Book Club

      I hope everyone is having a restful and happy holiday season. I thought I would give you a preview of the book we will be reading next for our book club. This is a wonderful story so sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa has finished his rounds.  I hope you have enjoyed tracking him.  Be sure to check back next year!

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa is now in New York!

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa has just visited Lajes do Pico, Portugal. He should be heading toward the east coast soon. :)

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa is now in Italy. Check out the beautiful sights he has seen. Happy holidays!

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa has flown over Russia.  He will not stay long here since he will be returning here in 2 more weeks.  He just loves looking at the beautiful sights.

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa just visited the Taj Mahal in India.  Be sure to keep checking on where Santa is.

NORAD Santa Tracker

Santa has left the North Pole.  He has already visited New Zealand and Australia.

NORAD Santa Tracker

Check it out!  We used Google Earth in class and it was fun to say the least.  Now you can use Google Earth to track Santa's movement tomorrow night.  If you can, take a moment to check it out.  :)  Happy Holidays to all!

Synonyms

Check out this neat game you can play when practicing synonyms. Remember, synonyms are words that have similar meanings.

http://www.scholastic.com/wordgirl/synonym_toast.htm

Check out these AMAZING Penguins!

Helicopter Landing

A Visit from the Sheriff's Office

     Our class was lucky enough to be able to go check out all of the demonstrations by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.  It was a very interesting and enjoyable experience.  We were able to see the Bomb Squad, Mounted Unit, a police squad car, K-9 Unit, and even the police helicopter.  Check it out!

Check Out Our Words!

These are the spelling words for this week.  I typed them into http://www.wordle.net which makes neat designs.  Check it out for something fun and different!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I saw this news today and thought I would share. Happy Thanksgiving! By the way, "Pumpkin" and "Pecan" will get to go to Disney World for the Thanksgiving Day Parade. Again, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Prediction and Inference

Prediction And Inference

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own.

Our Animal Classes Posters

These are the posters we created to identify the five classes of animals. We did this in small groups. Take a minute to check out our great work!

Our Story Maps

These are our story maps for the story of Lost and Found by Mark Teague. We did these in small groups. Take a moment to check them out.

Summarizing

Summarizing

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Proud Panther

     Proud Panther now has his very own blog. If you recall, Proud Panther is our class mascot. A student will be selected weekly for this honor. He/she will then be given the opportunity to take home one of our "Proud Panthers" for the week. He/She will have then be able to blog about the panther's journey in “Proud Panther’s Journey”. In addition to being able to blog, the selected student will get to take home "Proud Panther's Bag" full of books, games and so much more. The selected student will also receive a certificate for his/her accomplishments. Students are encouraged to blog daily about Proud Panther’s journey with him/her. Students may even post pictures of Proud Panther with the help of an adult.
     Be sure to check out his blog for his latest adventures. Thanks for stopping by and we look forward to hearing from you soon.

Time Lapse of Plant Growth

Latest Happenings

     Good evening! We have been busy the past few weeks. Between testing and trying to establish our rituals and routines, it seems like we haven't had a chance to take a breath. The students have been working very hard and have done a great job becoming accustomed to the classroom, especially after the rocky start with Fay.
     More students are trying to answer the Club Einstein questions. Keep up the good work! These questions were designed to make learning more fun as well as introduce the students to conducting research. Students have also begun emailing their homework as a means of turning it in. We are certainly pleased to see this happen as well. After all, we are living in a world that requires the use of technology more and more each day.
     We have posted a PowerPoint on Monitor and Clarify. This was presented to the class today as one of several reading strategies that we will learn this year. If you have a moment, please check it out. This strategy will help your child to be come a better reader.
     Thanks for stopping by and look for further updates soon.

Monitor and Clarify

Monitor And Clarify

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: monitor clarify)

Open House

Good evening! Here is our Open House Power Point presentation for those of you that were not able to make it. Thank you for your support!

0809 Power Point

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own.

Establishing Good Reading Habits

     To establish good reading habits, a person needs to develop a list of reasons as to why we read.  Reading serves MANY purposes.  Reading is done simply for the fun of it.  Reading can be done to learn new information.   Reading can be done to make something such as a cake as well as following directions.  Reading is done to explore new topics and visit new places.  Reading is done to share stories with family and friends.  These are just a few of the reasons we read.

     Once we established a list of purposes for reading, 

we discussed how to become better readers.  To be a better reader, you must read DAILY!  You must read from a variety of genres.  As you read, you need to be sure to use all of the reading strategies.  To become a better reader, it is also necessary to read a book that is "just right".  We will talk about "just right" books later this week.  Finally, to be a better reader, we need to take the time to talk about what we have read.   That is how a reader establishes good reading habits.  

