In January, the second graders will be opening a T-shirt factory during our math workshops. We will be studying place value by using T-shirts as our real-world models. As an extension of this unit, we will be tie-dying shirts like the shirts in our math story book.
Please email me your child's shirt size as soon as possible!
Choices:
Youth small
Youth medium
Youth large
Adult small
Adult medium
Adult large
The shirts are 100% cotton and therefore may shrink a bit.
Thanks!
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
Winter Break!
I wanted to wish all of you a restful, relaxing, and peaceful winter break. We return to school at 8:40 on Tuesday, January 3, 2012. Enjoy time with family and friends!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Cook Shop!
Today was our first Chef Lesson in Cook Shop. Cook Shop is a program found in New York City Public Schools that is organized by the Food Bank of NYC. I couldn't state it better than their website does in saying, "CookShop, the core nutrition education program of the Food Bank For New York City, gives low-income children, adults and teens the knowledge and tools to adopt and enjoy a healthy diet on a limited budget. With hands-on workshops reaching approximately 30,000 New Yorkers across all five boroughs, CookShop teaches cooking skills and nutrition information and fosters enthusiasm for fresh, affordable fruits, vegetables and other whole foods." It's a great program and our kids are loving it!The program is divided into 6 units. Each unit is 3 weeks long. In week one we introduce the topic and do a small 10-minute lesson each day. The following week is the week with Wednesday Chef Lessons (cooking!). The last week of the unit is a follow up about what we've learned.
Our first unit was about MyPlate. (The next 5 units will be about each of the 5 food groups more specifically.) MyPlate is the USDA's nutrition program. The MyPlate model replaced the old food pyramid most of us grew up with. We learned about the 5 food groups and why the sizes of each group is different in the model.
As I said, today was our first Chef Lesson and we got to cook! We made Black Bean Burritos. Yum!
Our first step was to read our recipe and gather all of our ingredients and materials. Next, we did the most important part. We washed our hands! We stood in the hall and washed for 20 seconds. To count it, we sang the ABCs really slowly. We then walked like doctors (hands up!) to our tables to begin preparing.
Step one was to cut the lettuce. We chopped it out really fine. Next was to cut the red peppers. We cut that really well too! Now our meal has fruits and vegetables!
Then we spread our mixture on a whole wheat tortilla. There's the grain! After spreading it out, we topped it with our lettuce and red peppers. It looked like a pizza almost! 
The last step was the best step - we got to eat it! It was delicious.
In Cook Shop, all ingredients can be found in both supermarkets and in corner stores/bodegas. This feature makes it even more accessible for families to make at home. We realized that our snack had grains, vegetables, fruits, and protein - yet no dairy. We discussed additions we could make (sprinkle in some cheese, add some yogurt on the side) but concluded that since it's the smallest amount to have each day, the recipe-writers probably assumed we'd just had some dairy at lunch - and from our post-lunch discussion, that sounded about right.
Ask your child what they thought of the snack. Were there things they liked? Didn't like? Would they want to teach this recipe to a family member? Encourage your child to be part of food choices and to select balanced, healthy meals.
Festival of Lights
This morning's Festival of Lights was a great success! All six grades at our school performed. We saw a theater piece about a sleepy owl by the Pre-K classes. We heard a beautiful song about trains by the first grade classes that related to their social studies projects. We heard two songs sung in Spanish by both the first grade classes and the third grade class. We heard wonderful violin pieces by both the fourth and fifth grade classes. And, of course, our second graders performed.
We sang Tom Chapin's "This Pretty Planet" in a round! It was a beautiful performance full of twirling ribbons, smiling faces, and amazing voices. All that practice sure paid off! The round was tricky, but it was great once we got it! Bravo!
Here's a link to the original song that our class listened to before learning to sing it on our own. I know it's been stuck in my head for weeks and I'm sure some of our second graders have been singing it around the house as well. So listen and learn too!
I hope you made it out to the Festival of Lights, but if not I know lots of parents took pictures and video. If I get one, I will email it out to everyone!
We sang Tom Chapin's "This Pretty Planet" in a round! It was a beautiful performance full of twirling ribbons, smiling faces, and amazing voices. All that practice sure paid off! The round was tricky, but it was great once we got it! Bravo!
Here's a link to the original song that our class listened to before learning to sing it on our own. I know it's been stuck in my head for weeks and I'm sure some of our second graders have been singing it around the house as well. So listen and learn too!
I hope you made it out to the Festival of Lights, but if not I know lots of parents took pictures and video. If I get one, I will email it out to everyone!
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Rectangles
We have been focused on geometry in math this month! We've done so much with shapes!
We've explored both 2D and 3D shapes. We learned a lot of new information and vocabulary about 3D shapes. Ask your child about the faces and angles of shapes like cubes or rectangular prisms. We have a lot to say!
Currently, we are exploring rectangles. What, exactly, makes a rectangle a rectangle? We already knew it was a polygon, but why are some polygons called rectangles and other polygons not?
In our studies, we've learned that a rectangle is a shape that has 4 sides (which we now call a quadrilateral!) and has 4 right angles. We searched for quadrilaterals in our homes and found that most have right angles.
In our rectangle study we are also discovering how to figure out their size. What does it mean to say that rectangles are bigger or smaller than other rectangles? Is it how tall they are? How wide they are?
We mathematicians sure ask a lot of questions!
Yesterday we made different rectangles and recorded them on graph paper. We discovered that whether it was tall and skinny, short and fat, or somewhere in between, it always held the same number of tiles!
We now know that finding the space inside of the rectangle -- called the area -- is how we determine which rectangle is the biggest or smallest!
We've explored both 2D and 3D shapes. We learned a lot of new information and vocabulary about 3D shapes. Ask your child about the faces and angles of shapes like cubes or rectangular prisms. We have a lot to say!
Currently, we are exploring rectangles. What, exactly, makes a rectangle a rectangle? We already knew it was a polygon, but why are some polygons called rectangles and other polygons not?
In our studies, we've learned that a rectangle is a shape that has 4 sides (which we now call a quadrilateral!) and has 4 right angles. We searched for quadrilaterals in our homes and found that most have right angles.
In our rectangle study we are also discovering how to figure out their size. What does it mean to say that rectangles are bigger or smaller than other rectangles? Is it how tall they are? How wide they are?
We mathematicians sure ask a lot of questions!
Yesterday we made different rectangles and recorded them on graph paper. We discovered that whether it was tall and skinny, short and fat, or somewhere in between, it always held the same number of tiles!
We now know that finding the space inside of the rectangle -- called the area -- is how we determine which rectangle is the biggest or smallest!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Building Space Meetings
Just an important reminder!
Today at 3:30pm there will be a meeting in room 406 regarding EVCS's space in the building.
As you know, we are currently very tight on space in our building. What you may not know is that, given our current enrollment landscape, we are set to add three classes over the next three years, until we have two classes on every grade level, Pre-K - 5. The space we currently occupy in the PS 61 building will not accommodate this growth, so the issue we are facing is simply that we need more classroom space. Our hope and intention is absolutely to stay at our current location and obtain more space within this building. This would require one or both of the other schools with whom we share the building to give up some of the space they currently use.
Please attend today's meeting to learn the facts and details regarding the space our school has been alloted here in the building.
Additionally, there is a very important District 1 CEC meeting tomorrow (Wednesday) evening at 6:00 at P.S. 20 where we will debate the issues present to help us get the space we need in our building. Hope you can make one/both meetings!
Today at 3:30pm there will be a meeting in room 406 regarding EVCS's space in the building.
As you know, we are currently very tight on space in our building. What you may not know is that, given our current enrollment landscape, we are set to add three classes over the next three years, until we have two classes on every grade level, Pre-K - 5. The space we currently occupy in the PS 61 building will not accommodate this growth, so the issue we are facing is simply that we need more classroom space. Our hope and intention is absolutely to stay at our current location and obtain more space within this building. This would require one or both of the other schools with whom we share the building to give up some of the space they currently use.
