Fourth Grade (Monday, 2/27)
Winter break update—Students worked on developing their communication skills by summarizing one or two events from their week off of school.
Summer of Bright Ideas-- Brochures and registration forms are coming home today with information about the Summer of Bright Ideas program. If you have questions regarding this summer daycamp-styled program which is designed specifically for current 1st-5th grade Fayette County enrichment students, please contact one of the teachers on the brochure or me. The first day to register for courses is April 10. If you plan on your child(ren) participating in this amazing summer opportunity, please plan to register on that day. Classes fill quickly!
Perplexing Placement Puzzle—Today’s puzzle was quite timely considering the beautiful weather we have been experiencing. The subject of this puzzle was kites. Four children were flying four very colorful kites. 4th graders flew through clues to correctly color the four kites.
Quotation Quizzler—Frederick Douglass is the speaker responsible for today’s quote, “The soul that is within me no man can degrade.” Fourth graders discussed Douglass and the possible meaning of this quote. After looking up the word, “degrade,” students decided on a general meaning: No one can take away what’s inside of you. Other thoughts that students shared:
“It’s like that sticks and stones saying. But, that’s not really true. Words can hurt you.”
“When you have thoughts and feeling deep down in your soul, nobody can make you change no matter what they do to you.”
Perspective Picture: Instead of the typical three questions, today’s perspective picture was a quiz asking students to identify various animals based on their patterns. The class was 10/18. How well can you do? Here’s the link: http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/quiz/can-you-identify-these-animal-patterns
Is Seeing Believing? Based on the perspective picture activity, the students decided that sometimes what you think you see is not always what you are seeing. With this knowledge in mind, the students explored an activity designed to develop their creative thinking skills: Seeing Double. This exercise was designed to help students get their eyes connected to their creative minds by using their flexibility to imagine what else an image could be. For example, was that a tree on a hillside or the back of a woman’s head? This activity is from an awesome website: http://www.brucevanpatter.com/seeingdouble.html
Current Events: Although we completely ran out of time today, here is a link to this week’s current events. You may want to discuss these with your child at home.
Research Challenge: What was the first college to grant degrees to women (1841) and award a bachelor’s degree to an African American woman (1862)?
Winter break update—Students worked on developing their communication skills by summarizing one or two events from their week off of school.
Summer of Bright Ideas-- Brochures and registration forms are coming home today with information about the Summer of Bright Ideas program. If you have questions regarding this summer daycamp-styled program which is designed specifically for current 1st-5th grade Fayette County enrichment students, please contact one of the teachers on the brochure or me. The first day to register for courses is April 10. If you plan on your child(ren) participating in this amazing summer opportunity, please plan to register on that day. Classes fill quickly!
Perplexing Placement Puzzle—Today’s puzzle was quite timely considering the beautiful weather we have been experiencing. The subject of this puzzle was kites. Four children were flying four very colorful kites. 4th graders flew through clues to correctly color the four kites.
Quotation Quizzler—Frederick Douglass is the speaker responsible for today’s quote, “The soul that is within me no man can degrade.” Fourth graders discussed Douglass and the possible meaning of this quote. After looking up the word, “degrade,” students decided on a general meaning: No one can take away what’s inside of you. Other thoughts that students shared:
“It’s like that sticks and stones saying. But, that’s not really true. Words can hurt you.”
“When you have thoughts and feeling deep down in your soul, nobody can make you change no matter what they do to you.”
Perspective Picture: Instead of the typical three questions, today’s perspective picture was a quiz asking students to identify various animals based on their patterns. The class was 10/18. How well can you do? Here’s the link: http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/quiz/can-you-identify-these-animal-patterns
Is Seeing Believing? Based on the perspective picture activity, the students decided that sometimes what you think you see is not always what you are seeing. With this knowledge in mind, the students explored an activity designed to develop their creative thinking skills: Seeing Double. This exercise was designed to help students get their eyes connected to their creative minds by using their flexibility to imagine what else an image could be. For example, was that a tree on a hillside or the back of a woman’s head? This activity is from an awesome website: http://www.brucevanpatter.com/seeingdouble.html
Current Events: Although we completely ran out of time today, here is a link to this week’s current events. You may want to discuss these with your child at home.
Research Challenge: What was the first college to grant degrees to women (1841) and award a bachelor’s degree to an African American woman (1862)?
02/13/2017 and 02/17/2017--Equal pay for equal work, finding wisdom in knowing nothing, and searching for a suitable college fit…heavy thinking for a Monday? For fourth grade Enrichment students, this was just a typical day! Read on for more details.
Universal Theme: Perspective--Is it fair for someone to get a better grade on an assignment even if you both missed the same question(s)? Is it fair for someone to make more money than you just because you are a girl and he’s a boy? Would you want your mom to make less money than a man for doing the same job? All of these questions were posed to fourth graders today. Of course, they were indignant at the possibility that a man could make more money simply for being a man. The class then watched the #1-ranked Superbowl commercial from Audi that examined equal pay for equal work. They discussed how the world has changed and continues to change and that women are valued as much as men (in some instances). The class concluded that the world is changing their perspective on how women are valued, but there is still a long way to go.
Perspective Picture: What's going on in this picture? How do you make sense of what you see when you look at an image, especially if that image comes with no caption, headline, links or other clues about its origins? What can constructing meaning from an image teach you? This week, the students made predictions based on this picture: February 13, 2017.
Quotation Quizzler: Today's quote was by Socrates, “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” Students participated in a Socratic seminar in order to discuss the meaning of these words. The Socratic seminar is a formal discussion, based on a text, in which the leader asks open-ended questions. Within the context of the discussion, students listen closely to the comments of others, thinking critically for themselves, and articulate their own thoughts and their responses to the thoughts of others.
Logical Thinking Skills: Today's logic puzzle involved eight friends racing go-carts. Who will be the first to finish? Fourth graders used clues to answer this question!
Research Challenge: What is the most common college sports mascot?
Universal Theme: Perspective--Is it fair for someone to get a better grade on an assignment even if you both missed the same question(s)? Is it fair for someone to make more money than you just because you are a girl and he’s a boy? Would you want your mom to make less money than a man for doing the same job? All of these questions were posed to fourth graders today. Of course, they were indignant at the possibility that a man could make more money simply for being a man. The class then watched the #1-ranked Superbowl commercial from Audi that examined equal pay for equal work. They discussed how the world has changed and continues to change and that women are valued as much as men (in some instances). The class concluded that the world is changing their perspective on how women are valued, but there is still a long way to go.
Perspective Picture: What's going on in this picture? How do you make sense of what you see when you look at an image, especially if that image comes with no caption, headline, links or other clues about its origins? What can constructing meaning from an image teach you? This week, the students made predictions based on this picture: February 13, 2017.
Quotation Quizzler: Today's quote was by Socrates, “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” Students participated in a Socratic seminar in order to discuss the meaning of these words. The Socratic seminar is a formal discussion, based on a text, in which the leader asks open-ended questions. Within the context of the discussion, students listen closely to the comments of others, thinking critically for themselves, and articulate their own thoughts and their responses to the thoughts of others.
Logical Thinking Skills: Today's logic puzzle involved eight friends racing go-carts. Who will be the first to finish? Fourth graders used clues to answer this question!
Research Challenge: What is the most common college sports mascot?
02/06/2017 and 2/10/2017--
What do hybrids, student loans, and Charlie Brown all have in common? These are all topics that 4th graders will discuss during Enrichment today!
Current Events: As students evaluate current happenings around the world such as giggling rats and political cartoons, they will also discover that a zoo in Russia has a new cub: a liger. This hybrid, a mix between a lion and a tiger is one of only 20 in the world. Using this discussion as a springboard, students will use their creative thinking skills to create their own hybrid animal. What will it be? If you would like more information about the baby liger, visit this site: Newsela.
Perspective Picture: What's going on in this picture? How do you make sense of what you see when you look at an image, especially if that image comes with no caption, headline, links or other clues about its origins? What can constructing meaning from an image teach you? This week, the students will make predictions based on this picture: February 6, 2017.
Which College is Best: Students will research their college choices to discover the fees involved in attending that institution. They will explore various ways to pay and evaluate the benefits and challenges with each method.
Quotation Quizzler: Today's quote is by Charlie Brown. The students will gain information about Charles Schulz and Charlie Brown. Then, they will decipher the quote and discuss the meaning of the words. You can read students' thoughts at the class padlet site. Click this link to view.
Seeing is Believing? Seeing Double--Students will practice the creative thinking skill of flexibility to imagine an everyday object as many different things.. For example, what looks like a donut could be a birds eye view of a bald man. Here is a link to find more pictures.
Logical Thinking Skills: Today's logic puzzle involves six hats of various colors. Students will read the clues to determine the colors of each hat. The students' knowledge of primary and secondary colors will come into play when determining the correct color placement. They also will discover the importance of reading ALL of the information on the page.
What do hybrids, student loans, and Charlie Brown all have in common? These are all topics that 4th graders will discuss during Enrichment today!
Current Events: As students evaluate current happenings around the world such as giggling rats and political cartoons, they will also discover that a zoo in Russia has a new cub: a liger. This hybrid, a mix between a lion and a tiger is one of only 20 in the world. Using this discussion as a springboard, students will use their creative thinking skills to create their own hybrid animal. What will it be? If you would like more information about the baby liger, visit this site: Newsela.
Perspective Picture: What's going on in this picture? How do you make sense of what you see when you look at an image, especially if that image comes with no caption, headline, links or other clues about its origins? What can constructing meaning from an image teach you? This week, the students will make predictions based on this picture: February 6, 2017.
Which College is Best: Students will research their college choices to discover the fees involved in attending that institution. They will explore various ways to pay and evaluate the benefits and challenges with each method.
Quotation Quizzler: Today's quote is by Charlie Brown. The students will gain information about Charles Schulz and Charlie Brown. Then, they will decipher the quote and discuss the meaning of the words. You can read students' thoughts at the class padlet site. Click this link to view.
Seeing is Believing? Seeing Double--Students will practice the creative thinking skill of flexibility to imagine an everyday object as many different things.. For example, what looks like a donut could be a birds eye view of a bald man. Here is a link to find more pictures.
Logical Thinking Skills: Today's logic puzzle involves six hats of various colors. Students will read the clues to determine the colors of each hat. The students' knowledge of primary and secondary colors will come into play when determining the correct color placement. They also will discover the importance of reading ALL of the information on the page.
01/30/2017--
4th graders will have a marvelous Monday full of activities designed to make them think!
Perspective Picture: This week's perspective picture is actually a game. Each student will receive six post-it notes and a sentence. Player 1 draws a picture on his or her stack of post-its. Player 2 looks at the picture, removes the post-it, placing it on the bottom of the stack, and writes a sentence explaining the picture. Player 3 then reads the sentence, removes the post-it, placing it on the bottom of the stack, and draws a picture depicting the action of the sentence. This continues through six players. At this point, the stack of post-its will be returned to the original drawer. How do the sentences and pictures relate to the original sentence? How did the thoughts changed? How do individual perspectives shape these changes?
Quotation Quizzler: Students will step into the mind of someone famous while using deductive reasoning to solve this week's quizzler. They will pit right brain against left brain in a struggle to decipher this famous quote. Then, they will research the biography of the figure quoted. in order to explore the motivating thoughts of this week's inspired mind.
Which College is Best: Students will complete their exploration of ways to pay for college. Students will begin self-exploration in order to determine which college is best for them.
Seeing with Your Imagination: What can it be? Fourth graders will be faced with an open-ended problem, a project that doesn't have just one right answer. Given a bag of random objects and "trash" the students will brainstorm possibilities of innovative ways to use the items in the bag. The students will then build one of their ideas and explain its purpose to the class.
Research Challenge: Who was the first president to ride in a car? Who was the first president-elect to ride in a car to his inauguration?
4th graders will have a marvelous Monday full of activities designed to make them think!
Perspective Picture: This week's perspective picture is actually a game. Each student will receive six post-it notes and a sentence. Player 1 draws a picture on his or her stack of post-its. Player 2 looks at the picture, removes the post-it, placing it on the bottom of the stack, and writes a sentence explaining the picture. Player 3 then reads the sentence, removes the post-it, placing it on the bottom of the stack, and draws a picture depicting the action of the sentence. This continues through six players. At this point, the stack of post-its will be returned to the original drawer. How do the sentences and pictures relate to the original sentence? How did the thoughts changed? How do individual perspectives shape these changes?
Quotation Quizzler: Students will step into the mind of someone famous while using deductive reasoning to solve this week's quizzler. They will pit right brain against left brain in a struggle to decipher this famous quote. Then, they will research the biography of the figure quoted. in order to explore the motivating thoughts of this week's inspired mind.
Which College is Best: Students will complete their exploration of ways to pay for college. Students will begin self-exploration in order to determine which college is best for them.
Seeing with Your Imagination: What can it be? Fourth graders will be faced with an open-ended problem, a project that doesn't have just one right answer. Given a bag of random objects and "trash" the students will brainstorm possibilities of innovative ways to use the items in the bag. The students will then build one of their ideas and explain its purpose to the class.
Research Challenge: Who was the first president to ride in a car? Who was the first president-elect to ride in a car to his inauguration?
01/27/2017
Both 4th grade classes met today, so it was not only a day packed with learning and fun, it was a classroom packed with students!
Logical Thinking Skills: Today’s perplexing placement puzzle was titled, “Apartment 100.” Students read clues that explained where nine families lived in an apartment building. Using those clues, the fourth graders placed each resident in his or her apartment.
Research Skills/Critical Thinking Skills: Paying for College: Students chose a college to research in order to determine the total cost to attend that school for one year. Then, they evaluated financial options available to assist students and their families in paying for college. They were shocked to discover that approximately 70% of all college students receive some type of financial assistance when in college.
Universal Theme: Perspective
1. Quotation Quizzler—Today’s quote was by Confucius. “I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” Students shared a time this quote was true for them. Read their responses on the class padlet site: padlet.com/whiten_jill/Friday
2. Cloud Shapes: When you look at clouds and see faces, animals, and scales on fish, that’s seeing with your imagination. Students sketched various clouds today and commented on what they imagined them to be.
There is no research challenge this week.
Both 4th grade classes met today, so it was not only a day packed with learning and fun, it was a classroom packed with students!
Logical Thinking Skills: Today’s perplexing placement puzzle was titled, “Apartment 100.” Students read clues that explained where nine families lived in an apartment building. Using those clues, the fourth graders placed each resident in his or her apartment.
Research Skills/Critical Thinking Skills: Paying for College: Students chose a college to research in order to determine the total cost to attend that school for one year. Then, they evaluated financial options available to assist students and their families in paying for college. They were shocked to discover that approximately 70% of all college students receive some type of financial assistance when in college.
Universal Theme: Perspective
1. Quotation Quizzler—Today’s quote was by Confucius. “I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” Students shared a time this quote was true for them. Read their responses on the class padlet site: padlet.com/whiten_jill/Friday
2. Cloud Shapes: When you look at clouds and see faces, animals, and scales on fish, that’s seeing with your imagination. Students sketched various clouds today and commented on what they imagined them to be.
There is no research challenge this week.
Monday, January 16, 2017--No School--Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday
Friday, January 20, 2017--Field trip to the High Museum of Art--
Students need to bring a lunch from home that includes a drink, wear comfortable shoes, leave electronics at home, and bring no money.
Friday, January 20, 2017--Field trip to the High Museum of Art--
Students need to bring a lunch from home that includes a drink, wear comfortable shoes, leave electronics at home, and bring no money.
01/13/2017--Today was Friday the 13th, but there was nothing unlucky about the thinking that went on in our classroom!
Perspective Picture--Students viewed the New York Times mystery picture located on their learning village. Today's picture was a girl on a lamp post protesting labor reforms in France. Most students thought she was trying to see over the crowd.
Quotation Quizzler—This week's quote was by Walt Disney. Students researched Mr. Disney, decoded his quote, and responded to a question regarding his quote.
Logic Puzzle—This week's perplexing placement puzzle was called, "Lockers." Nine friends had their school lockers in the same cube. The enjoyed having lockers near each other. Since they were good friends, many people got their lockers confused. Fourth graders used the clues to determine which locker belonged to which student.
