Dolphins

Take a peak at a few final photos of our completed paper mache dolphins! We labeled the anatomy of the dolphin today, using the following words: ear, blowhole, beak, flipper, dorsal fin, and fluke. Aren't they adorable?

Paper Mache Dolphins

In preparation for our Aquarium field trip on February 11th, we are paper maching dolphins during morning homeroom and afternoon discovery time. Here are photos of us paper maching and painting. We will eventually label the dolphin. Don't they look great?

Sunny

Meet Sunny the Snowman!

I channeled my inner six year old and make a snowman this evening. What do you think, 6D? Did you make any snowmen during our mini vacation from school? What items did you use? I used: flamingo sunglasses for the eyes, a cork for the nose, craisons for the mouth, a ribbon as an accessory, and daisies for buttons. The grass skirt is a nice touch, don't you think?



Speaking of snowmen, do you recall this book? I read it back in December. If you have time over the next few days, I highly recommend you look through it again. This book does not have words, which is what makes it so interesting. You can make up your own version of the story as you go. Click here to buy this book.

Gestures

One of my ALL TIME favorite snow day games is Gestures. Watch the video to see me playing at home!
Speaking of games, the next time we get together with our 9th Age friends, you will need to bring in a favorite game from home to share. I will keep you posted on when to bring this in, but in the meantime, I hope you are enjoying this time at home with your family!

"Oh, the weather outside is frightful..."

The best snow days are the unexpected ones. For the past few weeks, putting a cotton ball under my pillow and wearing my pajamas inside out just hasn't seemed to work! Fastforward to 5:30 am this morning- this is the view outside of my window! Yipee!

What are you doing on your snow day, 6D? Building snowmen? Making snow angels? Send me your photos!

xoxo
Mrs. Armstrong

FEARLESS, defined.

FEARLESS, Defined:

–adjective
without fear; bold or brave; intrepid.

Watch this video to view one 6D student being brave! He had his first ski race this past weekend as a member of a race team. While at Wisp, he skiied down "Squirrel Cage" which is a very steep and icy run. He also skiied down what is likely Wisp's hardest run, "The Face," which is a very steep mogul run.

Excellent job!

A South American Adventure!

Hola! Mrs. Miles' class recently went on a four week journey with me to South America! Before our trip we reviewed the definition of the word continent (a large piece of land) and colored in a map of South America.

Later, we studied a specific area called the Amazon Rainforest. We made a book that helped us to determine how the rainforest is layered, and what animals live within each layer.


Before we departed, we couldn't forget our plane tickets or passports! We conveniently flew via CALVERT AIR: The Curious Traveler Who Flies With a Purpose!


On our visit, we saw an anaconda! Thank goodness it was tame enough to bring home!

Nice job, friends! I had fun traveling with you! Don't forget to check in your mailboxes for your travel goodies.

Ezra Jack Keats

Our January author this month is Ezra Jack Keats. You may be familiar with the following stories, including the first, which is a 6D favorite:




After reading GOGGLES, we made goggles of our own!

Meet our dolls!

The 6D students began a new semester long project titled "Allies and Activists" last week. This project began with the introduction of 8 dolls with diverse backgrounds. Meet our dolls below!

Meet the boys (from left to right): Hunter, Jackson, Miyuki, Vincent

...and the girls (from left to right): Asame, Lilly, Emma, Ava


Upon meeting the dolls, we discussed the following behaviors: Bully(ing behavior- when someone says mean things using their words, or acts out in mean ways using their bodies), Target (the person who is picked on or "targeted" by the bully), Ally (the person who comes to the aid of the Target), and Bystander (the person who does nothing at all, neither kind or unkind). These behaviors were placed in a Four Square model.

Later, I told a brief story to the class utilizing four dolls. Each doll exhibited one of the four behaviors in this story, and after brief discussion the students were asked to place the dolls in the appropriate squares.

During our discussions we learned that we all try on each of these behaviors throughout the course of our lives- we can all exhibit bullying behavior, get picked on as a target of bullying behavior, become an ally to a target, or simply be a bystander and do nothing at all. The class recognized (most importantly) that they each have a CHOICE, however, on how they choose to behave at any given moment.

I was so proud of 6D's behavior, comments, and honesty as we started this project. Each friend had a thoughtful comment or honest remark about the story told, behaviors modeled, or relation back to their personal life.

The next day a few students asked to role play with the dolls during free time!

Sight Word Books

We have a large sight word wall in our reading classroom, but sometimes it can be difficult to see the abundance of words from afar, let alone copy them when writing. As a solution, each student has been making an individual "Sight Word Book" throughout the year. Words are organized alphabetically. This has already proved useful during writing activities! We will continue to add new words to our book as the year continues.

A Pair of Socks

What constitutes a pair? What items come in pairs? In our math discussions today we set out to explore and answer these questions.

Today the students listened to the story A PAIR OF SOCKS by Lois Ehlert. In our discussions we formulated that a pair of something occurs (most often) when the items are the same size, shape, color and weight. The mathematicians brainstormed other items that come in pairs: shoes, mittens, arms, legs, eyes, earrings. We sorted items in small groups, and then found pairs amongst them. We ended class by drawing a pair of socks- the designs and colors used had to be exactly the same on both! Take a peak at our hard work.

Groups of friends sorting objects and finding pairs:


The beginnings of our sock designs:

Holiday Celebrations and Winter Break!

6D celebrated the beginning of winter and Christmas vacation last month with an afternoon party. They made gingerbread houses! Delicious ingredients used included pretzels, Fruit Loops cereal, mints, icing, and lots of candy. The students had a marvelous time!




On Friday 6D sang holiday music at a lower school sing-a-long in the auditorium.

We then returned to the classroom to open up a present from yours truly- can you guess what was inside?

All students and teachers then retreated home or traveled away for a relaxing break with family and friends! Some highlights of my break included:
opening up holiday "crackers" and make-believing we were kings and queens (it's a Hanley Family Christmas tradition)


spending time with my husband's family on the 26th

viewing a lights display on a quick jaunt to Ocean City



spending time with a good friend

and enjoying my goodies from 6D!

Thank you for making my holiday so wonderful! I am well-rested and excited to be back with my students. Happy New Year!