Mrs. Campagna's Class

A mind is like a parachute, it only works when open. -Frank Zappa

Using Google Classroom

Today our class learned how to use Google Classroom !  We had a great time learning how to log in, answering a Science question and learning how to create an assignment in Google Docs straight from our Google Classroom site.

Our first assignment was to write a fantasy story based on the book Scarecrow Pete by Mark Moulton.

peteIn Scarecrow Pete, the two main characters become friends and the author does a beautiful job  of describing the setting, problem and solution.  I wonder if my students remember why Mrs. Campagna loves this book so much ?  Comment below if you think you know!  It has something to do with the lesson the boy character learns 🙂

We practiced our typing and our fantasy writing skills as each student worked diligently to write their stories.  Soon we will learn how to submit or turn in our assignments!

If you have read this story and remember the lesson, don’t forget to comment below !

If you are working on your first assignment here is reminder of how to log in:

1. Go to Google Chrome

2. Log in with your school email

3. Visit the site   classroom.google.com

4. Click on Mrs. Campagna’s Class!

Have fun!

 

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Quadblogging Week, St. Patrick’s Day Linking Words

Hello Friends!

This week we have a series of different activities we’d like to share with you!

Linking Words

Last week, we started learning about linking words that we can use in our persuasive writing. Linking words are words or phrases that we use to connect our big ideas .  We ALWAYS use a comma after a linking word or phrase and they always come at the beginning of a sentence.  For a fun craft today, we brainstormed some of the more challenging linking words like “Furthermore”, “In addition”, and “For example”.  I wonder if some of our students or some of our Quadblogging buddies can think of other linking words or phrases? List them below in the comments!

So we  brainstormed a collection of linking words and wrote each one separately on to different colored strips of paper.  We made a black pot and lots of gold to stick out the top, connected our linking word links and voila!  A rainbow of linking words cascading into our pots!  Here are some pictures of the kids in action. I will post photos of the finished products hanging from our ceiling tomorrow.

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Click on the links below to see some rough draft examples of students who have typed up a piece of persuasive writing for you.  Do you feel persuaded?  Please visit their sites and comment below. We’d love to get some good, constructive feedback. We use STARS (things we think someone did really well!) and WISHES (things we think the student could improve on) when we critique each other’s work.  Your feedback is valuable!

mackenzieb2014.edublogs.org

nataliej2014.edublogs.org

rafyl2014.edublogs.org

 

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Student Blogging Challenge: Storybird

Storybird.com is a wonderful site that is dedicated to student writing and the reading of other people’s creative work! It allows students to choose beautiful illustrations and then create a picture book or chapter book that is inspired by those images.  This encourages students to write freely and openly, to use their creative minds without feeling judges or having too many rules. Students know that they can create these stories, change them, personalize them and when they are ready, they can share them with the world!! Your challenge is to write a story and then publish it on your blog.

 In the last two weeks, every student has created a Storybird.com account. I have linked all of your accounts to our class account and to each other.  Now it will be possible for the stories that you finish to be shared with other students!  What I would like each student to do is to challenge themselves to write a Storybird story.  You can choose either a picture book or chapter book format.  This is step one of your challenge! 

After you have written the story and saved it (so important!), follow these steps.

1. Click on the MENU button in the bottom left hand corner.

2. Click on PUBLISH.

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3. Add categories and tags.  Scroll to the bottom and click PUBLISH.

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4. Scroll down and you will see a small heart on the right hand side. Next to it is an odd looking sideways V.  Click this to get your embedding code (just like our virtual pets!).

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5. Highlight and copy the EMBED CODE.

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6. Go to your blog, create a new post titled STUDENT BLOGGING CHALLENGE 2 .  Then click on ADD MEDIA.  Click on INSERT EMBED CODE and paste the code!  Ta-da! You have now shared your story with the world!!  Have fun students, I can’t wait to see all of your stories. 

 

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free glitter text and family website at FamilyLobby.com

Today we started learning about conjunctions! Conjunctions are words that join phrases, words and sentences to create more complex sentences. These small words will help us to develop our writing. Some examples of conjunctions are :

Can you think of any other conjunctions? Can you use any of these conjunctions in a sentence (in the comments below)?

Watch the video for more conjunction fun!

http://youtu.be/RPoBE-E8VOc

After

Although

As

As If

As Long As

Because

Before

Even If

Even Though

If

Once

Provided

Since

So That

That

Though

Till

Unless

Until

What

When

Whenever

Wherever

Whether

While

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Cursive Symmetry Skeletons

Today we practiced writing our names in cursive while also learning about symmetry! View the video below to see each students’ work! Can you see the cursive writing? Can you tell which skeleton belongs to which student?

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Decorating our Writing Journals

I had planned on writing a post about decorating our writing journals and am just now getting around to it! The students had an opportunity to decorate their writing journals after we had read “A House for Hermit Crab”. In the book, Hermit Crab moves around collecting pretty and special things to decorate his house with. Throughout the book he grows, but those things he collected are still special to him. At the end of the book, he outgrows his shell and has to move on and create a new one.

The students easily saw the connection between Hermit Crab’s shell and our writing journals. Throughout this year they will grow and grow and change. Their writing is a home for their writing as they grow, just as Hermit Crab’s shell is a home for him. The things that the students put on their writing journals are special to them, just as the things Hermit Crab collects are special to him. At the end of the year , the students will have grown leaps and bounds as writers and will eventually outgrow our classroom and be ready to move on (sob!). Take a look at the photos below to see the students at work!

p.s. If you click on the picture you can see it larger, in a new page.

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