Teaching Through Innovation: 2011

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

We have been working on identifying main idea. The kids have learned to first identify what is important and what is non-important in their reading. Then, they think about what happened most to find the main idea. Recently, they applied this to the real-world to identify the main idea about their family. The details proved the main idea and the non-important things were things that they really don't like doing and don't support their main idea.

Here are the videos of each child's family main idea.

Abby

Adam

Alexa

Amanda

Sabrina

Nick

Libby

Lake

Kenzie

Josie

John

Jake

Emily

Ellie

Dace

Brady

Ben

Austyne

Ava

Dutch

Jackson

Monday, December 12, 2011

Curriculum Update December 12-16

I hope that everyone had a wonderful weekend. For this week, please don't forget that the winter party is at 3:00 pm on Thursday and that Friday is a half day. Please send in a sack lunch.

enVision Math
We will be working on money this week. Due to the alignment with the Core Curriculum, enVision doesn't have money. Homework will look a little different since we had to create the unit. The children can price things at the grocery store or in the circulars received in the mail for extra practice.

Rigby Reading
We will not be doing Rigby this week. We will continue to work on main idea through our invention research project.

Spelling

There is no spelling this week.

Science
We will continue to focus on recycle, reduce, reuse and pollution.

Social Studies

We will continue to work on the top ten inventors. Students will also be working on an inventor homework sheet that will help with our invention mural project.

We will also continue our Pay it Forward project for Children's Mercy and the residents at a local nursing home.

Writing
We look to complete our first edition of the USA Leggett Today class newspaper. We will also write our pen pals in Georgia back and work on some Power of the Pen letters.

Have a wonderful week and safe and relaxing holiday.

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Curriculum Update December 5-9

I hope that everyone had a wonderful and relaxing weekend. Please don't forget that the third grade music program is on Thursday. Our winter party will be December 15 at 3:00. Thank you to Becky Gipson for organizing our party. Look for more information to come.

Also, the Ron Wimmer USD 232 Fund fundraiser will continue this week. For $1, your child will be able to purchase a tattoo. For $2, they will purchase a tattoo and raffle ticket. For $5, they will purchase a tattoo, raffle ticket and a question and answer session with KU Linebacker, Steven Johnson.

enVision Math
Last week, we took a short walk to identify geometric shapes, lines and angles in the real world. The kids took pictures and made video recordings. Look for the videos and pictures soon.

We will continue our domain of two-dimensional shapes and their attributes. This week we will will focus on solving a simpler problem and making and testing generalizations. We will take our Topic 11 test on Thursday.

The Rigby Spelling list will focus on syllables. The Rigby words are that, this, which, with, window, tractor, napkin, basket, idea and typical. The extension list focus is ian, or which means a person who. The words are centenarian, dictator, governor, inventor, juror, legislator, librarian, octogenarian, translator, veterinarian.

Science
We will continue to focus on recycle, reduce, reuse and pollution.

Social Studies

We began an unit on inventors. The students worked in groups of four to study different inventors. This week we will focus on the top ten inventions and inventions in our homes.

Writing
We will continue to work on our USA Leggett Today newspaper articles. We close to finishing our first edition of our class newspaper.

Last week, we wrote our pen pals in Kentucky back. This week, we will write to our pen pals in California.

Have a wonderful week!

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Student Created Video Games!!!

The students created their own video game to work on creativity in problem solving along with using reading skills in math. Students had to summarize their game and play another student's game. They then had to write and evaluation. They had to create at least three levels and then had to write about their game in Kid Blog. Here are links to play each child's game. Good luck playing them!

