Preparing for the Final Day!

Hopefully your child is coming home in tears due to this being the last full day of school J.  I wanted to send one last annoying informative email covering a few basics as we wrap up.

First, books that belong to me are all labeled on the back.  If you happen to find books like this, simply return them as soon as possible so other kids can read them (even if that is next year).

Second, I am putting together a 4-in-1 reading program for the kids (Hiawatha Public Library, ½ Priced Books, Barnes and Noble, and Cedar Rapids Kernels).  That way their minutes read can be used four different ways at the same time.  Information will come home tomorrow with report cards.

Next, for those of you signed up for Khan Academy, congratulations on earning 2.7 MILLION points!  Results within the classroom has been obvious as well.  If you haven’t signed up yet, simply let me know and I can help you do so (even if you need help three months or three years from now).

Finally, tomorrow the kids will be sharing their national parks brochures.  We will do this from 11:30-12:00.  Several students took them home tonight – if so, please make sure they are returned tomorrow.  After lunch and recess, we will have an awards ceremony from 12:50 – 1:25.  You are welcome to come for both/either the brochure presentation or the awards ceremony…just make sure to check in at the office.

Thanks again for your support throughout the year.  This have been my most successful year as a classroom teacher, but that couldn’t be done without your support inside and outside of school.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Tomorrow’s Agenda

8:50 – 9:40 – National Parks Research

9:40 – 10:10 – Specials: Music

10:10 – 11:30 – National Parks Research

11:30 – 12:00 – National Parks Presentations

12:00 – 12:45 – Lunch/Recess

12:45 – 1:30 – Awards Ceremony

Day One: National Parks

Today the kids (finally!) were allowed to open up their letters from actual national park rangers.  Several weeks ago, kids wrote to different national park rangers, and since then, several envelopes have poured in!

The kids were able to explore their materials today, and they even began taking notes on special features (i.e. animals, size, features, accomodations, location).  Some chose to take it home to get a better understanding before tomorrow, and some are looking forward to visiting some of the sites listed on their materials.  Either way, tomorrow will be day two, and some may even begin publishing their very own national parks brochure.

Look what came in the mail!

Mississippi River Museum Field Trip

Holy cow!  We experienced an amazing field trip today.  The class saw lots of animal exhibits (including the special exhibit featuring animals from the Amazon River in South America), flooding and erosion models, dredge boats, fur traders, and steamboat history.  Check out the pictures below for a closer look at the action.

Ready for some action!

Into the caves Mark Twain detailed...

The Wet Lab!

Turtles, Ducks, and Fish (oh my!)

Boarding the William M. Black Dredge

Walking toward the ship's kitchen

Land Ahead!

Our wonderful fur trader displays proper attire!

A full day of knowledge acquired...

...with some silliness thrown into the mix!

Native American History in Iowa

Today, our focus on Iowa History was on Native American tribes that were present in Iowa over the past few centuries.  The kids had an opportunity to learn about a specific tribe and record some of the most important details.  After learning about particular tribes, each group shared their information with the class.  Tomorrow, we will explore some of the migratory paths Native American tribes were forced to take.

Our Iowa History Unit Began Today!

Starting today, we began our exploration of the history of Iowa. We began by focusing on the land and its formation thanks to the glaciers that moved across the land thousands of years ago. During the coming week, we will explore the major rivers, Native American tribes, and the evolution of farming throughout Iowa. Check back for pictures of these activities during the next few school days.

Official Math SLE #4 Results!

Big deal alert!!! Big deal alert!!! At the beginning of this school year, I mentioned that our main math goal as a school was to have every student score at least 70% on the final SLE test. I also mentioned that MY goal was to have at least every student score at least 80%. After finishing grading those who finished today, I am proud to say that not only has everyone scored above 80%, but the class average is 94%! Those results are unreal! The bar graphs below explain it all...what an impressive feat!!!!

Busy, Busy Prepositions

During this week's grammar lessons, we have been learning about prepositions, their purposes, and correctly using them.  Throughout the week, we will be having "Preposition-Offs", listening for correct prepostions, and finding prepositional phrases.  Without prepositions, the sentences we read, write, and speak would be very...very...very...very boring.

The video posted below (click on the picture) is an oldie (but a goodie).  Schoolhouse Rock's songs always helps engage the kids!

Picture from http://www.trakt.tv/

Turn Up the "Volume"!

With the end of the school year in sight (although when kids ask how many days are left, I respond "Not enough"), we are starting to focus on our last student learning expectation (SLE): volume! To kick off this SLE study, I created a video on the usefulness of volume when laying mulch. You can find that on our class web page. Today we also set up our "Guess How Many..." to see if we could use a formula for volume to put forth a great guess. By the end of the year, your child should be able to look at a 3-D shape (with cubes drawn) and tell how many cubes are shown. I have some more fun activities left to help us with the SLE. Tomorrow's homework will show some problems expected to be mastered on the SLE test. Thanks for your support at home as well!

How many cubes do you think are in each jar?