     For more information regarding the reading strategies, please see the movie below.  In-depth coverage of each strategy will be posted throughout the year as we work on each of these strategies.

 

Welcome Back!

     It is hard to believe summer vacation has ended and school has begun. We had a WONDERFUL first day! We want to thank all of the parents that stopped by this morning to drop off supplies and to provide that extra encouragement. It was so nice to see all of the familiar faces as well as make some new acquaintances. Mrs. Archer and I will be working very hard to take care of your children and to help them grow.
     We accomplished quite a bit today. In Readers' Workshop and Writers' Workshop, the students reviewed the workshop model. The workshop model consists of a mini-lesson which is approximately 15 minutes. It is during this time that the teacher teaches a mini-lesson using a variety of methods. The mini-lesson is followed by a 30-40 minute work period. It is during this time that the students will practice the skill or strategy that was taught during the mini-lesson. We conclude the workshop with a closing that is approximately 10 minutes. It is during this time that the students will share their work, ask questions and clear up any misconceptions (the students learned that word today).
     For the skill block, the students took a quiz about long and short vowels. Here are a few sites to provide additional practice.

Long and Short Vowel Match

Coconut Vowel Practice - This is a neat game!

Long Vowel Sound Podcast

In math, the students discussed groups of 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.. Have them look around the house and find objects that are grouped together. This "inquiry" method in math is leading up to teaching them a new skill which they will discover. Check out this newsletter that will provide you with some information regarding the Math Investigation Unit we are now doing.

     We also introduced the students to the class website. If you have the opportunity, please explore it with your child. We have already had several students answer the Club Einstein Questions. The top scoring student at the end of the nine weeks earns a prize. We will be updating the site some more in the next few days so be on the lookout. Again, thank you for making this a wonderful first day and we look forward to a great year with your children!

Establishing Readers Workshop

     Today we learned about establishing Readers Workshop.  We discussed the rules and expectations for Readers Workshop.  Readers Workshop can be broken into three parts; the opening, work time, and the closing.  During the opening, the teacher is teaching a mini-lesson.  This mini-lesson can include modeling a strategy, guided practice (turn and talk), and so on.  This is approximately 15 minutes of the workshop.  The work period can consist of independent activities, guided reading groups, centers, and diagnostic testing.  This is approximately 30-40 minutes of the workshop.  The remaining 10 minutes of the workshop is called the closing.   The closing serves to review what was learned in the day's lesson as well as how it is used in the next day's lesson.  The closing is also a time for the teacher to clarify any misconceptions.  

Our New Classroom

     I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to all who attended the orientation on Thursday evening.  It was very nice to see everyone.  For those of you that were unable to attend, here is a sneak peek at our new classroom.  It is HUGE!  Well, take a moment to check it out and I will see you all on Monday.

The 2008 Summer Olympics

Here is a handy little chart to help you keep track of the Olympics.

Olympic Medal winners at NBC Olympics.com!

Creeping Oobleck!

     I found this on YouTube and thought it was very interesting.  We made oobleck in class last year and I had no idea it could do this.  See if you can figure out how they got the oobleck to "creep" so to speak.

 

Proud Panther's Journey

      Well, I hope your summer has been going well.  Proud Panther and I just returned from a two week trip to Chicago, Illinois.  Here are some pictures for your enjoyment.  These pictures were taken while touring the Chicago River.  I found it very interesting to find out that the Chicago River is actually 18 inches lower than Lake Michigan.  There are a series of locks that keep the water level lower in the Chicago River.  I will upload some video soon of a lock being opened.  In the meantime, enjoy some pictures of downtown.

Happy 4th of July

Summer Fun

Well, the school year has finally come to a close. The students have worked very hard all year and I am very proud of all they have accomplished. While enjoying your well-deserved summer vacation, here are a few things you can work on to help you stay prepared for third grade.



Reading:

1. Work on the various reading strategies while reading a good book. There is a list of recommended texts on the school website for students entering third grade. Click here for a list of titles and authors your child can read over the summer.

2. Visit the public library to check out some good books. You can also visit any of the major bookstores such as Barnes and Noble, BooksAMillion, or Borders for one of their story hours. They frequently offer story time with an activity that follows and best of all, it is free. The Barnes and Noble at Regency has a lovely children's department that is nearby. If you have time, check it out this summer.

Writing:

1. Keep a diary of fun things you have done during the summer.


2. Start your very own blog. It is easy to do. You can even continue to blog on the blog that we started in class.


3. If your child wants to visit somewhere, make him/her write about it. they can write a brief description of the place as well as write their reasons for wanting to go there.

Math:

1. Continue to work on skip counting the 2's, 3's, 4's, 5's, 6's, 7's, 8's, 9's, 10's, and 25's. This will make multiplication so much easier to master. This will also make addition and subtraction of larger numbers easier to solve as well.

