We started our new unit by peering into a mystery treasure chest full of various items. Students discovered a backpack, compass, camera, notebook, passport, library card, flashlight, and many other items.  Students inferred that someone who travels or explores uses all of these items.  They also came up with the idea that people explore so they can discover!  They came very close to the central idea of the unit.  

Central Idea:  People explore our world which leads to new discoveries and understanding.  
                    Lines of Inquiry
               Why people explore
                                                                   How people explore
                                                      The impact exploration has on the world

Some of our initial inquiries are:  Who were the first explorers?  Who are Lewis and Clark?  Where did they go?  What did they discover?  Who has explored space?  How do people explore?  How does the compass work?  Who are the explorers we will learn about during this unit?  Who explored Hawaii first?  

During this unit we will learn about many explorers; from Lewis and Clark, John Glenn, Sacajawea, Jacques Cousteau, Captain Cook and more.  Students will keep their new learning organized on a graphic organizer.  We will also conduct inquiries on maps and compasses.  Part of the summative assessment  is for students to make an accurate map (using all of the features of a map- compass rose, coordinates, legend, etc… )  Students will also take on the role of explorer and document their new discoveries during the unit.   
  Please consider being a guest speaker and sharing your own journey of exploration.  A short 15-20 minute presentation addressing the experiences and joy of discovering would enhance our unit. 

Upcoming Field Trips 
February 8th- Bishop Museum 
February 14th- Windward Aerospace Lab 

I am attending IB/ PYP Academy training in Savannah, Georgia from January 30- February 4.  Your children are in the very capable hands of Ms. Barina for the next few days.  If you have any questions or concerns  please communicate with her through the student planner.  Thank you for your support!  

The students have worked hard to synthesize their new knowledge about our Sharing the Planet unit.    Please check out the informative brochure on your child's blog!  *You must use a computer for viewing, the iPad doesn't seem to support the embedded document.   A hard copy will be sent home next week.  

We are working on our portraits in art class.

We are learning about the features of nonfiction text. We studied pictures with the captions covered up. We recorded our inferences, observations and inquiries. When we read the captions we wrote down our new learning and shared it with our classmates. We will continue to examine the important features of nonfiction text.

We are having fun writing fantasy stories describing our life as a worm.

We are working on putting the final touches on our Sharing the Planet brochures. Look for these on our blogs soon!

It is a short week so there will not be a word check up.. We will be "exploring" our new unit this week. More details coming soon!

I hope everyone had a wonderful vacation! It is great to be back! This week we are learning about-
*the features of non fiction text
*math, algebra
*words with ar. WORD STUDY TEST FRIDAY
*preparing for our summative assessment task- designing a brochure that teaches people one way they can conserve and maintain healthy soil

Check out our "Twitter Talk! We wrote about our memories of 2012 and our goals for the new year.

Reminder- Field Trip Friday