Classroom Community

Home Learning for January 6-10 (Week 17)

lrupp Classroom Community, Homework, Learner Profile, TASOK 0 Comment
  1. Read for at least 30 minutes each night.
    • Check out the new reading choice board for scholarly, agentic readers.
    • Reflect on your reading:
      • on Seesaw.
      • by completing the online reading log OR one on paper (Copies are available in class).
      • by having a thoughtful conversation with another reader.
  2. Option: Use the Pobble 365 prompt to inspire your writing.
        • Use lined paper from your binder OR the Google Doc in your Google Classroom.
  3. Reflect back on your break, and complete the “Reflection: Learner Profile & Approaches to Learning” form.
  4. Explore the recommendations on IXL.com. These connect directly to what we have been learning in class.

**A Scholar has a goal: Heading into a new year is a great time to reflect on what has been accomplished and think ahead to new goals toward which to strive. Since August, the scholars of fourth grade have:

    • answered 11,471 IXL questions.
    • spent 94 hours 21 minutes on IXL.
    • made progress in 249 IXL skills.
  • What is our vision for IXL in 2020?

Announcements

  1. Library is scheduled weekly on Thursdays.
  2. P.E. is scheduled weekly on Wednesdays and Fridays.
    1. Come dressed to exercise – sneakers, hat, sunscreen.
    2. Bring a water bottle
  3. Check your lunch card balance weekly.
  4. NO ASAs this week.

Coming Soon

Below is a list of upcoming events of which to be aware.

  • January 6 – Classes Resume
  • January 13 – ASAs Resume
  • January 16-17 – Heroes Day (NO SCHOOL)
  • February 17-21 – I Love to Read and Write Week
  • February 28 – Trimester 2 ASAs End

Condor Sports

  • February 6-8 – SAISA Basketball Tournament
  • February 21 – Swim Meet

We’re on Twitter!

Follow TASOK @TASOKinshasa

Follow TASOK PYP @TASOKPYP

Follow Fourth Grade @Scholarsare

Hashtag #TASOK

 

Learner Profile Trait of the Month – PRINCIPLED


**Check back later in the week for additional homework related to in-class discussions and activities.

 

Home Learning for December 9-13 (Week 16)

lrupp Classroom Community, Homework, Learner Profile, TASOK 0 Comment
  1. Read for at least 30 minutes each night. Complete the online reading log OR one on paper. (Copies are available in class).
    • Alert: Something NEW coming in January. Check back for the big reading reveal.
  2. Reflect back on Week 15, and complete the “Reflection: Learner Profile & Approaches to Learning” form.
  3. Explore the recommendations on IXL.com. These connect directly to what we have been learning in class.
  • **A Scholar has a goal: This week, we answered over 390 questions and almost 3  hours = 3.0 hours = 180 minutes  on IXL. 

Announcements

  1. Library is scheduled weekly on Thursdays.
  2. P.E. is scheduled weekly on Wednesdays and Fridays.
    1. Come dressed to exercise – sneakers, hat, sunscreen.
    2. Bring a water bottle
  3. Check your lunch card balance weekly.

Coming Soon

Below is a list of upcoming events of which to be aware.

  • December 9
    • SS Design Class: Scratch Games – 8:50 a.m.
    • SS Design Class: Pinewood Derby – 2:45 p.m.
  • December 13
    • Assembly
    • Early Dismissal – 11:30 a.m.
      • Notes:
        • Lunch will NOT be served on Friday
        • There will be NO ASAs on Friday
    • Report Cards
      • Available to parents through ManageBac
  • December 16 – January 3 – Winter Break (No School)
  • January 6 – Classes Resume

Condor Sports

  • December 10 – SS boys basketball vs. Loupiots
  • December 12 – SS girls basketball vs. Loupiots

 

We’re on Twitter!

Follow TASOK @TASOKinshasa

Follow TASOK PYP @TASOKPYP

Follow Fourth Grade @Scholarsare

Hashtag #TASOK

 

Learner Profile Trait of the Month – COMMUNICATOR

**Check back later in the week for additional homework related to in-class discussions and activities.

 

Transforming Fact into Fiction

lrupp Classroom Community, Literacy, Science, Social Studies, TASOK, Where We Are in Place and Time 0 Comment

After focusing extensively on reading yesterday, today we focused on writing. One of the articles featured in yesterday’s reading task was from Teaching Kids News. The article by Nancy Miller entitled “Japan’s 2011 Tsunami Sends Balls 8,000 Kilometers to Alaska” explained how a soccer ball and volleyball that were swept out to sea ended up being reunited with their owners. Today’s challenge required students to step into the skin of either the soccer ball or volleyball and to write a fictional story about the journey experienced from its perspective. Using facts from the article, learning from their inquiry into movement, and understanding about strong story development, students began crafting creative tales. Prior to writing, students identified the following criteria for a scholarly story:

  • realistic details
  • voice
  • dialogue
  • word choice
  • sentence structure
  • punctuation
  • figurative language (onomatopoeia, simile, metaphor, alliteration)

This prompt prompted a plethora of plot possibilities including:

  • meetings with sea creatures (ea urchin, beluga, krill, barnacles, birds / seagull).
    • sharks (bite, poke, nudge, slap, swallow).
  • deflation and sinking.
  • encounters with boats (ship, yacht, ferry, aircraft carrier, submarine, propeller).
  • being nabbed in a fisherman’s net.

