Our Week in Review 3.25 - 3.29

Plants

This week during Project Block we started our new unit of study: Plants.  On Tuesday we learned about the different parts of a plant (root, stem, flower, seeds and fruit).  We learned the important job each part has and what food items you can eat from each plant part.

   

Roots – carrot, beet, radish

Stem – celery, broccoli stem, onion, potato

Flower – lettuce, spinach, cabbage, kale

Seeds – Peas, beans, corns, nuts

Fruits – tomato, squash, pepper, cucumber

 

I am asking that if students eat a part of a plant at home, or at school, that they either take a photograph (you can send me the photograph) of it or draw a picture.  We have started a Learning Wall in the school hallway with our photographs and pictures. 

Today we started the lesson “Journey to the Center of a Seed.” Each student received one lima bean seed and a clear cup full of water. Students began the experiment by writing a prediction based on what will happen to the lima bean after it has been submerged in water for 24 hours. Students then completed a diagram and label of what their lima bean submerged in water looked like. Our hypotheses diagrams and labels  are below. Tomorrow we will finish this experiment and discuss what happened to the lima bean.

 

 

   
   

   
   

   

   
 

Our Week in Review 3/18 - 3/22

Alaska Guest Speaker

On Friday afternoon Mr.Messier (Liam’s dad) came in to talk to us about Alaska.  Mr.Messier has had the opportunity to travel to Alaska multiple times and shared his experiences by showing us wonderful (and very engaging) pictures from his trips.  A big thank you to Mr. Messier for coming in and sharing his knowledge of Alaska with us.

                

       

 

 

Basil Dip

On Friday morning during snack we made our own healthy basil dip as part of our plant unit of study. A big thank you to Mrs. Laquerre who provided us with fresh basil which was grown in her lab at CHS. This week we planted our own herbs and cannot wait until they start growing. Below is the process we went through to create our basil dip.

These were our ingredients.



1 clove garlic



2 bunches basil




1/4 cup olive oil (play the video)





1 cup sour cream



2 teaspoons pine nuts (play the video)



Blend it all together


Enjoy!
    

Pie and Picto Graphs

In Reading Workshop we continued to work on interpreting and creating various types of graphs.  Today we used data to complete a pie graph and a picto graph.  Each partnership completed both graphs and then we created a class graph using the app, ShowMe.  To hear our interpretations of both graphs click on each ShowMe video.

 

Pie Graph Picto Graph

Bar Graphs & Line Graphs

Today we used data to complete two graphs (a bar and a line).  After each partnership completed both graphs we created a class graph.  We took a picture of each blank graph using the camera on the iPad.  Then we imbeded each picture into a ShowMe slide.  We then completed both graphs using the AppleTv on the iPad. The class line graph is below.  We realized it was hard to make a straight line without a ruler!

This is our class bar graph.  Play the video to listen to our interepretations of the graph.

Interpreting Graphs

We have been interpreting and making tally mark graphs during Reading Workshop.

 

On Monday we were presented with the following data.

 

- Two children like spring the best.

- Four children like autumn the best.

- Ten children enjoy summer most of all.

- Eight children like winter the most.

 

We used the data to create the tally mark graphs below.

 

 

 

Students then had to interpret the results of this graph. As a class we discussed:

 

- More kids like summer than the number who like spring

- 2 more students like autumn than the number who like spring

- Spring is the least popular season

- 2 more students like summer than the number who like winter

- Summer is the most popular season

 

 

Today we were presented with two different types of graphs (line graphs and bar graphs). We then answered questions based on the data presented on the graphs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alaska Projects

Today we posted our Alaska projects (presentations) on our blogs! To be directed to KidBlog click here.

 

If the presentation isn't showing up completely (parts are being cut off) click Haiku Deck at the bottom of the presentation. I have highlighted where to click in the picture below.

 

SpellingCity

Each week students are introduced to a new skill in SWR (spelling).  We have our mini-lesson on Monday and we then practice the new skill throughout the week.  Students are given the opportunity to practice the weekly skill during the Daily 5 (Reading Workshop).  We also take out the iPads twice a week and use the app Doodle Buddy for spelling practice.  A great way for students to practice their spelling words during the week is by accessing SpellingCity.  Students’ spelling groups are the same as their reading groups.  If you are not sure which group your child is in please contact me.  SpellingCity provides fun and engaging ways for students to practice their words.  SpellingCity also has a wonderful Test Me and Quiz Me component. Please let me know if you have any questions about SpellingCity.  You can access SpellingCity by going to the homepage of our blog and scrolling down to, Links We Love - SpellingCity is one of the links we love!

Show Me

As we advance into more complicated subject matters in math I have come up with a way to support students with their work in and outside the classroom.  For each new topic that students are introduced to I have created a short, Show Me video that explains to students how to solve a problem.   Students can view the Show Me videos on the classroom blog.   To view the Show Me videos you can click here.

Haiku Deck

We are almost finished our projects on Alaska.  To display all of our new learning on Alaska students have been using the app Haiku Deck.  Haiku Deck is similar to PowerPoint.

When student’s open a new slide in Haiku Deck the first step is to write a complete sentence on one small detail under a big topic.  For example, a big topic could the The Iditarod, and a small detail could be that The Iditarod is a sled dog race in Alaska. 

