Five for Friday - February 10th

Linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for Five for Friday.  We had a short four day week due to the large snowstorm that hit the Northeast.  We are buried under a foot of snow!  Winter is finally here!  

ONE: Nonfiction Book Publishing

This week and probably next week as well we will be publishing our nonfiction books for our classroom library.  I love having the kids work on a selected piece to add to our classroom library.  What I don't like is how long it takes to get the books published!  Some days it feels like the process will never end!

That being said I love how each kid edited a piece this week.  Instead of having the kids edit using a checklist, I buddied them up and had each buddy be an "editor" to help their partner.  Sometimes when I have the kids use a checklist I never really know if each student goes through each part of the checklist.  Having a buddy holds them accountable and helps them see issues in their writing.  

To help the kids stay focused on each aspect of editing we used these editing strips.  I was impressed by how each group worked together and helped their buddy edit their pieces.  Now it's on to publishing!

TWO: Kindness Matters

Every year this book gets to me.  I find myself reading it aloud and getting choked up. We read the book 3 times this week, each time focusing on different aspects of the story.  On Monday we read the book and focused on how Maya the new student in class felt.  This sparked some great discussions and awareness of how our actions impact those around us.  

On Tuesday we focused on Chloe and how her actions hurt Maya.  Our discussions centered on times that we acted like Chloe and perhaps hurt others feelings with our words, actions, or exclusion of others.  We had such a good conversation around this topic and the kids were honest about how they've acted at times and how they think these actions impacted those around them.  

On Friday we completed the same activity the kids in the book did.  I filled up a large bowl of water and we placed a rock in the bowl.  As I did this the kids and I focused on the ripples that went out.  Then I had each student come up, place the rock in the bowl, and name one thing they have done that was nice for someone else.  This proved to be a powerful visual for the kids.  After sharing, I had the kids write about the one kind action they shared with the class using a quote from the book.  

This is such a wonderful book and I would recommend it be used in every classroom!!

THREE: Solids and Liquids

Our investigation into solids this week focused on what solids sink and float in water as well as how solids react to magnets.  This week we did a few pages in our notebooks to record some observations but the focus of our week was spent talking about what we've observed.  Then we used these observations to make some statements about what solids sink and what solids float as well as what solids are attracted to magnets and what solids are not.  Once again this week I was floored by what my kiddos came up with... they're minds were working overtime and I couldn't be more proud!

FOUR: Snow Day Instagram
Thursday was a snow day and the northeast was slammed by a foot of snow.  This doesn't happen all the time here so I wanted to do something special with the kiddos.  We took a break from our usual Friday routine to create an "Instagram Post" of all the fun things my kiddos did on their snow day.  They loved getting a chance to share with their classmates what the did on the day off!

This was a big hit today and I can see many ways to use this in the coming weeks.  I'd love to use it every Friday to have my kiddos highlight what they learned during the week or what they liked most about the week... the possibilities are endless.

FIVE:  Valentine's and 100th Day

For the second year in a row, we'll be celebrating Valentine's Day and the 100th Day on the same day!  It's a catch 22... on the one hand, we get all the hoopla over on one day.  However, it's gonna be a crazy day!!  Kiddos have already started to bring in their 100 items and Valentines... since when did Valentines need candy and erasers and tiny games and gifts?  But really... who can resist the sweets!!

Have a great weekend... Don't forget to check out Doodle Bugs Teaching for more Five for Friday posts!