Day 35: 4th Grade Matter Day

The Melting Witch

Today, 4th grade students spent their afternoon attending 5 sessions that featured chemical change experiments.

4th grade students have been studying matter (solids, liquids, and gases) and how it changes.  Some of the more interesting changes to matter occur during chemical changes.

Check out one of the five experiments students got to participate in:

Day 34: Amina, 2nd Grade Student

Learning from a Road Trip

This summer, Amina, a 2nd grade student in Mrs. Potter's class, traveled to Minneapolis, MN to visit family.

"We drove to Indiana, Chicago, Wisconsin, and then to Minnesota."

This was Amina's first time traveling to Minneapolis.  She traveled with her mom and her sister by car.  "It took us two days to get there.  We kept asking to stop because we were hungry or bored."  Along the way, Amina learned something about taking long road trips.  

She gets carsick.

"We stopped at McDonald's and I got some hot chocolate.  I drank it all, but then I started to feel sick to my stomach. I had to get sick in my cup."

After two long days, Amina finally made it to Minneapolis.  "We went to the Mall of America.  It was like going to King's Island. "  She rode some rides and had a great time.

Besides finding out she can get carsick, Amina learned a little more about the world around her.  Next summer, though, she hopes she gets to take a plane.

Day 33: Mrs. Richards's Mathematicians

Creating Problems

Mrs. Richards's 4th grade students recently challenged themselves two ways: 1) Create a challenging word problem; 2) Solve a problem created by another group.

The student-created problems and the work done by their classmates to solve their problem was displayed out in the hallway.  Students who were passing by stopped to evaluate the work by using the same rubric Mrs. Richards's students used to check themselves.

Take a look at some of the problems:

Day 32: Community

Our Learning Community Goes Beyond the School Walls

Tonight, our school held it's Fall Fun Night.  It was a huge success and a great chance to have the whole community come together to hang out, play games and bounce around in some inflatable bounce-houses.

Earlier today, I was at another school building and a teacher there asked how everything was going at Horizon.  "Awesome" was the first word out of my mouth.  

The strange thing was that it was too hard to explain why it's "awesome".  I told the teacher about the enrichment session before school that are new this year, how the media center is always buzzing with learning, how teachers are working hard to stay on the cutting edge of students' learning.  But all of that doesn't quite explain why my first thought was "awesome".

The awesomeness goes beyond the building and comes from the community.  It comes from the supportive PTO, the parent volunteers, and the local business who go out of their way to support us.

All of this made me think of an explanation from Daniel Fink of what a successful school culture is, and I think it sounds a lot like our learning community:

"It's not necessarily that something is different about the school.  They don't have different curriculum that they teach—no, it's just that it's more integrated and inclusive. You can walk down the hallway and you're not afraid of talking to anyone because of their race or their background, or anything like that. ... You walk in and there's just a smile on your face—and you don't necessarily know why—and you want to know more about why [the school culture] is that way." 

Day 31: Devon, 3rd Grade Student

Growing Up

Last year, if you asked Devon what his favorite subject was, chances are he wouldn't have said "math".

This year is different.

"Life changes when you grow older," says the 3rd grader.

Devon was proud of the hard work he's done in math this year. "I did all of my hard work to get here. There's a new profile in my head in 3rd grade."

Devon is starting to understand the big picture when it comes to learning and understanding math. Today, he pointed at a half sheet of word problems and he had completed and just smiled. "I did all of that hard work myself."


Devon is a 3rd grade student in Miss Brake's class.

Day 30: Listen

They might be trying to tell you something

Something that I've learned that I have found very useful as a teacher and a parent is remembering this:

When they aren't listening to you, listen to them.

How many times have we found ourselves wondering "Why won't you listen?"

However, how many times have we listened first?  Maybe our kids don't understand they way we are saying it.  Maybe they need us to show them how.

Instead of spinning our wheels about "what don't they understand", ask your kids (calmly), "What questions do you have?".

You'll be surprised what you find out and you might find a way to help your kids listen.

Check out this video of what happens when we try to keep telling our kids to listen instead of listening to them (thanks to PrincipalsPage for sharing this clip):

Day 29: Samantha, 4th grade student

Rounding Rap

Samantha, a fourth grade student in Mrs. Smith's class, recently learned the rounding rap.  This has helped her remember the thinking you need to do when you are rounding numbers.  Here she is sharing the rap:

Here's one of the rounding rap videos that inspired Samantha's new learning:

http://youtu.be/OVmYl3x85j4

Day 28: In Case of Emergency, Read This Book

Helping Kids Through A Bad Day

This afternoon, I was running 10 minutes behind the time I was supposed to be working with some students on responding to their reading through writing.  I had made a commitment earlier in the week not to let anything stop me from meeting with these students since that kept happening.

