A Classroom full of Technology

Our classroom recently got a makeover. We have now become a "smart room". I am learning so much about these new pieces of equipment, but I know I still have a lot to learn. I am looking forward to learning alongside my students.

We now have a Promethean board, which we can write on using special "pens". We have a document camera, a projector, and some other things I have yet to learn about.

How do you think having all this technology will help our class become better learners?

Happy Thanksgiving 2009!

Today is our last day of school before our Thanksgiving break. I know we are all looking forward to eating turkey, watching football on TV, and perhaps even doing some shopping on Friday.

But Thanksgiving is about more than that. Thanksgiving is our time to be thankful for all the wonderful things in our lives. I know there are many things I am thankful for. I am thankful for a wonderful husband and son. I am thankful for my good health. I am thankful for a nice home to live in and good friends. And I am also thankful for each of my 24 students! You make it fun to come to work every day!

What are you thankful for this year?

1st Quarter Awards

Yesterday was our first quarter awards assembly. Our school gives out awards for having certain grades and for perfect attendance.

No one in our class was in the A-Honor roll, which means earning more A's than B's on your report card.

B-Honor Roll is for having more B's than A's, or all B's on your report card. Congratulations to these students for making B-Honor Roll.
Miajia
Breanna
Walter
Carlos
Angela
Guillermo
Emerald

Honorable Mention means you missed B-Honor Roll by only subject. Congratulations to this student for earning Honorable Mention.
Brian

These students earned Perfect Attendance.
SheMira
Walter
Devin
Brenda
Chabely
Tui
Leshley

What can you do during second quarter so that you can get an award next time?

Carolina Ballet Program

Today we had some dancers from the Carolina Ballet Company in Raleigh come to speak at our school. Jan and Richie were the dancers. They told us the stories of how they became dancers. Jan started dancing at age 3, got asked to dance in New York City, and while she was there, was spotted by a dance master from the Carolina Ballet and offered a position. Richie is originally from the country of Hungary (that's in Europe.) His parents were both ballet dancers, so he naturally became one himself. He moved to America as a teenager, and while visiting dancer friends in Raleigh, was spotted by a dance master and was also offered a position with Carolina Ballet.

They talked to us about their practice routines, how they stay in such good shape, and how they learn to work together, even with people they might not like. They also showed us dance steps and even invited students on stage to demonstrate the steps. Congrats to Emerald, Miajia, and Chabely, who were brave enough to go on stage and demonstrate jumps and leaps!

Now, my question for you....were you paying attention?? At the end, some students came up and asked questions. I will post the questions that the students asked the dancers. Do you remember the answers?

1. What do the dancers do if they trip?
2. Is ballet like ice skating? Explain.
3. Have they ever performed somewhere else in the world besides NC?

Post the answers to these questions in the comments section.

Worried About Word Problems??

For the past few days in Math Class, we have been discussing word problems. We have talked about how you need to carefully read each problem, looking for those key words that helps us know what to do in order to solve. We have to look at all the numbers in the problems and decide what information is needed and what information is not needed. Then we have to decide what strategy we need to use to solve the problem:

• Guess and Check
• Draw a picture
• Make a chart
• Work Backwards
• Multi-Step

This week we have solved problems in groups, as well as for homework and classwork. Some problems have been open-ended. Some problems have been multiple-choice.

Now I would like to know....what worries you about word problems? Let me know, so I can know better how to help you in class.

Our Multicultural Classroom

Dear Students,

Last week our school held its annual Multicultural Week. We saw videos on different cultures represented by our school. We made posters showing who we are, where we are from, and what we are interested in. Some of our parents sent in foods from different countries. And we ended the week with a "Parade of Nations" and a sing-along in the gym.

We have mentioned before how our class is represented by 9 countries and our school represents 28 countries. I would like you to answer this question in the comments section. What do you think is the best part about having so many countries represented by our school and class? Explain why.

Mrs. Staton

"Capoeira" from Arts Connection.

For the past few weeks our school has hosted the Arts Connection group, and this was our week to have a representative from the group in our class. Mrs. "S", as she likes to be called, taught us about "Capoeira", a type of dance/martial arts from Brazil. "Capoeira" was orgininally performed by slaves who came from Africa to Brazil. "Capoeira" was really strength-training and self-defense for the slaves. They were able to practice in sight of the slave-masters because it looked like they were dancing. They learned to be bold, strong, and self-confident.

Since they were living in Brazil, they spoke Portugese, so we were able to learn some words in Portugese.

We learned ginga which was the basic movement in Capoeira.
We learned "au" which is a cartwheel.
We learned "esquiva" which is a block, or escape moved.
We learned "berimbau" which was the instrument that was played in the songs when they performed "Capoeria".

What will you most remember about Capoeria? What was your favorite move to peform? What did you learn? Share these thoughts with me!