Last Chance!!

This week was the final opportunity for students to check out Library books.  Don't forget that all Library books are due Friday, May 30.  If your child doesn't return their book, your account will be billed.  Until payments are made, your report card is held.  Notices were sent home today (Thursday) for the books that were overdue.   Many students have books out, but they're not overdue -- yet!  Please contact me if you have questions at lduffina@chestnuthillacademy.com. Thank you!

Feliz Cinco de mayo!!

iii CINCO DE MAYO !!!

This week K-5th grade celebrated Cinco de mayo in Spanish class. 

We learned about Cinco de mayo's history and how it is NOT Mexico's Independence Day!

This is a common misconception in the USA! Mexico’s Independence Day is on September 16th.  Cinco de mayo (May 5th) celebrates the unity, bravery, and pride of the Mexican people after winning the battle of Puebla against the French on May 5th(Cinco de mayo), 1862.

Fourth graders made pinatas in art class (gracias Mrs. Choi) and donated their pinatas to each homeroom class. Each class broke a pinata and ate chips and salsa to celebrate. Check out the pictures below of our fun FIESTA!

5th Grade 3D Drawing Videos

In their Tech lessons, the 5th Grade students used Sketchup, a 3D drawing program to create a model of their dream house. They then used Screen-o-Matic to create a walk through demo video of the house they made. I have uploaded some of their creations to our drop box so that you can have a look at them at home. You will need to copy and paste the link below in to your browser.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1983wy6godjx7n2/lkQzEzsASu

4th and 5th Art--Pinata

For the past few weeks, 4th and 5ht grade students put a lot of effort into their Pinatas and their creation turned out GREAT!!! 
The students learned about Cinco de Mayo in Spanish class and worked on the Pinatas in Art class.

Working with Reference Materials

For the past few weeks, students have been working with dictionaries and atlases.  The older students have been using almanacs and encyclopedias as well. We've had scavenger hunts, quizzed one another, and taken assessments.  By far their favorite activity has been looking through the atlases to show their friends where they have been!

 

Ski Season -Spanish

 

 Fourth and fifth grade students had fun creating miniature skiing/snowboarding people during ski season. They described where they were on the mountain in both Spanish and English and created a ski person to go with it. Theses little skiers/snowboarders turned out wonderful!

Read Across America Week

Thanks to CHA's Student Council, the students have enjoyed many activities focusing around "Read Across America Week."  In Library, students had the opportunity to hear books written by Dr. Seuss and vote on their favorite out of 9 popular titles.  The Lorax was the clear winner, followed by How the Grinch Stole Christmas, then Yertle the Turtle.  Results are posted outside the Library door. 
We also discussed the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award given each year for the best children's book for beginning readers.  This year's winner was The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli.  The students enjoy hearing these books, regardless of their age.  They make wonderful read-aloud books too!

 

Another Fun Week in Technology

This week the Second Grade students who had Technology with me had fun creating whacky experiments using the Crazy Machines. The students had to either make something move or blow up and most managed both. I believe there are versions available in the Apple and Android app stores.

Third Grade students have been working on their 'Rocks and Minerals' PowerPoints. The purpose of this project is to showcase what they have learned in their science lessons with Mrs. Box. Last week they made a bare bones skeleton comprising the seven slides they will need, this week they added their fact sentences, and when we get back from break we will be adding images, transitions and animations.

Fourth Graders have been working on their Solar System Spreadsheets. Students are using the Kids Astronomy website to gather all sorts of data about the planets in our solar system. Last week they created a data table and this week they learned how to create charts. When we get back from break they will output their worksheets to a printer or PowerPoint so that we can share them with you.


 
 

Finally, Fifth Graders have been working on the Dream Houses they are designing using the 3D drawing program Sketchup. When we get back from break they will be downloading accessories form the 3D warehouse to complete their designs, and the final step will be to use Screen-O-Matic to create animated presentations so that they can share their designs with you.

4th and 5th --Art Docent from Seattle Art Museum

                     

An Art docent came from Seattle Asian Art Museum and talked about 'Asian Art Yesterday and Today.'
4th and 5th grade students had a great time learning, creating art and playing game at the end.
Thank you CHAPTER for the great learning opportunity.

In Technology this week...

This week students said farewell to Type to Learn 3, next week everyone will be migrated to Type to Learn 4 as part of our campaign to make the new server happy! In Second Grade students also discussed different types of Simple Machines (technology without engines!) and played the EdHeads Simple Minds game which you can find on http://www.mrsmorlidge.com/Technology.htm

Third Grade students practiced their keyboarding and embarked on the Zoombinis Mountain Rescue Adventure - After the foundation of Zoombiniville, the Zoombinis live in peace until a small group of them get trapped inside a cave seeking shelter from a storm. They meet up with strange creatures called Boolies who occupy a city known as Booliewood. The students challenge is save the Zoombinis by overcoming various obstacles using their logic and problem solving skills.

Fourth Grade students have embarked on an adventure of a different sort - using Excel! This week we discussed the structure of a worksheet and how to navigate around one. One of our very well informed students just happened to know that the maximum column header is xfd - I set the students a little challenge to see if they could find the furthest extent of the rows! Students also decoded a mysterious  message from Harry the Hamster who has been on his travels.

