Week of April 25-29

This week, the 3rd graders continued to impress me with their ability to use poetic techniques like personification, figurative language, and descriptive language to describe ordinary things in poetic ways. We turned an ordinary stapler into a shark whose teeth are falling out, an alligator chomping its prey, and even a rabbit hopping along leaving a trail of teeth behind! We are starting to look at the world as poets, finding the extraordinary in everyday objects and places around us!

In 4th grade, some classes were still exploring the language of Shakespeare, while one class read a child-friendly version of Romeo and Juliet and took a closer look at the famous balcony scene. After viewing and reading the scene, the students chose a section to turn into a texting conversation between Romeo and Juliet using this site: http://iphonefaketext.com/

In 5th grade, we viewed the beginnings of some powerful TED Talks and learned what makes a good hook for a talk: a shocking statistic, jaw-dropping personal story, provocative question, powerful quote. We then wrote the first minute of our talks, making sure to hook our audience and state our thesis in a clear way.

Week of April 18-22

It was wonderful to finally see my students after a month without them! Some of my third graders were still exploring aspects of poetry like rhythm and imagery by using poems as inspirations for paintings and choral readings with instruments. Others began writing their own poems using techniques like creating interesting lists and describing ordinary objects in unique ways. I was very impressed with how the students were able to apply so many techniques they learned from the poetry they read in their own poems!

The fourth graders continued to explore the language of Shakespeare by turning modern day conversations into Elizabethan language and vice versa. We learned that Shakespeare invented many words that we still use today, and then we invented some of our own words and definitions!

In fifth grade, we learned that the key to a good speech is having a specific POINT to the talk, and that point is called the thesis. Check out how to create a "happy" thesis below!

Week of March 21-24

This week, the 3rd graders created illustrations inspired by poems and went on a poetry scavenger hunt, looking for poetic language like similes, metaphors, alliteration, personification, and onomatopoeia. Check out the picture below of how each student visualized the poem "Sunset" by Lillian Moore.

In 4th grade, we continued to explore puns and the language of Shakespeare. We learned that Shakespeare made up many words that we still use today! Here is a list of some of those words:
http://www.shakespeare-online.com/biography/wordsinvented.html

The 5th graders learned the skill of mind mapping and how it helps us store and retain information. We started to create mind maps for our possible TED Talk topics. Over the next month, the students should continue to work on these mind maps by doing lots of research.

Week of March 14-18

This week, the third graders continued to explore aspects of poetry by participating in poetry stations. In the poetic language station, the students read Owl Moon and My Mama Had a Dancing Heart, and they looked for poetic language in the texts. We discussed how phrases like "hold on tight leaves" and "trees that stood as still as statues" help us create pictures in our minds. In the choral reading station, students chose a poem to put to music. They had to find the rhythm and then choose a percussion instrument to accompany their reading of the poem. Here is one group in action!

In 4th grade, one class learned all about puns. We looked at modern day puns, puns from Shakespeare's time, and we started to come up with our own puns! My other classes had a special visit from Mr. Duggan. As a former high school English teacher, Mr. Duggan had a lot to share with us about Shakespeare's language, the types of plays he wrote, his themes, sayings that originated from Shakespeare, and even some special effects from the Elizabethan times!

In 5th grade, we learned some tools to help us be more creative: fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration. We started to generate and refine some possible ideas for our TED Talks. Then we learned about the tenets of improv (be present, find the "yes, and...") and played a game called "The Ignorant Expert" where the students had to fake it 'til they make it!

Week of March 7-11

This week was the start of our ELA cycle. Our 3rd graders were immersed in poetry. We read a variety of poems and discussed the techniques the poets used to make these poems so special. Even something as small as where the words are placed can have a huge impact on the meaning and mood of the poem! We talked about how good poetry evokes feelings in its readers and can be interpreted in different ways depending on the experiences of the readers.

In 4th grade, we went back in time to Elizabethan England and visited the Globe Theatre. We did an online scavenger hunt to learn more about the life and times of William Shakespeare. We were amazed to find out how many famous plays he wrote and that they are still so adored today!

The 5th graders began our unit on TED Talks. We talked about how what we say is just the "tip of the iceberg." It's our nonverbal communication that does most of the talking! We also watched some TED Talks and discussed the attributes that made them successful.

Week of February 29-March 4

This week was our last week of engineering! I was very impressed with my 3rd graders final presentations related to our oil spill unit. I learned a lot about cruise ships, renewable energy sources, the Keystone Pipeline, and land v. oil spills!

The 4th graders shared their successes and failures related to their Lego design challenges. I really admired the students' ability to persevere when faced with a lot of obstacles, and it was interesting to see how each groups approached similar tasks in such unique ways!

The 5th graders shared their passion projects with some G&T students from other classes. It was so much fun to see what everyone had been working on. We discussed how we learned a lot about ourselves during this unit. Some of us loved the chance to work on an independent, self-guided project, while others were intimidated by the task (at least at first).

A hat that brings happiness to people!

Week of February 22-26

This week, some of the 3rd grade classes improved their oil spill clean up processes while other classes read an article about the BP oil spill and it's devastating impact on the environment. I can't wait to see the final projects the students have been working on for the past few weeks!

This was the last week of building and programming for our 4th grade engineers. Look at our 4th grade page to see all of our amazing accomplishments! This unit really taught us the importance of grit and of learning from our failures!

The 5th graders were busy completing their work on their passion projects. Next week, we will share what we did and what we learned about ourselves through the process.
***One of our students organized a book drive that will be taking place all of next week. If you have books to donate, don't forget to bring them in to help this worthy cause!!!