Additionally, there is a very important District 1 CEC meeting tomorrow (Wednesday) evening at 6:00 at P.S. 20 where we will debate the issues present to help us get the space we need in our building. Hope you can make one/both meetings!
Friday, December 9, 2011
Family Friday
I just want to thank all of the family members who came and joined us today for our morning meet and author's share! It meant a lot to the kids to share their work with others - whether it was their own parent, a sibling, or a friend's parent, it meant a lot!
For those of you who couldn't join us this month or for those of you who want to relive the excitement of today's morning meeting, here was what the second graders voted to do:
1. First we greeted one another with High-5s. When we greet one another we look at the person, we say "Good morning, ____" using their name to acknowledge them.
2. Next we read our Morning Message. Morning Messages tell us the day of the week, the date, what is happening in our classroom that day, and then asks us a question. Sometimes it is a question about ourselves, a question about something academic, a question about our feelings, or maybe just a question to ponder throughout the day.
3. We usually then do sharing/show-and-tell. Two students sign up each morning to share and one signs up to share in the afternoon. There was quite a debate about whether it was fair to have only some kids get to share in front of parents while other kids didn't, so we left out the sharing and instead answered our Morning Message question of "What is something new you learned during your research that you did not know before?" Students shared that they learned the length of the Brooklyn Bridge (1 mile!), how tall the Statue of Liberty is (305 feet!), and how many windows are in the Empire State Building (6,500!).
4. We then did both a song and a game. Usually we do only one, but the students voted to share both with our families. We first did Aroostasha. It's simply a silly song that adds a new movement each time through. Here, you can see teachers practicing the song during a training:
Next we played a round of Hot Potato! It's always a class favorite - especially because when you get "out" you get to go to the center of the circle and dance! Today's song was Under the Sea from The Little Mermaid. We had some great kid and parent dancers!
After our Morning Meeting, we shared our writing. First we shared our class book, "All About Parks" to show parents our writing process. Next, we broke into small partnerships or groups and shared our writing about New York City with our families and friends. I hope you enjoyed hearing all about our transportation and landmarks in our amazing city!
Next month we will be having a Family Friday about math - you'll get to play some math games, see what we've been learning in second grade, and even be part of our first Family Pocket Day! Hope to see you then!
For those of you who couldn't join us this month or for those of you who want to relive the excitement of today's morning meeting, here was what the second graders voted to do:
1. First we greeted one another with High-5s. When we greet one another we look at the person, we say "Good morning, ____" using their name to acknowledge them.
2. Next we read our Morning Message. Morning Messages tell us the day of the week, the date, what is happening in our classroom that day, and then asks us a question. Sometimes it is a question about ourselves, a question about something academic, a question about our feelings, or maybe just a question to ponder throughout the day.
3. We usually then do sharing/show-and-tell. Two students sign up each morning to share and one signs up to share in the afternoon. There was quite a debate about whether it was fair to have only some kids get to share in front of parents while other kids didn't, so we left out the sharing and instead answered our Morning Message question of "What is something new you learned during your research that you did not know before?" Students shared that they learned the length of the Brooklyn Bridge (1 mile!), how tall the Statue of Liberty is (305 feet!), and how many windows are in the Empire State Building (6,500!).
4. We then did both a song and a game. Usually we do only one, but the students voted to share both with our families. We first did Aroostasha. It's simply a silly song that adds a new movement each time through. Here, you can see teachers practicing the song during a training:
Next we played a round of Hot Potato! It's always a class favorite - especially because when you get "out" you get to go to the center of the circle and dance! Today's song was Under the Sea from The Little Mermaid. We had some great kid and parent dancers!
After our Morning Meeting, we shared our writing. First we shared our class book, "All About Parks" to show parents our writing process. Next, we broke into small partnerships or groups and shared our writing about New York City with our families and friends. I hope you enjoyed hearing all about our transportation and landmarks in our amazing city!
Our "All About" books are now displayed in our classroom for all to see!
