Wednesday, November 30, 2011

2nd Grade - Today's investigator was Mary Harris Jones who protested labor laws of the late 19th and early 20th century.

4th Grade - Due to the teacher's professional development schedule, classes were canceled for the rest of the day.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

2nd Grade - Several students were still working on a classroom project and didn't come to Enrichment today. Those who did attend, worked on their ABC books or today's quote puzzle.

5th Grade - Their word was Dalles. Dalles are steep precipices forming the sides of a gorge or narrow valley, usually having rapids at the bottom. The investigators today were the Smith Brothers, the inventors of the cough drop. The warm-up activity was a Quotation Quizzler. Affective thinking focused on rules and beliefs. The rest of the afternoon was spent correcting essays for the Exploravision project and brainstorming pros and cons of the new inventions.

Monday, November 28, 2011

2nd Grade - Today's word was envision. To envision means to imagine or picture something in one's head. Several students were working on a classroom project and didn't come to Enrichment today. Those who did attend, finished their ABC books.

5th Grade - Their word was Dalles. Dalles are steep precipices forming the sides of a gorge or narrow valley, usually having rapids at the bottom. Today's warm-up activity was a Quotation Quizzler. The investigators today were the Smith Brothers, the inventors of the cough drop. Affective thinking focused on rules and beliefs. The rest of the afternoon was spent correcting essays for the Exploravision project and brainstorming pros and cons of the new inventions.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

2nd Grade - These students were having special activities today so they didn't come to Enrichment.

5th Grade - This week's word was Culinary. The investigator was Ada Lovelace, who developed a computer program in 1843. These students tried to solve a Stories with Holes problem that they hadn't finished in the past. This group was able to solve the problem. Students wrote another component for the Exploravision project. They started watching a video about the Lewis and Clark expedition last week. Today, we watched some more of that video.

Monday, November 21, 2011

2nd Grade - These students were having special activities today so they didn't come to Enrichment. Last week, the word was Discrepancy, the investigator was Benjamin Harrison and the warm up activity was a logic elimination puzzle.

5th Grade - This week's word was Culinary. The investigator was Ada Lovelace, who developed a computer program in 1843. These students tried to solve a Stories with Holes problem that they hadn't finished in the past. They were stumped again today. Students wrote another component for the Exploravision project. They started watching a video about the Lewis and Clark expedition last week. Today, we watched some more of that video. Since this is a short week, the Thursday 5th grade group joined the Monday group in the Enrichment/art room.

Up ane Running

My apologies for not posting the last few weeks. For some reason, the school filtering system was not allowing me to access this page. We are up and running again. Thank you for being patient.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

3rd Grade - Due to all of the activities that have postponed the Friday 3rd Grade groups, this group took a break from our regular curriculum to study birds today. The word for today was Dovetail which are interlocking pieces that form a joint. Today's investigator was General George Patton, who had been a struggling reader. Students then listened to the story "Hey, Al." This was a story about a discontent man who went to live on an island until he started turning into a bird. Students then researched birds. Then wrote about what they would use bird parts for if they lived on that island. They were then given some materials and had to build a bird.

5th Grade - Today's word was Compensation which means the "pay" one receives for an act. Our investigator was Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of the chocolate chip cookie. The warm up activity was a Surprise in the Middle activity which was an exercise in creativity and following directions. The affective lesson focused on things we learn the hard way and "truisms." Students spent some time researching their inventions and working on Lewis and Clark projects.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

4th Grade - There were two vocabulary words today. Celestial = of or pertaining to the sky or the heavens. Compensation = the "pay" one receives for an act. The investigator was Rachel Carson, who was an activist against pesticides. Our warm-up activity was an exercise in creativity and following directions called Surprise in the Middle. The affective thinking lesson focused on our strengths and weaknesses and what we can say to ourselves during situations to help get through that time. The rest of the afternoon was spent building the model cooperative creature and writing directions to send to the other schools.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

1st and 2nd Grade - Students spent today working on their ABC books so we have something to share for parent/teacher conferences.

5th Grade - Our vocabulary word today was Compensation. Compensation is the "pay" one receives for an act. Today's investigator was Ruth Wakefield who accidentally invented the chocolate chip cookie. The warm-up activity was Surprise in the Middle, an exercise in following directions and creativity. Attitudes were the focus of today's affective thinking lesson. Students spent some time developing their idea for the Exploravision contest. They also spent some time researching the history and current technology of their idea. The rest of the afternoon was spent working on Lewis and Clark projects.