We entered our first assignments into our Science Journals this week. We will begin with background information on deserts - hot and cold. Because our research projects begin this fall, I will do introductions to each of the biomes for a couple of weeks. After the introductions, the students will decide on a research topic. At that time, we will go back to each of the biomes more in depth. No need to worry about the topics yet.
Please review your student's journal entries from this week. We will continue next week. Student's MUST have their journals weekly. Here are examples of journals by real scientists - Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, and Leonardo Di Vinci The ALPHA Agendas are or will be included in your child's binder each week in the Parent Section. The Agendas help reinforce the GT Scholarly Behaviors. The Agenda is a planning sheet for the activities of the day, a reflection of knowledge gained, and a self-assessment as to how well the students' demonstrated scholarly behaviors. We begin class and end class with the Agendas. Please review them and sign your initials at the top corner. You will also need to review the blog and binder each week and sign that you have done so on the ABC form (Acknowledgement of Blog/Binder Communication). If you have not signed up for Remind101, please do so. If you need the sign up information again, please let me know. We also have a SignUpGenius page for needed classroom items. Most of these are small items we can use for projects and instant challenges. Please review the page and see if you are able to help us out. Thank you to those that have already donated. To view the sign up, go to: www.signupgenius.com/go/4090545A4A928A31-alpha T-shirts will be ordered on October 3. The shirts for both schools will be $13 each. Please send checks made out to Ellison Elementary or Braun Station Elementary with the total owed so I can order on October 3rd. I will send reminders out this week (Braun Station) or next week (Ellison). If you did not receive an order form or did not sign up at GT Orientation, just send a note and a check with the number of shirts and sizes. Students are expected to:
•Bring binders and science journals to every class •Bring back signed Acknowledgement of Blog Communication. •Complete work during ALPHA •Show scholarly behaviors •Complete research project according to the rubric We have organized the binder and science journal for the majority of students are ready to get to work in them! We will show much of our learning in the binder and the journals each week. Be sure to check them and and this blog weekly for information. Sign the ALPHA ABC form in the binder and return with your student. We completed a review of the Scholarly Behaviors and will touch on them throughout the year. Research will begin after I have introduced each biome to the students. An ALPHA Night to display their research projects will be announced soon. Students shared their homework pieces this so we could get to know each other better. Wow! What amazing kids! If your child was unable to bring their project in, please send it next week. A few projects can be seen on the Student Showcase tab of our website. We also worked on Depth & Complexity centers related to our Biomes unit. We learned about Grit and discussed how we want to be Gritty and develop a Growth Mindset. View the 6 minute video we discussed. Scholarly Behaviors are one of the key aspects of the ALPHA program and are expected from all GT students. This week students worked on creating symbols for Scholarly Behaviors. They drew a picture of a person and then added items that would represent the behaviors. What are other examples in your daily experiences? Scholarly Behaviors are the following: Scholars ask many questions. Scholars access multiple resources. Scholars set goals. Scholars exercise their intellect. Scholars bring their necessary materials. Scholars save important information. Scholars thirst for knowledge. Scholars see from different perspectives. Scholars ponder the big ideas. Scholars, which of the Scholarly Behaviors is your strength?
The first week of classes is behind us! The students are learning the routines and jumping into the biomes unit right away.
We began with a creativity exercise. Grades 1-2 worked on originality and elaboration completing a Savannah tree transformation. Grades 3-5 worked on fluency and flexibility of ideas naming birds then categorizing them. I shared information about myself, the classroom routines, our unit, and the expectations for the year. We painted nature flags depicting an insect, plant, animal, or a nature scene on Muslim cotton squares. These will be displayed in our hallway soon. We discussed the homework activities. Grades 1-2 are to create a mask of an insect, plant, or animal which represents their personality or characteristics. Grades 3-5 are to create a surfboard with items that tell about them. I introduced the centers that students will complete in the next 2-3 weeks related to our unit. We reviewed the day's activities. **Please make sure that students bring their supplies to class. They should have a binder, dividers, a flashdrive, and a spiral.** |
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April 2015
AuthorMs. Longoria is a GT/Enrichment specialist at Braun Station Elementary and Bonnie Ellison Elementary Categories
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