There is just something so satisfying about being nice. None of us wants to be known as "that mean kid" and so in an effort to encourage us all to JUST BE NICE, we are kicking off our kindness campaign with the "2016 is OUR KIND OF YEAR! Let's be that KIND of Kid!" Starting today and ending on February 19th (30 days to form a habit), I challenge each of you to do something nice for someone else and then report it here. 1) What act of kindness did you do? 2) Who was the recipient? 3) How did it make you feel? I'm getting so excited about this because I have already seen what an impact listening to American Author's, "Best Day of My Life" has had on our class. This is going to be fun. Hey! Here's another idea! Invite your parents and friends to join in our kindness campaign. Remember, 2016 is OUR KIND OF YEAR! Let's be that KIND of Kid!
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We have listened to "Best Day of My Life" every day this week. I chose this song because I believe that our attitudes directly affect the mood of our day. If we come to school with a negative attitude, more than likely, we will have a pretty crappy day. It is also true that if we come to school with a positive and happy attitude, we will be more likely to have a happy and successful day. How do you personally feel about our class song this year? Do you think that your attitude can affect your day? Do you think that your attitude can affect the attitudes of other people?
We carefully analyzed the quote "We have flown the air like birds and swum the sea like fishes, but we have yet to learn the simple act of walking the earth like brothers." by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We heard explanation of our inability as a people to be tolerant of others and their differences.. Do we want to achieve tolerance in this country or acceptance? What's the difference? How Democratic is the Electoral College? We have studied the Electoral College. We understand why it was developed. Now there are concerns that people in New York and New Jersey, who are victims of Hurricane Sandy, might be unable to cast their votes. How might this impact the outcome of the election? Many of us think that our first draft is absolutely brilliant. How many times do you think JK Rowling, or Rick Riordan had re-write their masterpieces? How important is it to look for ways to improve your writing? Revisions are sometimes difficult. How do you feel about the revision process in writing?
In class this week we began studying the eight (8) processes of problem solving, specifically in regards to Math. Our class has come to fourth grade armed with the ability to whiz through nearly any given computation, and yet, we struggle with the concept of EXPLAINING our selected Methodology. We learned that in Math we are to "Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them." When putting this process into an I CAN statement, we agreed that it meant "I can explain the meaning of a problem, make a plan, carry out my plan, and evaluate its success." Our first attempt created various level of frustration. Why do you suppose we are more comfortable simply writing the answer to a given problem and "freak out" when asked to explain the meaning of the problem and the strategies necessary to solve that problem?
This week we dissected the Pledge of Allegiance. We looked at each word in an effort to better understand its meanings and implications. Lastly, we re-wrote the pledge and inserted our own dialogue of understanding. Do you feel you have greater insight into the Pledge of Allegiance, why or why not?
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AuthorMy name is Sharon Moore. Ms. Moore seems to be the most common way I am addressed. I hope to use this blog to encourage my students to think deeper about the world around them and to feel confident in expressing their views and opinions. Archives
January 2016
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