Learning is fun!
Posted in first grade, picture book lesson, technology, and writing
The week before STAAR testing, first graders created their own digital book based on Rosenthal and Lichtenheld’s book, The OK Book. The book shows the stick figure shaped like the letters ‘OK’ attempting different hobbies and activities. The figure isn’t very good at these activities yet, but that is ‘ok’ and one day they will find their favorite hobby and talent. The kids used DoodleBuddy to create their pictures and AnyFlip to publish. Check out first grade’s book!
Posted in first grade, holiday, and STEM
Last week in the Jackson Library, first graders competed in groups in a Minute to Win It style game. After discussing bridges and building a sample model with mirror cubes, the kids had to devise a plan to create a bridge-like structure made from only pennies. They had to use all of the 30 pennies in the bag and they had to be able to slide a pencil underneath the bridge. After the challenge, they discussed how they would improve their bridge next time re-vamped their designs.
Potatoes and Cabbage song
Posted in apps, first grade, nonfiction lesson, and picture book lesson
Last week in the Jackson Library, first graders enjoyed Jennifer Ward’s (@jenwardbooks) new book, What Will Grow? The kids love the song-like, rhyming text and are amazed when the pages fold out to reveal the beautiful illustrations of Susie Ghahremani (@boygirlparty) depicting a towering sunflower or a deep-reaching carrot root. Click below for the independent assignment I gave them to work on at the tables. If students forget which seed produces which fruit/plant/tree, I added the rhyming words so they can match rhyming pairs like in the book. Kids explored the Gro Garden app, which teaches about sustainable farming in a holistic way.
Posted in apps, first grade, holiday, Uncategorized, and writing
Last week in the Jackson Library, first graders read My Teacher for President by Winters and looked at similarities between their teacher’s job with the president’s job. At the tables, they wrote about what their teacher would do as president. We used festisite to put the teachers’ faces on twenty dollar bills. Scroll through to read their papers!
Posted in first grade, holiday, kindergarten, and picture book lesson
Last week in the Jackson Library, kindergarteners made a fun groundhog puppet and first graders sequenced story events using the book, Mr. Groundhog Wants the Day Off. They read an interactive story about Groundhog Day at the computer station using the Starfall site.
Posted in first grade, and picture book lesson
Last week in the Jackson Library, first graders analyzed character traits and the motives of the characters in @bobshea ‘s Cheetah Can’t Lose picture book. As we read the book about Cheetah racing the kittens, we watched the little kittens snicker and Cheetah become more brazen with his bragging. The kids started putting velcro boxes on Cheetah’s feet, balloons in his hand, and sundaes in his mouth on the poster to think about what was really going on here. I think the visual poster in addition to reading the book helps them to conceptualize what is happening. After deducing that the kittens were trying to make Cheetah lose the race, we discussed the complex ending and why it ended that way. It was a great discussion on how to be a true friend and the characteristics of a friend. At the tables, the kids recalled the objects the kittens used to thwart Cheetah.
Posted in apps, first grade, holiday, and poetry
Last week in the Jackson Library, first grade analyzed a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. poem by Hilary Kiser. After discussing the meanings of the stanzas, we played a Kahoot! review game in pairs.
Posted in augmented reality, first grade, holiday, and picture book lesson
First grade celebrated the new year in the Jackson Library with Gail Piernas-Davenport’s Shanté Keys and the New Year’s Peas. During the story, the kids matched the food eaten on New Year’s Day to the flag of the corresponding country in the story. We like how the people from whom Shanté asked to borrow peas were invited to dinner at the end. At the tables, the kids decorated their own fireworks and used the Quivervision app to pop virtual fireworks. Welcome, 2019!
Quivervision Fireworks – holiday pack
student activity
Posted in apps, first grade, and picture book lesson
Before the break, first graders had fun with the book, The Hair of Zoe Fleefenbacher Goes to School. They sequenced events during the story and made predictions about how what Zoe’s hair would do next. Then at the tables, they created wild hair for Zoe on a bookmark they could take home. During check out, we rotated iPads so they could play a fun crazy salon/barbershop game.
Posted in first grade, and picture book lesson
We had loads of fun today with The Wonky Donkey and first graders! We read the story and discussed the meaning of vocabulary words within it: wonky, lanky, cranky, stinky, winky, hanky-panky, honky-tonky, etc. Then we read it through again while playing the song (Scholastic.com). Craig Smith won an Apra award (Apra New Zealand Best Children’s Song of the Year) in 2009. At the tables, the kids had to draw their own wonky donkey and we listened to an animated retelling/song version by Alina Celeste. What fun!
YouTube Sensations “The Scottish Granny” Visits NYC for “Wonky Donkey” Event
