Washington Irving Enrichment: 2021

Friday, December 17, 2021

3rd Grade - Today's activities started with students solving some Plexer (common phrases in picture form) puzzles. In Crystal Pond Woods, students developed their own logic elimination grid puzzles which classmates will solve in January. The final activity was the introduction to the Oklahoma Road Trip project. Students participated in a breakout room.

Thursday, December 16, 2021

5th Grade - Today's learning began with Plexer (common words or phrases in picture form) puzzles. The affective lesson focused on the qualities we look for in friends and how that relates to leadership.The next activity was a fun Breakout room. Students finished up the day by completing the online work and finishing their Munracks.

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

4th Grade - Today's learning began with Plexer (common words or phrases in picture form) puzzles. We then began our Regions and Resources project by watching an overview of the different United States regions. Students then researched or tried to guess different monuments around the country. Our final activity was a fun Breakout room.

Tuesday, December 14, 2021

3rd Grade - Today's activities started with students solving some Plexer (common phrases in picture form) puzzles. In Crystal Pond Woods, students developed their own logic elimination grid puzzles which classmates will solve in January. The final activity was the introduction to the Oklahoma Road Trip project. Students participated in a breakout room.

Monday, December 13, 2021

2nd Grade - Our learning activities today began with solving Plexer (pictures of common phrases) puzzles. The affective lesson focused on being polite when introducing yourself because successful people are caring people. In Crystal Pond Woods, Isabel the Inventor taught us how to use the SCAMPER process to reinvent an item. Speaking of inventing, students started developing their project for the Exploravision contest today.

Friday, December 3, 2021

3rd Grade - The warm up activity today was to play the game of SET. We had enough card sets that students were able to do it without a device. The affective lesson had students evaluating the Take 5 program. Students then completed the logic puzzles they started two weeks ago. The final activity was to reimagine their balloon design and make improvements for their next Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. We did get a sneak peek at our Oklahoma Road Trip which will be our next major project.

Thursday, December 2, 2021

5th Grade - Our activities today began with the game of SET. That was followed by watching the winning entries of the MEE contest and reviewing what we can do better next year. Each student was then logged into Khan Academy. This is an enrichment activity that allows students to grow and learn on their own whenever they wish. The leadership lesson focused on the importance of leaders knowing their teammates. Students then evaluated and redesigned their balloon entries for the Thanksgiving Day parade. The final activity was an introduction to the Space unit.

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

4th Grade - Our activities today began with the game of SET. That was followed by watching the winning entries of the MEE contest and reviewing what we can do better next year. Each student was then logged into Khan Academy. This is an enrichment activity that allows students to grow and learn on their own whenever they wish. The affective lesson focused on the 8th Great Gripe of Gifted Kids: Tests, tests, and more tests!. The final activity was to evaluate and redesign their school from straws.

Tuesday, November 30, 2021

3rd Grade - The warm up activity today was to play the game of SET. We started playing with the cards, but due to time constraints we had to play as a class on the Smartboard. The affective lesson had students evaluating the Take 5 program. Students then completed the logic puzzles they started two weeks ago. The final activity was to reimagine their balloon design and make improvements for their next Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

Monday, November 29, 2021

2nd Grade - Our first task today was to get students enrolled in Khan academy. This is not a required activity, but an opportunity for students to move through their favorite subjects at their own pace. Students played the SET game for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on Responsibility and Respect. Students then wrote a short story about what they can do in class when they get bored. In Crystal Pond Woods, we practiced brainstorming with words to make our stories more colorful. The final activity was to get inspired for the Exploravision project.

Friday, November 19, 2021

Good morning and welcome back. I hope you all had a terrific Thanksgiving Break. Due to a meeting I had on the Friday before Thanksgiving, here is a late review of what we did that morning.

3rd Grade - These classes started with a Drop Quote puzzle for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on self evaluation regarding the five characteristics of successful people. Students also set goals for themselves in each area. In Crystal Pond Woods students had some larger logic elimination grid puzzles to solve. The final activity was to build our balloons for our own Thanksgiving Day parade.

Thursday, November 18, 2021

5th Grade - Today's activities began with a Drop Quote puzzle for the warm up activity. The leadership lesson focused on people who have "touched" the lives of the students. The final activity was to design, and build their balloon for our Thanksgiving Day parade.

Wednesday, November 17, 2021

4th Grade - Today's activities began with a Drop Quote puzzle for the warm up activity. Students then shared in a discussion about the demands of parents, teachers, friends, and even themselves because they are identified as gifted. The final activity was to plan, design, and build a school from straws.

Tuesday, November 16, 2021

Monday, November 15, 2021

2nd Grade - These students started with a Drop Quote puzzle for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on the generalization that successful people demonstrate creativity. After listening to Hooray For Diffendoofer Day by Dr. Seuss, students wrote about what they would teach at Diffendoofer school. In Crystal Pond Woods we moved on to Divergent Thinking. Students were given simple shapes and had to come up with what they thought the shapes looked like. The final activity was the introduction for the Exploravision project.

Friday, November 12, 2021

3rd Grade - Students solved the What In The World for the warm up activity. What is the World is a set of eight close up items with a clue to help students identify the item. For Take 5, students had to identify a famous person and tell how they demonstrated the five characteristics of successful people. In Crystal Pond Woods students played Aces, Jumbles, Zilch (a paper and pencil form of Master Mind). Balloons Over Broadway is the book we will be using for the next STEM project. Students will be designing their own balloon and attaching it to a Beebot. We will then put it all together for our own Thanksgiving Day parade.

Thursday, November 11, 2021

5th Grade - Students had to identify from clues eight close up items for the warm up activity. . Their affective lesson focused on leaders that students had in their lives and leaders in the world. We began a STEM project where students designed a balloon that will become part of our own Thanksgiving Day parade.