2. Practice telling time to the nearest hour, half-hour, quarter hour and five minute interval. Please click here or here for additional practice.

3. Practice solving elapsed time problems by creating time lines. Here is a problem for example.
Mrs. Robinson went to the beach at 1:30 pm. She returned home at 4:15 pm. How long was she at the beach?

4. Practice solving problems using amounts up to $1.00. They should be able to add a vareity of coins together quickly. Click here for additional practice.

5. Practice making up story problems (word problem) with sums to 100 and differences from 100. Click here for additional practice in solving story problems.

6. Practice looking at data (graphs). Be able to make judgements using the data as evidence of your answer. Click here for additional practice in learning about graphs and data analysis.

For additonal prepartion for 3rd grade, visit the following sites for fun ways to practice 3rd grade skills.

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/skills_3rd.htm

http://www.aaamath.com/grade3.html

For additional fun this summer, here are few things I have found in surfing the net.

1. Check out Kids Kampus. It is a free playground that offers children tha chance to play in the water, visit an old fire station, ride a bike, and so much more.

2. Check out some of the other parks and programs that Jacksonville has to offer. Click here for more information.

3. See great kids' movies -- for just $1 -- during AMC Summer MovieCamp!
Shows start at 10:00 a.m. every Wednesday from June 25 - August 6. All admission proceeds* from AMC Summer MovieCamp will benefit Variety - The Children's Charity and the Will Rogers Institute. * Excluding tax. For more information, click here.

4. You can also check out the movies at Cinemark (Tinseltown). You can buy tickets in advance for the 10 weeks for $5.00 total. That is 50 cents a movie! The movies are also scheduled on different days than AMC's movies so you can watch them both. For more information on Tinseltown's movies, click here.

5. Visit MOSH, the Cummer Art Gallery, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sally Corp, Peterbrooke Chocolate Factory, the Jacksonville Zoo, the Timucuan National Preserve and the many beaches and parks we have.

If you know of any other places to visit, please contact me so I may share them with others. Have a great weekend and I look foraward to seeing you at our End of the Year Party!

Mrs. Robinson

Mrs. Robinson has posted a brand new entry in her blog. Proud Panther had a nice time in Mexico last week. If you have a chance, please check out her blog for Proud Panther's latest adventure. Thanks for stopping by and look for some new updates this weekend.

Amish Friendship Bread

     On Friday, Kaylee's grandmother sent in a tasty treat for the class to share. It was a delicious bread called Amish Friendship Bread. Here is the recipe:

Amish Friendship Bread Recipes:

Ingredients:
Amish Friendship Bread Starter (this is the batter that you are initially given by a friend):
1 tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
2 cups Warm Water — (110 degrees)
1 cup Flour
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Milk

Bread:
1 cup Vegetable Oil
1 cup Sugar
2 cups Flour
3 Eggs
1 small Vanilla Pudding Mix — Instant
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 cup Milk

Cinnamon Sugar:
1 cup Sugar
2 tablespoons Cinnamon

For Amish Friendship Bread Starter:
Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup of the warm water in a deep glass container. Stir
in remaining warm water, flour and sugar. Beat until smooth. Cover. A large
glass jar or bowl with a tight fitting lid works best for this. Because your
first batch of starter contains fresh yeast, you can skip the next set of
directions and go directly to the instructions for splitting your start.

Do not refrigerate! Do not stir with a metal spoon! The starter requires 10
days for fermentation.

Day 1- Begin or receive starter
Day 2- Stir with wooden spoon
Day 3- Stir with wooden spoon
Day 4- Stir with wooden spoon
Day 5- Add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk
Day 6- Stir with wooden spoon
Day 7- Stir with wooden spoon
Day 8- Do Nothing
Day 9- Do Nothing
Day 10- Add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk

Put 1 cup of starter in each of three containers. Give 2 away to friends and
keep one. This will begin their Day 1.

For Amish Friendship Bread

You will have about 1 cup of batter left besides the 1 cup you have saved for
yourself. To the remaining batter add vegetable oil, sugar, flour, baking
powder, baking soda, eggs, milk, vanilla pudding mix, cinnamon, and salt. Beat
until well blended. Add one cup raisins, chocolate chips or nuts, if desired.
Grease 2 loaf pans well, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, coating bottom well.
Turn batter into pans, and sprinkle remaining cinnamon sugar onto tops of
loaves. Bake at 325 F degrees for one hour.

This was a fabulous treat that the class loved.  I look forward to making it myself!  Have fun!

