More Peer Sharing in Composition

In composition class we are writing about the changes taking place all around us now that fall is here. The boys filled out their planners yesterday, and today we began writing. These two boys volunteered to share what they had so far, and then the class gave some immediate feedback. The boys who shared profited greatly from the comments seen at the end of the video and many others that were mentioned later in class. I am trying to carve out time for this process since I feel it is very beneficial for the students as they progress in their writing skills.

Trick or Treat for UNICEF

The entire Fifth Grade came for a visit today to educate the Lower School students about UNICEF. They have spent the last week researching and writing speeches about UNICEF and its mission. The Fifth Graders did a fantastic job speaking with enthusiasm and passion. They encouraged all Lower School students to take their orange UNICEF boxes around with them while they Trick-or-Treated in an effort to raise money for UNICEF. Those who choose to participate should bring their boxes back on Monday. It was great to see a few former Ninth Agers who are now flying high in the Fifth Grade.

History Review Sheet

The boys should have brought home a history review sheet for our test next Tuesday, but in case they have trouble locating it, it can be seen by clicking here. The test will cover Chapters 10 and 11. The boys need to be familiar with the terms on the study sheet but do not need to memorize the answers. There will be a word bank containing all of the answers provided for them on the test. If you have any questions please email me.

Math Enrichment

Since we had five boys absent yesterday we had some time for some math enrichment in homeroom. I showed the boys a neat website that is posted on the math blog that Mollie Williams and I maintain together. It is called Multiplication Flash Card Challenge, and it has some great features. It allows the user to choose whether the problems are mixed or from have one number in common. If a student is having trouble with the 6's tables he can focus solely on that set of problems. In class I divided the boys into two groups, and I put the answer in as soon as any member of their group called out the correct answer. Then the other group got the chance to beat the time of the first group. All of the boys did a great job with it, and it was a lot of fun.

The Pit of Being

Today in grammar class we learned about verbs of being, and after doing a few written activities we had an activity. Each boy chose a slip of paper which either had an action verb or a verb of being printed on it. If his paper had an action verb he walked around the room doing that activity. After one trip around the room he chose a new paper which either contained a new action verb or a verb of being. If his paper had a verb of being he had to go to the Pit of Being and chant the phrase, "Am, is are, was, were, been, I'm stuck in the Pit of Being." He could escape if someone pulled a slip which said, "Free the Pit," or if someone else drew the same verb of being which doomed him to the pit. It was a bit of a lively activity, but the boys handled it extremely well, showing me that I can do this sort of thing with them in the future. The best news is that at the conclusion of the activity, the boys had no doubt about what the verbs of being are. Unfortunately we were missing three of our classmates, so sometime soon when all 16 students are in school we will repeat the activity. I will be sure to come up with some new action verbs.

The Song Heard 'Round the School

For the past few weeks in music class the boys have been working on an American folk song called The Wake Up Canon. The boys like it so much that they have been known to break into song at various points throughout the day. Five or six boys were singing it at lunch today, which is right before music class. When I went to tape them I could not resist a few cannon jokes, but I will spare you, dear readers of the blog. Mrs. Elliott is doing a fantastic job teaching the boys. Calvert is fortunate to have a teacher of her caliber.

The Creatures Under My Bed

This composition is traditionally a favorite, and this year was no exception. The boys enjoyed it very much and showed great creativity in their writing.

The Creatures Under My Bed

There are some strange creatures living under my bed. They are called Zinks, and they are brown and a half inch tall. They have one nose, four legs, eight claws, and a couple of eyes. I found them when I was five years old. I fell out of my bed, and then I found myself under my bed. I had no idea how I got there, but then I saw the Zinks. I asked them how they got here and they said that the dog was chasing them. They had no place to go but to run under my bed.
The Zinks are very busy during the day. Their purpose is to explore the house and have a good home with an exciting life. They spend their time building the Great Tower of Crayons and running around, building homes out of their surroundings. Their plans for the future are to finish the Great Tower of Crayons and climb up my bed. I hope the Zinks never leave.




The Franks

There are some strange creatures living under my bed. They have three eyes on their forehead and two level with their nose. They also have three horns on the top of their head and have five legs. I found them when I got back from soccer practice, and I heard something under my bed. They used to live in my sister's room, but there was perfume under her bed.
The Franks are very busy during the day. Their purpose is to clean up rooms and make villages out of my toys. They spend their time building towns and collecting food. Their plans for the future are to clean up houses, make villages, and have babies. I hope they never leave.

