Sunday, September 16, 2012

September 17-21 Explorations


4th-5th Grade Explorers 2012-2013
Fall Semester Theme:  GETTING ORIENTED: Exploring Points, Lines, Intersections, & Angles
Spring Semester Theme: NAVIGATING: Exploring Systems, Cycles, Spirals, Perspectives & Connections
MONDAY, September 17, 2012 
9:00
Weather Data Collection
Students will create a weather station for measuring temperature, rainfall, etc. and record daily on calendar grid. Results used in science/math.

Sept. Weather Data Calendars for recording daily precipitation,
high and low temperatures, daylight hours, wind speed/direction
for these locations:  Asheville, NC, and Fentress, Texas.
.
9:15
Centering/Class Meeting
Class Meeting Agenda:
Review World Class Explorers
Positive Discipline Plan for
Individual and Collective Space and Respect
Expectations
Environment
Questions
Quests
Ideas
Itinerary
Self-organization: Homework folder, math and writing journal, field notebook for science and social studies notes; Explorer Book Club reading log and literary analysis; sketchbook

Circle of Stones
Geological Time:  Imaginary travel through time following story of THE
PEBBLE IN MY POCKET

Students will imagine the personal story of their own selected stone
Through “deep time” after learning about the story of the Earth as told
in its geological record.  (Books from library on geological time and
This online book from the U.S. Geological Survey, published in 1997, explains how
geologic time is organized and how scientists determine the age of fossils, rocks,
and the earth.
9:30
Daily Journal & Explorer Publishing
Students respond to writing prompt/morning discussion in daily personal journal.

Risk-taking; cooperation; literacy, communication, trust
Math Journal:  Explorers use math to count, number, name, measure, order, document, analyze, locate, time, compare, predict, etc.  Time and Place:
Measurement notes on units of time (millennium to millisecond); Place:  Circle Facts for creating compass rose with cardinal directions
Students will use word wall to write a paragraph about how Explorers Use math. 
Goals and Reflections
GOALS & REFLECTIONS Notebook: Students will reflect on their
experiences, impressions thus far, express their hopes and dreams
for the coming school year, and set forth a personal goal with a plan
to achieve it. 
Question for Goals Notebook:  What qualities did Elisha Mitchell
embody in his quest to prove that Mt. Mitchell is the highest point
east of the Mississippi?  What are the essential skills
and traits of an explorer?  Reflection about “trust” fall
and challenge hike, or play on our trip.
10:00

Math Groups
Students grouped according to achievement in math with vertical lift


Mathlete Training
MATH (Whole Class or Math Group Instruction with Promethean Board tools/resources)
Read real life word problems together and discuss STRATEGIES for solving.  Model problem solving as a class for the following camping story:
Homework:  Write a math story word problem.  Translate it into a number sentence or equation and solve.  Be prepared to share your problem with your math group tomorrow.
4th grade:
5th grade: (p. 20-21)
11:00-11:55
Research and Writing Centers:
FOCUS on DIVERSITY of NC
North Carolina has within its borders the highest mountains
east of the Mississippi River, a broad, low-lying coastal area,
and all the land in between. That variety of landforms, elevations,
and climates has produced as diverse a range of ecosystems as
any state in the United States. It has also influenced the way
people have lived in North Carolina for thousands of years.
12:00-1:00
 Lunch & Recess

1:00-1:30
Multi-sensory Language Arts
Students will explore different ways of learning, practicing, using language, reading, listening, writing, and speaking (includes vocabulary, spelling, phonics, phonemics)
INTRO TO CURSIVE  Handwriting practice
Sky-writing:  loops, waves, mountains, hills, swoops

Or Back Porch Time (individual research, math, and reading projects)
Students will practice Orton-Gillingham sounds of
Consonants learned in cursive and practice both
Speaking and writing words, names with letters
1:30
Explorations
Shared origin stories, myths, legends, modern literature, poetry, non-fiction, and drama from the region of the world we are studying.
Students will practice Essential Learning Skills as they complete a set of Explorer challenges pertaining to the context of the geographical region they are “visiting,” virtually.

Students will work in groups to design fact cards with illustrations, artifacts, (2D and 3D) for each major era, period, epoch for our hall wall timeline of NC History.

