Over and Above All Stars

This is a club set up for students who are interested in achieving "above and beyond" the normal classroom expectations. All you have to do is learn about the topics on your own. You can go to the library or do some research at home. You may earn a star by learning about a topic of your choice and then copying down the information in your "All Star" notebook—a notebook of your choosing. You will earn 1 point for each topic. You can become a 1 star member all the way up to a 100 star member. Once you show me your notebook with the information, you will receive a sticker for your notebook and one to put on our "All Star" chart in the classroom. Please record the activity number that you chose on the upper right hand corner of you paper and include the date on your paper as well. Notebooks will be checked on Fridays.

You will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at 25 stars.

25-49 stars: Bronze
50-75: Silver
76-100: Gold

Challenge yourself to learn something new today!!


Social Studies
1. Name 5 cities and 5 towns in New York.
2. Name 10 famous New Yorkers.
3. Research 5 popular tourist destinations in New York City.
4. Research 5 tourist destinations in the Hudson Valley.
5. Name the 7 continents and 5 oceans. Give 1 fact about each.
6. Name 10 states that border the Atlantic Ocean.
7. Name the states that border New York.
8. Name 10 rivers in the United States.
9. Name the 50 states.
10. Name 10 countries in the world.
11. Name the first 5 and most recent 5 presidents in order.
12. Write 5 facts about President Obama.
13. Write 5 facts about the DeWint House.
14. Write 5 sentences about any past U.S. president.
15. Write 5 sentences about Martin Luther King Jr.
16. Research New York's state bird, flower, tree, song and capital.
17. Write 5 facts about Native American tribes found in New York State.
18. Write 5 sentences about what makes a good citizen.
19. Look through a food circular. Create a shopping list of food that are needs and a list of food items that are wants. Which is longer? Why?
20. Create a family tree that includes at least 4 generations.
21. Use a map to find 2 different ways to get from your house to William O. Schaefer School.
22. Look at a map. Write the directions (including street names) to go from Schaefer to Tappan Zee Elementary School.
23. Find out about your family’s heritage. Write 5 facts about your family’s ethnic or cultural background.

Math
24. Write the Roman Numerals up to 25.
25. Draw lines of symmetry for all capital letters in the alphabet.
26. Write 20 addition problems with answers.
27. Write 20 subtraction problems with answers.
28. Write 10 fact families.
29. Count by 2's from 0-100 and record your numbers on paper.
30. Find 3 items to “purchase” in a grocery circular, spending no more than $5. What will you buy? How much will it cost? How much money will you have left over?
31. Draw 10 different shapes neatly and label them.
32. Make a ABBC pattern and a ABCBA using objects that you have in your house.
33. Write the months of the year in order.
34. Write 5 word problems with answers.
35. Complete the 100 facts (addition) test in 5 minutes. (In class)
36. Complete the 100 facts (subtraction) test in 5 minutes. (In class)
37. Find the total age of your family.
38. Name 10 places where you see numbers in your life.

Language Arts
39. Name 10 common and 10 proper nouns.
40. Name 15 verbs.
41. Name 15 adjectives.
42. Name 10 famous authors.
43. Give 10 facts about a famous children’s author.
44. List 10 contractions.
45. List 5 pairs of synonyms and 5 pairs of antonyms.
46. Name 10 compound words and draw a picture of each.
47. Write 5 sentences about your favorite animal.
48. Write 5 sentences about a trip you went on.
49. Write an acrostic poem using the letters in your name.
50. Write a book teaching a kindergarten aged student something.
51. Name 10 children’s book series.
52. Write every word on the Word Wall. (In class)
53. Write a letter to the Journal News or Our Town.
54. Create a game to practice reading or writing long vowels.
55. Read and record the titles of 5 books of differing genres.
56. Find a newspaper or magazine article. Highlight words that match the current spelling pattern (not just the 6 words on the list) and sight words.
57. Name 10 books written by Mem Fox.
58. Write 10 questions to interview someone in your family.