Time-lapse video of a caterpillar becoming a butterfly

Seurat

Little Talbot Island

     Good evening everyone! I hope everyone is well and resting from our trip today. The class had the privilege of visiting Little Talbot Island State Park.  We had a blast!  First, we heard about the various habitats that can be found at the park.  We discovered there several habitats that are located at the park.  How many can you remember?  Afterwards, the park ranger was kind enough to take us on a short hike through the woods.  Then we had a beautiful picnic lunch followed by a walk on the beach.  We tried to fly kites but the wind was much to strong and the kites ended up in a jumbled mess.  Hey, at least we got to dig in the sand!

     Have a nice evening and look for more updates soon!  For now, here are some pictures you should enjoy.

States of Matter

Check this out!

States of Matter Game

End of the Year Dance

     I just happened to visit the Kids Kampus this weekend with my daughter and discovered that the water park section will be opening this week for those that are interested.  I was told it should be open on Tuesday or Wednesday.  Click on the Kids Kampus link above for the hours of operation.  I taught summer camp several years ago and we took the campers there.  It is a wonderful place and the best thing about it is that it is FREE!

     I also discovered while surfing the COJ page that there are MANY activities going during the next few months that are free.  They have movies in the parks, dance parties, swimming competitions, and so much more.  They have an end of the year dance scheduled at the R.F. Kennedy Community Center on University Blvd from 6:30 -10:00 on Friday, May 16. I had no idea just how much they had until I surfed the net and found out about the events today.  Go to JaxParks for more information.

Help End World Hunger

     I have to thank Ms. Herrera for this site.  I saw it on her blog and felt that I needed to add it to my blog as well.  It is a vocabulary building site that donates rice each time you correctly define a word.  Check it out.

http://www.freerice.com/index.php

Congratulations Mrs. Robinson!

     Mrs. Robinson's last day with us was today. We are so sad to see her go! We will miss her so much! We had some cake to celebrate her success. She will be venturing to Pennsylvania after she graduates from college. However, she will still be keeping in touch with us via the blog and email. She has even agreed to take Proud Panther on ANOTHER trip to Mexico to see the ruins. She will be shipping him back once his trip is done. She will also be taking lots of pictures of him and posting them on the blog. We look forward to his adventures. Good luck Mrs. Robinson and we will miss you!

The Symphony

Wonderful Resource

     Another teacher recently recommended a site to me that I just HAD to share. It is called Into the Book. If you click on the teacher side, you can access videos about the various reading strategies. You can watch a video that explains questiongin or vsualizing or even inferring. If you have the chance, please feel free to check this site out. It will provide you with information you can use at home to help improve your child's reading comprehension.

Cause and Effect

Faculty Kickball Game

     Well, to celebrate School Spirit Week, our school held its annual Faculty Kickball Game. It was a BLAST! The kids loved watching the teachers and the teachers enjoyed the chance to play a game. Here are some shots of our fun morning. By the way, way to go BLUE!

Mrs. Robinson's England Trip

     Mrs. Robinson and Proud Panther recently returned from a trip to Plymouth, England. She was kind enough to share all sorts of pictures with the class today. Below you will find a slideshow of some of the places she and Proud Panther visited. If you have a chance, be sure to thank her as well since she was also kind enough to bring back some chocolates as well for us. (The chocolates were FABULOUS!)

States of Matter

This video details the states of matter. If you have a moment, please check it out.

School Spirit Week Activities

Monday - Mix and Match Day

Tuesday - Sports Shirt Day (Go Gators!)

Wednesday - Wear Funny PJs

Thursday - Hawaiian Day

Friday - Faculty Kickball Game

The Barbershop Quartet

Check It Out

     Good evening everyone!  If you can, check out Mrs. Robinson's Blog.   Proud Panther visited London, England!  He was able to see some very interesting sights.  She took some wonderful pictures with him.  Try Google Earth to see if you can spot the places she went.  Thank you Mrs. Robinson and we look forward to seeing more of your adventures.

Spring Break Fun

Reading Links:

Study Zone -  This site contains contains links to many activities that reinforce 2nd grade skills.

Battleship - This is a game that helps with inference.  You have the opportunity to play Battleship and practice a reading strategy all at the same time.

Math Links:

Library of Virtual Manipulatives - Practice your shapes, fractions, measurement and much more.

Measure It - Practice measuring on Funbrain.

Know It All - A 2nd grade measurement practice site.

Science Links:

Harcourt States of Matter - This site was designed to help you visualize the states of matter.

Fun Links:

Funbrain

Yahooligans

Have a nice break and don't forget about your Cereal Box Book Reports.  Happy reading :)

The Dice Jar

     Well, the class finally filled the dice jar this past week.  The dice jar is the class compliment jar.  Every time the dice jar is filled, the students earn a prize as a class.  The first prize was an ice cream "social".  We do not have "parties" in school.  We have "socials."  This past prize was pizza and a movie.  They really seemed to enjoy that. 

