Novel Theme Song

•Think about the mood and purpose of the theme songs of your favorite movie or TV show
•Your job is to create a theme song for the novel you are reading or have just read
•You may want to think of a familiar melody write your own words or create your own sounds too
•After you have composed your Novel Theme Song, you will need to write a paragraph explaining the relationship between the song and the novel
•When this project is due, you will perform your song for the group and we will record it!
*If you would like, you may also create an interpretive dance to go along with the theme song you created

4th grade: Esperanza Rising
3rd grade: In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson

Bridge to Terabithia

Although we are not technically doing a novel study on this book, my 3rd graders decided to both read it. So, L and L I am creating a place for you to ask questions, summarize, and share your wonderful ideas. You girls do a very good job of THINKING while you are READING and I would like for you to share some of those thoughts! :)

http://www.terabithia.com/
Here is the official site of the author of this book (Katherine Paterson). It includes an autobiography, answers to frequently asked questions about her life and writing, and summaries of her works.

Let me know if you want to do some more activities or things with this book. I am glad that as soon as you finished reading the last book, you immediately wanted to get started on a new one (and came to ask me which one I would recommend . . . well I actually think you just wanted to look in my big box of books not in the class library!)

Exploring Properties of Rectangles

Manipulate the dynamic rectangle and parallelogram on the site below by dragging the corners (vertices) and sides (edges). You can rotate or stretch the shapes, but they will retain particular features.

http://standards.nctm.org/document/eexamples/chap5/5.3/index.htm#applet

Questions to think about :

• What is alike about all the figures produced by the dynamic parallelogram?
• What common characteristics do parallelograms and rectangles share? H
• ow do rectangles differ from other parallelograms?

• Predict whether the dynamic rectangle can make each figure below, then check your prediction by trying to duplicate the shape using the dynamic rectangle.
• Predict whether the dynamic parallelogram can make each figure below, then check your prediction by trying to duplicate the shape using the dynamic parallelogram.

PowerPoint Creators

My AIG girls have gone wild over PowerPoint recently. The 3rd grade girls are creating a Math Vocabulary presentation that they will continue to add to as new information is discovered. The 4th grade girls have started creating one as a Reader Response Activity to the novel they are reading. They have discovered how to change backgrounds, add text boxes, add pictures, and add new slides. They are having fun changing fonts and pictures (too much I am afraid). We may even add some sounds and slide transitions. Lydia is even adding some animation to her creation.:) After they work on their projects a few more days, I will post them using voicethread so we all can see what they are working on.