America's Most Wanted: Element Posters

We've wrapped up our atom/element unit with Wanted Posters. They turned out great! This is the second year in a row I've had my kids work on this activity and they absolutely love it. I also think it is a great way to make what can be a difficult concept/topic a little more meaningful and easier to grasp.

I had each student choose an element that they were interested in researching. I told them to choose carefully because they would also be constructing a 3-D model of an atom using the same element (you can check out their projects here). Which actually makes life easier for them, since they don't have to research two different elements. They become an expert on their chosen element.

I did have a few little "Word document study groups" during recess and lunch to help most of my students with the format. They've used Word to type their essays...but text boxes, inserting photos, adding color, etc. was a whole new ball game!

I love how each student entered the required information, but then made it their own. I love the Radium poster with the little box on the bottom that says "If you have any information contact:xxxxx." Most added rewards, love their creativity.

The icing on the cake, was the next day when they saw the impromptu bulletin board I made on the outside wall in our hallway. They were beyond excited...pointing out to each other which poster was theirs! Don't you just love that?! ?!

Once I figure out how to get Google Docs going, I will link a copy of the directions and rough draft student copy for the project. In the meantime, if you are interested and want a copy, give me your email address and I will send it to ya!

                    

Discovering Imagery: Close Reading with Main Text: Chains

This trimester, my literacy unit is centered around the theme of "conflict." I am incorporating opinion writing (Common Core) while using the novel Chains By Laurie Halse Anderson. I created a plan that encompasses read alouds, guided reading, word work, writing, etc. Chains is a historical fiction novel that takes place during the American Revolution. Which happens to be a 5th grade social studies standard! I love being able to incorporate standards across the curriculum! It's great because my students are able to really grasp and make sense of the story because it relates to what we are learning in social studies.

Last week I taught a close read lesson on Discovering Imagery which related to our Chains novel. I charted a few passages from the text that produced a strong/bold image in our minds. I had the students read the passages and then asked them to draw a simple sketch of what image/images came to mind with those two passages. As a class we discussed what parts of those excerpts made them so powerful.

Then I gave them their task which was to find their own passage from the first five chapters that we read, which produced strong imagery in their minds. They were to copy the passage in their ELA journal, draw a simple sketch, and explain why that passage was so powerful to them. I gave them a few minutes to work on this and then had them pair share with a partner the passages they chose. Once they were done sharing with each other, I asked a few volunteers to share their passages/thoughts with the class.

The activity was a bit challenging for my group of students, but they made me proud! I loved how some of them realized that a strong image doesn't always have to come from figurative language (metaphor/simile/etc.) As I walked around the room and listened to their discussions and explanations they were right on point! 

Since we don't have time for every student to share their chosen passage and thoughts, I asked them to post the activity to their blog. I have a classroom blog through Kidblog and we use it all the time. I post discussion threads for them to think about and respond to. Each student also has a blog within our class blog to which they can make their own posts. It's been such a great way to get the students engaged! They love responding to their peers.

***I've been using a curriculum guide created by the amazing teachers at Curriculum Specialists blog.

Fraction Anchor Charts

I thought I would share some nifty anchor charts I created for fraction concepts. I definitely can't take the credit for them, they were Google and Pinterest finds. My students loved them and referred to them throughout our fraction unit.

http://www.fabulousfinchfacts.com/2013/02/anchor-charts.html

  

Unfortunately, I forgot what sight I found the above chart on. I know I googled it, but didn't write down the info. I'd love to give credit where credit is due, so I shall keep looking and add the link once I find it. 

http://glantz.metropolitanels.com/anchor-charts---math

 The website were I found the above anchor chart has a lot of great math anchor chart ideas! 

Making Gloopy Goop: Science Experiment

My students have been begging for a science experiment and last week they finally got to participate in one...making gloop (aka oobleck)! For those of you that aren't familiar, it's basically a strange slime that is not really a liquid, but not really a solid either. It is a non-Newtonian fluid; it has properties of both liquids and solids. We ended our unit on mixtures and solutions, so I thought this would be a fun experiment for them and boy was it a hit! It can get a little messy, but I swear clean up is super easy. You may want to put down butcher paper/newspaper to avoid spills on the desk. I didn't have that available. A trick to clean up is to quickly flick the goo and it will turn into a solid and be easy to clean from the desk surface.

  

Before the experiment we discussed the different steps of the scientific method and how it related to what we would be investigating. They took out their science journals and made a hypothesis based on what we would be mixing together. Normally, I would have them record their observations and data as the experiment progress, but since this was messy, I had them do that at the end.

           

You will need:

• 1 cup of cornstarch
• 1/2 cup of water
• a mixing bowl
• food coloring

Steps:

1. Pour a cup of cornstarch into a mixing bowl.  Have the students feel the cornstarch, it doesn't feel like any other powder. Journal question: How does the cornstarch feel?
2. Add two drops of food coloring to the water. You don't need much!
3. Add/Mix the water slowly into the flour, using your fingers. Dig in with your hands and really mix it up. Journal question: How does the mixture feel? 
4. Try squeezing a handful of the liquid you've made into a ball. It will become a solid!
5. Let the goop settle into the bottom of the bowl. Touch the surface gently, then tap it hard. Journal question: What happens when you touch the surface gently? Hard? Why do you suppose this happens?
6. If you hold your hand still, it will become liquid and run through your fingers. Try it!

***Sometimes you may need to add more cornstarch/water to get it to the right consistency where it reaches a state that is the liquid and yet solid.

How Does It Work?

When the mixture is put under pressure, the cornstarch molecules are forced together, and it behaves like a solid. When it is handled gently, the cornstarch molecules can move around freely, and it flows like a liquid. 

***Not the best photos, forgot to bring my camera to work and had to use my Driod.

Currently February!

It's that time again! Linkin' up with Farley at Oh' Boy 4th Grade for Currently.

Listening: Lately, I find myself with the radio and tv (that thing is rarely on anways) off and I'm just taking in the sounds of the neighborhood. I live near a train track and I love hearing the trains rumble by. I also love hearing the neighborhood kids outside playing...riding bikes, exploring. It seems like nowadays, the kids are pent up in the house playing video games. I just find it refreshing when they are out having fun.

Loving:  It was hard for me to pinpoint one thing that I was loving right now. Life in general has been amazing. My husband and I were able to enjoy Ireland during the winter (a late anniversary trip). I have the best friends a girl could ask for. I enjoy heading to work everyday. I have THE best group of students a teacher could ask for. They amaze me everyday and it is so fun to share my love of learning with them.

Thinking:  I'm addicted to traveling. I guess it's not such a bad thing to be addicted to, minus the impact on my wallet! The day after we got back from Ireland I was online "researching" places to venture to. One thing I love about teaching is all the time off I get, so it allows me to venture off and explore this fabulous world of ours.

Wanting: I'm one of those crazy dog ladies, yup that is me. I am the proud mommy to two doxies and they are my life. We don't have kids yet, so Hans and Buster are my babies. Hansy is almost 11 years old and has started to have some health issues. Earlier this week, I noticed he wasn't himself. He wasn't eating/drinking, wasn't walking, wouldn't lift his head up and when the mailman came he didn't move an inch. My hubby took him to the vet yesterday and it turns out he has intervertebral disc disease. I had a feeling we'd encounter this some day, Dachshunds are known for having this problem. It just breaks my heart to see him in pain. He is the sweetest and most loving pup ever. Right now he is on four different kinds of meds/pain relievers and in a few weeks we have to go back to the vet for a check up. She said it can take 4-6 months for him to fully heal, but he will most likely continue having problems. I'm just happy that she said surgery isn't necessary right now. I'm just wanting my little guy to feel better.


Hansy Boy!

Buster!

 

Needing: I hate cleaning the house (I'm sure most of us do). It just takes up so much time and my weekends are sacred...they end too fast. Luckily, my husband helps out. I always give him bathroom duty. I despise cleaning the bathroom. So he cleans our one and only bathroom and I get the rest of the house. Which is totally fine by me...yup I hate the bathroom that much!

Two Truths and a Fib:

1. Truth! I may be the only person on this planet that loves Brussels sprouts as much as I do. I eat these things all the time, they are delish!

2. Truth! Last year, I started aerial arts and I love it! It is one of the best work outs ever and it's so much fun. Granted, I'm far from trying out for Cirque du Soleil, but maybe one day :)

3. Fib! I despise shopping, it's the worst thing ever! Especially window shopping...ugh. I only go shopping when I need something and even then make it quick. I'm such a tomboy and would rather be out getting my hands dirty...a little mud never hurt anyone. A fabulous weekend would be 4x4ing it in some offbeat no mans land, hiking, riding my Vespa.

