Boredom Busters...

I know this would be something fun to try!

End of year video

End of Third Grade Year : o ) from Patricia Goins on Vimeo.

Last days of third grade...

Boredom Busters...

Today I was talking with a few of our kids and they got a great idea to keep up a weekly "boredom busters" post that would give ideas for activities to do during the summer months.   I saw this and thought it had a few good ideas to begin the summer with:

Thursday & Friday's Events....

Thursday's Schedule:

11:30- Pizza party & Class Awards

12:45- 5th Grade Clap-Out

1:00- Cake with Miss.Reynold's class

           & end of year movies : o )

*Parents are more than welcome to attend!*

Friday's Schedule:
8:30- Kickball tourney with Miss.Reynold's Class
10:00- Schoolhouse Rock!
11:00- Lunch and Socializing
12:00- Say our good-byes and dismissal

Technology Day!

Dear Students & Parents,

On Wednesday students may bring in iPads, iPods, and any technology games they would like to play. We will be working on our blogs as well as learning how to use some new 2.0 apps.

See you techies tomorrow!

Third Grade Field Day: Goins' Groovies!

Field Day Information

Field Day is coming up next Friday, May 25. We will be outside from 8:30 - 10:00. Please plan on sending a water bottle as well as a dry change of clothes on that day.  Our team color is purple, so be sure to wear a purple shirt that day! 

am and pm....what do they mean?

An interesting question came up today about the meaning of "am" and "pm", so we did a little research and this is what we learned:

In the US, where we live on a twice 12 hour clock display, we have two time areas: AM and PM. Even though we have adapted A.M., which means "ante meridiem" and denotes time between midnight and noon and P.M., which literally means "post meridiem" and denotes time between noon and midnight, the retaining of Latin words is not everyone's forte.

After bouncing ideas back and forth how to put those two time references into an easy understandable format, Michael Phillips, author of "The Digital Dictionary", came up with the following explanation:

AM = after midnight
PM = past midday (12:00 noon)

easy to understand...easy to remember.

The Star Spangled Banner Lyrics

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

Happy Mother's Day!

Sack lunch count:

Dear Parents,


    Please let me know if your child will need a sack lunch for Thursday, May 31st as well as for the last day of school, which is an early release day.  Just leave a comment to let me know!

  Sincerely,

Hairspray!

Our very own Andrew performed in his dance school's production of Hairspray!  He was able to work with some very talented and accomplished dancers.  We are so proud of him : o )

this is Emery he really inspired me in gymnastics because he never gave up and that got him to nations best on floor he showed me never give up and now I  can do a back layout on the trampoline!

these are the dynamites

these are some other friends

in hairspray I experienced a lot of good stuff during hairspray my favorite memory is when my friend Emery did a round off flip flop back tuck and my second favorite is when the director said in the finale I could do my middle splits an in the show the crowd went crazy when i did it! 

Caitie Locks

Yesterday our very own Caitie decided to cut off her long hair and give it to locks of love in the hopes of making another child feel very special!  

Caitie Locks:

It was the big day. I felt so scared. But then I thought about the person who would get my hair and how happy they would feel. I walked in the door then he took me in he put my hair in the pony tail where it had to get cut I herd the first snip then came the second snip and then before I knew it was all cut.I saw my pony tail on the desk and kissed it good bye.But at the very end I felt good knowing that it was going  to go to somebody that had no hair.

What a shining example of thinking of others!  I am so proud of her- way to go Caitie!!

The Power of Blogging in the Classroom

     This year has been a special year for our classroom.  My students were introduced to the world of blogging.
     I've been asked by a lot of people what the benefits of blogging are in the classroom.  There are so many!  I would have to say the top two are 1.parent communication and 2. purpose and audience for our students writing.
     Parents were given a window in which to look in and observe our learning, read our writing, and just stay informed.  Our students have been given an audience for their words and an authentic purpose for writing.  They are excited by comments left and encouraged to pick up their notebooks and write more- without me asking them to do it ; o ) They have learned the value of commenting and how to leave a "thoughtful" comment.  They understand the power of their words and how using them in a positive way can encourage someone else to write.
    Another benefit has been more global.  Our students are learning about children in other countries and their similarities as well as differences.  They are seeing a larger world view- something that many students don't experience until they are much older.  We are meeting technology TEKS that only blogging can bring.
    I am amazed every day at the level of engagement and authenticity blogging brings to our classroom.  To me, this is what REAL learning looks like.   Thank you to all of you who come by and comment here each day!

Showing Character...

Character is doing the right thing when nobody's looking.  There are too many people who think that the only thing that's right is to get by, and the only thing that's wrong is to get caught.  ~J.C. Watts


This quote has been on the character page of our blog for a while now, but I have to hand it to our kids- they are following it.  The past few weeks they have earned a perfect "3" for their behavior in the cafe.  Sure we have had a few days of "2", but for the most part it's been 3's.  Way to go Rockstar kids!

Getting Mathy with Technology!

Tomorrow we will have a special guest parent visiting our room with some very special technology!  I told our class that if they have an iphone, ipad, or itouch with a math app already installed on it that they may bring it tomorrow to use during our math and technology stations.  I will be sure to photograph and flip video the event to post on our blog  : o )

Writer's Celebration this Friday!

  This Friday we will be having our Writer's Celebration for Book Reviews!  Our writers have been hard at work during this unit reading, evaluating and critiquing books.  We are also publishing on Digital Diaries- so be sure to read and leave comments for our authors!

Check us out!

 

I have some students with similar interests who decided to start blogs of their own!  I am so proud of how these students have joined together and collaborated to create something that they can be proud of.  Be sure to click on the links under Goins' kid's blogs to see what they are up to and leave thoughtful comments.

 These are some tech savvy kids : o )

Yearbooks...

It’s not too late to order your Mossman yearbook for the 2011-2012 school year.  Orders can be placed at ybpay.com or with order forms.  If you are in need of another order form, let me know and I can get you a copy. 

Orders need to be placed by Monday March 26, 2012.

Thanks,

Michele Smalligan

Mossman Yearbook