Day 144 - Panoramic Picture of the School

Good morning! Today is Friday, April 29, 2011. When we came in, we went through our morning routine. At about 9:13, we all got our net books and went to library. We set up our net books and brought our power points on our favorite author, and filled out a sheet with some questions on which books you would read, why, etc. Then we left our stuff there, and went out to the lower field and a guy took a huge group picture of the school. We didn’t get done until about 10:30, when we left the field, recovered our net books and binders, and returned to the class room to finish morning math and to do assignments that still needed to be done. Then we had break. After break, we did a math lesson after about 30 minutes of work on extra GIMP art projects and make up assignments. The lesson was an introduction into negative numbers. If you have $5, and you buy something that was $10, you would get -$5. If you have -$5 in the bank, and you earn $9, you have $4.Then we went out to recess. Our teacher made a new game called Safe Zone to play outside on the whole lower field. It was a lot of fun.

When we came back from lunch, we did a science lesson. We read about pinpoint light, and how cameras take pictures. Then we read two chapters of The Giver. After that, we did Chaos in the Canyon. We got our cards and resolved them, but as a bonus, our teacher said that we could make a song to earn an extra two dice. We were allowed to take it home and work on it over the weekend. Then we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Enjoy your weekend! Your homework is Reading 30 Minutes and Reading Record.

Day 143- Filling and Wrapping Math Test

Hi all! Today is Thursday, April 28, 2011. When we came in this morning, we did our morning routine, but at about 9:15, our teacher stopped us. He wanted to hear us and what we thought about some of the new rules, what’s going on at recess, and how we feel about Juanita Elementary. He listened to all of us, and then we brain stormed on things that we thought could make the school better, and what we should do for our legacy gift. We came up with an ASB, or a Student Body, that would have a President, and VP (Vice President), and other positions like advisors, playground monitors, hall monitors, etc. The ASB would meet every now and then to discuss what was going on in school, and try to solve any problems that had arose, and if we couldn’t solve them, bring them to the attention of the teachers, staff, and possibly our principal. We continued until about 10:15, when the guy from Evergreen Hospital came to do “Project Alert”. After that class, we had break. When we came back, we had some more time to do some work that we still needed to complete, and also to work on bonus art projects on GIMP. Then we went outside to recess.
When we came back from lunch, we did the Filling and Wrapping end of the unit math test. It took until about 2:00. Then we turned them back in, then we read two chapters of The Giver, and filled out our predictions. After that, we turned back to Social Studies and Democracy. We got to vote on what kind of music we got to listen to. First, we voted on genres, then on authors. After we came to a consensus, we read 26.5, Democracy: All Citizens Share Power. We filled out the section in our notebooks, and then did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Here’s your homework: Nothing but Reading 30 minutes and Reading Record. Enjoy your night!

Day 142 - “Done” Period

Good morning! Today is Wednesday, April 27, 2011. When we entered the class room, we went through our morning routine. At 9:05, we went to music. We started out with our ukuleles. We reviewed the E string, and then learned the fingerings for the third string, the B string. The first fret was C, and the third fret was D. We played a couple songs, and when people’s fingers started getting sore, we stopped and went on to “Follow Your Dream”. We first just did our notes, and then sang with full piano. We even got so far as to add the descant. Then we left and came back to the class room. When we got back, we finished our morning math, and then our teacher introduced the “Done” period. He had made six sheets of paper that listed the assignment and who still needed to drop box/ turn it in. So we worked on our assignments until break, and even after, all the way to lunch. We had to finish: Doctor Dinosaur Q&A, Where the Red Fern Grows Q&A, Dinosaur Ghost Q&A, Tone Ad, Storm Chasers Q&A, and our Avatar projects. Anyone who didn’t finish had to stay in for recess. The rest of us went outside.

