Informational Writing

This quarter is all about informational writing.  We begin with how-to pieces that share a wide variety of talents.  After that, science and writer's workshop join forces as the class researches animals and plants native to Georgia (like the fall muscadine vine above).

Readwritethink.org offers free resources for young writers.  Click the image above to create your own essay map designed to organize a research project.  For an interactive outline to help you get started, click the image below.

First Batch of Comic Templates

Storyboards, films and comics are first cousins of narrative writing. To create a comic, click on a template, then drag it to your desktop to print and share.  Read more about using comics in the classroom here.

Fall Narrative Gallery

Storytellers Unite!

The class identifies narrative elements in interesting photos and drawings, then creates illustrated narrative storyboards.  Each small square offers so many ways to describe characters, setting, conflict, and resolution.  The next step is drafting.

Right click and print the graphic organizers below to create at home.

Let's Gets Organized!

Image by Evilmadscientist.com

The "Categories" sidebar on the right is now called "Resources."  While the main idea of "Web Links" was just that - links to a variety of pages on the internet, it was becoming a junk drawer we had to fumble through to find the right page.

Now it's organized by topic, so if you want to revisit some nano origami, or that cello beatbox guy, click Art Links.  If you need some division, or rounding practice before the CRCT, click Math Links.  

If there is something more specific you want to find, like photos of a friend, or blank comic pages, simply type the word in the "Search This Blog" field, and click "Search."

Hopefully these changes will help you find what you need, and if there's anything you would like to see here, send me a message by commenting on this post below.

Week 8 Wrap-Up

The soil and fossils unit ended this week, and the fossil models are still drying in the window.  We coated seashells in petroleum jelly, then pressed them into Play Doh.  Next, glue was poured into the mold.  When dry, they will become casts of the shells.

The screenshot above was taken during the spinner activity following the weekly spelling test.  Evelyn's colorful illustration represents the word "wheat."  She tied science to her creation with the three layers of soil: bedrock, subsoil, and topsoil.  To read more about the role of creative expression and multiple intelligences in our classroom, click here.

Pokemon cards created for "subtraction battle" were the highlight last week.  First, everyone created a character with two attacks, ranging from "Fly Fu," to "Cutie Lazer."  Next, chance determined the health points and attack strength as they rolled dice for place values and digits.  Vying for intergalactic domination (and subtracting while regrouping), Thursday and Friday's competitions were action-packed.  To create your own, click and print the graphic organizer below.

This week during writing, sensory details were the focus.  Above, a blindfolded Katie Sue provides adjectives to describe a mouthful of cereal.  Siena's a brave soul.  After warnings, she volunteered to describe the taste of wasabi peas!  During snack, everyone sampled the fire. 

Next week marks the end of the first quarter, so look for parent-teacher conference forms in Monday folders.  Click the content tabs at the top of the homepage to see what's in store for the second quarter.  

Thanks again to all the families who made it to Friday's parent breakfast.  Make the most of a perfectly fall weekend!