I made this poster you can download for back-to-school. You can also read more on my other blog by clicking the link above. Have a great school year! 


Pin It

8.12.2012

Fun Pinterest Pins to Celebrate the Back-to-School Sale for Teachers

 
In case you haven't noticed, there's a sale going on at TeachersPayTeachers for educators so you can stock up on excellent lessons & resources for the new year. You will not find better prices anywhere else! I thought I would share some of my favorite sale banners from Pinterest and highlight a few products you might want to check out. Above is a parody of the Target commercial for the English teacher. See more on my other blog.

A few resources you ought to check out: I have sets of Common Core State Standards literature and non-fiction (informational) reading graphic organizers that are excellent for practicing and assessing students' knowledge and progress. My newest is (click on image for link):

 The Hunger Games Character Analysis Graphic Organizers that Correlate with the 
Common Core State Standards, Grades 6-12


And I created these last fall because I needed something to help me align my reading assignments with the Common Core State Standards last year. They are so handy and I use them all year long with various reading assignments, both for literature and non-fiction.
 Graphic Organizers for Common Core Standards-Based Reading, Grades 6, 7, 8

Graphic Organizers for Common Core Standards-Based Reading, Grades 9-10
Grades 11-12 coming soon (hopefully by Tuesday!).

These are excellent buys, especially with the sale going on. Multiuser licenses are also available. You can inquire at info@teacherspayteachers.com or purchase my 15-user licenses.

And, finally, the best memes for teachers to promote the sale, courtesy of Shelley Gray, Oxana from Teacher's Clip Art, and Jennifer Bates:





.
Pin It

8.09.2012

Let the Back-to-School Sale Begin! ...Almost


It's that time of year again. Yes, time to pack up your own book bag, spend hours getting your classroom ready, replace those plants that died over the summer, AND stock up on lessons from Teachers Pay Teachers (TpT)!

TpT will be offering 10% off August 12-13 by using the code BTS12

My store will have an additional 20% off everything, including CDs. I rarely place those on sale and the price is going up on them, so you don't want to miss this opportunity to get almost a third off!
Happy shopping!

Pin It

8.05.2012

Hunger Games Tributes vs. Olympic Athletes


 Watching the swimming competitions for the 2012 Olympic Games somehow reminded me that we still don't have an official word for the actor playing Finnick in "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" movie. Maybe casting an actor is all wrong for Finnick. Maybe the role should be played by a real swimmer. In fact, wouldn't it be fun to have your students compare the tributes in The Hunger Games or Catching Fire with athletes from the Olympics? Or compare the athletes to the Star Squad 451 from Mockingjay?

So, which athlete would you compare to Finnick Odair? Michael Phelps? Ryan Lochte? Or how about Australian James Magnussen?
CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS
You can use these photo prompts or make your own (the athletes do not have to be from the 2012 Olympic Games - you could use Olympians from the past or any athletes. See my Hunger Games Character Olympics for additional activities and handouts).
Athletes include (clockwise from top left): Aliya Mustafina, Wojdan Shahrkhani, Gabby Douglas, Lolo Jones, Jessica Ennis, Natalie Coughlin, and Serena Williams (center). Photo credits below.

Athletes include (clockwise from top left): Sun Yang, Usain Bolt, Oscar Pistorius, Aldo Montano, Jonathan Horton, Todd Rogers, Neymar, and Kianoush Rostami (center). Photo credits below.
Lesson Extension - You can also ask the question: Which characters are least like these athletes?

Download the complete Hunger Games Character Olympics by clicking on the image:

PHOTO CREDITS:
The images used in the photo prompt collages courtesy of the following photographers & found on these websites:
Image #1
Michael Phelps (AP): http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/pop-cult-1.811972/michael-phelps-caps-olympic-career-with-gold-1.3881859
Ryan Lochte
(EPA/Landov): http://www.people.com/people/news/category/0,,personsTax:RyanLochte,00.html
James Magnussen  http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/london-olympics/heartbreak-as-james-magnussen-falls-to-american-nathan-adrian-by-1100th-of-second/story-fn9dirj0-1226440983442
Image #2 
Aliya Mustafina (AP): http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/pop-cult-1.811972/aliya-mustafina-olympics-diva-1.3879420   
Gabby Douglas: http://blog.sfgate.com/olympics/2012/08/02/gabby-douglas-earns-america%25E2%2580%2599s-sweetheart-title-with-all-around-gold/
Wojdan Shahrkhani  http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/19111548
Serena Williams (Stefan Wermuth): http://www.people.com/people/package/article/0,,20612225_20618299,00.html
Lolo Jones (Eric Gay/AP): http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20612225_20613101,00.html#21187054
Natalie Coughlin (Ezra Shaw/Getty): http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20612225_20613101,00.html#21187057

Jessica Ennis (Ian Walton/Getty): http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20612225_20613101,00.html?stitched#21187062
Image #3
Jonathan Horton (Credit CSM/Landov): http://www.people.com/people/package/article/0,,20612225_20615145,00.html
Neymar de Silva Santos (Marc Atkins/BPI/Corbis): http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20612225_20613545,00.html#21187947
Aldo Montano (Marcello Paternostro/AFP/Getty): http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20612225_20613545,00.html#21187963
Sun Yang (Credit AFP/Getty Images) http://makefreshbeats.com/blog/2012/07/30/olympics-spectators-unhappy-at-athletes-wearing-noise-cancelling-headphones
Usain Bolt (Getty Images) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/9452340/Usain-Bolt-facing-make-or-break-greatest-final-at-London-2012.html
Oscar Pistorius (Michael Steele/Getty Images) http://espn.go.com/new-york/story/_/id/8233030/2012-summer-olympics-amputee-oscar-pistorius-makes-400m-semifinals
Todd Rogers (Los Angeles Times Allen J. Schaben) http://graphics.latimes.com/storyboard-london-olympics-key-moments-watch/
Kianoush Rostami (REUTERS/Dominic Ebenbichler)  http://olympics.al-monitor.com/


Pin It

8.03.2012

Let's See Your Hunger Games Back-to-School Finds!

Found: The Hunger Games & The Hunger Games Tribute Guide marked $4 at TJ Maxx.


If you are teaching The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, or just love great deals on books and school supplies, you'll want to take note of some excellent finds from my Facebook friends.

Thank you to Patti Barker, a fellow English teacher, who tipped me off on the TJ Maxx clearance on The Hunger Games books. Since I was vacationing in Washington this past week, I headed to the local store there and found about 25 copies marked $4.00 (no, I did not buy them all, but I did buy a few to add to my class set). Some copies were still marked $6.99 and I asked if they were also marked $4.00, but they weren't. Evidently the $4.00 copies were "older" books. Of course, in the book world, "older" is better, though I'm not sure how many years it would take for first edition paperbacks to be collectors since there are millions of copies in print.

TJ Maxx also had The Hunger Games Tribute Guide for $4.00. The hardback copy of Mockingjay was on clearance for $7.99. I did not see any copies of Catching Fire, but if you see some, let me know.

Another great teacher-friend, Janet Kenney, posted this picture on our fan page:
Hunger Games school supplies, spotted by Janet Kenney at Target!


Janet found these great Hunger Games school supplies at Target this week. She plans to use them for prizes this year, which I think is an excellent idea! It also looks like they are on sale, as well.

Have you found any great deals on Hunger Games merchandise for school? 
If so, leave a comment with a link or email me your picture and I will add it to this page.


Pin It
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...