Book Character Parade

We always know when spring has arrived when it’s time for the annual Book Character Parade. Everyone was very enthusiastic today and the costumes, ranging from Harry Potter to Curious George, were wonderful. Because the school is so big, many actually commented that it was the first time they had toured several of the classrooms. It may have been record breaking temperatures in the 90s, but that didn’t stop a great crowd of spectators outside the building to watch. Many thanks to all who attended today.

Can MCAS Math Prep Be Fun? Yes!

“This is a fun way to do morning work!” “Can we do the same thing again tomorrow?” Believe it or not, these were some of the comments made by the members of our class after a lesson introducing them to the style of questions found on the MCAS math test. What made the difference? A technology tool called ACTIVote.

ACTIVote was created by Promethean for use with the Activboard. After posing a multiple choice question to the class, each student can enter their selection A-E from a list by pushing a corresponding button. The class can then view the results in graph form. This allows us to automatically check the class for immediate understanding and each person is held accountable for an answer. Although the students do not know how their friends in the class answered the questions, the results can be printed out privately for the teacher in spread sheet form.

Journey to America: The Immigrant Experience

“Today was so much fun!” “It really was one of our best days ever!” These are some of the comments made by our student “immigrants” at the end of their full day immigrant ship and Ellis Island experience.

“All passengers must stand in an orderly line and wait to be admitted on board the T.S.S. Rijndam” stated a sign posted outside our classroom this morning. As each student waited quietly in the hallway with knapsack over their shoulder, they were checked in with passports and immigration tags, had their bags weighed, and were assigned to their quarters. Two lucky immigrants were given first class accommodations, two were assigned second, and the rest were in steerage. At first glance one would think the comfortable chairs assigned to first class would be best, but the steerage class quickly found ways to keep themselves entertained with books, pillows, recorders, and bongo drums.

After lunch, all passengers wrote in their journals and prepared to disembark at Ellis Island. After watching a very moving short video clip about Ellis Island, the inspection began. Our first station was walking up the two flights of steps to greet the doctor where some were placed in quarantine. Next was an interview by customs officials where students were confronted with questions in another language. Last was the literacy test where immigrants were expected to read several proverbs in English. As each immigrant was welcomed onto American soil, our first class passengers presented him or her with a plate of treats.

Our reenactment was a lot of fun and the students will be learning more about immigration after vacation. Meanwhile, their journal entries are very realistic. “I hope the river of tears will soon turn wet with happiness,” wrote one of our student immigrants. We will share more with you as our experience continues.

Click <a href=”“>here to watch the video clip shown in class

Magazine Writing Project Unveiled

Reading children’s magazines filled with amazing facts, engaging stories, and colorful photos is always enjoyable at school, but writing your own can be even more fun. After brainstorming a wide variety of topics ranging from lions to Athens, Greece, each child chose their own topic and has enthusiastically started research to write their own magazine.

Our magazine unit is a comprehensive and highly individualized project combining research, creative writing, and graphic design. Currently we are working on a feature article using three or more sources. Other sections of each magazine will include a letter to an expert, an imaginary or real interview based on factual information, poetry, game pages, trading cards, and picture pages.

Drumlin Farm Animal Educators

Soft rustling sounds could be heard coming from several covered crates in our classroom this afternoon as the students entered the room from recess. Noticing a huge tarp on the floor covered with dried leaves and surrounded by a huge plastic pen, everyone knew we were in for a real treat: a visit from Debbie Stein of Drumlin Farm and several “animal educators.”

During the next three months, we will be learning about ecosystems by studying the contents of our curiosity cart, visiting the Town Forest, and numerous trips to the river walk here at school. Debbie began the lesson today with a discussion about herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores. Two types of turtles were placed in the pen to introduce the concept of animal adaptations.

Next to make an appearance was a large opossum. An opossum jaw and fur pelt were passed around while the children watched it eat. Finally after great anticipation and discussion, the great horned owl was introduced. Amazingly we learned that the owl can hear a mouse ½ mile away. All of the animal educators today have an interesting story. Once in need of help, they now live safely at Drumlin Farm where they can teach us about themselves

Writing Encouragement From Coach

There was great excitement and surprise last week when each child was presented with a portfolio of their writing projects from November through February. As the students reread each story, they were amazed at how much their writing has grown this year and they couldn’t wait to take their portfolios home to share with their parents. As you know, in our classroom we have two writing coaches: Coach and LC (Little Coach) who provide praise, encouragement, and writing tips throughout the year. This week the children completed their second five paragraph personal writing narrative. This morning as they entered the classroom, each child found a tiny personal note from Coach complete with feedback and a personal writing tip for each one. I look forward to reading more of the children’s stories this year.

The Earth From Above

After concluding our extensive unit about Ancient China, we are now studying the geography of North America. We began by looking at antique maps of the world from the 15th century and how they differ from images of our earth taken from satellites. Although Google Earth offers excellent close-up images, today we looked at an online exhibition of aerial photographs taken all over the world called “The Earth From Above” by Yann Arthus-Bertrand.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand is a renowned and internationally recognized French photographer. I first viewed this exhibition two years ago in Prague. Each photograph shows a bird’s eye view of human life or the environment and is accompanied by a caption written by an expert on sustainable development. Today we printed some of the photos and each child will be sharing their favorite one with our class. We will be visiting this site again within the next few weeks to learn more about our world, and closer to home, our North American continent.

You can visit the site at http://www.yannarthusbertrand.com/index_new.htm
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Crazy Professor Reading Game

It’s been a long, but productive first week back in the classroom.  To end the week in a new and different way, the students were surprised this afternoon when they came back from recess and discovered the coaches in the front of the room wearing beads, leis, and party hats. After many predictions, they discovered we were actually preparing to play a new reading game, “The Crazy Professor Reading Game.”

The Crazy Professor Reading Game is an interactive activity in which students learn to comprehend difficult nonfiction material by rereading, summarizing, using gestures, and reading dramatically.  The highlight of the game is when the students, in partner groups, take on the roles of the crazy professor and the eager student who wants to learn. After Ms. Kalikstein and I modeled the game for the students, they got to give it a try for themselves.

After the activity, students reflected and here’s what they had to say:  “I realized that using the gestures helps me to remember a story better.” “It was more exciting than reading a boring old story.” “I like how you learn to read using so many different ways such as using your body to help you remember.”  After watching the students participate in the activity, I realized that it helped them work on their listening skills by focusing on their partners and copying their gestures.  At the end of the session, students asked, “Can we play this again?”

Science Court: The Case of the Leaking Pipes

Learning about the water cycle has been part of the fourth grade curriculum for many years. In our classroom we have an enclosed plastic model of a river valley which continually amazes everyone with how quickly the water condenses on the lid when hot water is poured inside. This year we have added a new technology piece called Science Court: The Water Cycle. After watching three amusing cartoon clips about a man who stands under water pipes that appear to be dripping and takes the case to court, the children set up experiments to learn about condensation and the presence of water vapor in the air. Through these experiments, they learn about the water cycle. This program requires the students to work in small teams to share and discuss information. An unusual feature is the “student picker” which poses a question to the class, and chooses a student in the room by table number to answer a question. Our last day of the case will be Wednesday and in the end, the students will be ready to draw, label, and explain each part of the water cycle from memory.

The Grace, Elegance, and Beauty of Kung Fu

This afternoon we were treated to a special assembly put on by Wah Lum Kung Fu, located in West Concord and owned by Mary Driscoll and Andrea Sheffield. The program started with a traditional Chinese New Year lion dance. The lion dance which shows the different attributes of the lion: happy, curious, sleepy, and hungry, is believed to bring good fortune. Following the dance was a demonstration of the grace, strength, and elegance of kung fu. Every movement starts with an arm, hand, or kick movement which is an opening or salute, each originating from a specific region in China.  During this demonstration, two of our very own fourth graders who are students of Sifu Mary and Sifu Andrea, showed us what they had learned which was very impressive.

Kung Fu students learn about Chinese culture and the meaning of each movement.   In Si Fu Mary and Si Fu Andrea’s school, kung fu is taught in the ancient tradition where it is used for personal growth. Students learn to be healthy, strong, and to work through their frustrations. Kung Fu actually means “hard work.” It’s not a fighting technique.   It was wonderful to see a different aspect of Chinese culture which put philosophies we’ve been learning into practice.