May Day Activities for Grades 1-3

Each May, schools across the globe celebrate spring on May Day (May 1). This holiday has been celebrated for thousands of years, and traditions include giving flowers, singing, and dancing around a Maypole. Celebrate the arrival of spring by providing your students with a few of these festive May Day activities. Maypole May Day is often celebrated with a Maypole dance. This popular custom includes weaving ribbons around a pole. To create your own Maypole have students take turns wrapping ribbon (or crepe paper) around a pole. Have two students walk around the pole in opposite directions weaving the ribbon in and out. Once students get the hang of it, play some music and allow them to skip, or dance around the pole as they weave the ribbon. To unwind the ribbon have students reverse their direction. Continue this process until all of the students have had a turn. For additional fun, decorate the top of the Maypole with flowers and have students sing the Maypole song. Maypole Song Here we go around the pole,Round the pole,Round the pole,Here we go around the poleOn the first day of May.(Students name) goes around the pole,Round the pole,Round the pole,(Students name) goes around the poleOn the first day of May. May Baskets Another popular May Day custom is to create a May Day basket. These baskets are filled with candy and flowers and left on the doorstep of a friends home. Back in the day, children would make a basket and leave it on the front porch or the doorknob of a friends home, then they would ring the doorbell and quickly leave without being seen. To renew this fun custom with your students have each child create a basket for a classmate. Materials: Coffee filtersWatercolor markersWater (spray bottle with water)TapeScissorsTissue paper Steps: Have students decorate the coffee filter with the markers, then spray the filter with water so the color bleeds. Set aside to dry.Alternate different color tissue paper (about 3-6) and fold in half twice, then trim the edge, rounding the corners so it almost looks like a triangle.Poke a hole into the point of the tissue paper and secure a pipe cleaner. Then start unfolding the paper to create a petal.Once the basket is dry and the flowers are made, place each flower into the basket. May Day Hoops On May Day young girls would often decorate a wooden hoop with spring flowers and compete in a contest to see who had the best-looking hoop. To re-create this May Day custom, have students partner up and decorate a hula-hoop. Provide students with art supplies, such as ribbon, flowers, crepe paper, yarn, feathers, felt, and markers. Have students decorate the hoop as they wish. Be sure to encourage students to be creative and use their imaginations. May Day Writing Prompts Here are a few May Day writing prompts to encourage your students to think about May Day traditions and customs. What is your favorite May Day tradition or custom?What would you put in your May Day basket?What kinds of games would you play on May Day?How would you decorate a Maypole, give details?Who would you like to leave you a basket, and why? May Day Stories Explore May Day even further by reading a few of these stories to your students on May Day. On the Morn of Mayfest written by Erica SilvermanLittle Grey Rabbits May Day written by Allison UttleyThe Rainbow Tulip  written by Pat MoraQueen of the May  written by Steven Kroll

Battle of Molino del Rey in the Mexican-American War

The Battle of Molino del Rey was fought September 8, 1847, during the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). Having advanced inland from Veracruz and won several victories, Major General Winfield Scotts American army approached Mexico City. Learning of Mexican forces in a mill complex known as the Molino del Rey, Scott ordered an attack to capture the facilities as intelligence suggested they were being used to cast cannon. Moving forward, troops led by  Major General William J. Worth assaulted the Molino del Rey and the nearby Casa de Mata. In the resulting fighting, both positions were captured, but American losses proved high. A somewhat Pyrrhic victory for Scott, no evidence was found that cannon were being manufactured in the facility. Background Though Major General Zachary Taylor had won a series of victories at Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, and Monterrey, President James K. Polk elected to shift the focus of American efforts from northern Mexico to a campaign against Mexico City. Though this was largely due to Polks concerns about Taylors political ambitions, it was also supported by reports that an advance against the enemy capital from the north would be exceptionally difficult. As a result, a new army was created under Major General Winfield Scott and ordered to capture the key port city of Veracruz. Landing on March 9, 1847, Scotts men moved against the city and captured it after a twenty-day siege. Building a major base at Veracruz, Scott began making preparations to advance inland before yellow fever season arrived. Moving inland, Scott routed the Mexicans, led by General Antonio Là ³pez de Santa Anna, at Cerro Gordo the following month. Driving towards Mexico