Fifth graders seemed to be highly excited about our most recent project---creating picture books using Storybird. The website provides art intended to inspire writing, and it certainly seemed to achieve that goal with these students! The students created 8-10 page picture books which we are editing and then publishing digitally. The stories will be shared with younger students here at Beaverdam. The link for the stories is https://www.storybird.com/parents/kaufmann-2. You will use your child's username, but the password is NOT the one your child uses. Instead, use the following as your password: PAZD5T. Students are encouraged to keep creating stories, poems, and even chapter books any time they like. The site is free, and there is also an app which you can download.
Fifth graders have completed several "fact finds" so far this year. These are mini-research projects which involve using a variety of resource to determine which parts of a given text are factual and which are not. These min-projects conclude with a student-written paragraph. We have generated a rubric to help us evaluate our paragraphs, and we have used a model paragraph to identify the aspects of a superior response. Our most recent "fact find" was called "The Ball and the Tsunami," so be sure to ask your child about what they have learned.
I am excited that I will be able to work with fifth graders on Language Arts topics this year! A small group of students will be coming to my room during their Tutorial block three times each week. In addition, I will be collaborating with Mrs. Kaufman three times a week during her Word Study lessons.
So far, the small group has completed two "Fact Finds" which involve researching information from a text to determine which facts are accurate and which are false. Fact Finds conclude with a paragraph written by the students. We have worked together to create a rubric for evaluating these paragraphs. We have also used a model paragraph to determine what makes for superior writing, and we have created an anchor chart as a reference. Improving the level of thinking and developing stronger writing skills are two major goals for this small group this year. |
Mrs. GregoryMrs. Gregory has been teaching for 25 years. She lives in Montpelier with her husband, two daughters, and two dogs. Archives
January 2017
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