When we came back, we continued talking about scale models and scale factors. We filled out a table that had the dimensions of an open box, the scale factor, surface area, and volume. Then we went on to answer the questions in lesson 5.3. Then at 1:50, we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Enjoy your evening! Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 Minutes and Reading Record
FW, p 71, Q# 26-28

Day 141 - Greece and Oligarchy

            Hello everyone! Today is Tuesday, April 26, 2011. When we entered this morning, we went through our morning routine. Then at 9:05, we went to P.E. Today we went outside to practice throwing our Frisbees. We set up pins and hula-hoops on the rock wall to practice with. We were eventually forced to stop because the Frisbees were getting cracked from flying into the wall. So we went on to setting up cones and throwing Frisbees to each other. Then we cleaned up and went inside. When we got back inside, we did a math lesson. It was about dimensions and what happens if you double one of the dimensions or all of them. We did that until break. When we returned, we did the same thing. At about 11:30, we worked on our persuasive writing. We finished up working on those persuasive ads, drop boxed them, and worked on the storm chasers questions and answers under the MSP folder in Read Only. Then we went out to recess.

            When we came back, we did science. It was all about shadows. We saw that the closer a Popsicle stick with a black circle was to the light, the bigger and the fuzzier/blurrier the shadow was on the screen. The closer it was to the screen, the smaller it was (closer it was to being its actual size), and the more defined it was (darker). Then we studied Oligarchy and Tyranny in Social Studies. Oligarchy was when the wealthiest people ran the city-state. Tyranny was when people fought to be the ruler. Leaders arose, and the people supported them. The people with the most support crushed the resisting people, or the others went to join a stronger force. Then we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of exiling and executing the opposite side. We also talked about giving gifts to win their trust. During the study of Tyranny, someone took some of the class mates away to take pictures of them for the year book. They were the Most Likely. Then we played Heads Up 7UP and Toss the Story. Then we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. See you tomorrow! Here’s your homework:

Homework

Read 30 minutes and Reading Record

FW, p 67, Q# 5-8 & 10-14, Bonus Q# 15, 27, & 37

Day 140 - Greece and the Rise of Monarchies

Good morning everyone! Today is Monday, April 25, 2011. When we came in, we had P.E. in the morning, so we put all of our stuff away, started our Morning Routine, and left quickly. In P.E., we started the Frisbee unit. We started out with Frisbees that had plastic for the edges, and a type of netting in the middle. We bounced a Cush ball on it, kind of like we did with the tennis balls and rackets in the Tennis unit. Then we proceeded to hitting it to a partner. After that, we dropped the Cush balls, got into assigned groups of four, and we got either a hula-hoop or three pins to set up on two mats. We got to throw Frisbees through the hula-hoops and tried to knock over the pins. We also got to try out Frisbees that were all plastic and all foam. Then we came back and got our net books out after doing morning math, and did a math lesson. It was about cones, pyramids, and spheres. Then we had break. When we came back, we did language arts. We wrote ad’s for five products. Then at about 12:00, we did a quick Activote test, which lasted until 12:19. Then we went out to recess.
When we came back, we finished the math test. Then the teacher divided us into groups based on how many questions we got right. The teacher took one group outside, and the student teacher kept the rest inside. We did some review questions on area and volume. Then we did Social Studies. The lesson was about Monarchy. The teacher assigned the class a Queen and a Princess. They got crowns and were able to choose a song and the volume. Then the Queen died, and the Princess was made Queen, and did the same thing as her mother, but she also ordered all the boys out. Then we came back together and discussed the pros and cons of being a ruler. Then we read another chapter of The Giver, and did Vocabulator. Then we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Enjoy your night! Here’s your homework:

Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
FW, p 54, Q# 9-16, Bonus Q# 28 & 29

Day 139 - Project Alert

Hello class! Today is Friday, April 22, 2011. When we came in this morning, we went through our morning routine. We didn’t have library, and it took us almost an hour to do our morning math and get our net books out! At about 10:05, the guy from Evergreen Hospital came by and showed us a video. We had to get together in groups, and make an ending for it. We presented them to the class, and then discussed them. Then we had break. When we came back, we did math. We continued to work with cylinders, but today we learned how to find the surface area (The formula is: 2 times Pi times R Squared + 2 times Pi times R times H). Then we went outside for recess and played Battlefield.