Which College is Best? Students evaluated the benefits and challenges of paying for college in various ways. They researched different grants, and they determined the difference between need-based and merit-based aid.
Code.org--Students learned the meaning of the words, "algorithm," and "program." They physically guided their classmates on challenges to reach objects using basic algorithms. They logged into their Code.org accounts and began exploring computer coding.
Research Challenge:
What is the most expensive U.S. college or university as of the 2015-2016 school year?
Class field trip January 20--Thank you to all of volunteers! We had an abundance of parents offer to chaperone, and I had to draw names. Please know that I am so very grateful to each and everyone of you and the support you offer your child and me!
Perspective Picture--Students viewed the New York Times mystery picture located on their learning village. Today's picture was a girl on a lamp post protesting labor reforms in France. Most students thought she was trying to see over the crowd.
Quotation Quizzler—This week's quote was by Walt Disney. Students researched Mr. Disney, decoded his quote, and responded to a question regarding his quote.
Logic Puzzle—This week's perplexing placement puzzle was called, "Lockers." Nine friends had their school lockers in the same cube. The enjoyed having lockers near each other. Since they were good friends, many people got their lockers confused. Fourth graders used the clues to determine which locker belonged to which student.
Which College is Best? Students evaluated the benefits and challenges of paying for college in various ways. They researched different grants, and they determined the difference between need-based and merit-based aid.
Code.org--Students learned the meaning of the words, "algorithm," and "program." They physically guided their classmates on challenges to reach objects using basic algorithms. They logged into their Code.org accounts and began exploring computer coding.
Research Challenge:
What is the most expensive U.S. college or university as of the 2015-2016 school year?
Class field trip January 20--Thank you to all of volunteers! We had an abundance of parents offer to chaperone, and I had to draw names. Please know that I am so very grateful to each and everyone of you and the support you offer your child and me!
01/06/2017 and 01/09/2017
We are so excited to welcome new friends into our Enrichment classroom. With new friends joining us and our break just ending, this week's activities are slightly different than normal, but we will still have a day full of creative, critical, and logical thinking!
What's Going on in this Picture?
Using the New York Times' Learning Village website, students will look closely at a picture and make predictions about what is being depicted. Students will answer three questions: What's going on in this picture? What makes you say that? What else do you see?
The Case of the Missing Tiara
This week we begin a new investigation. Students will read and discuss information about the crime and gather pertinent facts such as what crime has been committed? Who might have committed this crime? The students will begin to compile information regarding this crime in their case journals.
Which College is Best?
Students continued to work on personal responses which will be used to help them decide on a college to research. They will also look at various ways to pay for college and the cost of several colleges of their choice.
Seeing is Believing
Davinci Doodles-- Leonardo da Vinci explored almost every field available to him, in both science and art. He made significant contributions in engineering, architecture, biology, botany, anatomy, math, and physics. He sculpted, painted, both portrait and mural (ex. The Last Supper) and made plans for ingenious machines that wouldn’t be built for centuries (ex. planes and submarines). To jump-start his brain, the great painter and inventor Leonardo DaVinci drew a simple shape, then imagined what he could make out of it. Da Vinci’s doodles are almost as famous as his finished masterpieces. In fact, some of the doodles are masterpieces he never finished. Beginning with basic lines drawn by a friend, fourth graders will create something new and inventive out of these lines.. They will use their creative thinking skills to elaborate and then think of an original title.
Critical and Creative Thinking Free Choice Activities:
After completing today's activities, students willbe able to choose from various activities to expand their critical and creative thinking abilities. Here is the list of choices:
Quotation Quizzler—This week's quote is by Eleanor Roosevelt. Students will research Mrs. Roosevelt, decode her quote, and respond to a question regarding her quote. The students may respond in writing or my type or record their response on the class padlet site:
Logic Puzzle—This week's perplexing placement puzzle is Bean Bag Blobs.
Beanbag Blobs were the newest craze. They were definitley blobs; they did not have eyes, a nose, or a mouth. They were made of different fabrics, and some were wearing hats or sunglasses. They were also flying off the store shelves. Using clues, fourth grade students will decide how the last remaining nine Blobs were displayed on the shelves.
Research Challenge:
Richard Nixon, Ricardo Lagos (ex-President of Chile), and wife of Bill Gates, Melinda Gates all are alumni of this college. What is it?
We are so excited to welcome new friends into our Enrichment classroom. With new friends joining us and our break just ending, this week's activities are slightly different than normal, but we will still have a day full of creative, critical, and logical thinking!
What's Going on in this Picture?
Using the New York Times' Learning Village website, students will look closely at a picture and make predictions about what is being depicted. Students will answer three questions: What's going on in this picture? What makes you say that? What else do you see?
The Case of the Missing Tiara
This week we begin a new investigation. Students will read and discuss information about the crime and gather pertinent facts such as what crime has been committed? Who might have committed this crime? The students will begin to compile information regarding this crime in their case journals.
Which College is Best?
Students continued to work on personal responses which will be used to help them decide on a college to research. They will also look at various ways to pay for college and the cost of several colleges of their choice.
Seeing is Believing
Davinci Doodles-- Leonardo da Vinci explored almost every field available to him, in both science and art. He made significant contributions in engineering, architecture, biology, botany, anatomy, math, and physics. He sculpted, painted, both portrait and mural (ex. The Last Supper) and made plans for ingenious machines that wouldn’t be built for centuries (ex. planes and submarines). To jump-start his brain, the great painter and inventor Leonardo DaVinci drew a simple shape, then imagined what he could make out of it. Da Vinci’s doodles are almost as famous as his finished masterpieces. In fact, some of the doodles are masterpieces he never finished. Beginning with basic lines drawn by a friend, fourth graders will create something new and inventive out of these lines.. They will use their creative thinking skills to elaborate and then think of an original title.
Critical and Creative Thinking Free Choice Activities:
After completing today's activities, students willbe able to choose from various activities to expand their critical and creative thinking abilities. Here is the list of choices:
Quotation Quizzler—This week's quote is by Eleanor Roosevelt. Students will research Mrs. Roosevelt, decode her quote, and respond to a question regarding her quote. The students may respond in writing or my type or record their response on the class padlet site:
Logic Puzzle—This week's perplexing placement puzzle is Bean Bag Blobs.
Beanbag Blobs were the newest craze. They were definitley blobs; they did not have eyes, a nose, or a mouth. They were made of different fabrics, and some were wearing hats or sunglasses. They were also flying off the store shelves. Using clues, fourth grade students will decide how the last remaining nine Blobs were displayed on the shelves.
Research Challenge:
Richard Nixon, Ricardo Lagos (ex-President of Chile), and wife of Bill Gates, Melinda Gates all are alumni of this college. What is it?
12/8 &12/9--
What’s Going on in this Picture?
The students looked at last week’s picture and discussed if theirprediction was correct. Students were surprised to learn that dousing movie stars with milk is a common practice in India. One superstar is trying to persuade his followers to give blood or become organ donors to show their loyalty rather than waste milk.
Choosing a Charity—You are wealthy individual who wishes togive some of your money to a worthy charity. How will you decideon which charity to give your donation, and how do you expect your money to be spent? Students began researching various charities and watchdog organizations to decide on which charities would be the best to receive their "money." They used these questions to guide their research:
1. To what charity will you give your donation?
2. What factors went into this decision?
3. How you would expect your money to be spent and why you would like it spent this way?
Santa’s Blackmail
Today we began our new investigation: Santa's Blackmail. Apparently, detectives from the North Pole Security Agency have been called in because Santa is being blackmailed as a result of a personnel reorganization. Six suspects were interviewed by police. Students eliminated one suspect based on motive and one based on evidence.
Which College is Best?
Students continued to work on personal responses which will be used to help them decide on a college to research.
Seeing is Believing
Last week's Research Challenge asked students to find information about Giuseppe Arcimboldo. Today, students explored various Arcimboldo works. They looked for the symbols that he used and discussed why they thought he used these symbols. Then, they created their own Arcimboldo inspired work on the theme, “Holidays.” Finished products (if they were able tocomplete this) are located on each child's Dojo page.
