Read-A-Thon "Read-In"

We spent the day in our jammies with blankets reading great book to rack up minutes for the Valhalla Read-A-Thon!  What a fun way to spend a cool Wednesday!

Science Fair Kick-Off

A special thank you to Mr. Bowdish for coming to talk to all the fourth grade students about the Science Fair!  Mr. Bowdish talked about what makes a good project, and how to utilize the scientific method.  He shared some good examples of wining projects.

2015 Goals

Welcome back to school!!!  The students spent some time thinking about their goals for 2015.  They were instructed to write two academic goals, and two personal goals that they want to work on this year.  Next we will be working on action plans so they can reach their goals!

Stuck in a Snow-globe!

Students imagined what it would be like to be stuck in a snow globe.  After taking some fun photos, the students illustrated their scene, and wrote a story about their adventure.

Island of the Blue Dolphin Projects

The students turned in some impressive projects after finishing the book, Island of the Blue Dolphins.  They ranged from paintings, models, research reports, character interviews, and posters.  I was impressed with the level of effort put into these projects.

PE Fun

Students practiced positive partnership, and developed their throwing / catching skills in PE this week!

Sedimentary and Metamorphic Rock Science Lab

We explored how Sedimentary and Metamorphic rocks are formed using Starbursts candy during our Science Lab.

Sediment piles up, one layer on top of another

The pressure from the weight of the top layers compresses all the sediment and transforms it into sedimentary rock over a long period of time.

We applied some heat to our sedimentary rock (using a microwave) and with the combination of heat and pressure, our sedimentary rocks turned into metamorphic rocks.

The students were able to see how the physical properties of their rock can change with heat and pressure.

KickIt Games Field Day

The kids had a great time on Friday, Oct. 3 during our KickIt Games Field Day.

There were some fun activities.

CA Regions Sculpted Maps pt. 2

Once the dough finished drying, we were able to paint and label our maps!

CA Regions Sculpted Maps

On Friday afternoon, we had a great time creating topographical maps to identify the four regions of California.  Thank you to all our moms and dads who donated all the salt and flour, and to those who came to school to help us make the dough and complete the project.  We will be painting and labeling them this week!

Investigating Rocks and Minerals Science Lab

This afternoon, the students enjoyed studying the properties of different rocks and minerals in our Science Lab.

California Regions Report

The students have finished their California Regions Report.  They worked hard researching for their report, writing a rough draft, editing, and finally producing their final copy. Great work G-1!

New Computer Lab!!!

G-1 had the opportunity to break in our brand new computer lab this morning.  They are completing a reading diagnostic test.  The students were excited to be the first to use the new computers.

The results from the i.Ready test that they are taking will provide valuable information to provided specific, personalized instruction to the students.

CA Regions Research

The students are hard at work researching the regions of California during Social Studies time.  

They will use this research to write a Regions of California report.

Learning about Teamwork in G-1

Students worked together in small groups to put together puzzles.

As a result of this activity they learned a lot about teamwork and how to work successfully in a group.

Our classroom group work norms are as follows:

Get along 

Respect others

On task

Use quite voices

Participate

Stay in their groups