SCHOOL & WORK JOURNAL 2016-17

snippets, slices, slabs of moments and doings in 4th and 1st grade

irregular, infrequent, and incomplete thoughts & lists on learning, education, play. or sometimes just snippets of conversation with our kids amidst life, which is one of the most beautiful and wonderful ways of learning. I will possibly include older snippets and slices involving work of the past; many of which now degree hold some level of humor or eye-rolling, as many examinations or remembrances of the past tend to do.

June 13, 2017

Health. We cover sports safety. This girl goes hard, goes fast, has got a good head…and like everyone, needs a helmet. My additional big thing I remind our kids of again and again and again:

Tuck your chin to your chest any time you’re rolling, flipping, jumping. Chin to chest. Never, ever backwards.

Question: why does it seem like movies and television love to show people just casually doing activities without helmets, seat belts, or flotation devices?

May 04, 2017

Science. She continues to watch over her seeds in various stages: corn, bush bean, black-eyed pea, and sunflower. The latter has no sprout, the first three are tiny. The magic of life growing, the magic of learning by watching life grow. I love to see combination of why? questions in the concept of Science: why is this one looking healthy, and why is this one not, and then looking for variables to isolate and hypotheses to develop and solutions to discover - or create.

April 27, 2017

Science. Fourth graders compare the different properties of seeds. Today: blueberries and squash. How are they alike, how are they different and what are the variables contributing to their different characteristics?

April 24, 2017

Science. How are seeds alike and different? Examining different variables: shape, size, color, texture, dryness, location, etc. What are their properties? Our 4th grader researches bush beans, squash, and blueberries. She will be tracking the growth and health of a sprouting seed - a bush bean.

March 1, 2017

Health. We review the food groups and talk about different ingredients and menu item options to serve for different meals. She comes up with:

Breakfast
Fried potatoes
Fresh fruit
Oatmeal bread toast
Breakfast links
Orange juice

Lunch
Spaghetti with pesto sauce
Carrots and bell pepper sticks
(or)
Rice with tofu
Fresh fruit

Dinner
Tomato soup
Oatmeal bread toast
Lemon water

Yum, for the most part. I’ll take the breakfast for sure!

February 2017 - miscellaneous learnings and reviews from a 4th grade month

Health. We continue examining food labels on products like cookies. Order of ingredients, servings, how many or how much of something is a good idea to eat?

February 27, 2017

Science. Designing a cart: what happens when you change different variables, such as reducing the weight or adding more wheels? What kind of force needs to be applied?

Breakdown of cart components: axles, wheels, bearings. Materials used: popsicle sticks, discs, index cards, straws. Using data tables to analyze evidence and track changes in variables, such as starting position of the cart or slope.

February 24, 2017

Health. We go over different ways to control the spread of germs, such as washing hands, keeping hair back around food, and using clean kitchen equipment.

February 23, 2017

Science. Mrs R——- takes the class through the elements of the Engineering Design Process:

Understand the problem
Define the criteria and constraints
Devise a solution to solve the problem
Build the solution
Test the solution
Revise
Repeat steps 4-6 until you’ve satisfied the variables for criteria and constraints
Get a patent and take your solution into production

I enjoy hearing her talk about these steps and the entire process. She made a mid-career change from engineering to teaching. I can tell her enthusiasm and confidence in going through the steps and processes involved in solving (engineering and science) problems. As a person whose skill is in very different fields, I appreciate learning more about this type of problem-solving - and I’m especially drawn to ones such as the following that have massive relevance in analyzing many kinds of situations:

Engage in arguments that are based in evidence.

That is advice to be extrapolated, absorbed, and used by all of us.

February 13, 2017

Science. Predictions with motion. What design variables on a twirly bird will affect its motion - e.g. notches on one side? Will it go slower or faster?

February 6, 2017

Science. Motion and gravity. Experiments with pennies on cups. How can we predict where a rolling cup (on its side) will end up?

