Halloween Festivities

Students celebrated Halloween all day long!  First, they created edible pumpkins using caramel-flavored rice cakes, M&Ms, raisins, and pretzels.  Students also created skeletons using noodles and macaroni.  LeAnn's mom helped students to create Spider Pops. Additionally, students made Halloween-inspired necklaces using yarn, beads, and paper pumpkins.  This was the perfect opportunity for them to showcase their patterning skills!  Last, but certainly not least, the students carved a pumpkin (thanks to Ms. Goins who is the supreme pumpkinista)!
Materials Needed for the Edible Pumpkins:

• Pretzel Sticks
• Orange Icing
• M&Ms
• Raisins
• Caramel-flavored Rice Cake

Materials Needed for the Pasta Skeleton:

• Elbow Macaroni
• Fettucine Noodles
• Black Construction Paper
• Glue

Materials Needed for the Spider Pops:

• Tootsie Roll Pop
• Pipe Cleaners (4)
• Wiggly Eyes

Materials Needed for the Pumpkin Carving:

• Battery-Operated Pumpkin Carver (Wal-Mart, $4.97 [batteries not included])
• Scooper
• Large Bowl
• Creativity

Chesterfield Goes to College Week

This week, students celebrated Chesterfield Goes to College Week.  It is a new county-wide initiative to promote the acquisition of post-secondary educations.  All classes had to participate in a door decorating contest.  Our class dedicated its door to my alma mater, Virginia Commonwealth University (the best university)!  Go Rams! 

The kindergarteners colored rams and placed them on our door amongst fabulous pictures of  the school's campus, logo and VCU's basketball team (yeah, Final Four).

The following are great ways to discuss college to elementary students:

In-Class Discussion Ideas

• Talk to students about your college experiences (Where did you go? What did you study? What was your most difficult class?  What did you enjoy the most?  What was it like to live in a dorm?  Did you travel while in collge?  How did you pay for college?)
• Provide students with an opportunity to share college goals in a classroom discussion.

Writing

• Use college as a theme for a writing prompt.  (My favorite college is...; When I go to college, I want to study...)

Math

• Graph students' favorite colleges or plans of study.

Social Studies

• Put Virginia colleges on a map!  This is a great activity for 4th grade since students are studying the regions of Virginia.

Pumpkin Pancakes

Every Friday, our class cooks delicious treats.  This week, we cooked pumpkin pancakes!  They were absolutely delicious!  There are different recipe variations, but the following is the one we used:

Ingredients:

• 4 cups pancake mix
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups of milk
• 1 cup cooked pumpkin (canned or fresh)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• butter
• maple syrup or honey

Directions:

1. Mix the ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl.  Let children assist. (Each student had an opportunity to stir the batter three times.)
2. Pour small amounts of the batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or frying pan over medium-high heat. (I used two electric frying pans to cook more pancakes at one time.)
3. When bubbles form on the pancakes and the edges begin to brown, flip the pancakes.
4. Cook a minute or more, until brown.
5. Serve with butter, maple syrup, or a little bit of honey.

NOTE: This recipe makes about forty 4" pumpkin pancakes.  (I have 20 students and we had plenty pancakes leftover.)

Cultural Competency

Chesterfield County Public Schools students receive a half-day on the last Wednesday of each month. After students are dismissed, teachers are required to attend professional development workshops. On Wednesday, I had an opportunity to attend a workshop dedicated to cultural competency.

Cultural competency is the ability to interact effectively with people of different cultures. As you can imagine, this is very important for educators. Today's classrooms are becoming more and more diverse; therefore, I must deepen my awareness of my students' cultural differences. In order to truly understand other cultures, I had to reflect on my own during the workshop.

The administration gave all teachers and staff worksheets that asked questions such as, "What is your race and ethnicity?" and "Where did you grow up and what is your family background?" These questions are basic on the surface, but really contribute to a person's whole existence.

In groups of three, we all shared tidbits about ourselves. After sharing my "life story" in a nutshell, my group members were speechless. They were primarily amazed that I have accomplished a lot of things for such a young age. I shared that my friends affectionately refer to me as "Mama Alyshia" because of my "old soul." Perhaps, it is because I was an only child and had no one to play so I would always be amongst adults. Who, knows?! I also shared that I was raised in a single parent home with the best mother ever! She always stressed the importance of education and is the epitome of the mother I would like to become someday. One thing I know for sure is that my story is like no other and it makes me who I am today.

So, my challenge for you is to tell your story to your children. If you have no idea where to start, use the questions below as a guide. Children are always eager to hear stories, especially from loved ones.

• What is your race/ethnicity/religion?
• Where did you grow up (geographic location)?
• What is your family background?
• What do you like most about your gender/race/ethnicity/religion?
• What do you like least about your gender/race/ethnicity/religion?

Happy Storytelling!

The Five Senses

The students are studying the five senses. They have written about the things they can see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. Students explored the sense of taste by enjoying a "Tasting Party." They had an opportunity to taste things that were sweet, sour, and salty. Likewise, students explored the sense of touch by feeling different textured items (i.e. sandpaper, marshmallows, pipe cleaners, felt, etc.) while closing their eyes. Additionally, students used their sense of hearing to record the things that they heard after sitting outside. We cannot wait to explore the other senses soon!

Books
The following are some of the books students listened to during the week:

My Five Senses. By Aliki. Illus. by Author. 1989. 32p. Collins, (9780064450836). Gr. K-3.

My Five Senses does an excellent job teaching children about the five senses using vivid illustrations with simple text. This book takes the senses to a whole new level by introducing readers to the concept of being aware. The book says that being aware is to use multiple senses at once, which is something that most children are not aware (pun intended).


You Can't Taste a Pickle With Your Ear. By Harriet Ziefert. Illus. by Amanda Haley. 2002. Blue Apple Books, (9781929766680). Gr. 1-3.

You Can't Taste a Pickle With Your Ear addresses each of the five senses in individual chapters.
Each chapter opens with an explanation of a specific sense, using everyday examples. Throughout the chapter, students explore the five senses through rhyming. For example, to describe smell the author writes, "Winds and waves, shells and sand, the salt air smells, oh, so grand."Additionally, each chapter concludes with a series of simple questions designed to encourage children to think about how they use their senses everyday.


The Listening Walk. By Paul Showers. Illus. by Aliki. 1993. HarperCollins, (9780064433228). Gr. K-2.

The Listening Walk perfectly introduces children to the sense of hearing. The book follows a father and his daughter on a journey. As they walk, they pay close attention to the sounds that they hear. This book uses colorful illustrations coupled with concise text.

Web Sites
The following are web sites that are great for exploration of the five senses:

Harcourt School: Five Senses
This interactive game requires students to match pictures with the correct sense.

PBS Kids: Sid the Science Kid. I Sense
Sid the Science Kid tests students' knowledge of the five senses. Students must listen to questions, such as "Which thing feels hot?" Students must select the correct item amongst a group of things.

Puppy Clifford: Hide-n-Seek Game
Children must find Clifford's hiding spot by using the sense of hearing to identify sounds in this online game.

The Best Pumpkin

Last Saturday, our class pumpkin won first prize at the Fall Festival. Our pumpkin was inspired by the book, Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes. For more information about this children's author, click here.