Popsicles

In our math workshop we are doing a twin pop popsicle inquiry to help us count by 2s.

2...4...6...8...10...12...

We watched a video of how popsicles are made.


We learned a new Count by 2s song, as well as a Popsicle Chant.  Stay tuned for our twin pop graph!

Charlotte

We have been reading Charlotte's Web during our read aloud/snack time.

In the book, we loved the part when Wilbur tries to spin a web.

Charlotte shares that she is specially made for spinning webs.  We watched a video of a spider spinning a web.  We thought it was pretty amazing.

 We also got to watch a video that shows how a spider wraps up its prey, injects it with anesthetic, and sucks its blood, just like Charlotte.

Working On Our Own Goals

We read a book called I'm the Best by Lucy Cousins.

If you want to hear the story again, here is a video.

Room 408 noticed that when someone is boasting about how good they are, it can make others feel sad about their skills.

We talked about how each of us needs to work on our own personal goals in order to help our brains grow.  We are all at different points in our learning with different skills.  We should all encourage each other to do our best, no matter where we are in our learning.

Because we're all at different points in our learning, some of us may need some support to be successful.  Here is an interesting picture to illustrate this.

Take a good look.

The picture on the left is equal.  The picture on the right is fair.

We talked about the fact that we are all different and we have different needs.  My job as a teacher is to help support each child to make sure each gets what s/he needs to be successful.

We can help each other be successful by encouraging each other, too!

Solving Problems with our Time Machine

We introduced a new tool to help us work through our problems.  It's called our Time Machine, and it's a way to rewind time and solve our problems in a more productive way.

When someone has a problem, we make sure we are willing to work on the problem.  If we're willing we stand at the ends of the mat.

Next, we step onto the mat and take a STAR breath (Stop, Take a breath, And Relax).

After that we wish each other well.

Next, we say, "1-2-3, Let's do it!"

One person tells the other person what s/he did that s/he didn't like, and asks them to stop.

The other person does their best to understand the problem and help by saying, "Okay, I can do that."

Finally, we seal the deal with a high five, a handshake, or a hug.

If needed, the two switch places and do it again.

Using the time machine really diffuses our problems and makes it easier to work them out!

Committee Work

Our Committee Work is underway!

In Room 408 we have jobs, but we work together to get the jobs done.  We have four committees:  the Reading Committee, the Writing Committee, the Math Committee, and the Group meeting Committee.  Each committee has two jobs that the members rotate between for each quarter of the year.  When we choose new committees, the old committee members train the new ones.

Here are some of our committee members getting their Morning Committee Work done!

The Electricians from the Math Committee count and order our daily folders to make sure they are all turned in.

One of our Teacher Assistants from the Group Meeting Committee leads us with our Morning Message.

Our Woodworkers from the Writing Committee make sure we have sharp pencils ready to go every day.

Librarians from our Reading Committee put away books that have been returned.

Way to go, Room 408!

Jane Goodall

We have been learning about the life of the researcher, Jane Goodall.
We started learning about Jane by reading a book about when she was little.  She always loved animals and was very patient and determined when she observed them.

We learned that when Jane was little she had a stuffed toy chimpanzee named Jubilee.

We began to wonder about Jane.  These were some of the questions we had:

We also read the book The Watcher, which told us more about how Jane accomplished her dream to work and study with chimpanzees in Gombe, Africa.  We also were able to answer some of our questions!

Jane was not only a researcher, but also a writer.  She kept piles and piles of research in her tent when she was working with the chimpanzees.

We learned that one of her favorite chimp companions was named David Greybeard.

However, after many years Jane realized that the chimpanzees she loved were in danger of becoming extinct.  She realized that the best way to help the chimpanzees was to share their story with the world.

Jane Goodall is an excellent example of the 3 A's:  Activism, Awareness, and Aid.  When we do our inquiries this year, Room 408 will keep these 3 A's in mind.

This is an excerpt from a National Geographic video that we watched.  Soon I'll post student Think Book entries reflecting on Jane Goodall.

What inspires you about Jane Goodall?

Marathon Readers

We have been working on building our reading stamina.  We read the book Marathon Mouse by Amy Dixon.

Preston was a mouse who wanted to run the New York City marathon but no one thought he could do it.  We googled the NYC marathon so we could see how challenging it would be for a mouse.

Would you like to be a mouse running amid a sea of sneakers?

He worked hard, practiced, and got stronger as a runner.  He finally completed his marathon!

Room 408 talked about how we can build our reading stamina just like Preston built his running stamina.  We set goals for ourselves and stacked our books on one side of our folder, and as we finished a book we placed it on the other side and became marathon readers!

Happy reading!

Togetherness

We have recently gotten new sitting spots in our large group carpet area so that we are matched up with our new "talking partners."  We have also started Partner Reading during the last half of our Reading Workshop time.
Look how focused we are!

We love discussing good books with our partners!

Self-Control

We have been brainstorming rules for how we want it to be when we learn, work, and play together in Room 408.  We talked about how we will do our best to stay on track.  I told Room 408 how we are like trains.

In fact, we are all like trains running on a track.

Sometimes, we make a mistake and our train runs off the track.

My job is to help get your behavior train back on track and running smoothly again.

There are three ways that I will help get your behavior train back on track.

One way is...

We can break feelings, creations, or have accidents...but the great thing is, we can fix it!

The second way I will help get behavior back on track is...

If you can't be safe with something or take care of something, I wouldn't be doing my job if I let you keep doing it!  For example, if you were walking across the top of the monkey bars you might need to simply stay away from the monkey bars until you are ready to show me you can be safe.

The last way I'll help keep you on track is...

Sometimes we all just need a little time to get ourselves under control.  Take your break, take some quick calming breaths and come back ready to learn.

We all got to practice taking a break in our "Take a Break" spots.  While we practiced, we watched a calming music youtube video.  Hazel wanted me to post it...this one's for you, Hazel!

We also talked about how we have different states of our brain.

We all want to be in the Executive State, which is when we are making good choices and have good self-control.  It's like when you're driving your Brain Car.

Sometimes, we get into our Emotional State.  This is when we might be mean to others, cry, or say hurtful things.  It's like you're in the backseat of your Brain Car--not in control!

We also might get into our Survival State.  We might hit, scream, or hurt others when we are in this state.  It's like when we are in the trunk of our Brain Car--definitely not showing self-control!

When we are in our Emotional State or our Survival State, we can use the Safe Zone in our classroom.  This is a quite place to go when we might need a little longer to gain self-control.  As a class we talked about how this happens to all of us...even adults!  We watched this video to help us learn how to calm.

This week we'll be making our own calming Glitter Jars to take home.  Here is a link explaining it. Click on the picture.

Great work, Room 408!