Health Component Added To Our ESP

The majority of our research, collection of information, and new concepts that we learn are put into our Electronic Student Portfolios. (ESP)   We have now added a 20 page Health Component (20 slides on power point) that will display the students' knowledge of what it takes to be and stay healthy.  This is coordinated with over 20 songs that we sing about the food pyramid, germs, exercise, eating and living healthy, and filthy habits that all help us to be healthy citizens.  It concludes with a contract/promise to do our best to make healthy choices.

Bulb Growing

Shhh! Don't tell anyone what kind of bulb we are forcing in our classroom.  We predicted what we were growing and what we thought might happen.  We then worked as botanists daily to record data.  Since we are using a clear vase with water instead of dirt to grow the bulb, we can observe what is happening that usually we would not be able to see with the roots growing in the dirt. 

What a treat this has been, as over the weekend on Day 5, the roots grew about 4 inches and completely took over the complete bottom part of the v-necked vase.   What we had available to observe on top was slow but progressive. And then the second shoot came up from the bulb. The students get so excited with each new development.  Our guesses and predictions will soon come to see whether or not we were correct!

Pumpkins At School

Thank you Gail, Rosie, and Ed...because of you, our class all got a pumpkin!  We have discussed many things we can do with them, including using shaving creme on them to practice our spelling words.  Then we'll take them home for jack-o-lanterns, pumpkin bars, and pumpkin pie!  Students will get their names put into the bucket for a drawing for every new thing they do with their pumpkin.   http://agweb.okstate.edu/fourh/aitc/lessons/extras/recipes/pumpie.html  Check out this sit for Pumpkin Pie in a Bag, Pumpkin Ham Soup, Roasted Pumpkins, and facts about pumpkins.

Interested In Gardening And Want To Win Gardening Prizes??

Check out this site...look for great ideas and apply online to win great gardening supplies.  This would be a great opportunity to plant some mystery fruits and vegetables. Bok choy was a Mystery Vegetable we had recently that Haley told us about. No one guessed it, but Yuki said her mom does cook with it.

The award is open to any adult in the United States who wishes to garden with preschool to high school-aged family member(s) and feels that gardening is a great way to build lasting memories. A focus on nutrition, sustainability, and socialization is a plus.
 $500 gardening kit will be awarded.  Start planning now!

http://www.kidsgardening.com/grants/heinz.asp

Nutrition For Kids

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/nutritionforkids/index.htm  Check this link out to  find facts for your "electronic student porfolio."

Mr. Bonn Visits Our 3rd Grade Classroom

Check out all the crops he brought for us to see. Thank you, Mr. Bonn!

7 Continents

Students will be creating a power point slide show of the "7 Continents."  The first continent will be South America. One paragraph is required for a satisfactory grade, and two paragraphs minimum are required for an S+ grade.  Include the location, (hemisphere) of the continent, bodies of water around or within the continent, number of countries, languages and cultures, mountains, rivers, or other prevalent aspects such as rain forests, canyons,  deserts, etc...

The second paragraph should include crops raised and transported to other countries. 
Have any of these crops been a part of our "mystery fruit and vegetable" examples?  Think about its length and width, its weight...ounces or pounds, the circumference.  Pay attention to their price in the grocery store. How much would it cost if  if you got half a pound? How about two or three pounds?  Always make "math happenings" a part of your life and learning.

 Students should hyperlink at least one site to their slide that would allow them to read and gain future knowledge about the country they choose.  Students may add another slide if we have a class song regarding that continent, to type the song onto that slide.  Students may either record themselves singing the song on this slide, or we will sing as a class.  This will be an electronic library of the world we live in and study.  Students can expand on these slides, and document as much as they'd like about the countries they learn.  Many students need this opportunity to expand their knowledge, challenge their abilities, and reach for the stars.
All about South America:

http://www.shelburnefilms.com/T_video1.htm
Organic Farming:
http://www.kww-southamerica.org/content/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=24&Itemid=142
Banana Farming
http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/profiles/documents/FavoritaProfilewithhorizon.pdf

Sunflowers and Sunshine

Sunflowers are not only beautiful to look at, but they have so many uses. We can use sunflowers to create many wonderful things.  We also can use sunflowers to make our day a little brighter.  What a gift from God the  sunflower is!
http://namisunflowers.org/index.html   Seeds Of Hope~ contests, fun, and information
http://www.burpee.com/product/id/103380.do?KickerID=100175&KICKER  10 varieties in 1 pack
http://www.sunflower-guide.netfirms.com/fact.htm   Fun facts!

Want To Learn More About Ag In The Education World?

You are going to want to check out these sites. They're awesome!
http://www.ndfb.org/promotion/ 
North Dakota Farm Bureau
http://www.agclassroom.org/
Ag In The Classroom
http://www.ageducate.org/
Educating About Agriculture
http://www.foodlandpeople.org/
Food, Land, and People

Art and Ag

Fun Art Projects For Your Ag Classroom

1. Sunflower Hands With Real Sunflowers: 10 yellow hands on a paper plate foundation. Circle inside is filled with real sunflower seeds. Our arms and hands connected together to make the stem is our final personal touch.
2. Jack-o-lantern Candle Holders for our pumpkin unit. We're making pumpkin votive candle holders: with orange tissue paper in tiny pieces, attached with a 3-1 ratio of water and glue to the glass baby food jars, and black eyes and crazy smile with fun foam or black tissue paper. Add a candle for a special Halloween gift.

3. Pumpkin Pop Bottles: with 2 liter clear bottles, pour in orange paint with water....cap on and shake, rattle, and roll to get the paint every where inside the bottle. Add fun foam eyes and smile. A green ribbon for the stem tied around the cap would be a great bottle top!

Biographies

George Washington Carver begins our biography slide show that students will create and then hyperlink to their "electronic student portfolio."

At: http://www.mrnussbaum.com/gwcarver.htm you will find many facts about his life and contributions to the world of botany.

The following link is another site for teachers, parents, and students to learn more about this great person in history.
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=George+Washington+Carver&FORM=BIFD#focal=981c1fc1559213cae3cee31c9868248d&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.teachnet-lab.org%2Fmiami%2F2005%2Flinero3%2Fpictures%2Fgeorge_washington_carver.gif

The following facts are from this site:

Carver developed an interest in helping poor African-American farmers. Farmers in the south worked on poor soil, depleted of nitrogen by the annual cotton crops. Carver and his colleagues taught the farmers how to retain nutrients in the soil by using a crop rotation, a system in which the cotton crop was alternated with other crops such as soybeans, sweet potatoes, and peanuts. Carver's crop rotation improved cotton yields and gave farmers additional crops from which they could earn money. In addition, Carver conducted numerous experiments on peanuts, soybeans, cowbeans and pecans, finding hundreds of practical uses for them including dyes, cosmetics, paints, plastics, and even gasoline.

Requirements:
When students create each weekly slide show presentation, they are to find 5 interesting facts about the person and place them on a slide either as bullets or in paragraph form. A photo of the person that they are learning about is also required.


“Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.”
George Washington Carver

We have 2 songs that help us with our biographies. One is a wrap that we insert the person's name and details. "Good ol' George! Good ol' George! Good ol' George we salute you!" starts off the first song.
The second song teaches students how to look for a biography in the library. (It helps to have been a librarian for many years.)

CROP-tacular!

Students will be creating a 'Crop Page' that they'll hyperlink to their individual "electronic student portfolio." This will be an extension to their "Student Power Point Portfolio.

On this page they will:

1. Name the crop (title)
2. List 5 facts about the crop (List as bullets, numbered, or in a paragraph)
   

Possible items to include within these facts:

• foods or items that this crop is used for
• where this crop is grown (you might also include a map)
  
• whether this crop is grown in our area
• a picture off the web (label: Soybeans)
  
• facts about the crop
• stories that may help you understand about the crop better (Little Red Hen)

Extended Possibilities For Extra Credit:

• Include a photo with you and the "crop" that you have chosen
• Bring this "crop" to school to show the class

Here's A List of Field Crops If you need some suggestions: (many I have never heard of...does anyone know of any ag experts from the area that would like to speak to our class)

Fiber, Fuel, Edible and Industrial Oils...

• Borage
• Broomcorn
• Canola
• Castor beans
• Comfrey
• Corn (for oil)
• Crambe
• Cuphea
• Flax
• Guayule
• Jojoba
• Kenaf
• Lesquerella
• Lupine
• Meadowfoam
• Milkweed
• Perilla
• Safflower
• Sesame
• Sunflowers
• Vernonia

Food Grains, Pseudocereals, Legumes, etc....