Prior to beginning, students also considered the following options to hook their readers:

  • quote
  • dialogue
  • sound
  • action
  • question
  • description
  • small moment

After students got started, we paused to share some of our stories’ starts.

Multiple Sources

In an effort to dig more deeply into the idea of struggle and survival, we shared a read aloud of the book The Caged Birds of Phnom Penh by Frederick Lipp. Prior to reading, we paused to make predictions about the text, based on the title and Ronald Himler’s illustrations. To guide our predictions and our ponderings, we used a summary-style mneumonic device – SWBST-F (Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then, Finally). This graphic organizer will be used again on Wednesday when we revisit the text. Then, as we read, we paused after each page to peruse the pictures, ponder the plot, find figurative phrases, and consider connections to our compass point conversation.


Our discussions were deep and diverse, often diverting to delve into interesting individual incidences (here in Kinshasa, in our home countries, and from our travels around the world) that have influenced our ideas and impacted our lives. How will all these things intersect as we conduct our inquiry?

We also began to explore metric prefixes today. How could we incorporate these into our stories?

Of course, being a rainy day, we also had some fun with dominoes. It is interesting to see how problem solving, movement, and struggle and survival collide with these creations.

Reading. Rainfall. Sharing. Soccer.

lrupp Birthday, Classroom Community, Literacy, Math, TASOK 0 Comment

Today started with some rigorous reading. Scholars sought to:

  • apply a variety of skills and strategies when reading and analyzing fiction and nonfiction texts.
  • communicate understanding of context-related texts through thoughtful and carefully-crafted written responses.

All texts were connected with our inquiry into movement, with a specific focus on tsunamis. A poem, a Newsela article, and an excerpt from The Big Wave enabled students to connect what they’ve learned as readers to what they’ve learned as scientists and geologists. As fifth grade thinkers, students were encouraged to use their TTQA (turn the question around) strategy to write complete, thoughtful responses. It was especially exciting to see students read actively and apply annotation strategies to their text, making notes and highlighting key aspects of the texts to support their thinking and responses.

Students also spent time today applying understanding of decimals and measurement to tasks that required reference to rainfall and maps. Comparing, ordering, and applying operations of addition and subtraction were all incorporated into an authentic task. What kind of information do we use in our own lives that requires us to apply understanding of decimals and/or measurement? Is there a task or thinking challenge you could create to apply at home or at school?

Challenge: How can you use the linked resources to inquire further into decimals, measurement, and our countries of focus?

Multiple Sources

Perhaps Filip’s birthday bundt cake could be the beginning of that challenge? Certainly, as we cut the multi-colored cake, fractions were key to successful sharing, but… maybe another mathematical concept could have been applied.

Of course, we didn’t wait around too long to figure out any other options as mouths were watering as we waited for this mom-made masterpiece. What a wonderful way to celebrate Filip’s big day! Happy birthday, Filip!

 

This afternoon, we made a quick trip to Kindergarten to follow up on our introduction to Seesaw. In this second session, once again we worked with them to record their reading. Our goal today was to ensure they can share their learning with their parents independently.

After school, our scholarly soccer players engaged in a friendly game of football against Congo English Forever. Once again, we were grateful for all the parents who came to cheer us on.

Home Learning for December 2-6 (Week 15)

lrupp Classroom Community, Homework, Learner Profile, TASOK 0 Comment
  1. Read for at least 30 minutes each night. Complete the online reading log OR one on paper. (Copies are available in class).
  2. Reflect back on Week 14, and complete the “Reflection: Learner Profile & Approaches to Learning” form.
  3. Explore the recommendations on IXL.com. These connect directly to what we have been learning in class.
  • **A Scholar has a goal: This week, we answered over 390 questions and almost 3  hours = 3.0 hours = 180 minutes  on IXL. 

Announcements

  1. Library is scheduled weekly on Thursdays.
  2. P.E. is scheduled weekly on Wednesdays and Fridays.
    1. Come dressed to exercise – sneakers, hat, sunscreen.
    2. Bring a water bottle
  3. Check your lunch card balance weekly.

Coming Soon

Below is a list of upcoming events of which to be aware.

