I love January! We are settling into some hard work with focus and determination. This week, we had our first "Connection Circle" following the guidelines of restorative practices. Be sure to ask your children what that looked like and felt like! I hope to have a circle time like this at least a few times a week for the remainder of the year, giving us a safe place to feel connected as a classroom community and get to know each other on a deeper level.
Our week started with a trip to the Flynn to see The One and Only Ivan. Most of the students seemed to enjoy the show, although they didn't all like the lack of costumes. I thought it was a beautiful envisioning of the story, which is moving and sad and happy all at the same time! I'm glad we were able to have the opportunity.
We are finishing up our non-fiction reading and writing units. The students are making final edits in their writing pieces, and this includes thinking about what text features they can add (pictures, charts, tables, glossaries, etc.) They want to add everything because it's fun to use technology that way, but we have had some good conversations about the importance of these features, and how authors only add them when they actually make it easier for the reader to understand the text. The finished pieces will be coming home next week. We got together into research teams this week to read about different kinds of extreme weather. The students worked hard to break their research up into categories such as causes of the weather type, how it is predicted and measured, how humans try to stay safe, and what the consequences are of these weather events. They are busy researching, synthesizing information, and taking some notes.
This week, we also learned more about democracy and the rights of citizens. We discussed how our Constitution came to be (becoming independent from Britain) and how our founding fathers set out to make sure we had rights as individuals, rights if/when we are accused of crimes, and protection from government power. The students made posters summarizing and illustrating the 10 amendments in the Bill of Rights, and they seemed excited to be learning this information! Next week we will get into the 3 branches of government and what responsibilities each has. We will be going to the State House in February, but dates are not confirmed yet. Stay tuned!
Finally, we completed the first bend of our new math unit (both grades.) In this bend, we learned about measuring, measuring systems and tools, and how to convert measurements. We also learned a lot about perimeter. Next week we will start learning more about measuring area.
Weather permitting, we are hoping to visit our trees on Wednesday 1/15. We plan to leave at about 9:15 and be back by about 10:30. If any of you are available and feel like taking a walk that day, you are welcome to join us! I always enjoy having parents join the class!
Thank you to those who have sent in bread ingredients. The only thing we lack now is butter. I will pick some up this weekend, and bread will start coming home again on Monday!
I hope you all enjoy the sloppy weekend. Stay dry!
Friday, January 10, 2020
Friday, January 3, 2020
Happy New Year! This has been a short week, so this will be super short blog with just a few important announcements and a bit of news.
First of all, thank you all for your flexibility around the Flynn trip permission/money. I apologize for the confusion and not getting those to you earlier. It WILL all work out! I am looking forward to seeing the show -- the class loved the book and I know they will enjoy seeing it come to life on stage.
Secondly, I have added more dates to our bread sign-up since the kids really want to keep working on this fundraiser. The link is: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050548acac23a7f58-team
I am not completely out of ingredients, but can always use bread flour, butter, and eggs. Remember, this is all optional!
Finally, we have started our new social studies unit about civics. Today we learned the difference between a democracy and a dictatorship, and we learned the definition of democracy. I know from experience that this unit leads to a lot of interesting questions and conversations at home, so be prepared! It will be especially interesting in an election year!
That's all for this week. I will be sending homework home on Tuesday as usual, and you should expect it every week until the week before February vacation. If you have any questions, please let me know.
Have a wonderful weekend, and think snow!
First of all, thank you all for your flexibility around the Flynn trip permission/money. I apologize for the confusion and not getting those to you earlier. It WILL all work out! I am looking forward to seeing the show -- the class loved the book and I know they will enjoy seeing it come to life on stage.
Secondly, I have added more dates to our bread sign-up since the kids really want to keep working on this fundraiser. The link is: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050548acac23a7f58-team
I am not completely out of ingredients, but can always use bread flour, butter, and eggs. Remember, this is all optional!
Finally, we have started our new social studies unit about civics. Today we learned the difference between a democracy and a dictatorship, and we learned the definition of democracy. I know from experience that this unit leads to a lot of interesting questions and conversations at home, so be prepared! It will be especially interesting in an election year!
That's all for this week. I will be sending homework home on Tuesday as usual, and you should expect it every week until the week before February vacation. If you have any questions, please let me know.
Have a wonderful weekend, and think snow!