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE
Reading comprehension discussion and annotations; key literary
Elements:  PLOT,  CHARACTERS, SETTING, NARRATOR, THEME





3:00-3:25
PE
MATHLETE TRAINING
(Bootcamp II)  Personal measurements:  Pushups, dips, high jump, running, situps, pull-ups,
MINEFIELD 
3:25-3:30
Pack up and clean up

3:30
Afterschool


Reflections/Goals:

TUESDAY  9.18.2012
9:00
Weather Data Collection
Students will create a weather station for measuring temperature, rainfall, etc. and record daily on calendar grid. Results used in science/math.
Construct Weather Data Calendars for
September
Three locations for data: 
Asheville, NC, and Fentress, Texas.
 High, Low Temps., Precipitation, Length
of Day, & humidity will be recorded
9:30-10:00
Centering/Class Meeting
Goal-Setting Self-Reflection

Circle of Stones
Students will build sculpture of stones in a shallow pool of water to symbolize reflection and perspective, and the intersection of the water and rock cycles (but without the element of the root ball.)  Each student will use sketchbook to draw a 2Dimensional sketch of the 3D sculpture from their perspective around the outer circle.  Vocabulary of art and science will be used to guide this activity.  (color, texture, balance, light, shadow, surface, reflection, perspective…) 


9:45
Daily Journal & Explorer Publications
Students respond to writing prompt/morning discussion in daily personal journal.
Multi-sensory Language Arts
Students will explore different ways of learning, practicing, using language, reading, listening, writing, and speaking (includes vocabulary, spelling, phonics, phonemics)
Risk-taking; cooperation; literacy, communication, trust
Students will work in teams and independently to conduct qualitative and quantitative research


LANGUAGE ARTS, SOCIAL STUDIES, & SCIENCE
(Writing in content/context area)
Students will be asked to brainstorm examples
of how the water cycle and the rock cycle are
inter-related. 
VOCABULARY CHALLENGE WORDS FOR THE WEEK
Focus on Planet Earth and Geological History:
 Stratigraphy, Rock Cycle, Sedimentary, Igneous,
Metamorphic, Texture, Weight, Density, Length,
Width, Shape, Size, Classification, Color, Mineral,
Geology, stone, granite, gemstone, hardness, core,
mantle, crust



10:00

Math Groups
Students grouped according to achievement in math with vertical lift

5th Grade: Textbooks issued
Homework:  p. 163 Graphing Challenge with shapes (handout)
11:00-11:30
SMART BOARD/COMPUTER LAB
Technology
11:30-12:00
Literature Circles and Explorer Book Club Reports/Projects
THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE
Reading comprehension discussion and annotations; key literary
Elements:  PLOT,  CHARACTERS, SETTING, NARRATOR, THEME
12:00-1:00
Outside Play & Lunch

1:00-1:30
 INDEPENDENT READING
WADE individual encoding and decoding assessment
 2:55
 EXPLORATIONS
 Around-the-World Adventures (Multi-sensory centers which include: Scientific Inquiry, Social Studies & Science, Cultural Arts & Humanities, Visual Arts, Games and Logic, History, Language, Diversity of Life Exploration)
Students will practice Essential Learning Skills as they complete a set of Explorer challenges pertaining to the context of the geographical region they are “visiting,” virtually.

TREE OF LIFE
2:45-3:30
Spanish
Students will explore different ways of learning, practicing, using Spanish language, reading, listening, writing, and speaking (includes vocabulary, spelling, phonics, phonemics)





3:30
Afterschool


Notes:
Materials:
Reflections/Goals:



WEDNESDAY
9:00
Weather Data Collection
Students will create a weather station for measuring temperature, rainfall, etc. and record daily on calendar grid. Results used in science/math.

Sept. Weather Data Calendars for recording daily precipitation,
high and low temperatures, daylight hours, wind speed/direction
for these locations:  Asheville, NC, and Fentress, Texas.

Cursive practice with Calpurnia Tate and famous
Quotations from Darwin’s journals


9:15
Centering/Class Meeting
Class Meeting Agenda:
Review World Class Explorers
Positive Discipline Plan for
Individual and Collective Space and Respect
Expectations
Environment
Questions
Quests
Ideas
Itinerary
Self-organization: Homework folder, math and writing journal, field notebook for science and social studies notes; Explorer Book Club reading log and literary analysis; sketchbook


9:30
Daily Journal & Explorer Publishing
Students respond to writing prompt/morning discussion in daily personal journal.

