Wow! I couldn't imagine a more perfect first day of school! The children were eager to learn, polite and participated in some great discussions. Here are the members of our classroom:
We started the day with a math game called "Sum What Dice." The children rolled dice and with some strategy and some luck worked to cover a board of all the digits 1-9. The winner was the person with the lowest score. I'm sure these 4th graders could show you at home - all you really need is each digit (1-9) written down, a pencil to cross out the digits and two dice. Then, just play and strategize!
After PE and Spanish, the children worked on another challenging task called "Toothpick Puzzlers." Some of the puzzles are quite tricky! Feel free to have a go:
The children read an article called "Schools Change the Way Students Get Graded" (they brought it home if you want to read it). The article brought up great discussion points about if homework should count for a grade and why we give homework. We discussed that homework is meant to reinforce a skill or deepen an understanding, so if you do the work, chances are you'll become better in the subject. The children did a beautiful job of sharing their opinions and using evidence from the article, or from their own experiences to back up their thinking.
To start off the school year, I read a story from that great philospher, Dr. Seuss. Oh, the Places You'll Go is one of my very favorite stories and the students were able to draw connections to their own lives. Even though we may not face the giant green furry monster or get caught on a tree while in a hot air balloon, we will have some difficult times along the way. But, with hard work, determination and the freedom to make our own choices, we can reach whatever goals we set ahead of ourselves.
We had a wonderful first day of 4th grade. I have no doubt that it will be a great year ahead!
No comments:
Post a Comment