Fifth Grade Skype with Liesl Shurtliff and Sixth Grade News

 

The fifth graders had a great time Skyping Liesl Shurtliff on Friday after we finished our read aloud, Rump:  The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin.  We prepared questions and gathered together first thing in the morning to meet this awesome author.  She spent about a half hour with us.  I love how accessible authors are now with Twitter, Skype, and blogging. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     The kids wrote terrific thank you notes.  Some of the students were really inspired by her and want to become authors themselves!  We're really excited about her plans to write companion novels to Rump, and she even said she may send us an Advanced Reader's Copy!  Wow!  Now we're reading The Real Boy by Anne Urse during our unit on FEAR.  Students have filled out almost all of their literacy contracts with due dates and title.  All students need to have a nonfiction book about FEAR as of today.  They are collecting/marking at least 10 sentences in their nonfiction books that describe fear.  The second section and Discussion Plan #2 of the small group books are due Tuesday.  New vocabulary lists were distributed today.  NO weekly summary response letters next week.

 

     We hope our 6th graders had fun at camp this week!  We had to finish up 1st quarter assessments while they were gone - now everyone's taken them.  We'll delve further into our TYRANTS unit next week now that we know everyone will be here!  We started our read aloud, Milkweed, by Jerry Spinelli about the Holocaust. 

 

     Exciting news about our #ReadWalkWater project - we've raised over $4,000 so far!  Mrs. Kleis and I gave a presentation to the Rotary Club last week, and they generously donated $500.  We're asking that kids keep up their fundraising efforts because we're so close to our goal of $5,000!

 

     Keep reading, reading, reading so we can all meet the 50 Book Challenge!  We have 2 fifth graders and 2 6th graders who have already met it! :-)

 

REMINDER:  Our 5th and 6th grade Written Education Plan meeting will be Thursday, Nov. 14th (conference night) at 5:00 p.m. in the CIS Cafe.  I will give the camp kids their reminder fliers on Mon.  If you need to schedule a conference that night, please schedule it after 5:30.  Anyone who would like to schedule a conference with me that night, just let me know.  I have a few slots open.  Thank you!

Celebrate #ReadWalkWater!

     

Wow!  What a day yesterday!  Sixth graders and staff walked for Water for South Sudan on Friday.  It was a beautiful day and the kids got into the spirit by walking with gallon jugs of water, honoring those women and children in South Sudan who have to walk miles a day to get water for their families.  My college daughter's friend, Jordan, came to teach my classes about the world water crises.  She brought Jerry cans (containers similar to what Sudanese people would use for water - they weigh 44 lbs. when filled) and 10 Day tattoos to remind kids that they're drinking nothing but water for the next 10 days.  What was our grand total in fundraising money so far?

$2,717.40!

 

 

     Our goal is $5,000, though, so we're not done yet!  Students will be donating money that they saved from not buying beverages for 10 days.  Drink water!!  We'll be selling #ReadWalkWater bracelets at a few upcoming school events, and I'll be presenting at the local Rotary Club at the end of October.  Keep up fundraising efforts and ask for donations from family, friends, and neighbors!  We want Columbia Intermediate School to be an official sponsor of a South Sudanese well!  Enjoy photos of our wonderful week:

 

On Tuesday, we Skyped with Water for South Sudan.  That was really cool!  Here was their Facebook post:

Water for South Sudan, Inc.

October 9

WFSS employees Lynn Malooly and Marie Cinti Skype (video conference) with over 300 6th graders at a school assembly at Columbia Intermediate School in Kings Mills, Ohio. The 6th graders recently finished reading A Long Walk to Water and are... going to begin a fundraiser for Water for South Sudan this Friday. School group fundraisers run by passionate students and coordinated by engaged, passionate teachers make an enormous impact on fundraising efforts which provides vital funds to allow WFSS to continue to do this meaningful and life changing work. Thanks to Columbia Intermediate School and teacher Holly Mueller as well as all of the school groups, past, present and future, who are taking matters into their own hands and creating change! We can't possibly express our gratitude enough!

Post by Water for South Sudan, Inc.

 



 My daughter, Libby's, friend, Jordan came to visit to teach about the world water crisis.  She's the founder of the Miami University chapter of Living Water.

  

Selling #ReadWalkWater bracelets during lunch

 

 

Jordan brought Jerry cans and water from the well she helped dig in Guatemala.

 

She brought 10 Day tattoos to remind kids to drink nothing but water for 10 days!