Wednesday, November 10, 2021

4th Grade - Students had to identify from clues eight close up items for the warm up activity. . Their affective lesson focused on Gripe #6 of Gifted Kids: Our friends and classmates don't always understand us, and they don't see all of our different sides. Students completed a brief research project about a career that involved trees. We began a STEM project where students designed their own school and next week will get to build it.

Tuesday, November 9, 2021

Monday, November 8, 2021

2nd Grade - Students had to identify from clues eight close up items for the warm up activity. . Their affective lesson focused on the generalization that successful people are creative. Last week we began a STEM project where students designed their own school. Today they combined their creativity and STEM skills to build their school and then determine any changes they would make. In Crystal Pond Woods, students used manipulatives to complete puzzles where they had to change the attributes of the pieces.

Friday, November 5, 2021

3rd Grade - Today's warm up activity was a logic elimination puzzle. Students worked together and came up with the solution. The affective lesson covered the final characteristic of successful people which was caring. Next week we will put them all together. The final activity was to complete the MEE competition. Students developed a product to solve a problem, Then they had to create a commercial that they used to try to sell their product.

Thursday, November 4, 2021

Thursday, November 4, 2011

5th Grade - Today's warm up activity was a logic elimination puzzle. Students worked together to solve the problem. The affective lesson focused on leaders who made the cover of magazines. The discussion had students thinking about their future, what they want to be, and the difference between a leader and a celebrity. The final activity was to complete the MEE competition. Students developed a product to solve a problem, Then they had to create a commercial that they used to try to sell their product.

Wednesday, November 3, 2021

4th Grade - Today's warm up activity was a logic elimination puzzle. Students worked together to solve the problem. One group was successful. However the other group found the puzzle to be a bit more challenging. The affective lesson covered Gripe #5 of Gifted Kids - we can't work ahead. We discussed ways to possible work around that situation. The final activity was to complete the MEE competition. Students developed a product to solve a problem, Then they had to create a commercial that they used to try to sell their product.

Tuesday, November 2, 2021

Monday, November 1, 2021

2nd Grade - Today's warm up activity was a logic elimination puzzle. Students worked together and came up with the solution. The affective lesson focused on Task Commitment. Everyone has given a task to complete with a positive and negative motivator. We then discussed the difference and how we all are motivated in different ways. In Crystal Pond Woods, students played a game where they rolled a die and then had to change the attributes of a card. We were introduced to the Exploravision project which we will begin working on in the coming weeks. Finally we read the book If I Built a School by Chris Van Dusen Students designed a school and will build it next week.

Friday, October 29, 2021

3rd Grade - Students started class by solving a Stories With Holes mystery. The affective lesson focused on Courage (one of the five traits of successful people). Each student had to give a one minute impromptu speech. The final activity involved the MEE contest. Students watched a video about the difference between needs and wants. They then worked in teams to put common economics terms with their definitions. The final part of today's MEE contest was to complete an assessment about finances as a team.

Thursday, October 28, 2021

5th Grade - Students started class by solving a Stories With Holes mystery. The affective lesson focused on Concentration. The discussion centered around noticing details and how leaders should pay attention to changes in those under them. Students then completed week 2 of the MEE competition which included: watching a video about the difference between needs and wants, working in teams to put common economics terms with their definitions, and finally completing an assessment about finances as a team. The final activity today was to research a career that centered around trees (part of our Rooted In Wisdom theme) and write a brief description about it.

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

4th Grade - Students started class by solving a Stories With Holes mystery. The affective lesson focused on Gripe #4 of Eight Great Gripes of Gifted Kids: The stuff we do in school is too easy and it's boring. Students discussed productive ways to overcome the boredom. The final activity involved the MEE contest. Students watched a video about the difference between needs and wants. They then worked in teams to put common economics terms with their definitions. The final part of today's MEE contest was to complete an assessment about finances as a team.

Tuesday, October 26, 2021

Monday, October 25, 2021

2nd Grade - These students started the day by completing the Surprise in the Middle drawing. Their affective lesson focused on goal setting and that successful people demonstrate task commitment.

In Crystal Pond Woods, students used manipulatives to solve six different logic puzzles. Students had to follow the clues which became progressively more challenging as they worked through the activity.

The Rooted in Wisdom lesson had students understanding that it is from our values that we accomplish our goals.

Friday, October 22, 2021

3rd Grade - Students listened to directions to complete a Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on Task Commitment. Students were to complete a task in a short amount of time for a positive or negative reward. We then discussed positive/negative and extrinsic/intrinsic motivators. Students started the MEE competition today. This contest will last for three weeks with students developing a product as an entrepreneur. The weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods had students learning how to complete logic elimination grid puzzles.

Thursday, October 21, 2021

5th Grade - These students missed the Cryptograms last week due to fall break so that is where we started today. The affective lesson focused on communication as an important part of leadership. The MEE (Meaningful Economics and Entrepreneurship Contest was introduced today. Students learned some trivial facts about trees. The final activity was color their 8 foot Munracks.

Wednesday, October 20, 2021

4th Grade - Students started the day with a Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. This is an activity in following the directions and creativity. The Eight Great Gripes of Gifted Kids focused on #3 - Other kids ask us for too much help. The MEE (Meaningful Economics and Entrepreneurship Contest was introduced today. The final activity was to learn/search for some trivia about trees.

Tuesday, October 19, 2021

I hope everyone had an enjoyable and restful Fall Break. Here are the activities we did today:

3rd Grade - Students listened to directions to complete a Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on Task Commitment. Students were to complete a task in a short amount of time for a positive or negative reward. We then discussed positive/negative and extrinsic/intrinsic motivators. Students started the MEE competition today. This contest will last for three weeks with students developing a product as an entrepreneur. We were able to start our weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods, but will have to finish this activity at a later date.

