Hill Country Science Mill

I'm so excited!! Today, two of my team members and I drove out to Johnson City where they have built a new science museum. It's called the Hill Country Science Mill.
It was amazing!!! We had so much fun! Here's a few pictures for you!

These are the two teammates that went with me. Mrs. Woodall is on the left and Mrs. Gilbert is on the right.

This was the coolest thing ever! It is a self-supporting eco-system that uses water from the Science Mill's cistern to drip into the environment thus cleaning the water and supporting the moss and the plants that live in the water. It all works together! I love things like this.

This is Mrs. Gilbert and Mrs. Woodall developing codes to move the longhorn's head, the rattlesnake's tail and the armadillo. We had so much fun! You should go and try it!

This display was in one of the old grain silos. It's designed to look like an aquifer and you watch rain "fall from the sky" along the streets into rivers and seeping into the ground. We spent a lot of time there because we hadn't seen rain in soooo long! It was quiet and peaceful.

There was so much to do at the Science Mill! We'd really like to take a field trip out there but we're afraid it might be just a tad too far. We're thinking about perhaps meeting families out there on a designated Saturday... We'll see after school starts. In the meantime, I wonder if my avatar still works!

Introduction: What is Remind?

Time to Think About B2S15!

I can't get into my classroom yet, but I'm already thinking about school so today I did something I CAN do... Even far away from my classroom! I signed up for REMIND.
Remind uses a short code, 81010, to send alerts from teachers to parents. It will help me connect easily with you on your mobiles. I decided to use REMIND because YOU are your child's first teacher, which is why we, parents and teachers, need to work together to help your child succeed. Many teachers are using Remind to help keep you up-to-date with what is happening in the classroom. When my boys went to the middle school, most teachers used REMIND to send me quick, one-way announcements. The short messages I will send out are sent directly to your phone, and can help you keep up with things like:

-homework assignments 
-field trip updates 
-schedule changes
-library days 

There is no need to be concerned about your phone number being made public. Safety is a top priority at REMIND. PHONE NUMBERS ARE KEPT PRIVATE! You never know anyone else's phone number. This blurb is from their website: "There is no exchange of personal information between other parents. ALL MESSAGES ON REMIND ARE SAVED TO YOUR ACCOUNT. Everyone will have quick access to their Announcement History for future reference." Since you will only see messages I send after you sign up, it’s important to "join" our class. You can easily subscribe to Ms. Klein's 2nd Grade in one of three ways:

1 / SUBSCRIBE THROUGH TEXT MESSAGE

Text the class @code to the number 81010. After you answer the questions sent by Remind via text message, you will be subscribed to our class! Our class code is @mskleins2

2 / DOWNLOAD REMIND ON IOS OR ANDROID DEVICES

You can download the Remind app by visiting: rmd.me, and subscribe to our class by searching for our unique class @code.* The code for each class is along the right-hand side of your web account. Look for the @ symbol. Our class @code is @mskleins2

3 / SUBSCRIBE USING THE JOIN PAGE

Finally, you can visit remind.com/join and enter our class @code, your phone number and/or e-mail address. Again, our class code is @mskleins2

In the past I have sent newsletters home that didn't get read very often... Remind messages have to be less than 300 characters and are sent directly to your mobile device. I find it's much easier to read a short text sometimes and I'm sure you'll like this too. Give it a try! To be partners in your child’s education, we need open lines of communication. To be proactive, we need to consistently share information between home and school. To succeed in educating your child we need home and school working together. I can't wait to meet you and begin our SECOND GRADE ADVENTURE!!!

Where has the time gone?

gaaaack!!! What happened here? I better post before the new year starts... hmmm what to write about...

Classroom Library

At long last!

The classroom library is ready for patrons! After my lovely 5,234 mile road trip, I just knew I had to bite the bullet and "git 'er dun" as my A&M friends are wont to say. I meant to organize this last summer but obviously, that didn't happen... (Just an FYI-- I GROSSLY misjudged the extent of our classroom library!) This was a project that I thought would take perhaps two days but which actually took 5 days and needed the assistance of friends, as well! We have A LOT of books in our classroom library. The frightening thing? I purchased 98% of them... However, there are astounding statistics that correlate the size of the classroom library with reading achievement. The classroom library is an investment in my students that is truly worthwhile.