Nick-The Hot http://sploder.com/?s=d002d8vg
Lake-The Masters http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt0a
Kenzie-Supercheese http://sploder.com/?s=d002bwnl
Abigail-Tree http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt0c
Libby-The Fun http://sploder.com/?s=d002ew32
Dutch-The Impossible Game http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt0j
Dace-DRiddle http://sploder.com/?s=d002bsyc
Austyne-The Night of the Samurai http://sploder.com/?s=d002bwoi
John-Bad Day http://sploder.com/?s=d002bsyv
Sabrina-Sabrina's Game http://sploder.com/?s=d002d8uh
Amanda-Enimies http://sploder.com/?s=d002bsyx
Ellie-Ellie Reese http://sploder.com/?s=d002bwoc
Ben-Escape from the Town http://sploder.com/?s=d002bsyy
Brady-Night of the Tunnels http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt0d
Josie-Monsters are Coming Soon http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt08
Jackson-Boom http://sploder.com/?s=d002c5ks
Ava-Be Aware of the Bad Guys http://sploder.com/?s=d002bwnr
Alexa-Alexa's Game http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt02
Emily-Not as Easy as Cake http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt0b
Jake-Goodbye http://sploder.com/?s=d002bt00

Here is a link to the KidBlog of each student blogging about their game.
http://kidblog.org/MrsLeggettsClass2/bleggett/creation-of-your-video-game/

Here is the evaluation of other students' games:
http://kidblog.org/MrsLeggettsClass2/bleggett/evaluation-of-video-game/

Class Election

The past couple of weeks, we have been studying government. Students learned about rights versus responsibility, what defines a citizen, the roles of the three branches of government, elections and how laws are passed. For the students to better understand the process, we had an election for class president. Students were nominated by their peers. Once the candidates were decided, students were broken into campaign teams. Students campaigned for a week and the election was held on November 25. Congratulations to Josie Taylor, Class President, Nick Mason, Vice President and Class Representatives, Dace Riddle and John Lehan.

Class Representative, John Lehan, Vice President, Nick Mason, Class Representative, Dace Riddle and Class President, Josie Taylor

Pay it Forward Continues

We continued our class "Pay it Forward" campaign. For Veteran's Day, the kids learned about the true meaning of a veteran. They then made cards and brought in magazines, coffee, chapstick, razors and crossword puzzles. Everything was delivered to the Kansas City VA Medical Center. They were happy to receive the donations and cards from the students.

The students brought in a lot of Halloween candy for the soldiers. We were able to fill two large boxes. They also wrote letters. We purchased beanie babies for the soldiers to disburse to kids. In addition, we sent USA magnets for the soldiers. Everything was sent to Operation Gratitude.

We made Thanksgiving cards and wreaths for the residents at Villa St. Francis nursing facility in Olathe. The residents were so excited to receive the gifts for Thanksgiving. There were many smiles and the facility management was extremely appreciative of how generous the kids were.

Students were filling the box for veterans

The students created wreaths and cards for the residents at Villa St. Francis.

The students sorted through candy and beanie babies to send to soldiers, along with their letters and USA magnets.

Students discuss the Pay it Forward project.

Ellie, MVP

Ellie was a wonderful MVP and very deserving. She is a great friend and is always respectful. Ellie loves to dance. Although she appears quiet, she can sometimes surprise you with singing and dancing. Ellie is very kind to everyone in class. She is just a wonderful person!

By Team Leggett Publicists: Emily Gipson & Nick Mason

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Curriculum Update November 28-December 2

I hope that everyone has a relaxing Thanksgiving break with family and friends. Here is our curriculum update for the week.

enVision Math
We will continue our domain of two-dimensional shapes and their attributes. This week we will focus on quadrilaterals, combining and separating shapes, making new shapes, solving a simpler problem with problem solving, and making and testing generalizations.

Rigby Reading
We will skip to Theme 16 where we will focus on recycle and renew. This will coincide with what we will be studying in Social Studies. The comprehension strategy is determining importance: purpose for reading. We will also work on decoding and word-analysis, along with fix-up strategies.

SpellingThe Rigby Spelling list will focus on consonant doubling and syllables. The Rigby words are can, cook, find, your, bragger, dimmed, splitting, tripped, and transferred. The extension list is phobia, which means fear of. The extension words are ailurophobia, arachnophobia, acrophobia, graphophobia, hemophobia, hydrophobia, ornithophobia, photophobia, xenophobia, and zoophobia.

Science
We will begin a unit on recycling and pollution.

Social StudiesWe will begin a unit on inventions.

Writing
We will continue to work on our USA Leggett Today newspaper articles.

Have a wonderful week!

Friday, November 11, 2011

Posing with Autographed Wayne Simien Photos

The class received signed pictures from former Miami Heat & KU Jayhawk, Wayne Simien.

Amanda MVP

We have learned a lot about Amanda this week. She had an awesome MVP week and is really cool. She shared her baseballs with us and gave us tips about excuses for forgetting homework. Amanda is really good at taekwondo. She has broken a lot of boards with her bare hands. Amanda is a great friend and is very deserving of Team Leggett MVP!

By Team Leggett Publicists: Emily & Nick

Forming a Cloud in Science

We learned about clouds this week in weather. The kids learned that the three most important things needed to be present to form a cloud are moisture, cooling air and condensation nuclei. With the use of a rubber glove, matches, jar, water, lamp, and a rubber band, they were able to see water vapor form as the water heated under the lamp. When the jar was swirled, water molecules were able to be moved into the air.

Students took turns putting their hand inside the glove, which increased the air pressure. The air became more dense as the molecules crowded together. This also caused the air to heat up as molecules collided with each other more often.

Descriptive Writing with Oobleck

We created oobleck in class to work on descriptive writing. Oobleck was a name given to a type of slime in a Dr. Seuss book that was capable of gumming up a whole kingdom. The kids were able to learn about the interesting parts of liquids and solids. Oobleck behaved like a liquid jelly, but squeezed like a solid. Afterwards, the kids created descriptive writing pieces about the oobleck.

Country Mouse, City Mouse VIdeo Rotation Schedule

The Mill Valley High School students recently completed our class movie, Country Mouse, City Mouse. A schedule has been created for you to view the movie and copy it if you would like. If you receive a copy from a friend ahead of time, please let me know so that I can take you off of the video rotation schedule.

Video Rotation:

November 11 – 14 – Brady

November 14 – 17 –Jake

November 18 – 21 – Emily

November 21 – 28 – Kenzie

November 28 – December 1 – Sabrina

December 2 – 5 – Austyne
December 5 – 8 – John

December 9 – 12 – Alexa

December 12 – 15 – Nick

January 6 – 9 – Jackson

January 9 – 12 – Dutch

January 13 – 17 - Ellie

January 17 – 19 – Amanda

January 20 – 22 – Dace

January 23 – 26 – Abigail

January 27-30- Libby

January 30-February 3- Josie

February 3- 6- Ava

February 6-10- Adam

February 10-13- Ben

February 13-17-Lake

Curriculum November 14-18

I hope that everyone had a wonderful week. If possible, we need the following items for our veteran's care package by Friday, November 11. Thanks!

Magazines (3 months old and newer)
Coffee
Puzzle books
Chap stick
Disposable razors
New socks, underwear, t-shirts

enVision Math
We will be taking the Topic 6 test on Monday. We will begin Topic 11 on Tuesday with a focus on two-dimensional shapes and their attributes. The topics for the week will be lines and line segments, angles, polygons, and triangles.

Rigby Reading
We will continue Theme 6 "Roads to Travel". The comprehension focus skills will be creating images and reviewing monitor understanding.

Spelling
The Rigby Spelling list will focus on silent consonants b, g, and gh. The Rigby words are anything, think, us, way, subtle, debt, design, gnat, sleigh, and reign. The extension list is sub, which means under. The words are subconscious, subcutaneous, subdue, subfreezing, subirrigate, subject, submarine, submerge, subordinate and subway.

Science
We completed a focus on weather.

