Crime Scene

Tuesday morning my kids walked into a crime scene in the 5th grade science room. A poor rabbit lay in the middle of a very small forest- he had tragically lost his life. The animal's habitat had been taped off with "crime scene do not enter" tape. The students have spent the last 2 days trying to solve the crime - what animal did the killing and what scavenger cleaned up?

Well it turns out the rabbit was something my cooperating teacher had found in her back yard over the summer. When the students found out it was real they either thought it was really cool or really disgusting.

Today one of my students said to me, "You know if you touch a dead rabbit you can get rabies. Like if I touched that right now I would have rabies."

I guess I hadn't thought of rabbits as being a real threat when it comes to rabies. And certainly not a rabbit that's been dead for 8 months. But you can never be too careful these days, I guess!

Pep Talk

There haven't been any quotable quotes in my classroom the last couple days, but this video is definitely worth watching!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-gQLqv9f4o

Studio 67 Design

Shout out to my sister Colleen for the new teacher bag. I'm super excited to pack it and take it to school on Monday!
Check out her creative ingenuity at http://www.etsy.com/shop/studio67design

Go Inventing!

Growing up in the Sjoberg house, "Authors" was a much loved card game. Using an old set my dad had, we played until the cards were nearly worn out, at which time we acquired a new set of cards. "Inventors" is another version of the game and was brought into the Sjoberg house but it's popularity was no competition for Authors. While home at Christmastime I snatched up Inventors thinking I could possibly incorporate it into my classroom. If you aren't familiar with the game, it's essentially "go fish." Sets of inventors faces and names are placed onto a regular deck of cards. Four cards of a kind makes a set.

I introduced the game to three of my students yesterday at recess and they immediately got into it. Names like "Guglielmo Marconi" and "Johannes Gutenberg" didn't exactly roll off the tongue, but those kids unashamedly gave it the best pronunciation they could. In the first round one student said, "Since it's like go fish, but with inventors I guess you say 'Go inventing!' to the other person when you don't have the card."

This morning I was excitedly greeted by two students who were hoping I remembered to bring Inventors back. I'm pretty thrilled that they're spending their recess throwing around names like Archimedes and Michael Faraday.

And this is just one of the reasons why I love what I do.

Inches or Feet?

Talking about food chains today, we were discussing a possible oceanic food chain. The science text mentioned a bass eating a minnow. One student very excitedly declared, "My sister caught a bass one time. It was 12 feet long! [pause] Or maybe it was 12 inches."

I'm just going to take a guess here and say that it was probably 12 inches.

Also, I received my first teacher apple from a student today - that seems like a milestone in my pursuit of a teaching career.

An Unexpected Embrace

In my homeroom class there is a set of identical twin sisters. I decided on the first day that I needed to figure out a way to tell them apart. Early on everyday was a guess, but I started to get the swing of it before too long.

Yesterday morning, like every other morning, I was standing outside my classroom door greeting the students as they came in for the day. At this point I was feeling pretty confident with identifying the twins. Well, I greeted the first one by name and to my surprise she threw her arms around me in a full embrace and thanked me for getting her name right.

It's the little things, I tell ya!

What teamwork means...

In discussion with a student today I had asked him to join a group that he is not normally part of and help them with the project they were working on. Apparently I should have said "contribute" rather than "help" because his response, as serious as could be was: "If I do everything, the others won't learn."

And with the above statement, I'd have to agree.

*Don't worry, we talked about what an acceptable contribution to the team looks like and he did just fine.

Worries, we've all got 'em

My cooperating teacher gave this short prompt to our students back before they left for Christmas break. While passing them back to the students today I couldn't help but notice how they deal with the worries in their lives.

I worry about... "the end of the world." When I worry, I will..."Pray to God that the end of the world never happens."

I worry about..."my brother." When I worry, I will..."go to sleep."

So there you have it.

Persuasive Writing

My cooperating teacher gave a persuasive writing assignment to our 5th graders. They designed a prosthesis and wrote a "to whom it may concern letter" to a company, trying to sell their product.

The following are taken directly from their letters:
"Do you want these kids to live without an arm? I have something that can make those sad, one armless kids into happy, new armed kids with the Hand Helper 1000.”

“If people buy now they will receive a free tool box. They’ll need it for if [the Hand Helper 1000] gets broken or needs some work. Of course, there is a 50/50 percent chance it will get broken or needs fixed.”

“The Prosthetic Beauty 3000 is stylish, comfortable and full of awesomeness.”

“We will make some deals with you. We’ll throw in an extra Ziploc baggie full of extra nails for each Prosthetic Beauty 3000 you get.”

I'm Not a Kid Anymore

I step through the doors for my first day of school and remind myself that in this place I am not the student - I am the teacher. I take a deep breath and start down the 5th grade hallway.

My professional attire and teacher introduction secure my place as an authority in the classroom - that is, until one of my students asks me if I go to Blackford High School.

At 5'2" and standing eye-level with several of my students, I'm determined to represent these 22 years of life experience!