What time we have left in High Ability is winding down. We will, of course, continue after break, but we only have two days next week. I will only see my math groups next week. I'll be at a High Ability Conference learning all kinds of great information! I do plan on pulling in my LA kiddos for a brief minute to give them a little special gift I've been working on.
This week we focused on problem solving for our Lifeskill. It's part of our language in here all the time. Some will voice a small problem, my pencil is broken, and I tell them to be a problem solver. Those who've had me before, go right into action.
Problem solving quotes for the week:
Problem solving quotes for the week:
- There are two ways to deal with problems. Solve them or change your perception of them.
- Turn your stumbling blocks into stepping stones.
- If you're not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.
- A problem well stated is a problem half solved. (Charles Kettering)
I cannot say enough good things about our new LA curriculum put out the the Indiana Department of Education. It's just fantastic! The units are excellent and the lessons are so in depth. The only draw back is that our schedule only allows for each group to be seen twice a week as you already know, so some lessons are drawn out. Believe me, the kids are great about it and are not loosing interest at all! We have run into a problem in second. . . .
My second graders have fallen in love with Edward Tulane, as I knew they would! The only thing is we will have to stop . . . right . . . . in . . . the . . . . middle . . . . of . . . the . . . . book and won't read again until AFTER break! I typed up an invitation and gave to each of them, inviting them to come back to our classroom to read on their own if they'd like to find out what happens to our dear Edward. On that first day . . .a majority of them gave up their recess to do just that!!!! I gave them a quiet place to read and off they went. I gave them the choice, so it was totally up to them. They are welcome to finish it at home as many of them did not finish. They'll just have to keep the ending a secret to those who've yet to finish it! We'll pick right back up with the lessons, review what we've read, discuss vocab, talk about his journey and play more rounds of Jeopardy for review after break!
Math for All:
On day two of math we did some logic puzzles with popsicle sticks. They started off somewhat easy and progressively got more difficult. All grades enjoyed it!
Fourth Grade LA:
Our timelines are coming along nicely. I gave them a paper that went over their "timeline requirements". I just love that this group really is motivated to do their best even though things are not graded. That says a lot about the character of each and everyone!!! We have quite a few who have their ten events typed out along with their pictures and are now constructing their timeline. They need to be aware of how they arrange them, so that their dates are appropriately spaced. They have chosen pictures to add once finished. We'll finish these up after break and begin on the PowerPoint presentations.
Fourth Grade Math:
On Wednesday we wrapped up our logic problems. After our problem of the day we went over the answers. Some were right on, but a few got off course. That's how it is with logic, you go down the wrong path and then they are all off. It was challenging to them and I believe they welcomed this.
Second Grade LA:
If you still have some holiday shopping left to do . . . may I suggest the book we're reading, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. You can even find it as an audio book. It's one that is a keeper to have in your collection and enjoy a second time together. To say they've gotten into it, would be an understatement!
You can see them working on diagraming a sentence. It's a tough skill, but we are working through it together. I'm looking to build on the basics as they learn. We're starting with having them identify the complete subject and complete predicate along with the nouns in the sentence. A few caught right on while others are lost! It will be an ongoing skill
Second Grade Math:
We were a day behind since I was out last week, so we picked up with our Pet Shop Game. They all started with $5.00 then rolled the dice to make their way around the board. They drew task cards which allowed them to buy a pet or at times rewarded them because their pet had babies. We worked on adding and subtracting money on paper. It was very challenging for them. Their biggest obstacle was lining up their ones, tens and hundreds.
Third Grade LA:
This week we worked around the third grade study trip to the Indiana Dunes, so the group was split up on each day. We followed up learning about the Edmund Fitzgerald by filling out a map of the Great Lakes. It's perfect since we live in this area! It's something they should know. They labeled the Great Lakes, the surrounding states and the tragic path that they Edmund Fitzgerald followed before disappearing. What an interesting legend to learn about! They really got into it! They finished up their drawings of the ship and I posted them outside our room for all to see.
Third Grade Math:
We got back to work on our Fraction Avenue projects. They're doing such a wonderful job on it. It's a neat and exciting way to review fractions. They were very unsure and uncomfortable when we first introduced fractions, but I can see that things are making sense to them now. Congrats to Jack, Caysen, Brandon Logan, Jai and Tyler for passing their facts!
First Grade LA:
My first graders learned yet another cipher called over and under. They were given a coded message and a box of letters. It didn't take them long to figure it out. I then moved them onto "word ladders". It's where they take a word and make it into another word. They can only change one letter at a time and it has to be a real word. They struggled at first and we laughed as they verbalized the silly words they came up with. "Is ______ a word?" I would ask them to use it in a sentence. They were enjoying themselves and knew the answer to their question before they asked it. By the end, they had solved most of their ladders. We began with one step and moved onto two step ones.
First Grade Math:
We got back to work on our addition mazes. These were frustrating when we left off last week. They definitely have it now, it's just not something that's quick and easy like they are used to. On a few, they have to slow down while adding two digit numbers which really isn't a first grade skill. When it was one 2-digit number I had them count up, but if it was two 2-digit numbers they added with regrouping. This group takes on the challenge willingly!
Yours in education,
Mrs. Koedyker
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