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KLRN Educator Resources | August 2024

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by
Ian Cruz
• Published on
Cartoon image of Daniel Tiger and friends standing in front of a blackboard in a classroom
KLRN Education

Dear Friends,

Welcome back! We hope you had a wonderful summer! To start the school year (and to keep it going strong), we are talking about civic engagement, and all the ways each one of us is an important part of the community. Everyone has a part to play, and we can all make a positive difference in our community. There are so many ways to help! Where to start? Let’s get inspiration from our friends in PBS Kids! 

Our friends at Texas PBS have built a collection of resources about conservation for Texas teachers. Check out the collection of Texas Conservation Lesson Plans Available Now in PBS LearningMedia. Texas is home to some of the most unique wildlife, people and places in the nation. A new partnership between Texas PBS stations and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) showcases what we can all do to Take Care of Texas. Teachers are invited to take the pledge to make our state's unique resources available to the next generation. Texas PBS and TCEQ are teaming up to build more awareness of important ways we can all protect and conserve what’s unique about Texas. This new collection of free lesson plans and student worksheets designed to spark activities, lessons and discussions about conservation. Topics include air, water, and waste conservation tactics and strategies. The collection will use insights and data from TCEQ researchers and science experts. The Texas environmental collection is intended for K-12 classroom teachers, informal educators, and parents who are looking for science-based educational learning materials.
 

Educator Trainings from KLRN

We at KLRN invite you to join us for our August educator sessions which, as always, are free of charge and offer continuing education credit. Two of this month’s sessions, in Saturday, 08/03 and Saturday, 08/17, will be in-person at KLRN at 501 Broadway, San Antonio, TX 78215. 

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IN-PERSON: Saturday, 8/03: (from 9am-12pm): KLRN Educator Session: Part 1: Ready to Learn and Healthy Kids Project: Everyday Health: Balancing Movement and Rest: Join KLRN for part 1 of a two-part series, where we will explore high-quality educational media and resources with tips for staying active, and balancing play and rest. In addition to sharing fun activities and lessons from The Healthy Kids Project and PBS Kids Ready to Learn, we will be joined by our special guest Johana Hernandez, yoga instructor, teacher, and author.Thank you to the San Antonio Medical Foundation and Firstmark for supporting this event. 3 hours of continuing education credit will be awarded upon completion of the session and accompanying post survey. Please note: this session is in-person at KLRN at 501 Broadway, San Antonio, TX 78215. 

 

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VIRTUAL: Wednesday, 08/07: (from 6-8pm): KLRN Educator Session: Part 2: Ready to Learn and Healthy Kids Project: Prioritizing Self-Care for All Ages: Join KLRN for part 2 of a three-part series, where we will learn about the importance of everyday self-care, including practicing healthy habits like good hygiene habits and being kind to ourselves, and building routines and schedules which include time for relaxation, self-expression, and hobbies. Thank you to the San Antonio Medical Foundation and Firstmark for supporting this event. 2 hours of continuing education credit will be awarded upon completion of the session and accompanying post survey. Please note: this session is virtual. 

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82453015803?pwd=5eQUVcvUvUb73zkWbitRCHxeTswRlb.1
Meeting ID: 824 5301 5803 Passcode: 217938
 

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IN-PERSON: Saturday, 8/17: (from 9am-12pm): KLRN Educator Session: Part 3: Ready to Learn and Healthy Kids Project: Everyday Health: Join KLRN for part 3 of a three-part series, we will explore high-quality educational media and resources with recipes for healthy snacks, tips for staying hydrated, and we will even get to prepare some healthy goodies, too! These high-quality, free, and easy-to-use educational  resources come from The Healthy Kids Project and PBS Kids Ready to Learn. Thank you to the San Antonio Medical Foundation and Firstmark for supporting this event. 3 hours of continuing education credit will be awarded upon completion of the session and accompanying post survey. Please note: this session is in-person at KLRN at 501 Broadway, San Antonio, TX 78215.


 

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VIRTUAL: Thursday, 08/22: (from 6-7pm): KLRN Educator Session: You, Me, and Community! Civic Engagement in the New School Year with PBS: Join KLRN to learn about how to use free educational resources for starting the new school year! We will share tips for promoting civic engagement,  staying focused, calm, and for enjoying the learning adventure! This session is open to educators of all grade levels, and families are welcome to join, too! Thank you to Firstmark for supporting this event. 1 hour of continuing education credit will be awarded upon completion of the session and accompanying post survey.