City, he won battles at Contreras and Churubusco in August 1847. Nearing the gates of the city, Scott entered into a truce with Santa Anna in the hopes of ending the war. The subsequent negotiations proved futile and the truce was marred by numerous violations on the part of the Mexicans. Ending the truce in early September, Scott began making preparations for assaulting Mexico City. As this work moved forward, he received word on September 7 that a large Mexican force had occupied the Molino del Rey. The Kings Mill Located southwest of Mexico City, the Molino del Rey (Kings Mill) consisted of a series stone buildings that once had housed flour and gunpowder mills. To the northeast, through some woods, the castle of Chapultepec towered over the area while to the west stood the fortified position of Casa de Mata. Scotts intelligence reports also suggested that the Molino was being used to cast cannon from church bells sent down from the city. As the bulk of his army would not be ready to assault Mexico City for several days, Scott determined to conduct a minor action against the Molino in the meantime. For the operation, he selected Major General William J. Worths division which was located at nearby Tacubaya. Plans Aware of Scotts intentions, Santa Anna ordered five brigades, supported by artillery, to defend the Molino and Casa de Mata. These were overseen by Brigadier Generals Antonio Leon and Francisco Perez. To the west, he stationed around 4,000 cavalry under General Juan Alvarez with the hope of striking the American flank. Forming his men before dawn on September 8, Worth intended to spearhead his attack with a 500-man storming party led by Major George Wright. In the center of his line, Worth placed Colonel James Duncans battery with orders to reduce the Molino and eliminate the enemy artillery. To the right, Brigadier General John Garlands brigade, supported by Hugers Battery, had orders to block potential reinforcements from Chapultepec before striking the Molino from the east. Brigadier General Newman Clarkes brigade (temporarily led by Lieutenant Colonel James S. McIntosh) was directed to move west and assault the Casa de Mata. Armies Commanders United States Major General Winfield ScottMajor General William J. Worth3,500 men Mexico Brigadier General Antonio LeonBrigadier General Francisco Perezapprox. 14,000 men in the area The Attack Begins As the infantry moved forward, a force of 270 dragoons, led by Major Edwin V. Sumner, screened the American left flank. To aid in operation, Scott assigned Brigadier General George Cadwalladers brigade to Worth as a reserve. At 3:00 AM, Worths division began advancing guided by scouts James Mason and James Duncan. Though the Mexican position was strong, it was undermined by the fact that Santa Anna had not placed anyone in overall command of its defense. As American artillery pounded the Molino, Wrights party charged forward. Attacking under heavy fire, they succeeded in overrunning the enemy lines outside the Molino. Turning the Mexican artillery on the defenders, they soon came under heavy counterattacks as the enemy realized that the American force was small (Map). A Bloody Victory In the resulting fighting, the storming party lost eleven of fourteen officers, including Wright. With this thrust faltering, Garlands brigade swept in from the east. In bitter fighting they managed to drive off the Mexicans and secure the Molino. Haven taken this objective, Worth ordered his artillery to shift their fire to the Casa de Mata and directed McIntosh to attack. Advancing, McIntosh quickly found that the Casa was a stone fortress and not an earthen fort as originally believed. Surrounding the Mexican position, the Americans attacked and were repulsed. Briefly withdrawing, the Americans witnessed Mexican troops sortie from the Casa and kill nearby wounded soldiers. With the battle at the Casa de Mata progressing, Worth was alerted to Alvarezs presence to across a ravine to the west. Fire from Duncans guns kept the Mexican cavalry at bay and Sumners small force crossed the ravine to provide further protection. Though artillery fire was slowly reducing the Casa de Mata, Worth directed McIntosh to attack again. In the resulting assault, McIntosh was killed as was his replacement. A third brigade commander was severely wounded. Again falling back, the Americans allowed Duncans guns to do their work and the garrison abandoned the post a short time later. With the Mexican retreat, the battle ended. Aftermath Though it lasted only two hours, the Battle of Molino del Rey proved one of the bloodiest of the conflict. American casualties numbered 116 killed and 671 wounded, including several senior officers. Mexican losses totaled 269 killed as well as approximately 500 wounded and 852 captured. In the wake of the battle, no evidence was found that the Molino del Rey was being used as a cannon foundry. Though Scott ultimately gained little from the Battle of Molino del Rey, it did serve as another blow to the already low Mexican morale. Forming his army over the coming days, Scott attacked Mexico City on September 13. Winning the Battle of Chapultepec, he captured the city and effectively won the war.