 

Next, students choose a theme.  The theme changes the text font.

 

Then students choose a background.  Their background needs to match their detailed sentence.

 

 

Lastly, students move the text on the page to choose a layout.

 

After one slide is complete students go on to their next slide.

Students will be uploading their project to their blog early this week (hopefully on Monday). 

Mystery Skype Buddies

This week we Mystery Skyped with Mrs. Thomas’ 2^nd grade classroom is O’ahu Hawaii.  We had so much fun learning about Hawaii that we are going to be blogging buddies with Mrs. Thomas’ class!  Each child will now have 2 blogging buddies; their buddy from Mrs. Merced’s class in Illinois and now Ms. Thomas’ class is Hawaii.  Students will find out who their buddy in Hawaii is on Monday!

Classroom Newsletter

This is the first week I have uploaded the weekly newsletter to the classroom website.  To view the weekly newsletter you need to go the “Weekly Newsletters” tab on the classroom website.  Once you are there you will see this weeks newsletter.  If you would like a larger view of the newsletter click on the March 15 link  in the upper left corner (I have highlighted where you can find the link in the picture below).

 

Please let me know if you have any questions.

For a direct link to the “Classroom Newsletter” tab please click here.

Our Week in Review 3.11 - 3.15

University of Vermont Day!

Friday is University of Vermont day in our classroom.  Students are encouraged to wear a UVM or Vermont T-shirt or yellow and/or green clothing.  Students will be learning about what colleges there are in Vermont along with some fun facts about college.  We will also be sending our good vibes to the University of Vermont Men’s Basketball team who play for the America East Championship Saturday morning at 11:30!

Where is Our Mystery Skype Classroom Located?

Today we Mystery Skyped and received the following clues regarding the Mystery Skype classroom’s location. Can you guess their location based on their clues:

-          We are in the Northern Hemisphere.  It is 70 degrees outside today.

-          It has only snowed once this year.  We never get a snow day.

-          We have one super tall mountain.

-          In the wild we have mongooses, wild boars, geese and sea turtles

-          Our state has an active volcano but the volcano is not on our island

 

(You can leave a comment with your guess.)

Wonders of the Week

This week you have the option of choosing which wonder you will be blogging about!  The wonders you can choose from are: 

- What is Selection Sunday?

- Can it snow when it is not cold?

http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/can-it-snow-when-its-not-cold/

- How tall is the Eiffel Tower?

http://wonderopolis.org/?post_type=wonder&s=how+tall+is+the+eiffel+tower%3F&x=0&y=0

Make sure to check out your buddies blog! Happy blogging :)

Important Letter from Malletts Bay School (MBS)

 

Inside your child's Friday Folder is an important letter from Malletts Bay School. The letter gives a brief overview of Malletts Bay along with important dates and contact information. Attached to the letter is a questionnaire parents/guardians need to complete. The completed questionnaire needs to be back at Porters Point no later than March 22nd. Please let me know if you have any questions!

Will Mr.Pecor's Team Win?

On Thursday morning during Morning Meeting our class responded to the following question.  Each student was able to vote once.

 
Mr. Pecor's basketball team (Rice High School) is playing for the Division I championship tonight. They are the #3 seed and they are playing the #1 seed, St. Johnsbury Academy. The #1 seed has not lost a game all season.

Do you think Mr. Pecor's team is going to win tonight?

 

1 = Yes, Mr. Pecor's team will win

2 = No, Mr. Pecor’s team will not win

 

After all the votes were casted we interpreted the response graph below.


 

 

As a class we discussed the following:

- More people voted that Mr. Pecor's team would win than not win.

- 12 students voted that Mr. Pecor's team will win.

- 5 students voted that Mr. Pecor's team would not win.

- 7 more students voted that Mr.Pecor's team would win than not win.

- 17 students voted.

 

The 12 students who voted YES, Mr. Pecor’s team would win… were CORRECT!  Mr. Pecor’s Rice High School Green Knights are the Boy’s D-I Basketball Champions!  Ms. LaRose is very excited about this since she is a Rice alumni! J

Our New Unit in Math

Today in math we started our new unit all about measuring. At the start of today’s lesson we predicted how many students could lay head-to-foot along the longest wall in our classroom. After brainstorming various predictions (20 students, 5 students, 30 students) we conducted the experiment. We learned that 9 1/2 students can lay head-to-foot along the longest wall in our classroom. The 1/2 represents 1/2 of a student’s body; they could only sit with their back against the wall and with their legs extended. After running the experiment we had a classroom discussion - the following items were brought up during our discussion.

- If we ran the experiment again, with different students, our total could be different. The total would change depending on how tall or short the students are. However, the total would be close to 9 ½ students (9 students, 8 students or 10 students).

- If Mrs. Merced's class in Chicago was to do the same experiment, they could get a completely different number because their longest classroom wall might be a lot longer or shorter than our wall.

- If we had the tallest students in our classroom lay head-to-foot we would get a smaller number than 9 1/2 .

- If we had the shortest students in our classroom lay head-to-foot we would get a larger number than 9 1/2.

- We decided that the best method for determining a distance is by using a standard unit of measurement such as a meter stick.  Using a standards unit of measure is consistent and the most reliable. This is why such units of measure exist.

We had a great first lesson in our new unit today!