One Dimensional Atoms and The Atoms Family Song

We've jumped full force into our physical science unit. I must admit, last year I dreaded having to teach this unit to my students. I had made the jump from 3rd to 5th (I wanted a change and although 3rd grade will always have a special place in my heart...I love teaching 5th!) and it didn't occur to me that nowadays 5th graders learn this kinda stuff. I didn't learn about atoms and elements until I was in high school. So, I was wracking my brain on how I would teach some of these difficult (at least I think they can be) concepts.

This week I introduced the concept to my students. We used some readers to get some background info and then I played the  Bill Nye the Science Guy: Atoms video. They loved the video and were able to grasp the concept better with the visuals. Then I had my students make a one dimensional atom (next week they will be choosing an element and creating a 3D model). It was a pretty simple activity and I think it helped them to understand some of the vocabulary words and structure of an atom. I didn't do this with my students last year...I just had them go straight into making 3 dimensional models and some of them didn't quite grasp the concept.

Before they made their atom, I had them jot down some important information in their science journals in regards to atoms. They then chose an element from a list of seven preselected elements (I chose elements with smaller atomic numbers, more manageable that way. I can see one or two of my students choosing Radium and having to count out 88 protons.).

Not one of my best charted posters, it was done in haste :/

 

One little disclaimer for the atom models...the electrons are smaller than the protons and neutrons and should be represented as so. Of course, I only had one size of the beads. I know I have smaller ones somewhere. I searched high and low to no avail. I'm sure they will pop up at the end of the year when they are no longer needed. Anyways, I had a discussion with my kids in regards to how the electrons should be smaller, but we had to make do with what we had.

• I had the students cut large circle out of construction paper (next year I think I will have them precut for them).
• Then they collected the correct amount of protons, neutrons, and electrons. (Next year, I think I will give assigned colors for the protons, electrons, and neutrons. For example, all the protons are yellow, neutrons are green, and electrons blue. Just a thought...)
• Once the students glued their protons, electrons, and neutrons onto their atom, they needed to label the charge of the protons (+) and the electrons (-).
• They then added a little key and the name of the element.

                                       

 

Again, this was just a quick and simple activity to get them introduced to the concept. Next week they will be turning in their wanted posters and 3D atom models for the element they chose. Hopefully, I will blog about that before the school year ends. :)

 

Here are lyrics (I forgot to take a photo of my chart) to a cute song I sing with the kids. The first day, before we sing the song, we discuss if there are any words that are important or words they may need clarification on. I use highlighter tape and highlight the word. The next day, you can add photos to represent those words to the poster (those of you familiar with GLAD strategies will recognize this strategy). Then we sing our hearts out!



 

The Atoms Family

Sung to the tune of the Adam's Family theme song

 

They're tiny and they're teeny,
Much smaller then a beeny
They never can be seeny,
The Atoms Family.

They are so small.
(snap, snap)
They're round like a ball.
(snap,snap)
They make up the air.
They're everywhere.
Can't see them at all.
(snap, snap)

Together they make gases,
And liquids like molasses,
And all the solid masses,
The Atoms Family

(Chorus)

Neutrons can be found,
Where protons hang around;
Electrons they surround
The Atoms Family

(Chorus)

Prove It!

Linkin' up with Fourth Grade Flipper, for Tried it Tuesday. Of course I'm always late with this kinda stuff. I still don't know how you all do it! I seem to blog in ebbs and flows...

I came across a great common core math resource and it definitely makes my kids think! Megan Astor has come up with an activity she calls Prove It! She has made them for 2nd-5th grades...check out her TPT store. I love how the Prove It activities give the students an equation or word problem that has been "solved" and they need to prove the answer to be true or false and be able to explain why the answer is true or false. There have been a few that have really stumped my students, which I think is a good thing. It really makes them think about how they would go about solving the problem and so forth. I must say, it was rough in the beginning because they weren't used to getting problems that have been solved and having to prove it true or false. They really struggled with defending their reasoning, but it is getting better! I use the activity as a warm up activity before our daily math lesson. There are only 35 problems in the packet, so I am thinking of creating my own when I run out.

Since we are limited on copies at my school, I chart the Prove It problems on chart paper and have the students work it out in their math journals. I then ask a volunteer to come up to the charted problem and they explain their thinking process and  the steps to proving the answer true or false. They LOVE coming up and getting to be the "teacher" and write on the chart. :)