       The next prize will be a day of games.  I have GOBS of learning games in the classroom that the children will be able to use.  Hopefully, they will be able to earn this final prize before the school year is out.  Well, I am off to find some activities that the students can do over spring break.  Good night!

Food Webs

Here is another short video to help you understand what a food web is. If you have a moment, please check it out. Thanks for stopping by and happy learning!

Verbs

Here is a short video to help you remember what a verb is. If you have a moment, check it out.

Happy Easter!

Happy National Chocolate Caramel Day

To celebrate National Chocolate Caramel Day, the students tested various choclates with caramel in them. They created a web to describe the candy they each ate. Then, using a Venn Diagram, the students paired up and compared their candies. Finally, the class then created a PowerPoint presentation detailing the results. Their presentation will be posted on their blog. For now, I am including a video detailing how chocolate is made.

Math Study Guides

Our Lucky Charms Adventure

Happy St. Patrick's Day

     Our class would like to wish everyone a Happy St. Patrick’s Day. We had an enjoyable day today. For reading, we took notes on cause and effect. The students watched a PowerPoint presentation on the topic. This is the same PowerPoint that you will find on our class blog. Afterwards, the students paired up and read a short passage. They then discussed any cause and effect events they found within the story.  

    We had a wonderful time while completing our math assignment. We participated in a project sponsored by TechnospudProject. We divided a 14 ounce box of Lucky Charms evenly among the class so each student had their own baggie full of cereal.  The students were then responsible for tallying and graphing their marshmallows based on shape.   The class hypothesized that the rainbow shape would be the most popular.  

     It turned out that the clover was the most popular shape.  Our box had a total of 72 clover marshmallows.   We discovered that our box only had 29 star shaped marshmallows.  We did have fun counting those marshmallows though.  

     We also read another wonderful text by Gail Gibbons called St. Patrick's Day.  We discovered quite a bit about the day from the text.  For example, did you know that the harp was used as a decoration for St. Patrick's Day?  We also discovered that St. Patrick's real name may have been Maewyn.  It was really a good book.

     Finally, we worked on a St. Patrick's Day word-search, fine tuned some of our writing pieces, went over the new reading vocabulary, and reviewed the newsletter.  Be sure to look for the hidden message in the newsletter.  Have a Happy St. Patrick's Day!

How do YOU eat an Oreo?

     We have been concluding our procedural writings for the past week.  To help inspire the children, we have been focusing on how to eat an Oreo cookie.  The students were given assorted Oreo cookies and milk to help them complete the task.  If you have a moment, check out their blog for instructions on how to eat an Oreo cookie.  In the meantime, you can also enjoy a short snippet featuring the NFL's Manning brothers.  Enjoy!

Our International Day Questions

Dear Mrs. Rosbinson,

These are our questions for you while you are away in England. These questions are in recognition of International Question Day which is today.
Here are the questions:

Are the students responsible? - Jordan

How big is your school? - Geon

Have you made any friends in England? - Jasper

What does England look like? - Brionna

Is it cold in England? - Brooke

Is it hard teaching the kids? - Shaugnassy

What is it like in England? - Kaylee

Is the class big? - Desirae

How many students are there in your class? - Serina

Does it snow in England? - Matthew

What stage are you teaching? - Justin (and he remembered stage all by himself :)

What do the kids do for fun? - Trevor

Is it fun in England? - Destinee

Have you met the author of Matilda? - Celine

Do kids speak English? - Hunter

Do kids speak any Spanish in England? - Trevor

Do they read about bats? - Justin

Are all the books written the way they talk there? - Brooke

Are the kids nice to you? - Jordan

Do you like England? - Matthew

Have the kids tried the Oreos yet? - Shaugnassy

Do they do fractions there? - Desirae

Do the teachers do the same things that we do here? - Celine

Do they have a playground? - Hunter

Do they have lunch bunch on Friday? - Brionna

We know you can't answer all of the questions now but we are hoping to learn the answers when you return. Thank you, have a nice trip, and Happy Internatiional Question Day!

International Ask a Question Day

     Tomorrow is International Ask a Question Day.  It is rather neat that tomorrow is International Ask a Question Day since Mrs. Robinson will be venturing on her journey to jolly old England.  In honor of her trip and the holiday, the class will be posting questions to her on the blog tomorrow.  Happy asking!

Halves

     Last week, the class began exploring fractions. Using shapes we cut out from the Ellison machine, the students discovered about halves. Here are some snapshots of their findings.

     The students also discovered about symmetry and other fractional amounts using these shapes.  Ask your child about the giant Hershey's Bar.  See if they remember what we learned using the super-sized Hershey's Chocolate Bar.

Cause and Effect

     This week we have been working on cause and effect in reading. We will continue to work on it next week. Cause is something that makes something else happen. Effect is what happens as a result of the cause. When you are trying to determine cause and effect, you need to ask yourself two questions. You ask yourself "Why did it happen?" to determine cause. "What happened?" is what is asked when your are trying to determine the effect.
     Here are some sites that will help you to practice cause and effect.