Risk-taking; cooperation; literacy, communication, trust
Math Journal:  Explorers use math to count, number, name, measure, order, document, analyze, locate, time, compare, predict, etc.  Time and Place:
Measurement notes on units of time (millennium to millisecond); Place:  Circle Facts for creating compass rose with cardinal directions
Students will use word wall to write a paragraph about how Explorers Use math. 
Finish Compass Rose Designs

Compass Rose Design
Students will use a ruler, a compass, a protractor, pencils, pens, and paper to construct a compass rose design that accurately shows the cardinal directions, the secondary and tertiary directions.  They will subsequently label the degrees in each quadrant and write circle facts on the back of their compass rose design, color and add detail to their designs for homework. 
Key Unit Questions:
How do the geographic features of a region
affect the people who live there?
How can the activities of people affect the
 local environment?
How do the stories people tell reflect where
they are from?
How can stories be used to persuade people
to act in a particular way?

10:15


Snack & Silent Walk
Daily snack and silent nature walk will be variable during this hour to accommodate the needs of the community and to facilitate optimal attention in math.


10:20

Math Groups
Students grouped according to achievement in math with vertical lift

Promethean Board
5th Grade: Graphing
Students will practice graphing at pro board; homework assignment will be to draw a bird’s eye map of their bedroom on graphing paper
And provide coordinates for corners, windows, bed, desk, and other furniture (plot ordered pairs to show location of these items)
11:10-11:55
Language Arts
Explorer Publishing
Computer Lab and Smart Board

TREE OF LIFE
12:00-1:00
 Lunch & Recess

1:00-2:30
ART EXPLORATIONS:
Art History and Studio
Origin Stories:
Students will close their eyes and listen to the Cherokee
origin story of how the earth was created.  They will try
to paint a scene from the story in their imaginations,
listening for vivid details of color, texture, sound,
setting, character and action.
Later, they will be given a chance to use water
colors to recreate this imaginative scene
in an original illustration.

1.        How the world was made
2.        
3.        





Or Back Porch Time (individual research, math, and reading projects)

2:30
Explorer Book Club
Shared origin stories, myths, legends, modern literature, poetry, non-fiction, and drama from the region of the world we are studying.
Students will practice Essential Learning Skills as they complete a set of Explorer challenges pertaining to the context of the geographical region they are “visiting,” virtually.

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE
Reading comprehension discussion and annotations; key literary
Elements:  PLOT,  CHARACTERS, SETTING, NARRATOR, THEME
3:00-3:25
PE

3:25-3:30
Pack up and clean up

3:30
Afterschool


Notes:
Materials:
Reflections/Goals:


THURSDAY
9:00
Weather Data Collection
Students will create a weather station for measuring temperature, rainfall, etc. and record daily on calendar grid. Results used in science/math.
AVERAGE THURSDAY  (5th graders find mean)
Weather Data Calendars for recording daily
precipitation, high and low temperatures,
daylight hours, wind speed/direction for these
locations:  Asheville, NC, Mt. Mitchell, NC,
and Fentress, Texas



9:30
 Daily Journal
Students respond to writing prompt/morning discussion in daily personal journal.

Risk-taking; cooperation; literacy, communication, trust
INDIVIDUAL READING ASSESSMENTS
Students will complete a reading assessment
to determine approximate reading level and
reading comprehension skills

10:00


Math Groups
Students grouped according to achievement in math with vertical lift
How do Explorers use math? 
(Students will brainstorm collective list of ways that explorers use math.  Discussion will include specific Operations, Processes, Purpose:  Measurement, Counting, Naming, Locating, Describing, Numbering, Estimating, including Time, Temperature, Cost, Space….) 
Whole Group Real-Life Math: Geometry
and Geography lessons
Ordered Pairs
Coordinates
X axis and y axis
Longitude and Latitude
The Equator 
Magnetic Compass and the Compass Rose

Compass Rose Design
Students will use a ruler, a compass, a protractor, pencils, pens, and paper to construct a compass rose design that accurately shows the cardinal directions, the secondary and tertiary directions.  They will subsequently label the degrees in each quadrant and write circle facts on the back of their compass rose design, color and add detail to their designs for homework. 


