Spring is in the Air, and FCAT is Long Gone!

You can't help but walk around with a silly look on your face due to the beautiful weather outside. Of course unless you are allergic to pollen! Well, I sure hope you are enjoying these glorious days. Remember that spring is short lived in Tallahassee, and that it is important to savor these times. You know what else is short lived? FCAT! Thank goodness, because it is enough to drive one bonkers! Our five days of testing is now behind us. We can continue on and enjoy the learning process, and hope that it didn't suck us dry. My students did a great job and I thank you parents for getting them to bed early, filling their tummies with breakfast, and encouraging them to do their very best. I hope that this spring we will all remember that life is beautiful and full of new things, and be thankful that the stressful times are "short lived."

Happy Pi Day!

On Friday we celebrated (a day early), Pi Day! The saying goes, "it's as easy as a piece of pie." By the end of our Pi activities we agreed; find the relationgship between a circle's circumference and diameter is quite easy! It didn't hurt that we had some yummy baked goods to help our mathematical skills!

Caution: Work Zone!

Watch out, we are working hard right now as we enter our FCAT testing days. There is a lot of manual brain power going on. We strapped on our tool belts last week and filled the pockets with our "tools." Some tools included positive thinking, great multiplication skills, critical thinking, and much more! Good luck this week and next!

A Refresher Course

Today my students worked in groups to "teach" a quick math review to their classmates. I say "teach" loosely, because I am not sure who was learning the new teachers or their students. All in all they did a good job. It was a great opportunity for them to get up out of their seats during this pre-FCAT week, to work with classmates, and to have to articulate a concept that they already have been taught. One group was given the task of reviewing customary weight measurement. They brought in small containers of snack foods and asked their classmates to guess the weight. What a yummy way to review measurement and conversions! Way to go teachers!

Science on the Move!

Fifth graders got to sink or swim today with a presentation from Jonathan Grooms with FSU. The lesson revolved around buoyancy and density. After making boats out of clay, they were able to put their knowledge to the test. Did you sink or swim?

A Trip Back to the 1880's

Today we ventured back in time with a trip to Georgia's Agrirama. It was a brisk day, but the sun was on our side! My students did a great job and seemed to really enjoy themselves. Whether they were working on the farm, cooking Irish stew and cornbread, grinding corn at the gristmill, or sawing lumber, they did it with a smile. I imagine that most of them will be heading to bed a little early tonight (and so will their teacher), but they learned to appreciate the similicity of life over 100 years ago. It wasn't an easy time to live, but it was rewarding. Our trip to Agrirama brought our social studies lessons to life as we are currently studying about the Civil War and into the Reconstruction era of our nation's history. Sleep tight and I will see you in the morning!

Honoring Heritage

On Friday we enjoyed a beautiful afternoon outside as we listened to the beats of African drums for a Black History Month assembly. February is such a rushed time of year with the holidays behind us, but those test just ahead of us, it was nice to take a break and enjoy a Florida February afternoon!