Oowey, Goowey, Marshmallows and Other Writeabilities

I am Moving!!

2008-07-16T12:23:00.001-05:00

I have created a new blogsite....please come visit me at:
www.teachingenthusiast.blogspot.com
See ya there!!

Stay tuned...

2008-01-28T16:29:00.000-06:00

We are currently reading The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo. I will be posting pictures and activities that our students have been engaged with in connection to this great book.

More mobile pumpkin patch...

2008-01-28T16:22:00.000-06:00

Mobile Pumpkin Patch Visit in the Fall

2008-01-28T16:17:00.001-06:00

Edward...Oh Edward!!

2008-01-21T14:37:00.001-06:00

My third graders are currently engaged in The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo, through read aloud. Some have their own copies, and enjoy following along. Those who don't are listening intently! This is a great book! I introduce two new vocabulary words each time I sit down to read to them from the book. Students must annalyze the words by writing the definition, use it in a sentence of their own, write a synonym and antonym for the word, and illustrate the word. They also each have their own character webs for which they are to write down characteristics (appearance, thoughts, actions) about the main character, Edward. At random we will stop and discuss the story. Students are then encouraged to make notes on their webs. This experience is one that the kids really look forward to each week.

Bogged Down!!

2008-01-21T13:56:00.000-06:00

It was a very busy fall season! I have been implementing one big writing project after another. Therefore the ole' blog has taken backseat!! My students have been busy studying about so many things in Social Studies and Science. Our current writing project has been tied closely to Science. Students have been writing informational paragraphs on whales. Before this particular writing project, students compared and contrasted the baleen and toothed whale. They are very familiar with these terms as they research the selected variety for their report.

Pumpkin Mania! Writing Comparison/Contrast Paragraphs

2007-10-02T15:16:00.000-05:00

I love fall! It is one of my favorite times of the year! Our third graders are having the opportunity to participate in a "mobile" pumpkin patch that is traveling to area schools. If you have the opportunity to take a field trip to a pumpkin patch, that would be even better. This is the "kick-off" event to our writing project. The great thing about this unit is that it ties in with the Science unit about the "plant kingdom."After students have spent time with the mobile pumpkin patch, the have each received their own little pumpkins. They have been educated on the process of growing pumpkins as well. Back in the classroom, I read to the students Pumpkin Circle by George Levenson which is wonderful book with great illustrations about the story of a garden and its pumpkins.Students are allowed to create Pumpkin children with their pumpkins. They add eyes, hair, and accessories. The first writing activity that we will do with their pumpkins is to create a "lil punkin' " baby book. They must measure, weigh and record the measurements of their pumpkin baby. They will also create a "family pumpkin vine" (family tree) for their pumpkins. This will include themself and their parents. The baby book will conclude with a story that students will write about their pumpkin baby's first day, as well as their first adventures at home. Yes, students will take their pumpkin baby home for a few days and write about what they did. This is a great journaling experience. I also encourage snapshots of their experiences together to include in the baby album.The remainder of this pumpkin writing unit will actually involve studying about characteristics of several different variety of pumpkins. We will learn the characteristics of three different kinds of pumpkins. I also provide my students with a fact sheet of the many characteristics that all pumpkins share. Now we are ready to compare similarities and also the differences. We use the venn diagram as an organizational tool to begin with. From this point we are ready to begin the rough draft paragraph.Students are engaged in the Step Up to Writing process by Maureen Auman. It is a great tool for writing their paragraphs.When this process is finished, everything is stored in a double pocket folder that each student has decorated. All portions of this project, including the informational pages are included. This makes a great portfolio to refer to when students write their next comparison/contrast paragraphs.

Pumpkin Mania! Let's Compare and Contrast!

2007-10-01T21:23:00.000-05:00

How to Make Icecream!!

2007-09-24T18:54:00.001-05:00

On Writing a "How-to" Paragraph

2007-09-23T15:55:00.000-05:00

I am always on the search for new twists to teaching the standard year after year concepts. Here is just a new idea for the old "Steps in a process" paragraph that kids need practice writing. It has been a fun lesson.

I began a discussion, as I do before each new paragraph writing lesson, showing students several different copies of picture books related to the topic of icecream. The books were different in that one was an example of narrative (story) writing. The other was an example of expository (informational) writing. It is important that kids are able to differentiate the two and understand the words, narrative and expository, since I refer to them all year long.

Since this is going to be a paragraph writing lesson that will result in a "Steps-in-a-Process" paragraph, we will actually end this part of the lesson in reading and discussing the informational book. I have carefully chosen a book that is both well written and beautifully illustrated.