Wednesday, October 13, 2021

4th Grade - Students worked together to solve a Cryptogram for the warm up activity. The focus for the affective lesson was grip #2 of gifted kids: We have to do extra work in school. Our discussion focused on ways to talk to teachers and some suggestions for what to say when something like that happens. The Rooted in Wisdom activity had students drawing a tree and writing their values in the roots and their goals in the canopy. The analogy is that students grow from the values they learn.

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

3rd Grade - Students worked together to complete a Cryptogram for the warm up activity. For the affective growth lesson we focused on creativity. Each student was given a four inch black circle and a white sheet of paper and had to create something. It is always interesting to see how each student uses the materials and comes up with something unique. That is creativity. In Crystal Pond Woods, students completed three logic grid puzzles. The final activity was to draw a tree and put their goals in the canopy and their values in the roots. It is from our roots that we develop our goals.

Monday, October 11, 2021

2nd Grade - Our warm up activity was a Cryptogram. We will continue to work on this type of puzzle with our friend Max the Magician. The affective lesson focused on all the things we are good at doing. In Crystal Pond Woods we continued convergent thinking. Students had to analyze items and determine what they had in common then complete a logic elimination grid puzzle. For the Rooted In Wisdom activity, students watched The Giving Tree and Our Tree Named Steve. Then they created a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting the two stories.

Friday, October 8, 2021

3rd Grade - Students played 20 Questions to solve the Mystery Object for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on the above average abilities and that we are all different. In Crystal Pond Woods, students finished the different puzzles we started last week. Our theme activity was to watch two videos where two books about trees were read. Students then compared the two books.

Since we will be enjoying a short break next week, we took the opportunity to cover the creative aspect of successful people. Students were given a white sheet of paper and a black circle and had to create something from those two items. It is always interesting how each student is given the same materials but each creation is different.

Thursday, October 7, 2021

5th Grade - Students played 20 Questions to solve the Mystery Object for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on building vocabulary to describe leaders. Students created acrostics using the word leader for the start of each line. For the Rooted In Wisdom activity, students drew trees. They wrote their top ten values in the roots and wrote their goals in the leaves. The final activity was to design a Munrack from the planet Veltzar. We will do more with these creatures in the coming weeks.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

4th Grade - Students played 20 Questions to solve the Mystery Object for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on the #1 complaint of gifted students - that they sometimes miss activities in class because they go to GATE. Students reflected and designed a new tree they would make if they could using the improvements from their reflection. The final activity was to watch two videos where two books about trees were read. Students then compared the two books.

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

3rd Grade - Students played 20 Questions to solve the Mystery Object for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on the above average abilities and that we are all different. In Crystal Pond Woods, students finished the different puzzles we started last week. The final activity was to watch two videos where two books about trees were read. Students then compared the two books.

Monday, October 4, 2021

2nd Grade - Students played 20 Questions to solve the Mystery Object for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on the generalization that we are all different. In Crystal Pond Woods, students sorted shapes based on their attributes into Venn diagrams.

Friday, October 1, 2021

Chisholm 3rd Grade - Since Miss Horn has been on bereavement leave, I have taken her third grade classes along with mine. Here is what we did today:

These students started their learning with a Loosen Up drawing. The drawing was to be a self portrait using only straight lines to draw. Students were introduced to the Take 5 program which focuses on the five traits of competent/successful kids. We will spend a week learning each trait. We then took our weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods where students learned to solve a variety of Convergent Thinking puzzles. The final activity was to build their "tree" from the design they had developed last week. Those who built their tree last week had an opportunity to evaluate their work and determine how they could improve their tree if they had the chance to build it again.

Thursday, September 30, 2021

5th Grade - These students started class by drawing self portraits using only straight lines. Some of these students will have a future in art. The social/emotional lessons or affective lessons this year will center around leadership skills. Today we laid the foundation for proper discussion and brainstormed words people think of when they hear "leadership" or "leaders." After building our trees last week, we discussed what we learned from our building and the Engineering Design Process. Students then compared and contrasted two books about trees: The Giving Tree and A Tree Named Steve. They then developed similies and metaphors comparing themselves to a tree.

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

4th Grade - These students started class by drawing self portraits using only straight lines. Some of these students will have a future in art. The social/emotional lessons or affective lessons this year will center around the common complaints of gifted students. Today we laid the foundation for proper discussion. Students also completed a Gifted Student Questionnaire which will help guide our discussions. Finally, students built their "trees." Next week we will discuss what we learned from our building and the Engineering Design Process.

Tuesday, September 28, 2021

3rd Grade - These students started their learning with a Loosen Up drawing. The drawing was to be a self portrait using only straight lines to draw. Students were introduced to the Take 5 program which focuses on the five traits of competent/successful kids. We will spend a week learning each trait. We then took our weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods where students learned to solve a variety of Convergent Thinking puzzles. The final activity was to build their "tree" from the design they had developed last week.

Monday, September 27, 2021

2nd Grade - Students drew "Straight Faces" or self portraits using only straight lines for the warm up activity. The affective thinking lesson focused on the understanding that everyone is gifted in GATE, but we are gifted in different things. We started traveling to Crystal Pond Woods this week. Today we learned how to use a logic elimination grid to solve problems. For the Rooten In Wisdom activity, students completed building their trees. We checked to see if they met the criteria, evaluated our building, and drew designs for improving our tree.

Thursday, September 23, 2021

The second week of GATE 2021-22 school year

I do apologize for the delay in getting this information to you. The past two weeks have pretty much seen all grade levels doing the same thing as we get reacquainted or introduced to each other. Over the next couple of weeks I will begin branching out and each grade level will have their own activities.

