September 21, 2007

What a busy couple of weeks we've had!

Though time is escaping more quickly than ever, we are accomplishing a great deal in the classroom. I've stayed busy with the new baby and trying to juggle that with my Master's degree and National Board work. I am grateful for how well everything seems so well connected and I couldn't ask for a better group of students to share in these experiences.

During the past couple of weeks the students have shown such growth in their general number sense. I've watched students manipulate numbers in ways that were truly impressive. Students who were afraid of division have a new paradigm and approach math differently.

The students have also shown an afinity for using the technology tools in the room. Students are actively creating audio files, Jeopardy templates for history reviews, and using MS Office software to make visual representations.

We're having a great time and I look forward to each week and the amazing learning that's taking place. Like I've said..."We're taking learning to a new extreme."

Back in the saddle

Now that I have returned to school and have a couple of weeks under my belt, I feel that we are back in the saddle and our future learning is showing a lot of promise.
I would like to start by thanking all of you for your encouragment and for asking about our baby. It's hard to believe she is almost four weeks old. It's amazing how quickly time flies.
5th grade is going very well and the students are making a lot of progress. One of the new things that the students and I are doing this year is writing letters back and forth about the students' reading. It is great practice for writing and conveying the stdents' thoughts as well as allowing me to see their progress as readers and writers.
This last week was a great week for implementing some of our technology tools. We created a video mathcast, used the tablet PCs to write out solutions to math problems, connected our computer to the porojector and used it as a smart board to conduct or reading lesson, and of course published the students' first podcast.

Check back with us next when we pay tribute to those that lost their lives and family during the September 11th tragedy.