May TOSA Tribune

TOSA Tribune - May 09

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Introducing 2009-2010 Book Study BLOG

As of Thursday, May 7

9 Books Left

You are invited to join a book study blog! The first 25 Nixa teachers to register will receive this book for FREE. (You will need to complete the study to keep the book.) Read/Post from school or home on YOUR schedule. I've read the entire book ... cover to cover; this is one book study you won't want to miss! It's appropriate for ALL grade-levels.

• Book Ordering Information: http://www.allynbaconmerrill.com/
• Book Study Location: http://www.xyzbookstudy.blogspot.com/

XYZ Book Study Suggested Guidelines

Pace Yourself: YOU decide when and where to post; this is YOUR study! Once you post a reflection, lesson, question and/or story to each section, the book is yours to keep . . . if you were one of the first 25 Nixa teachers to register.

Postings: Dr. Allen has suggested reflections at the end of each section. You may choose to post reflections or stories, lesson ideas and/or questions regarding information. If you share stories, please omit students' names.

Other Postings: Consider reading other educators' postings and responding to their questions/comments.

NEW GLEs in Math, Science, Comm. Arts Next Year

Many of you are beginning preparations for next year; the GLEs have CHANGED in all subjects except Social Studies. The new GLEs for K-8 are linked below; Debby Money and I are busy updating EAT.

~Each GLE has the Depth of Knowledge expectation listed.

Mathematics

Communication Arts

Science

Oklahoma! Junior High Production

Nixa Junior High students will be performing Oklahoma! Thursday, April 23, and Friday, April 24, in the Junior High Auditorium at 7:00 P.M. I can't wait to see all their hard work pay off! Practice has been until 5:00 every night for what seems like weeks and weeks and weeks.

Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for students.

The adorable blond in the cowboy hat belongs to me. :)

Mr. Phillip's Sing-A-Long Science

Looking for science ideas? Mr. Phillips has an amazing site and is working with Marcia Tate on a new book called Science Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites. It will be released in 2010.

His Sing-A-Long Science songs are on I-Tunes, and his collection of guest videos from the last 25 years of teaching are being posted to his website through a Comcast grant next month.

You'll definitely want to check this out.

http://www.wphillips.com/

http://www.wphillips.com/scienceCDs.htm

Nixa Honored with Distinction in Performance for 7th Year

Video Compliments of Lori Elliott: http://www.lorislatestlinks.com/

Junior High One Act Play- Five Minute Scrapbook

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Blog Layout Changes

Changing your blog design is EASY. Click on dashboard; click on layout; click on pick new template. Choose Minima. (It's the top-left choice.) Save and exit.

Search http://www.thecutestblogontheblock.com/ for the free layout of your choice. Once you find it, copy the code. It says ... copy this code; you can't miss it.

In your blog, click on dashboard; click on layout; click add a gadget. Add the HTML gadget. Paste the code you copied here. Save and exit and your new design has been created.

It's that easy! Let me know if you run into trouble.

*I've learned NOT to change my font color when posting because you can go into the layout tab and change the font on all of your posts with the click of a button. This doesn't work on the ones I manually customized in initial postings. Now I just type in the compose tab and adjust later in the layout tab.

End of the Year Scrapbook Idea

Make a Smilebox scrapbook In a conversation last night, Lori told me about using Smilebox for last year's Christmas photo. She also has Mixbook on her Blog as a class scrapbooking idea. I haven't had a chance to try Mixbook, but I found Smilebox to be VERY EASY to use. Basically, you can create and post scrapbooks to your Blog for FREE! When viewing, be sure you click the right arrow so you can see all pages. I made this one in less than five minutes; I just uploaded some clip art from my files. If you make a real one of your class, let me know, I'd love to post it for others to see. If you want to print your scrapbook, there is a fee ... but Smilebox offers a 14 day FREE trial. If I read the printing page correctly, you can buy the design to own and reuse for $3.99 or pay a $5.99 monthly membership to make and print as many designs as you want. I know that I plan to FINALLY get my family photos off my computer and in a printed book this summer. Now, what should I do with all the UNUSED scrapbook products in my closet???

Periodic Table of Videos

http://www.periodicvideos.com/

Jefferson Memorial Virtual Tour

http://panoramas.dk/US/jefferson-memorial.html

Would you like a closer look at Niagara Falls, the Redwood Forest, the Space Shuttle Discovery Launch or the Golden Gate Bridge? Prepare to become a little dizzy. :)

http://panoramas.dk/US/index.html

Visual Learners - Graphics Galore

Eric Jensen showed this site at the January Brain Expo, and Brenda Power/Choice Literacy had the link in a recent e-mail. It's a collection of different graphic organizer examples.

http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html#

Reluctant Readers?

