Little Bird Tales in the Classroom

After our Traditional Literature unit, the students were asked to write their own version of a common fairy tale.  The students and I read several fractured fairy tales, fable, tall tales, nursery rhymes, and porquoi tales.  Then, they started to write their own versions of common fairy tales.  Goldilocks was an overused tale, but there were several different versions to make them more unique. 

Check out some of the student tales below.

• Click to view my tale.
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• Click to view my tale.
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Green Tree Python

Since we read Verdi by Janell Cannon, I wanted to share a brief video with you from the Discovery Channel on the subject of tree pythons.

Ecosystem and Biome Content

What is the difference between an Ecosystem and a Biome?

Go to the following link to learn more about biomes and ecosystems. Then, complete the biomes brochure in the computer lab.

Student Blogs

To promote writing, publishing, reading, and digital literacies skills, I wanted to create an online blog where students can publish their favorite writings.  Also, students could post their Discovery Quests, respond to questions, and complete other projects online.  Many students have expressed interest in working with computers, and I would like to encourage and develop literacy skills online.

The website we would use is called Kidblog.  "[This website] meets the need for a safe and simple blogging platform suitable for elementary and middle school students.  Most importantly, Kidblog allows teachers to monitor and control all publishing activity within the classroom blogging community."  (Kidblog, 2012).

Here is a list of Kidblog's features that put safety first:

• Teachers have adminstrative control over all student blogs and student accounts.
• You students' blogs are private by default - viewable only by classmates and the teacher.
• For "semi-public" blogs, guest accounts (i.e. parents) can be activated, which would required a password to view and comment on student pages.  (Students would love this!)
• Comment privacy settings block unsolicited comments from outside sources. 
• Kidblog does not collect any personal information from teachers or students.

At the moment, I have a new blog with individual student blogs.  This blog can be found at the following link to my Kidblog website. To log into the website this next link allows students to access the website on its login page.

As a class, we will be reviewing digital etiquette and safety online.  The Kidblog website is safe and password protected.  Please make sure you review the website and write your child’s password down somewhere safe.  Lastly, let me know whether or not you would like your child to participate in this writing project.

Comments or questions please leave one below or call me at school. 

Trouble with Fractions

Regardless of how many times I review these concepts, every year students have a hard time understanding equivalent fractions, mixed numbers to improper fractions, and comparing/ordering fractions.  This year is no different.  So, I thought I would create a blog post that can assist students at home.  

Here are some review videos I retrieved from the Khan Academy.  This is a great place to find videos demonstrating various academic concepts.  On this website there are explanation for basic math all the way up to complicated calculus.  SAVE THE KHAN ACADEMY WEBSITE TO YOUR BOOKMARKS or FAVORITES!

This first video is just explaining fractions.  To review, I always like to start with what's simple. 



This second video is explaining equivalent fractions.  The quality isn't the greatest but it is still a great resource. 



This video is explaining how to change improper to mixed numbers.  I think some students are still unclear with division and not knowing multiplication facts isn't helping either.  So, please review multiplication facts whenever possible (i.e. car rides or waiting rooms)



The last video attempts to explain fractions and comparing/ordering them by value. How much are they worth? Which is the largest and which is smallest? In this video, Mr. Kahn explains how to find a common denominator, which makes it easy to just pay attention to the fraction with the largest numerator.



This last video helps to explain simplest form for students also. I have been discussing simplest form because we were discussing how to also reduce a fraction using division. Watch the following video on comparing fractions and finding a fractions simplest form.



Hopefully, these videos will help to further explain how to conquer these skills. Flex your brain! Learn! Practice! Grow!