<![CDATA[ - Blog]]>Fri, 22 Feb 2013 11:04:09 -0800Weebly<![CDATA[Rock Stories and Efficiency]]>Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:51:37 GMThttp://gullettabsher.weebly.com/1/post/2013/02/rock-stories-and-efficiency.htmlThe All Stars have been working hard these past few weeks!

In math we are finishing with fractions, while also practicing identifying and adding up coins. The students really enjoyed our Coin Words activity we did. 

One major conversation we have been having in math each day is about efficiency. When we are solving our problem of the day, we have decided that some strategies are much more efficient than others. Each day, the All Stars are striving to use more efficient strategies to solve their problems. Ask them about strategies that are more or less efficient!

In science, we are finishing our final copies of our rock stories! I have showed students different ways to "publish" their stories online. Blabberize, Glogster, and ComicMaster are just a few websites they can use. Some students have found their own ways to get their stories online! The more creative, the better. This extra activity of publishing their stories online is completely optional, and is just a way for students who are interested to go online and explore different websites and digital opportunities. This morning, MK was able to show the class her story she recorded on Blabberize! It was great!

Looking forward to a few more awesome weeks before 
]]><![CDATA[Fractions and Rocks!]]>Wed, 30 Jan 2013 18:30:18 GMThttp://gullettabsher.weebly.com/1/post/2013/01/fractions-and-rocks.htmlWe're still working hard on fractions in math! Numerators and denominators, wholes and parts, your kids should be very familiar with this vocabulary! We did our fraction sundae activity yesterday, a folding square fraction activity today, and we still have pizza fractions and animal fractions to go! Help your student see fractions in their everyday life (money, sporting events, music, everything)!

In science we're finishing up our last week of rock types and properties, as well as the rock cycle. Our students will be writing stories about the life of a rock, which will tell about the different changes a rock may undergo during the rock cycle! Also, ask them about our igneous and metamorphic rock activities with crayon shavings and our metamorphic rocks made from clay!


]]><![CDATA[Long Time Coming!]]>Fri, 18 Jan 2013 15:30:02 GMThttp://gullettabsher.weebly.com/1/post/2013/01/long-time-coming.htmlIt's been awhile since I have updated! I'll be continuing to try to keep up so you parents know what is going on in class! Remember, you can always look at our Twitter account @AbshersAllStars to look at some of our tweets, which will also let you know what's going on.

Today is Half Day! We have 178 days of school this year, and today is the 89th day. That means there are 89 more days left to go! We're halfway there! We'll be doing a lot of activities today that have to do with halves and other fractions. A lot of students, when given a choice of different fractions, decided they would rather have 1/12 of a chocolate bar than 3/4 of a chocolate bar. After learning what those fractions meant, they changed their mind!

In science, our current unit is called Dynamic Earth. We are currently talking about the different physical properties of rocks (specifically size, shape, color, and texture), along with the 3 types of rocks (sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic) and the rock cycle.

In social studies we are look at time (past present and future) and timelines. We looked at a timeline of when different games and consoles came out, and a toy timeline.

Finally, we are in the middle of out Toy Project! We will be having a toy fair, where we will get to show off our awesome toy inventions! If there are any questions about the project, please do not hesitate to stop by my room or email me!


]]><![CDATA[Geometry, Energy, and Government]]>Fri, 26 Oct 2012 14:33:42 GMThttp://gullettabsher.weebly.com/1/post/2012/10/geometry-energy-and-government.htmlThis week the All-Stars have continued to work hard in math learning about geometric shapes (2D and 3D) as well as practicing their story problems. We are getting better and better at showing our thinking in efficient ways!

In science, we are studying energy! We have focused so far on heat, light, and sound energy. Ask your child about our balloon experiment with sound! Soon we will move onto magnets.

Leading up to the election, we have been looking at government, elections, and voting. We have learned about the 3 branches of government and will soon move onto local and state governments.

We also got to plant our garden this week! We planted beets, 2 types of carrots, spinach, romanesco cauli, and swiss chard. We can't wait to see our harvest in a few months!
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]]><![CDATA[Story Problems and Changing Matter]]>Wed, 03 Oct 2012 17:53:55 GMThttp://gullettabsher.weebly.com/1/post/2012/10/story-problems-and-changing-matter.htmlIn science this week, the All Stars have been working with changing matter. We sanded woodblocks in order to change the physical properties. We also changed paper in many ways. We learned that these changes are called physical changes. After a physical change, the material is still the same. For example, after we sanded the wood blocks, the physical properties were changed, but the block was still made of wood.

In math this week we have really been working hard on story problems and equations. Each student has been solving story problems, showing and explaining their work, and writing equations. Next week we will begin a new unit and we will start looking at geometry.

We also let our butterfly go yesterday. We figured out using a butterfly book that our Queen butterfly was a female. We also found out that Queen butterflies do not migrate to Mexico like Monarchs do. This means that our butterfly may stay in the Gullett butterfly garden for awhile!


"My first wish is to see this plague of mankind, war, banished from the earth."
- George Washington (Person of the Week)

]]><![CDATA[First Post!]]>Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:50:28 GMThttp://gullettabsher.weebly.com/1/post/2012/09/first-post.htmlI just added this section of the website! It's a blog where I can write about what's going on with my class, the All Stars and parents can add comments! I've never done a blog before so I guess we'll see how this goes!

So today was "Bring Your Father/Significant Male Figure to School Day." There were a lot of people who came! We had a lot of dads in our classroom during our warm-up and morning meeting. It was neat, but pretty short! Also, our butterfly emerged from our chrysalis today! Its wings are drying but soon we will release it in the butterfly garden. Right now we are working on our Olympic books in the computer lab! Thanks for checking out the blog!

Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.
- Thomas Edison (Person of the Week)
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