Next month we will be having a Family Friday about math - you'll get to play some math games, see what we've been learning in second grade, and even be part of our first Family Pocket Day! Hope to see you then!
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Rolling away...
Rolling is the new motion we're studying in Room 205!
After yesterday's experiments, we found out the motion of rolling is very similar to our motion of spinning. Both motions involve a circular movement. Rolling, however, happens when a round object is unbalanced, while spinning happens when an object is balanced. To make our spinners spin, we needed a flat surface like the table or the floor. To make our rollers roll we needed a surface that wasn't flat so that our rollers would be unbalanced. We first had to construct ramps!
We used our same red disks, yellow disks, and green straws to build rollers. We quickly discovered that using a wheel-and-axle to build a roller rather than just a wheel made it roll further and faster because it was more stable.
Today, we will be creating specific rollers --
-- A roller that turns right
-- A roller that turns left
-- A roller that turns completely around
-- A roller that rolls straight
-- A roller that rolls wobbly
It should be a lot of fun this afternoon as we experiment with the relationship between balance and motion!
And just a reminder -- We hope to see you for our FAMILY FRIDAY this Friday, December 9th at 8:45am!
After yesterday's experiments, we found out the motion of rolling is very similar to our motion of spinning. Both motions involve a circular movement. Rolling, however, happens when a round object is unbalanced, while spinning happens when an object is balanced. To make our spinners spin, we needed a flat surface like the table or the floor. To make our rollers roll we needed a surface that wasn't flat so that our rollers would be unbalanced. We first had to construct ramps!
We used our same red disks, yellow disks, and green straws to build rollers. We quickly discovered that using a wheel-and-axle to build a roller rather than just a wheel made it roll further and faster because it was more stable.
Today, we will be creating specific rollers --
-- A roller that turns right
-- A roller that turns left
-- A roller that turns completely around
-- A roller that rolls straight
-- A roller that rolls wobbly
It should be a lot of fun this afternoon as we experiment with the relationship between balance and motion!
And just a reminder -- We hope to see you for our FAMILY FRIDAY this Friday, December 9th at 8:45am!
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Zoomers!
We have completed our Science unit on Balance and are focusing on motion. These past two weeks have had us creating all sorts of contraptions to study the motion of spinning.
Our first creation was a top. We built tops out of green straws, small yellow disks, and large red disks. We discovered that our tops were more balanced and spun longer when we used the center holes and not the side holes. We also learned that heavier tops spin longer and that the weight has to be low on the green shaft.
Then we used store-bought tops that had markers on their shafts! We spun the tops on a large piece of paper and observed what motion the tops made as it spun. We realized that spinning is moving in a circular motion!
Yesterday we made new spinning objects. We made zoomers! A zoomer used a long piece of string and one of our large red disks. By putting our thumbs into the looped string, we could make our zoomers spin - and keep spinning! We then made more zoomers using cardboard disks and took them home to keep practicing our zooming!
Our first creation was a top. We built tops out of green straws, small yellow disks, and large red disks. We discovered that our tops were more balanced and spun longer when we used the center holes and not the side holes. We also learned that heavier tops spin longer and that the weight has to be low on the green shaft.
Then we used store-bought tops that had markers on their shafts! We spun the tops on a large piece of paper and observed what motion the tops made as it spun. We realized that spinning is moving in a circular motion!
Yesterday we made new spinning objects. We made zoomers! A zoomer used a long piece of string and one of our large red disks. By putting our thumbs into the looped string, we could make our zoomers spin - and keep spinning! We then made more zoomers using cardboard disks and took them home to keep practicing our zooming!
We found the zoomers much more frustrating than the tops - but we know that as scientists, things will be frustrating sometimes! With some practice at home, hopefully we'll all be zooming soon.
Talk to your child about the motion of spinning. What spins in our world? Why does it spin? What does the spinning motion look like? Reinforcing the idea that these science concepts are always all around us is a great way to make sure your child understands why we're learning what we're learning. Science class these past few days has sure looked like a lot of fun, but we certainly are learning a lot too!
