Biographical Bonanza!

A biography is a true story about a person's life.

Mrs. Yollis' class is currently reading biographies about

people who have made significant contributions to our world!

Artists, inventors, statesman, composers,

doctors, inventors,

aviators, astronauts, and pioneers in many fields 

are among the amazing historical figures about whom we are reading!

We are each reading a library book, as well as doing research using 
World Book Online.


 

********************

After reading about your biography subject, 
please leave  a comment as if you are that person!

Be sure to include at least three facts you learned from your library book or the online encyclopedia. Try to use the HTML code to bold your facts!   DO NOT PLAGIARIZE! (Use your own words!)

Watch the comments to see if you can converse with another biography subject you may know!

Family members and friends: 
You are invited to choose your own biography subject and join in the conversation!

Happy Groundhog Day!

Today, February 2, is Groundhog Day in America! 

Many people believe that Punxsutawney Phil can predict the weather on this day. This morning, the famous Punxsutawney Phil came out of his burrow at Gobbler's Knob in Pennsylvania.

Did Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow?

Tradition says that if Punxsutawney Phil:

sees his shadow... 

then winter weather will continue for six more weeks.

*     *     *     *     *

 does NOT see his shadow... then spring weather will come soon

Official Punxsutawney Phil Link

Today, Punxsutawney Phil SAW his shadow! 

:-( 

Six more weeks of winter weather will ensue. 

*     *     *     *     *  

What do you think of the Groundhog Day tradition?

Do you believe Punxsutawney Phil?


Do you know of any other silly traditions? 

Family Blogging Month Winners!

Every November is Family Blogging Month in Mrs. Yollis' class!

The project generates lots of enthusiasm and family participation! Family Blogging Month is a fabulous way to strengthen the home-school connection and create a true online learning community for all!  

This year, we had two groups of winners. One group of winners came from Mrs. Yollis' split class last year. Ten students were in Mrs. Yollis' class last year as second graders, and they had an advantage over the other students. For one, they had a year of blogging experience under their belts. In addition, they had all learned to type in the split class. The second group of winners are new to blogging this year. They did a fabulous producing quality comments and so did their parents!

There were HUNDREDS of comments written during the month of November!

And the winners are... 

Photo by Mrs. Yollis

Each student received a certificate, won a free meal from a local restaurant, and was given an opportunity to publish a free-choice post on our classroom blog!

Congratulations to our top bloggers! We will be running another Family Blogging Month in the spring! Thank you to all the parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends for your participation!

We hope you will continue to participate in our learning community!

♕         ♕     ♕

What did you like most about Family Blogging Month?

Which family members left comments, and 

how did that make you feel?

How did your family enjoy the month?

Edublog Nominations!

According to the Edublog Awards website:

The Edublog Awards started in 2004 in response to community concerns relating to how schools, districts and educational institutions were blocking access of learner and teacher blog sites for educational purposes.  The purpose of the Edublog awards is promote and demonstrate the educational values of these social media.

After much thought and deliberation, here are my nominations:


Best individual blog -- Extended Comments For Students (by Ross Mannell) Mr. Mannell is an incredibly dedicated retired teacher from New South Wales, Australia. He connects with classes all over the world and is the definition of a global teacher.

Best new blog -- Salsich Team 5 (Jonah Salsich's Class Blog) This year, my friend Mr. Salsich moved from third grade up to fifth grade. His new blog is an outstanding example of why I loved being blogging buddies with him. The passion and creativity he brings to the classroom makes learning engaging and fun.

Best class blog -- Open the Door to B4  (Judy McKenzie's Class Blog) This grade 1/2/3 New Zealand class blog run by Mrs. McKenzie is delightful.  Although they are a rural community, the B4 blog is open for learning and sharing with the world.

Best student blog -- Heather's Perfect Posts This is one of the most difficult choices for a teacher to make. While I had several fabulous student bloggers in mind, I nominate Heather. This third grader consistently writes quality posts that include original images and thoughtful text. Heather makes an effort to comment back to readers who leave her a comment. Furthermore, Heather goes out into the blogophere and leaves thoughtful comments for other bloggers. She is a real giver!

