Kiker's Strength-Based Learning Cohort

In science, we've taken on the role of hydrologists, studying the different components of the water cycle, how they're connected, and why they matter. We created a list of "Water Wonderings" and have conducted some investigations and demonstrations to better understand this amazing process. Fourth graders continued our water theme with a field trip to Slaughter Creek. It was an incredibly informative day with fantastic weather--your fourth grade hydrologists will have lots to share! Here we are searching for macroinvertebrates to help us determine the water quality.   We discovered the important role native plants play in our watershed and completed a mini-service project by making and distributing native seed balls.   We learned about our own watershed with an interactive model. Ask your scientists for some ways to keep our watershed (and drinking water) clean!   Happy Weekend! Team SBLC Our focus this week has been awaren...

This week was fun-filled! We began our week with Kiker's Annual Math Day! We enjoyed rotating through each of the classrooms where we learned measurements surrounding a world's record box of chocolates, created ziplines, made measurement tools, and solved investigations in a mathematical way! On Tuesday, we celebrated Valentine's Day. Thanks so much for all the donations and help you gave to make the party a success! We enjoyed our breakfast treats and mailed our carefully crafted cards to our friends. Second grade is using biography to create an outline for a written expository piece. Third has been hard at work creating annotations in poetry. Fourth has been working with fully fleshing out expository pieces. All grades have been mastering the art of analyzing sentences. Our meteorologists wrapped up their weather unit this week with some additional practice measuring and recording weather, using weather maps to predict weather with the movement of warm and co...

We used perseverance as our central theme for this week's work. We learned about ways we can show persistence, learn from failure, and set goals to stay focused. We talked about challenges we've faced and are facing, and how we can choose to keep going! In reading, we learned a new tool Mrs. Forrest created to help us analyze sentences. By breaking it apart, we can identify all the specific pieces and see how they come together in the model sentence. We have the opportunity to tell why each part is there (including that apostrophe, comma, etc.) and then replicate the sentence with one of our own. It provides great reinforcement of grammar and mechanics rules as well as a chance to see good writing and practice it ourselves. In reading, we continue to work on summarizing, annotating, and providing evidence with text in our thinking. Fourth is reading Ugly by Robert Hoge, Third is reading Words with Wings by Nikki Grimes, and Second is learning about ordinary people who have do...

This week, we have used our new learning habit format to focus on self-management. Three specific areas -= listening, following directions, and impulse control -- were topics of reflection and goal setting, both at home and at school. We hope you have enjoyed the sharing addition to our nightly Learning Habits. We know it helps solidify their learning when they discuss it with others! Thanksfor being a receptive audience! Here we are in Project Block identifying some impulse control (or missed opportunities!) with the characters in Mr. Noisy .    In reading, we completed some individual reading conferences with Mrs. Forrest, finding growth in our Words per Minute, Accuracy, and Comprehension. We celebrated together and set some goals for our future rates. These will be reported on our Spring Conference Form, soon to come. Fourth Grade had some exciting news: Ruta Septys personally responded to Mrs. Forrest's email and asked if she could see our work! We hope to hear fro...