Restructuring Human Resource Management Essay - 657 Words

Hewlett-Packard (HP) company is the world’s one of the leading computer manufacturer founded by Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard in 1939. Their first product was an audio oscillator named HP model 200A. In 1966, HP introduced the world’s first go-anywhere and do-anything computer called HP2116A and the world’s first desktop scientific calculator was also invented by HP in 1968. HP is one of the very successful computer manufacturer till date and it has been ranked 15th in the Fortune 500 magazine for the year 2013. Restructuring comes in various forms; it may be due to excessive growth of the company or the massive decline in revenue of the company. Downsizing, Plant closures, mergers and acquisitions are some of the common reasons for†¦show more content†¦HP is going through a mass downsizing and one of the reasons that many companies survive is because of the effective human resource system. Therefore, HR plays an important role during the restructuring o f the company. They are involved from planning to implement the strategy effectively. The first major role that HR has is to implement an effective planning strategy. Obilade (2009) states that â€Å"Some of the HR activities that need to be involved in a properly implemented downsizing project/ program include planning and analysis, HR development, staffing, and compensation and benefit† (p. 20). Downsizing has many hidden costs such as severance and rehiring costs, pension and benefit payouts, loss of institutional memory, lack of staffers when the economy rebounds, and so on. Human resource staffs need to carefully analyze the costs that would be incurred during restructuring of the company. It is estimated that the total cost of restructuring for HP will be about USD 3.6 billion in severance and other charges. Many workers have been laid off during past year and HP continues the process until the fiscal year 2014. 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Lego Case Study free essay sample

1. How did the information systems and the organization design changes implemented by Knudstorp align with the changes in business strategy? Knudstorp changed the business strategy by reforming the production, supply chain and various other departments. This mandated that the supporting Information Systems be changed. Also, the company’s expansion into newer technological domains such as virtual interaction games and video games forced the company to use advanced technologies for their Information Systems. Lego implemented an enterprise architecture using software package SAP, which enabled them to modularize and standardize the information systems architecture. Two most important modules for Lego are Supply Chain management and Product Life Cycle Management. So, the new SAP implementation of these modules perfectly aligned with the changed business strategy. Knudstorp also made a drastic change in the organizational structure of the company. Lego switched its employee pay structure, offering incentives for appropriate product innovation and sales. This aligns with the business strategy of expanding business through innovation and creativity. We will write a custom essay sample on Lego Case Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 2. Which of the generic strategies does Lego appear to be using based on this case? Provide support for your choice. There are three kinds of strategies Lego used, they are 1. Business Strategy 2. Organizational Stategy 3. Information Systems Strategy. Lego’s new Business Strategy of embracing the newer technologies and expansion into newer domains is evident in its involvement in Hollywood and entering into video games and virtual-interaction games markets. Also the new strategy is to change the target customers of the Lego products. In order to align with the Business Strategy Lego also made drastic changes to its organizational structure. It made changes to employee pay structure in a way to improve innovation and creativity. Another most important change is made to the production process. The development time has been reduced almost 50%. These changes improved the production of the products and the company started to grow again. This growth forced the company to change its Information Systems strategy. In order to cater needs of each modules of their business Lego implemented modularized Enterprise architecture collaborating with IT giants such as IBM and SAP. 3. Are the changes implemented by Knudstorp an indication of hypercompetition? Defend your position. The changes implemented by Knudstorp indicate a hypercompetition. Lego’s changes in business strategy, organizational strategy and IS strategy are very drastic. The speed with which it embraced the current market trends and current technologies 4. What advice would you give Knudstorp to keep Lego competitive, growing, and relevant? Lego Case Study free essay sample 1. There are three different key characteristics which are fundamental for Strategic Management. The first key characteristic is the understanding of the strategic position of an organization, followed by the strategic choices for the future and turning strategy into action. Beginning with strategic position the LEGO group faced different objectives which influenced the development of strategy. The level of technology and preferences concerning materials changed over the time and the company was able to