As I was getting nearer to the classroom (walking at a pace that is probably not allowable in an elementary school), I saw a student outside of her classroom showing signs of being frustrated.  Now, it's not unusual for this child to get upset easily.  That's just who she is.  So, against what I wanted to do, I stopped and asked, "Is everything okay?"

She blurted out her frustration and said, "I'm going somewhere else," and headed down the hallway.

That's usually not a good sign.  Not just for this kid.  For any kid.

I followed her and tried to get her to tell me where she was going, but all she said was, "I need to get outta here."

At this point, I wasn't quite sure what to do next.  I was worried that talking about what happened would upset her even more.  It turns out, a few kids in her class were reminding her not to use so much lip gloss in that kid-reminding-another-kid-sort-of-way (think poor choice of words and a negative tone of voice).

So I turned to the emergency, never-fail, guaranteed to make a kid laugh book, The Blue Day Book for Kids: A Lesson in Cheering Yourself Up, by Bradley Trevor Greive.  

I told her I have the perfect book for you.  She was interested and wanted to see what I was carrying on about. It worked.  She loved relating to the different examples of blue days (and the funny pictures of animals, of course).

So if you ever find yourself in a situation where your child is too upset to think about anything but being upset, I highly recommend bringing out The Blue Day Book For Kids.

It works like a charm.

Day 27: Learning Through Games

Game Time!

This year, Hilliard Horizon Elementary students in grades 1-5 can choose from 6 enrichment classes that meet before school twice a week.  The purpose of these enrichment opportunities is to offer students a chance to extend their learning through creative or innovative ways.

One of the optional enrichment classes student got to choose from at Hilliard Horizon is the Game Club class.  While students play games like "Battleship", "Connect 4" and "Hedbanz", they also keep track of thinking skills they are using while they play the games.  Mrs. Nott and Mrs. Showalter, two of the ELL teachers at Horizon, help students keep track of the thinking that is involved with the games they play.  The two teachers are helping students develop vocabulary, critical thinking skills, and math skills, as well as helping students understand cause and effect relationships.



Comparison Chart of strategies used while playing various games.

Day 26: Honesty from an Author

Finally: Some Honesty About Writing

 Barbara O'Connor's tweet about writing first drafts.

You know that it's okay to think that first drafts are not fun to write when a successful author thinks so too.


Barbara O'Connor is a children's book author who has written many great books such as How to Steal a Dog, On the Way to Mr. Mineo's and (my favorite) Greetings From Nowhere.

She tweeted her thoughts on first drafts this summer on Twitter (@barbaraoconnor), and I had to save it so that I could share it with kids.  I like that she's honest about the challenges of writing.  It fits in with my philosophy of always being truthful with students, especially with challenges.  Our job as teachers is not to hide challenges from students.  We are supposed to help students recognize what's challenging and then help them find a solution to the challenge.

Day 25: Buckeye Children's Book Award

Rock the Vote!

Buckeye Children's and Teen Book Award 2012

Last week, Dr. Dorr, Hilliard Horizon Elementary's Media Specialist, introduced students to the nominated books for this year's Buckeye Children's and Teen Book Award nominees.

Dr. Dorr introducing students to the Buckeye Children's Book Award Nominees

The goal of this award is "to encourage more kids to read by providing the opportunity to share their joy of reading by voting for their favorite books."

Here are the nominations for this year's award:

Students are learning the importance of knowing more about a book before they vote.  Students have access to copies of the nominated books.

Click here to vote on the book you want to see win!

Day 24: 4th Grade Scholastic Webcast

Lunch with J. K. Rowling

During their lunchtime on Thursday, 45 fourth grade students ate lunch with author J. K. Rowling.

Through Scholastic's Global Webcast, 4th grade students students were able to watch a live interview with the author of the Harry Potter series.

Here is a video of Rowling reading from one of the Harry Potter books:

Day 23: Amy Wray, 2nd Grade Teacher

Focus on What's Important

I am an inspirational quote junkie.  I love to read stories, quotes, snippets about life and how to make it better for my family, friends, students, coworkers and most importantly myself.  

This morning as I sat trying to wake up, enjoying my diet coke, I came across this story.  I have seen it many times but I feel it is so worthy of rereading.  

Life is so busy and hectic but I hope this story will remind you to slow down, share a cup of coffee, and spend time with those you care about the most!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A_small_cup_of_coffee.JPG

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.  He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.  The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand.  The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else---the small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and mow the lawn.

Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.' The coffee just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a cup of cofee with a friend.

Amy Wray is a 2nd Grade Teacher at Hilliard Horizon Elementary.

Day 22: Doing homework with my 4-year-old

15 Minutes

My daughter Ally is in a 3-4 year old class at Alton-Darby Preschool.  It's a peer model preschool at Hilliard City Schools.  My wife and I felt lucky to get her in this year.  We filled out the application when she was 1, just to give you an idea of the preschool's popularity.

It is obvious to me they value literacy at the school.  My daughter brought home a book-in-a-bag for homework.  After getting over the shock of homework in preschool, I thought, "We already read every night before bed, so I'm not sure about this...".  

I'm glad we did the homework.  I learned so much about my daughter as a reader.

Ally's writing in her reader's notebook. She drew a picture and copied the title because, "I just want to".

We read the book Too Many Tamales, by Gary Soto.  In the story, a girl is making tamales with her mom for a Christmas dinner.  She feels grown-up and even gets to wear make-up and her mom's apron.  When she sees her mom's diamond ring on the counter, she can't resist and puts it on.  Later she realizes she lost the ring and orders her cousins eat the stack of 24 tamales thinking the ring came off when she was making them (You'll have to read the book to find out what happens).

In just 15 minutes, Ally:

• Did a picture walk and predicted what would happen ("In the story, I think it's going to snow.")
• Figured out what the problem was ("She lost the ring!")
• Worried about what will happen next ("I think she will get in trouble.")
• And summarized what happened ("I think the ring was eaten, but it wasn't.  It was on her ring finger!")

This kind of reading is completely different than the reading we do before bed.  By doing the assignment and asking simple questions like "What do you think will happen next?" or "What's the problem?", I was able to see what Ally is able to do as a reader.

I encourage any parent to try this out.  Just ask the question and let them talk.  You will be amazed!  

It only takes 15 minutes.




 

Day 21: Mrs. Remington's 1st grade writers

"Don't Let the Pigeon Feed Max!"

Mrs. Remington's 1st grade class have been investigating the Pigeon books by Mo Willems.  The Pigeon is quite the character.  It seems he always wants to do something that he knows he can't do, like drive a bus or stay up late.

blog.schoollibraryjournal.com

After studying the writing style of Mo Willems' Pigeon books, Mrs. Remington's 1st graders wanted to create their own Pigeon display called "Don't Let the Pigeon Feed Max!".  Max, a Betta fish, is the class pet.

"Max"

In this video, some of Mrs. Remington's students explain how they put the project together:

Day 20: Abyan, 4th Grade student

The Best Teacher Ever

On June 1st, Field Day, Mrs. Litterer, my 3rd grade teacher told us that she wasn't going to be a 3rd grade teacher anymore.  I was going to explode! Poof!

When I got home I went upstairs and cried my head off.  That's why I missed school during the summer.  My brother and sister think I'm crazy!  It's because they don't know how good of a teacher she is.  I'm still mad that she is not my 4th grade teacher.  I have a good teacher this year, but having Mrs. Litterer would be cool.

I really miss Mrs. Litterer.  I see her every morning before school.  And when I am done with Safety Patrol each day, I will go and see her.  This is only the beginning.


She has a big heart.  She wrote a story about me.  I was so happy, I hugged her as tight as I could.  She is the reason why I love school--well, there are a lot of reasons why I love school, but she is the main reason why.  Anyway, my point is Mrs. Litterer is an amazing, awesome, funny, and spectacular teacher and more.  If we had to pick a teacher of the year, her whole class would vote for her 600 times.  I would vote for her 3 times, that's how good of a teacher she is.

I want Mrs. Litterer to be my 5th grade teacher and so forth.  It took me all day to write this letter!!

Mrs. Litterer is a great, great, great, great, and amazing teacher!!!

Abyan is a fourth grade student at Hilliard Horizon Elementary.

Day 19: Project Update

Your Story Matters

We've had three successful weeks with our project.  18 stories of learning have been shared so far.  And while we are a long way off of our goal to share a total of 165 stories, the stories that have been told have been terrific.

I am amazed that the project has become popular so quickly.  We recently hit 2,000 pageviews, which is more than I expected by this time.  What amazes me even more is that the audience that is reading our stories each day is a worldwide audience.  What this confirms for me is that your story matters.  People want to read stories where the storyteller is being reflective and is talking from the heart.

http://flickrhivemind.net/Tags/lindawoods

Writing for a global audience is usually not typical for an elementary school since most of the time our audience consists of the members of our learning community- our students, teachers and families.  This project allows the members of our learning community the opportunity to write for a global audience, which can be a more authentic experience.

