International Dot Day!

Wow! So the final number of teachers, students, libraians, and others who registered to celebrate International Dot Day this year was over 600,000 worldwide! Every state in the United States and 6 continents (anyone have a friend in Antartica?!) were represented. Last year there were about 17,000. What growth! I am excited to say that this was my third year celebrating with my class and second year making our awesome t-shirts! (I'll post a short video with the technique we used at the end of this post.)

After celebrating at school on Friday, Emily and I headed to the Blue Bunny in Dedham and helped create a huge collaborative dot with Peter! You'l see it in this slideshow. Didn't it come out beautiful?!

 



On Saturday, we headed in The Children's Museum in Boston where we were able to participate in the Dot Day celebration. Emily and I even had our picture taken with the Mayor of Boston, Mr. Tom Menino.

To learn more about the message of The Dot and Dot Day, here are the Reynolds brothers in a really cool Discovery Education webcast to tell you all about it!

 

Looking forward to next year.  It is the 10th anniversary of the book.  I am sure exciting things are to come!

 

Here's the tie-dye Sharpie tie-dye project video:

 



           

New School Year!

Dear Second Grade Stars and families,
Welcome back to a new school year!  We had a wonderful first couple of days and I am confident that our year will continue as such.  I can already tell this is a fun, enthusiastic group of students.  I know many of you already, but for those parents who I have not yet met, here is just a little bit about me.  I grew up in Roslindale and Hyde Park (though my families roots are JP).  I attended Holy Name and then Boston Latin School, from which I graduated in 1991.  I received my Bachelor's of Science in Elementary Education from Bridgewater State College and my Master's in Elementary Education from Framingham State College.  I have taught in Walpole since 1998. 
I had two favorite teachers in elementary school, Mrs. O'Grady in 5th grade, and Mr. Bernazzani in second.  I have no idea where either of them are now or if they are still teaching, but they truly inspired me to become an educator.  From what I remember of them, they were patient, yet firm, and taught with a sense of humor.  They also allowed us to be curious and creative.  I like to think that those are qualities that I have maintained in my own teaching style. 
Teaching is constantly evolving.  Standards and policies change, students and classroom dynamics change, families change.  What works one year, may not work the next.  What works with one student, may not work with another.  While there are certain practices that work from year to year, please know that I am not afraid to try new methods or make adjustments to old ones so that I can best meet the needs of the children in my class.  Learning is not "one size fits all" and it sometimes takes a few tries to figure out the "right fit".  It is my hope that we will have open communication and work together to make this the very best year yet!   

Biblionasium, Etc...

Here is a new, exciting website that I have shared with the class: Biblionasium.  If you have ever used Good Reads for yourself, you will see that this is a similar, although kid friendly, site!  I've been able to show the kids some limited features in class, as they do need your permission and email to access other features.  Kids can rate and review books they've read, get recommendations from friends, and win virtual prizes for logged reading minutes.
This site is a Beta version, so we have discovered some glitches, such as able to log in one time, but unable another.  Despite that, however, the kids seemed REALLY motivated to use it, and ANYTHING (well...almost) that motivates kids to read and share what they've read is a good thing!  I plan on checking in and hopefully interacting on the site over the summer, so I'll be interested to see if students continue to use it.


Also, I will leave their blogs and  XtraMath up for them to use until I have to enter my next year's class.  Education City will also be available, along with any links from my website.  Great ways to avoid Summer Brain Drain!! :)

Art Docent

Today, Mrs. Webber came into class and taught an intro lesson on art. Students examined actual works of art to discuss line, shapes, color, and mood. They also did a couple of quick hands on activities. It was a fabulous experience and they'll all be ready to dive right in next year when they have monthly lessons! 

Poems, Finally!

Ugh!  So I like to use Flickr to make slideshows of photos and videos because it is quick and easy...usually!  For some reason my app was being really picky about the snips it would download and those it wouldn't...but we finally have a product!  Enjoy!

Some were nervous, and some were confident as can be, but all did a wonderful job! 

By request....

Save the Date!

Are you ever looking for fun, laid back events for your family?  Here's a recommendation! 

On Saturday, Emily and I attended another fun Catching Joy (http://catchingjoy.org/) event.  This event took place a lovely place on Berkeley Street in Boston called Tico (http://ticoboston.com/).  Parking was a breeze because it was an early event (10 a.m.), which is always a bonus! 
Emily's Daisy troop collected books for this event which benefits Reach Out and Read (http://www.reachoutandread.org/).  We delivered a bagful of gently used titles and created bookmarks to go with them while at Tico. 
After making the bookmarks, we enjoyed a DELICIOUS brunch (reasonably priced) and enjoyed the musical talent of Ben Rudnick and Friends (http://www.benrudnick.com/), a fun band that plays music geared toward children.  You may know of them if you have ever attended the Life Is Good Festival! The only cost was for brunch, which is optional.

There is a similar event coming up on June 3rd from 12-2.  The venue and format will be the same, though  on a Sunday (easy and FREE meter parking).  The June event will be to benefit Newton Wellesley Hospital.  They are asking guest to bring a new teddy bear donate to children at the hospital.  The craft (which I will be running) is decorating a paper teddy bear.  Crafters are welcome to donate their decorated bear or keep it as a reminder of their generosity! Here's a link with more info: http://www.benrudnick.com/familyworks/events.html#June3.

If you are not ready to go home after the event, it is also World Oceans Day which will be celebrated at the New England Aquarium.  Catching Joy will also be hosting a table there making turtle crafts!