Envisioning Goals

 I've used these glasses before for "Visions of Summer Break".  They came in handy again with goal setting for the New Year.   Students thought about what they would like see themselves accomplish at home and at school in 2018. 


What the Teacher Learned:  If you can see it, you can be it!

California Missions Project



 I love my team at school.  We work well together and in doing so are able to trust each other.  Because of that, I got to teach Social Studies to all of our 4th graders this year. 


One thing the kids really enjoyed doing was "directed draws".  Here the students got to research a mission and then do their own directed draw from Patty Fernandez.


Students used...gasp!...books to research their mission.  When they completed their research they got a chance to draw it too! 


What The Teacher Learned:  Art!

How Does Our Garden Grow?

How does our garden grow?  With help from our community of course.  My hubby made and delivered this wonderful raised bed, but getting donations of potting soil and plants was a bit tricky. 


Luckily, a family at our school took the initiative to ask around in our community.  That's when a local nursery came to the rescue donating plants for our pizza garden.  Now we have tomatoes, oregano, basil, peppers, and onions all ready to grow!

What the Teacher Learned:  Ask!  You never know.  They might just say yes. 


Bonus Learning:  It's always a good idea to say thank you.  I took a few photos of the garden and the kids and brought this over to the nursery with some letters from the students.  The owner was so delighted that he generously offered to provide more soil and plants should the need ever arise! 


Update:  Our garden did very well this year.  The students were able to keep a journal of the garden's progress.  And most exciting of all is that we were able to harvest our produce to make a pizza sauce that I served on pita bread at our recent Open House. 

The pizza sauce is all warm and ready to serve on slivers of pita bread along with a topping of mozzarella.  This was a real crowd pleaser at our Open House. 

Take a Field Trip without Leaving School

 Earlier this year we had a wonderful experience with Inside the Outdoors and their Traveling Scientist program.  We selected the "Amazing Animals" presentation.  The wonderful team from the Orange County Department of Education came in and set up stations with realia from each of the different animal kingdoms.  The students had a chance to explore each station and then the real fun began.  Our wonderful presenter brought out live animals to represent each kingdom.  The kids had a blast and learned a lot.  Best of all...no bus! 


What the Teacher Learned:  Field trips are fun, but when you're short on fund and time, the Traveling Scientist is a great alternative!