QUIA Matching - You match the cause to its effect.
Quizzes - It is a multiple choice quiz related to some sample texts.
FCAT Express - This site was designed for 4th grade but still contains good information.

     This is also a PowerPoint that I will be using with the class next week.

     Hopefully, these links and the slideshow above will make cause and effect easier to understand.

Fractions

Old Witch's Magic Nut Cake

     On Friday, our class was lucky enough to have a wonderful treat. Desirae read a Old Witch and the Polka Dot Ribbon. It is an older book that I really did not know much about. It was donated to my class by a teacher that retired several years ago so I added it to my classroom library since that is where I need books most.
     Well, last Wednesday morning I spotted Shaugnassy and Desirae copying something from a book. Upon closer examination, I saw they were copying a recipe from the back of a book. The book, it turns out, was The Old Witch and the Polka Dot Ribbon.

     I was happy to see the children interested in a text, especially an older text like Old Witch. I was also thrilled they were making connections and discussing texts with one another. Desirae and Shaugnassy must have chatted about the text at some point since BOTH were copying the recipe. I am not sure who read the story first but the fact remains, one of them shared the text with the other and a connection was made. This is what makes good readers!
     I thought I would go ahead and share the recipe with you. It is a wonderful and tasty recipe. So next time you are at the library, take a moment to check out Old Witch and the Polka Dot Ribbon by Wende and Harry Devlin. Then, if time allows, try your hand at baking a wonderful cake.

Old Witch's Magic Nut Cake

(Get Mother to help)

3 eggs

1 pound can of pumpkin

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup water

Beat together and then add:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup of raisins

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Pour the batter into three buttered one-pound coffee cans and place in teh oven standing up. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour and 15 minutes or until a straw from a witch's broom, inserted into the cake, comes out clean.

Cool the cakes, turn them on their sides and frost with:

4 oz. cream cheese

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon lemon juice or vanilla

1/2 box of confectioner's sugar

Sprinkle with chopped walnuts.

Happy baking!

MOSH

     On Thursday, our class was able to visit MOSH: The Museum of Science and History.  We had a fabulous time!  The students saw a wonderful program on the states of matter as well as had the opportunity to tour the museum at their own pace.  We also had a picnic lunch outside.  The weather was beautiful and the kids really enjoyed it. 

      Here are some photos of our trip.  Thanks for stopping by!

Current Links of Interest

     Here are some current links of interest. These links relate to our current areas of study. Please feel free to check them out.

Science

NOAA: The Arctic Theme Page - A neat web site where you can find photos, web cams, maps and so much more.

Arctic Institute of North America - A web site where you can find photos, research stations, and much more on the Arctic.

Scholastic's Iditarod - Scholastic's site devoted to the Iditarod. The Iditarod is a dog sled race across Alaska. Check it out if you have a moment.

The Iditarod - Official site of the race in Alaska. It is going on right now so check it out. Have fun!

Eye on the Trail - The Official Blog of the Iditarod. The Iditarod began today!

ZOOM Rainforest - Information on the rainforest written for kids. There are coloring sheets, quizzes, activities, and much more.

Rainforest Biomes - Here is some information about the rainforest.

Passport to the Rainforest - All sorts of information about the rainforest can be found here.

Math

The Fraction Pizzeria - An interactive site designed for 2nd graders to help them understand fractions.

Crossing the River - A game designed to practice identifying fractions.

National Library of Virtual Manipulatives - Check out this site for help in understanding fractions.

Grammar

Rat's Common and Proper Noun Practice - Here is a neat site to practice common nouns and proper nouns. This is excellent practice to help your child capitalize at the appropriate times.

Proofreading - Here is a great site that will help you to practice proofreading for punctuation and capital letters in your work.

Have fun surfing!

What's Happening?

     It has been a busy week to say the least. We have begun using our new Best Practices workbook in reading. It is an engaging, color workbook that uses fiction and non-fiction to teach various reading strategies. For example, the first story was a fictional piece about a young man who wants some pizza. The next story was a non-fiction text about making pizza. The students were then to summarize each text and then compare and contrast the two texts. This is an excellent way to improve reading comprehension.
     We also continued to read Ants by Rebecca Stefoff. Today we re-read the text to get ready for our test tomorrow. We also reread the story because rereading is a wonderful way to improve fluency. As we reread the story, the students took turns discussing the story, asking questions, and explaining what they learned. These "mini-discussions" with peers are also an excellent way to improve comprehension.

