Ice Skating 1-28-10
1.29.10 Junior Kindergarten Daily Journal
Today we talked about:
January coming to an end on our calendar and FEBRUARY starting next week…our good friend Andre, and wishing him well… what happens to the raindrops if its a freezing cold winter day ;)…Using words instead of hands if we want something or if a friend hurts us… the gecko’s delight in his cricket snack today, and drawing geckos…names of dinosaurs that many children are excited about drawing…how to fold up rest blankets neatly so they go in the baskets nicely…and we talked about what big people do when they write a message to someone! (This went with an example of Marti writing a message to her daughter for her birthday today!) We will continue “writing” group messages together to various people, for various purposes, to familiarize the children with this aspect of the writing process. (No Reading Buddies today.)
Have a wonderful weekend!
1/29/10 - Reading & Studio: A Perfect Match at SMS
As part of our regular teacher read aloud time, the fourth grade started a new book this week entitled The Calder Game. This novel by Blue Balliett is a mystery surrounding the disappearances of a boy and a sculpture by the renowned artist Alexander Calder. At our current point in the story, the main characters, Calder (named after the artist) and his two best friends, have just taken a field trip to a museum exhibit of Alexander Calder’s work. The story provides some vivid descriptions of the artist’s famous mobiles as well as the reactions of those who experience them.
After listening to the story, the kids moved into the studio this week and began to create their own mobiles out of found objects, with emphases on motion and balance.
1.29.10 5th and 6th Grade Pizza Lunch
Today the 5th and 6th graders had a surprise pizza party for lunch! This is a reward for all their hard work, dedication, and cooperation they have demonstrated since returning from winter break. It was a fun surprise, and hopefully we will do it again soon!
1.29.10, 6th Grade Homework
Due Monday:
- Math (Mosher)- text book page 278 #2, 3, and 4, text book page 279 All
- Current Events Article
Due Friday:
- Book Report Sloppy Copy
Recyled Instruments 1.29.10
The third grade is using inspiration from Scrap Arts Music to create their own percussion instruments. Today they finished up making their own drumsticks from dowel rods and worked together to organize a variety of tins and containers by scale and tone. They then took turns creating beats and rhythms and playing together as a band.
-Monica
Brennan leads the drum beat.
Everyone working together.
2nd Grade Weekly Wrap-Up: 1.29.10
It’s hard to believe we’re through with January! We had a fun-filled week beginning with Ms. Gallagher visiting our classroom and getting to know our routines, as well as reconnecting and meeting all the Helpful Huskies. We also had ice-skating and continued “packing” for our Lewis and Clark expedition! Here’s what we were up to this week (below are kids enjoying some Fun Friday time).
Math: We discussed estimating sums (to the nearest 10) and adding three 2-digit numbers. Next week we’ll continue with more problem solving, our Chapter 5 assessment, and regrouping with subtraction.
Word Study: We studied the “ow” pattern (as in flow, grown, etc.), Lewis and Clark challenge words, and a silly spelling sentence. Next week we’ll look at “ow” vs “ou”.
Reading Workshop: We continued with Book Clubs and focusing on reading strategies such as monitoring (pausing and asking questions throughout reading). Here are some discussion questions you can ask your Helpful Husky about:
1.29.10 Kindergarten Explores The Keyboard In Performing Arts
The students took turns at the keyboard, and some played "Twinkle Twinkle!"