Gail Gibbons is such an author! She is a master at children's non-fiction writing. Children love her books because of the wonderful pictures. Icecream; The Full Scoop is the book of choice for this lesson. Can you guess what we are going to be writing about? You've got it! We are writing about how icecream is made. After reading and discussing the book, we also visit an icecream factory through the virtual tour online: Ferdinand's Icecream Photo Tour @ www.wsu.edu/creamery/fieldtrips.htm

Now my excited young writers are ready to write down their notes about the three major steps to the making of icecream. Once they have done this, we begin constructing the "How to" or "Steps-in-a-Process" paragraphs. It is amazing how confident they are about what they have learned.

When kids are confident about their knowledge of a given topic, they are excited about writing it down.

I use the Step Up to Writing method by Maureen Auman to give them a model on how to do expository paragraph writing. They love this "color-coded" method of organizing their paragraphs.

Something Fresh, Something New, Something Great, This Post is for You!

2007-06-13T21:28:00.000-05:00

Well, school is out! If you're like me, you are on the hunt for something fresh and new. I have been searching for a great new novel for my third graders for our first "in training" book report of the year. In my search, I have discovered some great sites! Some of these are sites where teachers will get great information and ideas. There are a couple that I found were also great for kids!!

I would recommend getting your little readers subscribed to a website that is sponsored by Sylvan Learning. It is a great site for all students, whether they are in public, private, or even home-schooled settings. It is a very comprehensive AR list with tests and prizes. The thing that really impressed me about this site was that I subscribed as my child. As soon as I gave all of the information linked to my email address, I received a verification notice to alert me to the fact that my child had just subscribed to this website. It is safe and something that you as the parent can monitor to keep up with your child's progress. It even rewards your child with prizes for accumulation of points. Best of all, it is FREE!!!

http://www.bookadventure.org/

Check it out! Your kids will be excited about what they will find. Teachers, you will find that there is alot that you can benefit from here as well.

Biblical Discoveries for Kids!

2007-05-07T20:55:00.000-05:00

I was surfing the web to satisfy my curiosity about Noah's Ark, when I discovered a great site full of the latest findings for more than just Noah's ark. My own boys were full of questions about the Bible stories they have heard and read about since they were knee high. There are info sites about the tower of Babel, the Ark of the Covenant, the Parting of the Red Sea, etc... It is a great site worth sharing! Your children will love it!!!

www.arkdiscovery.com

Cooking up Colorful Language; Serving up the Poetry Stew!

2007-04-26T19:12:00.000-05:00

I am on the search for new and interesting ways to pull in every student and fire them up about writing! In my search I have stumbled onto a couple of websites that I am anxious to implement with my "eager beavers," and believe me, I have quite a few. Poetry is one of those genres that kids just love! It is amazing to me how many of my students have a book at home they are just dying to bring to share with their peers. The following sites are great for interactivity. Students can log on and begin playing with and manipulating words to create any type of poem their bright minds can muster.

Sites: www.gigglepoetry.com
www.magneticpoetry.com/kidspoetry

Just a Twist on the Old!

2007-04-12T16:35:00.000-05:00

Imagine taking something old and making it your own. It is fun to challenge your students to think outside of the box, by having them take the idea of a Mother Goose Rhyme and writing a poem that challenges the "gist" of what it is saying. This is something I enjoy incorporating into my poetry unit. The kids find it sometimes hard, but fun in the end. It is delightful to see the creative ideas that abound from this task!!

Remember to model for your students what you expect from them. The following poem is my own twist on the Mother Goose Rhyme, "Little Miss Muffett." Another great example of what I am talking about is the poem, "If Walt Whitman Had Written Humpty Dumpty," by Frank Jacobs in the book Poem Stew.

An Undesirable Dinner
by JoLynn Burke

O little Miss Muffet
you claimed a fearful fright!
You say it was your dinner friend
who brought your dinner to its end.

You were sitting oh so sweetly,
munching your curds and whey,
you didn't stay and honestly,
I don't believe what you say.

"A very large spider,"
they claim, "sat beside her."
See, I believe it was your dinner
that didn't meet your taste!

It was the undesirable pallett,
that made you leave in haste!

If Walt Whitman Had Written Humpty Dumpty
by Frank Jacobs

O Humpty! O Dumpty! You've had a fearful spill,
You've tumbled from the stony height,
you're lying cold and still;

Your shell is cracked, your yolk runs out,
your breath is faint and wheezy;
You landed as a scrambled egg, instead of over easy;

The king has sent his steeds and men
To mend you if they can;
I pray that they did not forget
To bring a frying pan.