11:00
MUSIC with River


12:00-12:55
Outside Play & Lunch


12:55-1:30
Back Porch Time


1:30-2:30
SMART BOARD Around-the-World Adventures
 Story Circle and Literature Discussion
Shared origin stories, myths, legends, modern literature, poetry, non-fiction, and drama from the region of the world we are studying

Students will be introduced to annotation and note-taking; KEY LITERARY ELEMENTS: Fiction and Non-fiction; point of view

THE EVOLUTION OF CALPURNIA TATE Calpurnia is fascinated with Charles Darwin and his book The Origin of Species. Research Charles Darwin’s life and the book that made him famous. What, in a nutshell, was his premise? How does it link to Callie’s observations about the green and yellow grasshoppers? (See Chapter 1, pages 1 to 17.) Note: The epigraphs that open each chapter are from Darwin’s book. Students might take any given chapter and connect the significance of the epigraph to the theme of that chapter.


2:30-3:20
(Multi-sensory centers which include: Scientific Inquiry, Social Studies & Science, Cultural Arts & Humanities, Visual Arts, Games and Logic, History, Language, Diversity of Life Exploration)
Students will practice Essential Learning Skills as they complete a set of Explorer challenges pertaining to the context of the geographical region they are “visiting,” virtually.

Natural diversity
North Carolina has within its borders the highest mountains east of the Mississippi River, a broad, low-lying coastal area, and all the land in between. That variety of landforms, elevations, and climates has produced as diverse a range of ecosystems as any state in the United States. It has also influenced the way people have lived in North Carolina for thousands of years.

STUDENT OBJECTIVES

Students will
*       observe and write about their observations in a science field journal.
*       pay attention to detail in all types of observations.
*       formulate questions that could be researched or that could lead to investigations.
*       seek out answers to those questions through observation, exploration, and research.
record and share information learned.
Science: TAXONOMY
TREE OF LIFE




3:20-3:30
clean-up and Whole Class Collective Reflections/Goals


3:30
Afterschool



Essential Learning Skills: Self-organization, Communication, Collaboration/cooperation, Use appropriate resources to seek, access, and apply knowledge, Function Independently, Demonstrate Self-Confidence, Make Decisions, Take risks, and Be Present in Mind-Body-Spirit (conscious/conscience)

After Class
Visual
Moral
Spatial
Aesthetic
Logical
Spiritual
Kinesthetic
Emotional
Intrapersonal
Mental
Interpersonal
Physical
Existential

Auditory
Verbal
My Reflection



Notes:
Materials:
Reflections/Goals:


Homework



FRIDAY

9:00
Weather Data Collection
Students will create a weather station for measuring temperature, rainfall, etc. and record daily on calendar grid. Results used in science/math. Centering/Class Meeting

9:30
Spelling Quiz


10:00



Math Quiz
Ordered pairs, coordinates, longitude and latitude, place value
(grade 5: multiplication/division facts)
(grade 4: double-digit addition/subtraction)
10:30-11:55

Portfolio
Independent Reading
Document Camera
Students will use Essential Learning skills in
self-reflection of work (process and product) to select
pieces for PassPortFolios.  They will write an explanation
of their work, what they learned, and why they have
chosen this example for their portfolios.  They will
create a digital archive using the document camera
and post to their own individual page on the class blog.
PASSPORTFOLIO PROJECT
reflection and goal-setting using ESSENTIAL LEARNING SKILLS and evidence in individual work to organize and document progress in writing, reading, critical, contextual, and creative thinking, communicating and understanding (materials: student folders, assessments, projects, scanned photos and documents, goals notebooks, field journals, math and daily journals, art)
Ticket for Ecuador Time Travel Earned upon
completion of
Pass Port Folio

12:00-1:00
Outside Play & Lunch

1:00-1:30
Back Porch Time

1:30
SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS
 Students will work in teams and independently to conduct qualitative and quantitative research

 2:30
Students will work in teams and independently to conduct qualitative and quantitative research


3:00
Closing and Weekly REFLECTIONS
Students will share self-selected texts and projects from portfolios and discuss goals/reflections for the week, collectively and individually.
Student Jobs, Pack up &Pick up
Leveled readers

3:30
Afterschool


After Class
Visual
Moral
Spatial
Aesthetic
Logical
Spiritual
Kinesthetic
Emotional
Intrapersonal
Mental
Interpersonal
Physical
Existential

Auditory
Verbal
My Reflection


Homework


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