Animal Research sites

We're studying animals of our choice for the next few weeks. Here are some of the questions my students created to help guide their research:

• Where does it live? (Habitat)
• What adaptations does it have to survive it's environment?
• Is it a predator or prey?
• What does it eat? 
• What type of eater is it?
• Is it endangered, extinct, or fully populated?
• Fun Facts
• What are its babies called?
• Does it lay eggs? Where?

Students are also encouraged to add a map, graph, scale, fraction, statistics, timeline, diagram, dates, and lists to make their project interesting.

Here are some safe links for research:

National Geographic for Kids: Animals

Library Patch: 10 Animal Research websites for kids

Ranger Rick

Animal Fact Guide

A-Z Animals

SoftSchools.com: Animal Facts

Kidzone: Animals

Make sure you're staying focused on your animal! Add extra information that you think is interesting!

Australia

We're learning about Australia! Here are some fun links we'll be using for this unit.

National geographic for Kids: Australia

Australia Traveler

Facts about Australia

Article: Koala Tree Clearing

Video: Companion to Koala Tree Clearing

Kookaburra Song

Here's a Power Point to learn more about Australia:

Storybook Character day

Another Halloween has come and gone and this teacher/mom is exhausted.

Whoever thought it would be a good idea for Halloween to be on a Monday should be locked in a room with 20 sugared-up eight and nine year olds.

This year, students who exhibited good behavior for the month of October were given a pass to be able to dress up as their favorite storybook character.

I had 15 students able to participate, but only 2 brave souls did it. I'm so proud of these ladies!

Of course my team had to get in on the action! Here we are as characters from Harry Potter!

Professor Snape (Yes, that's me!), Professor Trelawney, Harry, Hermione, and Angelina Johnson.

My hubby asked me why I chose Snape. I told him, "I have the hair for it, and I can be mean all day and just be in character!"

Can't wait to see what we come up with next year!

ClassDojo Ambassador!

I've mentioned ClassDojo in previous posts. It's a classroom management tool that I've completely fallen in love with. It's a FREE app on Smartphones and can be accessed on PCs as well. 

I love it. My students love it. My students' parents love it. Seriously, nothing but love.

In my classroom, I use Dojo as a documentation and communication tool for parents. They love being able to see how their student is doing in class in real time. 

My students use their Dojo points every week to get to buy things out of my "store". Students with 80% positive (or better) get to spend or 'bank' their points each week. 80% also gets them the Cub Events each month (school wide incentive for good behavior), class compliment parties, and field trips. 

Students who go above and beyond 80% and earn 90% or better for a month, get to earn Dojo Belts. Using the martial arts belt levels, my students have the opportunity to earn a belt per month, ending with Double Black Belt Ninja status at the end of the year. I have students who are already on their way!

I've been the ClassDojo Mentor for my building for 2 years now and I take my job seriously. My teachers who chose to use Dojo in their classrooms are very well taken care of. I make sure they have all the tools they need in order for them to feel successful. :)

So, imagine my happiness when I was chosen to be a ClassDojo Ambassador for my region! I get to represent and share ClassDojo to those in the Southeastern Tennessee/ Northern Georgia area! Whoop!!

I look forward to sharing the Dojo love with one and all! If you're an educator looking for a classroom management tool that's fun and inclusive, look into ClassDojo. Feel free to contact me with questions, or look through their site! Also, you can follow #dojochat on Twitter every Wednesday to see what Dojo teachers are up to in their classrooms. 

Thank you, ClassDojo for creating such an awesome resource! I'm proud to be able to represent something that encourages teachers, parents, and students to be the best they can be!

Math Minutes: Multiplication

Welcome back to 3rd grade! This year the 3rd grade team got together to start a new segment called Math Minutes. These will be short videos on what our students will be covering in math. Our hope is that these videos will help bridge the gap between home and school with our students and parents.

This week's video is on Multiplication and the ways to model and solve multiplication problems.

Core Math Idea:

Problem:

Solution options:

Here's Mrs. Wheeler to explain! You can watch the video HERE or watch below!

Be watching for more videos!

My Babies- aren't babies!

When General Delk's Army started, I was teaching first grade. After a year in first, I was moved to third, so I got to have some of my babies again.
Now, my original blog babies are gone. They graduated fifth grade this week.

I know I shouldn't take it so hard. I mean, I taught second grade for six years before starting the blog, so I've seen kids leave the building. But this class I got to watch grow up, so they are near and dear to my heart.

So, this is my tribute to my babies, who aren't babies. Some I had only in first grade, some only in third, and some in both.

 

 

  

Good luck, Soldiers! Come visit soon! 

(after summer vacation, of course)

JA Day 2016

We love Junior Achievement Day at our school! Basically, it's a day when professionals from the community come and teach social studies and economics standards to our kids. Each grade has different resources that are age appropriate, educational, and fun.

We were honored to have Ms. Lauren Kilman from UNUM come and be our teacher for the day. She did a great job and my students had a blast! We created a community, learned about earning money, and created a new restaurant while learning about start-up costs.

Thanks for coming, Ms. Lauren!