After we read a Wish to be a Christmas Tree, students wrote a journal entry from a perspective of a Christmas tree. They had to describe getting decorated. Students had such wonderful voice in their writing. I really believed some of them were Christmas trees! Some of my students have a great sense of humor, too! Here are a few samples of their work. They have not been edited, so beware!
8 Comments
We have been focusing a lot on characters in the books we have been reading during readers workshop. We discussed how many characters change during the course of the book, either because there was a challenge or a lesson that they learned that caused them to change. We have been also looking at the traits of our characters and using those traits to make predictions about what we think our characters are going to do.
For practice, your child chose a character in the book they are currently reading (hopefully at his/her level). Students then had to think of three traits that describe their characters. The students then had to dig through their books to find evidence of that character trait and write it down. Here are a few examples- We have been working on thinking about the characters in the books that we are reading and using what we know about them to make predictions about what they are going to do next in the story. We are finding that sometimes our characters have a pattern in their behavior when we can say "there she goes again" but other times our characters surprise us.
Students had to chose a character from a book that they are reading or have read and come up with three clues about that character. They wrote their three clues and a Who Am I? on an acorn. Students then draw a picture of the character under the top of the acorn. The acorns are displayed so that other students can try to guess the character's name. Students have already been up to the bulletin board to take a look and to try to guess the characters. Here are a couple examples. We are still practicing our learning target of comparing two stories and supporting our opinion with examples from each book. This time, after reading Emma Kate and My Friend John, students were asked to respond to this prompt: Some people would say that Emma Kate and John know how to be a good friend. Would you agree or disagree? Support your answer with examples and details from the stories. Students worked on putting their thoughts into a graphic organizer and then organizing those thoughts and adding details to write at least 4 paragraphs that would answer the question. It is a big job, but I was so impressed by what the students can do! Students know that their responses must include the titles of both books, their opinion, at least 3 examples that support their opinion and a conclusion. When students get their work returned to them, they can expect this feedback pictured below to let them know how they did. This is the organizer that students fill out to help them with their answer to the question. Students then took their ideas from their organizer and turned them into paragraphs by adding detail Here is a wonderful example of a completed response!
Every Friday, the students' BRAIN activity is to practice their spelling on whiteboards with a friend. They come into the room and get started right away! Today, we made Santa Clauses to go with the reindeer that were made from the neighboring classroom.
I can compare two stories and use details and examples to support my opinion. After reading the books Elmer and Those Shoes, we filled in a graphic organizer that organized our thinking. Students had to decide if Elmer and Jeremy (the main characters from the stories) learned the same lesson. They needed to use evidence from each story that supports their opinion. Next, students will take their thoughts from their graphic organizer and write them out in paragraphs. It is a difficult task to accomplish, but as students work on a small part at a time, they are proud and surprised by what they can do by the end. I will be sure to post some of the students' graphic organizers on here later. It is amazing what they can do! When I walked into my classroom this weekend in preparation for the week, I saw this wonderful surprise. Thanks kids! You are an amazing class! I am sure that I will do things a little differently than Mrs. Schmalz, but give it some time and we will all settle in together and figure things out. And, I know that Mrs. Schmalz will already be back in our building subbing a lot this week!
|
Mrs. Ellis's Class
Learning & laughing our way through third grade. Archives
June 2020
Categories |