Friday, December 20, 2019
We had a wonderful day today making challah, learning more about trees, and making beautiful birch tree art out of watercolors and salt. Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of the wonderful parents and grandparents who came in to help and to just be here with us. It was chaotic, but everyone enjoyed the process and the end results! I couldn't have done it without your help.
I hope you all have a wonderful, healthy, restful holiday and that you get to spend a lot of time with your children. I will miss them all!
See you all next year!
I hope you all have a wonderful, healthy, restful holiday and that you get to spend a lot of time with your children. I will miss them all!
See you all next year!
Friday, December 13, 2019
Hello All,
I was so pleased when I came into school this morning and saw a note from yesterday's guest teacher. She had nothing but praise for Team 3/4! The kids really rose to the occasion and showed how their best sides. Well done!
Between the delayed opening on Wednesday and the fact that I was out yesterday, the week seems like it was super short. Next week will fly by, and then it will be January! Sometimes I would like to slow down time just a little bit...
We are finishing up our addition and subtraction units and getting ready to start our geometry units in both 3rd and 4th grades. Third graders are still working on different ways that subtraction shows up in story problems (comparison, give away, or how many left.) Sometimes they still think they need to add when the problem context isn't clear. We will continue to practice this skill during Math Menu. Fourth graders finished their 10,000 chart! They all know how to add large numbers using the US algorithm. Subtraction across a few zeroes is still a bit tricky, but we will keep practicing even as we move into geometry.
We continue to read and write non-fiction. We are learning tools to make reading non-fiction more exciting by activating prior knowledge, listening when our brains say, "Wow!" or "Really?" and being willing to be curious. As we write, we are organizing by making a tiny table of contents across our fingers for each chapter that we write. We are also learning how to write introductory sentences for each new section.
The students are just about finished with their science research about how humans use natural resources to make electricity. It was hard for them to grasp at first, but they have watched many videos and done quite a lot of research, and I think they understand how each resource is collected and used to make electricity, and how it harms the planet. We are growing smart consumers!
Next week will be fun. We will try to keep things as normal as possible at the beginning of the week. On Thursday we will get together with Mrs. Flint's class to make winter crafts. Then on Friday, we will walk down to visit our trees, make individual challah breads, and bake them in the outdoor oven. Many thanks to the volunteers who have offered to make the dough and help with the braiding. If you are interested in helping, you still can! We could use some more bodies to walk to the park with us, and we'd love having you around for the baking as well. If you'd like to help, just let me know. We will leave school at 9:15 to walk to the park, and we hope to be back and making bread by 10:15 or 10:30. We will bake the bread right after recess at 11:30. Join us!
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Think snow!
I was so pleased when I came into school this morning and saw a note from yesterday's guest teacher. She had nothing but praise for Team 3/4! The kids really rose to the occasion and showed how their best sides. Well done!
Between the delayed opening on Wednesday and the fact that I was out yesterday, the week seems like it was super short. Next week will fly by, and then it will be January! Sometimes I would like to slow down time just a little bit...
We are finishing up our addition and subtraction units and getting ready to start our geometry units in both 3rd and 4th grades. Third graders are still working on different ways that subtraction shows up in story problems (comparison, give away, or how many left.) Sometimes they still think they need to add when the problem context isn't clear. We will continue to practice this skill during Math Menu. Fourth graders finished their 10,000 chart! They all know how to add large numbers using the US algorithm. Subtraction across a few zeroes is still a bit tricky, but we will keep practicing even as we move into geometry.
We continue to read and write non-fiction. We are learning tools to make reading non-fiction more exciting by activating prior knowledge, listening when our brains say, "Wow!" or "Really?" and being willing to be curious. As we write, we are organizing by making a tiny table of contents across our fingers for each chapter that we write. We are also learning how to write introductory sentences for each new section.
The students are just about finished with their science research about how humans use natural resources to make electricity. It was hard for them to grasp at first, but they have watched many videos and done quite a lot of research, and I think they understand how each resource is collected and used to make electricity, and how it harms the planet. We are growing smart consumers!
Next week will be fun. We will try to keep things as normal as possible at the beginning of the week. On Thursday we will get together with Mrs. Flint's class to make winter crafts. Then on Friday, we will walk down to visit our trees, make individual challah breads, and bake them in the outdoor oven. Many thanks to the volunteers who have offered to make the dough and help with the braiding. If you are interested in helping, you still can! We could use some more bodies to walk to the park with us, and we'd love having you around for the baking as well. If you'd like to help, just let me know. We will leave school at 9:15 to walk to the park, and we hope to be back and making bread by 10:15 or 10:30. We will bake the bread right after recess at 11:30. Join us!