January 2017 - miscellaneous learnings and reviews from a 4th grade month

Health. We focus on using walking, running, and movement to build up endurance.

January 30, 2017

Science. We look at motion and how different variables affect the movement of wheels going down a ramp.

January 25, 2017

Science. We study magnetic force and the concepts of repelling and attracting. Students pair up in exercises involving a magnet on a string to see how that magnet interacts with other magnets and paper clips.

Mrs R——- also reviews best practices for scientists:

Ask questions
Develop and use models
Plan and carry out investigations
Analyze and interpret data

January 17, 2017

Health. We read more food product labels. What are good things and not-so-good things about different products, like breakfast cereals?

December 3, 2016

Health. We continue reviewing nutrition and how foods are labeled. We talk about sugar, carbohydrates, and calories.

November - miscellaneous learnings and reviews from a 4th grade month

Grammar.
More subjects and predicates review.
Types of sentences - statement, question, exclamation, command.
The differences between common nouns and proper nouns.
More nouns - singular, plural, possessive.

November 30

Health. We explore nutrition labels. Things to look for, things to stay away from in overabundance (high fructose corn syrup!), and ways to measure (tablespoons, teaspoons, servings, etc.).

November 14, 2016

Science. 4th graders examine dangers in nature, including lightning, blizzards, tornados, forest fires, sand storms, floods, fog, monsoons, and heat waves. Everything’s gonna be alright. Or it’s not. Sweet dreams tonight, kids!

Students go on to look at climate and weather forecasting, including highs and lows, precipitation, and temperature extremes.

October - miscellaneous learnings and reviews from a 4th grade month

Grammar.
Prefixes (re, un, mid, in)
Suffixes (er, less, ful)
Capital letters - how do you know when to use UPPERCASE or lowercase?
Proper nouns and common nouns.
Sentences: a grouping of words that contains a complete thought.
Subjects and predicates (what or what does something, what the subject is or does or has, e.g. Dad baked a strawberry pie. Dad is the subject, baked a strawberry pie is the predicate).

Health. Exercise and the role of oxygen and movement in living healthy and reducing stress.

October 25

Health. We discuss empathy and how to handle different situations with friends. This is at the root of so much. So much.

October 18

Health. We explore the reasons to exercise and what the different benefits are of different types, including reaction times and lowering the risk of different diseases.

October 13

Science. Tests to determine the differing densities of cold and hot water. What happens to water when it gets hot or cold?

October 10

Science. Crime Scene Investigation continues with examinations of the different temperature scales (Celsius and Fahrenheit) and how they relate to body and room temperatures and the freezing point of water.

Health. We talk about how great walking is for your body and examine the ways it benefits your body and mind. Three good ways to walk: long strides, swing arms, go every day.

September - miscellaneous learnings and reviews from a 4th grade month

Grammar. Compound words and how to combine two words into one (sail + boat).
Synonyms (false and wrong).
Antonyms (sell and purchase).
Homonyms (words that are pronounced the same, but have different meanings, e.g. son and sun).

September 19

Science. A fresh 4th grader examines the evidence from a crime scene; carefully writing down her observations, which include: three types of dog prints, two Coke cans, a napkin with a brown streak, a bottle of perfume, two thumbtacks, and one alarm clocks. There are a number of other items. The crime takes place at a a two bedroom, one bath beach house around 3pm.

I love the diligence and quiet joy she has found pursuing these leads. Are there some interesting conversations and questions about 4th graders dissecting a crime scene? Sure. But 1) again, I love seeing students excited about actively learning and caring about what they discover, and 2) a gift we can give (other) teachers (and other trusted adults in our kids’ lives, period) is a level of trust; trust that is earned and that is maintained with active interest on the part of us as parents. That means we can spend our time, when our child is under the guidance or tutelage or coaching of another trusted figure, actively supporting; supporting being the important idea. They have done the work - a lot of work - to create, to curate, to pull together materials to use in learning; to come in and demand something different, especially without investing the (active) ongoing effort and interest to know what’s going on would be the height of disinterest and disrespect.