Today I witnessed the cutest thing ever: 5th graders reading to 1st graders! First, I forgot how small the 1st graders really are. Tiny. The 5th graders tower over them, and I tower over the 5th graders - at 5'4", that isn't saying much. The 1st graders got to pick out books that they wanted the 5th graders to read to them. It was so exciting to see even the most challenging students behave so well and be nurturing to the little guys and gals. This is a must do when I have my own class!
Speaking of challenging students...today Ms. Wink received so many complaints about the noise level of the class when transitioning, she had to assign spots in line. How embarrassing for them! Even with the assignments, they still were loud! I don't understand why the students are taking so long to get the drift...
Today was the first day of the PLC implementation. Yesterday, the teachers got together and reviewed the assessments that were completed by the students on Monday. The students were divided up into "Focus Groups," and I was assigned to the enrichment group - the students who totally got the graphing concepts. YES! Mathletes!
I worked with the 5th grade intern, Jenn, to create a learning extension about bar graphs. We took measurements of sugars and protein in various cereals and created a data set for the students. It was approved by Dr. Morse, but she suggested that we swap the order of the "x" data and the "y" data so that the students didn't just assume that data on the left of a T chart will equal "x." Well, that ended up tripping almost all of the students up! They spent so much time trying to figure out how to sort the data out, that they got totally confused. Some tried to add in the names of the cereals, when that was just not necessary. I think it would have been better to just keep the data as it was and ask more probing questions on how to interpret the data after they created the graph. I would have rather had them spend their time interpreting the data rather than being frustrated with a small, unnecessary trick.
Math: Students learned the difference between numeric (numbers) and categorical (names or categories) data. They seemed to grasp the concept fairly quickly.
SS: Today was all about The World Map. Students took the period to properly label and color a copy of a world map. It was great to see the different styles and quirks that the students have. Some rushed through the project, while others meticulously colored in every nook and cranny of the map.
Spelling: We reviewed closed syllables (cat) where the consonant bullies the vowel into being a short sound - all closed syllables end in a consonant. Ms. Wink then introduced the students to open syllables, where the vowel sound is long (rhino). An open syllable ends in a vowel. I love that I'm learning so much about spelling!
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