Through the Wardrobe

This year's classroom theme is Chronicles of Narnia!

 

 I've created table groups based on the mythical creatures in the land: fauns, centaurs,  dwarves, and unicorns. 

Table points have always been a big hit! 

Since each book is fairly short (compared to Harry Potter), I'm hoping to read nearly the entire series. We've started with The Magician's Nephew and everyone seems to really like it so far!

I always like to include a group activity within the first week to allow table groups to learn about each other, and figure out how to work together. I found this fun game called "See, Run, Do". In this activity, someone sees a picture and describes it to another student. This person then has to "run" to the next person and tell them what was described to them. The "Do" person has to draw what is being described. This activity involves listening and communicating, which is so important when you are working in a group. My students actually really enjoyed the activity. Here's the picture they had, and the drawings they completed:

 

 

I'm looking forward to another magically filled year!

"Narnia, Narnia, awake. Love. Think. Speak. Be walking trees. Be talking beasts. Be divine waters."

The Magician's Nephew, Page 126

Last Year's Field Trips

In February we went to the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden. I'd never been before but had read online that they had a wonderful school program involving nature hikes and a focus lab. My students were able to use microscopes to look closer at some of the plants they collected while hiking through the beautiful garden area. Several of my sixth graders commented that this was the best field trip ever!

There was so much rain before our field trip!

The rain made the creek very full, and the garden was thriving with life! 

As you know, since I have three grades, I rotate through the social studies. This year was the fifth grade curriculum, which is United States History.  I thought the Ronald Reagan Library was perfect for this year. We went at the end of March and did the Discovery Center. I wish I had more students to fill each of the simulation rooms, but with my small group we were able to fill the Oval Office and part of the Command Decision Center. My students absolutely LOVED this field trip. After our simulation, we got to do a quick guided tour of the museum portion of the library. It was wonderful! Next time I am on the fifth grade social studies, I will definitely book this field trip again. Hopefully, I will be able to coordinate with another fifth grade class to fill more of the spaces!

This coming school year I have a field trip I am super excited about! It is a place I have always wanted to go, and ties in perfectly to our sixth grade social studies :) You'll have to wait to see where it is we are going!

What Happened?

Well, it looks like I was really bad about blogging (again) last year! SO much happened after my last post! Here's some of it in a nutshell.

Remember, I was pregnant and due October 23rd? Well, we were just getting ready to start interviews for my Long Term Sub when I was hit with crippling sciatica. I couldn't move without excruciating pain, and had to leave work early and take a day off. I thought that was it. That'd I'd be unable to work. Luckily, my doctor recommended an amazing chiropractor that was able to ease the pain. I ended up seeing him twice a week until my daughter was born. 

In that last month before my leave started, my class did their first Literature Circles using Roald Dahl books. This was actually the project that was sponsored by Donors Choose! We read Fantastic Mr. Fox, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and The Giant Peach, and Matilda. I used the same format as last year, where we had lap books and my students seemed to really enjoy it. I ended up having to start my maternity leave a few days early, so their last literature circle meeting was done with my substitute. 

Speaking of my substitute, I went a little overboard with planning for her. I'd been a longterm sub before, and knew how nerve-wracking it could be, so I made her an entire binder full of information including: class rules/procedures, class list, information on each student, a planning outline for each subject, sample lesson plans, projects that needed to be completed, and much more! I think my class can be somewhat overwhelming (it IS three grades, after all) and my hope was that this binder would take some of the edge off. Even though my sub didn't use everything in my binder, I think it is something I'll use again in the future. 

When I returned from Maternity Leave in January we jumped right into the Spelling Bee, Science Fair (my sub started the planning packets in November), and a new Language Arts Curriculum. I had started the school year out piloting the Journeys program. There was so much to this particular program, and with me getting ready to leave my class, I am not afraid to admit that it was overwhelming. My sub continued to use Journeys, and I used it the first month or so back then switched to the National Geographic, Reach for Reading Program. 

Both programs had a lot to offer and had their positives and negatives, but at the end of the year I felt the best choice was Journeys. Having a tri-grade classroom is tricky and I really need a curriculum that is easy to adapt to the needs of my students and myself. Reach for Reading was wonderful, but really not conducive to the multigrade classroom. 

That's a bit of what happened in the last school year. My next post will be about the two amazing field trips we had before I dive into this coming year! Until then, here's the first picture of my daughter and I after she was born and one from the park yesterday :) 

                       

Hogwarts Art

I had so many fun Harry Potter themed activities planned the first week, but I didn't have time to get through all of them. Luckily, I was able to set aside some time this last week for our Hogwarts Castle Silhouettes! 

