Read, Write, and Blog

This summer I discovered a new favorite place, Fairy Stone State Park.  My husband and I took the dog and went camping there.  Now, my idea of camping is probably different from that of a lot of people.  In my world, camping involves staying in the trees by a lake, just like in most other people’s worlds, but then mine veers to the right.  I’m not a tent kind of girl.  I like four walls, a door with a lock, indoor plumbing, and air conditioning.  At Fairy Stone, that’s exactly what I got.  We stayed in a tiny cabin that was described as being one room.  The living room did contain the bed, but the cabin also had a tiny little kitchen and a large bathroom with a huge shower.  Not only did it have a refrigerator, stove, and microwave, but it also had a very nice air conditioner.  Good thing, it was in the mid-nineties when we were there.  Being in the middle of the woods, there was no television or cell phone reception, another plus!  My husband took a tiny tv and dvd player so that he could catch up on a couple of movies.  I, of course, took two new books with me.  We spent four days sleeping late, eating when and what we wanted (pizza and brownies, of course), and walking Tucker in the woods.  And that, guys, is my summer experience with camping.  Will I do it again?  You betcha! 

Blog Assignment 1:  Have you ever been camping?  If yes, what did you like and dislike about it?  If no, would you want to go?  Why or why not?

When I was a kid, Christmas was my favorite holiday.  I loved stringing popcorn and cranberries to make garlands for the tree.  Wrapping presents, decorating the house, and baking cookies all added up to a wonderful holiday season.  But as I get older, it seems that too much of the holiday is taken up with the sentiment, “What am I going to get?”  Don’t get me wrong – getting presents is great.  However, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve found that it is often more fun to give presents than to receive them.  The funny thing is, the presents don’t even have to cost anything.  For example, what can you get your mom that she would really like and wouldn’t cost you a dime?  How about a coupon for loading and unloading the dishwasher for one week?  Or what about a coupon that says you’ll clean your room completely without complaining once?  Or even better than that, what about a coupon that says you’ll read to your little brother or sister for 30 minutes to get him/her out of your mom’s hair?  And then there’s your dad….what can you do for him?  There’s always a coupon good for one car wash or one yard raking.  Write a coupon for the job, put it in a box, wrap it up, and watch out for the smiles.  I guarantee you that they’ll be coming.  I think that my coupon gift for my husband will say, “This coupon good for one Tucker free day,” although I’m not so sure that Tucker will like it!

Blog Assignment 3:  Think of a coupon gift that you could give to someone this Christmas.  Who would you give it to?  What would the coupon say?  Why would this be a good present for that particular person?  Write in good paragraph form.

biography-acrostic-poem  Well, everyone, we’re finally going to start using our Wikis this month.  It took a little longer to complete the PhotoStory book reports than I thought, but I think it was well worth it.  I was very impressed with the students’ work.  You will see them beginning to appear on my blog very soon.

Students were given their user names and their passwords today.  These have been glued into their reading notebooks.  Today I showed them how to access the Wiki for their class.  (The web address is written on the slip with the username and password.)  We went through the steps they will follow to actually work on their page.  They will be completing their acrostic poems for their biographies here.

Letters describing the book report went home today.  However, I will link an extra copy to this post if you need to see it.  Please take the time to edit your child’s rough draft and then view the finished product on his/her Wiki page.  I think you will be quite impressed!

I always liked reading tall tales because they were so entertaining.  The stories were much more interesting than the real reasons why animals possess certain attributes or why we have mountains, lakes, or rivers.  The example of Paul Bunyon creating the Grand Canyon by dragging his axe is a lot more fun than thinking about it being carved by erosion.

You will have an opportunity to create a tall tale of your own for extra credit.  Click on the following link to access this assignment.

http://students.discoveryeducation.com/genericStudentIndex.cfm?cdPasscode=W488F-4AD7

Have fun!!

story20boarding20template  photostorytutorial2  media-sources2

 

Parents, get ready.  Students are gearing up to complete their first technology book report of the year.  A week ago, students were assigned to a group containing three members.  The three members were given the same AR book to read for this book report, a book whose level fits into their individual AR ranges.  Students have been reading in class as well as at home to prepare.  All of the reading must be completed by October 31, and projects are due no later than the end of the school day of November 7.  Students will be allowed to begin working on the report as soon as all of the group members have completed the book and taken the AR test.  There are already quite a few groups that have finished their reading and are ready to begin!

 

The actual book report will be a PhotoStory3 retelling of the book.  Ms. Okoye, the language arts TRT for the school system, came to Churchland Elementary last Wednesday to demonstrate for the students how to use the software.  Needless to say, they were all extremely excited and ready to begin.  Although we will be completing the project in class, students may search for pictures at home on the internet, save them to a CD or flash drive, and bring them to school to use in their project.

 

I have attached all resources that will be used by students in the completion of this project.  The PhotoStory3 software is a free download from Microsoft.  In order to download it to your computer, you must have a genuine copy of Windows installed on your computer.  I have downloaded it successfully onto my laptop which uses Windows XP, but I have not tried to download it on a computer running Vista.  Just click on the link if you wish to download a copy. 

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/PhotoStory/default.mspx

 

I think this project will be an extremely beneficial one for students since it not only provides them an opportunity to work with others in the completion of a project, but it also allows them a chance to use a wonderful piece of software in its construction. 

