As part of the Common Core Writing Standard 2.7 and their curriculum unit on rocks and minerals, second grade students participated in a shared research and writing project in which they read a number of sources on how rocks are made and recorded their notes on paper and then in a shared google document. Students used two online databases, Pebble Go and Facts4Me, to find out: how one class of rocks is formed, some rock examples, what are its properties, and how they are used today. Because each student researched only one class of rocks, after taking notes on their own graphic organizer, the students in each "rock class" shared their information with the class on a Google document. Here is Ms. Wegley's class shared information:
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Balloons Over Broadway-The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade by Melissa Sweet is a wonderful book to read the week before Thanksgiving. This Monarch Award nominee is the story of Tony Sarg, an extraordinary marionette and master puppeteer who designed and created the huge special balloon puppets that rise above the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade since 1928. When asked by Macy's to do something spectacular for the parade, Tony brought his genius, inspiration and playful nature to his work. He thought “With a marionette, the controls are above and the puppet hangs down, but what if the controls were below and the puppet could rise up"? ...and the unique helium filled puppet balloons were born. Before reading the story this week, we viewed some video of past parades so the younger students understood what these "balloons" look like. For some more fun, listen to the author talk about and read from her book - Melissa Sweet, and then try out this Activity Kit and make some balloons! 4th grade classes are studying how American Indian tribes used the land and animals in their region to survive and adapt. They researched the land, climate, food, housing and clothes of four tribes, and created a page on a google site which describes what the tribe would need to do to survive if it moved to a new region of the country. They also read a folktale from The Girl Who Helped Thunder by Joseph and James, that takes place in one of the seven regions of the United States and looked for indications in the story of how the tribe used the land, food, and skills that story exhibited and finally what moral or lesson is story conveys. 3rd Grade Student's Receive Solar Planet Awards!As part of their science study, 3rd graders researched a planet to determine its most unique features. Next we offered students the chance for their planet to win a coveted Solar Award! Students had to examine their planet facts to decide which two awards their planet had the best chance of winning. The Award categories included Most Dangerous, Wildest Weather, Most Colorful, Weirdest Orbit, Most Amazing Moons or Rings and Most Spectacular Surface. After choosing their categories, each planet group had to convince their classmates by finding at least two pieces of good evidence (facts) to support their choice and presenting the evidence in a short iMovie. After viewing each movie "commercial" the classes voted and the Awards were distributed. The winners were "out of this World!". View the videos on the 3rd grade student projects page. School Libraries: The Core of Student SuccessI am in Springfield today, attending and presenting at the ISLMA (Illinois School Library Association Conference) and finding great resources and ideas for Patton School students! Authors to meet and talk to are everywhere as well. Gail Komarek from Windsor LMC and I are presenting this afternoon on Using Multicultural Literature within the Common Core. More later...
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AuthorI am the Library Media Center director at Patton School in Arlington Heights where I help students from kindergarten through 5th grade find terrific independent reading for enjoyment and information, and teach students the skills to use information and technology safely and productively and to connect, communicate and share with others. I have four grown children, a large black dog, (flat coat retriever) and a small striped cat. I am an obessive Chicago Cubs fan and I love to run. Patton LMC Summer Reading Blog |