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Field Trip
Whew! Yesterday was a whirl-wind of a day full of exciting sights in the city!
As researchers about New York City, we have been reading lots of books, looking at lots of pictures, and thinking about our own experiences. Some of the things we've been writing about, though, are things some of us have never seen! We wanted some first-hand experiences to really build our writing - it's hard to add details if we've never seen what we're writing about.
Half of the second graders are writing about forms of transportation found in New York City. The other half of the second graders are writing about man-made features of the city (bridges, buildings, statues, etc.). The students got to choose which group to work in based on their interests. Both groups of researchers learned a lot for their books!
- The first part of our journey involved walking through the East Village. We observed other people walking, people on bikes, people in cars, people in taxis, buses full of people, and even a motorcycle.
- Next, we went down into the MTA Subway system. We took two trains - first the L train and then the 5 train. We used our five senses to gather lots of information and took lots of notes in our reporter's notebooks as we traveled.
- Then, we exited the train at Bowling Green and walked into Battery Park. Researchers on statues, boats, buildings, and the Statue of Liberty were ready to observe now! We saw lots of boats - police boats with lights flashing, boats full of tourists ready to climb up the green lady, yellow taxi boats taking people around the five boroughs, sail boats out for a nice sail, and lots of other cruise boats for people wanting to see the city in a new way. We also saw lots of statues within the park - some were monuments to the 9/11 tragedy, some were statues of people, others were in memory of soldiers who lost their lives. Of course, we also finally saw the big statue - the Statue of Liberty! Even from the park we could see that construction on Liberty Island was going on, the trees had lost their leaves, and that the large flag on the island was flying high. Lots of observations about the statue were written down as we noticed lots of new things about the statue we had read so much about.
- After that came lunch time. While it wasn't a topic for our all-about books, we certainly learned, quickly, how hungry the birds along the water must be! Lots of seagulls and pigeons flew and hopped around us, hoping for a bite of our food!
- Next, we walked to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal to take the boat. We observed the terminal and noticed how similar it was to the airports many of us have experienced. Then it was time for the boat ride!
- On the boat we got really close to the Statue of Liberty! We saw the Brooklyn Bridge, the Manhattan Bridge, and the Verrazano Bridge! We noticed how different each of the bridges were from one another, yet their accomplished the same thing. We took lots of notes about the boats we saw, the tall buildings in the Financial District we could now see from the distance, and the bridges we went past.
- After docking at Staten Island, it was time to turn around and come back. This time we stood outside on the boat - we got quite wet, and it was very cold, but it was also lots of fun! Then we traveled back to school on both the R train and the L train. We even got a song sung for us on the R train. We clapped along as musicians sang and played underground What fun!
It was quite the long day, and by the time we got back to school we were tired, wet, and hungry. We had snack, talked a bit about our day, and had some quiet time before leaving at 3:00.
....
Today, in the writing workshop, the notebooks flew open and the research we had gathered began to enter our drafts. We crossed out things, added new facts, changed our wording, and adding describing words to make our writing clearer for our readers and stronger as a piece of non-fiction. It was a great day yesterday and our "All-About" New York City books will be the proof!
As researchers about New York City, we have been reading lots of books, looking at lots of pictures, and thinking about our own experiences. Some of the things we've been writing about, though, are things some of us have never seen! We wanted some first-hand experiences to really build our writing - it's hard to add details if we've never seen what we're writing about.
Half of the second graders are writing about forms of transportation found in New York City. The other half of the second graders are writing about man-made features of the city (bridges, buildings, statues, etc.). The students got to choose which group to work in based on their interests. Both groups of researchers learned a lot for their books!
- The first part of our journey involved walking through the East Village. We observed other people walking, people on bikes, people in cars, people in taxis, buses full of people, and even a motorcycle.
- Next, we went down into the MTA Subway system. We took two trains - first the L train and then the 5 train. We used our five senses to gather lots of information and took lots of notes in our reporter's notebooks as we traveled.