Science
59. Name 15 kinds of fish.
60. Name 15 marine creatures.
61. Name 15 types of birds.
62. Name 10 reptiles.
63. Name 10 dinosaurs.
64. Name 5 facts about magnets.
65. Name 10 organs in the human body.
66. Name 15 mammals.
67. Name the planets in order from the sun.
68. Draw and label a picture of the water cycle. Explain how it works.
69. Name and illustrate (drawings or photographs) 5 different types of clouds.
70. Name 10 omnivores.
71. Name 10 carnivores.
72. Name 10 herbivores.
73. Watch the moon for a week and draw what it looks like each night.
74. Write down the high and low temperature everyday for a week.
75. Write 5 facts about Russian tortoises.
76. Draw and label the life cycle of a butterfly.
77. Draw a tree in all 4 seasons.
78. Write 10 things that come from plants.
79. Name 5 books to teach kids about Earth Day.

Miscellaneous
80. Name the birthstones for each month.
81. Name 10 breeds of cats.
82. Name 10 breeds of dogs.
83. Name 15 summer or winter Olympic events.
84. Name 10 instruments in a marching band.
85. Name 10 football teams and their cities.
86. Name 10 baseball teams and their cities.
87. Name 10 basketball teams and their cities.
88. Name 10 hockey teams and their cities.
89. Name the town and high school that Ms. Eyer grew up in and attended.
90. Name 10 Universities or Colleges and where they are located.
91. Name 10 famous artists.
92. Name all of the current second grade classroom teachers at TZE
93. Name the 7 wonders of the world and where they are located.
94. Find 5 helpful websites that you think every first grade teacher should know about. Explain how or why they would be used.
95. Find 5 facts about William O. Schaefer School.
96. Find 5 people who share the same birthday as you and 5 events in history that took place on that day.
97. Suggest a new item to be added to the lunch menu that is healthy and affordable. Explain why it would be an appropriate choice.
98. Invent a new holiday. Give it a name, tell when it will be observed, and explain why it should be a holiday.
99. Name the principals and assistant principals of all of the South Orangetown schools.
100. Come up with your own activity (but make sure to get approval from Ms. Stern first)!

Happy researching!

This idea comes from Mrs. Renz. You may visit and check out her Mastery Club by clicking on the link:
http://www.mrsrenz.net/masteryclub.htm

Friday, January 29, 2010 (Thursday too!)

This week we voted on a new chapter book to read. The winner was Junie B. Jones: Shipwrecked. It was a really silly book! We compared Junie B. to Stanley from Flat Stanley. They are pretty different. We came up with lots of positive character traits that describe him: helpful, patient, serious, forgiving, and calm. We said that Junie B. is silly, hyper, immature, a chatterbox, impatient, inappropriate at times, impulsive, and someone with good intentions. Then we started reading Stanley and the Magic Lamp. In that book, Stanley isn’t flat anymore. This time, he found an old pot. When he rubbed it to shine it for his mom, a genie named Prince Haraz came out. So far, his wishes have granted him a “askit basket” to do homework for him, a liophant (part lion, part elephant), and his mother has become a celebrity. We can’t wait to find out what happens next!

Today we had R.I.F. That’s when we get to choose a book to keep from the PTA. Hunter chose a Scooby Doo book because he really likes that series. Chapter books and series were very popular choices. Some children picked books that we’ve been talking about in class. When we came back to the room, Ms. Stern gave us 5 minutes to read our new treasures.

Then, during Reader’s Workshop, Dylan A. marked a page with a post it to describe a character in his book. Sasha took Ms. Stern’s challenge today and compared a character from the book she read today (Mrs. Piggle Wiggle) with a character from a book that we read yesterday (I Know a Lady). Way to go Sasha!

After lunch we went to the library. Mrs. Cornelius taught us about fairy tales. We talked about what fairy tales are and where they come from. A fairy tale is a story that usually starts with “Once upon a time…” and ends with “They lived happily ever after.” Sarah said that they come from Pixieland. Dylan A. said that they are made up stories from someone’s head. Next, we watched a Red Riding Hood video and we read a different book called Pretty Salma. Then we filled out a Venn diagram comparing how they were alike and different. There were lots of parts that were the same.

