Day 130 - Thespians In Action - Mr. Daley - Fox Hill Grade 4

This post first appeared on Mr. Daley's Blog

Today, my ELA students performed two plays demonstrating their reading, speaking, and acting abilities. As part of our ELA curriculum and common core standards, Grade 4 students learn about "the structural elements of drama (e.g., casts of characters, settings, descriptions, dialogue, stage directions) when writing or speaking about a text."

One group of kids performed "The Jack and the Beanstalk Trial," while another performed "Above the Clouds." Students' preparation was clearly evident during their performances. Below are some candid photos of our "thespians in action!"

"Jack and the Beanstalk Trial"

"Above the Clouds"

Day 117 - Celebrating Women’s History Month at Fox Hill - Mr. Murphy - Fox Hill Learning Commons

This post first appeared on the BPS EdTech Team's Blog

March is Women’s History Month and we are celebrating in the Fox Hill Learning Commons by studying books by and about female authors. Come visit the Fox Hill Learning Commons this month and check out a book! We have books about many famous women such as Coretta Scott King, J.K. Rowling, Malala Yousafzai, and Amelia Earhart just to name a few. We also have a fantastic collection of books about women who, while they may not be household names, are no less important to our society and culture, and have made incredibly important contributions to our world. Highlighted here are several books about some fascinating women who you may not have heard of before but will want to learn more about now! These books highlight women who helped and are helping science move forward by leaps and bounds! Additionally, all of these books were written and illustrated by women as well!

Ada Lovelace – Poet of Science by Diane Stanley and Jessie Hartland

Ada Lovelace was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron, but her true interests were in science and math. In 1800s Victorian England, she began experiments and building machines that could compute numbers using punchcards. It was a form of the earliest computer programming and Lovelace built machines to add numbers before there was available electricity! As early as the 1840s she was even writing about whether a computer could create artificial intelligence. She was quite famous in her time and was admired for her work by people like Charles Dickens and Charles Darwin. Next time you turn on your iPad, you’ve got Ada Lovelace to thank!

Caroline’s Comets by Emily Arnold McCully

This book tells the story of Caroline Herschel, who in 1786, was the first woman to discover a comet. She was also the first woman in history to be paid for her scientific research. She named the first comet The Ladies Comet and went on to discover seven more! She didn’t just watch the skies though. She built telescopes and learned how to make the glass for the lenses. Not an easy job in 1786! Caroline and her discoveries opened the door for astronomers and astrophysicists that came after her. Check out her story today!

The Women in STEM series.

This fantastic series highlights both legendary women in science, like Jane Goodall and Rachel Carson, and emerging scientists like Majora Carter and Sandra Steingraber. Often girls are discouraged from developing an interest in science and technology. This series is designed to change that by empowering girls through showing them successful women to look up to. Topics in this series cover subjects like computer science, conservation, earth and space science, engineering, medicine, and physical science, so from animals to outer space, there is something for everyone. In another twenty years, I’m expecting to see our Fox Hill scientists being featured in the updated series!

Happy Women’s History Month! Girls can do anything!

Day 138 - Google Classroom: Explained by a 4th Grader - Jenn Scheffer - Fox Hill IT

This post first appeared on the BPS EdTech Blog

I am pleased and very proud to share a tutorial on Google Classroom created by fourth grade Fox Hill Help Desk student Celeste. In this tutorial, Celeste demonstrates how teachers can create a class, invite students and co-teachers, how to post announcements, assignments, and questions, and how to change the classroom theme. Celeste shows how easy and intuitive Google Classroom is for teachers and students and her tutorial is a must watch!

Day 162 - A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE FOR AN ALL TOO FAMILIAR SITUATION - Fox Hill Guidance Blog

This post originally appeared on the Fox Hill Counselors' Blog

Starting around grade 3, as boys and girls begin to develop interests and notice similarities and differences between themselves and others, stronger friendships begin to grow. On the flip side, exclusivity and unkind statements begin to be thrown around as an attempt to understand the changing social dynamics.

A common problem is, “I want to play with aa, but I (cc) don’t like bb and bb is friends with aa. What should I do?” And, most often the solution they come up with is to be unkind to bb and exclude them from games and conversations.

It is important to remember, when helping your child in a situation like this, that if your child is bb or cc, both are feeling extremely vulnerable. They want to protect their friendship with aa, and feel liked and apart of the group. They need to be reminded that they can be friends with aa, and should also try to find things about bb or cc that they like so all can be feeling comfortable and liked as a group.

If your child is aa, encourage them to tell bb and cc they like spending time with them both and would like to find a way for all to play together. And, if possible, encourage them to find dd!

Attached is a nice article from a parent’s perspective when she realized her daughter was excluding another.

