Tuesday, May 26, 2015

A glimpse into our Edsby pages....

 
Just a little glimpse into our Edsby pages over the past few weeks!
 





 
 



Volunteers are a work of art....

 
Our amazing volunteers were recognized at a tea on Monday, May 25th.  The library was decorated with beautiful colors, art books and stunning collaborative art pieces created by each of the classrooms.  These beautiful works of art will be displayed in our library!
 
The volunteers at SSES generously give their time to share in our journey....we appreciate their kindness & dedication. 
 
To our volunteers that were unable to attend the tea....thank you for all that you do, we missed celebrating with you!

 

The Creation of Royal Island


 
A Royal Island was created in Room 116 using loose parts, collaboration and vivid imaginations....share in the story of Royal Island through this Adobe Voice video created, photographed and voiced by the children that created this magical fairy world.  Enjoy!

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Room 130 Builds a Zoo

 
written by Jayde and Alyamama
 
We built a zoo in our classroom.  We brought in our stuffed animals to inspire us.  We researched the animal that we brought in.  We did our research on the computer.  Then we made our animals out of clay.  We had to add tiny details to make them look real.  We used googly eyes for our animals.  We put the animals into different groups.  There were 70 squares.  We had to decide how many squares each animal group needed.  We were learning about area!  We used sticky notes to map out the zoo.  To make habitats, we used sand, paint, glue, rocks and we even made trees.  Then we put our clay animals into their habitats.  We took pictures of ourselves, printed them out and glued them to sticks.  This way, we could be a part of the zoo!  We shared our zoo with our families!  It was so fun!  Our favorite part was....everything!

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Discovering Mealworms

 
written by Maria, Sofia and Nate
 
We have 25 mealworms in Room 115.  They are all in different recycled containers.  Mrs. Bergman got them from a pet store.  When we got them, they were moving all over the place.  After a few days, they shed their skin and turn into a pupa.  They slow down before they become a pupa.  They were mostly light brown when they first came and then they get white.  The pupa is all white and gets darker.  Then it will hatch into a beetle.  Each day the beetles get darker until they are black beetles.  The mealworms eat apples, bananas and potatoes.  We put bran in the containers so that they can burrow.  If they stop burrowing, it means that they are going to turn into a pupa.  Once mealworms turn into beetles, they have eggs and more mealworms are born.  The eggs are very tiny!!!
 
We have watched some videos to research mealworms.  Mealworms have predators.  A jumping spider used poison when he bit a mealworm in the video.  The spider ate the mealworm. 
 
We are going to let them go into the garden.  It would be cool to take a trip to the amazon to take the mealworms there!!!
 























Monday, May 11, 2015

Exploring the Language of Code

written by Room 113
 
Coding is making things on a computer or iPad move by giving commands, making rules and thinking about directions.  You can also make things disappear and reappear using coding.  Sometimes, you make a mistake and the object goes the wrong way.  You just have to rethink it and try again!  You have to try commands and directions many times sometimes just to get it right!
 
We teach other kids how to code and help them figure it out.  It makes us feel like coding masters when we are teaching our friends.  The best way to learn how to code is to just do it and figure it out.  It makes you think of Math, it exercises your brain and it makes you a problem solver.  We make sure that we only use our iPads for a certain amount of time.  We know that it's not good for your brain to be on a tablet too much.  We love to play, write, read, build, create, imagine, discover, learn....and code! 
 
We use Kodable and Scratch Jr. apps on our iPads.  Scratch Jr. lets you tell a story.  You can use characters and backgrounds from the app or you can create your own.  We like using both.  You can record your voice and make your character talk!  Coding with Scratch Jr. is one way to tell a story!  We are exploring all of the ways you can be a storyteller!  Kodable really makes you think.  You have to think about directions and you have to look at the track before you code.  It makes you smarter!!!  There are many levels on Kodable and each level gets harder and more challenging.  When you get to the higher levels, you can do loops and repeats.  The people that make Kodable talked to us through Twitter. @Kodable  We sent a tweet to them (@ourstoryroom113) and they answered us within minutes.  We thought this was amazing!  We have been thinking about more questions to ask them!
 
"Coding is mind-blowing!"
 
  "We think every child should learn how to code!  It's good for your brain!"
 


We can mirror our iPads onto the SMART Board.  This lets us share our coding stories with everyone in the room.  We can have up to 10 iPads on the SMART board at once!
 
 
Coding is most fun when you collaborate with a friend.  You can work together to figure out the sequence and create new stories!






Thursday, May 7, 2015

Exploring nature....


A glimpse into our classrooms....bringing nature into our classroom environment.....
 
 
a closer look at mealworms 

 
learning about crayfish found on a family adventure

 
planting grass....how fast will it grow?

 
researching plant growth and developing a green thumb

 
waiting for bean seeds to sprout

 
designing a zoo

 
creating a zoo ~ it's springtime in the zoo, baby animals are arriving!

 
an invitation to explore plants

 
a look at pussy willows through the Zoomy lens

 
the Zoomy enables us to truly look closer and experience nature through a new lens