Continue reading »]]> Apologies for the missing update last week.  The flu hit the Funke household pretty hard and I was out most of the week.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dlkinney/434703149/

First graders started working on their How to Build a Snowman project this week.  They started by doing a little pre-writing in their classroom, outlining how to build a snowman in 4 steps beginning each sentence with FIRST, THEN, NEXT, or LAST.  This week we started our illustrations. Most classes were able to get one picture done but a couple were able to finish 2.  When all the pictures are finished, we’ll be putting them together into a comic book page using Comic Life.

Second graders are finishing getting their journal entries posted to the class wikis.  I hope to have them posting more projects throughout the rest of the year.  Next week we’ll be moving on to some online geography activities.

Third graders practiced Study Island some more while some students put the finishing touches on their Charlotte’s Web projects.  Next week we’ll begin our Simple Machines project.

Fourth graders started working on their Rock Riddle project last week. Each student is assigned a different type of rock and uses our Rock Resources page to find interesting facts he/she can turn into clues.  Each student write’s four clues for his/her rock and then uses Comic Life to create a Rock Riddle page which will hang outside the classrooms upon completion. I hope to have these posted online as well when everyone is finished.

Third and fourth grade parents, look for a new learning blog to be launched at the end of next week to help your child prepare for ISATs later in the spring.  I’ll post more details here at the end of next week and a note will most likely go home as well.

Continue reading »]]> First and second graders learned how to use the Treasures web site (linked on the right) which ties in to the reading program they use in the classroom.  Each week, students can visit the site and do activities that are go along with the story they are reading in their classroom.

Third grade began their first research project of the year.  This one is on the Illinois prairie.  Each student uses a list of web sites provided to them to research facts about the prairies in Illinois.  Facts are entered into the worksheet pictured below.  When the projects are finished, they will be printed out and posted online.

Fourth grade began their tour of the Northeast scavenger hunt with the Tandy’s.  Working in pairs, each team uses Google Earth to track the movement of the Tandy’s as they take a car trip across the Northeast region of the United States.  Students are given clues to the Tandy’s whereabouts on each stop on their trip.

Continue reading »]]> MAP Testing and Study Island

First graders continued to practice logging in as well as honing their mouse and keyboard skills. Kid Pix is a very popular program right now but we’ll be moving into our online Treasures reading program when we come back from MAP testing in a couple of weeks.

Second graders are preparing for MAP testing this week.  MAPs are our localized assessment and will begin on Tuesday, Sept 8 and will run for about a week and a half.  Every 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade class will be taking a Math and a Reading MAP test in one of the two computer labs.  Each 2nd grade class watched a short presentation about the tests and was given the opportunity to ask any questions they had about the testing process.

Third and fourth grades began using Study Island this week. Study Island is a web site our teachers use to evaluate where their classes are academically throughout the year. Students will use it periodically throughout the year and will occasionally have it assigned for homework.  Each student has an individual log in and a record of their activity is logged for their classroom teacher to view at any time.

Continue reading »]]> Learned How To Log In Again!

All students at Tripp school now have individual and unique passwords which will be used to log in to their accounts on the computers as well as Custom Typing, Study Island, First Class, and any other online resources we may use this year. This is a big change for some of the students so we spent some time talking about who we do or do not share our passwords with and will continue to do so in the future.

Third and Fourth Graders also set up their accounts in Custom Typing which they will use for 30 minutes, once a week in our second computer lab.  Custom Typing can also be used at home if your child remembers his/her username and password.  If you choose to have your child practice keyboarding at home, please make sure he/she is keeping his/her hands in the correct position (Home Row!) and for no more than 20 minutes a day.  Keyboarding is best learned in short sessions.