Critical and Creative Thinking Free Choice Activities:
After completing today's activities, students were able to choose from various activities to expand their critical and creative thinking abilities. Here is the list of choices:
Quotation Quizzler—Today's quote was by Amelia Earhart: Neverinterrupt someone doing something you said couldn't be done.
Students researched Earhart and evaluated her life'sachievements in order to determine why she might say these words.
Logic Puzzle—Today's perplexing placement puzzle was, "BookClub."
What’s Going on in this Picture?
The students looked at last week’s picture and discussed if theirprediction was correct. Students were surprised to learn that dousing movie stars with milk is a common practice in India. One superstar is trying to persuade his followers to give blood or become organ donors to show their loyalty rather than waste milk.
Choosing a Charity—You are wealthy individual who wishes togive some of your money to a worthy charity. How will you decideon which charity to give your donation, and how do you expect your money to be spent? Students began researching various charities and watchdog organizations to decide on which charities would be the best to receive their "money." They used these questions to guide their research:
1. To what charity will you give your donation?
2. What factors went into this decision?
3. How you would expect your money to be spent and why you would like it spent this way?
Santa’s Blackmail
Today we began our new investigation: Santa's Blackmail. Apparently, detectives from the North Pole Security Agency have been called in because Santa is being blackmailed as a result of a personnel reorganization. Six suspects were interviewed by police. Students eliminated one suspect based on motive and one based on evidence.
Which College is Best?
Students continued to work on personal responses which will be used to help them decide on a college to research.
Seeing is Believing
Last week's Research Challenge asked students to find information about Giuseppe Arcimboldo. Today, students explored various Arcimboldo works. They looked for the symbols that he used and discussed why they thought he used these symbols. Then, they created their own Arcimboldo inspired work on the theme, “Holidays.” Finished products (if they were able tocomplete this) are located on each child's Dojo page.
Critical and Creative Thinking Free Choice Activities:
After completing today's activities, students were able to choose from various activities to expand their critical and creative thinking abilities. Here is the list of choices:
Quotation Quizzler—Today's quote was by Amelia Earhart: Neverinterrupt someone doing something you said couldn't be done.
Students researched Earhart and evaluated her life'sachievements in order to determine why she might say these words.
Logic Puzzle—Today's perplexing placement puzzle was, "BookClub."
12/1 and 12/2-
Engage Your Brain: Coaster Caper-- Fourth graders will be honing their detective skills as they examine evidence and bring the culprit to justice! Clothing, shoe prints, and hair found on the scene of the sabotaged coaster will help sleuths eliminate suspects and reach a conclusion to arrest one of the six suspected criminals.
Critical Thinking: What's going on in this picture? Fourth graders will verify their previous predictions by logging in to the New York Times Learning Network website and reading the caption from last week's perspective picture. Then, they will make predictions based on this week's caption-less picture..
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: Logical Problem Solving Skills--Sledding--Today's perplexing placement puzzle requires the students to figure out the order of students that are sharing a sled.
Is Seeing Believing: What are the literal and figurative meanings of several well-know color-related idioms? Fourth graders will explore color idioms and then illustrate a favorite.
Which College is Best: Using www.noodle..com/colleges, students will research how GPA, SAT or ACT scores, extracurricular activities , and the school size wanted impacts their college options.
Current Events: What's going on in the world? How can I tell if an article on the internet is factual?
Quotation Quizzler: Students have the choice to decode the quotation, respond to the quotation using the class padlet site, or research the author of the quotation. This week's quote: Some cause happiness wherever they go. Others, whenever they go. --Oscar Wilde
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Who was Giuseppe Arcimboldo?
Engage Your Brain: Coaster Caper-- Fourth graders will be honing their detective skills as they examine evidence and bring the culprit to justice! Clothing, shoe prints, and hair found on the scene of the sabotaged coaster will help sleuths eliminate suspects and reach a conclusion to arrest one of the six suspected criminals.
Critical Thinking: What's going on in this picture? Fourth graders will verify their previous predictions by logging in to the New York Times Learning Network website and reading the caption from last week's perspective picture. Then, they will make predictions based on this week's caption-less picture..
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: Logical Problem Solving Skills--Sledding--Today's perplexing placement puzzle requires the students to figure out the order of students that are sharing a sled.
Is Seeing Believing: What are the literal and figurative meanings of several well-know color-related idioms? Fourth graders will explore color idioms and then illustrate a favorite.
Which College is Best: Using www.noodle..com/colleges, students will research how GPA, SAT or ACT scores, extracurricular activities , and the school size wanted impacts their college options.
Current Events: What's going on in the world? How can I tell if an article on the internet is factual?
Quotation Quizzler: Students have the choice to decode the quotation, respond to the quotation using the class padlet site, or research the author of the quotation. This week's quote: Some cause happiness wherever they go. Others, whenever they go. --Oscar Wilde
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Who was Giuseppe Arcimboldo?
11/10 and 11/11- Fourth graders will be developing their research skills this week. In addition to that, they will be participating in creative and critical thinking and logical problem skills.
Engage Your Brain: Fourth grade super-sleuths will reenact the motives expressed by the six suspects in order to decide if any suspects may be eliminated.
Critical Thinking: What's going on in this picture? Fourth graders will verify their previous predictions by logging in to the New York Times Learning Network website and reading the caption from last week's perspective picture. Then, they will make predictions based on this week's caption-less picture..
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: Logical Problem Solving Skills--Game Day--Eight friends spent a rainy day playing games. They decided to play with partners, and each person sat directly across form his or her partner. Fourth graders will use their logical thinking skills to determine where each person was sitting.
Is Seeing Believing: Fourth grade students will expand their knowledge of color symbolism and idioms as they research a color on the color wheel. They will work with a partner to develop a presentation to teach the rest of the group about their color.
Which College is Best: Using www.noodle..com/colleges, students will research how the level of challenge of the courses they take in high school impacts their college options.
Current Events: What's going on in the world?
Quotation Quizzler: Students have the choice to decode the quotation, respond to the quotation using the class padlet site, or research the author of the quotation. This week's quote: To have great poets there must be great audiences, too.-Walt Whitman
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Who coined the phrase, "Ivy League"? When? Why?
Engage Your Brain: Fourth grade super-sleuths will reenact the motives expressed by the six suspects in order to decide if any suspects may be eliminated.
Critical Thinking: What's going on in this picture? Fourth graders will verify their previous predictions by logging in to the New York Times Learning Network website and reading the caption from last week's perspective picture. Then, they will make predictions based on this week's caption-less picture..
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: Logical Problem Solving Skills--Game Day--Eight friends spent a rainy day playing games. They decided to play with partners, and each person sat directly across form his or her partner. Fourth graders will use their logical thinking skills to determine where each person was sitting.
Is Seeing Believing: Fourth grade students will expand their knowledge of color symbolism and idioms as they research a color on the color wheel. They will work with a partner to develop a presentation to teach the rest of the group about their color.
Which College is Best: Using www.noodle..com/colleges, students will research how the level of challenge of the courses they take in high school impacts their college options.
Current Events: What's going on in the world?
Quotation Quizzler: Students have the choice to decode the quotation, respond to the quotation using the class padlet site, or research the author of the quotation. This week's quote: To have great poets there must be great audiences, too.-Walt Whitman
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Who coined the phrase, "Ivy League"? When? Why?
11/3-2016--Both 4th grade groups will meet on Thursday this week. We will be doing some amazing thinking, learning, problem-solving, and exercising their ability to perceive and process information.
Engage Your Brain: --Students will begin a new mystery this week. Apparently, someone has sabotaged the newest coaster at Wild World Amusement Park. Today, fourth graders combed through information to determine basic facts such as, "What was the crime?" As the story unfolds, students will examine motives, determine the validity of alibis, and examine physical evidence to find the person who committed the crime.
Critical Thinking: What's going on in this picture? Fourth graders observed a photo posted on the New York Times Learning Network website. As they observed, they answered three questions:
• What is going on in this picture?
• What do you see that makes you say that?
• What more can you find?