Now, all complaining aside, I am VERY happy that this project is complete. I know the students will love it. One of the powerful motivators for this project was that last year the library regularly was in such disarray, that I would see students WALKING on books that had been thrown down or tossed aside! I cannot tell you how much that bothers me! It certainly does not teach children the importance of books and how to treat them. With this new system, the books will be circulated in and out for variety every nine weeks at most. Each individual book is labeled with the name and number of the book bin it belongs in. The books are sorted by subjects or authors. I relied upon my experience as a teacher to decide which topics my students would most likely use and sorted accordingly so that it will be easy for them to use. But that's not all! (Are you wondering when this blog post morphed into a QVC advert?) Since the bins are not out all at once, there will be gaps in the numbering and students will have to figure out where the book bin is based upon their knowledge of the numberline! HAH! Take that, you TEKS! (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills-- the concepts and skills we are required to teach.) That's what I call hands on practice!

Bwahahahaha!


Ninja teacher strikes again!

Perseid Meteor Shower 2012

Tonight begins one of the three best nights to see the annual summertime meteor shower known as the Perseids. This year we should should have an especially good display because the moon is but a sliver and there are several planets that will be quite easy to see as a bonus. Here is a link to NASA that will give you more information:

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2012/10aug_perseids/

While sometimes not knowing what will happen is a great "hook" in science, I also find that knowing what you are about to see can increase not only your learning curve but also your enjoyment. So I'll relate how I prepare for meteor shower viewing. Before the sun goes down tonight, I will move my lounge chair into an open spot in the back garden and point it towards the east for the best viewing. I will try to keep all streetlights out of my line of vision. I will set a basket filled with mosquito spray, a fogger, bottled water and perhaps a light shawl next to it. That way, when I creep out of bed at 3 am, all I'll have to do is stumble out the back door and flop onto the chaise to watch. I'll include a pair of binoculars as well though I'll probably just use them to peer a bit closer at the planets. I'll sit and wait until my eyes adjust. (It generally takes about 10-15 minutes.) Then I'll lay back and try to keep count of how many "shooting stars" I see. There is an app that you can download to help scientists and I hope you do so! Science is for everyone! More eyes = better data so download your app and be prepared to record what you see. (Be sure to dim your screen so that you don't ruin your night vision, or wait to record your data when you are finished.)

Someday I hope to teach in space but for now, I will content myself with teaching in Pflugerville and keeping my eyes on the skies.

Getting Ready for a New Year!

As summer begins to wind down, my thoughts turn towards the classroom and the upcoming year. I went up to the classroom this week to begin the set up for a new year. I was dragging my feet (just a wee bit) until I got to our hallway just outside the door. Do you remember just outside our door where the student's pictures are hanging with the clip below it that they use to display their work? Just looking at those faces filled my heart and suddenly I wasn't dragging my feet anymore. This process of looping is so wonderful. We all know who we are and there's no fear about what the new year holds!

-Yes, we'll be Second Graders this year, the "BIG Ones" in the school. We'll really have to be AWESOME role models in the hallway so that the young ones know how to behave!
-There'll be lots of refinement of the learning we did as First Graders and of course, there'll be NEW things to learn and get good at.

But the big questions like,

•"Who else will be in my class?" and
•"Will I have any friends?"
•"What will my teacher be like?"
•"What will she expect from me?"

THOSE big questions have already been answered and we can focus straightaway on the new skills and learning we will master this year.

My promise to the students at year end was that they would return to the classroom and it would look very similar to what it did at the end of the year-- FOR THE FIRST FEW WEEKS. Then we would begin to change things out. For instance, our words on the Word Wall would still be there to remind us of all we have learnt in first grade but then we'll take those words down and learn MORE words! Calendar will start out as it did last year but then we'll have NEW math concepts to learn and master.

But, there will be a few things that will different right off.
WARNING!!! I've changed the location of the sofa and the computers! I think the arrangement will be better suited for us and it feels more cozy. (That's an odd word, eh?) I know they will love it but it will also be the first thing they will remark upon walking into our room. I've also moved the "Lightbulb Lab". There's many items from my travels around the world displayed because our Second Grade theme will be "Global Learning". And YEAH! (BIG kudos to me) I've actually organised the classroom library for this year. (I've discovered to my dismay, that the school year is far too busy to accomplish such an immense task.) Also, I'm very excited to implement Whole Brain Teaching this year. The students will love it because it involves their entire brain and body. (Trust me when I say this: Your children need to move and talk to understand and learn.) I'll have more details as the posts go on so that you may understand what your children are doing and learning all those hours they are away from you!

I miss you all so much and cannot wait to see everyone. It's coming up quickly but not fast enough for me (but even as I say that I shudder to think of all I must still accomplish). YIKES! Princess Peach misses the students as well and she's not very happy watching my increasingly dry and brown back garden melt in the heat. She will be quite happy to watch the kids as they move about the classroom again. As will I.

See you soon!