Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Seasons Greetings!

It is the most wonderful time of the year! Please share with us what you are looking forward to over the holidays. Do you have any special plans for Christmas? How about Hanukkah? Are  you spending time with your friends and family these next two weeks?

Let's share our holiday traditions and plans for the break!

Panda Path...hearts filled with JOY!

We had the most rewarding experience today sharing

our books with new Pre-K friends at Panda Path!

 Reflecting on the day, what did you enjoy most? How did it feel reading and giving the books to the students? Please share any thoughts that you have about this wonderful experience!

Dr. Simpson, Flexibility and Optimism!

Dr. Simpson did a wonderful job reviewing the mindsets of Flexibility and Optimism! Both mindsets are important to making a person's life happy and healthy.

Please share an example from your life when you were either flexible or optimistic. Tell us how your flexibility or optimism made your life better in that situation.

Attitude of Gratitude

Thanksgiving is just a week away. Many of us will spend time with family and friends. Some of us are even traveling! 

Please share with us your thoughts on being grateful and also tell us what you are thankful for in your life right now!

Feature Article!

We have been working on planning our feature articles modeled after Time for Kids magazine articles. We will be including catchy, inferential titles, interesting hooks, subtitles, think bubbles, power word and quotes from experts.

Please share your topic, title, hook and/or some interesting facts that you will include in your article. I can't wait to preview your articles!

Shawnee Sharing!

These nomadic Native Americans roamed the forests with other Eastern Woodland tribes. They certainly had troubling times with Europeans like the other tribes!
Please share some fascinating facts that you have learned so far.

Hopi Happenings!

The Hopi people got their name from a word that means "peaceful people". Hmmm...very interesting and quite a contrast to our Comanche tribe!
Please share interesting information from your research so far.

Comanche Conversation!

The Lords of the Plains were highly skilled horsemen and expert hunters! They ruled the plains!
Please share what you have learned so far in your research.

Shoshone Shout-out!

The People of the Great Basin survived in smaller groups in desert-like conditions! They were tough and clever people.
Please share some of the facts that you have learned already!

"30-G" Rocks!

We love our Thirty Glorious Minutes of Independent Reading, otherwise known as "30 G"!

Please share with us what you have been reading! Have you just finished an amazing book? Did you just get hooked into a new one that you just can't put down?

Let' hear about your balanced diet...fiction, nonfiction, audio, books read aloud to you (hint: Crenshaw!), etc.

Math Groups Rock!

We are really enjoying our math rotations! Please share what you like about them so far. Do you have a favorite station? Do you have a favorite game so far? WHY do you like it?
What are some great strategies you like to use during problem solving? Share with me your favorite parts of math groups!

Native American Brain Tracks!

We enjoy the American Heritage video called Native Americans!

I can't wait to read your wonders, new learning, wows and questions. Please share at least three brain tracks.

Empathy in Action!

We watched this Zion Harvey video in class today. Feel free to watch it again! It's so powerful and moving.

We discovered our last stance for this week is empathy. EMPATHY is when you put yourself in someone's shoes and try to understand how they feel.

Share with us your thoughts about Zion. How are you empathetic toward him? How does his story make you feel?

I look forward to reading your comments about this amazing boy and his story!

Writer's Workshop Success!

Today we all made great progress writing our Personal Narratives! Some people were finishing story boards, some people were stretching first, second and third drafts and others were designing covers!

Please share what you did well today! It was an amazing writing day for us!

Future Transportation!

In the Launch Pad, we created new transportation vehicles in groups of three! Please describe the vehicle you created. What are its special features? Does it travel on land, in the air or on/under water?

Also, you may share any setbacks you had while you were creating. Did you have to be resilient? Was anyone optimistic in the process or flexible?

 

Responsibility and Us

Responsibility and Us

Our core value of the year is responsibility! Please share specific examples of ways you are responsible in third grade. I am excited to read your posts!

Quality Posts are Us!

Quality Posts are Us!

We are learning to blog our thoughtful comments! We know that a quality blog comment...

• answers the question of the post.
• is usually three or more sentences.
• has correct capitalization and ending marks.

Please let me know specifically what you think about third grade so far.  What is your favorite part or parts of the day? Do you like our classroom? Do you like our Memorable Lines Wall? Fancy Work Wall? I am very CURIOUS about your feeling about third grade!

Summer Sensations!

I am so excited about this summer! I hope that you are, too. Please share some books titles that you plan to read. Also, please share any fun plans that you have. Tell us about what you like to do on a lazy day, too!

