Room #7 is transitioning from structured opinion pieces to persuasive writing. The kiddos learned about persuasive writing this week and what it means to “convince” someone of something. We chatted about how to identify a problem, reflect on it, and come up with ideas to persuade others to help fix that problem. The boys and girls realized that they do not have to wish their problems away; they can write them away. To really bring this concept home, the kids wrote a persuasive letter in the voice of Pigeon from the Mo Willems book, Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! Together, we identified the problem (the bus driver wouldn’t let Pigeon drive the bus), and then brainstormed several reasons Pigeon could use to convince or persuade the bus driver to let him finally drive the bus. The cherubs did such an amazing job with this tricky project. They really thought hard to discover possible persuasive arguments and included them in their letter.
In a workshop this week, we colored in thinking caps from the Mo Willems’ book, Amanda and Her Alligator. Next, students worked independently on writing a sentence that exhibited the following skill: when you change the first letter of a word, you can make it into a new word. Using our –at and –ay family knowledge, the kiddos chose what word family they wanted to use and then changed their first –at or –ay word into another! Check out our back bulletin board to see their results!
Math stations over the next few weeks will center mostly on addition and subtraction! The boys and girls are cementing their knowledge on these two tricky operations!
· Clear the Board – As we continue to work with addition, students partnered together at this fun and engrossing game. Each student received a game board and 10 cubes. They placed their cubes on numbers that they thought they would roll. Next, the kids took turns rolling two dice. When the dice were added together and if the kids had cubes on that number, they could remove them. The first person to “clear the board” won!
· Teens on the Ten Frame book – As a refresher, the kiddos filled out these books, showing how when teen numbers are decomposed, they represent a set of 10 and _____ ones. After filling in a set of two ten frames to represent a specific number, they then wrote how many tens and ones that number is.
· Fix-it Strips – At this center, students continued to work on the tricky concept of “changing numbers.” Independently, the kiddos received a fix-it strip. Using cubes, they created an organized pile that represented their first number. Next, they changed that pile to match the second number. Lastly, they articulated if they added or took away cubes and how many cubes they needed to make the change. The cherubs have really gotten the hang of this station – they challenged themselves by doing this activity with teen numbers! Holy Moly!
· Race to 10 – This is another game that gives the kiddos practice in telling the difference between the plus and minus signs and performing the corresponding operation. Each player started with an empty working-space paper. First, he/she rolled a die to determine how many counters to put on the paper. Secondly, he/she spun the spinner to determine whether to add or to subtract. Lastly, he/she rolled the die again to see how many counters to add or subtract. The kiddos did a really fabulous job with this multi-step center!
· Spin and Peek – This game is similar to the traditional game of “Concentration”. In this version, the kiddo lifted a tub and determined the number of cubes under it. Then, he/she spun the spinner to see if he/she should look for a tub with more or less counters than were under the first tub. This was a great game for the boys and girls to play together – they couldn’t get enough of it!
· Measuring Beads –We have been talking about different ways one can measure and the importance of having a standard way of measuring objects. This week, students measured various sized beaded necklaces. What fun!
· iPad – subtraction or addition game! – This week, the cherubs were able to pick which skill they wanted to practice! Having that choice gave them extra ownership, and they were really able to hone in on either operation!
This month’s self-portraits are fantastic! Students used a mixture of yarn and string, paint, construction paper, colored pencils and the art of collage to create one-of-a-kind masterpieces! Stop by to see their works of art if you can!
Have you ever heard the expression: “March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb!” (Let’s hope!). Room #7 talked about this expression and then created a corresponding art project for their calendars! Every day, the leader will determine if it’s a lion or a lamb day and then will place the corresponding picture on our March graph! I wonder which animal will “win”!
The cherubs and I have been working on blending word parts together. We’re learning how to smoothly blend the beginning of a word with the ending of a word to create a whole word. For example, “take”: The first part is t; the second part is ake; put them together and we get take. As part of their word work, they played a game that helps your child to think about words. You can do this at home too! Tell your child you’re going to say the first part of a word and then you’ll say the last part. D-ay. Tell them you can put those parts together to make a word, d-ay, day. Next, say another word but only say the two parts and ask your child to say the whole word. Example: You say st-ay and your child responds with stay. This is a game that you can play anytime — in the car, at the supermarket, or while waiting for an appointment. The game should be quick and fun. The goal is to make your child curious about words. Have a good time with it!
Room #7 has officially begun our chick unit! The kids couldn’t be more excited. On Monday, after reading the book Chickens Aren’t the Only Ones by Ruth Heller, the class discussed a new vocabulary word: oviparous! This fun word to say means to hatch from an egg. Then the class did a sort of various animals and insects to decide which were oviparous and which were not. This conversation segued into which creatures are mammals AND how one can tell what a mammal is. Ask your child to tell you which animals are mammals and which are oviparous! You’ll be surprised by their answers. In 2 weeks, we will obtain chick eggs from a local farm! Stay tuned for more information!
The boys and girls are also learning about how to read a room during Superflex with Mrs. Grubbs. On Friday, we talked about how when you enter a room, there are certain things you need to notice and think about so that you are able to figure out how to join.
S: space – Where am I? What is this place?
T: time – What’s happening now? What happens next?
O: objects – What things do I have? What do I need? Why are these important objects:
P: people – Who is here? What are they doing? Notice face, body, mood, pace. Listen to words.
These four letters will help students to frame their next steps when entering a room mid-activity! We will be working on this over the next few weeks!