Hello,
The big, bad tests are coming. Get to bed on time. Have a good breakfast. Be ready to fill in some circles with number two pencils. The tests will be in reading, then math, then writing. Our schedule for the next four days will be testing in the morning, special in the afternoon, and a small amount of class time. We'll try to tie up some loose ends during the end of the day class time.
Today we had fun with gas releasing chemical reactions. Every student had an antacid tablet, a film canister and some water. We watched the antacid react with the water as we put the cap on the canister and got away. The released CO2 (carbon dioxide) has no where to go and quickly blows the top off the container. One of the containers made it up on the roof!
We also did the Diet Coke and Mentos demonstration. That one is different in that it is not a chemical change. The CO2 is already in the soda. The mentos give the gas a place to gather. The large amounts want to quickly escape the bottle. I estimate that 80% of the soda left the bottle with the exiting gas. It reached a height of about nine to ten feet. The remaining soda is completely flat and tastes terrible (in my opinion). We had some great questions after this demonstration that would lead to many possible future tests. Feel free to try at home. Outside.
Students earned money for our classroom economy based on the home reading. One dollar was earned for every ten minutes read. The top earner was able to bank over 200 bucks. We'll go back to the weekly log now, but continue with the 10% bonus rate.
Thank you for getting your kids to bed tonight and getting some food into their stomachs tomorrow morning. I'll also allow them to chew gum during the test. I'll provide a few flavors, but if you have specific requests, you may want to provide your own.
This is my least favorite week of the year. Very little instructional time. For some reason, we find it okay to cancel math and literacy for a week, but we still go to the specials.
I wanted to visit a topic that I saw on Facebook last night. A parent commented on fourth grade having only one recess a day and just one library class every two weeks. I also wish we had library every week, but the schedule and budget only allow for fourth and fifth grade to go to library every other week. It has been that way since we opened HBS. Unfortunately, it seems to diminish the importance of that special in comparison to the others. I would love to see a return to once a week library.
As far as the recess time, I fully support the fourth grade team's decision to go to one recess a day. I wish the fifth grade team would take the same stance that the fourth grade team took. The fourth grade team has voluntarily taken on more recess duties, and sacrificed personal planning time for what they believe is best for their students. Their stance is not based on their belief that recess is not important, or that students don't need mental or fitness breaks. Their decision was based on the whittling away of instructional time. You may be surprised to hear that I currently have less than four hours of whole class instructional time per week. That's right: PER WEEK. (40 minutes a day.) Last year it was thirty minutes a week.
I think that I can make a strong case for why I think that our first recess is unnecessary. In fifth grade, we currently go to recess from 9:45 to 10:00am. Transition times are not written into that schedule. We never get back to the class in order to start anything new until the math time at 10:10. In reality, it is a twenty five minute break. (That doesn't even count their walk to math.) I lose over two hours of whole class instructional time due to a recess that happens less than forty minutes after our morning announcements. I don't believe that they need a twenty five minute break this early in the day.
All teachers understand the importance of physical and mental breaks. We can tell when kids get squirrely. I allow my kids to stand or walk around during my instruction, if they feel the need. I plan motor breaks into my lessons, as do most teachers. I'd love to gain an extra twenty five minutes a day of instructional time by eliminating our early recess. It would cut into my free time. I would have to go three plus hours to start each day without a chance to even use the rest room. Teachers often make decisions that are based on what is best for the kids, despite what may be the easiest for themselves, personally. I think the fourth grade team's decision on recess is a great example of that.
I welcome all comments, questions or suggestions. 841-2599 or sshea@brunswick.k12.me.us
Testing tomorrow!
Have a great night.
Mr. Shea
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