State Award Books

This week I read the Caldecott Award winning book Kitten’s First Full Moon to Pre-K.  For Kindergarten thru Second Grade, I read Mother Bruce which is one of the titles for our Texas 2x2 List.  I discussed this list in detail in a previous post.  I reminded students that they need to read at least 5 books on the list in order to vote for their favorite in April.

For Third thru Fifth Grade, I read A Fine Dessert.  It is listed on our Texas Bluebonnet Award list.  Students must also read at least 5 books in order to vote for their favorite in January.  I hope that by reading a few of the books on each list, I will encourage students to read some on their own so that they will be eligible to vote.

Digital Citizenship

This week we learned about digital citizenship across all grade levels.

We discussed not giving out personal information such as your real name, address, phone number or even what school you attend. We also talked about being kind and respectful online and to tell a trusted adult if you are a victim of cyber bullying or if you come across something that is inappropriate.

We learned that we should never let anyone else use our login and passwords at school and to make sure that we are completely logged off of the computer to make sure no one can access our account accidentally.  We also discussed that our devices should always be connected to the PISD guest WIFI to make sure that inappropriate sites are less likely to pop up and to save our parents data plan.

This week was primarily an introduction into digital citizenship by watching Faux Paw the Techno Cat for Pre-K and some Netsmart videos for the other grade levels.  Digital citizenship is a topic that should be covered numerous times a year, especially each time the students are doing online research.  I plan on having more in depth lessons about these topics at a later date.

Christopher Columbus and More

This week I read a Christopher Columbus biography to First Grade and then we completed a Quizizz afterward.  The kids always love to do a Quizizz!  They really did an outstanding job considering the fact that this was the first time we had done one with multiple choice answers instead of true or false.  I was also amazed at much they remembered from the story and was able to call out the correct answer before I even had a chance to read the answer choices to them.

In Fifth Grade, we watched a video of the reading of Encounter by Jane Yolen.  It is a story of Christopher Columbus as seen through the eyes of a young native boy.  It has a totally different perspective of Christopher Columbus and his explorations.

In Pre-K, we read Barn Dance since they have been learning and talking about fall.  I keep hoping that the fall weather will eventually blow in, but no luck so far.

In Kindergarten and Second Grade, we discussed character, setting and plot.  I read Frog and Toad Together to Kindergarten and Poppleton Has Fun to Second Grade.  We were able to identify each element after we read each “chapter’ of the books.

In Third Grade, we discussed the definition of historical fiction and then I read Katie’s Trunk to them.  We discussed how the events in the story could have happened back in the 18^th century during the American Revolutionary War.

Finally, in Fourth Grade we discussed author’s purpose. I showed them three different books and talked about how the words the author chooses is critical to the purpose and audience he is writing to. I read Turkey Tot as an example of entertainment.

Special Request for PE

Dear Christie Parents-

This year Christie Elementary has the opportunity to win some amazing prizes for our wellness program.  Anyone in our community can click on the link below and enter for a chance to win a $30,000 grant for our school's healthy transformation AND a new playground.  While there are other prizes available, this would clearly be an amazing opportunity of our kids! The sweepstakes runs until March 24, 2017 which is a very long time. Please set your alarm on your phone or post a sticky note on the fridge to log on each day and vote.  Also, feel free to share with family and friends to help increase our voting numbers.  Thank you!

http://www.togethercounts.com/at-school/win-for-your-school/sweepstakes

This year PE/Fitness is also wanting to incorporate a drumming fitness activity into our workout. However, we want to make sure our students have the materials they need to succeed, so I just created a DonorsChoose.org classroom request.   Please click on the Fit to the Beat link below to donate.

Fit to the Beat

When you give to our classroom by October 6, 2016, your donation will be doubled thanks to DonorsChoose.org. Just enter the code LIFTOFF during checkout and you'll be matched dollar for dollar (up to $50). 

Thank you so much,
PE/Fitness Team

P.S. If you know anyone who may want to help all our students, please pass this along! 

Angela O’Brian

PE Teacher

469-752-0880

Twitter: @obrian_y

Blog: Christiecubpe.blogspot.com

Making Predictions

The week we concentrated on making predictions while reading. Students recognized that clues with the text and clues in the illustrations can help them in making those predictions. In Pre-K we read Welcome Home, Mouse. In Kindergarten we read It's an Orange Aardvark! and in First Grade we read The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear. Second graders loved singing along with Pete the Cat in Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes.

In Third Grade we read The Secret Birthday Message, Fourth Grade heard all about Wemberly Worried and in Fifth Grade we read The Day the Crayons Quit.