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Think snow!
Friday, December 6, 2019
Happy December! It feels like the school year just got started, and we are already almost half way through it. Wow!
This week has been a busy one academically. We are hunkering down and trying to get a lot of learning done in the next 3 weeks. In math, third graders are learning how to add and subtract up and down a number line using a story context. They are learning how to represent story problems with equations and how to move up or down the number line to the next landmark number in order to be efficient. This is hard work, but they are all able to do it! 4th graders and working with numbers in the ten thousands -- adding and subtracting using the US algorithm across multiple zeroes! Learning to regroup and what it means is conceptually challenging, but I am pleased with the progress I see. This class is a math thinking machine!
During reading we are focusing on main idea and supporting details. From my years of experience, I know this is a tough thing to grasp. To understand that the main idea is NOT the same thing as the topic is tricky. We are looking at topic sentences and trying to figure out how the text is structured (problem/solution, chronology, compare and contrast. etc.) to help us figure out what they author is trying to teach us.
In writing, we are finally drafting our expert books! We are learning all about how non-fiction writers elaborate, and we are figuring out how the chapters of our books should go -- in order, of equal importance, not repetitive. Once that work is done, the expert book almost writes itself! I particularly love how this unit helps students think about organizing their thoughts. I always see huge progress in paragraphing and organizing as a result of the expert book completion!
Our science unit on natural resources is winding down. This week we thought about how each of us could be a "Lorax" and do our part to save energy. Now the students are researching one renewable and one non-renewable natural resource to do a quick comparison. They are becoming experts in energy -- learning about geothermal, propane, wind, coal, solar, oil, and even nuclear. They are learning what is meant by a fossil fuel and how they can be informed consumers. I can't wait to see how they all present their research.
I am hoping we can use the outdoor wood-fired oven to bake something the day before the holiday vacation. I have been thinking about what would be easy and fun and different to bake. One idea I have is to make challah dough in bread machines and then let each student make their own mini challah loaf. We can either make them and bake them on the same day, or make them ahead of time and freeze them until Friday 12/20 when we can use the oven. I am looking for some volunteers to help with this. If you are free on Thursday 12/19 or Friday 12/20, please let me know so I can figure out how to fit this in. I am also open to other suggestions for things to bake. I like the idea of challah because I have a wonderful recipe for making the dough in the bread machine, and it would be satisfying to make dough, then bake it outdoors for a change rather than in the machine itself. And who doesn't love braiding bread dough?
Finally, many of the students have been asking to go out to recess without their snow gear or boots. Mrs. Graf sent out an email recently asking teachers to inform students that they need to wear their winter gear outside. This means boots, coats, snow pants, hats, and gloves or mittens. Of course I will be reasonable and not enforce this if the weather changes drastically, but my general policy is that students should wear what you send in their backpacks. If you have questions about this, please contact me. I know it feels "cool" to not care about the cold, but it's not so great to be in wet clothes and shoes for the afternoon!
That is all for this week. I hope you all have a relaxing weekend!
This week has been a busy one academically. We are hunkering down and trying to get a lot of learning done in the next 3 weeks. In math, third graders are learning how to add and subtract up and down a number line using a story context. They are learning how to represent story problems with equations and how to move up or down the number line to the next landmark number in order to be efficient. This is hard work, but they are all able to do it! 4th graders and working with numbers in the ten thousands -- adding and subtracting using the US algorithm across multiple zeroes! Learning to regroup and what it means is conceptually challenging, but I am pleased with the progress I see. This class is a math thinking machine!
During reading we are focusing on main idea and supporting details. From my years of experience, I know this is a tough thing to grasp. To understand that the main idea is NOT the same thing as the topic is tricky. We are looking at topic sentences and trying to figure out how the text is structured (problem/solution, chronology, compare and contrast. etc.) to help us figure out what they author is trying to teach us.
In writing, we are finally drafting our expert books! We are learning all about how non-fiction writers elaborate, and we are figuring out how the chapters of our books should go -- in order, of equal importance, not repetitive. Once that work is done, the expert book almost writes itself! I particularly love how this unit helps students think about organizing their thoughts. I always see huge progress in paragraphing and organizing as a result of the expert book completion!