     Our class is still focused on functional or procedural writing at this time.  We will begin report writing the second week in March.  At this point, the students are trying to finish their pieces for their portfolio.   They really know the standards for this kind of writing.  It is amazing to watch them write their pieces and double check the standards to make sure they have met every aspect of them.  I have also found conferences with the students much easier because they are familiar with the standards.   The students understand when I tell them that their piece lacks a context or sequential steps.  

     Math Investigations has focused on rectangles, symmetry and fractions.  One day was spent creating quick images.  This is when the students are shown a rectangle as shown below.

The students are only given a brief glimpse of the rectangle.  They must then recreate the shape on a piece of paper.  Once they have recreated their shapes, the students were then expected to describe their shape in enough detail so the teacher could then draw what they drew. 

      The students discovered fairly quickly that their rectangles had column and a row.  A column would be the line of tiles that go up and down (vertical).  The row would be the line of tiles that go from side to side (horizontal).   They found that they were able to draw the images if they counted the column and the rows.  They also discovered they could describe the image better in terms of columns and rows.    This new found knowledge will help the students when we move on to our discussions of fractions, multiplication, area, and so much more.

     Our class has also been studying the Arctic and Rainforest this past week.  The students completed a WebQuest on the Arctic at the beginning of the week.  They then created a PowerPoint display.  The class then posted the slideshow to Voicethread and added commentary.  To view the final product, visit the student blog.  They did a SUPERB job!

      Finally, we have been studying famous Americans all week.  The students have learned about Abraham Lincoln, Paul Revere, George Washington, Ruby Bridges and a few other famous Americans.  On Friday, our American Icon Projects will be due.  we are looking forward to seeing what the students have created.  It should be a real treat.

     As a final note, Sheffield Elementary has some adorable new additions to our school.  For photos on these ADORABLE new additions, again visit the student blog.  The students have responded very well to these new additions.  They are very careful to observe from afar rather than try to get up close for fear they may scare them.  We will keep you posted as to their progress since we do tend to feed them daily.   

Take a moment....

Good evening! If you have a moment, read a good book. Punctuation Takes a Vacation is a wonderul text that we read in the beginning of the year. Just click on the eyes to go to the larger version of the text. They will take you to a site where you can also check out some other picture books as well. I hope you enjoy it. Have a nice evening!

Our Classroom

The Latest

     Greetings from Mrs. Cowan's Class.  We have been busy the past few days working very hard.  In Reading, we are still reading Ant by Rebecca Stefoff.  Today the class did a fabulous job of creating anagrams about ants.  I will try my best to post them on the web site.  It will take me a few days since I have more updating to do as well.  

     We are still working on our functional writing pieces in Writing.  Mrs. Robinson introduced a graphic organizer to the students today that will hopefully organize their work.  The organizer comes from the Step Up to Writing program.  It is an excellent program that incorporates many wonderful ideas into writing instruction.  I will let you know how the pieces work out.

     We are studying American Symbols/Icons this month in Social Studies. Each child was required to complete a project. This project is due Friday. Details about the project were sent home 3 weeks ago. This project will count for a grade in several subjects to it is imperative that all students complete it.  Please feel free to be creative in the presentations.  Your child may do a poster, model, a PowerPoint display or even a web page.  I have heard from several students that they are creating web sites.  I look forward to seeing all of your wonderful projects.  Feel free to be creative and have fun!

     Starting this week, I will be sending home a short story with a few questions that need to be answered.  Each short story is specifically created to reinforce a reading standard that has been taught in class as well as improve fluency.  I would suggest reading the story once on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday night aloud.  This will help your child to practice reading aloud which will improve fluency (reading speed).  On Thursday, the questions related to the story can be answered.  These stories can count toward the 20 minutes of nightly reading.  

     On Thursday, February 21, the 2^nd grade presented a PTA program in honor of Black History Month and President’s Day.  It was a wonderful success.  I wish to thank all of those that participated and joined us for an entertaining evening.  The children worked hard and did a fabulous job singing.  Great work!  Pictures of the event will be given to you at the end of the year on our Digital Class Yearbook. 

     As a sidebar, I recently completed a proposal at Donorschoose.org where I am asking for books that will allow our students to write reports and create PowerPoint displays.  The proposal is called Researchers Abound.  The id number is 161849.  If you are able to help us out, simply enter the id number into the search box and our project will be displayed.  These books will help our students to become better researchers and writers.

     Finally, you will notice a new button on the side of the blog that says, "Call Me."  You can click on this button to type in the phone number you are calling from and your name.  Once you have entered that information, you can actually call me.  Give it a try if you would like to contact me.  It does work.  This way, if you have a question about the blog or what we are doing in class, you can call me right away.  Isn't technology grand?  Well, have a nice evening.

Total Lunar Eclipse

     Good evening!  I hope everyone is having a wonderful night.  If you have not already heard, there is going to be a total lunar eclipse this evening.  A lunar eclipse occurs when the full moon passes into the Earth's shadow.  The shadow then blocks the sun's rays that normally illuminate the moon.  It is rumored that Saturn will even make an appearance this evening.  