 

 

The walk begins!  It was a beautiful day!

 

 

Filled Jerry cans weigh 44 lbs.!

 

 

Even crutches didn't stop a Cameron!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jordan and me



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THANK YOU to our 6th graders for thinking about others, helping to solve world problems, and believing a book can inspire people to take action!!

If Not You, Then Who?

Wow!  Time has gotten away from me, and I haven't posted for a long time!  So much has been going on!  The biggest thing right now is our social action project the 6th graders are doing as a follow-up to finishing A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park.  Everyone loved the book, and we were all inspired to raise money to build a well for Water for South Sudan, Inc.  Megan even wrote about it:

 

I loved that Megan found the African Proverb, "If you want to go fast, go alone.  If you want to go far, go together." 

 

After we finished the book, we watched this video:

 

 

 

This week we started gathering pledges and donations.  We're up to $1000, but our goal is $5,000 so we have more work to do!  We Skyped the Water for South Sudan, Inc. on Tuesday.  It was awesome.  The kids did a great job asking questions, showing enthusiasm, and being polite.

 

Friday is our big day!  It's our "Walk for Water" day.  Don't forget to bring a gallon jug of water and wear a blue t-shirt.

 

 

 

We're selling rubber #ReadWalkWater wristbands and donated Rainbow Loom bracelets during lunch on Thursday and Friday, and possibly into next week.

 

Starting on Friday, we have another fundraising project starting.  We'll be drinking nothing but water for 10 days and donating the money saved from not buying other beverages to Water for South Sudan, Inc. 

 

 

It's so exciting to see how a book can lead to social action and making a difference in the world!!

 

 

I haven't forgotten the fifth graders!  They'll be participating in this project next year, but for now they're writing fractured tales after finishing their small group extended fairy tale books and writing claim paragraphs.  They're also enjoying their read aloud, Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin.

 

Aaron Becker's Video

Hi class! Aaron Becker sent a video via Dropbox, so I'm hoping you can click on this link, and it will be there! Let me know if you have trouble. Then, you need to write a 1/2 page to full page Quick Write in your Writer's Notebook about your passion, what you care about, or what you're sensitive to. You'll know what I mean by that after you watch the video. Enjoy! Click here to watch: Aaron Becker's Video  Also, feel free to comment below on anything he says.  I thought his video was awesome!

 

 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

This is a meme started by Teach Mentor Texts, and I participate every week on my personal/professional blog, along with many other bloggers, so I thought I'd share them with you, too!  In the comments section below, I want to hear what you're reading!  Parents, if you'd like to share what you're reading, that would be great!

 

PICTURE BOOKS

 

 

Inside Outside by Lizi Boyd

2013-book, art, birds, cats, creativity, curiosity, dogs, home, mock-caldecott-2014, nature, picture-book, play, read, seasons, wordless I was lucky enough to win this book from Margie Myers-Culver when she gave away wordless picture books for Mr. Schu's birthday on Twitter. I loved all four that she gave away, but I already owned the other three (Bluebird, Journey, and The Boy and the Airplane), so I tried for this one. I was so glad to receive and read it! Fans of Laura Vaccaro's GREEN will enjoy this celebration of nature and childhood. Die cuts throughout enhance this book about a child's creative and curious life inside his home and outside in his yard throughout the seasons. I love the feel and weight of the pages and the adorable dog and cat. Be sure to notice the mice! Thanks, Margie ( and Mr. Schu for having a birthday)!   Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan by Mary Williams, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie based-on-true-story, civil-rights, multicultural, picture-book, strong-children, survival, war I read this book aloud to the sixth graders about the Lost Boys of Sudan to build some background knowledge for their read aloud, A LONG WALK TO WATER by Linda Sue Park. It's an excellent picture book about Garang, a young boy who has to flee his village in Sudan after it is attacked. He befriends a younger boy and takes care of him during their walk to Ethiopia. This picture book parallels A LONG WALK TO WATER closely, so it makes a great introduction. MIDDLE GRADE The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt 2013-book, animals, audio-book, character-development, character-motivation, death, environmental, fantasy-science-fiction, grandparents, great-read-aloud, humor, intermediate-kids-book, journey, mock-newbery-2014, nature, personification, quest, sensory-details, setting I LOVED the audio of this book, narrated by Lyle Lovett. It's so charming, poignant, and funny. Lyle Lovett's voice was just perfect for the story.  Katie, in one of my 5th grade classes, is reading it right now, and I can't wait to hear what she thinks. I don't know if the actual reading of it will be as good as the audio, but I hope so! Twelve-year-old Chap is missing his grandpa something awful, and he loves the swamp. Bingo and J'miah are raccoon brothers and new scouts of the Sugar Man Swamp, keeping watch from Chap's grandpa's missing Desoto, reporting Intel. Alligator wrestler Jaeger Stitch is trying to turn the swamp into an Alligator World Wrestling Arena and Theme Park, and if that's not enough to worry you, there is a gang of wild hogs on the way, intent on destroying everything! It's up to the Sugar Man to save the day, but no one has seen him in decades, and he's awfully hard to wake up. The characters and setting are unforgettable; I'm looking forward to recommending this to my Mock Newbery Club! A good pairing for this book would be Carl Hiassen's CHOMP.   CURRENTLY READING   This is a young adult book.   CURRENTLY LISTENING TO     This is also a young adult book.   Comment below to tell us about books you just finished this week or that you're currently reading.  If you're listening to any audio books, let us know!

Welcome to a New Year!

The 2013-2014 school year is underway!  I'm still getting to know my sixth grade students and several fifth grade students who are new to the program.  I love continuing with last year's fourth grade group.  It's fun to see how much they remember from last year and all the connections they're making with the books I shared with them last year and the new books I'm sharing this year. Most students have already added at least one book to the 50 Book Challenge chart.  Information on the 50 Book Challenge is in your student's ELA binder.

 I started with both groups by reading Journey by Aaron Becker, a gorgeous wordless book that was published recently. 

 

 

 

"Journey(s)" is the theme topic for fifth grade in September.  We made a concept map about it, brainstorming everything we could about journeys.  Both groups wrote a Quick Write about what they want their journey this year to be like.

 

 

 

"Crusader" is the theme topic for sixth grade.  We also made a concept map for that word.  We will be reading about crusaders throughout the month, and plans are starting to be made to BECOME crusaders in an important world cause, inspired by our upcoming read aloud.

 

 

 

Short nonfiction articles will be read to enhance each theme topic.  We will be adding to these concept maps throughout the month.  Fifth grade is starting to read an article on the Underground Railroad, a journey to freedom.

 

Sixth grade read an article on Malala Yousafzai, a strong and brave crusader for the right to go to school in Pakistan.

 

 

Fifth grade will start a unit on traditional literature.  A literacy contract will be coming home this this week, outlining upcoming requirements.  I'm waiting for all the small group books to come in to the Cincinnati Library.  Their read aloud is Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff.

 



 

 

The sixth grade's read aloud is  A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park.  A literacy contract will also be coming home soon for sixth grade.  They will be reading mythology this month.  We will read about crusaders in both fiction and nonfiction.

 



 

I also assigned and went over requirements/rubric for weekly summary response letters.  Look for these handouts in your student's ELA binder.  The first weekly summary response letter is due by September 6th.  We are practicing a summary response letter over the nonfiction articles we read. I will go over requirements/rubrics for book talks and book reviews this week or next.  One book talk and one book review are due each quarter.

 

Word study will begin shortly.  We will be studying prefixes, suffixes, and root words.

 

Parents, don't hesitate to call or e-mail me with questions and concerns.  My goal is to update this blog with classroom information once a week. 

 

Feel free to comment below.  Just click on "comments," and if you have a Google account, you can choose that option.  If you don't, it's easiest to comment using the "Name/URL" option.  Then just put in your first name.  I moderate all comments before they are published.  You may comment by asking questions, reacting to the blog post, letting us know what you're reading, etc.  The comment section can sometimes start great conversations!

 

I hope you are having a wonderful holiday weekend!

 



The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppett!!

Tom Angleberger signs "The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppett"

Fri. August 9th @ 7pm at Blue Manatee

About the book:
Dark times have fallen on McQuarrie Middle School. Dwight’s back—and not a moment too soon, as the gang faces the FunTime Menace: a new educational program designed to raise students’ standardized test scores. Instead, it’s driving everyone crazy with its obnoxious videos of Professor FunTime and his insidious singing calculator! When Principal Rabbski cancels the students’ field trip—along with art, music, and LEGO classes—to make time for FunTime, the students turn to Origami Yoda for help. But some crises are too big for Origami Yoda to handle alone: Form a Rebel Alliance the students must. United, can they defeat the FunTime Menace and cope with a surprise attack from Jabba the Puppett?

Kidreads.com came out with a great August list of new books, too!  http://www.kidsreads.com/coming-soon