November--20 Qs surprise, math, Writers Workshop with U of I students, Kids Give, and our first science experiment!! More pics soon!

The kids have been really coming together as a class and their attentive scholastic questions and engaged note taking have been very impressive. We went into the Thanksgiving Holiday on a high note of cooperative work, individual effort, and fun.

We are working on math numerical sense and grouping, sets, and checking work by undoing what has been done.  'Always recheck the data set.'

There was full day trip to the Prichard Art Gallery, Mr. Blount's classroom to eat lunch (celebrate the win for bringing in the most box tops!) with pizza, and then we had the tour by Youth Educator, Jackie. All the kids checked out a least one book and got to see downstairs where the books are processed. So COOL!
(More pics to come.)

Good Samaritan Residents and kids played Jeopardy together. All were playfully competitive and then a super silly craft-- Turkey hats-- were made together. (Next blog with pics)

Kids Give!, Lisa Harmon came in and taught about the 104 nonprofits in Latah County. The kids had a list of 15 to debate and discuss which ones would get their group's $10 dollars. Our class was able to give a total of $50, thanks to this great idea from the Alternative Giving Market.

TOOTSIE POPS. This was our first true science experiment. It was hilarious and so interesting to see the persistence and listen to the claims and evidence once we looked at the 5 Tootsie Pops brought in. (pics in next post)

These past weeks have been terrific. Another wonderful thing was each student led their Conference. They shared about the Morning Meeting and two pieces of work with reflection questions. The parents enjoyed and learned a lot about what the students are doing. The kids showed great poise and after 20 minutes, each was very proud of what they had shared about their learning.

 The questions have gotten deeper and more informative.

Cradle Boards and Hackysacks

Our trip to the Appaloosa Horse Museum and learning about the Nez Perce was made extra special by Tia BeVan, Jayden's mom, as she had brought a saddle and her Nez Perce heritage to us through artifacts.

The first time she came a few weeks ago,  it was showing her western saddle and we learned and thought of it from a science perspective-- form and function. Last week, she made Social Science very real by bringing her cradle board and Jayden's. This was so cool because the items that the kids saw at the Appaloosa Horse Museum were cradle boards and saddles (along with many other beautifully beaded items and other household tools). Having a person of the culture has been so great for the kids. They asked tons of questions and Tia would explain the purpose and meaning to what they wondered about. It was fun to see Jayden enjoy remembering and getting to see his Mom tell their history.

Jayden's cradle board had shell pieces that dangled-- just like
little models hung above cribs.

Cradle boards---Jayden's and Tia's'.

Explaining that children long ago learned to be quiet and patient while
their mothers worked.

One pair of Jayden's moccasins. 

The fourth grade has been doing a lot of team building and inclusion activities. 

After a fantastic discussion, the activity was a hacky toss.

The kids were divided into three groups to practice. Each group of 7 (8 for one)  helps build coordination and cooperation. They need to make eye contact and make a gentle toss. It is very important to know that they haven't been successful as a group doing this. So, I put them in smaller groups and then today they will be in one large group with three hackysacks being underhand tossed--and silently too! 

They have

come such a long way in how they stick to an activity, encourage each other,

and like the feeling of success together. This first quarter of school has been full of growth for them.

It will be fun today to see how the full activity goes and their smiles as they accomplish this little cooperative challenge together. :)

Moscow Pullman Daily News--Thank you Anonymous Sponsor!

              Every year, I call up the Moscow Pullman Daily News and request a set of newspapers for my class. Every year a full class set plus one is delivered at the school bound in a big rubber band.
              Each day of the paper has a different community focus. When I taught high school, I would ask for the Thursday paper because of all the arts coverage. With the intermediate grades, I request the Tuesday paper because of the Sidewalk Series. The newspaper is varied and has so many things all in one place. Really that is the opposite of the kind of exposure to material kids are exposed to. With an internet search, the topic stands out alone, not connected to anything else and usually is just a quick trivia search question. For example, when was that movie? But the newspaper is broad and articles come from all over. We get to examine the writing, find the math, connect to science and social science. They have learned about real estate and lost and found. The cross word puzzle is a mystery in its design and cultural education. The whole paper is an amazing resource. I appreciate the people that make Newspapers In Education (NIE) possible  Thank you!!

               This is such a great way for the kids to learn about people in our community. They love it and often will know the grown ups or kids interviewed.
               The thing that is most interesting is how engaged they get in the newspaper. Notice how deeply the kids are looking at the text. They love the comics! We have very interesting questions that come from the comics because the application of language and the analysis of the social context.

               I am thrilled that we use it the whole year. It applies to all subjects. We dissect its structure, and gather more worldly views. Kids get to go home and talk to their families about people or events in our community. Having this resource, donated by some community member, allows for so much 'connectedness'. At the end of the day, they take home the paper.

Idaho Gems by Prichard Art Gallery!! Art and Social Studies