Our science unit on natural resources is winding down. This week we thought about how each of us could be a "Lorax" and do our part to save energy. Now the students are researching one renewable and one non-renewable natural resource to do a quick comparison. They are becoming experts in energy -- learning about geothermal, propane, wind, coal, solar, oil, and even nuclear. They are learning what is meant by a fossil fuel and how they can be informed consumers. I can't wait to see how they all present their research.
I am hoping we can use the outdoor wood-fired oven to bake something the day before the holiday vacation. I have been thinking about what would be easy and fun and different to bake. One idea I have is to make challah dough in bread machines and then let each student make their own mini challah loaf. We can either make them and bake them on the same day, or make them ahead of time and freeze them until Friday 12/20 when we can use the oven. I am looking for some volunteers to help with this. If you are free on Thursday 12/19 or Friday 12/20, please let me know so I can figure out how to fit this in. I am also open to other suggestions for things to bake. I like the idea of challah because I have a wonderful recipe for making the dough in the bread machine, and it would be satisfying to make dough, then bake it outdoors for a change rather than in the machine itself. And who doesn't love braiding bread dough?
Finally, many of the students have been asking to go out to recess without their snow gear or boots. Mrs. Graf sent out an email recently asking teachers to inform students that they need to wear their winter gear outside. This means boots, coats, snow pants, hats, and gloves or mittens. Of course I will be reasonable and not enforce this if the weather changes drastically, but my general policy is that students should wear what you send in their backpacks. If you have questions about this, please contact me. I know it feels "cool" to not care about the cold, but it's not so great to be in wet clothes and shoes for the afternoon!
That is all for this week. I hope you all have a relaxing weekend!
Friday, November 22, 2019
Hello All,
We have made it to the end of our first trimester! Despite the ice day and the excitement over vacation, we have continued working in math, reading, writing and science. 4th graders have started their 10,000 chart and 3rd graders are learning to use number lines to subtract. Everyone is planning chapter headings for their upcoming expert books. In reading we have discussed how non-fiction books are structured and how to stop and jot our thoughts about main ideas and supporting details after each chunk of text. And in science, we went on a fun website called Energy Hog today and learned all about what appliances in our homes use the most energy and how to be wise consumers. Much of this will need to be reviewed after vacation, but we certainly haven't been idle!
It was lovely to see so many of you at our Scholastic Book Fair and our Thanksgiving Lunch. I'm sorry I didn't get to chat with more of you -- a half hour lunch for that many people goes by fast! I know some of you bought books for the classroom library. Thank you so much for your generosity!
Thank you also for your continued support of our bread baking project. To date we have earned $115 to donate to 350.org. We are doing our small part to save the planet, and learning to bake and eating yummy bread at the same time! I can always use more bread flour, butter, eggs, and yeast if you would like to help, but please don't feel pressured!
Report cards will be coming home the Monday after vacation. Please remember that these are just a snapshot of what skills and concepts your child has mastered at this time of the year. We are all continuing to grow, mature, learn, and change as the year progresses. I hope you will be in touch if anything about the report card confuses you, but there shouldn't be any surprises! This is a wonderful class of students who love to learn.
I hope you all have a restful holiday and get to spend time with the people you love. I will miss the class and look forward to seeing them in December.
Happy Thanksgiving!
We have made it to the end of our first trimester! Despite the ice day and the excitement over vacation, we have continued working in math, reading, writing and science. 4th graders have started their 10,000 chart and 3rd graders are learning to use number lines to subtract. Everyone is planning chapter headings for their upcoming expert books. In reading we have discussed how non-fiction books are structured and how to stop and jot our thoughts about main ideas and supporting details after each chunk of text. And in science, we went on a fun website called Energy Hog today and learned all about what appliances in our homes use the most energy and how to be wise consumers. Much of this will need to be reviewed after vacation, but we certainly haven't been idle!
It was lovely to see so many of you at our Scholastic Book Fair and our Thanksgiving Lunch. I'm sorry I didn't get to chat with more of you -- a half hour lunch for that many people goes by fast! I know some of you bought books for the classroom library. Thank you so much for your generosity!