These three questions are from a method of observation based on a program developed by Visual Thinking Strategies, a non-profit organization created to promote visual literacy in children. While using this approach to view unknown images, fourth grade students are developing aesthetic and language literacy, critical thinking skills, learning how to observe and translate their observations into concise statements. This method also teaches students to listen and respond to multiple perspectives in addition to how to take the time to observe closely, describe what they see in detail and provide evidence for their observations. You can view today's perspective picture at here.
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: Reading on a Rainy Day--It's been so long since it rained in Georgia, these students might not remember reading when it's too rainy to go outside. However, today's perplexing placement puzzle required students to organize a bookshelf based on a reader's observations. Following directional clues such as "immediate right" led students to place the book in just the right spot.
Is Seeing Believing? Students increased their knowledge of natural and psychological symbolism of colors. They began researching a specific color in order to share their information with the rest of the class. The students will create a visual to share along with facts and figurative language.
Current Events: 9-year artist, spidey senses, and Election Day countdown
Quotation Quizzler: Ralph Waldo Emerson--A friend is one before whom I may think aloud.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What university operates the largest single-dish radio telescope? Where is the telescope located?
Engage Your Brain: --Students will begin a new mystery this week. Apparently, someone has sabotaged the newest coaster at Wild World Amusement Park. Today, fourth graders combed through information to determine basic facts such as, "What was the crime?" As the story unfolds, students will examine motives, determine the validity of alibis, and examine physical evidence to find the person who committed the crime.
Critical Thinking: What's going on in this picture? Fourth graders observed a photo posted on the New York Times Learning Network website. As they observed, they answered three questions:
• What is going on in this picture?
• What do you see that makes you say that?
• What more can you find?
These three questions are from a method of observation based on a program developed by Visual Thinking Strategies, a non-profit organization created to promote visual literacy in children. While using this approach to view unknown images, fourth grade students are developing aesthetic and language literacy, critical thinking skills, learning how to observe and translate their observations into concise statements. This method also teaches students to listen and respond to multiple perspectives in addition to how to take the time to observe closely, describe what they see in detail and provide evidence for their observations. You can view today's perspective picture at here.
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: Reading on a Rainy Day--It's been so long since it rained in Georgia, these students might not remember reading when it's too rainy to go outside. However, today's perplexing placement puzzle required students to organize a bookshelf based on a reader's observations. Following directional clues such as "immediate right" led students to place the book in just the right spot.
Is Seeing Believing? Students increased their knowledge of natural and psychological symbolism of colors. They began researching a specific color in order to share their information with the rest of the class. The students will create a visual to share along with facts and figurative language.
Current Events: 9-year artist, spidey senses, and Election Day countdown
Quotation Quizzler: Ralph Waldo Emerson--A friend is one before whom I may think aloud.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What university operates the largest single-dish radio telescope? Where is the telescope located?
10/27/2016 and 10/28/2016--There will be no classes this week due to testing of new Enrichment candidates. Classes will resume next week.
10/20/2016 and 10/21/2016
Engage Your Brain: Mystery at the Mall-- Students used their deductive reasoning skills today to find the last piece of the puzzle needed in order to solve the case.. Students decoded the clues to determine which student was wearing the various colors reported by the victim.. Then, they evaluated the witnesses statements to decide who was relevant and reliable.. Using only the reliable information provided, the students The Mystery at the Mall culprit turned out to be none other than Otis Snodgrass!
Critical Thinking: If a bookworm ate through a three-volume set of books, how far would the cute little fellow travel in a horizontal line? Fourth graders used their information seeking, analyzing, and evaluating skills to figure out the bookworm's distance.
Creative Thinking: What would we do in a world without blue? Students strapped on their creative thinking caps to draw a picture or write a story explaining how the world would appear if the color blue did not exist. One student decided everything would be green. Another student quickly corrected him saying, "You can't use green! Green is made with blue and yellow. There's no blue, remember?"Students used originality, flexibility, and and elaboration to express their thoughts.
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: What time is the appointment? Fourth graders used clues to complete a dentist's daily schedule. They used information presented in clues to determine which patient had each specific appointment time.
Is Seeing Believing? Students examined paintings by Matisse, Van Gogh, Gris, and Monet. They evaluated each painters use of primary, secondary, and tertiary colors. Then, the students recolored a painting by Matisse using complementary colors. They analyzed the "feeling" of the painting with Matisse's original colors and the recolored version. They explained how the painting changed in their eyes based on the colors.
Which College is Best? Students reflected on their personal talents and likes. The discussed how these will affect the college they eventually choose.
Current Events: This Day in History, Samsung Kills the Galaxy 7, Mourning Whales
Quotation Quizzler: ""Music is the shorthand of emotion." Leo Tolstoy Students decoded Tolstoy's quote and discussed its meaning.. They discovered that Tolstoy influenced Ghandi who was a major inspiration to Martin Luther King, Jr.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What is the most common favorite color?
Overheard today: My eyes are blue. What would "eye" do without blue?
Engage Your Brain: Mystery at the Mall-- Students used their deductive reasoning skills today to find the last piece of the puzzle needed in order to solve the case.. Students decoded the clues to determine which student was wearing the various colors reported by the victim.. Then, they evaluated the witnesses statements to decide who was relevant and reliable.. Using only the reliable information provided, the students The Mystery at the Mall culprit turned out to be none other than Otis Snodgrass!
Critical Thinking: If a bookworm ate through a three-volume set of books, how far would the cute little fellow travel in a horizontal line? Fourth graders used their information seeking, analyzing, and evaluating skills to figure out the bookworm's distance.
Creative Thinking: What would we do in a world without blue? Students strapped on their creative thinking caps to draw a picture or write a story explaining how the world would appear if the color blue did not exist. One student decided everything would be green. Another student quickly corrected him saying, "You can't use green! Green is made with blue and yellow. There's no blue, remember?"Students used originality, flexibility, and and elaboration to express their thoughts.
Perplexing Placement Puzzle: What time is the appointment? Fourth graders used clues to complete a dentist's daily schedule. They used information presented in clues to determine which patient had each specific appointment time.
Is Seeing Believing? Students examined paintings by Matisse, Van Gogh, Gris, and Monet. They evaluated each painters use of primary, secondary, and tertiary colors. Then, the students recolored a painting by Matisse using complementary colors. They analyzed the "feeling" of the painting with Matisse's original colors and the recolored version. They explained how the painting changed in their eyes based on the colors.
Which College is Best? Students reflected on their personal talents and likes. The discussed how these will affect the college they eventually choose.
Current Events: This Day in History, Samsung Kills the Galaxy 7, Mourning Whales
Quotation Quizzler: ""Music is the shorthand of emotion." Leo Tolstoy Students decoded Tolstoy's quote and discussed its meaning.. They discovered that Tolstoy influenced Ghandi who was a major inspiration to Martin Luther King, Jr.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What is the most common favorite color?
Overheard today: My eyes are blue. What would "eye" do without blue?
October 13 and 14, 2016
What enriching activities are in store for Crabapple Lane's fourth graders?
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN: Mystery at the Mall--Fourth grade students will continue to track down the culprit who stole Miss Wink's giant cookie. This week, the students will examine the physical descriptions of the four suspects. They will determine the height and hair color of each suspect based on clues provided. Then, they will update their case journals with the new information.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST-Last week, fourth graders received a homework assignment to interview two adults about their college experiences. The fourth graders will share the information they received in these interviews and discuss the answers. Then, they will compile this information to create a graph. After that, they are going to calculate statistical data based on the answers. Then, they are going to reflect on the answers and the group data to answer the following questions: 1. What was the most important thing you learned from the people you interviewed? Explain. 2. Did your interview change your thinking about college? Why or why not?
LOGICAL THINKING-Perplexing Placement Puzzle--Christmas Shopping--Fourth grade logical thinkers will use directional clues such as "across from" and "next to" and cardinal directions to determine the location of each store in a brand-new mall..
QUOTATION STATION--Students will use critical thinking, word analysis, flexible thinking, and their ability to see both the small pieces of a puzzle and the way they fit together to make a whole solution in order to solve a quotation quizzler. When the letters are arranged correctly, they will spell out a quote. This week's quote is by Vincent van Gogh. "I dream my painting, and then I paint my dream." Once completed, the class will discuss van Gogh, why he made the quote, and how it is significant given his work. Then, students will reflect on their own dreams and answer the following question on the class padlet site (see the link under the class research resources tab).