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81626059439?pwd=aU9yRlA3S3ltZXFKNjF4VCtRT0Fsdz09
Meeting ID: 816 2605 9439 Passcode: 418842

 

Please visit https://www.klrn.org/events/ to learn more and to register for any (or all!) of these sessions. Thank you to the San Antonio Medical Foundation and Firstmark Credit Union for generously supporting KLRN’s Educator Sessions. 
 

Recommended PBS LearningMedia Resources for August:

Some highlighted PBS Learning Media collections and resources we recommend this month are:  

Cyberchase (Grades PreK-2) This collection features a variety of resources designed to spark curiosity and boost math & problem-solving skills. Each resource integrates the fun and adventure of the animated series Cyberchase with practical math strategies for elementary and middle school students. Students will join the CyberSquad in exploring mathematical concepts, from basic numbers and operations to more complex topics like algebra and data analysis.

Alma’s Way (Grades PreK-2) ALMA’S WAY follows 6-year-old Alma Rivera, a proud, confident Puerto Rican girl who lives in the Bronx with her family among a diverse group of close-knit friends and community members. In every episode, ALMA’S WAY aims to model self-awareness, self-advocacy, social awareness, cultural competency and responsible decision-making—encouraging kids to generate and value their own ideas and questions. ALMA’S WAY celebrates and explores the thinking process—Alma’s “way” is to think things through! As she shares her observations and feelings and works through challenges, she speaks directly to young viewers, offering them a window into her everyday life.

Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood (Grades PreK-2) Social-emotional development and academic success are much more related than many people think. We often hear talk about the academic curriculum or the social-emotional approach to early education as if these are two separate things. Research tells us that for children to be successful in school, they must be mentally healthy and they must have good interpersonal skills. Emotional development skills include the ability to regulate behavior, to manage feelings, to feel competent in completing tasks, and confident in trying new things. To help boost these invaluable skills among preschoolers, each episode of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood consists of two engaging stories that center on a common early learning theme with catchy, musical strategies that reinforce each theme and that preschoolers and adults will both sing – and use! – together in their daily lives.

Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum (Grades K-2) Engage students with Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum, a PBS KIDS series based on the Ordinary People Change the World books by Brad Meltzer and Christopher Eliopoulos. The show follows the adventures of Xavier Riddle, his sister Yadina, and their friend Brad as they travel back in time to meet real life historical figures when they were kids. These video clips, teaching tips, and historical figure biosketches can support students’ social-emotional, literacy, and social studies skills.

KLRN’s The Healthy Kids Project (Grades PreK-2): The Healthy Kids Project uses song, movement, and animation in ten engaging lessons that support healthy choices and attitudes--teaching not only successful actions (limiting refined sugar, choosing water as a beverage, choosing fresh foods over processed foods), but also successful strategies (valuing the body, not letting past mistakes impede future success, taking one step at a time toward a goal, helping others to make good choices.) Each lesson contains a 60-second video and is accompanied by an overview, lesson plan and student activity. It’s a turnkey kit for teachers to impart critical life lessons about health, without taking time away from core subjects.

Watt Watchers (All Grades): Watt Watchers is a state-sponsored STEM program to help boost energy literacy for K-12 students and help schools save money by saving energy. Through the program, students, teachers, and families will have access to energy saving tips, activities, and lessons. Launched in 1985, Watt Watchers is an updated resource that builds upon the original beloved program and provides a modern look at energy, sustainability and conservation.

On PBS Learning Media, you can find thousands of high-quality educational resources for all grade levels for free! Setting up an account is easy to do (and completely free!) Visit https://klrn.pbslearningmedia.org/ to sign up today to get access to any of the over 30,000 state standards-aligned educational resources for free! Here is a short video tutorial that explains how in a few quick steps, you can create an account and create class rosters, too. 

 

As always, at the bottom of this post, you will find a list of links of organizations, both local and nationally, that provide mental health resources. Please know that you are important and you make the world a nicer place. Thank you for being you. Reach out to us anytime at education@klrn.org. 

With appreciation,

KLRN Education Team


 

Mental Health Resources

If you or someone you know is hurting or in crisis, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline