The week's theme for most grades is apples! I have a bowl of delicious examples on my desk, to stir up discussion with the students! The topic is a natural extension of last week's books on fall. We are using the readalouds to continue to explore the differences between fiction (literary) and nonfiction (informational) books. Healthy eating is a connection we're making, and many books explain the cycle by which apple trees produce fruit (seeds, growth, flowering, producing fruit, with seeds winding up scattered and sprouting). It's interesting, too, how many of the weeks readalouds move through the steps of a process, whether making applesauce, a pie, or a slingshot. As for the applesauce, I did not realize until I read Applesauce Season, by Eden Ross Lipson, just how easy it is to make applesauce. I don't have a grinder (like the characters in Applesauce Season do), but coring and peeling my apples beforehand works just fine for me.
Grade 5 is viewing a PowerPoint about internet accuracy, and we will talk about the differences between published print resources, online databases, and internet content. One reason I do this at this time of year is to call attention to All About Explorers, a website that looks very reliable but that is really a teaching tool full of misinformation. Please note, especially if you have a 5th-grade student, "All About Explorers" should not be used as a source! Through the generosity of our PTA Pennekamp does have access to an online database--World Book Online; and the County of Los Angeles Public Library also provides access to online databases--you just have to log in with your library card number.
Grade 3 is completing our introduction to the Dewey decimal system. As classes do year after year, they will get to hear the very entertaining "Dewey Rap." (Please be advised, though, that other YouTube content and comments attached to videos may be inappropriate for children.)
Grade 5 is viewing a PowerPoint about internet accuracy, and we will talk about the differences between published print resources, online databases, and internet content. One reason I do this at this time of year is to call attention to All About Explorers, a website that looks very reliable but that is really a teaching tool full of misinformation. Please note, especially if you have a 5th-grade student, "All About Explorers" should not be used as a source! Through the generosity of our PTA Pennekamp does have access to an online database--World Book Online; and the County of Los Angeles Public Library also provides access to online databases--you just have to log in with your library card number.
Grade 3 is completing our introduction to the Dewey decimal system. As classes do year after year, they will get to hear the very entertaining "Dewey Rap." (Please be advised, though, that other YouTube content and comments attached to videos may be inappropriate for children.)
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