When we came back from lunch, we did science. We did an experiment that involved finding the area of the light that shone through a small square. Then we did math. In math, we had little balls of clay. We molded them into spheres that were as tall as little pieces of clear plastic. Then we flattened them down, and wrote down the height of the flattened piece of clay, and the clear piece of plastic. Then we went over everyone’s measurements. Turns out, every group got a different amount of clay and a different height of plastic. Then we read another chapter of “The Giver”. Then we did PSV, and wrote down homework. All you have is reading. Enjoy your weekend!

Day 138- Special Photography

Good morning everyone! Today is Thursday, April 21, 2011. We entered the classroom and went through our morning routine. We didn’t have any specialists so we did morning math until 9:40. By then everyone had gotten their net books out. We did an Activote test on surface area and volume. Then we were surprised with two things, a cylinder, and a color blindness test. The way you find the volume of a cylinder is you find the area of the 2D circle, and then multiply it by the height. The color blindness test was because on the MSP, of which we are taking on the computer, there are questions that are color-coded. Then we divided up into two new groups, and went our own second ways. Eight people went with the teacher, while the rest remained behind. We stayed that way until break, when we rejoined in the classroom. After break, we tried to finish our Avatar projects, and we worked on Mystery Class, trying to figure out our group’s location, as well as others. We worked until lunch, and decided to use our free- game pass. So we went outside and played Capture the Flag.
When we came back from lunch, we worked on math. This lesson was about finding the area of cylinders. During that time, we had the special photography for safety patrol, Global Reading Challenge, choir, honor choir, orchestra, honor orchestra, band, and honor band. After we finished the math lesson, we took a Social Studies test on the geography of ancient Greece. We graded the multiple choice questions as a group, and then went on and read some more of “The Giver”. Then we wrote down our summary, and did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 Minutes and Reading Record
Group #1 - Student Teacher’s Homework: FW, p 38, Q# 2, 8-12 & 26, Bonus Q# 13-14
Group #2 - Teacher’s Homework: Finish Soda Inc. Project

Day 137 - The Speed of Light

Hello everyone! Today is Wednesday, April 20, 2011. When we came into the classroom, we went through our morning routine. Then at our typical time, we went to music. We finished watching the video on Franz Liszt. Then we practiced our graduation song, and then we had an earthquake drill. We evacuated the building, and went out onto the lower field. Then we came back and finished our morning math, got our net books out, did our daily problem, and did math. We had new groups, so we split up, and the student teacher’s group went outside into the shared space, and the teacher’s group remained inside the classroom. In math, we were challenged to design a box that would fit a triangular model. We had break, and then continued to work on it even after, until recess.

When we came back from lunch, we did a reading on science. We also did some calculations on the speed of light, like how long it would take to travel to the moon if you were moving at the speed of light. Then we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left at 2:00. Have a nice weekend! Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
Teacher’s Group’s Homework is: Package Write Up
Student Teacher’s Homework is: Skill p. 123 & 124
Bring CD’s with appropriate music

Day 136 - Ancient Greece

Good morning! Today is Tuesday, April 19, 2011. We came in and went through our morning routine. At 9:05, we went to P.E. We played a modified version of “Steal the Pins”, but we added some gator skin balls, and two footballs. When we came back, we finished morning math, and then worked on math until break. It was all about packaging. It turns out those rectangles whose dimensions are almost squares have the least surface area, which means they are going to be used for the package. The less the surface area, the less material needed for the package, and the more money you save. When we came back from break, we worked on the video comparison. Then we went out to recess.

