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Awesome October!
By Sandy Fleming

October is traditionally a month of harvest. Farmers in many areas of our country are busy bringing in crops, and many fall fruits are being picked and enjoyed. Apples, grapes, pumpkins and squash are all in season to enjoy. October is also Computer Learning Month. If you are unable to access a computer at home, try your local library or school. October is also National Popcorn Poppin' Month. Popcorn can be grand fun just to make and eat, or brainstorm other ways to use it; it makes wonderful packing material and also can be used for art projects! What can be done with the unpopped kernels? What makes it pop in the first place?

October 1 marks the beginning of free rural mail delivery in the United States in 1896! To honor this day, send a few letters to friends or relatives. It's so much fun to receive mail, you may want to consider getting a pen pal for your child. Have a contest on October 2; it's Name Your Car Day! See who can come up with the most descriptive or creative name for the car.

October 5 marks the National Storytelling Festival. Celebrate by telling or reading old favorites and brand new stories. Your librarian will have loads of suggestions if you need them. October 6 is a great time to celebrate creativity and inventiveness; it's George Westinghouse's birthday! Use an encyclopedia or other reference book to discover what this inventor was responsible for. October 11 is a great day to celebrate together for It's My Party Day! Why not plan a party "just because" to celebrate? Be creative! Choose a theme that the kids will enjoy and plan games, activities, snacks and decorations. Or better yet, let them in on the fun and have them help with the planning as far as they are able. You set the guidelines, rules, budget, and guest numbers, and then let them take over.

It's a great learning experience and it will help them appreciate all of the work that goes into planning a successful event. The cornerstone of the White House was laid on October 13, 1792. If you send a request to the Capitol, you can receive an interesting packet of information for children. The address is 1600 Pennsylvania Blvd., Washington, DC.

Poet e.e. cummings was born on October 14, 1894. You can use this opportunity to enjoy some of his poetry. Children often find it interesting because he used few, if any, capital letters. Franz Liszt, the Hungarian composer, was born on October 22, 1811. Check the library or bookstore for some of his work and play it today! October 24 marks the day that the first transcontinental telegram was sent in 1861. Did you know that there are no longer any telegraph lines remaining in service in our country?

Your children may enjoy trying to write telegraph messages. Give them a story or a full message and see who can condense it to the fewest number of words while still keeping the message intact. Don't forget to use "stop" instead of periods! This activity is wonderful practice for concise wording and summarizing, which are both important writing and comprehension skills. Many reference books contain Morse Code, which was used to send telegraphs. Can your children translate their messages into Morse Code? Older children can also be sent on a quest to discover how the telegraph changed our way of life. What machines have made telegraphs obsolete, and why?

Finally, October 28 is a GREAT day! It's Plush Animal Lover's Day! Nearly everyone has a stuffed animal that they enjoy. You can plan a party to show off stuffed friends to celebrate. How about having the animals act as puppets in a play? Older kids may enjoy discovering information about the animals represented by their stuffed pals or taking a survey of friends and family to see which kinds of stuffed animals are most popular.

Have a great month!

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Sandy Fleming is an educator, author and workshop facilitator. She resides in southern Michigan with her husband and three daughters. Sandy leads workshops for daycare providers and parents in the region, tutors students, volunteers for Girl Scouts and her church, and teaches online classes for adults and children. She loves to make new friends, so please drop her an e-mail at kids@busyparentsonline.com

 
 
 
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