Odd & Even

This week we reviewed the concept of Even and Odd numbers.  We explored the idea that with even numbers, "everything matches up"or "has a partner",  whereas with odd numbers, there is one thing "leftover".  Children drew examples of even and odd on Ten Frames, to illustrate their understanding.

Being Mindful

Yesterday we tried our first mindfulness exercise, using audio from "Sitting Still Like a Frog" by Eline Snel 

The two major parts of the exercise are listening and breathing.  This introduction to mindfulness includes practices that can help children calm down, become more focused, fall asleep more easily, alleviate worry, manage anger, and generally become more patient and aware.  Much of the practice of mindfulness focuses on remembering to breathe, and for seven and eight year olds (and adults) this can have a variety benefits.  

One example we talked about is when you are tempted to yell at someone, or say something mean.  If you pause, and take a breath, that temptation may go away.

This exercise was helpful before our first time working on the NWEA test.  It is also extremely useful in building a positive classroom community.  Below is a link to the exercise we listened to.

http://www.shambhala.com//images/illus/Sitting_Still_audio/02.%20Exercise%201%20-%20Sitting%20Still%20Like%20a%20Frog.mp3

The Number Grid Game

We learned another great math  game yesterday called "The Number Grid Game" which allows children to practice counting by ones and tens on the number grid.  

Constitution Day

Yesterday we marked Constitution Day with our first all school assembly.  Mr. Court spoke a bit about the history, as well as the three branches of government.  In class we looked at the Preamble to the Constitution (a good way to sneak in a little handwriting practice!) and talked about the meaning of the many sophisticated words in it.

Bal-A-Vis-X

This week, Matei's mom, Andreea Dersidan, started to do Bal-A-Vis-X exercises with the class. These are balance, auditory, vision exercises that “enable the whole mind-body system to experience the symmetrical flow of a pendulum”, as stated at www.bal-a-vis-x.com. She is a Bal-A-Vis-X practitioner and will work with the kids every week for about one hour, pulling kids individually or in small groups while the rest of the class is doing independent class work or other learning activities. Andreea asks that you pay attention to your child’s balance, coordination and academic work, because many times there will be a noticeable improvement in these areas once their system gets more balanced and integrated. She indicated that any questions or requests for more information can be sent to her via email at adersidan@yahoo.com. She is also happy to make a demonstration and answer questions at Curriculum night, after the meeting time.  Thank you, Andreea!!

I Wonder

Ask your child about the "I Wonder" circle that we will use as we explore scientific concepts this year.  Your child can also tell you about how we used the circle before/during/after our experiment to answer the question "What will happen if I try to color on wet paper?"

Visit from Mr. Court

Yesterday Mr. Court came by to review expectations with the students.  He talked about the three main characteristics Angell Eagles exemplify:

Reading Buddies

Today we met our Fourth Grade Reading Buddies from Miss Lee's class.  We will read with each other weekly throughout the year.  This is a wonderful opportunity to build positive relationships across the grades.   Students in past years have always very much looked forward to reading with their buddies each week.

Birthday and Brain Frame

One of the tools we use in writing throughout all the grades at Angell is called "EmPower".  EmPower uses a graphic organizer called "Brain Frames" that help students plan their writing.  There are six different types of brain frames.  Today we learned about the "relationships" brain frame, and used it as a way to find out about each other's nicknames.  We even learned of some nicknames that particular children are not so fond of!

Happy Birthday to Cheyenne, who shared some special books and stuffed friends today!

Our First Week

Our first week together was very full!  We got to know one another, we created class rules together, and went over many routines and procedures!

The students partnered up and interviewed each other on Tuesday.  Then as a whole class, the children each shared something they learned about the classmate they interviewed.

On the first day of school we read our first Mr. Men story.  I apologize in advance because this series has been known to become highly addictive to 7 year olds!  It's a great way to teach higher level vocabulary, as well as talk about emotion and characters.  

This week the children worked in groups to complete 24 piece puzzles.  This was a great team building activity and the children worked very cooperatively on the puzzles!

This week we played two math games: The first was "Top It", which many children know from first grade.  The second was "Number Squeeze" which some children knew as "Monster Squeeze".  These are great games to review important number concepts.  It also gave the children a chance to practice working in partnerships and getting to know one another.

Playground fun!