When we came back, we did more of the same math that we did before break. We read another two chapters on Ancient Greece, and then we read “The Giver”. We filled out our predictions, and then we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 Minutes and Reading Record
FW, p 24, Q# 7-17, Bonus Q# 25

Day 134 - Tax Day

Good morning class! Today is Friday, April 15, 2011. When we came into class at 8:55, we sat down and went through our morning routine. We got out our net books, and at 9:15, we went down to library. The people who wanted to got to present their favorite author power point. Then in the last five minutes of library, we got to check out. Then we went back to the class room. We continued to do our morning math. Then we did “Project Alert” with the guy from Evergreen Hospital. After that, we had break. When we came back, we did a ton of math. We were divided up into our groups, and then we sped through our math. We covered how to find the volume of a cube and a 3-D rectangle. We did math until recess. The gym was being used, so we didn’t have our Friday game, so we either went outside, or we stayed inside to play games.

After lunch, we had about five minutes to rehearse our skits for Steps to Respect, and then we went down to perform them to the second graders. They loved them; you could see it on their faces! Then we came back and did yet more math. Then, we did science. We got to do another experiment with light. Then, we got to do our own taxes. We got three sheets that we had to fill out. One was our W2 that said how much money we earned, the other was a deduction form, and the last was the total tax form. Then we reordered the desks to protect and wall off the class room. Your only homework is Read 30 minutes and Reading Record. Don’t forget the Carnival is tonight! Enjoy your weekend!

Day 133 - Math, Math, and More Math

Morning all! Today is Thursday, April 14, 2011. In the morning, we came in and did nothing but work on morning math until about 9:30. We got out net books, and then worked on our Global Warming video comparisons until break. When we came back, we did math. The class was split up into two groups. One group went with our teacher, and the other stayed behind with the student teacher. We were introduced to three dimensional squares and rectangles. We were looking at the nets of the shapes. We also got graph paper and tried to cut out shapes that would cover the rectangles and cubes. We worked on it until lunch.

When we came back, we worked on the same math, and then started the read-a-loud with our student teacher. We are reading “The Giver”. We read the first chapter, and then discussed it. After that, we did science. We discussed the science experiment from yesterday, and then we did PSV, wrote down homework. Don’t get wet! Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
FW, p. 10, Q# 5-7, 15-16 & 19

Day 132 - Global Warming Video #2

Hey everyone! Today is Wednesday, April 13, 2011. This morning, we came into the classroom and went through our morning routine. At 9:05, we went to music. When we got there, we looked at another composer. After we everyone was done, we looked at our graduation song, “Follow Your Dream”. We introduced the descant part, and then the music teacher quizzed us on the composers and music that they wrote. Then we came back to class and worked on our persuasive writing. We started with beginning paragraphs. Our teacher gave us some debate topics, and we had to go out, research one of them, and make a beginning paragraph. We worked on it until break. When we came back, we worked on the avatar projects while we finished the first global warming video, and watched the entire second one. Then we went out to recess.

When we came back, we did science. We looked at light and flashlights. We even got to light our own candles with actual matches. Then we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
Math Packet, Finish It!

Day 131 - Steal the Pins

Good morning class! Today is Tuesday, April 12, 2011. We came into class and went through our morning routine. As usual, we went to specialists at 9:05. We had P.E. today. We learned how to play a new game called Steal the Pins, which is pretty much a modified version of Capture the Flag. We were divided up into teams, and then we divided the gym up into two halves. The gym teacher established a “puppy- guarding line”, and then placed six of the foam weighted pins and a bucket. The pins could be placed back no further than the red line, and the bucket had to stay underneath the basketball hoops. Each team had to stand between the puppy- guarding line and the line that divided the gym in two. There were two jails on either side. The objective was to tag all of the members on the other team, or to steal all the pins. If you were tagged on the other team’s side, you went to jail. If you hit the bucket on their side, there was a jail break for your team. You could pick up as many pins as you wanted and try to get them back to your side. It was a lot of fun!