Van Gogh made his dreams reality by painting what he dreamed. How can you make your dreams a reality?
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: Each student must think of their perspective of the word, "DISCOVERY" What does it mean to you? Then, he or she will draw or find a picture that is a visualization of his or her thoughts. They will upload their picture to their Dojo page.
IS SEEING BELIEVING?: Last week, the students began discussing the language of color. They completed color wheels and located complementary and analogous colors. This week, students will expand their knowledge by exploring the science of color.
LOGICAL FALLACIES: Students will review Hasty Generalizations, Faulty Causality, and Either/Or fallacies. They will draw or write examples of each of these fallacies.
CURRENT EVENTS: *This week in history* *Youth League for Disabled Children* *Real-life Transformers* *Mickey Mouse takes a day off*
RESEARCH CHALLENGE:: What does it mean to be color blind?
What enriching activities are in store for Crabapple Lane's fourth graders?
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN: Mystery at the Mall--Fourth grade students will continue to track down the culprit who stole Miss Wink's giant cookie. This week, the students will examine the physical descriptions of the four suspects. They will determine the height and hair color of each suspect based on clues provided. Then, they will update their case journals with the new information.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST-Last week, fourth graders received a homework assignment to interview two adults about their college experiences. The fourth graders will share the information they received in these interviews and discuss the answers. Then, they will compile this information to create a graph. After that, they are going to calculate statistical data based on the answers. Then, they are going to reflect on the answers and the group data to answer the following questions: 1. What was the most important thing you learned from the people you interviewed? Explain. 2. Did your interview change your thinking about college? Why or why not?
LOGICAL THINKING-Perplexing Placement Puzzle--Christmas Shopping--Fourth grade logical thinkers will use directional clues such as "across from" and "next to" and cardinal directions to determine the location of each store in a brand-new mall..
QUOTATION STATION--Students will use critical thinking, word analysis, flexible thinking, and their ability to see both the small pieces of a puzzle and the way they fit together to make a whole solution in order to solve a quotation quizzler. When the letters are arranged correctly, they will spell out a quote. This week's quote is by Vincent van Gogh. "I dream my painting, and then I paint my dream." Once completed, the class will discuss van Gogh, why he made the quote, and how it is significant given his work. Then, students will reflect on their own dreams and answer the following question on the class padlet site (see the link under the class research resources tab).
Van Gogh made his dreams reality by painting what he dreamed. How can you make your dreams a reality?
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: Each student must think of their perspective of the word, "DISCOVERY" What does it mean to you? Then, he or she will draw or find a picture that is a visualization of his or her thoughts. They will upload their picture to their Dojo page.
IS SEEING BELIEVING?: Last week, the students began discussing the language of color. They completed color wheels and located complementary and analogous colors. This week, students will expand their knowledge by exploring the science of color.
LOGICAL FALLACIES: Students will review Hasty Generalizations, Faulty Causality, and Either/Or fallacies. They will draw or write examples of each of these fallacies.
CURRENT EVENTS: *This week in history* *Youth League for Disabled Children* *Real-life Transformers* *Mickey Mouse takes a day off*
RESEARCH CHALLENGE:: What does it mean to be color blind?
10/6-10/7 This week in Enrichment, students will explore Frank Lloyd Wright and automation, color theory, captions, logical fallacies, and logical thinking.
Engage Your Brain: Students continued to add details to their case journal in the Mystery at the Mall. Using time clues, students completed a logic grid to determine which student with no alibi had time to arrive home from school and get to the mall before the cookie was stolen. Students made suggestions based on the logic grid solutions as to who the culprit might be.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students discussed their personal opinions on which college is best. They analyzed the perspectives that shape their opinions. They began a self-reflection journal to examine their own likes and dislikes in order to complete a college questionnaire. This week, they have homework. They must interview two people to determine where they went to college and hear different perspectives of the college experience. This is due next week (10/13 or 10/14).
Engage Your Brain: Students continued to add details to their case journal in the Mystery at the Mall. Using time clues, students completed a logic grid to determine which student with no alibi had time to arrive home from school and get to the mall before the cookie was stolen. Students made suggestions based on the logic grid solutions as to who the culprit might be.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students discussed their personal opinions on which college is best. They analyzed the perspectives that shape their opinions. They began a self-reflection journal to examine their own likes and dislikes in order to complete a college questionnaire. This week, they have homework. They must interview two people to determine where they went to college and hear different perspectives of the college experience. This is due next week (10/13 or 10/14).
September 29 and 30, 2016
Fourth graders were busy thinking convergently and divergently all day!
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN: Students began a case journal today by writing critical information already gleaned from the story, "Mystery at the Mall." Students are exploring the deductive thinking required by detectives to sift through clues to determine the culprit of a crime. In this mystery, a teacher's cookie was taken while she was shopping at the mall. Since the cookie was meant for one of her classes, she is pretty sure that some one from another class took it. Last week, the students determined which of the suspects had alibis. This week, the students examined the four with no alibis in order to match their first and last names with their grades. The students are enjoying this venture into crime stopping!
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST-Students continued to examine colleges and universities in order to compare and contrast the two. They looked at class sizes, campus sizes, degrees offered, and selectivity.
LOGICAL THINKING-Today's perplexing placement puzzle was Fascinating Fish. Students waded through clues to determine the placement of the class' fish tanks.
Syllogisms--Students examined the premises of these logical fallacies to determine validity.
QUOTATION STATION--Henry David Thoreau--In the long run, we only hit what we aim for. Look on the class padlet or our weebly website to see your child's response to this quote.
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: Your child has homework: Each student must think of their perspective of the word, "FALL." What does it mean to you? Then, he or she needs to draw or find a picture that is a visualization of his or her thoughts. They have the complete directions.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Which college football team has won the most national championships?
Fourth graders were busy thinking convergently and divergently all day!
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN: Students began a case journal today by writing critical information already gleaned from the story, "Mystery at the Mall." Students are exploring the deductive thinking required by detectives to sift through clues to determine the culprit of a crime. In this mystery, a teacher's cookie was taken while she was shopping at the mall. Since the cookie was meant for one of her classes, she is pretty sure that some one from another class took it. Last week, the students determined which of the suspects had alibis. This week, the students examined the four with no alibis in order to match their first and last names with their grades. The students are enjoying this venture into crime stopping!
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST-Students continued to examine colleges and universities in order to compare and contrast the two. They looked at class sizes, campus sizes, degrees offered, and selectivity.
LOGICAL THINKING-Today's perplexing placement puzzle was Fascinating Fish. Students waded through clues to determine the placement of the class' fish tanks.
Syllogisms--Students examined the premises of these logical fallacies to determine validity.
QUOTATION STATION--Henry David Thoreau--In the long run, we only hit what we aim for. Look on the class padlet or our weebly website to see your child's response to this quote.
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: Your child has homework: Each student must think of their perspective of the word, "FALL." What does it mean to you? Then, he or she needs to draw or find a picture that is a visualization of his or her thoughts. They have the complete directions.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Which college football team has won the most national championships?
Thursday and Friday, September 22 and 23, 2016
This week, fourth graders were critically thinking, creatively thinking, solving logic puzzles, diving into current events, and evaluating perspectives.
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN: Fourth graders are becoming super-sleuths! Over the next few weeks, the Engage Your Brain activity will stem from a crime called, "Mystery at the Mall." It seems that a teacher's big cookie, a reward for her well-behaved class has been stolen. Each week, students will use critical thinking skills to put all the pieces together to reach a sweet decision and determine who did this dastardly deed. This week: Alibis just don't add up!
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: Sometimes, solving a puzzle involves visualizing a scene. Today, fourth graders were presented with a mathematical "whodunnit?" The students had to determine if a sailor's alibi was airtight or contained some holes by determining a pattern based on trip-times.
IS SEEING BELIEVING: Fourth grade students evaluated information about four innovative thinkers: Pablo Picasso, Philo Farnsworth, George de Mestral, and Romare Bearden. The students discovered that each of these men faced difficulties, but they used their creativity to overcome their challenges and went on to be known for great things. Students used their creative thinking skills to develop a new use for the plastic rings used to package sodas. Ask your student to share his or her idea.
QUOTATION STATION: Mark Twain: Why not go out on a limb? That's where the fruit is. Students decoded a quotation quizzler to discover this quote. Then, they analyzed the analogy to determine Twain's message. They debated on whether or not it is always the best idea to "go out on a limb."
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST?: Fourth graders researched several college-related words and evaluated each one based on the root word, suffix, prefix, and etymology. Then, students determined meanings of each of the words. Finally, they used websites to research the words "college" and "university" to compare and contrast them using a Venn diagram.
LOGICAL THINKING: Painting by Numbers: Fourth graders had to employ prior knowledge of color terms such as analogous and complementary in order to analyze information presented in today's perplexing placement puzzle.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world? Check out the Current Events power point located in the class resources!
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What is (are) Hillary Clinton's alma mater(s)? What is Donald Trump's alma mater?
This week, fourth graders were critically thinking, creatively thinking, solving logic puzzles, diving into current events, and evaluating perspectives.
ENGAGE YOUR BRAIN: Fourth graders are becoming super-sleuths! Over the next few weeks, the Engage Your Brain activity will stem from a crime called, "Mystery at the Mall." It seems that a teacher's big cookie, a reward for her well-behaved class has been stolen. Each week, students will use critical thinking skills to put all the pieces together to reach a sweet decision and determine who did this dastardly deed. This week: Alibis just don't add up!
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: Sometimes, solving a puzzle involves visualizing a scene. Today, fourth graders were presented with a mathematical "whodunnit?" The students had to determine if a sailor's alibi was airtight or contained some holes by determining a pattern based on trip-times.
IS SEEING BELIEVING: Fourth grade students evaluated information about four innovative thinkers: Pablo Picasso, Philo Farnsworth, George de Mestral, and Romare Bearden. The students discovered that each of these men faced difficulties, but they used their creativity to overcome their challenges and went on to be known for great things. Students used their creative thinking skills to develop a new use for the plastic rings used to package sodas. Ask your student to share his or her idea.
QUOTATION STATION: Mark Twain: Why not go out on a limb? That's where the fruit is. Students decoded a quotation quizzler to discover this quote. Then, they analyzed the analogy to determine Twain's message. They debated on whether or not it is always the best idea to "go out on a limb."
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST?: Fourth graders researched several college-related words and evaluated each one based on the root word, suffix, prefix, and etymology. Then, students determined meanings of each of the words. Finally, they used websites to research the words "college" and "university" to compare and contrast them using a Venn diagram.
LOGICAL THINKING: Painting by Numbers: Fourth graders had to employ prior knowledge of color terms such as analogous and complementary in order to analyze information presented in today's perplexing placement puzzle.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world? Check out the Current Events power point located in the class resources!
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What is (are) Hillary Clinton's alma mater(s)? What is Donald Trump's alma mater?
Friday, September 16, 2016
What are fourth graders wild about this week?
UNIVERSAL THEME: Perspective: Toothpaste was once made of rocks and pumice? What’s really inside the stuff? Students watched one segment of a video series created by National Geographic, Ingredients, which gives a fresh perspective to the everyday items we think we know so well.
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: --Fourth graders viewed a series of snapshots titled, “A View from Above.” Photos in this series depicted scenes from all over the world taken from above, like a bird’s eye view. Students began creating their own View from Above.
QUOTATION STATION: Students will visit the class Padlet site, read a quote, and form responses. Some students responded to the quote on the class padlet site. They may continue to do this throughout the week by using the QR code located on the resources page. Others deciphered a quote by Ben Johnson, a friend of William Shakespeare, using logical thinking skills as well as word knowledge to create the words of the quote.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students created a timeline of the history of colleges in America. Ask your child which came first: UGA or GA Tech (UGA by 100 years).
LOGICAL THINKING: Students used clues to decipher names and owners of Super Snowmen.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world? A non-animal milk alternative, endangered bears, and football is in full swing
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What is Thomas Jefferson’s alma mater?
What are fourth graders wild about this week?
UNIVERSAL THEME: Perspective: Toothpaste was once made of rocks and pumice? What’s really inside the stuff? Students watched one segment of a video series created by National Geographic, Ingredients, which gives a fresh perspective to the everyday items we think we know so well.
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: --Fourth graders viewed a series of snapshots titled, “A View from Above.” Photos in this series depicted scenes from all over the world taken from above, like a bird’s eye view. Students began creating their own View from Above.
QUOTATION STATION: Students will visit the class Padlet site, read a quote, and form responses. Some students responded to the quote on the class padlet site. They may continue to do this throughout the week by using the QR code located on the resources page. Others deciphered a quote by Ben Johnson, a friend of William Shakespeare, using logical thinking skills as well as word knowledge to create the words of the quote.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students created a timeline of the history of colleges in America. Ask your child which came first: UGA or GA Tech (UGA by 100 years).
LOGICAL THINKING: Students used clues to decipher names and owners of Super Snowmen.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world? A non-animal milk alternative, endangered bears, and football is in full swing
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: What is Thomas Jefferson’s alma mater?
9/8 and 9/9/2016--What are fourth graders wild about this week? We are going to be stretching our creative sides, learning about neurons and building dendrites, debating which college is the best, validating arguments, and debunking logical fallacies.
UNIVERSAL THEME: Perspective--We are going to begin reading Funerals and Fly Fishing by Mary Bartek. In this story, a boy travels to Pennsylvania by himself to visit the grandfather he's never met before. He has to overcome some of the preconceived ideas he has gotten from his mother. Will his perspective change?
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: --Fourth graders will share their thoughts on "school." Last week, they were asked to visualize this word and, using their own originality, illustrate their visualization with either their own drawing or a picture they found. This week, they will share their thoughts and possibly expand their own perspectives based on the visualizations of their peers.
IS SEEING BELIEVING? Students will observe an optical illusion and discuss their observations. Can you "unsee" an image once you've seen it? What is cognitive trace?
QUOTATION STATION: Students will visit the class Padlet site, read a quote, and form responses. Students will be able to continue to respond to the quote throughout the week by using the QR code located on the resources page.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students debate which college they think is best based on preconceived notions.
LOGICAL THINKING: Fourth grade students are developing their reasoning skills and their ability to perceive and define relationships and organize information. They are sharpening their logical thinking skills by solving placement puzzles or completing a logic liftoff activity involving sequencing.. In the perplexing placement puzzles, each puzzle requires something to be put in a specific place. Students will be combining clues and illustrations to find a solution. This week's puzzle is Christmas Cards (although the theme seems out of order, the complexity of the puzzle increases throughout the year). The Logic Liftoff instructs students to evaluate sets displayed in a logical sequence to determine the next term in the row.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world? Panda babies, endangered no longer, football season kicks off, and sitting during the National Anthem
RESEARCH CHALLENGE:Whose college mascot is the horned toad?
9/1/2016 and 9/2/2016--This week in Enrichment, Fourth graders will explore perspective in a variety of ways, including art, quotes, problem solving, word analysis, and current events.
UNIVERSAL THEME: Perspective--We will read a book called Fish is Fish about a frog and a fish that live in the same pond. The frog leaves the pond and returns with tales of interesting species on land. However, when the fish visualizes the creatures the frog is describing, they seem to have fish bodies. His perspective was based on his own experience. The students will discuss how one's perspective is limited to his or her own world. Questions we will ponder: How can we broaden our perspectives? Should we broaden our perspectives?
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: When you hear the word, "school," what do you picture in your head? Students will be challenged to find or draw a picture that defines "school" to them.
IS SEEING BELIEVING? Students will examine a Necker cube and explore the idea that once the mind has adopted a particular perspective, it is difficult to remove its cognitive trace.
VISUAL PERSPECTIVE: Last week, students viewed the picture book, Zoom,. This week, students will complete their own zoomed version of a scene. What is it? You have to zoom in to see!
QUOTATION STATION: Students will visit the class Padlet site, read a quote, and form responses. Students will be able to continue to respond to the quote throughout the week by using the QR code located on the resources page.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students will be introduced to this integrated unit by examining the unit's essential questions. Then, they will draw or write everything they know about various colleges and explain which college they think is the best.
Logical Thinking: Fourth grade students are developing their reasoning skills and their ability to perceive and define relationships and organize information. They are sharpening their logical thinking skills by solving placement puzzles. Each puzzle requires something to be put in a specific place. Students will be combining clues and illustrations to find a solution.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world?How do current events affect my life? Whose perspective do they reveal? Is the information being presented truthful?
Do these events affect me? Can or should I be involved? Who perspectives are heard? Whose are ignored? Students and teachers will view baseball standings, discuss ocean reserves and Epi-pens, and evaluate the government's suggestion to screen all blood for the Zika virus.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Which two presidents graduated from West Point?
UNIVERSAL THEME: Perspective--We will read a book called Fish is Fish about a frog and a fish that live in the same pond. The frog leaves the pond and returns with tales of interesting species on land. However, when the fish visualizes the creatures the frog is describing, they seem to have fish bodies. His perspective was based on his own experience. The students will discuss how one's perspective is limited to his or her own world. Questions we will ponder: How can we broaden our perspectives? Should we broaden our perspectives?
PERSPECTIVE IN PICTURES: When you hear the word, "school," what do you picture in your head? Students will be challenged to find or draw a picture that defines "school" to them.
IS SEEING BELIEVING? Students will examine a Necker cube and explore the idea that once the mind has adopted a particular perspective, it is difficult to remove its cognitive trace.
VISUAL PERSPECTIVE: Last week, students viewed the picture book, Zoom,. This week, students will complete their own zoomed version of a scene. What is it? You have to zoom in to see!
QUOTATION STATION: Students will visit the class Padlet site, read a quote, and form responses. Students will be able to continue to respond to the quote throughout the week by using the QR code located on the resources page.
WHICH COLLEGE IS BEST: Students will be introduced to this integrated unit by examining the unit's essential questions. Then, they will draw or write everything they know about various colleges and explain which college they think is the best.
Logical Thinking: Fourth grade students are developing their reasoning skills and their ability to perceive and define relationships and organize information. They are sharpening their logical thinking skills by solving placement puzzles. Each puzzle requires something to be put in a specific place. Students will be combining clues and illustrations to find a solution.
CURRENT EVENTS: What is new in the world?How do current events affect my life? Whose perspective do they reveal? Is the information being presented truthful?
Do these events affect me? Can or should I be involved? Who perspectives are heard? Whose are ignored? Students and teachers will view baseball standings, discuss ocean reserves and Epi-pens, and evaluate the government's suggestion to screen all blood for the Zika virus.
RESEARCH CHALLENGE: Which two presidents graduated from West Point?
8/25/2016 and 8/26/2016--We had a day filled with creative thinking, logical problem solving, and changing perspectives! Here are more details:
Engage Your Brain: Fourth grade students were introduced to a warm-up activity featuring four different critical and creative thinking activities. Today's EYB included solving a problem using a tree diagram, analogies, patterns, and a sticker story. Ask to see your child's amazing thinking and creativity.
Logic Puzzle: Each week in Enrichment, your child will develop his or her logical thinking skills by using clues to solve a problem. In today's perplexing placement puzzle, students had to determine where four friends lived in the neighborhood and what color each friend's house was painted. Fourth graders used their convergent thinking to find the one right answer.
DOJO: Today's Growth Mindset lesson was about making mistakes. Students watched a video clip featuring Dojo and Katie. Dojo was attempting to create a robot but kept making errors. Dojo realized that mistakes are okay. They actually help make you smarter! Students discussed times they made mistakes and the lessons they learned from those moments.
Perspective: ZOOMing in or out of a picture is a matter of perspective. Students discussed how one's perspective could be a literal or figurative interpretation. Today's perspective lesson involved the book, Zoom! by Istvan Banyai. In this story, Banyai begins with a rooster's comb and gradually zooms out from that sight until the reader is left with a view of a tiny dot (Earth) in a black space. Students began working on their own versions of a zooming adventure. Curriculum Night is September 8. Stop by our classroom to see your child's efforts!
Engage Your Brain: Fourth grade students were introduced to a warm-up activity featuring four different critical and creative thinking activities. Today's EYB included solving a problem using a tree diagram, analogies, patterns, and a sticker story. Ask to see your child's amazing thinking and creativity.
Logic Puzzle: Each week in Enrichment, your child will develop his or her logical thinking skills by using clues to solve a problem. In today's perplexing placement puzzle, students had to determine where four friends lived in the neighborhood and what color each friend's house was painted. Fourth graders used their convergent thinking to find the one right answer.
DOJO: Today's Growth Mindset lesson was about making mistakes. Students watched a video clip featuring Dojo and Katie. Dojo was attempting to create a robot but kept making errors. Dojo realized that mistakes are okay. They actually help make you smarter! Students discussed times they made mistakes and the lessons they learned from those moments.
Perspective: ZOOMing in or out of a picture is a matter of perspective. Students discussed how one's perspective could be a literal or figurative interpretation. Today's perspective lesson involved the book, Zoom! by Istvan Banyai. In this story, Banyai begins with a rooster's comb and gradually zooms out from that sight until the reader is left with a view of a tiny dot (Earth) in a black space. Students began working on their own versions of a zooming adventure. Curriculum Night is September 8. Stop by our classroom to see your child's efforts!
8/18/2016 and 8/19/2016-- This week in Enrichment, we will meet for 1/2 day. Those hours will be packed with critical thinking skills, creative thinking skills, and logical problem solving. Plus, we will discuss what it means to have a "growth mindset." Here's the agenda and brief details:
Dojo: We will review the behavior expectations and ClassDojo. Parents: Your child will be bringing home a parent log-in for ClassDojo. This gives you access to your child's "story" as well as the class happenings. You may also use this website to message me. This is a great tool for me to award positive behaviors and for parents to be involved in our day.
Growth Mindset: The students will watch a short video clip showing a scenario in which one character has a "growth" mindset, and the other character has a "fixed" mindset. The students will be introduced to these ideas as a segue to the Thinking Skills unit. We will read a poem entitled, "The Little Boy," by Helen Buckley and discuss how the boy "lost" his ability to think creatively. According to a Newsweek article, "When we fail to allow children to nurture their own creativity and imagination without the confines of "rules and right answers", they may meet our expectations, but they'll never develop their own. " (http://www.newsweek.com/creativity-crisis-74665)
Perspective: What is the "correct" perspective? The class will brainstorm the meaning of the word "perspective" and discuss how perspective is developed.. Students will participate in an activity in which they will be asked to draw (all students draw same). The class will discuss why the pictures don't look the same, and decide which one is "correct." The students will discuss where they got their ideas for the pictures they drew. The class will brainstorm the meaning of the word "perspective" and discuss how perspective is developed..
Research Challenge: What was the name of the first college in the colonies?
Dojo: We will review the behavior expectations and ClassDojo. Parents: Your child will be bringing home a parent log-in for ClassDojo. This gives you access to your child's "story" as well as the class happenings. You may also use this website to message me. This is a great tool for me to award positive behaviors and for parents to be involved in our day.
Growth Mindset: The students will watch a short video clip showing a scenario in which one character has a "growth" mindset, and the other character has a "fixed" mindset. The students will be introduced to these ideas as a segue to the Thinking Skills unit. We will read a poem entitled, "The Little Boy," by Helen Buckley and discuss how the boy "lost" his ability to think creatively. According to a Newsweek article, "When we fail to allow children to nurture their own creativity and imagination without the confines of "rules and right answers", they may meet our expectations, but they'll never develop their own. " (http://www.newsweek.com/creativity-crisis-74665)
Perspective: What is the "correct" perspective? The class will brainstorm the meaning of the word "perspective" and discuss how perspective is developed.. Students will participate in an activity in which they will be asked to draw (all students draw same). The class will discuss why the pictures don't look the same, and decide which one is "correct." The students will discuss where they got their ideas for the pictures they drew. The class will brainstorm the meaning of the word "perspective" and discuss how perspective is developed..
Research Challenge: What was the name of the first college in the colonies?