SNOW

Most children rejoice at this word...adults have mixed reactions.

I decided to show the third and fourth graders how SNOW can bring together science, art, and math!

I was inspired by Free Technology for Educators blog this week.  It had several great links about man-made snow, "snowflake Bentley", and more!

I took his videos and the idea of a tinker tray such as this one created by "What Can You do with Paper and Glue" and created my own snowflake creation activity.

Students had access to q-tips, pipe cleaners, two sizes of popsicle sticks, beads, pom pom puffs, construction paper, and glue.  The idea was to create a dendrite or iconic six sided snowflake.

Below are a variety of the creations created by the students this week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday!

If you have not the book entitled "Snowflake Bentley", then you need to add it to your winter must-read list.

Inventors and Patents

3rd and 4th grade learned and tried PAIRED PROGRAMMING with Code.org two weeks ago!  Plus they have been reading about Chester Greenwood.  I bet that you are wondering who Chester Greenwood is!  He is credited as the creator of earmuffs.  You can learn all about his improvements in the book "Earmuffs for Everyone" by Meghan McCarthy.  There is now even a Chester Greenwood day in Maine (the first Saturday in December).  Chester Greenwood Day article

Here is a link to Meghan McCarthy's website - Meghan McCarthy

As we were reading students started asking questions about PATENTS!  After some web searching, I found the US Patent website for students.   US PTO

The students loved the "collector cards" as well as the "Spot the Invention" activity.

In addition, the students learned about patents used at the X Games!

Next week it is onto the topic of TRADEMARKS!

PICTURE STEM

Students in grades K, 1, and 2 are working hard to complete a variety of PICTURE STEM activities.
PICTURE STEM is put together by Purdue University and it a completely FREE curriculum

Last week, Kindergarten read "I Get Wet" and talked about water!  Then students had an opportunity for free choice engineering.










First grade read "I See a Kookabura" and talked about animal habitats.

Second grade are did two separate activities with PICTURE STEM.  Students learned about our engineering challenge, read "Nibbles Guide to Hamsters", and did an animal sorting activity!







Here are the books that were used and a link to PICTURE STEM:

CLICK ON THIS LINK for more information - PICTURE STEM

Olympics Cross Curricular

Today at Wattsburg Elementary, the special area teachers (physical education, library, art, and music) collaborated to create 3 stations focused on the OLYMPICS!  Students rotated through each station.  The students spent about 15 minutes at each station.

At the literarcy/music station, students read the book "Olympics" by BG Hennessey.  Then students learned about the national anthem and the open ceremony music.  Finally, students "marched" or "paraded" around the auditorium to the opening ceremony music!

The second station that students went to was physical education.  Students learned about speed skating, the color/metal of each medal, and the podium stand.  Students got to take turns in heats doing "speed skating".  Each student took two rectangular "carpet" square pieces, turned them carpet side down, and stood on the back of the carpet pieces.   Students then attempted to skate around the gym in a large "circle".  The top two times in each heat were recorded.  Then the top 3 students in each home room were awarded "medals" made out of paper and string.  Finally, these award winning students stood on the podium for a picture!

The third station was art station.  The students learned about the 5 rings, the colors, and the history behind them.  Then students got time to color the following olympics graphic as well as the rings!

WQLN Reading Competition 2017

For the past several years, Wattsburg Elementary Center has participated in the WQLN school wide reading competition.  Last year, the school won in 2 out of 3 categories.  Check this information out at my previous post -  WQLN 2016

This year, the students tracked books read in library, STEAM, and at home!

The school won in the same two categories - school wide points and highest student reader.  Thursday afternoon (1/11/2018) was the celebration and official awards from WQLN.  

WQLN offers two additional competitions for the rest of the school year...individual student competitions as well as the NEW classroom incentives. 
You can check them out at WQLN Reading Incentives

SO HERE ARE THE DETAILS FROM THE COMPETION and WINNERS:

SCHOOL WIDE TOTAL:

5417 books were read at home and in library during September, October, November

Top student:
Cheyenne Brown – K Burdick – 980 books

Top class:
Mrs. Burdick's class read 1095 books

3 other students read over 200 books! 
Ezra D – K McAvoy

Jackson W – K McAvoy

Sophie W – 4 Bucerri

Top 3 classes:
Burdick
McAvoy

Bucceri

Here are a few pictures of the winner and some of the rewards - Cheyanne got a trophy, books, and Kindle Fire.  The library got $250 for new books!

Plus Erie Times News featured our school in the newspaper - check it out
Newspaper Link

2018 - One Word - PATIENCE

Last year, I posted about the "One Word" challenge by Jon Gordon and his book.  You can find that post at this link - 2017 One Word

So last year my word was TRUST.  WOW - it was a year full of needing to trust so many things that were "out of my control"

Here are just a few times when I needed TRUST in the past year:

• My mom had minor brain surgery (and came through it) - we had to trust those surgeons!
• I was nominated to spend a week at Keystone Technology Integrators training in July.  Little did I know that I would be in the middle of moving and pregnant.  I had to trust others to work on projects based on a few pinterest pictures to get this process started.
• Moving - lots of trust in this situation
• Work - changing personel in the library meant that I had to trust my administration
• Learning that my now 5 year old has moderate to severe hearing loss.  I had to trust the medical team to get him the right equipment to make him a successful Kindergartener
• Teens ;)  I had to trust my daughter as she navigated driving, graduating, select a college, and more.  
• New babies - the whole pregnancy and birth involved lots of trust.  Thank goodness for knowledgable birth team!

So onto a new year, new start, new word - PATIENCE!