The timing of this little art project was actually perfect since we just got to Hogwarts Castle in Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone. My students are actually loving this as my teacher read aloud, and ask for it constantly and moan when I say I have to stop reading. 

To make the silhouettes, first we used water colors to paint the background of either a sunset or sunrise. 

Next, we looked at some silhouette samples on the projector and then I drew the top two the class liked on the board.

 We practiced drawing a silhouette on lined paper and some students decided to use rulers to get their lines straight. Once they felt ready to draw the final silhouette, we used black construction paper and white crayons or colored pencils for the outline.

The students did such a great job and the silhouettes look great. I love how they look on the wall in our classroom :) 

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwartd in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend her."

There was a loud "Oooooh!"

The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers. 

-Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone, page 111

A Magical First Week

One week ago, I left my classroom with a heavy sigh and thought "I'm as ready as I'll ever be." I turned off the lights and locked up the school, excited and nervous for another first day to begin the next morning. Even though I knew most of the students already, I was still nervous. 

You see, my theme this year is Harry Potter and I wasn't sure how everyone was going to react. I love Harry Potter for many reasons, but mostly because it captivated me when I was a child and is still something that gets me excited. I just wasn't sure if my students would be as excited as I was for this theme and the activities I had planned. 

Here's what my class looked like before the students arrived:

My Job Board

My table groups are Hogwarts Houses. They have color coded pencil boxes to match their House color. 

 I think it is safe to say that my theme was a success! The students really seemed to enjoy our theme, and our first week flew by faster than the Golden Snitch (ha!).

Last year, I started doing a Time Capsule in the first week of school since I loop with my students. It's something they will open on their last day of school in the sixth grade. Inside is a little questionnaire about their likes and dislikes, a first day of school photo, a piece of string that shows their height, and a letter to themselves. My fifth and sixth graders added to the ones we started last year, and my new fourth graders started theirs.

Time Capsule Envelopes 

To go with my Harry Potter theme and Hogwarts House tables, I gave a sorting quiz after lunch on the first day. The quiz gave each person what percentage they were of each of the Hogwarts Houses. I used these scores to do my seating chart, taking two students from each grade for each table.

Once we had our assigned seats, we went over the different traits that are found in each Hogwarts House and I had each table create a new House Crest. To do this, they first had to figure out which trait they all had in common. This had to be included in their crest. Then, they were given the choice of changing their mascot and they set to work. 

I think this was a really good activity for them to learn about each other, and for them to learn how to collaborate. Once everyone was finished, each table stood up in front of the class and shared their new House Crest. 

Couldn't get a picture without the baby bump. 

I started reading Sorcerer's Stone and after getting a little information about the Wizarding World, we completed these "All About Magical Me" pennants.

No first week of school is complete without self portraits! We made exaggerated portraits with extra long necks. 

This one is me!  

We also started math, social studies, and a our first essays this week! I had other Harry Potter activities planned, but ran out of time so they will have to be saved for another day! 

I think it is going to be another great year! 

DonorsChoose.org

I recently learned about this wonderful nonprofit organization called DonorsChoose that allows people to donate to classrooms and teachers throughout the United States. Donations can be made to teachers, or directed towards classroom projects that need supplies or additional funding.

Last year I had some great ideas for projects and shared many of them here. This year, I have some more ideas and will need help making them a reality. If you would like to donate to my class or current projects of mine that need supplies, you can visit my personal DonorsChoose page here. 

While I would love all donations to go my class, there are some other pretty incredible teachers out there that need your support. DonorsChoose has teamed up with Reddit in order to reach more teachers and classrooms in need. If my classroom project doesn't appeal to you, feel free to look through the hundreds of others out there! I am sure you will find one to support. 

If you know anyone who may want to help any classroom, please spread the word!

Incase the links don't work: 

https://www.donorschoose.org/reddit-gifts-for-the-teachers

www.donorschoose.org/Mrs.Stowers

Getting Ready

The first day of school is almost here and I've been pretty busy this summer planning, aside from teaching swim lessons! I've been looking at this years science and social studies curriculums, along with planning some pretty great first week of school activities.

This year is going to be even more exciting since I am expecting my first child this October! Going out on maternity leave and leaving my students for a short time is making me nervous. All I can do is plan and prepare my sub as much as a I can. I go back into my room on August 15th, so stay tuned for my classroom reveal!