Dot day celebrations were in full effect the week of Sept. 15th. It started with a collaboration with the art teacher, Mr. Fields, he came up with a wonderful dot art project. The students will draw pictures and then fill them in with hole punched dots. They will work on these during the later half of September.
Students also colored their own dots from the Fable Vision website.

The fun continued with our pen pals in Boston at Zervas Elementary. Ms. Broderick and myself each have a 2nd grade class that connect on a monthly basis. This was their first connection. During our Skype session students introduced themselves and  shared dots they made. Ms. Broderick also told us about a wonderful app called Colar Mix to use with our dots.  

Later in the week, 2nd graders used CoLAR Mix to make their dot pictures come alive. The students loved the 3D effect of the app.

Dot Day or should I say month is turning out wonderful. The students were able to express their creativity, connect with friends over 1000 miles away, and use technology to enrich their drawings. I hope all of the celebrations and events we have planned this year turn out this well.

First, second, and fifth grade have started research projects. 

First graders are learning about Benjamin Franklin. So far they have learned about his life and his inventions. Once they have completed their research they will make their own Little Bird Tales book. Each students will load pictures of Benjamin Franklin and then record the facts they learned about him in their own book.

Second graders are learning about early Georgians and James Oglethorpe in particular. They used Pebble Go to locate their information. The next day they return to select a magazine template I created in PowerPoint and to type their facts. Their magazines are turning out great.

Fifth graders are learning about the Civil War and are working on an Fake Instagram. They used Encyclopedia Britannica to locate their information and Britannica Images to locate their picture. They are also adding themselves to the picture and using editing software to remove backgrounds. This is a more complex, s project and will take students about 5 visits to complete. A more detailed description will be posted once students finish their project in a few weeks. The students are working so hard on their projects.  I can't wait to see how they turn out once they are finished.

To go along with this project I contacted the Civil War Trust to borrow a trunk. The trunk included Civil War artifacts. The students loved trying on the uniforms and exploring the different artifacts. We also used the clothing to take pictures for our Instagram project. 

The Mock Newbery Club meet for the 1st time last week. Since I didn't decide to do a Mock Newbery club until a couple of weeks ago the students were already reading Wonder. They really enjoyed the book and the message it sent. They wrapped up reading Wonder, wrote a precept, and responded to a blog question. This was great practice for their upcoming Newbery reviews.

Students also learned about the Mock Newbery and selected their 1st books. I am really excited about the change in the book club this year. I think evalutating the texts and looking at them critically will only enhance my students reading experience.
The first list includes:
Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool
The Water Castle by Megan Frazer Blackmore
Rump: The True Story of Rumplestiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff 
Lincoln Grave Robbers by Steve Sheinkin
Jinx by Sage Blackwood

The Cover 2 Cover Book Club meet for the 1st time this week. Students ate lunch and selected the books they wanted to read. The Media Center was filled with excitement about reading! What could be better? 

The activities for the book club this year will include book discussion, a Skype visit with Ingrid Law the author of Savvy, and buzzer practice for the Readers Rally.

This books on this year's reading list are:
America Under Attack: September 11, 2001: The Day the Towers Fell by Don Brown
Boy on Fairfield Street: How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss by Kathleen Krull
Edgar Allan's Official Crime Investigation Notebook by Mary Amato
Friendship Doll by Kirby Larson
Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies
Mary Celeste: An Unsolved Mystery by Jane Yolen
Masterpiece by Elise Broach
One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper
Savvy by Ingrid Law
Touch Blue by Cynthia LordWho Was Helen Keller by Gare Thompson
Whole Nother Story by Dr. Cuthbert Soup
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt