Season's Reading's '09

Monday was Guardino's traditional Season's Readings day and the kids were very excited for a day filled with good stories and craft projects. For the past 8 years I have been having the kids make a very unusual reindeer. We make him out of a coat hanger and stockings. Take a look...

I was still able to see some of my daily faces intertwined in some of the Season's Reading's Groups!

The kids had to do a lot of tracing, cutting, gluing and glittering!

The finished product!

Top 5

At the conclusion of our reading of the book Fig Pudding my group of 5th graders were assigned to bring in their "Top 5" special items. Then, they had to write a description and present their items in front of the class. This was an excellent opportunity to get to know my students a little better and to have them practice their public speaking skills. I was very impressed with the outcome.After vacation we will start reading Because of Winn Dixie!

Ornaments Take 2

On Wednesday we attempted to make homemade play dough ornaments and failed miserably! I felt so horrible because the kids were so excited. So I put my thinking cap on and found a different homemade ornament recipe and we tried once again today AND we were successful!

We took turns reading the recipe, measuring, pouring, stirring...

Connor helped with the cinnamon.

Sydney measured and poured some ground cloves.

Who knew you could get so dirty in reading class!

We learned the word "knead" and how to do it!

The class really enjoyed this project and will each bring home 2 beautifully scented ornaments next week!

Be on the Lookout For...

Two sections of my fourth grade classes have been given this writing prompt so stayed tuned for some interesting stories about talking Christmas trees!

Adirondack Kids ~ Chapter 15

Mrs. McCullouch/Mrs. Diabo's class finally finished our reading of the book The Adirondack Kids and I asked them to write their own 15th chapter since the book left us with some questions. Each girl did a very good job and their creativity amazed me!

First, we wrote a rough draft and then edited it.
Next, we typed our stories up on our Writer's Express.
Lastly, we uploaded our writing to the computer, checked it over and printed it out.
We couldn't forget to take a group photo with our finished products.
One sample of a finished product!

After Christmas vacation we will be reading The Canada Geese Quilt.