Stop and Jot

Today we taught our students something very important.  Our first thought is not our BEST thought.

Let me say it again.. your first thought is NOT your best thought.

In the past we told our kids to make connections.  They made shallow connections such as, I've used chopsticks before, I like to eat rice, I have a cat.  Now we know better.  We need deep connections.  Everyone uses their background knowledge to connect to a story/movie/game/etc.  But what else do you think?

Today we introduced a Jot Lot.  Our kids already know about stopping and jotting.  This gives them a place to show off their work.  No names are needed, you simply place your sticky note on your number.  Reading each others notes helps to grow their thinking.

We crafted our lesson from Falling In Love With Close Reading.

 We looked at the character in a narrative story using the point of view lens from chapter 5.

Then we read the book Everybody Cooks Rice.

Hmmm. What is the main character thinking? What text evidence do you have to support this? We wrote our first thought on an orange sticky note.  Then we read the book AGAIN talking with our partners about what was happening and used a new lens, what does the author want you to learn from this book. What is her point of view? What evidence do you have to support your thoughts?  This time when we stopped to jot on pink stickies, our thinking was better.  First thoughts - she was looking for her brother.  It was dinner time. 

Second time around -

 all her neighbors have different skin colors but cook the same foods in different ways.

Carrie learned about different cultures and what they eat.  She also learned that everybody eats rice. 

Our closing conversation was about people being basically the same, but also different.  We located each country on a map, of course, and talked about the variety of cultures in Carrie's neighborhood. 

I'm sure, the more we use the Jot Lot, the better our responses will be. But it's not just for reading, this can be used as a place for exit tickets in math, and for scientific thinking as well!

Our Principal has been SLIMED!

In honor of all of our Readers To Leaders Mrs. Phillips has been slimed! She congratulated all of the children that met their reading goal and then turned over her microphone as the teachers dribbled buckets of slime over her head. She challenged the children to continue to read. Some of the other "rewards" good readers have to look forward to include Bingo, watching Mrs. Phillips KISS a PIG, and listening to her read a book while duct taped to the dining room wall! Wow! Does she know how to motivate her students or what???? Where's my book - I'm ready to read right now!

A Plump and Perky Turkey

The November book of the month is called A Plump and Perky Turkey by Teresa Bateman and Jeff Shelly. This book is funny! The people in Squawk Valley were trying to find a turkey for Thanksgiving. They put up signs looking for a turkey to model for pictures and sculptures. Their plan was to eat the turkey on Thanksgiving but Pete (the model) was too smart for them. He camouflaged himself in the art work and escaped! He left a note saying Goodbye and he took the bird made of oatmeal as his modeling fee. The people of Squawk Valley were left to eat shredded wheat on Thanksgiving!
I made a connection to this book because I eat shredded wheat too, but for breakfast. On Thanksgiving my favorite foods are turkey and key lime pie!
By Sande

September Book of the Month

The book of the month is called the Amazing Pop-up Picture Atlas. When you open the book the first thing you see is the Earth and it spins around (because it's a pop-out). The book is organized by continents, beginning with North America. North America teaches you about the Native Americans, The Statue of Liberty, and when you flip open the page, you learn about languages (mostly Spanish and English), and it shows you the flags. The next page is about South America where people usually play soccer. There are also pages for Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica. The pictures help you understand what each continent is like. We recommend this book for kids in school and adults.
By Zack and Mrs. Metzger