Tips for Teachers
by Eleanor Lamont, Teacher
Somerset School
Kinkora, P.E.I.

Each November the grade 4 class at Somerset School, in Kinkora, celebrates L.M. Montgomery Month. The following is a listing of some of the activities that have proven worthwhile with the students.

The class reads Anne of Green Gables in a children's abridged format. We then discuss and respond to the novel through questions and written responses.

We learn about L.M. Montgomery's life through Fact a Day (see Somerset School Website) where each student ends up with a mini biography of L.M. Montgomery.

As Montgomery often used cats as a personal logo when signing her name the students do an art activity where they design their own logo (view examples) to use when signing their names.

We create a bulletin board that we call L.M. Montgomery said… illustrated by Grade 4. Each student is given a Montgomery quote about weather and the month of November that they put on their paper and then illustrate. This activity is very popular with the students and gives them a real sense of ownership of Montgomery's works.

We also learn the words and tune to the Island Hymn.

We have created crossword puzzles and word searches as well as math problems all using dates and facts from Montgomery's life. A selection of these may be seen on our school Website; www.edu.pe.ca/somerset/gr4lucymaud/title.htm.

Our Montgomery study ends with field trip to Cavendish on November 30, if possible, to celebrate Montgomery's birthday. While in Cavendish we visit the Site of L.M. Montgomery's Cavendish Home and Green Gables House. Mr. and Mrs. John Macneill tour us around their charming site and provide much information about Montgomery. We walk from there to the Cavendish Cemetery, where we visit Montgomery's grave and are met by a Parks Canada interpreter. We then walk through the Haunted Woods to Green Gables House to tour the house and grounds there. This day has proven to be a popular and worthwhile culmination to our Montgomery study.