Looking forward to POL week!

Hello Families!

I am sorry that I left this post in edit mode for so long!  I'll be so happy to finally publish it!  I'm having a bit of an under-the-weather-weekend, but this weather is making staying in kind of fun.  I will get back into my system of posting  more often this week!  I hope you are enjoying the day off and take some time to discuss Martin Luther King Jr.'s contribution to our country's history and outlook today.  Here are some of his quotes that I find meaningful:

All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.

Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.

Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.

The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education.

Coming up this week:  Presentations of Learning

I know Taylor is signed up for Friday morning.  If you haven't signed up, please email me!

The students are feeling the excitement, nervousness and pride that comes from planning and practicing a presentation.  The whole class was very impressed by the students who were brave enough to go this week as a practice and model for the others.

As we begin our new year some new concepts are coming up.  I wanted to take some time to share these with you so that you could add them to your discussions when they naturally arise.

Our morning message is a time of lots of valuable learninig.  We use the message to identify patterns in the English language, as well as it's obvious use of learning about our day ahead.  Lately I have been asking the students to define the bigger vocab words that I include.  Although many of the students say they know these and can identify the context they are used in or use them in a sentence.  But the act of defining a word takes some thought.  It is lovely to hear the different ways each student describes words definitions.  With the added challenge of thinking about how to define the word without using the word or it's root words, we are growing each day!

Another writing element that the students are noticing and interested in is the apostrophe.  The children have been looking at the uses of the apostrophe and are beginning to understand why they are there when they see them.  We first noticed the fact that an apostrophe shows us letters have been taken away and there is a contraction, but now we are seeing words that use this in other ways.  Have you noticed any in signs or as you go through the day?  How is that apostrophe used?  What does it tell us?

Spelling words flowing into our class!  It's so lovely to feel the excitement the students are having around memorizing new words.  They are very proud to be able to spell them in front of their peers.  Please talk with your child about words they would chose that will help them with their writing.  It is important for each student  to think also about their memorizing style and test out different strategies to help them make new words their own for the long term.  I've said this before, but it bears repeating.  Writing, explaining a concept in your own words, drawing and musical memory are all ways to gain long-term memory.

Last week's learning experiences (besides all the POL preparations!):

We continue to analyze the songs and poems we study each month. Here are some of the students' thoughts about these poems.  An explanation of the Night Haiku:

Peyton: When it's night time, the crickets make noise.  In the poem, the moon is calling, so it feels like the crickets are calling.  When I hear crickets, it reminds me of, [the line] 'the moon is calling'.

Thinking of Langston Hughes' poem:

Ryan: It makes me feel like it's Halloween night.

Joey: It makes me think when the moon is a crescent, it's like, sharp.

Jayden: It feels like it's ghostly.

Peyton: It makes me feel like it's really spooky at night.

Taylor: When it says, 'winter', it feels like it's winter and it feels like I'm in the snow.

About Little Miss Moon:

Peyton: It feels like she's knitting a blanket that covers the sun so it's night time.

Ocean: Like she's taking the stars to capture their pattern and put a little bit of light in her scarf.  She takes a little bit of the star's power.  She takes their patterns and their light so she can see her knitting and know where she's going.

One of my 2012 resolutions is to take advantage of the park more.  The 8th graders had the same idea and so we went to the park together to play some active games.  Here are some images from that fun!

For our upcoming projects we do a lot of brainstorming, discussions and agreements to lay the groundwork for what the students plan to do and what they hold themselves accountable for learning and sharing.  Here is a brainstorm of questions we have about animals.  Each student took a turn to share one question they have.  I am excited because as we move forward to form this into a project, I can see the student's progress through how well they can identify important research questions.  What questions do you wonder about animals?  How will you share this with your family?

Many of the students are getting final critique comments on the signs they have been creating, then adding color.  These photos show the level of peer interest and connection.  Each piece is a masterpiece of it's own, not only for the drawing work, but because of the thought, planning and collaborative process. The elements of how to communicate through symbols and signs have lead us to think about how much and what information to include.  Each student has made many tries that are unique and special and lead them to better decisions on their next try.  Check these out in your weekly visit to our class! I can't wait for these to be finished so we can get them up around school. 

Well, there is always more to share, but I'll get publishing!  I'm looking forward to seeing you soon!

Love, Jennifer