Sticking with my promise, I will be recapping my top 5 favorite lessons of 2014. This is my first year in fourth grade, so I am excited to share my new experiences. Sorry for lack of pictures, as I left my iPad at school for break (to decrease the amount of work done over break...yeah right!). I will go back and add more in when I get back from break!
#5: Kid Blog
I am trying to integrate more technology into my lessons. My student teacher this year incorporated Kid Blog into our writing block. There were several lessons I enjoyed with this website. First, I enjoy that my kiddos are becoming better typers. As all of you can imagine, ten year olds who aren't familiar with keyboards are quite interesting to listen to when typing...pick, pick, pick...My favorite lesson was when the kids wrote small moments. The stories they created and typed out in 25 minutes were quite creative. A lot of my kids focused on riding a ride at the fair, since it was in town. I love how they focused on the hype of the ride and all of their details. Definitely a proud teacher moment.
#4: Planet Research
One of our science standards deals with astronomy. My students wanted to write a research report on the planets to learn more about each planet. [The pack I used for this is linked above if you are interested!] So, each student got a planet to research. Their papers turned out amazingly! We discussed how to organize information in an informational piece of writing using subheadings. I have never been more impressed with their writing. It was so wonderful and definitely bulletin board worthy!
#3: French and Indian War
Now, this lesson wasn't the lesson that made my day. What came out of this lesson allowed to make the top 5 cut. We discussed the French and Indian War right before Thanksgiving break. In third grade, we discuss SC history and don't focus on this particular war. I was at the end of the lesson and told my class that the British won the war and were in debt now. Then, one of my more timid students who tends not to perform the best on assessments raised her hand and said, "So now the King is going to tax the colonists to pay for the war and that will lead to the Revolutionary War, right?" Talk about the greatest teaching moment! It is so exciting when students can put those pieces together on their own! :)
#2: Saving Sam
I linked the original post that I saw for this activity, but it was a team building activity that my class did the first week back. I think team building is very important that first week back. I looped with my kids and still spent a lot of time recreating that classroom community and refocusing on working together. This activity is hilarious to do with kids! I can only imagine how younger kids would do with this. In the end, each group saved Sam. One kid bit Sam's head off, but he made it in the life preserver. The conversations during this activity were priceless. They really focused on working together and it was so exciting! Go team!
And now, for my #1 favorite lesson from 2014: Solar Ovens
To wrap up our light unit in science this year, we made solar ovens. I allowed this activity to be an inquiry activity and allow groups to design their oven that would allow them to cook a s'more. I laid out a bunch of supplies, including different colored paper, tin foil, parchment paper, clear wrap, transparencies, tape, glue, etc. The kids then had to cover their solar ovens using whatever they wanted. Now, these kids were scientists! One group even put parchment paper over the black paper in their box to keep their s'mores from burning! This lesson led to critical thinking as well as team work. It was so fun and yummy!
I am looking forward to sharing my adventures with you for 2015. I'll be adding a sneak peak of my first week back tomorrow!
~Kelly
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