Thank you also for your continued support of our bread baking project. To date we have earned $115 to donate to 350.org. We are doing our small part to save the planet, and learning to bake and eating yummy bread at the same time! I can always use more bread flour, butter, eggs, and yeast if you would like to help, but please don't feel pressured!
Report cards will be coming home the Monday after vacation. Please remember that these are just a snapshot of what skills and concepts your child has mastered at this time of the year. We are all continuing to grow, mature, learn, and change as the year progresses. I hope you will be in touch if anything about the report card confuses you, but there shouldn't be any surprises! This is a wonderful class of students who love to learn.
I hope you all have a restful holiday and get to spend time with the people you love. I will miss the class and look forward to seeing them in December.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday, November 15, 2019
Friday comes so quickly!
This week we continued to work on adding and subtracting in math. Third graders are learning how to combine hundreds and how to combine tens to make hundreds. The strategies they are learning will prepare them well for regrouping when they learn the algorithms next year. Today we made a chart of various addition strategies including a number line, adding by place value, and keeping one number whole and adding on. They rocked at their math work today! Fourth graders have mastered the addition algorithm but aren't fluent with the subtraction one quite yet, particularly across a middle zero. They will all get it with a little more practice next week!
With the snow day and the delayed opening, we didn't have much time to explore our new writing unit yet, but we will dig into it more next week. So far all we have done is "rehearse" by telling about something we feel we are experts in. We will start planning and writing next week. Our non-fiction reading unit is under way, and the things students are noticing about non-fiction books as they read will help them when they write. So far, we have discussed text features and the difference between narrative and expository non-fiction. They are loving the books I have borrowed from BRMS by Peter Menzel -- Hungry Planet and Material World. Ask them to tell you about those. To go along with the topics in those books, I showed them the website Dollar Street today, and they were fascinated by the images comparing homes, toilets, beds, toothbrushes, etc. around the world. Check it out!
Finally, we are starting to learn about renewable versus nonrenewable energy sources. So far we have learned what the terms mean, but we will get further into which energy sources are fossil fuels and which are renewable next week. I love this unit because it really helps the students understand how they can be activists in their own way!
Two new vocabulary words this week: sullen and contemplating. I hope you can slip these into your everyday conversations!
We have decided not to go the Essex Hydro Dam after all. Between the upcoming holiday, getting a bus, arranging the field trip with Green Mountain Power, and finding dates that work for all 4 classes, it seems like an impossible task. By the time we make it happen, the unit will be over! We will take a virtual tour of a hydro dam instead, and I think it will be far less disruptive.
That's the week. I hope you all enjoy the weekend!
This week we continued to work on adding and subtracting in math. Third graders are learning how to combine hundreds and how to combine tens to make hundreds. The strategies they are learning will prepare them well for regrouping when they learn the algorithms next year. Today we made a chart of various addition strategies including a number line, adding by place value, and keeping one number whole and adding on. They rocked at their math work today! Fourth graders have mastered the addition algorithm but aren't fluent with the subtraction one quite yet, particularly across a middle zero. They will all get it with a little more practice next week!
With the snow day and the delayed opening, we didn't have much time to explore our new writing unit yet, but we will dig into it more next week. So far all we have done is "rehearse" by telling about something we feel we are experts in. We will start planning and writing next week. Our non-fiction reading unit is under way, and the things students are noticing about non-fiction books as they read will help them when they write. So far, we have discussed text features and the difference between narrative and expository non-fiction. They are loving the books I have borrowed from BRMS by Peter Menzel -- Hungry Planet and Material World. Ask them to tell you about those. To go along with the topics in those books, I showed them the website Dollar Street today, and they were fascinated by the images comparing homes, toilets, beds, toothbrushes, etc. around the world. Check it out!
Finally, we are starting to learn about renewable versus nonrenewable energy sources. So far we have learned what the terms mean, but we will get further into which energy sources are fossil fuels and which are renewable next week. I love this unit because it really helps the students understand how they can be activists in their own way!
Two new vocabulary words this week: sullen and contemplating. I hope you can slip these into your everyday conversations!
We have decided not to go the Essex Hydro Dam after all. Between the upcoming holiday, getting a bus, arranging the field trip with Green Mountain Power, and finding dates that work for all 4 classes, it seems like an impossible task. By the time we make it happen, the unit will be over! We will take a virtual tour of a hydro dam instead, and I think it will be far less disruptive.
That's the week. I hope you all enjoy the weekend!
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