Compositions in Progress- Day One

In composition class we have begun a preview/critique/sharing time that is already yielding great benefits. I asked a volunteer to come up and read the composition he had been working on for about twenty minutes. Some students used part of that time to finish up the planners which we worked on yesterday, so some students were understandably further along in their writing than others. With no real pressure and the chance for fame and glory on the blog many students were eager to partake in this activity. There are many benefits to this sort of exercise...the students who are listening see an example of what another student is doing which could give them ideas, and the student reading his composition benefits from immediate feedback from his classmates. In the four videos that follow, the conversations that came after the reading were as impressive as the readings themselves. The next time I do this I will include the critique process as well. For now enjoy these compositions in progress.

Two Outstanding Great Pyramid Compositions

Last week the boys finished up the Great Pyramid compositions. They were all very well done. Each of the authors whose composition is below is holding his composition in one hand and a piece of The Great Pyramid in the other. Enjoy!!



The Great Pyramid

Egypt is well known for its impressive pyramids. One of these pyramids is known as The Great Pyramid. Cheops, also known as Khufu, was responsible for the pyramid. Cheops did not lift a single block, but teams of twenty men did all the work. The Egyptian workers got paid with food and clothes. They built it to be ready for the day of Judgment and to protect the body from robbers and bad weather. The pyramid was built in Giza, a few miles from Memphis, Egypt’s capital. It was built on the west bank of the Nile.

There are many theories about how the Great Pyramid was built. Some people think there was a big ramp that extended straight out. Others think there was a ramp that spiraled around the pyramid. No one knows. They used the ramps to bring big boulders to the building site. They mined the stones near the Nile so they could put the rocks on rafts and then float them down the Nile. The Great Pyramid is 481 feet high and 750 feet on each side. It is the biggest pyramid in the world. It weighs over 6,000,000 tons! Cheops became Pharaoh in 2589 B.C. The pyramid was started in 2585 B.C. Cheops died in 2566 B.C. The pyramid was completed in 2565 B.C. I hope to visit the Great Pyramid someday.

The Great Pyramid

Egypt is well known for its impressive pyramids. One of these pyramids is known as The Great Pyramid. Hemon was the master builder of the pyramid. There were teams of twenty builders and hundreds of these teams. The workers worked for six hours a day and were not paid. They only received food and clothes. Hemon and his teams built the pyramid for Cheops to be ready for the Day of Judgement. The Great Pyramid was built in Giza, a few miles away from Memphis, which was Egypt’s capital. It was built on the west side of the Nile River. It was built on the west side of the Nile River because it was the side of death. It was the side of death because the sun rises in the east and it sets in the west, so it looks like the sun is dying.

To build the pyramid they mined stone near the Nile River. Then they made rafts to float them down the Nile River. After that, they dragged the stones to the building spot. The Great Pyramid is 481 feet high and the biggest pyramid ever. They used about 2,300,000 stones to complete it, which was 6,000,000 tons of stones. The stone is limestone. The builders started the pyramid in 2585 B.C. Cheops died in 2566 B.C. They finished the pyramid in 2565 B.C. Cheops was placed inside one year later. The Great Pyramid can still be seen today and is known as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

It's all Greek to me

As a student who only ever studied French I am at a complete loss as to what the students are saying in this video. Perhaps they can help you translate as you watch it. I love the use of pictures to construct sentences and the attention to detail that Senora Duncan has to the endings of the words. The boys will be very well prepared for Spanish in the years to come.

Taking Advantage of the Weather

We have been extremely forunate with the weather so far this school year and have only had one rainy day recess. I made this video yesterday after looking across the blacktop and seeing Mrs. Williams playing kickball with the girls. All of the Ninth Age teachers enjoy joining in at recess and the students seem to like it when we do.

Legaloos and Minglefoos and Pluters, Oh My!!

