Guest Reader

Mrs. Altham-Hickey joined our class today for a special read aloud.  The children enjoyed two of Jan Brett's Christmas books, Who's That Knocking on Christmas Eve and The Wild Christmas Reindeer.

Holiday Celebrations Around the World

Our students worked with partners from Ms. Binette's class this week to learn about the holiday celebrations of other countries.  Students read an article about a given country two times, answered comprehension questions, and put examples of their learning onto brightly colored posters.  Student groups had an opportunity to share their work and compare the similarities between countries.

Classroom Library Book Recommendations

The students have been learning how to record video of themselves in Photo Booth.  Once the students finish recording themselves, they create a book recommendation video in Animoto.  We then link the videos to a QR code that is affixed to the back of each book.  When students select a book from our classroom library, they can scan the QR code and view the book recommendation.  Here is an example of one of the videos.


A Little Bit of Winter

Hour of Code

The students were able to participate in the Hour of Code this afternoon.  Students first experienced this activity last year.  They were so enthusiastic about participating once again.  The students began by watching a video in which President Obama invites them to learn about computer programming.  You can view the video and try out the links yourself by going to the Student Start Page on the school's website or by selecting the link below.  Enjoy!

Hour of Code

Persuasive Writing

Students put themselves into the "shoes" of a turkey.  It was their responsibility to write a persuasive essay that would convince a human to spare their life on Thanksgiving.  We have some extremely creative writers in this class.   The students really enjoyed coming up with persuasive arguments and turning those arguments into persuasive essays.

Door Decor

Mrs. Binette from the HOD came to our room yesterday to decorate our door.  Isn't it adorable?

Dino Division

The students had a blast reviewing long division for their upcoming math test.  Students worked out several dino division problems on their own and then checked their work using QR codes.

RESPECT

The students looked great in their yellow clothes to show their support for respect.  We look forward to more color days when the students and staff can show their support for character education.

Nonfiction Research Teams

The students have been working hard to read and understand nonfiction texts about extreme weather and natural disasters.  They worked in teams to research a given subtopic and then spent time teaching each other about their research.

Mystery Skype

The students participated in a Mystery Skype on Friday.  Mrs. Tucceri is working with teachers from across the United States to help our students learn about states in other regions.  We met with students from a school in Chicago, Illinois.  Make sure you ask your child about this fun activity.

Our friends from Chicago can be seen on the SmartBoard, as Maddy uses our laptop to ask a question.

Just before our Mystery Skype session, the children noticed this gorgeous rainbow outside of our window.  

Flashlight Read-A-Thon

The students had a blast reading by flashlight on Friday, October 30th.  We created the perfect mood for the spooky weekend ahead.

Technology Fun

The students are working on creating book trailers for picture books in our classroom library.  The students spent time today learning how to take pictures and record video in Photo Booth.  Next week we will turn these pictures and videos into short clips that will have QR codes.  The QR codes will be placed on the books in the classroom library.  When a student wants to know more about a book, he or she will be able to scan the code and watch your child's recommendation.