Definitions:

• the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset (as per Google)
• the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation,annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper,irritation, or the like. (dictionary.com)

So I have created a pinterest board to keep my motivation going and to get more inspirational quotes!

Patience board

What is your word for 2018?
Share below in this padlet - click on the little + below and it will give you a "sticky note" to post below!

Technology and librarians

Makerspaces and STEAM classes in a library are considered "trends" or new hot topics.

However, yesterday while researching lesson plans for next week, the librarian and I found this awesome reproducible worksheet from a 1988 library lesson plan book.

1988 Center for Applied Research in Education
(I will take a picture of the book on Monday)

YES - this is all about hardware and software in a library setting.  I feel that this is a pre-cursor to my technology activities today in STEAM and library. 

Look for other inspiring lesson plans later this weekend :)

Tanagrams, plants, electricity

STEAM is in full swing.

Here are some of the lessons that the students have completed recently.

Kindergarten reviewed what an ENGINEER does with a video from Sci Show Kids.  Sci Show Kids Then it was a great time to introduce a new engineering activity.  It was a gift from our regional "Books are Fun" representative.  STEM JR 
Then students did 4 centers to practice engineering and math skills:  Three Billy Goats Gruff, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Space engineering kit, and a math center (shape puzzles, pattern mats, and cat/bat tanagrams!)

First grade learned about shapes and tanagrams in STEAM to focus on many math standards.  The students read "The Greedy Triangle".  Then the students did 2 different tanagram activities. One was create a bat, cat, and haunted house out of physical tanagrams.  Cat/Bat Tanagrams and Haunted House Tanagram

Then online students were exposed to two games that use tanagrams. The first one is part of ABCYA.  This one was much more student friendly especially on the "EASY" level.  ABCYA tanagram
The second one is through PBS KIDS and Cyber Chase.  As an adult, the introduction is awesome.  However, the shapes are a bit difficult to turn and place correctly.  PBS KIDS tanagrams

Second, Third, and Fourth worked on ELECTRICITY and PEBBLE GO.
Students started by watching a Sci Show Kids video about circuits.  Circuits

Then students learned how to work Pebble Go database as well as Snap Circuits.  The STEAM room has four kits of SNAP CIRCUITS.  So half did computers for 15 minutes and half did the Snap Circuits.  Then groups swapped.  Students had to use directions and a grid to make a light, fan, and/or a singing device.
As a teacher, I would purchase the educational kits from the main website, but currently I am using the 300 piece kits from amazon.
SNAP CIRCUITS
Amazon 300 piece kit

On Friday October 27, students in grades K, 1, 2, 3 all assisted in planting fall plants for the greenhouse.
Students will monitor what actually will grow in the fall in the greenhouse.  Look for some pictures tomorrow of the variety of seeds used!

Greenhouse, leaves, and more

STEAM has been fun tracking the temperatures in the greenhouse.  Students got to go out to the butterfly garden at the start of STEAM. 

Students talked about celcius vs farenheit in the upper grades.  Younger students brainstormed where they had a thermometer at home.

As a class, we read the temperature on the thermometer in the greenhouse.

Then in STEAM in the library, we recorded the temperature outside, the greenhouse temperature, the weather, and observed how to make a graph in EXCEL!

Here is a link to our data - Greenhouse Temperatures
_________________________________________________________________________________
Next each grade level explored a variety of topics:

4th grade learned about SWAY and started a fall inspired SWAY presentation
3rd grade either finished up talking about Office 365 and Microsoft Word or re-visited Pebble Go.  The focus was on leaves, temperatures, etc...
1st and 2nd grade learned about Pebbe Go and how to use the safe learning platform.  In addition, students completed a variety of leaf based art projects.  2nd grade mostly did leaf creations.  Find leaves, create a person or animal, use a glue/water combo, paint the leaves into place, and allow it to dry!
The rest of 1st and Kindergarten used a leaf tracer to make a leaf "creature". 

Look for pictures soon :)

In addition, most of the students watched a science experiment on WHY leaves change colors.
Fun Science Demos

Shapes, leaves, and etc...

Kindergarten is continuing to learn and explore in STEAM.  Last week, the students learned all about SHAPES!  First, I did a read aloud called "The Greedy Triangle".  Then, the students used pattern blocks to create fall images with SHAPES!  What are pattern blocks?  They are wooden shapes.  I borrow mine from our Kindergarten team.  Here is a picture of what the blocks look like.
I got my print outs from this webpage and place them in clear binder sleeves.  I used pumpkin 1, apple, scarecrow, bat, and spider images.  Then as a wrap up, students listened to "Color Zoo".

Pattern Block link

Pattern Blocks

1st and 2nd grade are exploring LEAVES!  Week one was watching a video from Sci Show Kids, reading about leaves and fall on Pebble Go, then time to go on the computer to explore Pebble Go Science!   As a wrap up, the students explored and watched a video from Maine Foliage. 

Look for more information later this week for week 2 of leaves information :)

Sci Show Kids

Maine Fall Foliage website

I found most of these resources on Free Technology for Teachers Blog - Free Technology Blog

3rd and 4th grade learned how to use Office 365 and created documents about what they want to learn in STEAM this school year!

Makerspace Padlet

I love hearing how a teacher describes a topic before doing a presentation.

The librarians of Erie, Crawford, and Warren counties will be describing Makerspaces in the following ways on Monday afternoon.  Some might add to this early...check back for updates :)
Makerspace Padlet

You want to view the presentation on STEAM and Makerspaces - the information is below the padlet :)

Feel free to add to our Padlet as well!