Friday, December 18, 2009

3-5 Field Report

Last week, on 12-16-09, we went to Glen’s Ditch to collect data. It was the first time we didn’t catch any organisms like caddis flies, leeches, and arthropods. For example; on 11-18-09 we caught 2 caddisflies, a stickleback, and an arthropod. We think we didn’t catch any thing because they might have burrowed down into the sand. The banks of the ditch were frozen.

Collecting Data at Glen's Ditch


A Lot of Work!


A Snowflake!


Frosty Fun at Glen's Ditch


Monday, December 14, 2009

Good River Field Report

We went on a trip to the Good River on December 8th. Our favorite part was catching the little sole. We have never caught fish in a net before, so it was a fun experience. As we were walking we met Bill the dog. It was exiting and interesting. There was ice up high on the banks of the river. We decided that the ice was caused by the river coming up by the high tide.

Having Fun at Good River!!!


Huge Arthropod!


We caught this HUGE arthropod!

A Sole


When we were at the Good River we caught 3 soles!

Hoar Frost Galore!


Tuesday, December 8, 2009

“Paragraph a Week” Homework Assignment Due: December 11, 2009

“Paragraph a Week” Homework Assignment

Due: December 11, 2009

Assignment: A Great Discovery!Your assignment this week will be to write newspaper story about a new organism that you have discovered! How would you classify it? What kingdom does it belong to? Does it belong to The Animal Kingdom, The Plant Kingdom, The Fungi Kingdom, The Protist Kingdom, or The Moneran (bacteria) Kingdom? Be sure to include details about your newly discovered organism in your story. What kind of cells does your organism have? Where did you find it? Does it move? What is its food source? Be creative and have fun! You may include a drawing to go with your story. (In fact, it might help to start with a drawing.) You can use books, the internet, or last week’s science lesson to help you to include accurate details.

Your article should be at least one paragraph long. However, feel free to write more. Don’t forget a headline (a title)! Attached to this assignment are examples of newspaper stories.

Please bring the science handout back to school when you are finished.

3rd-5th Grade Newsletter 12-07-09


Last Week
Ø Thank you to Miła and Ela for teaching how to make paper!
Ø Ground Truth Trekkers Presentation

Upcoming Events
Ø Bear Bucks Store December 17th--Thanks to those who have donated items!
Ø Winter Mug Exchange--December 18th
Ø Good River Trip This Wednesday! (12/9/09) We will be leaving at 12:10 to go to the Good River to collect data for our year-long watershed study.
Ø Holiday Program December 16th
Ø Holiday Story Hour December 16th 10:30-11:30

Paragraph a Week
The assignment this week is A Great Discovery!

Word of the Week: mycologist

Monday, December 7, 2009

Field Report from Dec. 2

On December 2nd we went to Glen’s Ditch and collected data. The depth of the water was 13 inches. It was very cold, wet, and rainy. There were a lot of clouds! We had lots of fun.

The water at Glen’s Ditch was higher then usual. Most of the snow at Glen’s Ditch had disappeared. At Glen’s Ditch we found a weird type of fungus. Don’t forget to look at our pictures of it! That was the weirdest things we saw. Thank you for looking at our blog! Our next trip will be at Good River on Wednesday Dec. 9. Don’t forget to take a look at our blog after our trip to Good River!

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Water Quality Project

Velocity

Taking the velocity!

Mystery Fungus!


Please! We need to know what kind of fungus this is! If you have any ideas, please comment!

“Paragraph a Week” Homework Assignment (Due 12/4/09)

“Paragraph a Week” Homework Assignment

Due: December 4, 2009 (Rough Draft Only!)

Assignment: Letters About LiteratureYour assignment this week will be to write a letter to an author of a book that you have read recently. Only the rough draft of this letter is due on Friday, December 4th! (Please bring the book to school too.) During class next week you will edit and revise your letters and write a final draft. The final draft of the letter (4th and 5th grade) will be submitted to a national contest, Letters About Literature. A copy of the letter will also be sent to the author. We did this last year and had great results! Several students received letters back from the authors that they wrote.

Attached to this assignment sheet is a rubric/format guide for the letter. Letters should be at least three paragraphs long. They should have an opening paragraph, at least one body paragraph, and a closing paragraph. Today in class we read and discussed the example letter.

These letters should not be fan letters! Instead of complimenting the author you should be telling the author how the book affected you and changed your view of the world or self. The letter should not summarize the book either—the author already knows what happened in their book!

This week and next week there will be lessons and activities in class to help students to complete this assignment. We will be covering letter writing and responding to a book (versus complimenting an author and/or summarizing a book).

3rd, 4th and 5th Grade Newsletter

Bear Bucks Store
The Bear Bucks Store will be open on Thursday, December 17th! This will be a great opportunity for students to shop for Christmas gifts. We have several items for the store, but any donations of small items would be greatly appreciated.

After School Tutoring and Homework Help
Emma Johnson has offered to help students will homework after school, 3:30-4:30, on Mondays. This homework help will start next Monday, December 7th. I have talked to several of the students about this and many are interested. This is a great chance for students to complete math assignments, re-do work (from Red Folders), and to get started on the Paragraph of the Week Assignment.

Winter Mug Exchange
Attached is information about this fun activity!

Glen’s Ditch
We have a Glen’s Ditch trip scheduled for Wednesday, December 2nd. Are you interested in joining us?

Holiday Program and Holiday Story Hour
The Holiday Story Hour at the library is scheduled for December 16th, from 10:30-11:30. The annual School Holiday Program is the evening of December 16th. Save the date on your calendar!

Paragraph a Week
The assignment this week is Letters About Literature. Only the rough draft of this assignment is due on Friday. We will be revising and editing these letters next week in class.

Word of the Week: thalweg