We started writing a new composition today, and the early results are extremely promising. In years past it has been a favorite composition for many of the boys. The title is "Under My Bed" with an alternate title of "The Creatures Under my Bed." As you may be able to guess from the second title, this composition is a work of fiction in which the boys imagine that an entire civilization has taken up residence under their beds. One of the first tasks the boys undertake is imagining what the creatures under their bed might look like. With that accomplished the boys choose names for their newly imagined species. This year's name choices are fantastic!! Besides the ones in the title of this post, there are also Gigglewaggles, Tinkertotters, Snigglewiggles, Frinnies, and Twiktox. We also have Gigglebobs, Howases, Zumpies, Frobsquaddlers, and the Zorx. There are others as well that I'm sure I'm forgetting. At the end of the composition, the boys will draw a picture of their creatures which will be included as a folder paper. I can't wait to see the finished results. Below is a picture of the boys hard at work.

Mo Willems - The Day After

Evidently Mo Willems saw my post on the this blog and liked it so much that he put a link to it from his blog. To see his blog and the link to the 9-2 post, click here. After clicking on the link, scroll down past the pictures of the simulcast and click on the link that says "To see a short vidclip from one of the schools..." We're FAMOUS!!!! Well, maybe not that famous. Thanks again to Mrs. Thomas, the technology team, and Mo Willems for a great experience.

Mo Willems Comes to Calvert (Virtually)

Today we saw a simulcast presentation featuring Mo Willems. It was an amazing event. The highlight of the day was when Mrs. Thomas, our outstanding librarian, called in to the simulcast to suggest a new book idea offered by a Calvert student in library class last week. Of the five choices offered by five different schools, Mo chose the idea submitted by the Calvert student much to the delight of the Calvert students. I shot some amazing video of the event, but found out later that Mrs. Thomas had agreed beforehand that no photos or videos of the event could be used. I do have permission to show the audience and their reaction as they discovered that Calvert's idea had been the one Mo liked the best. Mo went on to do a sketch of a book cover complete with credit given to the kids at Calvert. I found a very good YouTube video that Mo did in 2008 in which he shares a little bit of the creative process that he shared in the simulcast. Enjoy the YouTube video and the screams of the kids of Calvert.

Up and Down Nouns

Today in grammar class we studied the difference between singular and plural nouns. To go along with our exercises in the grammar book, we also did an activity called "Up and Down Nouns." In this activity, the boys started out sitting in their chairs as I read a story. Every time they heard a singular noun they moved down one level and every time they heard a plural noun they moved up one level. The five levels, from lowest to highest are: lying on the floor, sitting on the floor, sitting in the chair, standing by the chair, and standing on the chair. We practiced a few times with the passage shown on the big screen. In the passage on the screen all of the singular nouns were colored red and the plural nouns were blue. This made it easier for the boys in the beginning and also reinforced the concept we had studied in class. We had a great time learning a new concept!!

PAPYRUS!!!

The papyrus experiment has worked extremely well. The boys are ecstatic with the results and now appreciate the pads of paper in their desks a lot more. These sheets will be used as our folder covers next month after we add Egyptian drawings.

Our First History Map and a Papyrus Update

On Friday we started our first history map which ties in with our weekly composition and our papyrus project. From the first picture you may be able to make out Lower Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. Being able to project the image on the big screen helps the students with the spelling and correct placement of the names on the map. We started the map as we were transitioning from changing our cloths for our papyrus project. As you can see in the other photos, the papyrus project appears to be working. Since it was a short week, the papyrus is not fully dry, so we couldn't safely pick it up. After this weekend it will be finished, and I'll give the final update.

6 on 6 Soccer in P.E.

In P.E. class, the boys have been playing 6 on 6 soccer with three games running simultaneously. This can happen because the 10th Age no longer has P.E. with the 9's. Pat Vorsteg has done an excellent job giving instruction to the boys about how to be effective in small field soccer. The goals are small and require placement of the ball over brute force. There is no goalie which ensures that all of the players get touches on a regular basis. Pat has emphasized that soccer on a field of this size is more like a game of keep away, in which the team which can control the ball more effectively will usually be able to score more goals. I was reffing the game during which this video was shot and also playing defense for the squad which was missing two players. I mention this only to explain why the video is a bit shaky. On October 23rd the Ninth Age parents will have the chance to come see the Hopper - Cricket version of this game. Until then enjoy a brief glimpse of some of the boys in action. (Please pardon the commentary. I had just been mentioning to the boys that soccer is very popular in England and lapsed into some pseudo-Shakespearean dialogue.)