Have you ever heard students say, "I'm finished with this book. What should I read next?" If you're looking for ideas, check out this site: http://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/search

Team-Building Ideas/Names

Looking for teambuilding ideas? Check out this site:

• http://www.teampedia.net/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page

Looking for team name ideas? Check out this site:

• http://wags-softball.d4sportsclub.com/page.aspx?id=30

Spice Up Your Blog ... for FREE

Are you a blogger? Check out this site: http://www.thecutestblogontheblock.com/

It has TONS of FREE gadgets and layouts. Thanks, Tammy and Leslie, for sharing. You can also download and save images like the one above to use in your classroom newsletters.

(I had to go to layout - change new template - minima before I could get the gadget with the HTML code to work.)

I Will Survive Alien Song - humor for teachers :)

Do you ever have days like this? Hopefully they're few and far between.

Investigations Conference Registration Information

Investigations

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July 15 Investigations Brochure

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In-district and out-of-district participants are welcome to attend.

Don't Worry ... Be Happy by the Chipmunks

Thanks, Karen Capen, for sharing the Don't Worry, Be Happy idea! :)

Hakuna Matada ... on the M.A.P. Test

I stopped by Leah Plumley's room this morning just as her students were preparing to 'Hakuna Matada.' I enjoyed seeing their smiling faces in preparation for M.A.P. and thought I'd share the idea with you. :)

Gallon Story

This is a fantastic, brain-friendly strategy to help students remember standard measurement conversions found on-line and tweaked by two of Nixa's own amazing teachers, Connie Hunt and Angie McGuirk.

While you're telling the story below, draw the object above.

In the Land of Gallon, there were four giant Queens. Each Queen had a Princess and a Prince. Each Princess and Prince had two children who were twins. The twins were 8 years old.

Objective:
4 quarts = 1 gallon
8 pints = 1 gallon
16 cups = 1 gallon
128 ounces = 1 gallon
2 pints = 1 quart
4 cups = 1 quart

In the Land of Gallon, (Draw the giant “G”) G = gallon

there were four giant Queens. (We say giant Queens so the kids will draw the “Q’s” large enough) Q = quarts

Each Queen had a Princess and a Prince. (Inside each Q draw two “P’s”) P = pints

Each Princess and Prince had two Children, twins. (Inside each P make two “C’s”) C = cups

The twins were 8 years old. (Inside each C write the number “8”) 8 = 8 ozs. in one cup

Dogmatic - Weighty Word Book - Storytelling

The Weighty Word Book by Paul M. Levitt, Douglas A. Burger and Elissa S. Guralnick is FINALLY back in print through University of New Mexico Press. http://www.unmpress.com/Book.php?id=11976041903490

It's chalk-full of fantastic stories that teach vocabulary words. Do you know the meaning of these words? The authors have written a story for each one ... and others too.

• abasement
  
• bifurcate
  
• coruscate
  
• dogmatic
  
• expedient
  
• felicity
  
• geriatrics
  
• heresy
  
• ingratiate
  
• juxtapose
  
• ...
  

This is most of the dogmatic story:

In the deep, warm fur of a dog named Shadrack, there lived a family of ticks: a mother, a father, and their daughter, Polly. The ticks had a contented, happy home in Shadrack's fur. Shadrack never scratched himself, rolled over or took a bath. So the ticks enjoyed a close family life, until one day . . .

On that day, little Polly Tick climbed out of Shadrack's fur and snuggled into his mat. . .

Polly's father could not understand . . .

Her father was crushed. "Isn't there anything I can do to convince you to come home?" he asked.

Polly said, "No!"

"Why?" asked her father.

"Because," Polly answered, "I believe that I am right and you are wrong."

"And I believe," replied her father sternly, "that you are being stubborn and strong-willed! I see that you will never change your mind. There's no use reasoning with you, now that you've become a dog-mat tick."

So, when people will not change their opinions because they are stubborn, like Polly, who left home to become a dog-mat tick, those people are called dogmatic.

• Weighty Word Too was also just published. It's a new book, but if it's anything like the first one, it will be entertaining and informational!

April TOSA Tribune

TOSA Tribune - April 09

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