Finally, Fifth Grade students started wrapping up their Guatemala web pages. They have been using Expression Web to generate the code required, although most of them would prefer to play with html! All will be revealed this time next week.

Miss Alaineus: A Vocabulary Disaster

In the upcoming week in Library, students will be hearing and discussing Miss Alaineus: A Vocabulary Disaster by Debra Frasier.  This book, written by the author of On the Day You Were Born, follows Sage, a fifth grader who has misheard and misunderstood her teacher's weekly vocabulary homework.  This "disaster" eventually turns into a triumph as it inspires a vocabulary parade.  CHA will be participating in a Top Hat Parade on Friday, January 31 and this book helps them prepare for the project.  Focused around Science vocabulary, the Top Hat Parade allows each child to create a top hat using a Science word that is grade appropriate.  More information about the project will be sent home soon by your child's science teacher.

CHA Joins the Hour of Code

More than 14 million people took part in this week's Hour of Code, including all our CHA students and a number of their parents by the sound of it! Organized by the Partovi brothers and sponsored by a wide range of tech companies as well as the President, the purpose was to show students that coding can be fun and rewarding. If you want to have a got at home you can find everything you need here http://mrsmorlidge.com/Technology.htm

Meet Mikio - Master Agent!

I am delighted to announce that CHA 5th Grader Mikio today completed Type to Learn 4 - Agents of Information. As students progress through the program they are promoted to different grades, with Master Agent being the ultimate accomplishment. Mikio has put  a lot of effort into his keyboarding to achieve this goal. Congratulations Mikio!

A bit of a mixed week in Technology!

As we all know, Technology is wonderful when it is working, but a little frustrating when it isn't! This weeks' plans had a to be a little flexible while we worked around a defunct network switch. Second graders are continuing to work on the KidPix Landform Slideshows that will reinforce what they have been learning in Social Studies. Third graders have been working on their 'All About Me' timelines. Using Microsoft Word and incorporating text boxes, shapes and word art students are creating a pictogram that will depict the main events in their lives so far. Fourth graders finished off their Islandwood movies and if you are a parent of a fourth grader you will be notified how you can share these videos at home. Fifth graders continued to work on their HTML pages. Usually html coding is something we only spend a little time on before I show the students how to use Expression Web to generate the code, but this class is really enjoying writing the code themselves so we are spending a bit longer on this topic! Here is a screenshot of the website Ethan and Mikio are working on!

5th--Radial Name Design

These colorful designs were created by 5th grade students. Following careful steps, students repeated the letters of his or her name in a radial design and traced it with a permanent marker. The letters reflect and connect with each other forming lots of interesting repeated negative shapes. All of these shapes were carefully colored in with markers and color pencils in a symmetrical pattern. Look closely to see if you can find the names pictured in each design.

Dewey Decimal System

This week, third graders started learning about how the non-fiction section of the library is organized by working with the Dewey Decimal Classification System.  We reviewed a PowerPoint presentation that parallels how a caveman might have viewed his world with the way the books are organized.  They also chose books from certain sections and had their peers guess where they found them.  Fourth and fifth graders also reviewed this information.

Technology

One of the fun aspects about Halloween at CHA is that you never know who will stop by the Tech lab for a lesson! This week Second Grade students chose which landform they will b creating for our slideshow and used Google Earth to view their place on the planet. The Third Graders worked on their PowerPoint slides for the Veteran's Day Assembly. Fourth Grade students learned how to add captions and music to the Islandwood videos they are making using Windows Movie Maker, and finally Fifth Grade learned how to install some educational apps on the new Surface RT's.

Wish Lists

Students spent the first few days this week creating "wish lists" at the Scholastic Book Fair.  The Book Fair opened Tuesday and will be opened through Fall Festival.  A big thank you to all the volunteers to make this Book Fair be so successful! 
Remember, if you're unable to come to the Book Fair in person, you can always shop on-line: http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bookfairs/cptoolkit/homepage.do?method=homepage&url=chestnuthillacademy.  The link is also found on the CHA website.

So many books!!

5th grade music- "Acting, Notating, and Drumming"

In music, 5th graders had a brief discussion on mood and expression in music. Then they created skits using expressive elements, with the help of instruments, props, and some great acting! 5th graders have also been working on music theory and playing various rhythms and chants via the 'Drum Circle'. Students have been improving with their use of drum sticks and alternating hand patterns. BOOM BOOM!

Preparing for the Scholastic Book Fair

This week in Library class, the students watched the promotional Book Fair video based on their reading interests and grade levels.  They were very excited and already have some ideas on what titles they would like to purchase at our Book Fair next week.  If you'd like to preview the titles, you may take a look at the website designed just for the CHA families:

http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/chestnuthillacademy

 

On Monday and Tuesday next week, students will have an opportunity to fill out wish lists.  The Book Fair hours are as follows:

Tuesday, October 22: 3:30 - 5:30 pm

Wednesday, October 23: 2:30 - 5:30 pm

Thursday, October 24: 7:45 - 9:15 am AND 2:30 - 5:30

Friday, October 25: 2:30 - 7:30 (during Fall Festival)

 

We hope to see you there!