• September 9, 2022

    Posted by Lisa Shipley on 9/9/2022
    We are all settled in and learning.  We kicked off our Marvelous Middle Ages unit today with questions about when the Middle Ages were and why they were called the Middle Ages.  We took a tour through the fall of the Roman Empire and learned about how the emperors made a series of mistakes that caused the empire to fail.  We talked about how if you were one of the victorious armies that defeated a territory, you needed to have a better plan for how to govern and protect your land.  We found out that the system of feudalism was the answer to this problem. 
     
    SPOILER ALERT!!  At the end of the year we will culminate our Medieval Studies with a banquet and play.  Students will need a costume that nods to the Middle Ages.  They will all play the part of nobles from various kingdoms, so think lords, ladies, kings, queens, and knights.  With Halloween coming up, this might be an ideal time to be on the hunt for costume pieces.  Please don't spend a lot of money.  You can do wonders with a simple piece of cloth cut into a simple tunic and decorated with a hot glue gun and some ribbon.  I had one king wear a Christmas tree skirt as a cape and it was fabulous.  I just wanted to give you a heads up so you can get those creative juices going.
     
    We also kicked off our ​Archaeology unit.  We ​took a look at the discovery of King Tut's tomb to learn about what artifacts can reveal about the past.
     
    In Math Stretch, we ​worked on making predictions by recognizing patterns.​
     
    In HOT Time, we​ focused on convergent thinking where we use clues and observations to reveal solutions.  We had to be very discerning to figure out what makes a glorb a glorb.​
     
    In Creative Thinking ​we worked on our fluent thinking by brainstorming things that can be found underground.
     
    Have a great week!
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  • September 2, 2022

    Posted by Lisa Shipley on 9/2/2022
    It was awesome to have everyone back today and to welcome our new students. The kids were super excited to be here and I was super excited to get their brains activated for learning this year.
     
    I will be sending updates to keep you informed about all the great things happening in class.  Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions, concerns, comments or compliments.  Your feedback helps me be a better teacher for your child.
     
    This year, we will study the Marvelous Middle Ages as our Major Study.  A Major Study is a topic we stick with all year.  Students will also choose a Minor Study, which is a topic we stick with for half the year.  We will still have HOT (Higher Order Thinking) Time this year, Creative Thinking, and Math STRETCH.
     
    Today was all about building our community so that this classroom is a sanctuary of learning where we can take risks with our thinking, make mistakes, celebrate each other, and be free to learn and grow in our own 
     
    Our first activity was a challenge to create new names for ordinary objects.  For example, a sheep could be a land cloud or a furry potato.  The kids had some very clever ideas for hammers, water bottles, roosters, and more.
     
    We played a game called classroom quest.  Students worked in teams to send someone to me who could deliver the item or action asked for in the quest.  This was a fun way to learn some new things about each other.  
     
    Students enjoyed building Hungry Hungry Hippo contraptions to retrieve marbles, ping pong balls, spools, and corks.  It was cool seeing all the different ways the kids tackled this challenge.
     
    Finally, we created gizmos to stack cups.  They had to be stacked without touching them with body parts.  I'm happy to report that we all found creative ways to make it happen.
     
    I'm looking forward to a great year of learning.  Have a great week!
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