Living History Museum!

I had a wonderful time listening to the fourth graders give their Living History speeches! As I was listening, my brain was surfing for new learning and fun facts. Also, I noticed that many of the famous people featured demonstrated amazing character traits that lead to their successes.

Please share your new learning, fun facts and/or thoughts about the important character traits of these famous people

Poetry Cafe!

Today we had a fabulous time in our library "Poetry Cafe". I loved seeing your creativity wheels turning.

What was your favorite kind of poem to write?
What did you enjoy most about our time in library today? Please share a favorite line or lines of poetry that you wrote!
Share with us your favorite poem of all time if you have one!

Let's gear up for Poem in your Pocket Day!

Mystery Writers' Forum!

Hello Mystery Writers!

Let's share our mystery ideas and have a conversation. Who is your lead detective? What character traits does he or she have? Does your lead detective have a sidekick?

What is the case that you will be solving? How did that case "come to you"? Tell us about your setting.

Clues, red herrings, plot twists...let's start talking!

Field Day...a Kinkaid Tradition!

Field Day is a wonderful day! Students and teachers from all three divisions of the school come together to have fun, participate in the events and enjoy the fair.

Let's share!

What is our favorite part of Field Day? What is your favorite Field Day memory? Why do you think that this is an important day for our school community?

GO PURPLE! GO GOLD!

Tell me what I want to hear!

We all loved this hilarious and meaningful video...

Twenty things that you should say more often!

Please share some more example of words, phrases and sentences that you would like to hear more often. This activity is such fun! Enjoy!

Manifest Destiny Achieved!

Now that we have arrived in Oregon, let's talk about the big ideas of Westward Expansion!

Did the pioneers achieve their goals? Were the hardships of the trail worth the final result? Let's talk about the good, the bad and the final results of the trail!

The Power of Words

Words can make someone's day or totally ruin it. Words can make your heart sing or crumble.

Please share an experience about the power of words. You could share a memory when someone's words made your feel great or a time when your words were helpful to someone. You may also share a negative memory without using any names.

 

Jammin' Jammies!

Our Panda Path Pre-K buddies look so adorable in their new jammies! Please share your reflections on sharing our books, pajamas and love with our new friends. Do you have any special memories of our time reading with our buddies? How did doing something nice make you feel?

Independent Reading STILL Rocks!

We haven't checked in about our independent reading in a while! Please tell us about a book that you are reading, have read recently or plan to read soon! Let's catch up!

Jason Chin!

Yesterday, we were given the opportunity to listen to Jason Chin, a non-fiction author. We loved his book Coral Reefs and Redwoods! He talked to us about how he collects the research for his books and  how he does his illustrations. What did you find most interesting about his presentation? What was your favorite thing he told you? 

Moving West on the Oregon Trail!

We are staring to build our background knowledge for our Westward Expansion Unit! Today we enjoy reading our first book The Oregon Trail. Please share some of your new learning and wonders!

Great Meeting with Mrs. Babine

We had a great meeting with Mrs. Babine! Please share the areas in which you think our class should focus. Also, tell us about the things you think we are doing well! Do you have a compliment to share about anyone?

I can't wait to read your comments about kindness, honesty, respect and responsibility in 3-P! 

Travel is the BEST education!

I am exhausted from traveling to Denmark and South Korea in the same week!
Let's share our new learning from both countries! Also, please share your reflections from each country. What was your favorite thing to do, to see or to hear? Did anything surprise you? Did anything amaze you?

Reading is social!

We just started Book Clubs! 
There are many reasons that I LOVE Book Clubs! As an adult, I have been a member of many book clubs in the past.

Please share with us some of your thoughts on the joys of reading books and sharing with others. Also, you can share some of your first impressions of the characters in your book.

Top of the Mountain!

Writers,we have all been working on plotting out our stories on story mountains. As we know, the event at the top of the mountain is when the problem is at its worst or most challenging point. Please share your mountain tops with us! What is the most intense part of your story...the problem at its worst!

Fantastic Fiction!

Greetings, fiction writers!

As we know, authors get their ideas from observing the world around them. Just think about E.B. White watching a spider! 

Please share you story seed idea with us. What do you think your problem will be? Who are your main characters? Do you have an ideas for a catchy lead?

Denmark and South Korea!

Denmark and South Korea are very interesting countries...many similarities and differences!

Please share some of the most interesting facts that you have learned about both countries. Can you make any connections between the two counties? How are they alike and different?