For this week:

Students played the game of SET together online for the warm up activity. Students can find more SET puzzles to do in Canvas. Last week each student completed a True Colors (personality) Inventory. This week I explained what those colors meant. A similar activity was completed this week as students completed a Multiple Intelligence inventory. The multiple intelligence inventory shares with me a student's preference of learning style. Many students want to know how they got to come to GATE or why they come to GATE. I presented a slide show to them sharing answers to those questions. Our theme this year is Rooted in Wisdom. Students are working through the Engineering Design Process to build a "tree" that can hold 4 "birds" (marbles) as part of our theme focus.

Have a great weekend.

Tuesday, May 25, 2021

Today was our last day of GATE for this year. I am looking forward to seeing you all in the Fall.

2nd and 4th Grade - We are down to the last couple of days of school. So different stations were set up: Education Lego, Education K'Nex, chess, and Snap Circuits. Students worked at each station for about 10 minutes having an opportunity to try something new.

Monday, May 24, 2021

2nd, 3rd and 4th Grade - We are down to the last couple of days of school. So different stations were set up: Education Lego, Education K'Nex, chess, and Snap Circuits. Students worked at each station for about 10 minutes having an opportunity to try something new.

Friday, May 21, 2021

1st Grade - Students started class by solving a Drop Quotes puzzle. They then had an opportunity to further develop their visual thinking by turning some squiggles into pictures of something. Their final activity was to escape a breakout room about Route 66 in Oklahoma.

4th Grade - These students also worked to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. They then had a Breakout To Summer escape room that they were able to solve.

5th Grade - These classes also worked to complete the Head Tower Challenge. Anyone who had a presentation to complete shared it with the class. Their final activity was the Breakout to Summer escape room.

Thursday, May 20, 2021

2nd Grade - Students had to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. The challenge was to see which team could get the highest stack of blocks on a paper plate on someone's head. In Crystal Pond Woods, students learned how to play a game similar to Master Mind.

3rd Grade - Students had to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. The challenge was to see which team could get the highest stack of blocks on a paper plate on someone's head. The final activity was an Oklahoma Road Trip escape room.

4th Grade - These students also worked to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. They then had a Breakout To Summer escape room that they were able to solve at the last minute.

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

4th Grade - These students also worked to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. They then had a Breakout To Summer escape room that they were able to solve at the last minute.

Monday, May 17, 2021

3rd Grade - Students had to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. The challenge was to see which team could get the highest stack of blocks on a paper plate on someone's head. In Crystal Pond Woods students continued to develop their visual thinking with the game of Web Walkers. The final activity was an Oklahoma Road Trip escape room.

4th Grade - These students also worked to solve the Head Tower Challenge for the warm up activity. They then had a Breakout To Summer escape room that they were able to solve at the last minute.

Thursday, May 13, 2021

Thursday, May

2nd Grade - Students were able to work together to solve the Drop Quotes puzzle for the warm up activity. In Crystal Pond Woods we continued visual thinking. Students had to match Max's visual dominoes together to create a long train of shapes. We also learned about the Dot game or Pig in a Pen game.

3rd Grade - This class successfully completed the Drop Quotes puzzle for the warm up activity. In the weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods students learned about Pentominoes and had to fit the different pieces into specific shapes.

4th Grade - After successfully solving a Drop Quotes puzzle for the warm up activity, students then learned the moves of the Queen and King pieces in the game of Chess. They then had the opportunity to play a game of Chess.

Tuesday, May 11, 2021

5th Grade - Due to the size of the Drop Quote puzzle and needing to get presentations started, we started the puzzle for the warm up activity but did not finish it. Several students then shared their projects with the classes.

Monday, May 10, 2021

Friday, May 7, 2021

1st Grade - Today we learned how logic works. Then we used logic to solve a logic elimination problem. The affective lesson focused on our interests and preferences. This gave us an opportunity to get to know each other.

5th Grade - After solving the logic puzzle for the warm up activity, students worked on their choice board activity.

Thursday, May 6, 2021

2nd Grade - This class had a more challenging logic puzzle to complete, but we persevered to finish it. Our affective lesson focused on friendship again. Students discussed the Hating Book and how the two friends should have talked about the problem instead of assuming they knew the problem. In Crystal Pond Woods we continued with Visual Thinking. Students learned how to decode puzzles today.

3rd Grade - This class successfully completed the logic puzzle for the warm up activity. In the weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods students learned about the math of map making. Pieces that touch each other will not be the same color. And an entire map can be colored with just four colors.

4th Grade - After successfully solving a logic puzzle for the warm up activity, students then learned the moves of the rook and knight pieces in the game of Chess.

Tuesday, May 4, 2021

5th Grade - After solving the logic puzzle for the warm up activity, students worked on their choice board activity.

Monday, May 3, 2021

4th Grade - After successfully solving a logic puzzle for the warm up activity, students then learned the moves of the rook and knight pieces in the game of Chess.

Friday, April 30, 2021

1st Grade - This group worked hard to solve the Stories With Holes problem for the warm up activity, but did not come up with the answer. In Crystal Pond Woods students continued inventor thinking by designing a couple of inventions.

5th Grade - After solving the warm up problem (Stories With Holes) students started working on another choice board activity.

Thursday, April 29, 2021

2nd Grade - After working together to solve the Stories With Holes problem for the warm up activity, we review the parts of the Mancala game. We then watched a video about how to play the game. Each student made their own game from an egg carton and beans/macaroni/beads. They then got to play the game with a partner.

