Hello there. I hope you enjoyed your break as much as I did. We went up to Cody to check out the Buffalo Bill Museum finally! Wow!! We need to go there on our field trip. Animals galore and some awesome character displays with the Plains Indians. Will have to seriously consider that one next year! If you have never been, you have got to take the kiddos this summer. There was even displays on Pangea, volcanoes, fossils, and types of rocks. Wow!! It was like bringing our classroom alive.
I also had time to think and brainstorm about our next Social Studies and CC Meeting units. For SS, we will be taking an in depth look into Alaska. I just found and read the most amazing book about Alaska. It is about a little girl, 14 yrs. old, that flew to Alaska to see her mom in a remote area. No phones, no electricity, no indoor plumbing. Oh my! Then her plane wrecks and the pilot dies. She is stuck in the Arctic by herself. She is eventually found by an Inupiat trapper and taken to his village. She learns so many lessons about survival and daily hardships. It is awesome!!!!!! We will read that together. We will also study the whales in the arctic and their migration routes. We will wrap up the unit by watching the movie Big Miracles. It is the story that we read in our HR about a pod of whales that got trapped in the Arctic and the town has to help get them back on their migration route. Lastly, we will have two guest speakers, one on whales and their arctic cruise, and the other will be skyping in LIVE from Alaska. She was a teacher at Skyview, got married, and moved to Alaska. How cool is that!
The CC unit will be on dreams and goals. We will be focussing on what we want to do when we grow up, the small steps it will take to get there (ladder), and how we will feel when we reach it. I would then like to close this unit by watching the movie Soul Surfer. It is an AMAZING movie about sticking with your dream even when it seems impossible, like becoming a pro surfer when your arm is bitten off by a shark! It also shows how important it is to take time out, see things that are worse than your situation, and get your perspective back. I can't wait for this unit! We will do it during our MontCas testing window, which starts in March. That is like two weeks people!!!
Speaking of testing, we are just about ready! We are learning, some the hard way, how to fill in those little bubbles correctly and fully. If they are not, the scanner that grades them will mark them wrong even if they have the bubble correct. So, they have to be perfect. This week, we will work on more math and reading constructive responses. That is where they have to explain, prove, or show their work. Practice, practice, practice. I am so proud of all these kids and can't wait to see them shine!!!
Well, that about does it. Here is your blog trivia for $10. What is the capital of Alaska? Ask your child, they have a test on it this coming Friday. Yep, the West states and caps test will be this Friday. We have flash cards at school. Did they make a set for home? If yes, then write STATES also in the planner for an extra $10.
Have a wonderful Monday!!!!
