I wanted to share some miscellaneous highlights from Fall 2011. Please enjoy a look at our trips to the Natural History Museum and the Apple Store, as well as a few other fun photos!
Pioneer Day at Waterloo
October 26, 2011 · 1 Comment · Uncategorized
Our class traveled back in time last week as we experienced life in a one-room schoolhouse and a historical farm museum. The children learned what it was like to go to school in the mid-1800s and they really enjoyed learning what life was like at home for children during this time period. They worked hard! I hope you enjoy this video of our adventures!
Think about these questions:
How was Dewey School different than Angell? How was it similar?
What chores do you think would have been most challenging?
What was your favorite part of the day?
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Welcome to Third Grade!
September 22, 2011 · 3 Comments · Uncategorized
Welcome to another wonderful year of third grade! The kids are off to a great start and we are looking forward to sharing our thoughts, ideas and amazing work with you on our classroom blog. Here’s to a GREAT year together!
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Poetry Collection
May 17, 2011 · 1 Comment · Uncategorized
Sister Mariana worked on a wonderful poetry unit with the children and we just completed the last of our poems. The children have all selected their favorite poem to share with you. We hope you enjoy this “Little Bird Tale” presentation of our poetry! (My apologies for the lack of cover art on the first page. I had technical difficulties with the site, but wanted to publish this anyway!)
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GLEP – Great Lakes Education Program
May 15, 2011 · No Comments · Uncategorized
Last Wednesday our class went on the most amazing field trip. We participated in the Great Lakes Education Program to learn about our Great Lakes and the ecosystem of the surrounding area. It was an incredible experience and we learned a great deal. Here are some highlights:
Morning – Water Adventure:
The students donned some life vests and boarded our ship, the Clinton. Once on board, we learned some water safety tips and broke up into small groups. The groups rotated through stations to:
- test water samples
- observe the bottom of the river with an underwater camera
- test wind speed and temperature
- tie marine knots
- learn maritime terms such as starboard, port, wake and slipknot
- test pH and carbon dioxide levels to determine the health of the water and ecosystem
While on the ship, the students also observed many exciting things. We saw a bald eagle sitting in her nest, lots of boats out fishing for walleye, a tern nesting ground and we had such great visibility we were able to see smoke from a power plant near Cedar Pointe!
Afternoon – Land Adventure:
After a quick lunch, we boarded a bus and headed over to a different area to study plants and animals of the local ecosystem. The students spent time looking at microscopic organisms from the marsh under a microscope. We found lots of interesting things, including mosquito larvae, tadpoles and water fleas. We also learned about plants and animals that live in the area. We learned about important plants in the ecosystem such as cattails and lotus plants. We also learned about animals such as red-winged blackbirds, muskrats, minks and muskies!
The most important message of the day was the importance of protecting our Great Lakes and their ecosystems. I hope that you enjoy this movie about our day!
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ACES Walk in the Arboretum
May 5, 2011 · 3 Comments · Uncategorized
Today the whole school went for a walk through the Arboretum as our way of participating in ACES (All Children Exercising Simultaneously). Thank you to Mr. Fisher for organizing this annual event at our school! I know that I only captured about half the kids in the photos, so my apologies. They were walking so fast that I couldn’t keep up! You will notice that we walked with our Kindergarten Reading Buddies, which made it extra special. Enjoy!
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Fraction Posters
May 2, 2011 · No Comments · Uncategorized
Last week the students worked on creating Fraction Posters. Each group selected a different fraction and they had to represent that fraction in a variety of ways on their posters. This was an excellent way for students to show their understanding of equivalent fractions, as well as show different ways that fractions can be expressed. You should see a number line, a set model, and an area model on the posters. The children were creative and had a lot of fun! We hope you enjoy our Voicethread!
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Moon Journals Part 2
April 25, 2011 · No Comments · Uncategorized
The children are about halfway through the moon cycle and they have been having a great time working in their Moon Journals! Even though the moon is not visible in the early evening right now, much excitement and conversation has been had about the nighttime sky and other observations. We are hoping to see the moon in the morning sky pretty soon! Please enjoy another round of our Moon Journal entries!