Yesterday, in music, we played a pumpkin that was like a maraca. We also used a squash and an apple and an orange and a tomato and pear. We shook them to the beat of the rhyme 1, 2, Buckle my Shoe and Once I Saw a Little Bird. Today in P.E. we played Gator Ball and then Pin Guard. Coach Steingasser was out because she felt the baby moving so she went to doctor. She is going to have her baby any day! We are putting the finishing touches on a book that we made for her. It’s full of advice for her about how to take care of a baby.

At the end of the day, lots of people finished their number combinations paper from yesterday. Instead of writing today, we had a catch up period to complete things that have been in our unfinished work folders. People who had nothing left were allowed to do free writing.

Yesterday we read a book called I Know a Lady, by Charlotte Zolotow. It’s about a really nice old lady who treats a girl very kindly. She gives children flowers all year. During Christmas, she invites them in to see her tree and to treat them to cookies with red and green dots on them. She bakes them little cakes with yellow frosting on top for Easter. We thought about Charlotte’s inspiration for writing the story. We think that she knew someone like that lady when she was little. We had to think of people that we know in our neighborhoods that remind us of the lady in the book. After reading Knuffle Bunny, Roller Coaster, and I Know a Lady, we’re getting pretty good at figuring out the author’s inspiration. Next week, we’re going to get back to more writing while keeping our readers in mind!

We also read Silent Letters Loud and Clear by Robin Pulver since we're continuing to practice silent e spelling. The book is all about silent letters and the problems that kids in Mr. Wright's class have when the silent letters disappear. It's written by the same author as Punctuation Takes a Vacation. We noticed that some of the illustrations from the first book ended up on this one!

Don’t forget to send in PTA field trip donations!

Have a great weekend!

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

This morning was the Reflections Ceremony. The participants were called down to the library at 9:10. Hunter, Sarah, Eesha, and Emma went. Sarah’s mom took attendance when the participants arrived. The winners got called up and got gift certificates for the Scholastic book fairs. There were awards for first, second, and third places plus honorable mention. Everyone who participated got a certificate and a really cool pen with different colored crayon tips. Hunter thought it was awesome getting recognized. Emma felt really happy and excited.

While those kids were at the awards ceremony everyone else in the class was working on spelling. First, we played a sorting game. There were long and short o words. Ms. Stern timed us taking turns and working together. Our class beat last year’s time by almost a minute! Then we tried the same activity with one person sorting all the words. That way ended up being much faster because we didn’t have to take time figuring out who to pass the pointer to or coming up to the board. Dylan A. got the fastest time. He sorted all of the words in 38 seconds! After that, we went on a word hunt for “magic e” words spelled a_e, i_e, and o_e. Some of the kids worked with Ms. Stern on the rug if they had a hard time finding words on their own. Sasha thought the activity wasn’t too easy and wasn’t too hard. Stephen had a hard time finding i_e words. Amanda found lots of a_e words!

During Reader’s Workshop we reviewed how we can be prepared. Before reading, we preview the book by reading the title, take a picture walk, and make predictions. While we read, we mark pages when we use strategies, make connections that help us understand the story, look for funny, sad, surprising, or interesting parts, and we think about the main characters and words that describe their actions. After reading, when we are with our partners, we are responsible for retelling the events in the story by using words like: first, next, then, after that, and finally. Partners are sort of like teachers who check to make sure that readers understand what they read.

We continued working on number combinations. Some children chose to work on their “Mouse in the House problems. Other children began writing number stories. Both include two sentences giving information, one question, and a complete sentence that answers the question.
-Dylan M.’s story went like this: Nancy’s mom made 10 cupcakes. Nancy’s dad made 10 more. How many cupcakes does Nancy have now? Nancy has 20 cupcakes now.
-Adam wrote: My mom gave me 10 Bakugans. I got 5 more because I did good on my report card. How many do I have in all? I have 15 in all.
-Victoria made a story about chalk: My friend got me 3 pieces of chalk. She got me 3 more pieces of chalk. How many does Victoria have? Victoria has 6 pieces of chalk.

In Writer’s Workshop we read a book called Knuffle Bunny. We read, instead of wrote, because we are learning how to be better writers so that our audience (the readers) will be interested in our work and understand it and want to read more. By reading the book, we were able to figure out a little bit about Mo Willems, the author, and inferred what his inspiration might be. We think it’s possible that he has a family and experienced something similar to what Trixie and her family did. We also think that his neighborhood in Brooklyn might have inspired him. Finally, many of us related to how Trixie felt about Knuffle Bunny so maybe he chose a topic that lots of kids would be interested in. Writing for Readers is about writing with an audience in mind.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

This morning we saw an assembly about Chinese dancing in the gym. There were kindergarten and first grade classes in the audience. The dancers used lots of different props like a spear, fans, ribbons, and paddles. One of the dancers did a warrior dance with a large spear. He spun it above his head and around his body. Hunter thought it looked like he was going to hurt himself! Another dance was called the fan dance. When the three dancers got together and held their arms and fans up and spun around, it looked like a flower. The dancers taught us how to do some dances. We learned how to make a tiger mouth and also an orchid with our hands. Towards the end of the performance, the dancers chose children to participate. Lauria and Eesha were chosen! They learned how to use ribbons to make waves, waterfalls, and rainbows. At the end, they had to make waves real fast and spin around quickly. That made Lauria dizzy. Both children had lots of fun!

Today was the day for red book bag shoppers to shop. Many children continue to move to new baskets and discover interesting new books!

Speaking of books…we went to the library after lunch. Mrs. Cornelius taught us a new game on the computer that helped us get to know the letters on the keyboard. There are different doors to go through. Each level got harder and harder. Some kids were on the computer while other kids were exchanging their books.

In P.E. we were practicing the different parts of the obstacle course. We had to do the George Washington Bridge two times and then we could do whatever we wanted. On Thursday we will start doing the whole thing!

From the PTA:
The SOCES PTA RIF Committee is sponsoring the following motivational activity in conjuction with our end of January distribution:

Over the Rainbow Poster Contest
The classic children’s book The Wizard of Oz inspires us to think about our dreams. In honor of the 70th anniversary of the movie based on the classic book, we invite you to share your ideas of what might lie "Over the Rainbow." Is it a land of cotton candy clouds and streets paved with glitter? Is it a world of peace and kindness? Is it you in your dream career as a doctor or President of the United States? Create a poster illustrating your ideas.

The entry forms and guidelines can be found on the SOCES PTA Website. The deadline for entries is Tuesday, January 19th.

Monday, January 19, 2010

We wrote in our journals this morning. Everyone was supposed to start their writing with when, who, and where just like in our writing. Ms. Stern wrote about visiting her niece. The sentences gave the reader(s) a lot of information about her topic and ALL of the sentences began with uppercase letters and ended with punctuation marks.

We had a spelling pre-test. Some people figured out that the words have a long i just like last week’s words had long a. We predicted that we will have other long vowels in the coming weeks.

Ms. Stern read Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. As she read, we thought of words (like enthusiastic, creative, impatient, and remorseful) that described Lilly and marked the pages with post-its. After we finished the book, people gave evidence from the story that showed that the traits were true.

Today we talked about the earthquake in Haiti. A lot of people died, a lot of people got hurt, and a lot of people survived. We thought about ways that we might be able to help the people there so that they can be healthy and have better lives. We wrote an email to Mrs. Polansky and Dr. Mitchell to explain our ideas. We looked on Google Earth to see where Haiti is and what the country looks like. We got to see photos of some places in the country such as the presidential palace. Stephen recognized that picture from the news and learned that the building was damaged in the earthquake. Ms. Stern told us that an email was sent out to parents telling about a school bus that people in the schools are going to try to fill with needed supplies.

We continued our discussion about Martin Luther King Jr. and read two books about him. One was called Martin’s Big Words and the other was a biography called Let’s Read About…Martin Luther King, Jr. We looked at photos having to do with his life and then watched a short part of his “I Have a Dream” speech. Here is our thinking about the things that we learned about his message:
*It doesn’t matter the color of your skin. It matters what’s inside. –Adam
*We are free…it’s not like whites only signs are allowed anymore. –Victoria
*Even if there were places before, that we should try and help with words and not with fighting back. –Eesha
*He wanted to make the world a better place. –Stephen
*I never knew that he died by getting shot. His house had been bombed before that. –Sasha

Tomorrow we will be seeing a performance about Martin Luther King by Mrs. Yelin and Mrs. Luke’s classes.

In P.E., we did the obstacle course for the second and last time. There were lots of parts and activities. Some of them were: the climber, bouncing balls, the river, balance beam, hopscotch, and the “George Washington Bridge,” crawling, and a balance beam.

It was an important day filled with lots of grown-up discussions!

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

We are 4 marbles away from having our first Charlie Caps party! We’ve earned 46 already. Ms. Stern let us brainstorm what kind of party we want to have. There were lots of ideas. We voted using tally marks and decided to have a cozy day by wearing our pajamas and watching a movie with snacks like popcorn and hot chocolate. We can’t wait to earn those marbles!!!

Ms. Stern read us a book called Strega Nona. Strega Nona means grandma witch. She gets a helper named Big Anthony. She tells him not to touch her magic pasta pot. Once she went away, he thought it was his chance to use it. He tried saying her magic spell. It worked! Lots and lots of pasta came out of the pasta pot. Big Anthony tried to say the spell to make it stop. Unfortunately, he hadn’t seen Strega Nona blow 3 kisses after saying the spell so the pasta kept coming. The people in the town got very angry. Strega Nona came back just in time. Everyone wanted to punish Big Anthony by tying him up. Strega Nona thought the punishment should fit the crime so Big Anthony had to eat up all of the spaghetti by himself. After we read the story we thought of words that described the main characters. Some of the words that we came up with were: magical, smart, calm, and fair. Big Anthony was a poor listener, rude, impulsive, and disrespectful. When it was time to read in our book bags we paid close attention to the characters in our stories and wrote words to describe their actions on post its.

Ms. Stern had lunch with Eesha and Victoria today. They brought in their coupons and had a lovely time together. They took turns asking each other questions to get to know one another better. Charlie Caps would be SO proud!

In P.E. we used the parachute. We played popcorn. A lot of balls were put on top of the parachute. We held the parachute in our hands with our thumbs on the bottom. Coach would say, “up, up, up…down!” Everyone would slam the parachute down. Some of the balls would go flying and a few even touched the ceiling before coming back down. Amanda thought it was hard to do because the balls kept reaching the parachute and the goal was to get them off. At the end of P.E. we had to collect the balls by crawling on the floor. Everyone was supposed to collect the color ball that matched the color that they were holding on the parachute.

We are finishing up our pieces of writing to be published in Writer’s Workshop. Ms. Stern is working with children one at a time because she is our editor, just like the one that Alyssa Capucilli has. Everyone is working on finishing their stories and then checking to make sure that they have a beginning, middle, and end and also that the writing includes thinking, feelings, dialogue, best spelling, and capitalization and punctuation. That’s a lot of stuff!

Our New Year's Resolutions

My New Year’s resolution is to…
-Help my mom and dad was the dishes. –Meaghan
-Read more books. –Nancy
-Stop playing my video games and start playing outside more. –Hunter
-Try to stop sucking my thumb. –Lauria
-Stop playing Star Wars and play outside more. –Anthony D.
-Help my mom set the table. –Dylan M.
-Be more helpful to the kids in my class. –Sasha
-Help my mom get ready for dinner. –Dylan
-Exercise more and play the Wii less. –Stephen
-Help teach my brother to tie his shoes. –Adam
-Go outside more and stop playing my Wii. –Drew
-Help my mom wash the dishes after school. –Amanda
-Do more kind things for others. –Emma
-Help my mom get dinner ready every night. –Victoria
-Help my mom with my little sister. –Eesha
-Play with my mom more than playing outside. -Sarah

What are YOUR New Year's resolutions?