Hour of Code Week

Last week, during Library, students were introduced to the hour of code website.  This week students will have more time to try an hour of code.

Here is the link to the official website for Hour of Code : https://code.org/learn

On Monday we tried a tutorial at Tynker.  This week students will get an account with a username and password to learn coding.  There are also some fun things to try on the website for Hour of Code week.  Here is the link: https://www.tynker.com/hour-of-code/

Parents, feel free to try at home too.

Wrapping up Fish in a Tree with a Celebration

We have been so busy lately, we haven't had much time to share what our class is doing.  Here is a bit of an update.

This week we are completing our "Strut your Stuff Challenge" to show what we know about Fish in a Tree.  Be sure to watch Lynda Mullaly Hunt read the final chapter and answer questions.  You can find her video on our Fish in a Tree page of this blog.

We are preparing to have our very own version of a "Fantastico Friday."  Cupcakes, games, chess, art, pickle cars and "Alice in Wonderland" will probably be involved in one form or another.  We hope to share our celebration with our buddy class too.  Students are also looking forward to some time to "munch and crunch" at the end of the day.  Yes, students are welcome to bring a snack to share.

Remember to check out Ally's sketchbook at Lynda Mullaly Hunt's website for ideas.  You can follow the link here: http://www.lyndamullalyhunt.com/books/fish-in-a-tree/the-sketchbook-of-impossible-things/

Finally, we were fortunate to receive 2 ipad minis and 2 Osmos from the Fuel Your School initiative sponsored by Chevron.  We should be getting access to those ipads soon.  In the mean time, we will try out the Osmo using Mrs. Elie's ipad.

Global Read Aloud Continues

Although we are a bit behind from the global schedule, we are almost finished "Fish in a Tree."  Lynda Mullaly Hunt reads chapter 42 and answers questions from some readers.  We thought the title for this chapter was particularly funny.

You can watch the video here:

We also looked at Lynda Mullaly Hunt's new website and we examined some of Ally's drawings in her sketchbook of impossible things.
Here is the link: http://www.lyndamullalyhunt.com/books/fish-in-a-tree/the-sketchbook-of-impossible-things/

We continue to work on asking and answering questions as well as making connections to the book.

Raz Kids Independent Reading Practice

Today students were given passwords and shown the Raz Kids Website.
Students are encouraged to read independently for 15-20 minutes per day at home.
The leveled books on this website will help students track their progress and improve their comprehension skills.


Here is the link: https://www.kidsa-z.com/main/Login


Happy Reading!

Global Read Aloud Week 3

According to the Global Read Aloud schedule we should be reading Chapters 18 - 24 this week.  We will see if we can catch-up a bit.  Last week, Lynda Mullaly Hunt posted her third video.  This time, she read chapter 17 and answered some questions.  Although there is a bit of a glitch with the audio & image, the answers are worth listening to.

You can watch or listen to the video here:

Today we will come up with some questions and post them to our class twitter account @ClassElie.  We also looked at other classes' work on twitter.

Hope you are enjoying the book as much as we are!

Inspiration from Caine's Arcade

On Friday, October 16, our class watched the movie: Caine's Arcade.

You can see it here:

Caine had an idea so he created a cardboard arcade.  He liked taking things apart and he liked coming up with new ways to have fun.  One day, a customer bought a "fun pass."  The customer was a filmmaker.  Now Caine's fun idea has become a global movement through the Imagination Foundation.

You can read more about that here:
http://imagination.is/about-us/our-story/

Our class is looking forward to starting Genius Hour very soon.  We are very excited to learn whatever we want. We have really great ideas and are looking forward to sharing them with you!  Stay tuned!

Fundraising for Technology in the Classroom

Having experienced the excitement and engagement through the Global Read Aloud, our class is hoping to acquire more technology tools.  Please consider making a donation to our school projects through MyClassNeeds.

Here are the links:

https://myclassneeds.ca/en/project/5726/

https://myclassneeds.ca/en/project/4520/

Lynda Mullaly Hunt Reads Chapter 8 and Answers Questions

October 13, 2015

The author of Fish in a Tree has been having conversations on twitter and promised to read chapter 8 as well as answer some questions.  Here is her video:

First Day of Global Read Aloud 2015

Today we started reading the book, Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt.

We listened to 2 chapters.  The first chapter was read by the author to welcome us to the global read aloud.  You may watch the video here.

Throughout this read aloud, we will also be working on reading strategies.  Things like making predictions, visualizing, activating prior knowledge, questioning, retelling and making connections.

Here are some questions to consider when reading the first 2 chapters of Fish in a Tree:

1) At the beginning of the story, we learn that school is painful for Ally and that she doesn’t feel as if she fits in with her peers. When thinking about her class, she says, “Maybe they think I can’t hear their words: Freak. Dumb. Loser” (p. 3).  Why does the author choose words like these to explain how Ally feels?

2) Ally talks about watching a "mind-movie."  What is a "mind-movie"?
3) Describe Ally's mind-movie about Mrs. Hall in chapter 1.
4) Why did Shay and Jessica call Ally, "Alice in Blunderland" ?
5) Why did Ally give Mrs. Hall the card with the yellow flowers?  Why is everyone confused about Ally's gift to Mrs. Hall?
6) Why doesn't Ally tell Mrs. Silver the truth about the "mistaken" card?

Thank you Mr. Falker

Today we watched a video in-class from Storyline Online.  You may view it here.

Learning is not usually easy.  This story not only shows the benefits of determination but also the importance of having people support you.  Name-calling is never a good thing.  It is important to speak words of appreciation, no put-downs.  Have you ever been in situations like Tricia in the book?  Have you ever felt like you were "stupid"?  Can you give examples of positive and supportive people in your life?  Are you a positive person in other people's lives?

Welcome!

Welcome to the blog for Mrs. Elie's class this year.

While we are new to blogging, we hope to share some of the interesting learning taking place in our class this year.  Right now our blog is a work in progress so stay tuned.