  • December 2, 3:30 p.m. – ES soccer team vs Congo English Forever
  • December 7, 10:00 a.m. – Association General Meeting (CAC)
  • December 9, 3:30 p.m. – ES soccer team vs Congo English Forever
  • December 13
    • Assembly
    • Early Dismissal – 11:30 a.m.
  • December 16 – January 3 – Winter Break (No School)

Condor Sports

  • December 5 – MS boys soccer vs. Cartesien
  • December 10 – SS boys basketball vs. Loupiots
  • December 12 – SS girls basketball vs. Loupiots

 

We’re on Twitter!

Follow TASOK @TASOKinshasa

Follow TASOK PYP @TASOKPYP

Follow Fourth Grade @Scholarsare

Hashtag #TASOK

 

Learner Profile Trait of the Month – COMMUNICATOR

**Check back later in the week for additional homework related to in-class discussions and activities.

 

International Day = Culture, Clothing Cuisine,… Coming Together

lrupp Classroom Community, Learner Profile, TASOK 0 Comment

Today began with a Flag Ceremony. First thing this morning, staff, students, and some parents, many wearing traditional clothing or clothing that represented their home country, lined the central sidewalk running from the parking lot to the high school soccer field. Students hailing from the United Kingdom gathered closest to the parking lot, where Ms. Paula, in full patriotic costume, was enthusiastically encouraging students. From there, students from the Turkey and Thailand gathered by their respective flags, which continued in reverse alphabetical order all the way to Albania. Students from our host country, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, gathered at the front of the line, waiting to lead the Flag Ceremony onto the field.

In Olympic-like fashion, each nation was announced by Dr. Mullen, followed by some cheering and marching to the beat of some marvelous music. It’s amazing to see how we can celebrate and be unified by such diversity.

After the parade, we gathered for our all-school photo. We maneuvered ourselves to create a map of the DRC with IB in the center. The idea was from the grade 10 design class; they wanted TASOK to be represented as an IB school in the Congo. Once again this year, the photo was taken by… a fleet of drones!!

The photo has not yet been released, but we will post it here when it’s ready.

After recess, we ventured over to Kindergarten to share our Seesaw expertise. In this introductory session, students learned how to log in to the app by scanning the QR code and add an entry into their journal. Students were able to take a picture of text and read it for their parents. This digital portfolio will be a wonderful way to document how these new readers grow throughout the year.

 

Much of the rest of the day was spent watching the clock as the much-anticipated International Lunch approached. At 11:15 a.m., older students made the traditional trek to the elementary school to meet their assigned elementary buddies with whom they enjoyed a fabulous feast. We were buddied with grade 9 students this year, which allowed us to all eat together and enjoy one another’s company and conversation. Tables decorated with patterned pagne cloth and set with napkin-wrapped utensils welcomed the students to the covered basketball court. With patience and politeness, students and staff perused the beautiful and bountiful buffet and selected samples to savor. Congolese beignets, Lebanese tabouleh, Turkish mercimek koftesi, Malagasy mofo laisoa, and… American mac and cheese were only a few of the featured foods. For almost 90 minutes, our TASOK family lingered over this mouthwatering meal. And, when it was all over, students even stuck around to serve by cleaning up.

 

At one point, we participated in a flash mob, led by third grade. Fun! Thank you, Mrs. Fischer, for coordinating this secret surprise.

Thank you to those who helped coordinate the lunch and prepared delicious dishes for us to sample. Know we are grateful.

We are also grateful for Ms. Hall and her willingness to share her love for music with us and for the opportunity to share our love for music with the TASOK community.

 

Home Learning for November 25-29 (Week 14)

lrupp Classroom Community, Learner Profile, TASOK 0 Comment
  1. Read for at least 30 minutes each night. Complete the online reading log OR one on paper. (Copies are available in class).
  2. Reflect back on Week 13, and complete the “Reflection: Learner Profile & Approaches to Learning” form.
  3. Explore the recommendations on IXL.com. These connect directly to what we have been learning in class.
  • **A Scholar has a goal: This week, we answered over 950 questions and spent over 7  hours = 7.0 hours = 420 minutes  on IXL. 

Announcements

  1. Library is scheduled weekly on Thursdays.
  2. P.E. is scheduled weekly on Wednesdays and Fridays.
    1. Come dressed to exercise – sneakers, hat, sunscreen.
    2. Bring a water bottle
  3. Check your lunch card balance weekly.

Coming Soon

Below is a list of upcoming events of which to be aware.

  • November 25 – Trimester 2 ASAs begin
  • November 27 – International Day
    • Flag Ceremony – 8:15 a.m.
    • International Lunch – 11:15 a.m.
    • Early Dismissal – 12:45 p.m.

