Australia

My daughter and I had a great time in Australia! We visisted the Australia Zoo, Sea World, Underwater World, The Big Pineapple, The Sunshine Coast and Brisbane (where we used to live).

Sea World


Underwater World




Australia Zoo





The Big Pineapple Plantation

Summer Reading Challenges

I challenge all my student to READ READ READ this summer!

There are some very cool Summer Reading Challenges going on!

DON'T MISS THESE READING CHALLENGES!!!...

1. One is through Barnes and Noble. Kids earn a FREE book when they read 8 books over the summer (between May 26-September 7, 2009). All you have to do is read and record 8 books of your choosing on the Reading Journal and note what your favorite part of the story was, and you'll get to pick a FREE book from the list. Print off the Reading Journal on their website. Check it out here!

2. Another Summer Reading Program is going on at the Hussey-Mayfield Memorial Public Library in Zionsville. The program runs from June 4-August 1, 2009. Just print off a reading log from their website or pick one up at the library and get reading! Log your "reading hours" on your reading log. Beginning June 8, the first 1000 kids who report reading 3 hours will receive a compass key chain. When Treasure Island opens on June 15, kids can choose prizes as they reach designated levels on their Reading Log. Once kids have read 50 hours, you can enter to win the Grand Prize. Check it out here!

Leave a comment to let me know how you're doing on your Summer Reading Challenges!

Clip art licensed from the Clip Art Gallery on DiscoverySchool.com

Kids with ADHD need to fidget, study says

If you've got a kid with ADHD, you've probably spent countless hours pleading with him to sit still.

Well, stop it.

Fidgeting, as it turns out, helps kids with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder focus. So just like grown-ups need a cup of coffee before tackling a problem, kids with ADHD may tap their feet, swivel in their chairs or bounce in their seats while their brains are busily figuring out that math test.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orl-adhd-fidget-ucf-052009,0,2751398.story

Dessert First Book Review

Dessert First
by Hallie Durand • illustrated by Christine Davenier
May 19, 2009 • Atheneum Books for Young Readers • Middle-grade fiction (illustrated) • Ages 7 - 10

Loved it!

Dessert, the main character is from a "Food Family". Her new teacher teaches her about "marching to her own drummer". Dessert takes this to heart and learns a few lessons along the way in this {sweet} story.

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to 7-10 year olds. Once I started, I couldn't put this book down. I give it a 5/5. Kids will devour this book and will be craving a {sweet} dessert by the end!

Tiger Taming Book Review

Dixie in Danger Book Review

Rule of Three Book Review

by Megan McDonald
August 2009 • Candlewick Press • Middle-grade fiction • Ages 9 - 12

The Rule of Three in the Sisters Club series is a good read with nice messages about sisterhood. Many girls would relate to the sister dramas throughout the book. Stevie, Alex and Joey are believable characters. I quickly became attached to the narrator, Stevie, and wanted to read on to find out her story.

I liked the scripts (written by Alex) and journals/lists (written by Joey) which were sprinkled throughout the book and how they provided essential pieces of the story. I didn't think the quizzes were necessary and sometimes referenced people/things that would be over the heads of the girls in the recommended age group (8-11).

I give this book 3/5 and would recommend it to 8-10 year old girls as a fun read.

Hyperactivity Enables Children With ADHD To Stay Alert

ScienceDaily (2009-03-09) -- In studies of 8- to 12-year-old boys, scientists found that children with ADHD became significantly more active than their typically developing peers during tasks that required them to remember and manipulate information. All of the children sat relatively still while watching Star Trek and painting on a computer program, tasks that did not challenge their working memory.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090309105038.htm#

New Educational Websites!

Check out all the new educational websites I've added to the blog! Lots to do! I just love the fun, interactive ways to practice math facts, typing and spelling! Which is your favorite?

4th grade comments on Big Chickens

Xavier

Last week we made a tape called Big Chickens. There is stuff I liked and disliked. I like the story because there are funny pictures. The book is also entertaining because they did funny voices. What I disliked about it was staying on track because you couldn’t look up without loosing your spot. It was also hard to speak clearly so that the audience could understand the words.

Omar

Last week we recorded Big Chickens. I had a great time doing this. There were things I liked and didn’t like. The thing I liked was the story because we got to record our voices. I also liked the pictures because they were funny. One thing I didn’t like was having to stay on track because it was hard. It was had to be quiet because some things were funny.


Lena

Last week we recorded Big Chickens. I had a fun time doing this. There were things that I liked and didn’t like. I liked doing the voices because it was fun listening to different voices. I liked the story because it was funny and entertaining. I did not like to be quiet because it was hard. There were a lot of funny parts.

Eric

Last week we read Big Chickens. I like doing the voices. One is called Kermet and sounds like a frog. Another was a dinosaur voice. I liked the Kermet voice the best because it didn’t hurt my neck. It was soooooo entertaining. I enjoyed it so much! I thought it was hard to lower our voices when we said our lines together. I also thought it was hard to be quiet because I wanted to talk.

4th Grade Big Chickens Story

Listen to the hilarious voices of the Big Chickens!

Read by Xavier, Eric, Lena and Omar.

3rd Grade Comments on Big Chickens

Zach E.

Last week we read Big Chickens and recorded our voices. I liked doing the voices the best. I liked using the deep voice for my chicken. I also liked the story because it was very entertaining and funny. One reason that it was hard was keeping up with the same voice. If you didn’t keep the same voice it wouldn’t sound right to the audience. Another thing that was hard was not speaking when it is not your turn.


Zach G.

Last week we read Big Chickens and recorded our voices. I liked doing the voices because you can make different kinds of voices sound funny. I also liked the pictures because they were entertaining. One thing that was hard is keeping up with the same voices. If you didn’t keep up the same voices you could ruin the story. Also reading was difficult because I had to read all the words and they were tongue twisters.

Jared

Last week we read Big Chickens and recorded our voices. I like doing the voices because the voices make the story funny. My voices were a Kermet voice and a soft scarred voice. I liked doing the Kermet voice the best. I also liked how entertaining the story was. It was very funny. It was very hard to be quite when recording because if you didn’t it would mess up the taping. Another thing that was hard was to wait until the teacher pointed to you to begin speaking.

Collin

Last week we read Big Chickens and recorded our voices. I like doing the voices because it makes it sound funny. Also I thought the story was very entertaining. Some words were hard to read because they were big, and I hadn’t seen them before. I had to keep up with the right voice so you wouldn’t mess the audience up.

3rd Grade's Big Chicken Story

The amazing story of four brave chickens!

Read by Zach, Collin, Jared and Zach