Transforming our Classroom!

The children created a mindmap, "What We Think We Know About Animals," this week. They came up with some amazing "facts," which we will be checking during our Inquiry research. I thought it would be fun for you to read some interesting examples:

Posted at 2:38 PM| Permalink

Class Story-Writing is Exciting and Fun!

Thunderbirds

We were working on our exciting hurricane and tornado stories in Writer's Workshop this morning, when, suddenly, we heard a deafening sound outside. We all rushed out to watch the Thunderbirds practicing for their air show right over MPI! Children and teachers alike were delighted!

Inquiry

I'm still trying to get on with the Animal Inquiry! However, someone brought in yet another fascinating book about weather and storms, and the children insisted that I read it. We have added troposphere, barometer, atmosphere, meteorologist, and carbon dioxide to our "Wonderful Word" list, and we have learned where weather is generated in our atmosphere, about a meteorologist's tools for forecasting weather, and how wind is created (ask your child). Hurricane Humberto added a little extra interest today.  We will, however, be doing mindmaps and transforming our classroom next week. I wonder what your amazing, curious, intelligent kids will come up with! Stay tuned!!

Writer's Workshop

We are having so much fun writing a class story about a tornado in Kansas.  The purpose of this project is to help give the children an idea of the parts (beginning, middle, and end) and elements of a story (setting, characters, problem, solution).  We are also exploring the use of descriptive language to make a story more exciting and learning to use details to enrich our writing.  The chidren are really enjoying this process and will bring home a copy to share with you soon. 

Yesterday, we familarized ourselves with the dictionary in our Writing folder. It already has many common words we use for writing, but it also has space to add words. Based on some recent research on the teaching of vocabulary, I have begun having the children put some of our "Wonderful Words," which are words that come up in our reading and discussions, in their writing dictionaries with a drawing to help them identify the words and remember their meaning.  Many of the words we put in yesterday -- debris, hurricane, tornado, lightning, typhoon, and storm surge -- will be used in their hurricane/tornado stories. 

2nd Grade Math Investigations

Enjoy playing some more fun math games with your child! The more you play, the more your child learns! Be sure to check out the Family Letter, too!  It has some great ideas for enriching your child's math experience. 

Kickball

The 1st and 2nd Grade children have been discussing and agreeing on rules for kickball.  They are also talking about problem-solving and good sportsmanship on the playing field.  If your child enjoys this game, please take time to talk with him or her about the game.  

Ukus

Yes, it is that time of year.  Hopefully, we have nipped the problem in the bud! Please be very diligent about checking your child at least once a day for a while.  If you need information about how to do that, let me know.  

Posted at 11:55 AM| Permalink

Hurricanes, Tornadoes, and Lightning!

Mini-Inquiry We will wrap up our Mini-Inquiry on stormy weather this week. As you have probably realized, the children weren't satisfied with simply researching hurricanes. Tornadoes are especially interesting to them, and they enjoyed my reading the Magic Tree House book, Twister on Tuesday. I was also able to find some excellent interactive sites on the Internet. Just type in "tornado interactive" and see what pops up! The children were able to change the force of tornadoes, watch a tornado's path of destruction, see a video of tornado hunters in action, control lightning strikes, and learn how hurricanes, tornadoes, and lightning form. The SmartBoard made all this hands-on, interactive learning very exciting for them. On Friday, we will revisit our Mindmaps, "What we think we know " and "What we want to know about hurricanes" to check our knowledge and reflect on how our research has increased our knowledge. Animal Inquiry I already have parents volunteering to come in and talk about the animals of South Africa, chinchillas, and mythical animals. If you have anything to share, please let me know. Many of the children are bringing in books, videos, learning cards, and research about animals already. If you have anything that might be of interest, please send it in. We promise to take good care of it! I have some old, cut-up National Geographic magazines, but could use some more as we move into our animal unit. Any kind of wildlife magazines would also be appreciated. Mahalo in advance! Math Investigations Teachers and children alike are enjoying our new math program. You, as parents, have a very important role in your child's math learning, so be sure to read all the "Family Letters" and play all the games that go home. Play them often! The more involved you are, the more your child grows as a mathematician. It is a great idea to keep all the letters in a folder for easy reference and all the games in large envelopes for easy access. It is very important to keep all game materials such as the Primary Number Cards because they will be used over and over throughout the year. Reading and Writing The children are enjoying reading together and playing reading games. They have made a picture and web for an exciting story about a storm. With all the enthusiasm, I'm sure their tales will be very interesting. They enjoyed journal-writing about their Labor Day weekends and sharing with others. Thank you, as always, for all you do at home to enhance your child's learning. Be sure to check the photo gallery for candid shots of your children in action!

Posted at 10:57 AM| Permalink