Studycast - Social Studies Chapter 7

Click here to listen to the studycast for our upcoming test on Chapter 7 - The Fight for a Continent. You can also download the studycast by right clicking on the link and choosing "Save Target As." The test is this Friday, December 18th, and the study guide came home on Monday, December 14th. If you have any questions, just leave me a comment below or send me an email. Thanks!

Magic Penny

This is one of my favorite science experiments. Place a penny right in the middle of a clean coffee mug. Put it in front of you at your kitchen table, and then place the mug in a place where you can see the penny. Keeping your head still, slowly push the mug away from you to where you can no longer see the penny. Make sure it is just out of your sight line - the penny is now being blocked by the side of the mug. Have someone else slowly add water to the mug - being careful not to disrupt the penny. As water is added (you may have to add a lot), you will slowly see the penny "rise up." It's really amazing. Why does this happen? If you can't figure it out, ask your child! He or she should know!

Magic Penny

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Multiplication Tricks

During our last unit of study in math, we looked at different "tricks" that could help us memorize our multiplication facts. We decided to record these tricks on video. I edited into two parts (since the length was a little long). Do you know any more tricks for multiplication? Do you have any other methods you use to memorize your facts? Leave a comment below with your own ideas!

Beat the Calculator

In my weekly newsletter, I know I've mentioned the math games we play in class. These games are a great way to practice our multiplication facts in a fun way. We learned a new game last week that quickly became a class favorite - it's called Beat the Calculator. One person is the caller, one person is the Brain, and one person is the Calculator. The caller draws two cards and calls out a fact, and the Brain and Calculator try to be the first person to get the correct answer. Whoever calls out the correct answer first gets the cards. The person with the most cards at the end of the round is the winner. This game is high energy, so there is a LOT of noise in our room while small groups of kids play this game. But I hope this short video gives you a feel of our class "game time"...

Studycast - Light Test

Click here to listen to the studycast for our upcoming light test. You can download the studycast to your computer by right-clicking on the link and choosing "save target as." The test is this Friday, December 11th, and the study guide came home on Monday, December 7th. If you have any questions about the material, please send me an email or leave a comment below.

Poetry

We've begun a new unit of study during writer's workshop - poetry. We began our study by immersing ourselves in poetry - filling our minds and hearts with powerful words. We then learned about the "Doors of Poetry": the heart door, memory door, observation door, wondering door, and concerns about the world door. We can open these doors to find poetry in our lives (poems are hiding everywhere). We also learned how to create strong images and "crack open" general words. Here are some of the poems our students have written so far...

The Wind Cries This is Not Right
by Wilson

Somewhere a woman is weeping
Somewhere a man has no wife
And the wind whispers
This is not right

Somewhere a rich man is robbing
Somewhere a poor man is giving
And the wind cries
This is not right

Somewhere killing is legal
This place is the war
And the wind screams no, no
This is not right

For the man and the woman should be married
And the rich man should be giving to the poor man
And the war should be stopped
And the wind screams
This is right

Leave a comment below to let Wilson know what you think about his poem!

Pollution by Carson

Stop throwing trash on
the
ground.
Stop killing our Earth.
It's all we have.
Don't be lazy and throw
your trash down.
Put it in the
recycle
bin.
Let's bring this world
together.
Make it
stronger
stronger
stronger.
Let's make our
world
the best we
can.

Leave a comment below to let Carson know what you think about his poem!

Oh, Brother! by Olivia

Oh, Brother
You are such a
pain
You squeak
You peek
You terrorize
my life
But always remember
you're
still my
Brother

Leave a comment to let Olivia know what you think of her poem!

Sun by Jada

it rises
it stays
for a little while
it goes back
it soaks up all the light it can
and share all of its secrets
again and again and again
it spreads light among us
making us who we are
sun

Leave a comment and let Jada know what you think about her poem!

The Dream by Sloan J.

drip, drip, drip
drip, drip, drip
is all I hear
on this quiet night
the covers up to my chin
I feel warm and snug
in my fluffy bed
a peek of light fills the room
clank
the door opens
then I realize it was all
a dream

Leave a comment to let Sloan know what you think of her poem!

Video Clips from our Writing Celebration

I was able to capture a few video clips from our Narrative and Word Play Writing Celebration. I especially enjoyed watching the songs and chants...

Self-Portrait Poem - Caitlin

Last week, we spent a lot of time immersing ourselves in the language of poetry. I asked each student to find a Self-Portrait Poem - one poem that spoke about who they were as a person. I thought Caitlin picked a great poem for herself. Here's the poem:

Waterfall
by Jane Yolen

Waterfall.
Waterfall.
Leaves, sticks, twigs and all.
A rumbling, tumbling cataracting fool, falling over and over and over and over.
Into it's own quiet
Pool.

Here's what Caitlin wrote about the poem:
My poem "Waterfall" connects to me because I love waterfalls. Also, when it says "Waterfall, Waterfall," it makes me calm. Then "rumbling, tumbling, cataracting fool" makes me think of noise and movement. That is the true me. At school I am quiet, but at home I am a crazy person. "Waterfall" paints my portrait.

Isn't that incredible? I love how Caitlin connected this poem to herself. Have you ever found a self-portrait poem? If you haven't, give it a try. It's a fun challenge!

Narrative and Word Play Celebration

We had a wonderful time sharing our writing during last week's celebration! The kids loved hearing your comments and reactions to their work. Here are some pictures from our time together...