When we came back, we worked on our morning math, got our net books out, and did the Daily Problem. Then our teacher showed us some persuasive writing paragraphs, and depending on what it was, we had to rearrange it to flow and make more sense, or we had to take out details that didn’t belong, didn’t make sense, or that didn’t back up the main idea. We worked on it until break, all of us taking turns going up to the board and crossing out sentences. When we came back, we worked on our Avatar project. Our teacher went around to everyone who needed help with their avatars, while the rest of us continued to work on our stripes. Then we went to lunch. Our teacher let us play Mario Kart, but warned us that after today, it would be twenty dollars in funny money to stay in and play on the computers or play Mario Kart.

When we came back, we took a long math test on the “Covering and Surrounding” unit. It took us an astounding two hours! Then we went over it at 3:00. We passed it in, and then watched the video on Global Warming. Our teacher wants to finish the video so that we can go on to watch the video that states the opposite side on Global Warming. Then at 3:25, we did PSV, wrote down homework, and left. Enjoy your evening! Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
Math Packet Days 15 - 18

Day 130 - A Surprise at Lunch

Hi everyone! Today is Monday, April 11, 2011. This morning, we came into class and went through our morning routine, and at our normal time, we went down to P.E. We played a modified version of “Pin Knockdown”. Instead we used weighted foam pins, and we had several other changes as well. We were divided into five groups, and we divided the gym into four sections. One section was the beginner’s square, and the other was the King’s square, where we went when we had gone through all the other sections. One group went to the King’s square, another to the third, the second, and the beginner’s square. The remaining group went to the sidelines along the beginner’s and the second square where they waited for a group to get out so they could get in. One person from each group went to get a gator skin ball and a foam ball. They returned to their group while the remaining people went to get their own foam balls. The objective was to either knock all the pins down from one group, or hit all the players and get them all out. If one group was eliminated, all the groups behind it moved up (if the group in the King’s square were eliminated they would go to the sidelines, and the beginner’s square would move to the second square, the second to the third, the third to the King’s, and the sideline’s to the beginner’s square).

When we came back, we continued to get our net books out and do our calendar math. Then we went over our persuasive writing by ourselves, and then with a partner until break. When we came back, we worked on our Avatar projects. We worked on the eyes and the stripes until lunch. Then our teacher brought out Mario Kart on the Xbox. He gave us two options. We could go outside or we could stay in and take turns playing. Most people chose to stay in, but some people weren't interested and they went outside.

After lunch, we worked on a math packet. It went over the area and perimeter/circumference of circles, rectangles, and squares. Then, we looked at some questions about light. We brainstormed together, and then we went onto Social Studies. We read two chapters on Ancient Greece. It was all about travel and farming. We went to our notebooks and answered a couple of questions on the selection. Then we continued to watch the video on Global Warming. After ten minutes, we wrote down homework, did PSV, and left. Have a nice evening! Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
Complete CS Review
AP p. 77

Day 129 - The Area of a Circle

Good morning everyone! Today is Thursday, April 8, 2011. This morning, we came into class and went through our morning routine, and got our net books out. At 9:13, we went down to library. We first checked out some books. Then, some people went up and presented their favorite author power point. When we went back, we did some more “Project Alert” with a guy from Evergreen Hospital until break. When we got back, we worked on “Where the Red Fern Grows” and the persuasive paragraph until lunch when we went outside and played “Capture the Flag” with both of our teachers and the counselor.

When we came back from lunch, we did a math checkup on circles. We had to find the circumference and if we knew how to, the area. Then we learned how to find the area of a circle. Radius squared multiplied by Pi or 3.14 equals the area of the circle. Then at 2:10 we had “Steps to Respect”. We worked some more on our role plays that we will show the second graders. Then we presented them to the class. After that, we watched some more of the global warming video, and then we did PSV, cleaned the class room, and left. Your only homework is Reading 30 minutes and Reading Record. Have an awesome weekend! See you Monday.

