Fall Learning 🍂

In kindergarten students are practicing sharing information about themselves incorporating three WIDA domains: Listening, Speaking and Reading.  Students in these photos are practicing asking and answering the question:  Do you have any brothers or sisters?  Students are paired up (A/B) and take turns reading the question and responding. Our oral language is growing!

In fourth grade, students are working on citing text evidence utilizing newsela articles and referencing our anchor chart.  This incorporates the Reading and Writing WIDA domains.

In second grade, students are working on all four WIDA domains (L,S,R,W) by retelling stories in sequential order.  Students use graphic organizers to organize their ideas and writing.   We read the story Stone Soup and after discussing the beginning, middle and end of the story, students completed a beginning, middle and end of the story graphic organizer to begin the writing process.  

Finding Main Idea Using Placemat Consensus

 In fifth grade, we are learning how to identify the main ideas of nonfiction texts and support these main ideas with key details. Our focus has been on the essential question: What is the author mostly trying to teach us? Students then use these main ideas and key details to write summaries of the texts. As we delve into more complex nonfiction, students are discovering that summarizing involves crafting shorter versions of the original text. These summaries should include the author’s main ideas, the relationships between those main ideas, and key supportive details. Many complex texts contain multiple main ideas, and students must explore how these ideas relate to one another to form a cohesive understanding. This process encourages critical thinking as students analyze how various ideas interconnect, helping them develop a deeper comprehension of the material.

As we have been exploring the main idea we have worked with several texts to build up students’ skills. We recently read a passage called “How to Give Your Worn-Out Sneakers a Second Life.” To put a fun spin on our reading activity, students worked cooperatively with their team members in a Placemat Consensus Kagen structure. First, students read through the text on their own, writing down what they think the two main ideas of the text were. Once everyone had their ideas down on their group’s poster, the team was able to discuss their ideas. After hearing everyone’s thoughts, each team had to come to a consensus on which two main ideas best represented the passage. Students would then write this in the center of their chart to show that their team had come to an agreement. 

Finally, each of our groups shared out what they believed the two main ideas of the article were to the class. Once each group had shared their ideas, we were tasked with coming up with a class consensus. We determined the main ideas were; there are many ways to repurpose shoes, including donating recycling, and repairing. Our second main idea was that shoe waste is bad for the environment, so we need to take care of our shoes. 

Students had such a great time sharing their ideas and learning from one another. Students also learned the importance of compromise and respecting one another’s thoughts and ideas. 

Fire Safety Month

October is Fire Safety Month, and we had an exciting visit from a local firefighter in our first-grade classroom! This special event was not only fun but also incredibly informative for our young learners.

Learning About Fire Safety

During the visit, the firefighter shared essential safety tips with the children. They learned about the importance of having an escape plan, the role of smoke detectors, and when it is appropriate to call 911 for an emergency. The interactive demonstrations kept the students engaged, and many had the chance to ask questions about what it’s like to be a firefighter.

Hands-On Experience

One of the highlights was when the firefighter showed the class their gear. The kids were fascinated by the heavy equipment and gear. This hands-on experience helped our students understand what firefighters do and reinforced the importance of their role in keeping our community safe.

Building Awareness at Home

We encourage you to discuss what your child learned at school about fire safety at home. Consider creating a fire escape plan together or checking your smoke detectors to ensure they are working. Engaging in these activities can help reinforce the lessons they learned and instill good safety habits.

Thank You!

We want to extend our gratitude to the Lisle Woodridge fire department for making this visit possible. It was a wonderful opportunity for our students to learn from real-life heroes in our community. We shared our gratitude with some pictures we drew as a class for Firefighter Scott to use to decorate the fire station!

Pumpkins in Pre-K!

During this time of year, our favorite orange fruit starts adorning our porches with silly faces, paint and other embellishments.  Did you think of an orange?  Try again… the orange fruit is a PUMPKIN!  Did you know that pumpkins are considered fruits?  Pumpkins grow from a blossom on their vine that develops into the beautiful orange fruit that we love to carve and eat this time of year.  

In preschool, we have been learning about pumpkins this week.  We learned that a pumpkin starts out as a small seed, is planted in dirt, needs water and sun, and then it starts to sprout.  The sprout looks like any other sprout; tiny, green, two leaves, then it is ready to make its debut to the world!  As the sprout grows, it starts to take on a different trajectory. Instead of growing straight up like a flower or a tree, this stem starts to lay down and turns into a vine which starts to grow longer and longer, and then orange or yellow blossoms start to appear.  When those blossoms are pollinated, they start the process of becoming pumpkins, which over time we are able to harvest and enjoy in October.  

After we learned about how a pumpkin grows, we were able to carve a pumpkin and observe all the parts, inside and out, that make it such a cool fruit.  First, we observed the rind, stem and ribs of the pumpkin. 

           

Once we did that, we were ready to see the contents of the pumpkin.  We cut off the top, and took a look inside.  We could see all of the seeds, fibrous strands and pulp.  Then, it was time to dig in! 

We took turns scooping the contents out with our bare hands to get the best sensory experience.  If we did not want to scoop, we could rub the sliced part of the pumpkin to feel how slimy it was. 

Once the pumpkin was cleaned out, it was time to carve it!  We decided that we wanted a happy pumpkin, so we gave our pumpkin a happy face.  It turned out perfect! 

The next day, we had another surprise!  Ms. Tulo took the pumpkin seeds home and made roasted pumpkin seeds!  They were so yummy and tasted just like popcorn!  We had a great time learning about pumpkins!