3rd Grade - These students had a Stories With Holes problem to solve for the warm up activity. They went over the 20 question limit, but were able to solve the problem. We tested the Construction Paper Towers we built last week. Students had an opportunity to rebuild and test a second design according to a basic engineering plan.

4th Grade - After successfully solving the Stories With Holes problem for the warm up activity, students then began studying the game of Chess.

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

5th Grade - After solving the warm up problem (Stories With Holes) students started working on another choice board activity.

Monday, April 26, 2021

Fourth graders started state testing today. Some classes were shortened or combined in order to accommodate classes around testing.

Here is what we were able to accomplish:

4th Grade - After successfully solving the Stories With Holes problem for the warm up activity, students then began studying the game of Chess.

Friday, April 23, 2021

1st Grade - This class completed a Surprise in the Middle drawing for their warm up activity. During our weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods students were introduced to Isabel the Inventor and Inventor thinking.

5th Grade - These students also completed the Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. They then shared their projects with the class.

Thursday, April 22, 2021

Third graders continued their state testing today. Classes were shorter and combined to at least see everyone for a few minutes. Here are some things we did today:

2nd Grade - Students began with a Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. I collected their egg cartons that we will use next week for making our own Mancala games. Our weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods had students beginning Visual thinking with Max the Magician. Students were given four different shapes and had to cover the shapes using Tangrams.

3rd Grade - These students completed a Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. They continued their divergent thinking by designing a tower from construction paper and 36 inches of tape that will hold a set of encyclopedias. We will test them next week.

4th Grade - This group also completed the Surprise in the Middle drawing. They then began working on a second choice option.

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Third graders continued their state testing today. Classes were shorter and combined to at least see everyone for a few minutes. Here are some things we did today:

5th Grade - These students also completed the Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. They then shared their projects with the class.

Monday, April 19, 2021

Third graders started their state testing today. Classes were shorter and combined to at least see everyone for a few minutes. Here are some things we did today:

4th Grade - This group also completed the Surprise in the Middle drawing. They then began working on a second choice option.

Thursday, April 15, 2021

1st Grade - This class did a really good job with their first attempt on Cryptogram puzzles. We then spent time completing a Venn diagram lesson from last week. Students were then introduced to a breakout room.

2nd Grade - These students attempted the new Cryptogram puzzle for the day. Their affective lesson focused on Leo the Lion and the idea that no one is perfect. In Crystal Pond Woods students continued working on their Divergent thinking. Students were given a noun and a verb. They then had to invent something that went along with those two words. We then started learning about the strategy game group called Mancala.

3rd Grade - These students tried to complete a new puzzle today. They did learn some tactics to solving a Cryptogram puzzle. In Crystal Pond Woods, we continued working on our Divergent Thinking skills. Students were given an answer and had to come up with the question. The final activity was to work on the Oklahoma Road Trip packet.

4th Grade - These class was able to solve the new Cryptogram puzzle for the day. The rest of class time was spent working on projects.

Tuesday, April 13, 2021

4th and 5th Grade - These students attempted the new Cryptogram puzzle for the day. The students who had completed their first project were able to share their work and then move on a breakout room while the other students worked on their projects.

Monday, April 12, 2021

4th Grade - These students were able to solve the new Cryptogram puzzle for the day. The students who had completed their first project were able to work on a breakout room while the other students worked on their projects.

Friday, April 9, 2021

1st Grade - This class learned how to play 20 Questions. They asked thoughtful questions which helped them determine the identity of the Mystery Object. In Crystal Pond Woods students learned how to sort things using a Venn diagram and thinking about attributes.

4th Grade - This class was able to determine the identity of the Mystery Object. They spent the rest of their class time working on their individual projects.

5th Grade - Together these students also determined the identity of the Mystery Object. Students who had completed their projects shared today. When they finished sharing everyone went back to work finishing incomplete projects or starting new ones.

Thursday, April 8, 2021

2nd Grade - This class worked together to identify the Mystery Object for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on making and keeping friends. One way for demonstrating friendship is to share a friendship token. Students completed a short research project on a friendship token. In Crystal Pond Woods we continued expanding our Divergent thinking by building a class story using certain words that each student had received last week.

3rd Grade - This class asked 20 questions MOL to figure out the Mystery Object for the day. In Crystal Pond Woods, students continued developing their Divergent Thinking skills. Today they learned about Rube Goldberg and his amazing chain reaction contraptions. Each students designed their own on paper with at least seven steps.

4th Grade - This class was able to determine the identity of the Mystery Object. They spent the rest of their class time working on their individual projects.

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

4th Grade - This class was able to determine the identity of the Mystery Object. They spent the rest of their class time working on their individual projects.

Monday, April 5, 2021

4th Grade - This class was able to determine the identity of the Mystery Object. They spent the rest of their class time working on their individual projects.

Friday, April 2, 2021

1st Grade - These students were given an opportunity to work on their creative thinking skills by listening to directions and completing designs holding a pencil in their fists and making only circles. The affective lesson had students sharing a little bit about themselves by using the letters of the alphabet to share. We also completed a learning styles inventory to help me better meet their academic needs.

4th Grade - After completing their fist circle designs, these students began working on their Energy Choice Board activities.

5th Grade - These students also completed the fist circles for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on communicating clearly and precisely. They spent time working on their choice board activities for the rest of class time.

Thursday, April 1, 2021

2nd Grade - For the warm up activity these students drew Fist Circles (circles drawn with the pencil in the fist). The affective lesson focused on the idea that friends can help relieve stress. In Crystal Pond Woods students selected words that they will use next week to create a class story. The final activity was to play a game of chess with all of the pieces on the board.

3rd Grade - These students also drew the fist circles for their warm up activity. In Crystal Pond Woods students were given simple designs and had to come up with creative, elaborative answers. Finally they had an opportunity to design their own Skedoodles (as Yolanda the Yarnspinner called them).

