Field Day

Last Friday our Coach planned a fun Field Day for all of the students. The students rotated through various events and then had three ribbon events. Two of our students got first place in the wiffle ball toss, one got first in the shoe fling, and one got third in the 40 yard dash. All of the students had a great time!

Safari Sunset Art

As a part of our lessons on various habitats and ecosystems, we talked about the desert and what animals must have to survive in the desert. We also talked about grasslands and the need for larger animals to have a wide space to roam. To extend our learning, I taught the students how to paint a sky to look like a setting sunset. We worked on mixing white into colors to make them lighter and then worked on blending the colors to fade into each other. After the paintings were dry, I helped the students trace various animals that would be found in this habitat as well as trees on black paper. They added these silhouettes to the paintings. They turned out fantastic!

Robot Writing

The students wrote papers about what their robots could do if they were real. They described what problem their robot would solve and how the buttons worked. I displayed their writing with a picture of them holding their robot.

Inventors Research Papers

A few weeks ago the students used PebbleGo to research one inventor of their choose. They wrote their facts on a Circle Map. They then used the facts to help them write a research paper. In the computer lab, they typed up their sentences. In class I called them over to the computer one at a time and we edited them together. We then printed a picture of their inventor from PebbleGo to display with their final product.

Garrett Morgan and the Traffic Light

While we were studying inventors, the students used PebbleGo to learn about Garrett Morgan and his many inventions. One of his main inventions that we discussed was the traffic light. We talked about how he saw a problem and came up with a way to solve it. Using a template of a traffic light, the students wrote at least three facts they learned about him.

Robots! Robots! Robots!

To conclude our unit on inventors, the students became inventors themselves. They were asked to bring in two boxes covered in foil. In class they planned and designed their robots and then glued them together with my help. The students were very creative and the robots turned out amazing! The kids are pretty cute, too!

An Awesome Dog

Through one of our Empowering Writers lessons, the students wrote about awesome dogs. They could write about their own dog or another dog. They described what their dog looked like, what it could wear, and what it would say if it could talk. We then had a mini art lesson on how to draw animals using simple shapes such as circles and ovals. They then added details of their choosing to match their writing.

Name Parts of a Set

To quickly review parts of a set, the students colored their names to sort the vowels and consonants. They then counted how many vowels were in their name out of the whole set and how many consonants out of the whole set. This mini lesson can be found on my TpT store.

Measuring Length

The students worked in small groups to measure various objects around the room. They measured with a variety of units including Base Ten Blocks, paper clips, color tiles, etc. They then compared the length of their objects to those of other groups.

Mother's Day Gifts

Using the online program Tagxedo, the students typed words to describe their mother. They chose from one of the heart shapes and many color themes to personalize it. I then printed their hearts in color and cut them out. Using a roller, they ModPodged their hearts on ceramic tiles.

GPISD Elementary Teacher of the Year!

Last Tuesday I was honored to be chosen as Grand Prairie ISD's Elementary Teacher of the Year! There is a saying that individually we are just one drop of water but together we are an ocean. This award would not have been possible without my family, the teachers who have mentored me throughout my career, and the amazing group of people I get to work with at Moseley daily!

Guest Speaker

Friday first grade had a guest speaker to share information about her job in the promotions department of KISS FM radio. Ms. Guterriez, who has a brother in one of our first grade classes, talked to the students about the importance of reading and writing in her job, the reason radio stations do promotions (to persuade - great tie in to author's purpose), and how they use technology (great tie in to our lessons on inventions). Another great tie in was that Friday was also GenTX Day which promotes college readiness. According to their website, "This year’s GenTX Day is a call to action statewide to motivate students with a real-world college experience that inspires them to visualize a career goal and take the steps to achieve it." The guest speaker told the students that she will be graduating soon with  a degree in broadcasting and was able to stress the importance of college. Thank you to our teammate, Ms. Moncibaiz, for setting this up for our students.