The Marshmallow Challenge

Friday we worked on a STEM project that helps develop the 4C's: Collaboration, Communication, Creativity, and Critical Thinking. It was The Marshmellow Challenge. Students were given 4 items: spaghetti, string, tape, and a marshmellow. The challenge was to build the tallest freestanding tower in 18 minutes and the marshmellow had to be on the top of the tower! It was fun to see all the different ideas! Ask your child how they felt about this challenge.

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Making a Connection and Building Community

Today we worked on getting to know each other better as a way to connect with each other and build a positive class communiity. The kids worked hard to draw and write about themsleves. We will be sharing these with our buddies in kindergarten next week. We also worked on learning to have good conversations with each other using "turn and talk" and being good listeners and precise speakers.

The Grove-Glenview

The students had an incredible time learning what it was like to be a Native American child living on the prairie in Illinois! Our trip to the Grove was a huge success! Students took part in hands-on activities in a replica of a Native American longhouse. The Potawatomi Indians used The Grove environment prior to the arrival of the Kennicott family. This unique program explored how this group of people lived and impacted the land, and looks closely at their culture and heritage. Topics included the importance of communal living, procurement, and processing of foods and medicine, tool use, singing and dancing, handiwork and games.

Take a look at some highlights from our week ~ It was busy and exciting!

Monday: Math: We started our mental math unit this week! It is one of my favorite unit in math. Here are some reasons why: 3 Reasons to Use Mental Math I am a huge advocate of mental math. However, there was a time when I questioned what the big deal about mental math was. I was one of those teachers who firmly believed that students should learn how to add and subtract using carrying and borrowing, and that was that! Well, was I ever wrong. When I began teaching mental math, I was astonished at the growth that students experienced. Students who were not “mathematical thinkers” suddenly “got it!” And the students who were already mathematical thinkers became even quicker with their facts! For those of you who are wondering why you should start teaching it, here are three good reasons. 1. Mental Math encourages actual understanding, not just memorization. When you teach students how to add an equation such as 19+23 using carrying, you are teaching a seri...

Mrs. Katchen's Class 2017-18

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