Juicy Nibble

Saw some Kennedy Kids play softball today, a come from behind win.  Great job girls!!

At the Core

Thank you so much to the PCC for approving our grant request to host our version of  "The Amazing Race," for 4th grade students on June 18th!  Students will be completing challenges as they relate to the 5 regions of the U.S. and the district of Columbia in the style of the Amazing Race reality show. Your generous donations to the PCC have made this opportunity possible for the students.  THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

A Big Bite

The last two weeks have just flown by in Room 23 as we prepare for the end of the school year!  It will be here before we know it!  In social studies we have learned about the west region of our country and were able to mine for gems just like the '49ers.  We had so much fun panning for gold and every student was able to bring home the gems they found!  Electricity and magnetism are all the rage in science.  The students have learned how to light a bulb with just one D-cell, and one wire. They also were able to make small motors run.  Next week, we will build series and parallel circuits.  We have been learning about volume in math and kicked off the line design unit with Tie Dye Tuesday preparations.  All of the shirts have been tied and I can't wait to see how they come out.  Many students still need to become fluent and automatic with their multiplication and division facts.  Use the "Timed Math Quiz," link in the math gadget on the right to practice. We have wrapped up our unit of study on poetry in writer's workshop and will begin preparing for the Coffeehouse in two weeks.  On Thursday, we finished Charlotte's Web.  The students were focused on character behavior/motivation and how it relates to a book's theme and ultimately the author's message.  I am SO PROUD of everyone, they really did some deep thinking about this book.  They asked great questions and came up with some perspectives I had not considered before, and I have read this book 20+ times!  Everyone has grown so much in reading. :)
Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Williams

Bookworm Buzz, Special Edition

Here is a GoodReads post from Liv.  This is a great entry for all of my high school friends.  Enjoy!


The Selection by Kiera Cass
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed The Selection. I was lucky enough to be able to meet Kiera Cass herself, and she was so sweet! The Selection was perfect for me, because it was the perfect mix of romance and action. Others have described The Selection as "The  Hunger Games meets The Bachelor meets Cinderella." This is a perfect description of the plot. I read The Selection in about 2 days. It was fantastic!


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A Big Bite

Busy, Busy, Busy!  Room 23 has been working very hard during the past two weeks.  We spent time with Ms. Liz, writing poetry and learning how to perform poetry in the oral tradition (pictures to follow). We had a grade level workshop with Ms. Liz that incorporated all of the skills she  taught us and then students went on stage to read their poems.  What a great way yo prepare for the coffeehouse in June!  We have been finishing up all of our preparations for the Math MCAS next week and I know everyone will do their absolute best!  We have finished studying weather and have started a unit on magnetism and electricity in science.  We have left the Midwest and will journey to the west next week.  In reader's workshop we have started a new interactive read aloud, Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White.  Our focus for this book is to look carefully at the different characters and their behavior, examine their motives and decide what this tells us about the theme of the book and the author's message.  I am so impressed with these readers.  I have read this book over twenty times and this group is coming up with some very insightful perspectives that I had not considered before.  Very cool, I assure you. Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Williams

Bookworm Buzz

Wonder by R.J. Palacio
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is one of the best books I have read this year, really, really amazing.  A must read for parents, teachers, principals,  high school,  and middle school students. It is a challenge for many new 4th graders, but would probably be o.k. for spring 4th graders.  I have my friend, Mrs. Landrigan, to thank for recommending this book to me.  I laughed, I cried, I couldn't stop reading, and finished it in one day!!!!  The book begins with a quote from one of my favorite Natalie Merchant songs and held my interest until the last word.  I kept wanting more, and these characters will stay with me for a while. I thoroughly enjoyed the way the author told the story from the point of view of the different characters, it helped me get a unique perspective on the story.  Don't miss out on one of the best books of the year, put it on your summer reading list, if you can wait that long!!


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Bookworm Buzz

Lunch Lady and the Mutant Mathletes by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Another installment in the Lunch Lady Series.  A bit far fetched, even for Lunch Lady fans.  The Boston accent on the "custodian," wasn't funny, in fact it was a bit disrespectful.  The fact that the characters didn't want to be on the "math team," because it was just for nerds was also disappointing.  Perhaps I missed the author's point here.  Being on a math team is very cool, and I think Krosoczka tried to make that point at the end, but by that point I had lost interest in the story.  Hopefully the next Lunch Lady will be as good as #6, Lunch Lady and the Field Trip Fiasco.


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Bookworm Buzz

The Battling Bands by Frank Cammuso
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Not my favorite, but it was o.k. A little difficult to follow, especially if you haven't read the first two books.  Just right for 4th graders, butI recommend reading the series in order to understand the characters.


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