Best ed tech / resource sharing blog --Langwitches (Silvia Rosenthal Tolisano) I learn so much for Silvia! She is a deep thinker and a generous educator. Langwitches is the model of a connected, collaborative learner.

Best teacher blog -- wwwatanabe by Tracy Watanabe Tracy is another powerful educational blogger who is passionate about integrating meaningful technology in the classroom. Her posts are rich in content and always provide links for further learning.

Best library / librarian blog -- Bulldog Reader's Blog (Julie Hembree) Every school should be lucky enough to have a librarian like Julie Hembree. She demonstrates what a 21st century library should be. 

Best individual tweeter -- Krista Moroder @edtechcoaching  Krista is an incredibly helpful person and was awarded ISTE Outstanding Young Educator last year. Her tweets are so useful, and one of them even connected me to a free trip to ISTE!  

Best twitter hashtag -- #comments4kids (Thanks William Chamberlain!) This hashtag is so valuable for promoting student blogging. With one tweet, my students have an audience for their writing. What a great way to connect bloggers!

Best free web tool -- Twitter I can't believe how much I learn each day from Twitter!

Best educational use of audio / video / visual / podcast -- Room 5 @ Melville Intermediate School (by Myles Webb) The middle school blog is rich with video documenting learning at this wonderful New Zealand school.

Best group blog -- Books to Africa Project This Seattle service project blog, organized by Julie Hembree, helped bring needed books to partner schools in South Africa. Great group effort!

Best open PD / unconference / webinar series -- Classroom 2.0 LIVE! A wonderful resource for learning! Not only are the webinars incredibly useful, but the links to resources are extensive.

Best educational use of a social network -- Student Blogging Challenge A great program for classroom blogs and individual student blogs. Each week, Sue Wyatt publishes a menu of weekly challenges to help build blogging skills and connect classes worldwide.  

Best mobile app -- Popplet   I love this app for creating word webs, story planning, and creating time lines. We take screenshots, as the lite version doesn't allow saving. 

Lifetime achievement -- Sue Wyatt (Creator of the Student Blogging Challenge) Sue Wyatt works tirelessly to promote student blogging. Her Student Blogging Challenge run twice and year, and the knowledge and connections she helps really help to promoting blogging in the classroom.

Good luck, everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving ~ 2013!

Reminder: This is the final week of Family Blogging Month!

This  week we had a wonderful time preparing for

Thanksgiving!

One way we did that was by measuring and

 mixing up the ingredients 

for our own loaf of pumpkin bread!

 

We enjoyed a manifold of activities this week! Students wrote about their Thanksgiving feast in a cornucopia, dressed a turkey book report, baked delicious pumpkin bread, and decorated the pumpkin bread to look like a turkey.

*     *     *     *     *


We also read a funny fable about a slow-thinking turkey named Thomas T. Turkey.

The story is about how Thomas T. Turkey gets three invitations for Thanksgiving. He is ignorant about traditional Thanksgiving feasts. He wonders what people eat at Thanksgiving. The invitations use word play, so Thomas has no idea that he will become the main course if he accepts any of the invitations. (Word play is when a writer uses a word or phrase that has two meanings.)

Here is a funny example. Can you spot the word play?

Dear Thomas T. Turkey,

We would love to have you for Thanksgiving dinner this year! Come early, the chef has promised a special recipe just for you! You'll be stuffed at our house! Just wait until you see what we're having! Bring your family along too! You will be the guest of honor, and we'll have a special place for you at the dinner table.

Thomas,  Thanksgiving will not be the same without you!

Your comrade,
Bobby Bobcat

*     *     *     *     *

 

What are you doing this Thanksgiving?

Make up an invitation for Thomas T. Turkey. Use word play!

What is your favorite Thanksgiving dish?

Veterans Day!

★     ★     ★     ★     ★   
  

On November 11, America celebrates Veterans Day. It is the day we honor the men and women who have served in the armed forces. Veterans Day is a national holiday! 

Photo by Mrs. Yollis

 U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs

Veterans: Men and women who have served in the armed forces.

Soldiers: Men and women who are currently serving in the armed forces.