Moon journals2
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Mystery Class
April 17, 2011 · No Comments · Math, Science, Social Studies
Our class has been participating in an amazing online project called Journey North: Mystery Class and we wanted to tell you all about it. The goal of the project is to use clues that we receive each week to discover 10 different locations around the world. Sound fun? It is! Here is an accounting of our journey so far:
September-January: Students are assigned a “Length of Day” team and a location somewhere in the world. Each week the students are required to look up the sunrise and sunset times for that location. They use that information to calculate the photoperiod, or amount of daylight, of their city. They graph the Length of Day and begin to notice patterns. Students begin to notice that sites near the equator receive about 12 hours of sunlight each day. During this time of year, they notice that locations north of the equator receive less and less daylight as time passes. Similarly, locations south of the equator are receiving more and more sunlight at this time of year. Another interesting observation comes when locations close to the North Pole begin to have days of complete darkness and locations near the South Pole have days where the sun never sets. The students also observed that locations along similar latitude lines have similar looking graphs, meaning they have similar photoperiods. Amazing!
Length of Day
January 31/Weeks 1-5: Students now turn their focus away from their current locations to begin collecting information about 10 different “Mystery Class” locations around the globe. Nobody (not even the teacher) knows where they are! Guess what types of clues we received? If you guessed sunrise and sunset times, you are correct! Each week, the teams calculate a photoperiod and graph their data. Within a few weeks, students begin to compare the data from their Mystery Classes to the earlier locations they were studying. Theories and hypotheses abound! You might have heard such comments as, “My Mystery Class keeps getting 12 hours of daylight each week. I think it’s near the equator!” or “Look, my graph looks just like the group from Murmansk, Russia. I think we are in the northern hemisphere!”
Researching on the iPod Touch
March 18: As we approach the Spring Equinox, students receive another special type of clue. We use the clues to find the approximate longitude of our Mystery Class sites. Now we are really ready to begin making some guesses about where our locations might be. Much excitement ensues! Lots of groups begin making guesses about which country they are in. Students begin to check the sunrise and sunset times of their Mystery Class against some possible locations in their region of the world. So far, no group has found their exact location, but some are pretty close!
Spring Equinox
March 25: A new type of clue arrives – the Interdisciplinary Clue! The first clue gives us a hint about the continent of the Mystery Classes. For example, one group had this clue: “Our continent is said to have the highest and the lowest points on the Earth’s surface.”
April 1: We continue to receive sunrise and sunset times, along with more Interdisciplinary Clues. The clues are more and more specific. For example, one group had this clue on April 8: “Over 200 islands surround and are part of our special place. The most widely-spoken language in this region is different than the official language for our country.” As the clues narrow in, groups are getting closer and closer to figuring out their Mystery Class sites. They use many internet sites to help find longitude and latitude data for their “guess cities” and compare the sunrise and sunset times for those cities to their clues.
April 15: The clues are all in! Students continue to work busily to figure out where their Mystery Classes might be. By the end of the day, all groups have a guess! We will submit our guesses to the Mystery Class/Journey North site, but won’t find out if we are correct until May. It’s a long wait, but we are very excited to hear the results!
Moon Journals Part 1
April 15, 2011 · No Comments · Art, Science, Writing
This week we began observing the moon and everyone has been very excited about their discoveries! The skies have been clear and the moon has been visible early in the evening. The children have been excited about sharing their entries in class and I thought you might like to see some of their early entries. We will be observing the moon for at least a month. During that time will we explore many questions, such as:
- Why does the moon seem to change shape?
- When is the moon visible in the sky?
- What patterns do we notice when we observe the moon?
- How does the moon move?
- Is there really a man on the moon?
In the meantime, I hope that all of the families are enjoying this special activity. Thank you for supporting your children and our classroom!
(Reminder: To view the slideshow in full-screen mode, use the Menu Button)
Moon journal1
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