Mystery Madness!

This week we started our Mystery Unit in reading. I am reading The Absent Author and modeling how to make note of suspects, clues, and motives. The students are working in partners in their own mystery books and taking notes in their Reading Response Notebooks. I'm excited to hear them question character motives and noting any clues or suspicious activity as they read. This unit is perfect for teaching them how to read closely and pay attention to even the smallest of details.

Exploring the Maker Space

Today we had the opportunity to explore the technology in the Maker Space. To say the student were excited is an understatement. Some were coding robots, designing 3D figures, using green screen technology to take pictures, and wiring their own keyboards. The creative possibilities were endless in the Maker Space.

Revising with a Partner

"Great lead!"

"I like how you added lots of details."

"You need more dialogue."

"You need to add some transition words."

"This part was a little confusing. What is happening?"

"I like how you ended your story by saying what you learned."

These were some of the comments I overheard as students worked in partners to revise their writing. After several weeks of writing personal narrative stories the students are moving towards publishing their pieces. They had some wonderful suggestions and advice for their peers.  

Introduction to the Maker Space

Mrs. Tucceri gave our class an introduction to the Maker Space. This invention lab is a space for students to explore ideas incorporating science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics. Next week students will have an opportunity to use the Maker Space materials. Please click the link below to learn more out the FK Maker Space.

http://fks.norfolk.k12.ma.us/home/makerspace

Reading like a Writer

We are using the picture book Come on Rain by Karen Hesse to analyze the author's craft. Students are using this detailed narrative for ideas to improve their own writing. I read it at the beginning of the school year, but reread it this week for a different purpose. Their job this week was to pick out what makes this story such a strong narrative, and I was really impressed with their responses. The third graders are starting to look at these stories through the eyes of the author and understand strategies that good authors use to make the writing the best it can be.

Data

Students had the chance to collect data for their bar graphs. First, they created a survey based on the data they wanted to gather. This morning we visited Mrs. Williamson's and Mrs. Horton's classrooms to survey their fifth grade students. This gave us plenty of data to create bar graphs on the computers using the "Create a Graph" program. The final projects came out great.

Movement Breaks

I try to in incorporate movement breaks throughout the day. Movement is proven to help students focus, improve learning, and manage stress. I use the GoNoodle website which offers guided dance lessons, coordination exercises, mindfulness activities, and breathing exercises.