Week of December 7 - 11, 2009

In Writer's Workshop we worked on publishing our stories in anticipation of our Publishing Party on Friday. In Reader's Workshop we read the big book "Shark in the Park" to focus on the sequence of events in stories. In math we started unit three and practiced a variety of ways to show the same number using paper and pencil activities and games.In our geography unit the children worked in pairs to create a map of our classroom. They had to place the tables, bookshelves, white board, doors, etc. in the correct places on a piece of construction paper. They were also excited to find our classroom on the map of our school. My camera issues continue and I hope to be able to add pictures to the posts below soon!

Peace Place

Our Peaceable Schools Curriculum has really taken hold in our classroom. We decided it would be helpful to have a special place in the classroom where we could talk out a conflict with a friend. We all agree that if someone is in the Peace Place that we need to give them their privacy. The children had great fun decorating our Peace Place and came up with lots of interesting representations for peace. The next time you are in the classroom, please be sure to visit our Peace Place.

Publishing Party

Our Publishing Party was an exciting event! We spent the week getting ready by carefully editing our stories, practicing reading our stories with our writing partners and making a cover for our story. When asked what they thought about the party, the consensus among the students was, "I was nervous but it was fun!" They also said that they enjoyed seeing their friends parents and reading to them too.

Week of November 30 - December 4, 2009

This week during Writer's Workshop we included how we feel about the small moments we are writing about. We refer to it as writing about the outside and inside of the story. In Reader's Workshop we continued to look at Mercer Mayer stories to talk about the problem and solution in stories. In Math we finished our unit on shapes and are moving onto Unit 3: Addition, Subtraction and the Number System. We wrapped up our study of the past and present with a fun filed trip to the National Museum of American History (see below) and started a new social studies unit about geography and culture. Due to camera issues I apologize that I do not have any pictures of the children for the blog this week.

Field Trip: National Museum of American History

A highlight of the week was a trip to the National Museum of American History in Washington. We had many opportunities to recognize things from our past and present and to learn more about American symbols and monuments. Children enjoyed seeing the presidential exhibit, the different types of transportation and the original star spangled banner. The hands-down favorite was the sculpture of George Washington pictured above. We are so thankful to all the parents who accompanied us on this fun trip!

Cultural Project

The Cultural Project is the culmination activity for our Geography and Cultures unit. The objective of the project is to help the children understand that we have different heritages and that our ancestors came to the United States from other countries around the world. The project exposes them to world geography and to the idea that cultures vary according to their place on the map as well as traditions, beliefs, language, clothing and rules. We learn that people share their culture with their friends and family and that cultures are the same and different around the world. Ultimately we realize that our differences are interesting and enrich our experiences and that even if we have different cultures, we can all still get along with each other. Students will discuss their cultural heritage with their family and pick a country that is part of their heritage to study. They will create an exhibit about their country that includes a map of their country, a fact card and a paper doll dressed in traditional clothes. They may also include a flag and other artifacts that will teach others about their country. We will also have a Cultural Feast and enjoy foods from the different countries in the exhibits and invite families to view our Cultural Museum.

New Social Studies Unit: Geography and Cultures

We started a new social studies unit this week entitled, "Geography and Cultures." We talked about the Cultural Project (See the "Cultural Project" post)and we learned what the terms "geography" and "culture" mean. The highlight was finding Virginia on the map of the United States and looking at a map of the state of Virginia and finding Washington and Arlington on the map. We also learned about cardinal directions, the compass rose and map legends.