World's Cutest Eight Month Old!

2007-04-10T20:30:00.000-05:00

I'm a Promise...with a capital P!!!

This is the Stuff That Writing is Made!!

2007-04-04T21:37:00.000-05:00

Reading other's works is sometimes the inspiration that sets our mind, heart, and emotions in motion. Playing with, arranging, and rearranging the written word is like manipulating modeling clay. Before you know it you will only be limited by the imagination and your command of language itself. This is why I believe that Narrative writing is in a league of its own. Anyone can be trained to organize gathered information and put it into writing. With much practice, one can become quite good at writing expository pieces.

A mystery that keeps the reader hanging by a thread, creating beads of perspiration on your brow, making your heart race as you turn the next page to find another clue; or a child's picture book that mixes the words and illustrations just enough to take you on a sentimental trip down memory lane to evoke a tearful remembrance of a special time and place; the poem or lyric that gives you just enough of a glimpse at the inner soul of a friend, or sends that hard-to-reach kid into a gut wrenching laughter, whom you thought never would care; this is the stuff that writing is made of!!

What's Up on Spring Break?

2007-03-28T15:21:00.001-05:00

I know that this is supposed to be Spring Break week. After a trip to the Library I just have to share an author that I just love! Ruth Heller is a must collection for any Language/Writing teacher. This isn't really a book review, but I must say that when emphasizing to your young writers that you want to seem them packing their writing with more description and detail, what better way to do this than to model what you are talking about. You can do this with Many Luscious Lollipops by Ruth Heller. Ruth has many other books that focus on other parts of speech as well. You must check her out!

What's Coming up Next?

2007-03-23T16:31:00.000-05:00

April is going to be a busy month in third grade at Shiloh Christian School. Students will be undergoing SAT-10 testing. We will finally begin narrative writing, which is something that has been pushed to the back burner for the year. In gearing up for testing, we are strictly doing expository writing.

Narrative writing is a great way to keep student's interest until the end of the year. Narrative writing is such fun! Students will be engaged in writing projects such as letter writing, story writing, and poetry. This seems to be their favorite!!

Stay tuned to see samples of student's work. You will not only be entertained, but will hopefully gain some ideas of things to implement within your writing program as well.

All in a Day's Work!

2007-03-19T22:08:00.000-05:00

It is finally March; that time of the year when teachers are gearing up for the final formal teacher/parent conference of the school year. Within our school, it is a student led conference. Students actually lead their parents through a conference over their progress for the year. So, as you can imagine, we have been "gearing up" for this one. Every published piece of writing that we have completed within the last couple of months is on the wall. We have crammed every possible project into our short schedule. Students are excited about "showing off" their best work. I am including pictures of what we have been currently doing in third grade. It has been a busy month! We have written persuasively as is seen in the many book reviews. We have written several biographies on various key historical figures. This unit actually culminated with students presenting in full costume those person's lives they chose to read and write about. We have also been writing about animals. We just wrapped up our Science curriculum with a fun Biome unit where students were assigned a biome to study. Students then had to choose an animal to research material for and write about. This was a hit! Check out the final presentation!!

No, this isn't just an "open house." Students will discuss the formal report card. Even though report cards went home over the previous weekend, students have since conferenced with me about areas that are strong ones, as well as those areas that need work. Students are challenged to think of ways to grow and become stronger in weak areas. Once they have a plan of action figured out, they will then have something to discuss with their parents. It is a great opportunity for parents to have an opportunity to listen. It is an even better opportunity for students to really take ownership of their grades and improvement if need be!

Tieing Literature into Writing

2007-03-13T13:37:00.000-05:00

I love finding good children's literature that I can use to support or reinforce a concept such as idioms in writing. What better way than to use a story written in the very words spoken by kids themselves? Ted Arnold has really captured idioms not only in his writing but through wild and wacky illustrations. This is a fantastic way to challenge kids to think outside of the box with their writing.

Oh the Possibilities That the Written Word Can Create!

2007-03-11T18:02:00.000-05:00

My dream as a teacher of young elementary children is to inspire and promote their writeabilities by instilling a love of literature and highlighting a variety of genres that will stimulate their young minds.

As a Christian educator, it is my goal to seek and find what excites and motivates kids to read and write. It is my continual drive to find how everything we know, learn, and experience relates to Christ's view and His written word. Getting kids to think biblically as they study the world around them is the whole point of Christian Education. Our imagination is a wonderous gift. Let's use it for Him!! This site's purpose is to serve as a crockpot of ideas that will flavor any elementary program. Have fun with some of these yummy, oowey, goowey, and whimsical writeabilities!