1st grade Entomologists--Part 2

1st graders from Ms. Noble's class had fun researching, writing, analyzing, and creating this week in the Media Center. Each student randomly drew an insect to research and took notes about the insect's habitat, life cycle, physical appearance, diet and abilities.

On days 1 and 2, we used the iPads to access PebbleGo, an engaging non-fiction database for young learners.

I love this database for many reasons: the students are able to navigate it independently; students have the option to hear the information read out loud; and key vocabulary words are defined for clearer understanding. Not to mention the kids love it! (please contact me if you would like the username and password for access at home)

I stressed to the students that good researchers ask questions. Some of the students had questions that could not be answered by PebbleGo so we turned to Twitter to contact the scientists at The Entomological Society of America. 

After gathering their data, I paired students and challenged them to use a Venn diagram to compare/contrast their insects. 

The students were very proud of their diagrams!

Grasshoppers and Cicadas

Dragonflies and Moths

Flies and Painted Lady Butterflies

I took a picture of each diagram and imported it into the Educreations app. The students had to decide what information they wanted to share and I recorded their voices. Even though we practiced a bunch, a few of us got nervous and mixed up our words. In the interest of time, we did not re-record but just corrected ourselves in the next clip. We tried to use a 'loud and proud' voice, but it's still hard to hear some of us. Make sure to turn up your volume :) We hope you enjoy our presentation and learn something new from our hard work!

1st grade Entomologists

1st graders from Mrs. Roach's class had fun researching, writing, and creating this week in the Media Center. Each student chose an insect to research and took notes about the insect's habitat, life cycle, physical appearance, diet, and abilities.

On Day 1 we used books for our research.

On days 2 and 3 we used the iPads to access PebbleGo, an engaging website with 4 non-fiction databases (please contact me to get the username and password if you'd like to use this site at home). 

We also realized we still had questions that weren't answered from the resources we were using. So, we used twitter to contact the experts at the The Etomological Society of America. Each student tweeted one question and you can see some of our replies below. 

Each day we read poems from Douglas Florian's book Insectlopedia.We loved the poems that he wrote from the perspective of the insect and how he used creative descriptions to teach us about the insects. On day 4 we became poets and used our research to write a poem about our own insect. 

 

Here we are in the poet's chairs rehearsing our poems out loud!

Each student created an illustration of their insect in its habitat and I imported those illustrations into an app called Educreations. I recorded each student reading his/her poem. Even though we tried to use a 'loud and proud' voice, it's still hard to hear some of us. Make sure to turn up your volume! :)

We hope you enjoy our presentation and learn something from our hard work!

Summer Reading Celebration!

Tuesday, September 16, was our annual Summer Reading Celebration. I am elated to say that 175 students were honored at this event!!! That's double the amount of students from last year's celebration. These students all turned in proof to me that they read over the summer and they were more prepared to start this school year because of their efforts. Great job, manatees-- I am so proud of you! 

Both Mr. Bradley and Mrs. Hairston congratulated students on their dedication.

Our special guests this year were Ms. Dee and Ms. Shane, librarians from the Braggtown branch of the Durham Public Library. 

Student actors performed in a reader's theater version of the folktale: The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything.

At the end of the celebration all students selected a new book to keep and a bookmart. There were so many good choices--it was hard to decide!!

A few students proudly show off their choice :)

Each student who performed in the Reader's Theater also received a Fizz Boom Read! shirt from the public library's summer reading program.

Thank you to all the volunteers who helped make this event a success. Also a big thank you to the librarians at Braggtown for providing the entertainment and enthusiasm. And of course, congratulations to ALL our readers--remember you are S.T.A.R.s!

Smart

Tenacious

Avid

Readers

Mrs. Husketh :)

International Dot Day

For the first time ever, Club Boulevard participated in International Dot Day today. The day is a global celebration of creativity, courage, and collaboration. It is based on Peter H. Reynolds' book The Dot. On this day, students all around the world are given the chance to show their creativity and think about how they can make a difference in the lives of others.

Mrs. Butler, our fabulous Art teacher, introduced this book to all students during the first week of Art class this year. 

Mrs. Butler :)

Each student in grades K-5 created a dot in the style of an artist. The list of grade levels and corresponding artists is below:

Kindergarten and K/1 - Mondrian

1st grade - Matisse

2nd grade - Miro

3rd grade - O'Keefe

4th grade - Seurat

5th grade - Picasso

While all teachers read aloud and discussed the story today, some classes went a little further with special Dot Day curriculum integrated activities. Check out the creative fun below!

We can't wait to celebrate International Dot Day again next year!

Back to School!

By early September all students visited the Media Center for their "Back to School Orientation." Each grade level did something a little different to help them review their Manatee Manners and how those manners apply to the Media Center.

I recruited 5th graders from Mrs. Roach's to make presentations using the Educreations app to show the younger grades. These visuals were a helpful reminder and easy to record! You can view the presentations by clicking on the pictures below. Can you guess which Manatee Manner applies to each presentation? Make sure to turn up your volume!