4th Grader Comes Home With Disturbing News—Then Mom Realizes Her “Worst Nightmare” Is Coming True

Day 123 - Glittery Gossip - Mr. Daley - Fox Hill Grade 4

This post first appeared on Mr. Daley's Blog 

On Friday, Ms. LoConto and Ms. Greene conducted a guidance lesson for Mrs. Hevey's and my classroom focusing on the pitfalls of gossiping. Their lesson was called "Glittery Gossip." In groups of 4 or 5, students were instructed to pass glitter from their hands to classmates. If students passed all of the glitter successfully from student to student without any falling to the floor and no glitter was left any on students' hands (even one piece), then all 4th graders would earn a prize of an extra hour of recess. Well, needless to say, it was impossible for students to successfully complete their task. Students' enthusiasm to complete such a task quickly became an exercise in futility.

Ms. LoConto and Ms. Greene taught the kids how we can't control our words once we speak them. The words we utter will spread to others, can be heard by others we didn't intend to pass them to, and can't be erased once we've spoken them.

While the kids were disappointed at not earning an extra hour of recess, they "got the message" offered during the activity ~ that it's vitally important for Room 20 (and Fox Hill School) to be a "Gossip-free Zone!"

Day 111 - QR Code Book Reviews - Mr.Murphy - Fox Hill Library/Media Center

This post first appeared on the Fox Hill Library/Media Center Blog

Between this week and last week, 5th graders have been creating QR Code book reviews so we can share our favorite books. The reviews were done using the Book Creator app so students could get creative in their book review design, choosing fonts, colors, graphics, and layout.

First, students picked a favorite book. The choice was completely up to them. They thought about what they liked and why other kids should read the book they love. We had to make sure we told what was exciting and interesting without including a spoiler! This can be tricky to do! Students worked on their iPads and worked together to share graphic design tips and help each other with their writing and layout and design.

Students then shared their review with me using Google Drive. Once the review was uploaded and shared with me, we used the Qrafter app to generate QR codes. We printed them out and the students cut out their codes and taped them to the back of their book.

This week we’ll add about fifty more QR codes to books. This is a great way for students to share the books they love and for other students to easily discover their next favorite book! The best part of course is that all reviews were created by and for students!

Next time you visit the library, look for books with a QR code on the back. Scan them with the Qrafter app. Your next favorite book is waiting!

Day 94 - Today's Bridges Lesson ~ Lifelong Teaching & Learning - Mr. Daley - Fox Hill Grade 4

This post originally appeared on Mr. Daley's Blog

Today's Bridges lesson focused on lifelong teaching and learning. Both students and seniors alike learned that "one can learn something new every day." Regardless of how old we are, we can teach others and learn from others each and every day. As one of our seniors stated, "if I learn one thing every day, within a year I will have learned 365 new things." What a wonderful way to think!

Today, students and seniors delivered 5-minute lessons to each of their group members on lesson plans they developed during the week. Some of the lessons taught by students an seniors included sewing, covering text books with paper bags, shuffling playing cards, making bracelets, playing chess, and golfing. The following photos show some of our "teachers in action." Enjoy!

Day 46 - All New Book Creator - Mr. Murphy - Fox Hill Library/Media Specialist

This post first appeared on the Fox Hill Media Center Blog

See the slides below for a quick how-to on using the new Book Creator features and sharing projects with your teachers. If you have any questions, let me know!

 

Day 169 - Student Math Teachers - Mr. Daley - Fox Hill Grade 4

This post originally appeared on Mr. Daley's Blog

This year in Room 20, I provided students with an opportunity to teach a math lesson to their classmates. Five students expressed interest by responding to a number of questions and statements, including:

• Tell me why you deserve this opportunity.
• What have you done in Room 20, at Fox Hill, and at home this year to demonstrate your academic, social, and emotional growth?
• What are some ways you have been the “1” this year?
• What strategies would you use to maintain a quiet, organized classroom while conducting your lesson?

Earlier this year, Jackie B. and Mikey W. conducted a lesson on "multiples" as part of our fractions unit. This past week, Daniel C., Sades M., and Sam P. taught a "units of time" lesson as part of our measurements unit.

I was extremely please with each student teacher's preparation and delivery of his and her lesson. All teachers exhibited sound content knowledge and showed great classroom management skills. In both lessons, every one of their students was an active, energized participant during the lessons. Kudos to Jackie, Mikey, Daniel, Sades, Sam, and their Room 20 students for an informative, entertaining, hard-working two hours of instruction and learning!

Here are some photos of "Student Math Teachers In Action!"

Day 151 - Biography Book Report "Wax Museum" - Mr. Daley - Fox Hill Grade 4

This post originally appeared on Mr. Daley's Blog 

Students in my ELA class recently each read a biography of a famous / important person in history. After reading their biography, students wrote a book report of their well-known person. They then dressed up as that person and participated in a Wax Museum as that historical figure. "Visitors" to the Room 20 Wax Museum were Mrs. Doyle's 1st grade students. When 1st graders shined a flashlight on a "waxed figure," the figure came to life and told the story about his/her life.

Waxed figures included: Paul Revere, Christopher Columbus, Clara Barton, Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Michelle Obama, Princess Diana, Abraham Lincoln, Jackie Robinson, Harry Houdini, Eleanor Roosevelt, Michelle Kwan, Babe Ruth, Elizabeth Blackwell, Betsy Ross, Sacajawea, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dottie Kamenshek.

Here are some pictures from the Wax Museum.