I'm thankful for enthusiasm!

Today in class, we discussed the importance of gratitude in life.  How gratitude for the little, novel happenings on a daily basis makes for a happier life.  The students wrote about their gratitude in their on-demand writing books this morning.  I thought it only fair that I take a moment to express my gratitude for something little in my life that makes a big difference as it relates to our work at school.

I'm thankful for enthusiasm.  The kind that radiates from kids when they can't help but shout out their thinking during a class discussion.  The kind that reaches out compassionately when I hear students catching opportunities to compliment each other so they can recognize one another at the end of the day for doing something well.  The enthusiasm that sneaks up quietly when I overhear them talking about their learning with one another and I didn't even ask them to.  Even when other teachers, parents, friends, and family members share with me a moment when a student in my class couldn't help but bubble over about something awesome that happened at school.

This morning when I got to school, I'll admit I was moving a little slower.  Maybe it was all the celebration of the kindergarten Thanksgiving feast last night.  Maybe it was the thought that tomorrow is the first day of Thanksgiving break.  That all changed when my students arrived.  Katherine walked in and showed me this.



Her shirt reads, "Math is not a race, go at your own pace."  This is a mantra we recite in math class to remind us to take our time, show our thinking in writing, and that our best work is done when we take the time to go through all the steps without rushing.  Yesterday in class, we talked about making shirts with this mantra for fun.  And of course, my enthusiastic student just went home and did it!  Just in time for our chapter test today.  I am amazed.  I could cite a plethora of examples to illustrate the enthusiasm I see on a daily basis.  This one did it for me this morning. 

I'm thankful to work in a school with such wonderful young people who exhibit such enthusiasm.  It comforts me to know that these same individuals will be the ones inheriting our world and taking care of it for the next generations.  I know I'm a happier person because I know them. 

I wish you all a great Thanksgiving holiday.

Leadership, Teamwork, Responsibility, and Wisdom...We've been busy!

Thanks to Mr. Lynn and Mr. Carlyon for getting my computer all straightened out!  This post is long overdue.  Our class has been extremely busy.  To avoid writing a small novel here, I've tried to crystallize the most important events into four categories: leadership, teamwork, responsibility, and wisdom.

Leadership
The United States citizens elected our president last week.  Our students also participated in the KidsVote election.  Some of our fifth graders served as exit poll reporters, interviewing Captain kids about the election and their voting experience.  It was an exciting day, and I appreciated how seriously the students took this learning opportunity as leaders in the school.

Teamwork
Our class also began working in the science lab last week on our first unit focusing on variables and experiment design.  They participated in a couple of engineering challenges which required them to work as a team to solve a problem in a limited amount of time.  You could duplicate these challenges at home for fun, if you want.  The kids did a great job communicating with one another and encouraging creative thinking and problem solving in their teams.

Responsibility
I have noticed that the students have grown in their maturity from the beginning of this year, especially in regards to their assignments.  They are taking their work seriously and have shown greater stamina and dedication to doing their best work.  Check out this responsibility: the dog at her homework, and she still had it for school!  I love it!

Wisdom
Finally, we had the amazing opportunity to see the author of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney, speak yesterday at Clayton High School.  What a fabulous opportunity!

Here are some "Nuggets of Wisdom from Jeff Kinney" the students wrote down after hearing him speak:

Rejections make you better.

Compromise is good.

You can get ideas from the smallest things.

Follow your dreams, even when things don't go as planned at first.

Election Time

You probably couldn't go very long in your day without some sort of reminder that the presidential election is rapidly approaching.  We are being bombarded with information from all sides from everywhere.  And, as you know, tonight is the second debate. 
Although the fifth graders aren't old enough to have their votes counted towards the election of the candidates or issues, their votes will be counted in the KidsVote election.  All students will be given the opportunity to vote in our school polling place on election day and their votes will be counted.  If you would like to talk with your child about the candidates or issues on the ballot, here are a couple of helpful resources:

http://www.timeforkids.com/minisite/election-2012

http://www.kidsvotingmissouri.org/

Enjoy the debate tonight and this exciting time of history in the making! 

Beginning Book Clubs

Our historical fiction book clubs have just recently gotten underway.  These clubs were organized by student choice and each group has created its own constitution by which it will operate.  I have been so impressed by their enthusiasm for their clubs and the way they are really seizing ownership of this learning opportunity.  All students in the room are participating in a small book club as well as a whole-class club.  Our whole class club is serving as the model for our work in the smaller groups.  As a class we are reading a novel by Scott O'Dell called My Name Is Not Angelica.  This novel documents the life of an African princess who was sold into slavery and brought to an island in the Bahamas to work on a plantation.  The class has done a great job of empathizing with this main character, and finding connections between this story and our study of American history.  As they read, they mark their thinking using sticky notes.  You can see they are doing some "close reading" and digging into this novel. 

 I hope this enthusiasm will carry over into the reading they are doing on their own and perhaps some of the conversations they have at home about what they are learning.  Happy reading! 

Catching Up

I have to apologize for the long break since the last post.  We have had quite a busy time and now I feel like there is a lot of catching up to do!

Last week we had our first buddy reading time with our buddy class, Mrs. O'Dea's second graders.  We began by interviewing our buddies and then sharing stories together.  The fifth graders were so impressed with the great reading and thinking skills of their buddies.  It was a fabulous opportunity to build relationships in our school community and we look forward to future meetings together.

We also went on our first field trip for the year to Cahokia Mounds.  The purpose of this field trip was for the students to learn about and experience first hand one of our nation's first cities from the ancient Mississippian civilization.  Although it was cold and rainy, we took full advantage of our time and even shared a special moment outside viewing the mounds while Mr. Mayer played a Native American drum and flute.  His music was punctuated by lightning and thunder, which gave us all chills as we reflected on what it must have been like to live so long ago in that ancient city.

Finally, I have to share something touching about our wonderful classroom community.  For a while now, the students have been writing notes of thanks, kindness, and encouragement to our night custodian, Mrs. Patty Nelson, on their desks before leaving at the end of the school day.  Each day after school when she comes to clean our classroom, including the desktops, she sees these kind words.  When we arrived at school Friday morning, Mrs. Patty had left a note for us on the board and a little something for each student on their desks.  How wonderful to see the kindness of the students and how they are building relationships with everyone in the Captain community to be leaders in our school.  I am so proud of them and so honored to be their teacher.