Fourth and Fifth Grade
Our day began with a visual/logic puzzle called Leap Frog. It was challenging but most of the students were able to master it.
Of course, the focus of the day was the presentation for each of the "suspects". We had power points, interviews, and puppet shows. The students did a wonderful job sharing their information with the other groups. It was impressive to see how much they had learned and how well they worked together to create the presentations. After the presentations, a discussion was held to determine who was the culprit in the Case of the Missing Anurans. However, students decided that there was no one cause. There is a synergy, or overlapping, of the suspects. The issues are global climate change, UV Rays, habitat destruction, pollutants and pathogens, and acid precipitation. Many students recognized that humans might be responsible for several of the suspects and realized we need to practice conservation.
Next, the students watched a video called Frogs: The Thin Green Line. It delved deeply into the issue of a pathogen, chytrid fungus, that seems to be a large factor in the decline. Scientist do not know how it travels or how to stop it. The video took students to several conservation labs around the world to show how scientist are rescuing affected frogs from the fungus as well as from drought and habitat issues. Through the work, frogs are being bred and released back into their natural habitats. At the end of the video The Atlanta Botanical Gardens was mentioned for its work in breeding the endangered, native to Georgia gopher frog. It is then released back into the 3% of its habitat still viable. Robert Hill was the scientist in the video and he is the man who will be with us on our tour next week. That is exciting!
Fourth graders played a Chain Reaction Game with the words going from frog to green. Fifth grade will play it on dissection day.
Please note: next week is the field trip ( May 3rd-5th grade, May 5th- 4th grade), the following week is dissection, and the week of May 16 if the last week of Target for this year.
Homework: Remember a sack lunch if you are not buying one from school.
Second and Third Grades
Students learned the value of advertising their businesses. They looked at Yellow Page ads and then created their own ad to draw more customers into their businesses, utilizing such techniques as bigger ads and type, discounts, and slogans.
Next, the students were able to see firsthand how quickly money leaves a bank account after paying bills. They had to decide what kind of car they could afford and make their first car payment. They had to write checks to cover garbage and electricity. Some could not believe how expensive electricity is. It was a reminder to turn off the lights! Next week, students will complete their bill payments and buy groceries and clothing.
We ended the day by playing a Chain Reaction Game which was enjoyable and challenging, as teams had to work together to figure out words. The students did an awesome job.
Homework: Second - Blue Bungalows /Third - Park Street
First Grade
Students began the day working on more evaluative thinking. They were asked to choose between two items and explain why. For example, would they rather be a shoe or foot, a big toe or pinky toe, a left foot or right foot? Evaluation is the highest level of thinking, and students did a good job assessing and defending their positions.
Our first graders "got a kick out of learning about idioms" by reading Even More Parts by Tedd Arnold. They closed their eyes and imagined the literal meaning of many idioms, comparing their pictures to that of the illustrator's. They learned the real, figurative meaning of these idioms. Students went to work illustrating both the literal and figurative meanings of some common foot idioms such as "cold feet, get your feet wet, put your foot down, and footloose and fancy-free."
We played the Chain Reaction Game to discover how words are related. Students seemed to enjoy the challenge.
Students then went to the Media Center to use their research skills to answer questions to determine "Could it have Happened?" Ask your child to explain whether Elvis Presley could have walked across the Golden Gate Bridge, or if Christopher Columbus could have marched down the gangplank in sneakers. The students did an excellent job working cooperatively in groups and using a number of resources to analyze the information they needed to answer the questions.
We ended the day in the Science Lab with an activity about how soap works, a real-world connection to our Cinderella stories. Recalling that Cinderella had to scrub floors, we experimented with three cleaning products (hand soap, bar soap, and laundry detergent) to see if it cleans and how well. Mrs. Kaufmann explained to us that soap is an emulsifier which allows one liquid to spread into another. Soap cleans by breaking surface tension and sticking to dirt, grime, and bacteria. Laundry detergent was the winning emulsifier for the stains that we tried to clean.
Homework: The Pyramid
Until next week...
Lynn, Karen, and David
