SUMMER 2015 Coleman's Camp and Tutoring

(cross-posted with Smells Like Burning Army Men website)

Please read and pass along to anyone you feel might be interested!

Mr. Coleman, 2nd grade teacher at Prairie Elementary, will be offering two valuable learning opportunities during the 2015 Summer. One-on-One Tutoring and my Coleman’s Camp Enrichment Program are both underway. I meet with students at Corinth Library (81st and Mission Road). More detailed information is below:

Tutoring:

I meet with student in Individualized one-hour sessions to maintain present skills during the summer and to prepare for the upcoming school year by addressing current academic and motivational/self-esteem struggles.  Shawnee Mission curriculum and materials are used, along with district and research-based intervention materials, all correlating to content students will see in the upcoming school year.  Frequently we work through the daily (or distributive) work from the first quarter.  This strategy ensures student comprehension, confidence, and skills are bolstered as concepts introduced to the class during the start of the year are already well practiced by the tutored student.  With parent permission, I can also meet with each student's teacher to collect test data, information on strengths and struggles, and learning goals.  Some of the specific skills I can focus on include:

·         Reading (phonics, decoding, comprehension, accuracy, motivation)

·         Math (computation, problem solving, accuracy)

·         Study skills and organization

·         Test preparation (classroom tests, basic skills, state assessments)

·         Writing skills (handwriting, sentence, paragraph and paper writing)

SUMMER 2015 Schedule for One-on-One Tutoring (1 hour sessions):

Thursdays 10:00-3:00
Saturdays 1:00-5:00

Coleman’s Camp Enrichment Program:

Small groups of students meet as a specialized class to study, explore, and interact with their own learning process in highly individualized and personal ways.  The two-hour sessions aim toward mastery of grade-level curriculum taught in Shawnee Mission classrooms but also provide a pervasive environment and cross-pollination of wisdom, art, humor, music, and high quality endeavors.

Coleman’s Camp is an innovative tutoring and enrichment program utilizing a decade of classroom experience at nearly every grade level as well as training in administration, special education, and research-based practices to create a weekly enrichment and support camp for elementary-aged children.

SUMMER 2015 Schedule for Coleman's Camp (2 hour sessions):

            Thursdays 4:00-6:00

            Saturdays 10:00-12:00

More Information:

• http://www4.smsd.org/timcoleman/html32214.htm - Credentials, experience, and other district information
• http://www4.smsd.org/timcoleman/html22172.htm - all about Mr. Coleman

PLEASE E-MAIL for cost and availability.

What Can You Teach in 6 Seconds?

This video was the inspiration for some of our recent Coleman's Camp activities!

Photos of our efforts are on our shutterfy site - https://colemanscamp.shutterfly.com/

FALL 2014 - Coleman's Camp and One-On-One Tutoring

(cross-posted with Smells Like Burning Army Men website)

Please read and pass along to anyone you feel might be interested!

Mr. Coleman, 2nd grade teacher at Prairie Elementary, will be offering two valuable learning opportunities during the 2014 Fall. One-on-One Tutoring and my Coleman’s Camp Enrichment Program will both begin Monday, August August 11th, and run to the winter break at the end of December. We meet at Corinth Library (81st and Mission Road). More detailed information is below:

One-on-One Tutoring:

I meet with student in Individualized one-hour sessions to maintain present skills during the summer and to prepare for the upcoming school year by addressing current academic and motivational/self-esteem struggles.  Shawnee Mission curriculum and materials are used, along with district and research-based intervention materials, all correlating to content students will see in the upcoming school year.  Frequently we work through the daily (or distributive) work from the first quarter.  This strategy ensures student comprehension, confidence, and skills are bolstered as concepts introduced to the class during the start of the year are already well practiced by the tutored student.  With parent permission, I can also meet with each student's teacher to collect test data, information on strengths and struggles, and learning goals.  Some of the specific skills I can focus on include:

·         Reading (phonics, decoding, comprehension, accuracy, motivation)

·         Math (computation, problem solving, accuracy)

·         Study skills and organization

·         Test preparation (classroom tests, basic skills, state assessments)

·         Writing skills (handwriting, sentence, paragraph and paper writing)

FALL 2014 Schedule for One-on-One Tutoring (1 hour sessions):

Saturdays 1:00-3:00

Coleman’s Camp Enrichment Program:

Small groups of students meet as a specialized class to study, explore, and interact with their own learning process in highly individualized and personal ways.  The two-hour sessions aim toward mastery of grade-level curriculum taught in Shawnee Mission classrooms but also provide a pervasive environment and cross-pollination of wisdom, art, humor, music, and high quality endeavors.

Coleman’s Camp is an innovative tutoring and enrichment program utilizing a decade of classroom experience at nearly every grade level as well as training in administration, special education, and research-based practices to create a weekly enrichment and support camp for elementary-aged children.

Each session of Coleman's Camp has age guidelines to help facilitate age-appropriate focus and maximized benefit of learning experiences.  The Tuesday and Thursday sessions have similar themes, activities, and curriculum.  As such, students attend either the Tuesday sessions or the Thursday sessions, but not both.  In some cases, special arrangements can be made with Mr. Coleman for older students to be Peer-Leaders (example: an older student who attends the Tuesday session returns Thursday to help lead groups, provide examples, or teach parts of the lessons).  Such special arrangements should be reserved for highly motivated students wanting to take on leadership roles and increased responsibility.

Additionally, the Saturday session will be different in form and scope from the Tuesday and Thursday sessions.  These Saturday sessions are called Coleman's Camp Studio and will be an experience where kids work for a number of consecutive weeks to complete one in-depth project at a time.  These studio projects will be built around the passions of the students enrolled, and will push their natural skills, problem solving ability, and creative efforts to produce unique artifacts of significance and quality.  Coleman's Camp Studio will be limited to 10 students.  Projects might include multimedia presentations, artwork, service projects, inventions, engineering studies, plays, et cetera.  There is no specific age guidelines for Saturdays, but an adventurous attitude and willingness to make mistakes, grow, and experiment are important.

FALL 2014 Schedule for Coleman's Camp (2 hour sessions):

            Tuesdays 4:30-6:30 (for kids going into 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade)

            Thursdays 4:00-6:00 (for kids going into Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade)

            Saturdays 10:00-12:00 (Coleman's Camp Studio, all ages)

More Information:

• http://www4.smsd.org/timcoleman/html32214.htm - Credentials, experience, and other district information
• http://www4.smsd.org/timcoleman/html22172.htm - all about Mr. Coleman

PLEASE E-MAIL for cost and availability.

Coleman's Camp SUMMER 2014 - Goop!

• Making Goop from liquid starch and Elmer's Glue.  An easy to make and a bizarre substance to handle.  Kids were able to review measurement, ratio, and polymers.  The white Elmer's glue is a polymer called polyvinyl acetate.  When students mixed in the liquid borax to the glue, the molecules of the borax bind up the glue "strands" so that the glue no longer flows freely. The properties of this new substance are unlike the original glue or borax. The "goop" behaves in an unusual way; it has some characteristics of a liquid and some characteristics of a solid. Goop may remind you of a well known commercial product called Silly Putty. 

SUMMER 2014 - Coleman's Camp (NEW Wednesday session) and One-On-One Tutoring

(cross-posted with Smells Like Burning Army Men website)

Please read and pass along to anyone you feel might be interested!

Mr. Coleman, 2nd grade teacher at Prairie Elementary, will be offering two valuable learning opportunities during the 2013 summer. One-on-One Tutoring and my Coleman’s Camp Enrichment Program will both begin Monday, June 2nd, and run through Monday, July 21st. We meet at Corinth Library (81st and Mission Road). More detailed information is below:

One-on-One Tutoring:

I meet with student in Individualized one-hour sessions to maintain present skills during the summer and to prepare for the upcoming school year by addressing current academic and motivational/self-esteem struggles.  Shawnee Mission curriculum and materials are used, along with district and research-based intervention materials, all correlating to content students will see in the upcoming school year.  Frequently we work through the daily (or distributive) work from the first quarter.  This strategy ensures student comprehension, confidence, and skills are bolstered as concepts introduced to the class during the start of the year are already well practiced by the tutored student.  With parent permission, I can also meet with each student's teacher to collect test data, information on strengths and struggles, and learning goals.  Some of the specific skills I can focus on include:

·         Reading (phonics, decoding, comprehension, accuracy, motivation)

·         Math (computation, problem solving, accuracy)

·         Study skills and organization

·         Test preparation (classroom tests, basic skills, state assessments)

·         Writing skills (handwriting, sentence, paragraph and paper writing)

Summer 2014 Schedule for One-on-One Tutoring (1 hour sessions):

Tuesdays 11:00-3:00

Thursdays 11:00-3:00

Saturdays 1:00-3:00

Coleman’s Camp Enrichment Program:

Small groups of students meet as a specialized class to study, explore, and interact with their own learning process in highly individualized and personal ways.  The two-hour sessions aim toward mastery of grade-level curriculum taught in Shawnee Mission classrooms but also provide a pervasive environment and cross-pollination of wisdom, art, humor, music, and high quality endeavors.

Coleman’s Camp is an innovative tutoring and enrichment program utilizing a decade of classroom experience at nearly every grade level as well as training in administration, special education, and research-based practices to create a weekly enrichment and support camp for elementary-aged children.

Each session of Coleman's Camp has age guidelines to help facilitate age-appropriate focus and maximized benefit of learning experiences.  The Tuesday and Thursday sessions have similar themes, activities, and curriculum.  As such, students attend either the Tuesday sessions or the Thursday sessions, but not both.  In some cases, special arrangements can be made with Mr. Coleman for older students to be Peer-Leaders (example: an older student who attends the Tuesday session returns Thursday to help lead groups, provide examples, or teach parts of the lessons).  Such special arrangements should be reserved for highly motivated students wanting to take on leadership roles and increased responsibility.

Additionally, the Saturday session will be different in form and scope from the Tuesday and Thursday sessions.  These Saturday sessions are called Coleman's Camp Studio and will be an experience where kids work for a number of consecutive weeks to complete one in-depth project at a time.  These studio projects will be built around the passions of the students enrolled, and will push their natural skills, problem solving ability, and creative efforts to produce unique artifacts of significance and quality.  Coleman's Camp Studio will be limited to 10 students.  Projects might include multimedia presentations, artwork, service projects, inventions, engineering studies, plays, et cetera.  There is no specific age guidelines for Saturdays, but an adventurous attitude and willingness to make mistakes, grow, and experiment are important.

NEW THIS SUMMER!!  
Beginning Coleman's Camp Wednesday Nights

When new students join us in Coleman's Camp (on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays) there are dozens of amazing activities, projects, and learning adventures we have undertaken over the nearly 18 months since I started Coleman's Camp that these students miss out on.  An on-going frustration is that any attempt to go back and replicate earlier Coleman's Camp sessions means students who have been with me for any length of time are repeating activities.  Sometimes this is no issue as we can dig deeper or find new perspectives, but there MANY amazing sessions that work one or two times, especially if there are elements of discovery, surprise, or critical thinking exploration.

To encourage new kids to join Coleman's Camp and have them experience sessions that are otherwise done and gone, Wednesday nights will be Beginning Coleman's Camp!  I hope to have new students join me as we work our way through the most successful, enlightening, entertaining, and enriching sessions from the past 18 months.  If you are interested please ask for more information!  And please take a look at our website: http://colemanscamp.blogspot.com/

Summer 2014 Schedule for Coleman's Camp (2 hour sessions):

            Tuesdays 4:00-6:00 (for kids going into 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grade)
            Wednesdays 4:00-6:00 (for NEW kids looking to give Coleman's Camp a try)

            Thursdays 4:00-6:00 (for kids going into Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade)

            Saturdays 10:00-12:00 (Coleman's Camp Studio, all ages)

More Information:

• http://www4.smsd.org/timcoleman/html32214.htm - Credentials, experience, and other district information
• http://www4.smsd.org/timcoleman/html22172.htm - all about Mr. Coleman

PLEASE E-MAIL for cost and availability.

Coleman's Camp SPRING 2014 - Charting Taste Bud Locations

Students learned about the different regions or groupings of tastebud receptors on their tongues.  We created a number of water-based solutions to create testable flavors (regular coffee, chocolate, salt, sugar in the raw, coffee with vanilla, organic coco, and fun dip).  We used individual use cotton swabs to absorb a flavor and then dabbed different areas of our tongues.  After each taste the students would record their findings on a tongue sketch to find what section of their tongue had tastebuds for bitter, sweet, sour, and salty.  The best moments were bitter based!  Irony!

Coleman's Camp - SUMMER 2013

Coleman's Camp, 3rd week: TUESDAY AND THURSDAY

• Creating roller coaster tracks with cut strips of plumbing insulation
• Investigating momentum, slope, and energy of marbles traveling the track
• Introducing Kinetic and Potential Energy
• Problem solving challenges abound: 
• Gaining momentum without sending marble flying
• Creating a path for the marble to follow to take advantage of the momentum
• Joining tracks to each other and to tunnels, allowing for smooth transfer of marble to next section of roller coaster
• Placement of loops, drops, and banking turns to get as much distance and action out of marble

Coleman's Camp Studio, 3rd week: SATURDAY

• Getting to know new member to the group and sharing creativity in our homes, playtime, and with friends
• With several group members absent, students joined with other groups to offer help in working on projects
• Cutting and assembling prop of a home
• Finish a complete play using Toontasic app, including plot, characters, setting, and (most importantly) voices supplied by groups members and others interested in helping (link to video soon to be included here)