When I was growing up I loved to read the Disney story books based on the animated (cartoon) movies they had released.  One of my favorites was Sleeping Beauty.  Now Sleeping Beauty is full of wonderful characters.  You have Sleeping Beauty herself, one of the nicest people around.  She was so nice that even the animals in the forest loved her.  She was beautiful, too.  What more could you ask for?  What little girl wouldn’t pick her as their favorite character?  Not me!! I thought the evil fairy, Maleficent, was the most wonderful character.  First of all, she was green.  That was about the same as my having freckles!  Then her name, Maleficent, tells you two things about her; she’s Malevolent (really, really evil) and Magnificent.  Pretty cool, huh?  Third, she was able to put curses on people.  I knew quite a few who deserved a curse or two, starting with my two sisters!  Then there was her ability to change into a dragon.  Oooh, to think you could become a large, scaly monster that could eat what annoyed you.  Life just couldn’t get any better than that! 

I always felt a little wierd when we talked about our favorite characters in school, and I often didn’t volunteer for fear of being laughed at if I disclosed (told) the identity of my favorite character.  Most of my friends picked the good guys, but is that really necessary?  I think any character that impresses you in one way or another can be your favorite.  Therefore, bring on Maleficent, the most magnificent of them all!

Blog Assignment 2 – Who is your favorite character?  Why is he/she your favorite?  Be sure to tell what book he/she comes from.  Write your answer in good paragraph form.

Today was a good day for blogging!  We began the class by talking about blogging, how it’s nothing more than keeping a log online for others to read.  We then went to the computer lab, and that’s when the fun really began.  Students accessed their blogs, set their backgrounds, and completed their first blog assignments.  I reminded students that they were not to put their first and last names anywhere on any of the blogs, even mine.  If they wish to leave a comment, they are to put first name and last initial only.  There is no reason to give any more personal information than that.  Please allow your child to share his/her blog with you as students are very proud of their work.  They may add extra articles to their blogs at any time as long as they keep up with their assignments.

Blog Assignment 1:  What is your favorite food?  How does it make you feel?  Your answer should be at least five sentences long.

Parents, the first book report has been assigned and all information and materials have been distributed.  You should have seen the parent letter already since it contained a portion that was to be signed by you and returned to me.  The book report itself is due on September 29.  Since it is a very simple one, I will not be accepting any late book reports.  I will scan a copy of the robot and output sheet and will link them to this post. I have already attached a copy of the parent letter.  If you need an extra copy of any of the forms, just download the ones you need.  It would be best to print the robot on card stock so that it will be sturdier than the output sheet.  Please check your child’s spelling and sentence structure before he/she writes on the output form.  Have fun, everyone! 

First of all, I’d like to introduce myself to those of you I have not spoken to yet.  My name is Debbie Daniels, and I am the new fifth grade reading teacher at Churchland Elementary.  Although I am new to this school, I am not new to the system.  I have taught at Churchland Junior High (now Churchland Middle), the old Churchland Academy, and have been at Olive Branch for the past 18 years.  I was the language arts/reading teacher for fifth grade while at Olive Branch.  I moved this year because my teaching partner of 18 years retired, and I just didn’t think I wanted to stay without her.  I guess I figured if she was making a change, I would too!  I am very excited to be here as I have heard nothing but good things about Churchland Elementary’s staff, students and parents.  Please feel free to contact me through the school or through this blog at any time.  I have told the children that comments will not show automatically as they come to me for approval first.

We’ve been in school for over two weeks now, and I can’t believe how fast time is moving.  It seems like we just get into our first class, and it’s already time to change.  Students have done a nice job of getting their class work completed, but I am having quite a bit of trouble with getting the AR logs signed.  Parents, logs should be signed each night.  Don’t let them wait until Sunday night because, chances are, they’re going to forget!

Students in my homeroom will be receiving their blogs (web logs) later this week.  I will start blogging with them next week after we have a class on how to use them.  They may work on their blogs at home, but they will also have an opportunity to work on them in the computer lab.  Students go to the computer lab every four days as part of their encore rotation.  It is not necessary to have a computer and Internet access at home to work on a blog.

I look forward to a very productive and happy school year with all of your children.  Thanks for sharing them with me.

 

 

It seems like forever since I’ve written anything on the blog!  When I returned to school, we jumped right into reviewing for the SOL reading test.  Then we had a week of tests followed by all of those things needed to close out the different subject areas for the school year.  You guys have worked very hard finishing up your graded activities.  I was very impressed with your book reports as they were both creative and well written. 

Change is not always a good thing for everyone involved in it.  For instance, Mrs. Matthews has decided to retire this year.  That change is a really good one for her.  She will be able to travel and visit with her grandchildren more often than last year.  However, for me, it’s not such a great change.  She and I have shared children and ideas for the last seventeen years.  I almost feel like she’s deserting me since I’m not ready or old enough to retire yet!  I just can’t imagine what it will be like to teach here without her.

SO…. I’ve decided I need to make a change of my own.  Next school year I will be leaving Olive Branch, my home for the past nineteen years, and will move to Churchland Elementary.  I will still be teaching fifth grade, but my primary responsibility will be teaching reading. 

The time is right for everyone to make new beginnings.  You guys and girls will be starting a new school year in a new grade.  Mrs. Matthews will begin a new phase in her life where she can pamper herself and her family.  I, too, will be starting again in a new school, but Olive Branch students and staff will always be a part of my family.   I wish the best of luck to all of you.

 With much love,

Mrs. Daniels