What a "Tree"mendous Day!

Today our class took a trip the the Tree Hill Nature Center.  We began our day trekking through the woods in search of interesting plants and wildlife.  We managed to discover a black snake sunning itself on a log, some lizards dashing about, and turtles surfacing from the depths a pond for a tasty pellet...yum!  We heard the gentle tunes of the songbirds in the trees above and the occasional buzzing of bugs in our ears.  After a pausing to devour our homemade lunches...thanks moms & dads!...it was off to the garden to hunt for bugs, explore seeds, and dig for earthworms. We finished up the day with a look around the lab where we examined a variety of specimens through the safety of a glass barrier. Some of them were pretty creepy!  It was quite a day!  Check out some of the fun below!

These Readers Deserve a Photo Finish!

To celebrate students who have completed their reading goal at the end of the third nine weeks, our school gave readers a chance to dress-up and have some fun.  A photo booth was set-up downstairs so friends could capture the moment and leave with a token to recognize their efforts as readers.  The strip of photos provided to each reader will make an awesome bookmark, as they charge forward to meet their final goal for the year!  

"Egg"cellent Job!

We work hard each and every day in class, so sometimes we like to throw in an activity strictly for the purpose of having fun.  In celebration of spring, students were offered the opportunity to disguise an egg however they saw fit.  As a class, we would vote on the disguises; a prize being offered to the most creative and clever.  A variety of creations drifted through our classroom yesterday and we would like to recognize some contenders here on the blog, for all to enjoy!

Angry Bird Egg

Lion Egg

Hamster Egg

Candle Egg

Ice Cream Cone Egg

Personal Narratives the Allen Say Way

We are approaching our personal narrative unit in writing a little differently than we have in the past.  Inspired by our study of author and illustrator Allen Say, we are beginning our writing by visualizing and illustrating a scene from our story.  This somewhat unconventional ordering of events works for Allen, so we thought we'd give it a try.  Students seemed to relish the artistic aspects of the story-writing process and we are excited to see the finished pieces!

Fun Run!

Today our class participated in the Boosterthon Fun Run!  For the past week, students have worked to collect pledges or donations to help our school and earn a variety of prizes.  This morning, we took to the field to run up to 35 laps. All of our hard work paid off, as we earned thousands of dollars...and had a lot of fun doing it.  As one classmate commented on our way inside, "Now I know why they call it the Fun Run!"  Check out all the fun below!

Make sure to collect and return all of your pledge money!  Way to go, guys!!!