found a niche market for LEGO movies and created new innovations like plastic bricks. Also like in all markets the internationalization has affected the strategy of the company. They entered new markets, opened markets in South America, the US and Asia and negotiated with retailers over there. Apart from opportunities, threats which were the oil crisis, financial crisis, competitors and the development of customers need, LEGO needed to react and change or chose different strategies. While the oil and financial crisis occurred, LEGO invested money in new equipment, entered new markets and launched new products. We will write a custom essay sample on Lego Case Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page For that reason they were able to overcome these difficulties at that time. Moreover they changed their traditional strategy which included their wooden toys to an innovative strategy with plastic bricks and electronic features to adapt themselves to the ‘new’ age. Also the competitors were a reason for them to develop their strategy. To stay competitive LEGO for example hired the young innovative CEO JØrgen Vig Knudstorp and sold the LEGO theme park to Merlin Entertainments Group to be able to focus on their core product. Within their strategic management the company was always willing to take risk which is until now one of their strength. Moreover the popularity of their company and the popularity of movies like Star Wars helped them to create new products and to develop their strategy in a more modern way through conquering partly the movie industry. On the other hand they had weaknesses concerning the often changing management strategy. First they went from the centralized management to decentralized management where a number of senior and long serving managers left. This also led to difficulties in financial control. Moreover when they changed their traditional wooden toys to the now famous plastic bricks and other features they did not know at that point if this new way will be accepted by the customers. The last point under strategic position is the purpose and the culture. During the development of strategy  the main purpose was to entertain children but most of all to stay profitable and to keep production and main operations in Denmark. The second key characteristic is the strategic choices. In the begging their key business was toys for children whereby after a time they created LEGO theme parks. After recognizing that it is the better strategy to focus on their main business they sold it to an entertainment group. To stay competitive it was also necessary to go international, entered new markets, form alliances (e.g. Warner Bros) and launch new products to keep their growth rate up. The strategy to steadily develop innovations and not to stay with the traditional products is still part of their company. The third key characteristic of strategic management is to put strategy into action. The LEGO Group always reacted quickly concerning environmental changes. One example is that at the time the customer demanded products which fit into the ‘new’ age they invented small electronic engines and other technical features. 2. There are several external environmental aspects which influenced the strategic development of the LEGO Group. The first external feature is the oil crisis which has affected the world economy negatively. Instead of choosing a cost cutting strategy they counteracted with the introduction of new innovative products like LEGO Technic, play themes like LEGO Castle and LEGO Cowboys. Furthermore they conquered new markets in South America, the US and Asia. With this they were able to grow international wide and overcome the oil crisis. The competition is another feature of the external environment which has influenced their strategy. Bigger companies entered the sector with advanced electronic games. Thus they needed to reconsider their traditional strategy which included their traditional brick. Even if they introduced a ‘Fitness’ programme to cut costs and restructure, the company just shortly made profit. External features like the rapid change of the environment, difficulties in financial control and logistics and longer lead times needed for running in new activities such as the new LEGOLAND parks were responsible for their fluctuating profit. Moreover the customers are an essential external feature. The customer needs changed from traditional to innovative which is reflected in the success of bigger companies with electronic games. It turned out that younger customers expect  more of their toys then before and that the using time of traditional bricks decreased. For that reason LEGO came up with play themes which connected LEGO and movies to extend the life span of LEGO bricks – LEGO Star Wars was introduced. To satisfy the customers within the ‘new media’ age they created a new digital strategy where they developed an online multiplayer (LEGO Universe). Also the internal action of renaming LEGO DUPLO into LEGO EXPLORER affected the external factor customer who did not approve this change and that is why sales decreased. In addition retailers started with too high inventory and needed to wait for it to sell before they were able to buy new LEGO supplies. So the company needed to reconsider their logistic strategy. Besides this, the number of competitors in the US increased which weakened the exchange rate of the US$ against the Danish Krone which led to a decrease