Busy Week

We had a fun, and busy week this week! It was filled with assemblies and guest speakers. We started out the week with a school-wide (actually 4th-6th grade) geography bee on Tuesday. Two of our classmates were invited to participate in this. We were

very proud of them and they studied hard in preparation for this.

On Thursday we were excited to have Natalie from the Museum of Natural History come to talk to us about rocks and how to be good scientists. The stu

dents got to look at a variety of rocks and sort them, observe them and take down notes about what they saw. They learned about the three main types of rocks. It was a great introduction to our rock unit that we will be starting in a few weeks.

The Living Planet Aquarium came on Friday to help us understand the water cycle and how it affects each of us. They had some great models that represented the water cycle as well as the different uses of water on earth. We learned that only 1% of water on earth is actually "drinkable." The students learned some great vocabulary(precipitation, condensation, evaporation, and collection).

The aquarium also brought a few animals for us to see. We got to see a Tiger Salamander, a Red Spotted Toad and a King Snake. The students (who wanted to) were actually able to touch the snake. Itwas a highlight for some, others were not happy about the idea of a snake being in the room.

Grinch Day

We had a fun day today!! I told the kids that we'd be having a Grinch day and they could wear green if they wanted. I started the day out by reading the story, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." Then we talked about how the Grinch changed in the story and the development of that character in the book. The kids made text to self connections with the book. We talked about what makes them grumpy and what makes them happy. They discussed the things that make the Grinch feel these two feelings.

We then moved into writing and brainstormed a list of words to describe the Grinch. I was so proud of all the words they came up with! I taught them about similies (describing something using the words like or as) and they wrote similies to describe the Grinch.

Student Samples:

"The Grinch is as smelly as an onion outside on a hot summer day."

"The Grinch is as smelly as rotten fruit."

"The Grinch is as hairy as a wooly mammoth."

"The Grinch is as green as the grass."

Then I gave them a writing prompt: "To make the Grinch grin I would..." and they finished the prompt. I was surprised at how many different ideas they came up with. We then made Grinch heads out of paper and they wrote their ideas inside the Grinch's smile. They turned out really cute.

We choral read a poem about the Grinch, practicing a variety of expressions that we could use. This helps develop their fluency skills.

After lunch we did some "Grinch math" where they solved some problems that were all about the Grinch! They thought this was fun and it was a NICE break from doing long division (which we've been working on for a couple weeks now).

We finished up our Grinch day by watching the animated movie and then talking about the similarities and differences between the book and the movie. Overall it was a really fun day with learning involved!!

Making Butter

We have been learning about some of the groups of people that came through Utah in our social studies units. To go along with this unit we made some butter in class. The kids enjoyed shaking their jars and watching the whipping cream turn to butter. Everyone enjoyed the end result: bread and butter :)

Halloween

We had a great time celebrating Halloween at school! We started out with a school wide parade in the morning and then enjoyed some activities that the PTA planned for us down in the gym. The weather was beautiful so we were able to go outside and enjoy the sunshine and warmth. After lunch we had our own classroom party that our room mom planned. We are thankful for the moms that came to help us celebrate. We played some games and ate some donuts. It was a fun filled day.

Fun Run

Last week we had our annual Wildcat Fun Run! The students enjoyed doing some Zumba before the Fun Run began.

After the fun run they had oranges and bagels for the kids to enjoy. There was also a fire truck with its hose on for the students to cool down under.

We had a great time and really appreciate all the time that the PTA put into organizing this activity. The kids, and parents, look forward to this event each year. I also heard that we raised over $12,000 for our school! Thanks to everyone who donated money!

Silver Lake

Today was our field trip to Silver Lake! We had a great time learning all about where our water comes from, animals and how they survive in their environment and the different trees found in Utah. We braved some hail and rain while listening to our guides and some of us were lucky enough to see a moose (we learned that moose can run up to 30 MPH)! One group saw a deer! We were also very lucky to have many moms, dads and even a grandma join us! Thanks for spending the day with our class.

Instructions for Volunteering

In order to volunteer in the school you will need to complete the volunteer form through the district homepage. I have been told that even if you completed one last year you have to renew it again this year. So, here are the instructions:

1. go to www.canyonsdistrict.org

2. Scroll over the "parents and Students" tab

3. Click on "volunteers"

4. Click on "Click here to complete the volunteer application"

5. Fill in the application and make sure you click 'Submit' when you finish!