• Adzuki beans
• Amaranth (food and feed)
• Barley
• Buckwheat
• Dry edible beans (fieldbeans)
• Einkorn
• Emmer
• Field peas (food and feed)
• Garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• Hops
• Indian corn
• Jerusalem artichokes (food and feed)
• Kamut
• Lentils
• Malting barley
• Mung beans
• Organically grown grains of all types
• Peanuts
• Pearl millet
• Popcorn, white and colored
• Psyllium (medicinal)
• Quinoa
• Seed production - registered and certified seed, turfgrass, etc.
• Sesame (seeds)
• Sorghum (syrup)
• Soybeans, incl. natto soybeans for tofu, tempeh; and Edible soybeans (edamame)
• Spelt
• Triticale
• Wheatgrass
• Wild rice

Mystery Fruit or Vegetable

"Mystery and Vegetable Time" is a great way to focus on a variety of state standards in a variety of areas. Students who give the presentation need to find a fruit or vegetable and prepare a list of hints, and use their speaking skills to play their guessing game with their classmates.

Students begin by putting their fruit or vegetable in an opaque container. It is labeled Mystery Fruit or Mystery Vegetables on all four sides. The student may start off by asking for guesses before they give the first hint, (which is whether it's a fruit of vegetable.) They then face the label toward the class so they know the first clue. Only two students guess each time between clues.

Students are encouraged to use their math skills to share additional clues. They are to measure their produce, length, width, and height.. They can give clues as to comparing it to something else. (it's the size of a grape) They can weigh it and become familiar with terminology like pounds, ounces, grams, etc... If it's round they can measure the circumference of it.

They can give the color, information regarding the smell, what dishes it may be used in, and how it grows. When Yuki brought "kale," she shared that it was not a root vegetable. It is a leaf vegetable. I also added that Olive Garden has a wonderful soup that has kale in it called zoupa toskana. Students who guess the Mystery Fruit of Vegetable get to bring the mystery item the next day.

Look at all the way we described characteristics and used our predicting skills. They will learn to use descriptive words also.

This is the song we sing to add to our lesson:

It's a m-y-s-t-e-r-y
It's a mystery
I don't know what the veggie is (fruit)
I guess I'll have to see!
It's a m-y-s-t-e-r-y
It's a mystery
With the size, and weight, and shape

I'll guess what it could be!

You can also have students dress up and give them a musical entrance as they present their mystery item.

Isabel brought another vegetable we could not guess. It was "ginger root." The spice ginger, comes from the plant's rhizome, which is an underground stem.
Check out this link on all the wonderful ways you might assist your health by using this vegetable in your diet.http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/ginger-000246.htm

We're reading about Gail Gibbon's books of vegetables and pumpkins .http://www.gailgibbons.com/index.htm Ask your child if vegetables are usually annuals or perennials. http://www.gailgibbons.com/the_vegetables_we_eat.html

Music, Mud, and Movement at Elim

The residents of Elim Nursing Home along with the daycare children enjoy singing, playing instruments, dancing, and gardening (weather providing) once a week. I enjoy volunteering my time to add music to others' lives, and when we can get dirty in the garden, it makes it even better.

We sing song about science, history, geography, and praise the Lord. It's great to share stories of past presidents, how to eat healthy, and review the countries in Central and South America to keep our brains sharp. We sing about the Titanic, Pompeii, and the Dirty Thirties, to name a few.

Eleanor and John are awesome at the maracas. Eleanor said she use to play the guitar and that her brother was in a rock band many years ago. You go, girl!

ND Farm Bureau ...Farm Tours

Visit a farm on line! Chickens, bison, horses,goats, sheep... you name it!

Check out the following on-line:

http://ndfb.org/promotion/default.asp?ID=447

Have A "Rice" Day

www.freerice.com
is an international, viral sensation. Folks from Thailand to Germany and India are just as enthusiastic . . . improving thousands of lives, all with a simple, collective, click of a mouse.”
- CBS Evening News

freerice.com is a website that students can go on and gain more knowledge with every answer they answer and help feed the world. In my class, I often ask, "Did anyone help save the world last night?" Children often respond by telling me how many grains of rice they donated.

This program, a United Nations World Food Program, donates 10 grains of rice for every answer they get right. Subject areas are art, chemistry, vocabulary, grammar, countries, world capitals, languages including French, Italian, German, and Spanish, along with basic math, and multiplication.

Some days we head the the computer lab and "save the world" as we learn in school. Measuring, estimating, and calculating small mounds, medium mounds, and huge mounds of rice would be a great math activity.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDWcuBygAUw

Agriculture and Food Scientists

By planting a seed of encouragement today, we will reap the benefit of having scientists in the ag world tomorrow.

The work of agricultural and food scientists plays an important part in maintaining the Nation’s food supply by ensuring agricultural productivity and food safety. Agricultural scientists study farm crops and animals and develop ways of improving their quantity and quality. They look for ways to improve crop yield with less labor, control pests and weeds more safely and effectively, and conserve soil and water. They research methods of converting raw agricultural commodities into attractive and healthy food products for consumers. Some agricultural scientists look for ways to use agricultural products for fuels.