in sales. In this case the external factor retailers also played a role. Due to their own problems they put more pressure on LEGO to create new products but since high stock levels blocked the launch of innovations retailers demanded discounts in return to buy more of their new products. A main problem was here the external factor of (seasonal) buying behavior since the customers especially demanded LEGO products around Christmas. To avoid this, the company now is eager to get closer to retailers in order to understand their sales to end customers. Also to compete in the price war between the competitors and LEGO they had to minimize their cost to offer a more favorable price. So the company cut the number of suppliers. The last feature of external environment which influenced the strategy of LEGO – like the oil crisis – was the financial crisis in 2009. Here the management decided to take the risk to increase the production to prepare for 2009 onwards and to order new equipment. This decision proved to be right and since then they show steady progress. To summarize, it can be said that many features of the external environment influence strategic management and that it is necessary for a company’s success to scan the environment, define critical success factors and react correspondingly. 3. The generic term which includes resources and competences is ‘Strategic capability’ where you identify the unique resources and core competences which give you an advantage over competitors and what makes your company ‘special’ comparing to others. Beginning with the resources of LEGO you can  name several resources such as their brand name which is well known under consumer of toys for children. The raw materials knowledge and the focus on high quality standards helped the company to regain their successful position because instead of outsourcing their production facilities which are also a resource they decided to leave their production in Denmark. Another resource which helped LEGO was their later management organization and leadership of family members. The most important resource of the LEGO Group which enabled them to regain their successful position in the global toy market is their product creativity. Concerning the last point of resources there is to mention LEGO’s most valuable competence, their innovations. During their whole development they always solved difficult times through launching innovations which gave them a comparative advantage over the competitors. Moreover the LEGO Group uses their brand name to create alliances with movie makers, publishing companies, game makers and other companies in different markets. Moreover they successfully keep on capturing different markets to internationalize but still setting value to stay a family business and keep their core business. 4. In 2004, Kjeld decided to be more involved in strategy and to take more responsibility. At this point the COO left the company. Additionally they changed the famous name LEGO DUPLO to LEGO EXPLORER and expected to expand their small children’s segment. Instead of the expected expanding segment, customers did not welcome this change and sales decreased. Another problem was that retailers had to high inventories so that they needed to sell those products before buying the new products of LEGO. There would have been different alternatives for the company. The thinking of getting family support back and representing the family business status of the company was a smart choice. But instead of now staying with their traditional product name and make use of their recognition value they wanted to rename it to attract a bigger spectrum of customers which went into the opposite direction. Another strategy concerning the retailers would have been to first wait for the reaction of the customer in terms of the new name. Or in advance the LEGO group could have conducted a market research to figure out if a new name is profitable. But they probably expected a higher demand and therefore wanted to stock the retailer’s inventory accordingly. 5. The LEGO Group should maintain their strategy concerning to innovativeness and adaption since the internal and external environment keeps on changing. Now it is advisable to secure a solid management and not to make many changes within the management structure. This will help to give the employees more security and confidence, as well as the customers. Moreover LEGO already realized that there is a ‘new’ age of customers who prefer more visual and electronic products then the so called old fashioned toys. For that reason they should keep making alliances with movie and game producer. In addition to that new technical devices like smart phones and tablets offer a new opportunity to keep up with the customer needs and with the time. Here the company could create a game App to gain even more popularity and to show that the LEGO group is an innovative company with traditional roots. Another suggestion is to try to conquer new markets maybe within Europe but keep their roots in Denmark. But also the idea to enter into the parlor game market with a LEGO board game is a way to stay innovative. With this idea as well as with LEGO movies also older target groups can be reached. All in all if LEGO Group stays innovative, keep on entering new markets to ensure their growth rate, focus on customer needs and focus on their main business which is to entertain children they will be successful in the future.