Social Studies
We will begin a unit on the government learning about the different branches and roles of government leaders. The students will simulate the different branches so that they can better understand each branch. We also will begin a campaign for class president.

Writing
We have began looking at newspapers. The kids will be broken into groups to begin their class newspaper.

Have a wonderful week!

Friday, November 4, 2011

Weather Pics

We learned about tornadoes and snow in science this week. The kids created their own snow and tornadoes so that they could get a better understanding of each of them.

Curriculum November 7-11

Thank you to everyone that sent in candy for the troops. It is greatly appreciated. It is not too late. The kids will be writing letters this week to include with the candy and beanie babies.

On Monday, please look for a new program that third grade is sponsoring called Cool the Earth. It is a program where the kids will take an initiative towards helping the earth. The students will come home with a coupon book. They only need to complete a task one time to bring the coupon in. The pledge is for them to try to continue it, but not anything they will need to keep track of.

enVision Math
We will be continuing multiplication. We wil work on multiplying with 3 factors, multiplication facts, multiplying to find combinations, and reviewing Topic 6.

Rigby Reading
We will begin Theme 6 "Roads to Travel". The comprehension focus skills will be creating images and reviewing monitor understanding.

Spelling
The Rigby Spelling list will focus on silent consonants w, h, b, g, and gh. The Rigby words are room, same, saw, that's, comb, honest, limb, numb, wrist, and tomb. The extension list focus is contra, counter (against, opposite). The extensions words are contraband, contradict, contrarian, contrary, contrast, counterbalance, counterclockwise, counterexample, counterfeit, counterintuitive.

Science
We will continue learning about weather with a focus on clouds and precipitation.

Social Studies
We will begin a unit on the government learning about the different branches and roles of government leaders. The students will simulate the different branches so that they can better understand each branch,

Writing
We end our descriptive writing on Monday and begin focusing on Expository writing. The kids will begin their own classroom newspaper.

Have a wonderful week!

Dace, Team Leggett MVP

Dace, you are so awesome and you are cool too! Dace loves pizza. He is an amazing soccer player and loves to play it whenever he has a free opportunity. His favorite color is orange. We bet you must love pumpkins, Dace! He is a great friend and just a wonderful person to have in class. Go Dace!!!
By Team Leggett Publicists: Alexa & Josie

Pumpkin Math

In math, we used pumpkins to estimate weight, height and the number of seeds in a pumpkin. They also related the weight of their pumpkin to things throughout the school. After taking out the seeds, the kids counted them and then found the min, max, range, median, and range. We had a total of 1,522 seeds in four two lb. pumpkins. The kids used the cooked pumpkin seeds the next day to better understand how the distributive property works. In the end, they finally had some pumpkin seeds that they could eat!

Halloween Party

A special thank you to Lisa VanInwegen and Emily Gipson for running the Halloween party. Also, thank you to everyone for sending in items to make the party a success. The kids really had a good time. Thanks!

Abby, Team Leggett MVP

Abby is one of the nicest people I know. She is caring and friendly to everybody. She loves dogs and cats. She has two dogs named Willie and Fergie. This has been one of the most fun MVPs we have ever done. Abby is just a loving and caring person. She is someone that you can trust!!!
By Team Leggett Publicists: Dace & Alexa

Tourism Day

Tourism Day was a success. The kids created maps out of playdough and then displayed them with other information about their statement. They each did a great job and were definitely experts on their state!

Monday, October 31, 2011

October 31-November 4

Curriculum October 31-November 4
I hope that everyone had a relaxing and enjoyable weekend.
We will be collecting Halloween candy to send to the troops along with letters of gratitude and beanie babies. If there is any extra Halloween candy, please send it in with your child. Thank you in advance for your support.

enVision Math
Monday, we will be using pumpkins to estimate and practice analyzing data. The rest of the focus of the week will be: The Distributive Property, 3 as a factor, 4 as a factor, and 6 and 7 as factors.