  • November 28-29 – Thanksgiving Break (No School)
  • December 2, 3:30 p.m. – ES soccer team vs Congo English Forever
  • December 9, 3:30 p.m. – ES soccer team vs Congo English Forever
  • December 13, 11:30 a.m. – Early Dismissal
  • December 16 – January 3 – Winter Break (No School)

Condor Sports

  • December 5 – MS boys soccer vs. Cartesien
  • December 10 – SS boys basketball vs. Loupiots
  • December 12 – SS girls basketball vs. Loupiots

 

We’re on Twitter!

Follow TASOK @TASOKinshasa

Follow TASOK PYP @TASOKPYP

Follow Fourth Grade @Scholarsare

Hashtag #TASOK

 

Learner Profile Trait of the Month – THINKER


**Check back later in the week for additional homework related to in-class discussions and activities.

 

Diligence and Dancing

lrupp Classroom Community, Learner Profile, Literacy, Math, Music, Social Studies, TASOK, Where We Are in Place and Time 0 Comment

We had a fabulously focused morning of research, continuing our inquiry into essays. Students worked diligently to gathering information and piece it together into an instructional presentation. It was exciting to see all the pieces come together and to see how deeply we understood this new genre of writing.

 

In math, we used base ten blocks to explore decimals in concrete, pictorial, and abstract ways. Students use the manipulatives to represent a decimal, which their partner had to identify and explain. Most students were able to share their learning on Seesaw. As some prepared their Seesaw presentations, they made some minor mistakes, which were very valuable for learning. We love to celebrate mistakes because they provide us an opportunity to reflect and be open-minded.

Check out the following video from YouCubed (one of my favorite math and mindset resources).

Mistakes

How does this video connect to our central idea related to struggle and survival?

Here’s another one that celebrates the brain-growing power of mistakes.

  • What mistakes can you celebrate today?
  • How did your mistakes provide an opportunity for you to struggle?
  • How did your mistakes help your brain grow?

Challenge: Think of a metaphor or simile to illustrate the power of mistakes?

 

This afternoon, after P.E., we went to music to practice for Wednesday’s International Day performance. Ms. Paula and Ms. TaShawndra dropped in during the practice and were quite amazed at our voices.

 

Mr. Sheldrick and his kindergarten and first grade students shared their learning with us during their student-led assembly. We were able to make some connections to our compass point activities this past week.

After the assembly, we headed straight to Mrs. Fischer’s room for a top secret practice. I can’t say much more because… it’s top secret.

Here’s a link to the video, if you’re interested in practicing.

Word Work Beyond Our Words of the Week

lrupp Classroom Community, Learner Profile, Literacy, Math, Social Studies, TASOK, Visible Thinking, Where We Are in Place and Time 0 Comment

After a brief investigation into our words of the week, we continued with some word analysis related to the Primary Year Program (PYP) and our transdisciplinary theme. Using some of the same tools, we broke down the word and gained a better understanding of how the PYP is organized.

We then began to examine our theme for our current unit – Where We Are in Time and Place. Working in our table groups, we read the description of the theme and noted words and phrases that were interesting and into which we might inquire further. Working together, students annotated the description. This will be a document we revisit throughout our unit as we become more knowledgeable about and make connections with our central idea through our lines of inquiry.

We then continued our investigative work by conducting research about… essays (see related post).

We also continued our work with decimals, looking at how to create number lines… with hundredths in an effective and efficient way.

Expanding Our Writing Repertoire with… Expository Essays

lrupp Classroom Community, Learner Profile, Literacy, Math, Social Studies, Where We Are in Place and Time 0 Comment

We had a incredible day of investigation. Whether we were using multiple sources to find the meaning or origin of new words or thinking about our new transdisciplinary theme or digging in to decimals, students demonstrated dedication and determination in delightful ways today.

As we move into our third unit of inquiry, we will be looking at a new genre of writing… expository essays. This type of essay is designed to explain. Beginning with a thesis or belief statement, students will seek to identify reasons for this belief and will work to support these reasons with elaboration in the form of anecdotes (mini-story), examples, and / or descriptions.

Today, we inquired into what an essay is. Students had a number of print and digital resources to explore. As students dug into the materials, parts, purpose, procedure, and perfecting were areas about which to research.

 

Made with Padlet

 

With Thanksgiving coming up, we will soon be presented with a prompt and determine what it is asking (part of the procedure). We will be writing about gratitude. After discussing this idea deeply, we will craft a thesis statement and record two reasons with supporting examples on our graphic organizers. We will use this information to draft our hook and body paragraphs. This will be a sample setting us up for a more significant essay about struggle.

The creators of Flocabulary use rap to review the elements of an essay and the purpose of each.

Flocabulary: Five Paragraph Essay

Optional Multiple Source: NoRedInk: Essay Essentials

Skip to toolbar