★     ★     ★     ★     ★     

Here is a link to a wonderful BrainPop video entitled
Armed Forces. What did you learn about America's Armed Forces?







★     ★     ★     ★     ★     

In class, we are sending holiday cards to active military personnel. Chance and Nate are in a Cub Scout Troop, and they provided the cards for the "Holiday Cards for the Troops" project. 



★     ★     ★     ★     ★     

Are any of your relatives or friends veterans?

Please tell us about them and thank them for their service to America!

November Is Family Blogging Month!

Mrs. Yollis and her students ♥ to share what they are

learning and experiencing.


In an effort to include more family members in our online community, we are proclaiming: 


November is Family Blogging Month!

Each student made a list of their family members. After looking through the archive, students selected specific posts tailored to the interest of a particular relative. 

We're inviting everyone to comment: moms, dads, brothers, sisters, grandmothers, grandfathers, uncles, aunts, and cousins. 

We welcome friends, too!

Students will be inviting their family and friends to participate in a conversation! 
Maybe we'll get some 2-point comments! 

(We frequently evaluate the comments that our blog has received. In order to earn the 2-points, a comment must be error-free and add something to the post.   Many of Mrs. Yollis' third graders have already met the challenge!)

If you don't know what to say, here is a video made by Mrs. Yollis' third graders. 
Learn FIVE tips for writing a quality comment! 

If you don't know How to leave a comment, here is a video tutorial about HOW to leave a comment on our blog.










Here is the key we will use for  Family Blogging Month.

What do you think of our idea?

Who are you inviting to be a part of our online community?

Please leave a comment and introduce yourself! 

Happy Halloween! 2013

Today was a spook-tacular day!

First, the student council had a Guess the Weight contest!

How many pounds does this pumpkin weigh?

Write the answer in the comment section!

*     *     *     *     *

Everyone had fun wrapping up a mummy during lunch!

A fun prize for the winning mummy!

In the afternoon, we enjoyed some Halloween fun!

Halloween Bingo!

 Look, we search and search for spooky words!

Check out our ghostly art project!

Thanks, room moms, for organizing such a fun afternoon!

Don't forget to Trick-or-Treat for 

UNICEF, and 

bring in your box tomorrow!

What did you enjoy most about our day?

What are you planning to do for Halloween night?

What costume will you be wearing?

Celebrating Traditions!

This week Mrs. Yollis' class started

a new unit in Language Arts called Celebrating Traditions!

 A tradition is something that family, friends,
or another group of people has done for many years and continues to do on a regular basis.

 *     *     *     *     * 

The story for this week is "The Keeping Quilt".

 In the first story, "The Keeping Quilt," by Patricia Polacco, the author retells the story of her family's handmade quilt. In the story, a Russian immigrant mother and family arrive in the United States. She plans to make a quilt from a basket of old clothes, telling her daughter, "It will be like having the family in back home Russia dance around us at night."  The quilt is passed along from mother to daughter for four generations. It becomes a Sabbath tablecloth and a wedding canopy. It even becomes a blanket for new generations of children. "The Keeping Quilt" is a heart-warming story about one family's tradition.

*     *     *     *     *

In the comment section, please 

share a tradition your family celebrates. 

It can be an annual party, a holiday, or any traditional event.

Please include details about: special foods,  decorations, songs, and/or activities.

 Your comment should be 4 to 6 sentences long. 
 Students: Your comment is due on Friday, October 11th!

Mrs. Yollis ~ By the Numbers

Mrs. Yollis' class has joined the Student Blogging Challenge! 

Task #1, introduce yourselves.

Here are some numbers that tell about us.

We are ONE class of third graders. 

We have ONE geography-loving teacher.

We have TWO bean bags.

 

FOUR recess balls and 

 FOUR globes.

Meet our EIGHT class mascots.

And now, for some two digit numbers that tell about us!

Twelve boys

Our suburban community is THIRTEEN square miles.

We receive FOURTEEN inches of rain annually.

FIFTEEN girls in the class

TWENTY-SEVEN students in our classroom. 

And now, a three digit number!

FIVE HUNDRED NINETY-FOUR students attend our school! 

Tell us some numbers that represent you!