Irving 3/18-3/22

On Monday 4th and 5th Graders continued to work through their planned 20% Project steps.

Gianna completed her game board, wrote all of her questions and answer key, had her cards laminated and cut, and moved on to game pieces today. Mr. Thompson recently ordered a set of 3-D printing pens for students at Irving to use. We decided this would be perfect for game pieces. You load the desired color of filament then build up layers. Gianna got the hang of it quickly and created 5 pieces that players will move along the board to play.

Henry continues to try to find the perfect crystal making process. This week his solution had developed crystals but they were not large enough to use as seed crystals. He returned them to the copper sulfate solution and will check to see if they have continued to grow next week. We also ordered a kit to test that process.

Joey is creating a series of Kahoot quiz games to help students practice their math skills. This week he used the Common Core State Standards to help him develop challenging and applicable questions. When his Kahoot series is complete he will offer students the chance to volunteer to participate.

Irving's 3rd Grade math groups launched their new Geometry and Art project today with a living gallery walk. Students checked out posters displaying art and information from a variety of artists that use geometry in their creations. When using the app HP Reveal, students can scan the picture and a linked video pulls up on their iPad (see video below for example of how it works). As they took part in the gallery walk they wrote down what they noticed and wondered about the different artists and pieces. We came together to discuss our observations afterwards. Students will be choosing an artist to study, creating a biographical piece (essay, poster, iMovie, KeyNote) about that artist, then lastly create a piece of art inspired by that person. Next week we will create our Need to Know Questions list, explore artists, and create a piece of art ourselves.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/693f34_2f3a2593a21d4011af6fa41cf9c4da80/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

On Wednesday, Seraphina and Jason, practiced their presentation and received feedback from myself and a peer. They realized quickly that collaborating to co-present has more challenges than expected. They worked together to decide who would describe certain aspects of the presentation. They practiced speaking clearly and looking at the audience. Next week they will present to their classes. After that we're starting a book study where we'll explore the novel, The Mixed up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsberg. This Newberry award winning book is about a brother and sister who run away and live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. They become entangled in a mystery about a statue possibly created by Michelangelo. We will be taking a virtual fieldtrip to the Met and delve into the art and history that is referenced throughout the book. I am looking forward to getting started on this next week!

Aidan is running a Kahoot club for his 20% Project. He designed the quizzes, created the poster, and announced the club to the whole school. This week he reviewed his club expectations and treated students to a Kahoot addressing decimal multiplication and division as well as fraction operations. Students are enjoying a little friendly competition to practice their math skills.

It was a great week of learning at Irving. Way to go Eagles!