- Then, we exited the train at Bowling Green and walked into Battery Park. Researchers on statues, boats, buildings, and the Statue of Liberty were ready to observe now! We saw lots of boats - police boats with lights flashing, boats full of tourists ready to climb up the green lady, yellow taxi boats taking people around the five boroughs, sail boats out for a nice sail, and lots of other cruise boats for people wanting to see the city in a new way. We also saw lots of statues within the park - some were monuments to the 9/11 tragedy, some were statues of people, others were in memory of soldiers who lost their lives. Of course, we also finally saw the big statue - the Statue of Liberty! Even from the park we could see that construction on Liberty Island was going on, the trees had lost their leaves, and that the large flag on the island was flying high. Lots of observations about the statue were written down as we noticed lots of new things about the statue we had read so much about.
- After that came lunch time. While it wasn't a topic for our all-about books, we certainly learned, quickly, how hungry the birds along the water must be! Lots of seagulls and pigeons flew and hopped around us, hoping for a bite of our food!
- Next, we walked to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal to take the boat. We observed the terminal and noticed how similar it was to the airports many of us have experienced. Then it was time for the boat ride!
- On the boat we got really close to the Statue of Liberty! We saw the Brooklyn Bridge, the Manhattan Bridge, and the Verrazano Bridge! We noticed how different each of the bridges were from one another, yet their accomplished the same thing. We took lots of notes about the boats we saw, the tall buildings in the Financial District we could now see from the distance, and the bridges we went past.
- After docking at Staten Island, it was time to turn around and come back. This time we stood outside on the boat - we got quite wet, and it was very cold, but it was also lots of fun! Then we traveled back to school on both the R train and the L train. We even got a song sung for us on the R train. We clapped along as musicians sang and played underground What fun!
It was quite the long day, and by the time we got back to school we were tired, wet, and hungry. We had snack, talked a bit about our day, and had some quiet time before leaving at 3:00.
....
Today, in the writing workshop, the notebooks flew open and the research we had gathered began to enter our drafts. We crossed out things, added new facts, changed our wording, and adding describing words to make our writing clearer for our readers and stronger as a piece of non-fiction. It was a great day yesterday and our "All-About" New York City books will be the proof!
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Our Big Book is Published!
We published our big book "All About Parks!" and have been sharing it around EVCS! (Click here to see the planning and drafting of our book)
Now we're researching our own topics about things in New York City to publish our own books - some of us are researching modes of transportation, some the Brooklyn Bridge, others the Empire State Building, and other kids are researching tunnels, buildings, and other bridges found in our city.
Check out our big book!
Now we're researching our own topics about things in New York City to publish our own books - some of us are researching modes of transportation, some the Brooklyn Bridge, others the Empire State Building, and other kids are researching tunnels, buildings, and other bridges found in our city.
Check out our big book!
All About Parks
(The cover was removed because all of our names were on the front.
You'll have to visit to check it out!)
You'll have to visit to check it out!)
The Table of Contents, featuring our four chapters:
Chapter 1: Animals We See in Parks:
Chapter 2: Bugs and Nature You See in Parks:
Chapter 3: People in the Parks
Chapter 4: Things We Use in the Park
The Pencil Trick!
We continue to learn about balance in our science class. We learned a very cool pencil trick - using just aluminum wire and clothes pins, we figured out how to make our pencils stand up on point!
We explored and discovered how it worked - by putting the counterweights under the balance point, we made the pencil stand up! We have learned a lot about balance this year already, and will be finishing our unit next week. When you come in for Parent-Teacher conferences, you'll see our mobiles that we built to learn more about balance!
We explored and discovered how it worked - by putting the counterweights under the balance point, we made the pencil stand up! We have learned a lot about balance this year already, and will be finishing our unit next week. When you come in for Parent-Teacher conferences, you'll see our mobiles that we built to learn more about balance!
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Balance and Motion
In science we use the FOSS program, and in this unit we are focusing on Balance and Motion. First we are focusing on balance in the unit, and we are discovering what the word balance means, how to make things balance using counter-weights, and predicting whether something will balance based on our past experiences.
