Monday, December 24, 2012

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone is enjoying their break. I look forward to seeing you in the New Year. In the meantime, leave a comment and let me know what you are up to.

Pictures from our
Holiday Cards we sent around the U.S. and other countries
and Polar Express Day.



These are two illustrations created by Norman Rockwall!
Do you remember him??
We made Inferences using the Clues in the picture!
What do you THINK is going on in these pictures?
What EVIDENCE makes your think that?




~ Ms. Lightfoot

P.S.
Caption: These are some cookies my cousin and I made! YUM.



Monday, December 10, 2012

Holiday Summary!

Hello Everyone!

We have just finished writing our very first Nonfiction Summary over our Holiday Research Project.

I want you to Evaluate the summary in order to determine if it is a GOOD Summary.

Purpose of a Summary:
to reduce large sections of text to essential and important points and main ideas

Qualities of a Summary:
1. A Main Idea
2. Brief sentences that give important details of each topic
3. Focused on author's purpose (Persuade, Inform, or Entertain)

Leave a comment to explain your answer. 

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Cultures and Traditions Around The World!

This is my favorite time of the year!  We have so many fun and exciting projects going on.

The Elephants and The Honeybees are researching information and traditions about Chinese New Year, Las Posadas, Hannukah, and Kwanzaa.  There are so many resources we can use in order to learn about how people with different cultures celebrate.  We are spending our time in the library this week reading books, exploring the internet, and watching videos to find out all about other cultures and traditions around the world!!  This project is even more exciting because we are getting to work in groups!

Websites:
Holiday Website
Pebble Go - Social Studies and then Holidays







Students leave a comment about what you are learning through your research!

~ Ms. Lightfoot

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Squanto, Thanksgiving Feast, and Pie!

Happy Break!  I hope everyone is enjoying their time off so far. :-)

This week we were busy, busy, busy!!

First, students prepared for their Six Weeks Tests Monday-Wednesday.  Students goal set in order to prepare themselves for the test.  Because ALL students did their best on Thursday, they were rewared with a bite of Pumpkin Pie on Friday!  We have been learning a lot about pumpkins these past few weeks.  We have read poems about them, written poems about them, explored them using our 5 senses, and learned how they grow during The Harvest.  It was only fitting to end the unit with some delicious pumpkin pie!

 
In Social Studies, Reading, and through Poetry, we learned about how The Pilgrims traveled on the Mayflower to Massachusetts. While reading This is The Feast, students wrote details about the story and then we created a Main Idea of story on a cornucopia. They also learned how Squanto taught The Pilgrims how to plant corn during the harvest and how to hunt for food. Students agreed that he was a great helper and friend. They each created a Head-dress to display the Main Idea of The Story of Squanto. Each feather answers one of the 5W's: Who, What, Where, When, and Why about Squanto.
 

 
Lastly, we learned how to write an Expository Paper. They wrote about reasons why they are thankful! The Elephants and The Honeybees decorated a Turkey for their families with all of the reasons why they are thankful!!
 


Also, students began exploring Text Features in Nonfiction Reading.  They worked in cooperative groups and looked their Social Studies Book to find and understand a glossary, table of contents, index, titles, heading, and bold.  I look forward to finishing this assignment when we come back from break!


 


 
 
At lunch on Wednesday, the cafeteria prepared a Thanksgiving Feast! Students were able to connect this to when The Pilgrims thanked Squanto and the other Native Americans with a Feast. We had a great time with our parents!











 


 
 
****************Note for Elephants and Honeybees*******************

Remember, if you read a story or a play a game on pebblego and leave a comment with what you learned, then you will get a reward when you come back to school!  Also, don't forget to do your Thanksgiving Packet for tickets when you come back to school.  Enjoy your break!!

~ Ms. Lightfoot