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From the smallest personal beginnings to the largest human triumphs, why are we here if not to dream? Dreams and goals shape children's lives and motivate them to
learn.
Principals, teachers, and parents play a critical role in helping young people discover who they are and encouraging their dreams and goals. The beginning and end of the school year are ideal times to focus on dreams and goals. Here's an activity set for starting and ending the school year right.
Dreams are important for all ages. Dreams encompass goals and more. They give your life purpose, direction, and meaning. They shape your life choices, help you build toward the future, and give you a sense of control and hope. They're an expression of your potential and give voice to your talents. They're a source of pleasure and help develop the self. And they can change the world – just think of those famous words from Martin Luther King, Jr., "I have a dream!" Dreamers are the ones who have the courage and creativity to see beyond "what is" to "what can be" to make a difference in their own life and the lives of others.
The end of the school year in particular is a milestone that deserves to be recognized, whether a student is graduating from college or grade school. Milestones are those moments in our life when our personal star shines a little more brightly. They mark the passage of time and our progress in the journey of life. It's important to help children develop a sense of time and where they are in their life, as well as celebrate their accomplishments. As a life milestone, graduation is an appropriate time to do that.
On the other hand, just as Spring is a time for new growth in nature, Fall is a time for new growth in education. The beginning of the school year is a fresh start – a time to build on what you've already learned, and get past any challenges you faced during the last school year. To set a positive tone for the school year and help young people develop important skills, it's valuable to encourage students to think about their future and set goals they can work toward throughout the year.
Read Dream
Stories inform, entertain, and inspire all ages. They can be both memorable and meaningful. The picture book format is a particularly powerful, effective art form for all ages. The best way to communicate a complex idea is to identify the core messages and then combine words and images to reach the left and right brain. A picture book does just that. You can use Dream by Susan V. Bosak from elementary to high school. The book offers something different to students of different ages.
Dream is a popular graduation gift and end-of-school read. Many schools read Dream aloud during their graduation ceremonies – it takes about 10 minutes. The Dream CD allows you to project the illustrations at the front to create a special multimedia experience for students and their families.
Looking for a new way to welcome students to a new school year and inspire both teachers and students? Dream is also a popular beginning-of-school read (use the Dream CD for presenting to a group) and many schools use the book as a year-long theme.
Dream isn't a book you just read. It's a map to life, a book you can use as a springboard for thought and exploration. It
has won 11 national awards, including an International Reading Association Children's Choice (10,000 students read and vote on the books they like best) and a Teachers' Choice. It's illustrated by 15 top children's illustrators – from two-time Caldecott Medal winners Leo and Diane Dillon to Hans Christian Anderson Medal winner Robert Ingpen.
Says The Bloomsbury Review, "This elegant book depicts the journey of life – from infancy to older adulthood – highlighting all the hopes and dreams found along the way... Inspirational quotes from people such as Martin Luther King Jr, Sir Edmund Hillary, and Emily Dickinson are set alongside gorgeous illustrations by internationally acclaimed artists. Richly crafted and thoughtfully written, Dream is a dazzling project that challenges us to find a dream and follow it."
Each illustrator has hidden a star in their illustration. As a classroom activity, after reading the book have students hunt for the stars – and make a new wish with each one they find. This is a great way to start students thinking about and sharing their dreams and goals.
There are more reading ideas in How to Read Dream and, for very young children, How to Make Storytime a Dream.
Activities and Lessons
Young people, starting in elementary school and particularly in middle and high school, need to develop a sense of time and place in their life course. Looking forward is a chance for students to build on what they've learned and explore exciting new possibilities. Celebrating the moment – a step taken or a goal achieved – gives students a chance to feel a sense of pride and accomplishment. Looking back gives students a chance to review and reflect on what they've learned.
These activity and lesson ideas are ideal for starting and ending the school year. Some are appropriate for elementary grades, some for middle, some for high school, and many can be adapted up or down. Help students celebrate where they've been while building toward their future – whether it's the next school year or the next step in their life...
Club of Dreamers
Look Back, Look Forward
Star Highlights
Celebrate Certificate
My Dream
Different Dreams
Dream Stars
Learn to Dream
Goal Letter
Hallway of Dreams
Dream On a Star
The Next Page
Life Line
What's Next?
Life List
Dream Reading List
Ladder to the Stars
Dream Tree
Believe, Do, Think
Dreamer Profile
Climb the Mountain
Goal-Busters and Goal-Getters
From Gray to Green
Plan a Life
Your Dream Chest
Dream Time
Give a Compliment
Dream Flags
Wishing Wands
There are more LifeDreams activities you can use throughout the school year with connections to literacy, art, social studies, career planning, character education, gifted and ESL programs, and more. Check out our popular annual Listen to a Life Essay Contest which helps young people learn about real life from the real people around them. And a Dream Discovery school visit with author Susan V. Bosak has the new Dream Chain that's linking schools across the country in a special and meaningful way.
As the last page in Dream reminds us:
Look up, up, up
into those billion billion sparkling stars.
What dreams do you find?
Little dreams, big dreams,
each a hope looking for a life to make it real –
a life like yours.
Graduation Gifts
Your daughter, grandson, niece, neighbor, or your senior class of students is graduating. To mark this milestone, you want a memorable, distinctive gift that will mean something as the years pass. Some graduates receive two or three copies of the Dr. Seuss standard Oh, The Places You'll Go. Dream is a perfect new alternative. Discounts are available for quantity school purchases
(e-mail us for more information).
Check out the Legacy Project's graduation article to get more ideas for meaningful gifts for graduates from elementary school to college.
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