The progress of the project has me reflecting on a recent blog post by David Truss that lays out what he believes are 7 ways to transform a classroom, which include inquiry learning, giving students a voice, connecting to a global audience, developing a broad community, leadership opportunities, chances to play, and connecting to networks.  I feel that our project is highlighting the things we do each day at Hilliard Horizon that exemplifies the 7 ways Truss describes.  Horizon's classrooms are already transformed and we are pushing ourselves each day to continue to change.

Thanks for continuing to read our stories, and I look forward to more members of the Hilliard Horizon community stepping up to the microphone that is connected to the world and sharing their story of learning.

Day 18: Alexis and Evelyn, 4th Grade students

Book Clubs through Google Docs

Alexis and Evelyn were excited to start a book club since the beginning of school.  Recently, they were able to begin one.  They chose to read Judy Blume's Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

What's different about being in a book club this year is the use of Google Docs.  This web-based application can be shared between users.  Now, Alexis and Evelyn can share their thinking about the book as they read it and the other can read it, no matter where they are.  What's more is that Mrs. Smith, the girls' 4th grade teacher, is able to see the conversation, too, and contribute and support the conversation.

Screenshot of a conversation the girls have had with Mrs. Smith about the book they are reading.

Below is a reflection about what the girls have learned about using Google Docs to share their thinking in their book club:

Day 17: Mrs. Meister's 4th Grade Geologists

The Land Before Time

Today, Mrs. Meister's 4th Graders learned about Ohio's geological past.  Much of the land in Ohio was changed due to the slow process of glaciers eroding the land during the last ice age.

With the help of Mrs. Parker-Jones, our building's technology specialist, Mrs. Meister's students learned how to explain why Ohio's land and resources are where they are today.

Watch as Mrs. Parker-Jones helps the students understand that the farm land in the plains of Ohio were formed when the glaciers moved in:

Day 16: Korey, 5th Grade student

THE GOALS I WANT TO OBTAIN TO BE SUCCESSFUL

Monday night I decided to write my goals on what I’m gonna do when I’m older just so when I do get to that point to see if I was successful.  My 5th grade teacher Mrs. Ringhiser really inspires me to push myself to make my goal higher and harder. 

I plan to put all my goals in a frame above my bed so when I don’t think I can do it  to read and give my self a little boost.  It will help me be successful when I try to hang out with my friends to work harder and then school then sports then friends. 

I learned that I really underestimated myself.  So I learned to believe that I can do this.


Here is Korey reading her goal sheet to Mrs. Ringhiser:

Day 15: Kelli Litterer, Reading Intervention Specialist

A Lasting Bond

 

I am in a new position this year teaching Title Reading in grades 1-3.  When I told my third grade students at the end of the year last year, I told them what I always tell my kids, “Do not ever become so cool that you can’t come and give your old third grade teacher a hug!”  However, I was concerned.  I would be in a new room on the other side of the building.  My former students would no longer walk past “Littererland” on their way to class.  I had a very special bond with that class, but selfishly I worried that they would forget me, so I added, “Come find me next year in Room 36, right across from the office...”

 

 

My former students showed me compassion and giving as school started and I tackled my new job.  Every time I would see my kids from last year, we’d say hi and some would hug me.  I took on the position of overseeing morning announcements so I could continue to get my “big kid” time.  I even set up special days to have lunch with my former students.  It was fun hanging out with them.  We reminisced and also talked about how things were going in their new classes.  I learned that I needn’t have worried at all.  My old students helped me transition.  I enjoy my new job and working with younger students is fun and challenging.   

One in particular, Abyan, made sure I knew she cared.  During the second week of school Abyan told me she had been going to my room every morning looking for me.  She said she even came in before school started.  I missed her every time.  I told her that I am in the computer lab for morning announcements each day.  Every single day since then, Abyan has come to give me a hug.  Sometimes I am busy setting equipment up or telling students what they need to do, and sometimes we even have to walk in front of the camera, but every morning I get my hug.  On Monday, Abyan brought in a healthy snack for me.  I was especially touched because she used to do this occasionally last year when our class had snacks during math.  She remembered that I love Nutrigrain bars.  Abyan and the rest of my former students showed me that it doesn’t matter what I teach or where I teach.  Our special bond will always bring us together.

Mrs. Litterer is a Reading Intervention Specialist at Hilliard Horizon Elementary.