4th Grade - After completing their fist circle designs, these students began working on their Energy Choice Board activities.

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

4th Grade - After completing their fist circle designs, these students began working on their Energy Choice Board activities.

Monday, March 29, 2021

3rd Grade - These students drew designs with fist circles for their warm up activity. In Crystal Pond Woods students were given simple designs and had to come up with creative, elaborative answers. Finally they had an opportunity to design their own Skedoodles (as Yolanda the Yarnspinner called them).

4th Grade - After completing their fist circle designs, these students began working on their Energy Choice Board activities.

Friday, March 26, 2021

1st Grade - This class learned how to solve Plexer/Word Boggle puzzles. Their affective lesson focused on "bugging" other people in a nice way. In Crystal Pond Woods we continued with detective thinking as we played a game identifying attributes of blocks. The final activity was to work on an inventory that will help us understand our learning styles.

4th Grade - This class worked together to identify the Plexer/Word Boggle puzzles for the warm up activity. We watched a few videos about different forms of energy. Students then selected one of the available options they will be working on for the next couple of weeks.

5th Grade - These students also completed the Plexer/Word Boggle puzzles for the warm up activity. They spent the rest of their class time working on individual projects of their own choosing.

Thursday, March 25, 2021

2nd Grade - After completing the Plexer/Word Boggle puzzles for the warm up activity, students identified stress in their lives. Students learned that we have to deal with stress everyday and that spending time with friends can lessen stress. In Crystal Pond Woods, students were given a common item and were asked to SCAMPER it into a new invention. The final activity was to learn the moves of the Queen and King of a chess board.

3rd Grade - After working together to solve the Plexer/Word Boggle puzzles students began learning about Divergent thinking and Brainstorming. Students were given topics to brainstorm. They then learned how to come up with their divergent thinking score. The more we practiced today, the better each student became.

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

5th Grade - These students also completed the Plexer/Word Boggle puzzles for the warm up activity. They spent the rest of their class time working on individual projects of their own choosing.

Monday, March 22, 2021

I hope everyone had a great Spring Break. We went back to learning today and here are some things we did:

Friday, March 12, 2021

1st Grade - For the warm up activity today, students found the six sets of the game of SET. Students then learned how to sign into different programs that we will be using in GATE. They also completed a couple of inventories to help me get to know each of them better.

4th Grade - This class was able to find all six sets for SET. Students completed their Tiny House Living project. Finally, they were introduced to our next project: Energy.

5th Grade - These classes also found the six sets for SET. They spent time finishing up their Pasta Rover project then began their choice board activities. These classes also were introduced to the Choice Boards available for them for the rest of the year. Students will have an opportunity to choose what they want to learn and how they demonstrate their learning of the material.

Thursday, March 11, 2021

2nd Grade - For the warm up activity today, students found the six sets of the game of SET. Because I kept forgetting to celebrate the end of the Exploravision project, we took a few minutes to celebrate the end of that major activity. The affective lesson focused on friendships. The final activity was to learn the moves of the Knight and Bishop in a chess game.

3rd Grade - For the warm up activity today, students tried to find the six sets of the game of SET. The rest of class time had students finishing up their Oklahoma boxes with agricultural products found in each region.

4th Grade - This class was able to find all six sets for SET. The rest of class time had students completing their Tiny House Living project.

Tuesday, March 9, 2021

4th Grade - This class was able to find all six sets for SET. The rest of class time had students completing their Tiny House Living project.

5th Grade - These classes also found the six sets for SET. They spent time finishing up their Pasta Rover project then began their choice board activities.

Monday, March 8, 2021

4th Grade - This class was able to find all six sets for SET. The rest of class time had students completing their Tiny House Living project.

Friday, March 5, 2021

1st Grade - First graders met for the very first time today. They had the opportunity to try the Helium Stick Challenge. Two lines of students faced each other with their pointer fingers sticking outward. A really long straw was placed across all of the fingers. Students then had to work as a team to see if they could get the straw to the ground with all pointer fingers still touching the straw. Students managed to raise the straw not lower it. We then took a trip to Crystal Pond Woods where students were introduced to Convergent/detective thinking. Students then learned how to access their GATE activities in Canvas.

4th Grade - They also had the opportunity to try the Helium Straw Challenge. They were successful in raising the straw instead of lowering it. Students then built their tiny houses.

5th Grade - These classes also faced the Helium Straw Challenge. One group was able to lower the stick closer to the floor than any other group. Their affective lesson focused on the importance of communication and teamwork even as a leader. Students then spent time testing their Pasta Rovers and began working on individual projects of choice.

Thursday, March 4, 2021

2nd Grade - This class was given the Helium Straw Challenge to complete. Two lines of students faced each other with their pointer fingers sticking outward. A really long straw was placed across all of the fingers. Students then had to work as a team to see if they could get the straw to the ground with all pointer fingers still touching the straw. Students managed to raise the straw not lower it. The affective lesson was based on the book "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day." We discussed different things Alexander could have done so he wouldn't have to deal with anger. Students were also given suggestions on how to deal with situations where anger could occur. In Crystal Pond Woods students continued practicing their divergent thinking skills. Our friend Isabel the Inventor suggested using the acronym to help convert something old into something new. Students then chose either an umbrella, a fishing pole, or a tennis shoe to SCAMPER a new invention.

3rd Grade - This class was given the Helium Straw Challenge to complete. Students managed to raise the straw not lower it. Each student then had the opportunity to solve the logic grid puzzles of the other students in the classroom. The final activity was to learn the different agricultural resources available in the Frontier Country of Oklahoma.

4th Grade - This class also had difficulty getting the straw to lower instead of rise. The rest of our class time had students finishing up information about their region and tiny house.