Homework - read 30 minutes and reading record

Day 127 - Simulating the Settlement of Ancient Greece

Hi all! Today is Thursday, April 07, 2011. This morning, we came into class and went through our morning routine. We didn’t have any specialists today, so it took until about 9:50 for everyone to finally get their net books out and get logged on. When we got on, we did the MSP questions and worked on our Persuasive paragraph until about 10:50. Then we got to play on coolmath4kids.com until break. When we came back, we read Where the Fern Grows, a PDF, and answered a bunch of questions that were in a word document (on the net books). Then we went outside for lunch.

When we came back, we did Social Studies. During lunch, the two teachers set up our desks to represent Ancient Greece areas like Athens, Crete, and Sparta. Then we were handed a packet of regular sheets of paper with our group number on them. Then in our little area, we put them down, careful not to overlap them. They represented our claimed land. If we were able to get all of them down in one minute, we survived and got our resources. If you didn’t get them all down, then one person had to go away to the Black Sea, African Minor, Italy, and North Africa. Then the rest of them got their resources. If you had two of one resource, then you had to go trade with someone else. They had to sing a song that goes to “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”. The people who didn’t have to trade had to perform a song that went to the tune “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad”. It was a lot of fun! Then we cleaned up and got our desks back where they were supposed to be, and we did math until it was 3:20. Then we did PSV, cleaned, wrote down homework, and left. Have a nice evening! Here’s your homework:

Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
CSS.1, p 78, Q# 15,
AP, p 65
Math Packet Days 13 & 14

Day 127 – Light Stations

Good morning all! Today is Wednesday, April 6, 2011. This morning, we came in and went through our morning routine, and at our normal time, we went to music. In Music we learned the E string on the ukuleles and sang 2 pages of our graduation song. Around 9:45 we headed back to the classroom and went over morning math. After everyone had their net books, we started on our persuasive writing paragraph. Once people were done with that we started picking a topic to debate on. At 11:00, we had break and at 11:10 we started math. In math today we traced a circle and found the ratio, diameter, and circumference. It turns out that when you measure the diameter for any circle, it goes around 3.14 times! Once we were done, we jumped up to our computers and worked on our Avatars. After 12 minutes, we headed out to recess.
When we came back, we visited some different stations that had to do with light. It was a lot of fun, but we had to stop at 1:50 to do PSV, write down homework, and leave. Here’s your homework:
Homework
Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
AP, p 64
Math Packet Days 11 & 12

Day 126 - Ancient Greece

Good morning everyone! Today is Tuesday, April 05, 2011. We came into class, and went through our normal routine because we had the net books back. But at 9:05, we went to P.E. We had a practice of the Timed Run, so we ran and walked for 30 minutes, and then went back to class and finished our morning work. When we got our net books out, we finished our two paragraphs about ourselves. Then, we typed five facts that you could prove, like rocks are not living, and the earth is round. After that, we took one of the facts from our paragraphs, and listed four examples that backed that fact up. Then we had break. When we came back, we worked on our Avatar projects on Gimp until lunch.

When we came back, we did a math lesson. We got into groups of four and found the area, circumference, and diameter of different circles. Then we did Social Studies. We started the Ancient Greece unit and we worked on the geography of Macedonian and the Persian Empire. When we got done, we watched some more of the movie on Global Warming. Then we did PSV, cleaned, wrote down homework, and left. Here’s the homework:

Read 30 minutes and Reading Record
Math Packet Days 7-10

Day 125 – Welcome back from Spring Break

Today we had a busy day getting back into our routine. We started off by going to Music. After music we came back and worked on Mystery Class. We got caught up on the week of clues we missed. There are now two cultural clues that are helping groups figure out where their class is. Some groups already think they know where their city is! Next we worked on our persuasive writing papers. We wrote positive traits about ourselves and then we traded with people and they wrote positive things about us. Afterward we wrote two paragraphs summarizing the results and put it in the drop box.
After lunch we came back and worked on math. We estimated the area and perimeter of two lakes in groups.