Our fifth grade group has done an amazing job researching how their country of choice contributes to global society (in terms of environment, culture, politics, military, economics, and more). I was very impressed with both their products and presentations. We had a sort of "countries fair" where students gave online presentations or used their trifolds to share about their country's contributions. I think we all got to see how interconnected we are as a global society.
We are now imagining that our local library needs an exhibit on the Civil War and we are the researchers in charge of gathering information and putting together a display. This display will have print and online features.
Some of the topics students will be researching include:
-Causes and consequences of the Civil war
-Contributions of Africans Americans, children, and women to the war effort
- Major leaders and their impact on the war
- Daily life of a soldier
- New developments in technology that affected warfare
- Turning points/Battles in the conflict
- Important documents and their message (Gettysburg Address and Emancipation Proclamation)
- Geography of the conflict (which states were on which side and why)
- Strategies and resources of both the North and the South
http://www.radford.edu/~sbisset/civilwar.htm
http://www.davidson.k12.nc.us/education/components/links/links.php?sectiondetailid=38050
www.civilwar.com
http://www.ncmuseumofhistory.org/exhibits/civilwar/about.html
http://mrnussbaum.com/civilwarpage/
http://www.mce.k12tn.net/civil_war/civil_war.htm
http://www2.lhric.org/pocantico/civilwar/cwar.htm
Copyright free photographs for use with your products
http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/index.cfm
4th grade
Fourth grade has been studying different forms of energy: magnetism, heat, light, electricity, and sound. They have been investigating how they can develop materials to teach their 4th grade peers different major concepts in each type of energy. They are also interested in experiments in energy and how energy is used in everyday life, including: homes, industry, medicine, technology, etc.
Students have been using the the prezi site to design engaging and logically flowing presentations.
3rd grade recently finished sharing their websites on which country they thought they would like to live in (some changed their minds after their research!). Students analyzed countries for human and physical characteristics.
Our new problem has to do with space. We are imagining that a comet is headed straight for Earth and we have to evacuate. My third grade group has been assigned as a research team to report back on where we should go, what dangers lie in our path/ what lies our in our solar system and deep space, what space equipment we might need, how will we adapt to/train people to live in space, which astronauts have the best qualifications to lead our mission, and other related concerns. They are putting together their findings into a prezi presentation as well.
Second grade recently finished their websites on three states of matter: solids, liquids, and gases. They did a wonderful job and grew a lot in their note-taking and organizational writing skills.
Second grade now has a two part problem. First, how can we create an online timeline about important inventions from the past (paying attention to the who, what, when, where, why, and how of each invention). Second, their driving question is: how can we invent something using the invention design process. Students will learn the different planning stages it takes to invent something. They will also learn about invention contests to enter, how and why to obtain patents, how other kids their age have invented things, and how to even start their own inventor's club at school. I am excited to see what inventions they come up with to solve a real problem.
1st Grade
These students are reading and writing superstars. They recently finished their own websites on how we make and use natural resources. They really did an outstanding job with these!
Students are now faced with a new problem to solve. They are imagining that in the future people have stopped reading and learning about holidays. My first graders are in charge of designing Power Point presentations about various holidays to help people remember how and why we celebrate!