Tuesday, March 2, 2021

4th Grade - They also had the opportunity to try the Helium Straw Challenge. They were successful in raising the straw instead of lowering it. Students then built their tiny houses.

Monday, March 1, 2021

3rd Grade - This class was given the Helium Straw Challenge to complete. Two lines of students faced each other with their pointer fingers sticking outward. A really long straw was placed across all of the fingers. Students then had to work as a team to see if they could get the straw to the ground with all pointer fingers still touching the straw. Students managed to raise the straw not lower it. Each student then had the opportunity to solve the logic grid puzzles of the other students in the classroom. The final activity was to learn the different agricultural resources available in the Frontier Country of Oklahoma.

4th Grade - This class also had difficulty getting the straw to lower instead of rise. The rest of our class time had students building their tiny houses.

Friday, February 26, 2021

4th Grade - After solving their Dropquotes puzzle students considered the resources available in the region they would want to build their house. Would there be enough resources for them to survive? They then had to consider any concerns they might have living in that region. Finally, they had to reflect on the pros and cons of living in that particular region of the United States.

5th Grade - These classes also worked together to solve the Dropquote puzzle for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on the importance of active listening especially as a leader. Students then spent time testing their Pasta Rovers.

Thursday, February 25, 2021

2nd Grade - These students worked together to solve a Dropquote puzzle for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on the principle that it is OK to be different based on the book by Todd Parr. In Crystal Pond Woods, students were given some shapes and asked to use their divergent thinking skills to decide what they thought the shapes could be. We then learned the moves the Rook can make in the game of Chess. Students then got to practice moving the pawns and rook.

3rd Grade - These students quickly solve a Dropquotes puzzle for their warm up activity. Students then completed some logic puzzles using manipulatives instead of the usual X or O elimination grids.

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Monday, February 22, 2021

Virtual Days February 15 - 19

All Grade Levels: During the historic snowstorms, cold temperatures, and rolling blackouts we were still able to do a few activities as well as anticipate what would come our way once we returned to school. One activity every class worked on was a Stories With Holes problem. Congratulations to each group that discovered the answer to the problem.

Friday, February 12, 2021

Virtual Days Tuesday and Thursday

Due to icy roads and sidewalks our schools were virtual. We tried to maintain as normal a schedule as was possible.

2nd Grade - These classes began by completing an online logic elimination grid puzzle. The affective lesson focused on the understanding that successful people demonstrate caring. One of the ways we demonstrate caring is to greet adults in an audible, clear voice, and look them in the eye. It is also polite when speaking to an adult to use good manners. In Crystal Pond Woods, students created their own logic elimination grid puzzles that they will use to stump their classmates. Our final activity was to learn the history of Chess.

3rd Grade - This class began their class with a logic elimination grid puzzle. Our weekly trip to Crystal Pond Woods had students design their own logic elimination grid puzzles that they will share with their classmates later. The final activity was to fill two regions of Oklahoma bags with agricultural resources found in that ares.

4th Grade - This class also worked together to solve a logic elimination grid puzzle for the warm up activity. We then spent our class time learning more about the region where students wanted to build their houses. Last week we learned that it is important in building a house to know about the soil for a house foundation and to know about weather conditions for building the roof of the house.

5th Grade - Due to a bad connection we were unable to have class.

Friday, February 12, 2021

5th Grade - These students tackled a much harder logic elimination grid puzzle for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on the importance of communication in leadership. The final activity was to build our pasta rovers which we will test next week.

Monday, February 8, 2021

Friday, February 5, 2021

4th Grade - After completing the Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity, we watched a couple of videos about careers involved with home building. We then looked at our big project called Tiny House. The process of this project began with identifying the problem. As we work our way through the project we will learn the engineering process as well as the problem solving process.

5th Grade - These classes also drew the Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on sending encouraging and complementary notes as leaders. the rest of class was spent designing and planning their pasta rovers which they will build next week.

Thursday, February 4, 2021

Thursday, February 4, 2012

2nd Grade - For the warm up activity students were given a series of directions that led to a Surprise in the Middle drawing. We spent the rest of class finishing up our Exploravision projects. Next week we will begin studying a new topic.

3rd Grade - This class started their activities with a Surprise in the Middle drawing. Our final activity was to begin talking about some of the resources available in the different regions of Oklahoma.

4th Grade - After completing the Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity, we worked to complete any unfinished work that was missing due to our Covid quarantine.

Tuesday, February 2, 2021

2nd Grade - This class started their activities with a Surprise in the Middle drawing. We spent the rest of class finishing up our Exploravision projects. Next week we will begin studying a new topic.

4th Grade - After completing the Surprise in the Middle drawing for the warm up activity, we watched a couple of videos about careers involved with house building. We then looked at our big project called Tiny House. The process of this project began with identifying the problem. As we work our way through the project we will learn the engineering process as well as the problem solving process.

Monday, February 4, 2021

3rd Grade - For the warm up activity students were given a series of directions that led to a Surprise in the Middle drawing. We spent a few minutes working on some logic elimination grid puzzles. Our final activity was to begin talking about some of the resources available in the different regions of Oklahoma.

Friday, January 29, 2021

4th Grade - Students in this class were able to determine the item in less than 20 questions. We watched a video of an interview with a home building contractor to help us prepare for our tiny house project. The rest of class time was spent completing missed work.

5th Grade - These classes also could determine the object with some assistance. Their affective lesson focused on determining the answer to a dilemma using ethics and values. Students then began working on designing a space rover using only pasta and glue.

Thursday, January 28, 2021

2nd Grade - The warm up activity today was a 20 Question/Mystery Object. Students were mostly able to identify the object. The focus for today's Exploravision lesson was Consequences and the Abstract portion. Next week we will design our web pages and finish up and unfinished pieces.