Coleman's Camp - SUMMER 2013

Coleman's Camp, 1st Week: TUESDAY and THURSDAY

• Getting to know you activities, discussion, and sharing
• Parts of a Microscope
• Human and Plant Cells, including introductory video
• Parts of Cells
• Cloning
• Nature walk to find samples to examine Cells
• Mushrooms, Blades of Grass, Insects, Lizard Skin, $10 bill, Human Blood, Berries, and Leaves
• Preparing Slides
• Drawings of magnified Cells
• Feeding and observation of Bearded Dragon, Lightning Bolt

Coleman's Camp Studio, 1st Week: SATURDAY

• Getting to know you discussion, including Three Truths and a Lie game
• Explanation of how Studio will be different from regular Coleman's Camp sessions
• Longer Projects lasting several weeks
• Emphasis on brainstorming, development of ideas, and taking our work to a final project or activity
• Mapping out themes that students are interested in studying
• Students selecting groups to work in
• Initial planning of projects, including scripts, character creation, and 
• Creating supply list of materials needed for each group
• Sustained and focused work time  

Coleman's Camp - Weekly Journal Entry: 3/4/2013

Week of 3-4: This week it was time for the Thursday group to revisit and re-explore a previous Coleman's Camp session, dry ice!  They took their previous investigations of dry ice and were able to replicate experiments and manipulate the variables they now understand.  They could vary the temperature of the water, use the liquid dish soap more sparingly, and knew how to get the empty 35mm film canisters to explode with maximum force!  Everyone had certain attributes of dry ice they wanted to focus on, and we took many photographs of their results.  The Saturday group created bases, lairs, jet backpacks, and other buildings from basic cardboard boxes.  We learned how to utilize our creativity and imagination to take boxes and transform them into accessories for the types of toys each kid plays with at home.  Some wanted a car bay for storing Hot Wheels; others wanted a Batman type base for action figures.  We worked to primarily use the boxes and any pieces cut from them to make doors, windows, ceiling pieces, walls, walkways, etc.  We then used a glue gun and paint to finish off the boxes.  My son Beckett brought in toys from our van and kids were able to test out their creations in imaginative play.

Coleman's Camp - Weekly Journal Entry: 2/25/2013

Week of 2-25: My Thursday group returned this week after the snow cancellation last week to work on their tessellations.  In finishing the projects the kids are able to see the effect of a repeating, interlocking pattern.  The colors are designs used by the kids are vivid and eye-catching.  The Thursday and Saturday groups both used the recent heavy snows to explore three-dimensional cubes.  My wife had seen a news report explaining that the recent snow fall was particularly heavy, with a cubic foot of the snow weighing approximately 20 pounds!  Both the Thursday and Saturday kids were challenged to build an actual cubic foot using rulers and scotch tape.  They formed groups, had to select their supplies, and then work as a team to build the cubes.  Different strategies were used, with some groups all working on one section at a time while others divided the work of making squares and then joining them later.  The placement of the tape at the vertices (or corners) was crucial.  After kids finished their cubic feet we reviewed the difference between the metric system and the US (standard system) or measurement.  Kids were then challenged to compete against another team to use their newly acquired learning to build a cubic meter.  Finally, kids looked at approximately how many cubic feet would fit into the cubic meter, noting that since we were dealing with two measurement systems there would be "extra space."  The kids loved the activities and the hands-on project!

Coleman's Camp - Weekly Journal Enrty: 2/4/2013

Week of 2-4: This week it was the Thursday group students who were able to experiment with dry-ice.  They observed sublimation in action, created the eerie fog with warm water, and created many bizarre and alarming sounds with different types of metal items pressed against the dry-ice.  We discussed the hazards of dry-ice inhalation as well as the effects of rapid and extreme freezing of human skin when in direct contact with the sub-zero material.  The kids were especially excited by the use of 36mm film canisters that, when filled with dry-ice and capped, would build pressure as the dry-ice sublimated until the lid would explode off, usually hitting the ceiling.  I am sure the library patrons were alarmed at any screams they could overhear, it was amazing!  We also mixed in dish detergent and created dry-ice bubbles that looked like ever-expanding masses of brains or worms.  When grabbed or picked up and squeezed, the bubbles would burst leaving small clouds, a peculiar effect.  The Saturday group created Valentine's Day cards for parents, practicing brainstorming, reflective and authentic writing, rough draft correction and editing, and then writing the final nice copy.  The kids assembled a foam dog and added unique details.  The notes to their parents told of their favorite activities to do with their family.  The finished products looked fantastic!