Week 7

Week 7: Full week of teaching and Mainely Voices Assembly!

This week was the week that I took over my mentor teacher's classroom for the whole week. We did some team teaching, but it was up to me to keep track of time (for some much needed practice with it) and teach/oversee most of the lessons this week. Since we had snow days the week before break, we had our Valentine's Day celebration and we celebrated the 100th day of school on Monday. The kids decorated their Valentine bags and passed out their Valentines to each other. I got some nice ones too! :)

"You are the beast of the best teachers" (and yes, he really meant to say "beast")

For our 100th day of school celebration we did some fun activities, one of them being a math packet that I put together for everyone which included some fun math activities involving the number 100. After that, we did this hysterical activity in which the kids wrote about what they thought they would be like when they are 100 years old... and we took a picture of them and used an app called "Make Me Old" so they could see themselves with wrinkles and facial hair (and I was surprised at how many of the girls were excited to see themselves with a mustache... I love it.)

Also this week, the students continued working on their Non-Fiction owl poems during Writing Workshop time and we had an effective system going. The kids independently got right to work and I met with individual students who needed a teacher conference before writing their final drafts. They wrote their names on the board under one of the following categories depending on which stage they were currently at. 

The students knew what the sequence of the workshop was and it was a way to keep them aware of what they were to be doing at that time (and so they weren't interrupting me while I was conferencing to ask what to do next.) It was also a way for me to keep track of what everyone was currently working on, who was finished, and who needed extra help.

After they were finished, my mentor teacher, Mrs. White, helped videotape the students presenting their poems and then I hung their final pieces along with their artwork in the hall for everyone to enjoy. We will be watching the video recordings as a class. That concludes my unit, and I couldn't be more proud! All that is left is a performance next week for the other second graders singing "What Does the Owl Say?" (I will definitely be recording this gem.)

View the videos of their poem presentations here!

Here is my first official bulletin board... I put it all up by myself! (I'm a big kid now.) The students did an awesome job, didn't they??

Something else exciting happened this week... the a cappella group I am part of at UMaine, Mainely Voices, came to Asa Adams Elementary! I led a mini a cappella workshop for my "Service to the School" project and talked about the different voice parts and what makes a cappella music unique. We performed a few songs and it was a blast... plus I got to practice my crowd control ;). The students were in awe, and I felt like a rock star leaving school that day! I can't thank the members of MV enough for taking time out of their busy schedules to help make this possible. The good thing is, I know it was rewarding for everyone. Nobody can look up to you the way an elementary schooler can (and I mean that both literally and figuratively).  

Week 6

Week 6: Owl Poetry!

Last week ended up being a short one! I had an all day workshop at the university on Thursday and on Friday, all Orono schools were closed because of the storm. Although everyone loves a snow day, we had to postpone a bunch of fun activities (Valentine's Day and 100th Day of School) that my mentor teacher and I had planned, so we're going to have to wait until our break is over to do all of that. 

          Owl Research Project

At the beginning of the week, though, we made some great progress with my owl unit. The week before, students had each picked a specific owl from a hat which they were to do research on. I set-up a Porta Portal ahead of time with appropriate web resources where students could find specific (age-appropriate) information to fill in a "My Owl Fact Sheet". They were so excited and they blew my mind with their researching skills. As I walked around the room they kept calling me over to tell me exciting facts about their owls, and I didn't even have to act surprised about some of them (did you know that the Burrowing Owl makes a sound like a rattle snake to scare off predators? Me neither.)

 The skills these kiddos have working on computers still blows my mind. They were pumped when they picked their owls from a hat and I was surprised at how quickly and efficiently they got to work! I can't remember the last time I got excited about a research project...

After they completed this research they got to use the color printer (which was clearly a rare and special occasion for them) to print off a picture of their owl. I gave each of them a "research folder" where they have been storing all of their findings.

Anyway, the second graders have been doing all of this research the past two weeks and they have just been given their next task which is to use their findings to write a poem about their owl. The poems are informational and the students must incorporate what their owl looks like, what their owl eats (prey), and where their owl lives (habitat and/or location). They have been doing excellent work so far. Many have decided to do Acrostic poems, some have written poems that rhyme, and others have attempted less traditional forms of poetry. So, currently, there is a diverse array of poetry that is a work in progress. After the students do a peer revision, a teacher conference, and complete their final drafts, their medley of pieces will be hung in the hallway for others to enjoy (I'll share some on here, too.) I'm so excited to see all of their completed projects.

Week 5: Passport to Mexico

Subbing and Passport to Mexico

This past week was an exciting one. We had a snow day on Wednesday (which was much needed and well-deserved if I do say so myself) and I substitute taught for my mentor teacher for two full days, Thursday and Friday. Both days were full of improvisation, technical difficulties, and rushing around trying to make sure everyone was where they needed to be at the right time. It was a definite eye-opener (those who are close to me know that I struggle with time-management in my everyday life as it is) but a learning experience nonetheless. I thought I was totally prepared, but throughout those two days there was so much that I hadn't considered because it comes so naturally to my mentor teacher (she makes it look easy) that it took a little adjusting when I had to run the show all on my own. Overall, though, it went really well. The kids were great (although I did get to practice using my "teacher face" -- ask me to show you sometime, it's impressive) and I didn't lose anyone so that's a plus! I deserve a brownie.

My favorite part of the week was Monday because we got to go to Mexico! The librarian, Mrs. Smart, turned the library into Oaxaca, Mexico (it is amazing--check out the photos below) where the kids learned all about the country's culture and traditions. Every year, the library is transformed into a different country (last year was China) and it gets decked out in all sorts of traditional decor, games for the kids to play, crafts to do, and more. Mrs. Smart set up 27 stations this year! I was excited because I learned a thing or two while I was there. And I obviously tried on some traditional Mexican garb... say what you want, but in my opinion you're never too old for dress-up

These ladies are making Ojos de Dios... fun, educational, and great for practicing those fine motor skills.

 The kids had a lot of fun riding Paco, the Mexican donkey. 

Some of the students chose to build Aztec pyramids out of wood blocks.

Here the kids are weaving traditional Mexican baskets out of construction paper and yarn.

Puzzles are always fun! 

We played an Aztec Adventure trivia board game... not going to lie, some of the questions stumped me pretty good!

 

 Make your own Chili Pepper!

El Dia de los Muertos skulls

All of that fun stuff, and so much more! Stay tuned...

Graphing with Smarties! (Week 4 continued)

Graphing with Smarties

Last week, I added a fun little twist to one of the lessons from the Everyday Math curriculum. The students learned about the five major food groups, and we did an activity where everyone in the class voted for their favorite food group and we tallied up the results.

Five Major Food Groups:
1. Fruits

2. Vegetables

3. Grains

4. Meat and Beans

5. Milk/ Dairy

Students then graphed the collected data using Smarties (yum) and used a key to represent the votes for each food group (color coordinated).

We combined Fruits and Vegetables into one group.

Lots of meat lovers in the class as you can see...

Objective: To provide experiences with collecting, sorting, tallying, and graphing data. Also to integrate math vocabulary and to understand how to use a "key" to graph data.

Vocabulary: basic food groups, data table, bar graph, key

We had a lot of fun... and they got to eat their Smarties  ;)

Week 4

A Visit From the Owl Man

This past week in Room 8 we had a visit from a special guest, well, four special guests actually! A representative from Bird's Acre (in Ellsworth, ME) came in and brought three feathery friends with him. At Bird's Acre, they take in birds that have been injured and help them recover so they can be released back into the wild. The owls we met were extremely well-mannered. There was a Saw-Whet Owl (the smallest guy who was in an accident that caused him to lose one eye), a Great Horned Owl, and a Barred Owl. Each had a story of their own. The kids were in awe (as was I) in the presence of these gorgeous creatures, and the speaker, Grayson, had an abundance of knowledge about birds of prey and many interesting trinkets to display. To learn more about Bird's Acre and their incredible work, check out their website here.

After Grayson left, the kids wrote him thank you letters explaining their favorite things about his visit.

The next day, we dissected owl pellets. The kids were so pumped. I was sick at the beginning of the week it so it had to be postponed, and the build-up made it that much more exciting. First, we talked about the process of digestion and regurgitation that occurs after an owl eats its meal. Then, we watched a video of an owl spitting up a pellet. It got a little silly because, well... you can see for yourself.

Watch it here (start around 25 seconds in) --- We turned down the volume because it was irrelevant (people chatting).

Weird, huh? I'm sure you can imagine the different observations that were made by the second graders... Afterward, I handed out a lab sheet and had the kids put on their invisible lab coats. They told me they felt like real scientists, and they were! They filled in their predictions on their lab sheets and then I handed out the pellets. All of the pellets were sanitized beforehand, but a few of them chose to wear gloves anyway.

Tons of tiny bones!

A few of them found skulls of mice, rats, voles, moles, shrews, and birds!

Here are some of their other findings: