MS. KYLIE'S FOURTH GRADE!
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HAVE YOU TAKEN THE NO STRAW PLEDGE YET? (AND MANY OTHER THINGS)

3/23/2018

 
What do you know about plastic straws?  They're fun to drink out of for about ten seconds, but after that where do they go?  Turns out they're kind of a nightmare.  Plastic straws are too small for recycling machines and end up in landfills for hundreds of years before biodegrading or cause big problems for land and marine wildlife.  Miss Amy's 2nd grade class wants to do something about this!  Will you join us? 
Check it out: Bans on Plastic Straws in Restaurants Expand to more Cities.  Will Aspen be next?

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Our scientist of the week, Mr. Andrew, showed us that not only humans can dance, but raisins too! Turns out if you mix water, baking soda, and vinegar a chemical reaction occurs that creates carbon dioxide.  If you put some raisins into the mixture they are dense and sink. But the gas created starts to form bubbles around the fruits wrinkly skin and brings it floating back to the top.  Then the bubbles pop when they hit the air and the fruit sinks again. This happens over and over making the raisins look like they're dancing.  You can try this at home with baking soda and vinegar or soda water.  Check out the video on the left for directions.  So cool!

Hippo Roaming Loose for Months in Southern Mexico
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Our reporter of the week, Miss Baylie, shared a fascinating article about a 1,320 pound hippo on the loose in swampy southern Mexico.  Here's the weird thing, hippos are not native to Mexico and no one knows where it came from.  Hippos are one of the most dangerous animals on the planet as they tend to be aggressive and are massive.  Environmental agencies are working to capture the hippo safely and relocate it, but have not had much luck yet.  Locals beware!  Will we ever see a loose hippo at AES?
Breaking News: Free-roaming Hippo Transported to Zoo in Southern Mexico

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Our secret reader, Mr. Seth, read us a Dr. Seuss book we'd never heard before--I Wish I Had Duck Feet.  It was a hilarious book with a wonderful message.  After dreaming about many different useful adaptations (like duck feet or deer horns or a very long tail) this little boy realizes that the most useful (and practical) thing to be is himself!  We talk about that all the time in first grade.  Even if someone is a better reader or dancer than you, everyone has such unique qualities to share.  Sometimes we have to practice gratitude for just being ourselves.  Thanks Seth and Silas!
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Have a safe, wonderful, restful, energizing break!  Can't wait to see everyone on April 3rd.

WATER SKIING WITH A SIDE OF THUNDER CLOUDS

3/22/2018

 
We talked about the onomatopoeia this week and these are all the ones we could think of as we were dreaming about our afternoon of cross country skiing: 
swoosh, dash, whoosh, vroom, whirr, zip, zoom
We did all of those things, but in reality there was also a lot of:
crash, boom, bang, skid, thud, plop
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We had a fabulous time, but unfortunately it looks like the cross country skiing season is over for this winter season.  Thank you for all of the help, setting up, putting away, picking up, and encouraging words along the way.  We all can't wait to go again in second grade.  Yikes!
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LEARNING WITH A MESS

3/21/2018

 
Today we made kites...and a big mess! It was great! We worked with our hands, used our designs, fixed things that didn't work, made improvements, took them outside for a test run, and figured out how we would make changes for next time...and then cleaned up!
First grade is just the best!
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Check it out!  Kites on the lose!
Here are some of the things we learned, in our own words.
Making a kite isn't just string and paper.  It takes a lot of work...like making an airplane.
Fabric is heavy.
Paper light.
Maybe smaller is better.
​You don't always get it right the first time.
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THE WILD ROBOT ESCAPES

3/20/2018

 
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The Wild Robot has a sequel.  And we're SO excited.  We've missed our robot friend Roz and we can't wait to see if she makes it back to the island to be with her adopted son Brightbill.  Right now she's working on a farm leading a double life.  When her owners are looking she's a good farmer.  But, when they're not around she can be found chatting with the cows and playing in the fields.  Will she be able to plot her escape?  How will she find her way back?  Peter Brown has done it again and we just can't get enough.
In case you weren't sure...this is how we feel about The Wild Robot.

LOUD AND PROUD

3/19/2018

 
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Today we started opinion writing.  We began with a great book, I Wanna Iguana.  This book is written in letter form between a boy, Alex, and his mother.  By the end Alex has given so many convincing reasons that his mother agrees to a pet Iguana.  Pretty awesome!  Today we took some time to convince Miss Kylie of some things we are passionate about.
For example...we should do more art in class because we need to boost our creativity and practice making mistakes.  We should have more free choice because it's good to work with our friends.  We should have another ski day because outside time is healthy and exercise is good.  We should have a class pet because it will teach us responsibility and taking turns.   ​Are some of these things starting to sound like good ideas to you too?  We're a pretty convincing bunch.

KEEPING UP OUR CLASSROOM COMMUNITY

3/14/2018

 
This time of year is always a little hectic and it's important to remember what we want our classroom community to feel like.  We've been taking some time to compliment and honor our friends great qualities, and we've been reviewing how to deal with tricky social situations.  These are all a big deal in first grade life.  We've also been reviewing our classroom routines and procedures.  One thing we decided at the beginning of the year was to respect our shared space.  That means keeping it clean and organized.  Today we did some spring cleaning and straightened up the areas we collectively use the most:



​MATH



​ART



​BOOKS

It feels good to take responsibility for our things and put them back where we know we can find them for next time.

ADJECTIVE WEBS

3/13/2018

 
After finishing Charlotte's Web yesterday we decided to do some work with adjectives.  First we did an friend adjective walk.  We thought of the best adjective to describe each of our classmates and left them sticky note messages.  We came up with very descriptive words.
Then we picked out our favorite for ourselves--the one that best reflects our personality. 
​We took inspiration from the clever Charlotte and made our own webs.
Check out the finished products!

BOOK REVIEW

3/9/2018

 
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Today we finished up Charlotte's Web and we gave it an average score of 8/10.  The general consensus was that it was a fabulous book, but nothing compares to The Wild Robot this year.  This book taught us all about the value of friendship..  Nothing beats a good friend who can see our best qualities and forgive our imperfections.  Charlotte saw that Wilbur was terrific, radiant, and humble.  If you had to describe yourself in three adjectives, what would they be?  How would you describe a friend?  We're on the hunt for a new book starting next week.  Let us know if you have any really good suggestions.

TRANSITING EXOPLANET SURVEY SATELLITE

3/8/2018

 
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Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite:
​TESS
Our reporter of the week, Ms. Jadyn, shared some fascinating information about the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite.  NASA has created a satellite scheduled to launch June 2018 that is going to spend two years searching around 500,000 stars hoping to find some orbiting planets.  An exoplanet is a planet located outside of our solar system.  Scientists are curious if there are other life forms or habitable planets outside of our little bubble circling one of the many other heat sources out there in the universe.  Maybe one of us will go to space one day and check it out!  Thanks Jadyn. 

I LOVE YOU

3/7/2018

 
We've been finding little love notes on our white board.  They're always a little silly and they always take us a few minutes to figure out.  It's a mystery who they come from, but we hope they keep coming because they make us smile and remind us to show each other some love.
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