Rigby Reading
We will continue the last week of Theme 5 "Times Have Changed" in Rigby. The comprehension strategies we will continue to focus on are monitor understanding and reviewing synthesizing.

Spelling
The Rigby Spelling list will focus on silent consonants. The Rigby list words are found, laugh, sleep, something, avoid, choice, destroy, oyster, royal, and turquoise.

The extension list focus is co, com (together). The extension words are coexist, cohesive, coincidence, combine, commiserate, committee, communication, community, compare, and compatible.

Science
We will begin a unit on weather learning about types of weather and weather patterns.

Social Studies
We will begin a unit on the government learning about the different branches and roles of government leaders.

Writing
We will continue our focus on descriptive writing this week. The students will use personification to bring inanimate things to life.

Have a wonderful week!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

October 24-28

Curriculum October 24-28
It has been a pleasure meeting with each of you about your child's progress. I really enjoy how each of you are so involved in your child's education. Without your partnership, success would not happen.
A special thank to Lisa VanInwegen who has planned our Halloween party on Friday, October 28. Also, thank to each of you for volunteering to send in the necessary supplies to enable the party to be a success.

On Wednesday, October 26, the third grade will have their Tourism Day. You are welcome to attend. It will run from 1:00-3:30. You can stop by and see how your child has become "An Expert" on their state.

Last Monday, Colli Lawyer began student teaching in our classroom. Many of you probably have met her before. She previously was a para at Prairie Ridge and has worked with many of your children. She will be with us through December.

enVision Math
We will complete Topic Five this week. On Monday, the students will use problem solving to begin designing their own video game. Tuesday, we will complete 5-7 (Two Question Problem-Solving). Wednesday will be the test review, Thursday will be the Topic Five test, and Friday we will work more on our video games.

Rigby Reading
We will continue Theme 5 "Times Have Changed" in Rigby. The comprehension strategies we will continue to focus on are monitor understanding and reviewing synthesizing.

Spelling
The Rigby Spelling list will focus on the ou, ow, oy, and oi patterns. The Rigby list is first, fish, live, pick, pouch, allow, ounce, growl, proud, and mountain.
The extension list focus is quad (four). The extension words are quadrangle, quadrant, quadrennial, quadriceps, quadrilateral, quadrilingual, quadrisect, quadruped, quadruple, and quadruplet.

Science
Please remember that the Blazing Insulated House project is due Monday, October 24.

Social Studies
We will continue our geography unit where the students have began doing research on an assigned state. The culminating Tourism Day is on Wednesday from 12:30-3:30.

Writing
We will continue our focus on descriptive writing this week. The students will complete their monster writing and begin working on a hands-on comparison/contrast descriptive piece.

Have a wonderful week!

Friday, October 14, 2011

October 17-21

Curriculum October 17-21
I am looking forward to seeing each of you are parent teacher conferences on Wednesday and Thursday. A sheet about your child's strengths and weaknesses will be coming home in your Monday folder. Please fill it out and bring it to your conference.

enVision Math
We will continue to work on Multiplication this week. Last week, we learned our 2's, 5's, and 9's. This week we will be multiplying by 0 and 1, analyzing patterns for facts, and looking at 10 as a factor.

Rigby Reading
We will begin Theme 5 "Times Have Changed" in Rigby. The comprehension strategies focused on will be monitor understanding and reviewing synthesizing.
Spelling
Due to the short week, there is NO Spelling this week.

Science
Please remember that the Blazing Insulated House project is due Monday, October 24.

Social Studies
We will continue our geography unit where the students have began doing research on an assigned state. The culminating Tourism Day has been changed to October 26.
Writing
We will continue our focus on descriptive writing this week. The students will begin a Monster Writing Project with a school in Ohio. The students will draw a monster, then write a detailed description about the monster. The writing will be exchanged where the students will have to draw a monster based on their partner's descriptive writing piece.

Have a wonderful week!