Today we finished our money project.  Thanks to all of the families that sent toys and made our shopping day a success.  Each student got to have time as a shopper in our store and as a cashier.  They had to add different amounts to make sure they were not spending more than they had.  They had to work on fewest coins to pay the cashiers and of course they worked on making change when they were working as cashiers.

Well here is the last shoe for you to enjoy.

This afternoon we went to the engineering lab.  We worked on Lego Robotics, the light board, and building with building blocks.  Each student got 20 minutes in each sections.  Take a look at the learning that was going on.

Today was a busy day.  We finished our shoes.  Wait until you see the rest.

Wow I had high expectations for their shoe design challenge.  But I have to admit they amazed me.  Check out some of these designs.

Today we started our shoe design challenge.  The students were given the task of creating a masking tape shoe that represents a U.S. Symbol that we researched in Social Studies.  They have to have the sole of the shoe made out of card stock.  The rest of the shoe construction must be made out of masking tape.  They must be able to get their foot in and out of the shoe.  When the shoe is constructed they will decorate them.  Their design and building plans were amazing.  Some groups are already starting on the building process.  I can't wait to see the finished projects.  Here are some pictures from today.

Our design challenge today requires them to use their knowledge of magnets.  We have been studying magnets all week in science.  Their challenge is How to Fly a Post-It Kite.  The supplies they were given were 2 post-its, a paper clip, string, tape, and a magnet.  The rules are they could not touch anything but the magnet when the kite is flying.  The kite has to be taped by string to the desk.  To be considered flying the magnet can not be touching any of the other supplies.  Congratulation to Ian, Levi and Abraham.

 
 Check out these pictures.

Wow we have been working all week in the media lab on our U.S. Symbols books.  Today is a special day.  We get to present our books to Mrs. Ricci.  The children worked hard on the projects and their presentation skills.  The books are amazing.  You can check them out at the bottom of the U.S. Symbols page in our wiki.  projects

Today we worked in the media lab again on our U.S. symbols projects.  The class was amazing it was only their second day working in Power Point and they were on their own.  Their projects are shaping up well.

"I like that we get to pick our own fonts."Elijah
"I like to pick the pictures that would look good on that page."Bailee
"I like that we can change the color of our typing."Jacob

Secret Santa Shop Is Here!
The PTA gift shop for the kids will be open next week to allow your kids to shop secretly for their family and friends:

Tuesday (12/11) Wednesday (12/12) Thursday (12/13) Friday (12/14)

Preview
8:30 am – 2:30 pm 8:30 am – 2:30 pm 8:30 am – 1:30 pm

The Secret Santa Shop has a variety of gifts for all interests and price ranges from .25 cents to $25.00 dollars. Each item will come home gift wrapped and tagged.

Today we started working on our books for U.S. Symbols.  We are creating the books in the media lab using Power Point.  We started with the title page today and made sure they looked patriotic.  We also learned how to change the color and type of fonts.  Then we worked on inserting pictures.  Tomorrow they will get to start importing our facts.  I can't wait to see their finished books.  We will present them to Mrs. Blizzard and she will judge if they can be used in 1st and K by the teachers as resources.  I know they will be amazing.

Today we did a design challenge that would allow us to use our knowledge of force.  The challenge was called Air Lift.  The groups were given 2 books, 4 baggies, and 4 straws.  They were given the challenge of lifting the books off the desk without touching them.  Congratulations to Ellorie, Elijah, and Bailee.  Here are some of their winning observations.
"We used the straw to blow air into the bags so the force of the air lifted the books." Ellorie
"We had to make sure the bags were half way under the books."Elijah
"We had to make sure the straw was under the books and the bag was sealed tightly."Bailee

Today in science we continued to work on how forces put objects in motion.  We were making balloon rockets. 

"The bigger the balloon was the farther it went because it has more air working as the push force."Jacob
"The less air that was in the balloon the smaller distance it would travel."Emma
"It was harder to blow up the small balloon because there was less room for the air we were pushing into it."Jude
"The smaller balloon had less air and didn't go as far as the others."Laura
"The balloon rockets flew down the string because of the push force from the air coming out of the balloon."Artan

In math this we we have been working on counting money.  Anytime you get a chance have them count some change at home.  Another way they can practice is using the following site.  It is a really good site because it has many different levels to practice on. 
Check it out.
http://www.abcya.com/counting_money.htm

The holidays are fast approaching.  Our class party will be on Friday, December 21st.  At the party each child will get to play “Santa”!!!!!!  To play “Santa”, each child brings a small item for every student in the class and places it in the holiday bags we have made.  Some suggestions might be wrapped gum, candy, snack cakes, pencils, erasers, or small toys.  There are 18 students in our class.  Everyone will have a filled bag at the end of the party!   

      Note:  Please send the items with your child to school by Wednesday, December 19th.

Today in math we started our study of money and how to count money.  We will be using all of our money knowledge to have a shopping day.  To help us with this we are asking that you send any toys your are willing to donate so the kids can shop for some new treasures.  Today we worked on identifying the coins.  Check out the posters we made and some interesting facts we included.

The Penny
"The penny is worth 1 cent." Emma
"It's a copper color."Bailee
"On the front of the coin is Abraham Lincoln."Alberto
"On the back of the coin is the Lincoln Memorial."Riley

The Nickel
"The nickel is worth 5 cents." Jacob
"It has Thomas Jefferson on the front."Ian
"It is silver and has smooth edges."Brooklyn
"Monticello is on the back of the coin."Elijah

The Dime
"The dime is the smallest coin."Jude
"It is worth 10 cents." Artan
"It has rough edges."Laura
"Franklin D. Roosevelt is on the front."Riley

The Quarter
"George Washington is on the front of the quarter."Emily
"On the back of the quarter can be a bald eagle."Levi
"It is worth 25 cents." Saxton
"4 quarters are worth $1.00."Aidan