Reader's Theater!

Yesterday and today, we spent the morning practicing our Reader's Theater Scripts! Student's worked in groups to pick parts, practice, and then make their costumes! It ws greatt o see so much creativity!

So much to be thankful for...

Today, in my opinion, is the kick-off to Thanksgiving. I LOVE the Thanksgiving Feast, and the chance to visit with so many family members.

Today in Community Circle, we talked about how Thanksgiving got it's name. Students were quick to say that the Pilgrim were thankful to the Indians for sharing their land and food. We followed up with sharing what each student was thankful for...

Zach "I am thankful for spaghetti, because I get to eat it! And that my dad goes to work, but I miss him"

Meredith "My cousins because they are so fun"

Altwaime "myself, because I am working so hard (and Mrs. Johnson agrees he is working hard!)

David "My mom because she brings me nice things"

Abby "food because I love to eat"

Chris "my dogs, because they go upstairs with out me having to tell them"

Anna "my mom and dad because they do fun things with me"

Keeley "my friends and family because when I am sad they make me feel better"

Haytham "My friends"

Mrs. Puckett "my friends and family because they take care of me"

Asher "thankful that I get to play soccer, because my dad coaches"

Caden "Dr. Pepper because when I am thirsty I can drink it"

Jake "I am thankful that my dog will wake me up in the morning"

Elija "I am thankful that the Pilgrims created Thanksgiving"

Sydeny "for my brother, because he plays with me"

Cecilia "my sister, because she is nice to me"

As for me, my list is long. I am constantly blessed with an inspiring class full of energy and thoughts. I am thankful for my family - blessings abound with happy kids, a loving husband, and wonderful example for parents (and especially for my Dad that he has offered to help me pack my room) Hoping your Thanksgiving is full of family and fun!

Problem Solving

Thank you to all parents that were able to make some time last Tuesday to learn more about the problem solving model. We felt like this was a great use of time, and hope you learned something new. I appreciate your dedication to your student. Thank you for taking time, at home, to reinfource what we are learning at school.

If you were unable to make it to the meeting, we are providing the video link from the night! Simply cut and paste the address below in your browser. As always, if you have any questions feel free to contact me.



http://youtu.be/g935cX-_Ztk

Putting Things in Motion

I can't think of anything better to teach a group of busy learners than motion! We have been learning about all kinds of motion with some very interesting experiments.

Yesterday we built roller coaseters to look at push and pull. Students learned that the steeper the drop the faster the marble would move. One group even figured out how to make the marble stay on the twisting track (Just like the old GREASED LIGHTENING!).

Today we tested back and forth motion and found out that weight doesn't efect how many times something will swing back and forth. Ask your student's how they came to their conclusion about back and forth motion?

so what is the WORK desk?

Thank you for taking time to meet with me during parent conferences. I thought it would be helpful to give some more information to one of the most asked question during conferences. What is the work desk? And has my child gone?

from the student's eyes, this is what they think about the work desk...

"because sometimes people be bad"

"so you don't talk to the person you are talking to"

"If somebody is not doing the rite thing"

"I think we use the work desk so that people can not get distracted"

"We work there when people are being loud"

"So we can get our work done"

The real truth, the work desk is meant to be a place for students to work independently with out distraction. It is located close to my table so that I can add extra assistance and still work with a small group. At times, I will move a student to sit there if they are talking - but it is not intended to be a punishment. I hope this helps clear the water.

Learning from our peers!

Today 1st grade teamed up with 5th grade to begin writing a creative story. We had a great time working with the leaders of school. We will be getting together in a few weeks to publish our writing using The I Touch app, Picture Book.

A Special Visitor...

Today we were glad to welcome Representative Jim Murphy to 1st Grade. This was a great time to ask questions, and I was very impressed with some of things that students were wanting to know. Representative Murphy talked about what he does, and how reading is a valuable tool he uses while making laws. He took time to read to the grade level. We were thankful for his visit!