Counting with Fingers the Math Way

When counting with your fingers most people tend to show the numbers starting with the index finger proceeding to the middle finger then ring finger, pinky and finally the thumb. 

While this method is perfectly fine for showing a quantity, we teach kindergartners to count with their fingers the math way. 

We teach students to count the math way starting at the left and moving to the right in order to prepare students for the number line. Students learn that numbers on the number line increase from left to right through the pattern of one more. This helps students to build number sense with the idea that each successive number refers to a quantity that is one more than the previous number. They also recognize that the number before any give number is one less than that number.  It may seem to be a very simple concept, but this change in how we count with our fingers allows students to grasp this concept with ease due to the process of moving from left to right when we add one more. We have fun playing games with math fingers as well!

Art with Ms. Huber

 

We are getting close to wrapping up our first trimester here at Goodrich!

Most students are getting close to their 10th art class by now...

Something we've been working on setting up in the art room is "Free Draw".

"Free Draw" is basically whenever students have extra time in the art room after completing the task for the class. 

Some students get to start free draw before others, while some students might not even get to free draw during art class. 

Students know that they can use drawing materials such as markers, crayons, and colored pencils to create whatever they would like using a blank piece of paper, or in their sketchbooks.

Students have access to coloring pages, how to draw books, or they make something up on their own!

I love to see what students are interested in making other than our projects... and they love to make artwork for me to keep!

I have found that this year that we need to expand the space! 

We already are running out of room to display artwork given to me by the students!

This bulletin board in my room is going to become our new space to display free draw artwork.

(Since my walls are already all filled up!)

I wonder how many more weeks until this runs out of room!

Last year, I did the same with the artwork given to me. 

But, at the end of the school year, I hole punched them and combined them into a binder to keep inside my room!

I plan on doing this again with the artwork I am given this year.

I plan on doing this every single year!

Match My Angle!

In fourth grade, we are currently in our lines and angles unit. In this unit, students have been identifying, classifying, and reading angles using a protractor. This week during DEB (Differentiated Engagement Block) students used their math vocabulary to build angles with a partner using the cooperative learning structure, Match Mine.

Match Mine is a Kagan cooperative learning structure; Kagan structures emphasize active student participation and collaboration in the learning process. In Match Mine, students are using, as well as working on, their verbal communication skills. For this structure, partners sat on opposite sides of a barrier. One partner, "the Sender," built an angle using lines and a protractor. The other partner, "the Receiver," tried to match the sender's angle, using only the sender's verbal directions. 

During this activity, I heard the senders describing their angle using vocabulary they've learned in the unit: 

"My angle is less than 90 degrees, but greater than 80 degrees." 

"My angle is an obtuse angle, between 100 and 115 degrees." 

"My angle contains perpendicular lines." 

 Once the sender finished their verbal directions, partners compared the outcome, praised one another, and switched roles. Fourth graders did not want to stop building angles and working with their partners!

Finding Our Homes

In first grade our first integrated reading unit is focused on geography and this week we were lucky enough to have our 5th grade buddies help us find our homes! We began this integrated unit by talking about different types of homes. Students were asked to look at a set of 6 pictures and think about which home looked the most like theirs. Then the students discussed with their partner which looked like their home and why. Some students found out they lived in a similar type of home as their partner. We then discussed why some of the homes we saw wouldn’t be just right for Woodridge. That discussion continued as we read “H is for Home,” where we saw houseboats, yurts, and even homes on stilts. Students were amazed to see how different homes can be. 

This carried us into our time with our 5th grade buddies. This week, buddies were tasked to use Google Earth to find their own homes and compare them. It was amazing to see students' reaction to seeing their home on Google Earth. Some found that their home didn’t look exactly the way it looks now. Others found out that they live in the same neighborhood or apartment complex as their fifth grade bubby! It was amazing to see all the comparisons that students were making and recording on their double bubble thinking maps!  

As we move forward in our integrated reading unit we will be exploring different maps and even get the chance to make a map of our own!

Flex Farm

Flex Farm is a vertical hydroponic system. Hydroponics means plants grow in water instead of soil. This setup allows you to grow food all year long, no garden required! Sixth graders are now learning about hydroponic farming in science and began the process of growing lettuce.

Before we even set up the Flex Farm, we needed to get our seeds ready for planting. We used rockwool, which are little pods that hold the seeds and give the roots a place to grow. It’s like soil but much cleaner and easier to work with. We carefully placed the seeds into the rockwool and made sure they were snug. Students watered the seeds every day for 3 days straight in order to let the seeds sprout. 

It was now time to assemble the flex farm! First, we put the frame together, and then we added the trays where the plants would sit. There’s a water tank at the bottom that pumps water up to each plant, making sure they always have the nutrients they need. We also installed bright LED lights that replace sunlight since we’re growing the plants indoors.

Once everything was set up, we filled the tank with water and added special plant nutrients (A and B)—these are like plant vitamins that help them grow strong and healthy. Students are in charge of checking the water level and PH daily to ensure that the lettuce is receiving everything needed in order to grow!

With the Flex Farm ready and our seeds planted in their rockwool, it was time to place them in the trays. The water started flowing, and the LED lights turned on. Now, all we had to do was wait and watch as our seeds began to grow into leafy greens. Since the Flex Farm is indoors, we don't have to worry about weather, bugs, or weeds.

We can't wait to see our plants continue to grow to eventually harvest them for a delicious salad! Students will also donate some of the lettuce to a food pantry.