This week, we explored balancing two shapes - a triangle and an arch. We taped a popsicle stick to our desk like a little diving-board and tried to balance these two shapes on our popsicle sticks using two clothes pins as counter weights.
First, we simply explored the materials and got a sense of their abilities. Then we followed the scientific method:
- First, we asked a question: Will the shape balance?
- Next, we looked at 9 different situations and made a hypothesis for each about whether it would balance or not.
- Then, we experimented to see if we were correct or not for each of the 9 situations.
- Finally, we compared our hypothesis to the actual results and drew a conclusion about what had happened.
We will continue exploring balance during the month of November and begin focusing on Motion during the month of December.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Writing Curriculum
This week we began a new unit in writing. For the next few weeks we will be reading and writing nonfiction texts. To begin this unit we read a lot of "All About" books. An "All About" book tells facts and information about a large topic and is organized into chapters or sections with headings. Before writing, we had to discover the characteristics of "All About" books. After two days of reading and exploring the books, we created a list of things all of the books had in common. Now we know what our "All About" books must have!
After we knew what an "All About" book had to look like, we began planning our own book. In Social Studies we are studying New York City - so our writing will be about New York City as well!
Our class is creating an "All About" book about City Parks. We brainstormed titles and chapters for our book. But since there are 22 of us - we ended up with a LOT of different chapters! We wrote our chapter ideas on Post-It Notes and began to work together. For the next two days we debated how to organize all of our chapters into four inclusive chapters.
Should people's bug chapters go with the other animal Post-It Notes? Or should it go with the plants, grass, and dirt Post-It Notes since that's where bugs live? Or should they be their own chapter?
The debate was wonderful! We quickly learned that speaking louder or chanting our opinions did nothing to convince people - only by using our ideas could we change someone's mind. We eventually got everyone's post-it notes into four groups and named our chapters:
1. Animals We See in Parks
2. Bugs and Nature You See in Parks
3. People in the Parks
4. Things We Use in the Park
Now that we have our chapters, we need to start the research! Our first resource when researching is people - through both interviews and our own experiences we know a lot already! We listed those ideas first. Then we began reading lots of books, looking at maps, and viewing pictures to learn even more about our chapters! We are now using webs to write sentences about our chapter titles in research groups.
One student's web for Chapter Three:
We will continue reading and researching on Monday. Once we have lots of ideas, our group will need to start organizing them into paragraphs for the book's chapter. Then we'll write, revise, edit, illustrate, and publish our chapter to be put into our large class book!
Of course, this "All-About" book is simply practice for our own "All About" book writing in a few weeks. We will be researching and writing about the transportation, monuments, buildings, bridges, and tunnels in New York City. Resources have already begun being collected and hopefully some walking trips in the city will add to our experiences to help us in our writing.
When our "All About" books are done, we will celebrate our writing with a publishing party. Once a date and time has been set, invitations will be sent out to families.
Updates on our book about New York City Parks will be coming over the next few weeks! So be sure to check back!
For some, Choice Time may be Art Time
Every Friday we have a full period of Choice Time. Choice Time is part of the Responsive Classroom program. Students are given the agency to choose what they will do for the period of class time. The choices range from block building to math games to painting to puppets - but all help students build social competency and foster a stronger classroom community. Choice activities are all group based and encourage students to engage with one another.
While some students sit in groups to write stories and read books and others work on building strong bridges out of blocks, many of the students choose to engage in an art project. Last Friday, students made finger puppets using paper, scissors, tape, and glue. Many children immediately began to create stories and personalities for their characters and had them interact with other children's puppets.
a girl, a teddy bear, and a fairy
an animal family and a zombie
This Friday, Sponge Painting was the art project of choice! Students created patterns, new colors, and geometric scenes using sponges, paint, and their imagination. While they all created their own paintings, students had to share materials with one another.
On Friday afternoons, ask your child what they chose to work on during choice time, why they chose that activity, and who they worked with. I'm sure your child will have a lot to share!
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