Pumpkin Season is Just Around The Corner

Our class is looking for pumpkins ...or even a pumpkin patch to visit and pick our own. Contact Mrs. B. by e-mail @ musicmovesmyclassroom@yahoo.com or on my school e-mail. We'll be studying studying pumpkins as part of our Ag In The Classroom studies. (Anything close to the Fargo-Moorhead area.)

Minnesota "Bison Farming"

On the way to the lake, we were only feet away from these beautiful animals. (especially since 4 bison were out of their fence)

Thank You Farmers!

Teach your students to appreciate the farming community. Expose them to lessons that will assist them to become more knowledgeable. ...and then "thank a farmer".

Letter Writing

http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/letter_generator/


Students need to know how to write a letter properly...and everyone loves to receive mail, so using the letter generator kills many birds with one stone.

Have your students brain storm and write letters on subject matter you are studying. They could write to the different restaurants in your area and ask about the nutritious values that may be on their menu. We always invite the many experts we write to, to visit our school as a guest speaker. Then we use our "meet and greet skills" with a welcoming committee when our guest comes.

Students can write to agricultural companies, like Monsanto, inquire about their innovative methods to produce crops, ask about environmental aspects related to their company, and job related questions.

Print the letter and send it when they're done.

Acrostic Poems

http://www.readwritethink.org/MATERIALS/ACROSTIC/

This is an awesome opportunity for students to write "acrostic poems." It puts the title in the proper place for your students, provides a place to brainstorm, and then physically situates the lettering of the topic so students can write their poem. It also gives the student suggestions of words that begin with the letter they need.
e.g. FARMING
Fun
Awesome
Resourceful
Many acres to farm
Interesting
Never a dull moment
Great way to make a living

When you're done using this poem generator, you press print, and it's a published work of art.

P.E.L. - - Plant - Eat - Learn

Schools are striving to improve our daily snacks. Good job to the government for providing snacks for low income schools, but what about the rest of our schools. We've encouraged parents to bring healthy snacks, but the prepackaged snacks with expiration dates of 2012 are still coming in on a regular basis.(Can you say "enough preservatives to kill a horse"?) I've tried all the options... Maybe if they bring their own snack, healthy food will be more affordable? Not true (chips and snack food still poured in)
So now, if parents would like to have your child involved in daily snack, it will be optional. Parents may sign up for the "P.E.L. Program". Students/parents will be encouraged to bring snacks that have been "planted" ....and then we'll "eat" and "learn" about what we're eating, and it's health benefits. Along with the healthy snack, students are required to bring 3 nutritional facts about their food. For example: a banana

Bananas:
The banana is of great nutritional value. It has a rare combination of energy value, tissue building elements, protein, vitamins and minerals. It is a good source of calories being richer in solids and lower in water content than any other fresh fruit. A large banana supplies more than 100 calories. It contains a large amount of easily digestible sugar, making it a good source of quick energy and an excellent means of recovery from fatigue.

Black Blizzard...The Dirty Thirties

In my class, we sing a song called "Black Blizzard". It tells the story about this tumultuous period in United States history, along with the history of our state's agricultural experiences. When school starts, I'll add the words to the song and a video of the kids singing.

Teaching About Germs

Teaching about germs can be fun with "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs". In the story, the wolf professes that he got into all the trouble he was in because of his cold...and we all know, we must stop the germs from spreading. I tell my students that the wolf was ordered by the judge to do community service and speak to school groups about how they can be more careful not to spread germs. (then they may prevent themselves from getting into the trouble that he got into)

I use a large wolf puppet (we made it when my daughter was doing her undergraduate work) and he talks and sings for the kids after I read the story to them.

We also do the "raw potato" germ experiment, journal in our science journals and collect our data.

The tune is from the Broadway musical "Cats".

Don't sneeze, on you neighbor, it's gross please
Grab a Kleenex and blow hard, pinch and wipe once again!
(pretend to blow your nose loudly)
Throw your germs out, and head to the sink, to wash your hands
Soap and hot water, and A-B-Cs.
repeat!

...and try not to sneeze
all over my knees
...I beg of you please

Rose's Journal

Rose's Journal by Marissa Moss is my favorite book about the Great Depression for children. It is filled with facts and feelings, and evokes a lot of emotions from the reader. (research shows: children learn, retain, and recall much more when this is taking place)