     Weather permitting, we should be able to see this treat around 10:00 p.m. until

 approximately 10:52 p.m..  During this time, the entire moon will be blocked by the Earth's shadow.  Take a few moments to check it out because this will not happen again until December 20, 2010.  

      I stepped out this evening and snapped a few pictures of the moon.  Here they are. 

 

     Look for more pictures to be posted later this evening.  For more information, go to Discover Channel on the web.  They will be posting live updates.  You can also visit NASA for even more information.  Better yet, check out the eclipse for yourself from your front porch.  It will be a real treat.

Check out our Valentine's Day Math Fun

     Here are some photos of the various math activities we did related to Valentine's Day and our current investigation.  The students had to create a quilt pattern using different colored shapes.  The idea came from Mathwire, a site devoted to math resources for teachers.    Then we had the students graph their hearts they were each given in a bag.  They also had to guess how many of the smaller hearts were needed to to fill the larger heart.  Then we exchanged valentines and had treats in the afternoon.  It was not a bad way to integrate art, math, and a "social".  Enjoy!

Happy Valentine's Day

     I just thought I would wish everyone a HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! We have accomplished so much this past week. In reading, we have been working on monitor and clarify while reading. For more information on monitor and clarify, check out the slideshow below. It was the slideshow I used to present the strategy to the students. They even took notes on how to monitor/clarify when reading.

     We also spent the week reading Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann. It was a wonderful story that the students really enjoyed. It is about Officer Buckle trying to teach students about safety. Initially, most students are off-task for his presentations until Gloria (his partner that is a dog) decided to spice things up with her acting skills.  It is a wonderfully written story that the students loved.  

    We are still working on our procedural writing pieces.  The students are meeting most aspect of the standards.  We just need to work on using more adjectives and vivid verbs.  We just need to spice it up!  Here are a few links to help your child better understand adjectives and vivd verbs.

Adjectives:

Match the Adjective to the Noun

Using Adjectives

Find the Adjective

Quiz Time

Grammar Blaster

Skillswise

Verbs:

Verbs versus Nouns

Catch the Verb

Grammar Gorilla

     In math this past week we have begun our study of shapes.  The students have been breaking shapes down, taking notice of their attributes, composing shapes,  graphing, and making educated guesses as to how many shapes would fill another shape.  Mrs. Robinson did a wonderful job of tying the Valentine's Day math activity to our current unit of study in Math Investigations.  The lessons seemed to flow together.  I know the students had fun trying to guess how many candy hearts would fill the shape.  They also enjoyed graphing the colors of hearts in their bags as well.  I will be posting pictures of that soon.

     In Social Studies, we have spent this past week learning about holidays.  The students read a book about Groundhog Day and Valentine's Day by Gail Gibbons.  Gail Gibbons is a wonderful author who is able to write non-fiction texts that the students can easily understand.  If you ever have the opportunity to check her work out, please do so.  The students were able to learn so much about both holidays by using her texts.  The students also learned about Abraham Lincoln.  Mrs. Robinson read a story to them and showed them a PowerPoint presentation about President Abraham Lincoln. They were then able to complete a non-fiction book report using both resources.  If you wish to view the PowerPoint presentation they saw, click here.  We will hopefully be making our own PowerPoint presentations when we switch to report writing in a few weeks.  

     In Science this week, the students were busy learning about various animals such as fish and reptiles.  This will assist them in the coming weeks when we switch to report writing.  They will be able to use their science text as a resource.

     The class has also been busily practicing for the upcoming PTA program.  They have been trying to learn the songs with Mrs. Robinson's help and have been doing a wonderful job with it.  We look forward to seeing you there on Thursday!  Please check out the slideshow below for more information on monitor and clarify when reading.  Thanks and again, Happy Valentine's Day!

Technology in the classroom

     The following videos are short videos that display the newest program acquired by the county called Destination Success.  Destination Success can be used by the students individually or as a means of whole group instruction.  Check out the videos below to see it in use in my classroom for whole group instruction.  The first video features a mom and her daughter discussing the lizard her class were given.  The focus of the lesson was adjective use.  I selected this lesson because the student's writing lacked adjectives.  It is my hope that this lesson will help them to better understand how to use an adjective to enhance writing.

     The second video features my students completing the on-line activity that follows the lesson above.  It serves as a means of checking understanding.  As you could tell from the video, my students were able to correctly identify the adjective needed for each sentence.  

     The writing following the lesson reflected a better understanding of adding adjectives to writing to make it better.  The majority of the students were able to add more details to their functional writing pieces to create a clearer picture of what they wanted the reader to do.  Great work!