3rd Grade - Third graders were able to determine the 20 Questions/Mystery Object. The rest of class time was spent finishing some logic elimination puzzles that we started a few weeks ago.

4th Grade -These students were placed in quarantine. Hopefully, they are able to join us soon.

Tuesday, January 26, 2021

Monday, January 25, 2021

3rd Grade - Third graders were able to determine the 20 Questions/Mystery Object. The rest of class time was spent having students catch up on some Canvas work and finishing their Oklahoma boxes that we will start filling next week.

4th Grade - Our warm up activity was a 20 Questions Mystery Object game. Students were able to determine the item in less than 20 questions. We watched a video of an interview with a home building contractor to help us prepare for our tiny house project. The rest of class time was spent completing missed work.

Friday, January 22, 2021

4th Grade - This class had the opportunity to make a pipeline out of a sheet of paper as a team for a ping pong ball. They were able to successfully get the ball into the cup even with a limited number of participants. The rest of class time was spent looking at the Southwest region of the United States.

5th Grade - These classes were able to successfully complete the pipeline challenge. The focus of their affective lesson was on the importance of first impressions especially as they start looking forward to middle school. Our final activity was to build either a space build, a rover, or a robot that will be shared with friends.

Thursday, January 21, 2021

2nd Grade - Second graders tried their best to complete the pipeline challenge. Each student was given a sheet of paper (to be used as part of the pipeline-no hands could touch the ball) and had to keep a ping pong ball moving down the line and put it into a cup. Each try saw the ball moving closer and closer to the cup but we had to stop to work on our Explorvision project. Students are moving right along in spite of the short amount of time and we are looking forward to the end. Today our focus was the Design Process segment.

3rd Grade - For the warm up activity today, students had a sheet of paper and had to form a pipeline. The object of the activity was for students to work together to move a ball by creating a track as a team and have the ball drop into a cup. We spent a few minutes reviewing and working on some logic elimination grid puzzles. The final activity was to color the different regions of Oklahoma and glue them into an outline of the state.

4th Grade - This class also had the opportunity to make a pipeline as a team for a ping pong ball. The rest of class time was spent looking at the Southwest region of the United States.

Wednesday, January 20, 2021

4th Grade - This class also had the opportunity to make a pipeline as a team for a ping pong ball. They were able to successfully get the ball into the cup even with a limited number of participants. The rest of class time was spent looking at the Southwest region of the United States.

Tuesday, January 19, 2021

4th Grade - This class also had the opportunity to make a pipeline as a team for a ping pong ball. The rest of class time was spent looking at the Southwest region of the United States.

Friday, January 15, 2021

4th Grade - This class had the opportunity to solve the Mystery of the Macaroni for the warm up activity. The rest of class time was spent working on the West Region of the United States which is part of the Regions and Resources project.

5th Grade - They also had a chance to solve the Mystery of the Macaroni for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on the idea the good leaders encourage their teammates. Each student wrote a positive note to another student, put it into an egg, and hid it. We then had fun looking for the eggs with our names on them. The final activity was to complete the Space Brochures and then design a robot, or space rover that another student will try to rebuild.

Thursday, January 14, 2021

2nd Grade - The warm up activity for this week had students solving The Mystery of the Macaroni. This week our focus for the Exploravision project was to complete the Breakthrough section that dealt with understanding how technology changes over time.

3rd Grade - Each student was given a piece of macaroni for the warm up activity. They had to listen to directions to gain clues to solve the Macaroni Mystery. For the affective lesson, students evaluated where they stand currently with each character of successful people. They then set goals of where they would like to be for characteristic. Finally they completed an evaluation of the program. As students finished their evaluation and goals, they colored each of the six regions of the state of Oklahoma. Students then glued the regions onto an outline of Oklahoma and later we will be talking about the different resources available in each region.

4th Grade - This class also had the opportunity to solve the Mystery of the Macaroni for the warm up activity. The rest of class time was spent working on the West Region of the United States which is part of the Regions and Resources project.

Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Monday, January 11, 2021

3rd Grade - Each student was given a piece of macaroni for the warm up activity. They had to listen to directions to gain clues to solve the Macaroni Mystery. For the affective lesson, students evaluated where they stand currently with each character of successful people. They then set goals of where they would like to be for characteristic. Finally they completed an evaluation of the program. As students finished their evaluation and goals, they colored each of the six regions of the state of Oklahoma that we will be putting into a map as part of our big Oklahoma project.

Friday, January 8, 2021

4th Grade - This class completed Plexer puzzles for the warm up activity. We then spent time working on the Resources and Regions project. This week we studied the Plains region of the United States.

5th Grade - Plexer puzzles were the warm up activity for these classes too. Their affective lesson focused on how it may take a team to complete leadership tasks. They spent the rest of their class time completing their planet brochures.

Thursday, January 7, 2021

Welcome Back! It was good to see everyone after our Winter Break. Here's what we did today:

2nd Grade - Students completed Plexer puzzles for the warm up activity. The affective lesson focused on the understanding that successful people demonstrate caring. Students created pledges to show how they care. The rest of our class time was spent working on the Exploravision contest.

3rd Grade - This group also completed Plexer puzzles for the warm up activity. Their affective lesson focused on setting goals for the five characteristics of successful people. The final activity was to pack a suitcase for our Oklahoma Road Trip project using a limited amount of money to determine what items we would take.

4th Grade - These classes also completed the Plexer puzzles for the warm up activity. We then spent time working on the Resources and Regions project. This week we studied the Plains region of the United States.

Tuesday, January 5, 2021

Welcome Back! It was good to see everyone after our Winter Break. Here's what we did today: