Friday, December 15, 2017

Make sure to check Friday Folders this weekend, because in them is some very important information...about our holiday party! We are celebrating a great school year so far and this wonderful time of year. Family members are welcome. It'll be quite the crowded classroom in room 210, but we'll make it work!

Our nonfiction focus continues during reading block. We're onto finding the main idea and supporting details of a nonfiction text. We're learning a variety of strategies, like using the text structure and headings, identifying the topic first, and working backwards from the supporting details. Finding the main idea is a big focus in 3rd grade, 4th grade, and 5th grade as the texts get more and more complex. Soon we'll transition into writing about nonfiction texts. Speaking of writing, I had Mrs. O'Keefe's homeroom for writing and social studies this week. The kids are really getting the hang of adding details to our sentences with appositives and prepositional phrases. Our next emphasis will be on avoiding run ons...something I'm eager to tackle!

April's mom came in to my homeroom today to share some background on Hanukkah. The kids played dreidel and enjoyed some tasty chocolate gelt. Mrs. O'Keefe's homeroom also had a fun afternoon playing bingo.

Our Bucket Fillers this week were Jessica and Mckayla. Both ladies are working super hard during our nonfiction unit. They both are really improving in terms of finding the main idea. Most importantly though, Jessica and Mckayla are both kind, considerate, and positive students, and they are definitely deserving of the Bucket Filler title.













Sunday, December 10, 2017

I hope everyone survived our first snow fall of the year! It blows my mind that we're just a few weeks away from holiday break. Our nonfiction unit is going well. We've talked about fun facts versus important information, and how to use context clues to determine the meaning of unknown words. On Friday we began exploring some of the different nonfiction text structures, and how we can use the organization of a text to help us figure out the main idea. In writing, we have moved onto an expository writing unit. After evaluating the students' personal narratives, I noticed we're having a hard time on sentence structure and sentence variety. As a result, I'm working with the ELA coach Mrs. George to develop a series of lessons that teach into the basics of a complete sentence (subject and verb) and how to write more sophisticated sentences (the inclusion of appositives and prepositional phrases). We also began a new social studies unit that centers around the geography of the United States and important national landmarks. The unit has us working on a multi-step project that incorporates research, creative writing, and important vocabulary. Students will be designing a road trip across the United States and will be writing fictional journal entries for the six states they choose to "visit". I'm so excited to see the kids get started on this project!

On Wednesday, we had a half day. On half days we always have Second Step and take part in a STEAM activity. This week, the kids were given a challenge of using the engineering and design process to "save" a gummy worm. They could only use paper clips to get a life saver out from underneath a cup and put the worm through the life saver. Most groups were successful! Check out some of the pictures below. 

Our Bucket Fillers this week were Jordyn and Aidan. Jordyn is the queen of extra homework. She is constantly coming up with creative bonus assignments that weave in what we're learning in school. I love the effort she puts into her work! Aidan is such a nice kid. He is always kind to his peers and teachers, and he is always working hard in class and on his homework. Awesome job Aidan!







Saturday, December 2, 2017

Our nonfiction unit is underway. We kicked it off on Monday by discussing the differences between fiction and nonfiction. We then began practicing some nonfiction reading strategies, like previewing the text and asking questions before, during, and after we read. A giant difference between nonfiction and fiction is the fact that nonfiction has text features. We spent Wednesday and Thursday exploring various nonfiction books and magazines. We ended up using the magazines to make posters displaying several text features and their definitions. The kids worked in groups and did a fabulous job!

On Wednesday we spent our afternoon playing board games! This was the reward the students voted on for filling the Transition Jar. I put a marble in the Transition Jar every time students transition quietly and calmly in the hallway, as well as positive reports from specialist teachers. I honestly had so much fun playing games with the kids. Some of them joined me in playing one of my favorite games of all time: Scrabble. I may or may not have gotten pretty into it...

Wednesday was also parent/teacher conferences. Although it was quite a long day, all the parents I met with made it fly by. I really enjoyed getting the chance to chat with so many parents and share how the kiddos are doing. If any parents were unable to make conferences that night, feel free to get in touch with me and we can try to schedule a brief meeting before or after school.

Our Bucket Fillers this week were Marco and Andrew. It's crazy that this is only the first time Marco has gotten Bucket Filler this school year; he fills my bucket constantly! He works so hard in class, is kind to his classmates, and always has a smile on his face. Andrew had a great week, particularly on Friday. He did an awesome job on our nonfiction questioning exercise. I have a feeling he's going to rock this unit!











Sunday, November 26, 2017

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It's hard to believe our mini vacation has come and gone. Our holiday week was a short one. On Monday we officially concluded our fiction unit by working in groups at different character stations. On Tuesday students brought in their Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing projects. The project was optional but so many kids chose to take part. We had a lot of fun playing the board games that students created based on the book. The abundance of creativity was so awesome! Make sure to look at some photos of our game day below. On Wednesday we did some Thanksgiving activities and went to the Turkey Bowl. It was great cheering on the 7th and 8th graders and celebrating Kennedy School spirit. This week was also Gratitude Week. We reflected on all the things we are grateful for. I, for one, am so thankful for my students this year. They are a special group of kids in that they are kind to each other and greet each day with a positive attitude. I feel lucky to be their teacher :)

















Sunday, November 19, 2017

The kids got a lot of practice typing this week, as we spent a whole lot of time on the Chromebooks. We did our character trait project in reading. The students typed up essays based on a character in a fiction book of their choice. They then created word clouds using the website www.wordclouds.com. They turned out really neat and I'm looking forward to hanging them up in the hallway. I had my homeroom in the afternoons this week, and we typed up our personal narratives. Our focus for this writing was strong beginnings for stories and showing rather than telling what's happening in the story. In comparison to their summer writings, the students have shown great improvement in both areas!

Below are a few pictures from the Harvest Festival that the school held on Thursday. There are also some pictures of my homeroom learning from some fifth graders. Miss Bougas, the 5th grade teacher, is a good friend of mine and invited us in to her classroom so that her students could present some writing strategies to us. They did a great job!

Our Bucket Fillers this week were Tommy and Shane. Tommy is such a nice kid. I have been looking forward to being his teacher for years now, since I was his older brother Daniel's teacher for two years. Tommy is always smiling and kind to his classmates; it must run in the family! Shane worked really hard on his personal narrative this week. He really tried to incorporate more details into his writing and took all my feedback seriously. Nice job boys!






Friday, November 10, 2017

It was a three day week for students...and I have zero pictures! I totally dropped the ball this week in the photography department. That's okay though. We spent Monday revising and reflecting on our fiction tests that we took last week. Students received their tests back with a score based on their revisions in their Friday folders. They're expected to review my feedback and bring them back in signed by a parent/guardian. On Wednesday we finished Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing and students were given an optional project due in a few weeks. There are a few choices of what they can do for the project; many students in the past have chosen to create a board game based on the book. Again, it is completely optional and worth up to three extra homework stars. On Wednesday I also introduced our culminating assignment for the fiction unit, which we started on Thursday. For this assignment students are writing an essay based on a character in a fiction book of their choice. They will then create a visual to represent their character using a program called Wordle. I've used the program before and I can't wait for the students to experiment with it.

Our Bucket Fillers of the week were Lydia and Laura. Both girls rocked the fiction test. They both worked really hard when we took the test, and then reviewed my feedback carefully to revise them and make them even stronger. I'm so proud of them!

Saturday, November 4, 2017

What a week! Between our field trip on Monday and Heritage Week, it was very eventful. I had an awesome time on our field trip to the Tsongas Industrial History Center. Unfortunately we had to split into two groups, so I didn't get to spend much time with Mrs. O'Keefe's homeroom. For that reason, just about all my pictures from the field trip are of my homeroom. Our group's guide was named Hugh and he was great. We got to participate in an engineering challenge, ride on a trolley, and explore mills. I was so proud of my students. They were engaged, polite, and well-behaved. I can't wait to take them on more field trips! For Heritage Week, we decorated flags, shared about our cultures, and enjoyed food from different countries such as Brazil and Italy. Eleanor's mom came in to my homeroom to share pictures and stories about Scotland. One of the days, students were invited to dress up to represent their heritage. I wore a shirt with a big shamrock on it to represent Ireland. Check out the photo below of Ariana D. and Jessica. They look fabulous!

We took our first reading test on Thursday and Friday of this week. Our fiction unit isn't over, we still have about a week and a half left. But the test will give me an idea of where students are in the unit and what I need to reteach.

Our Bucket Fillers of the week were April and Isadora. It was April's birthday on the day of our field trip! I'm so glad her mom got to be one of the chaperones and spend the day with her. April worked really hard on her test this week, I was impressed. Isadora also has done a great job in our fiction unit. She has mastered character traits! Nice job ladies :)