tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9450591312284211942024-02-07T17:37:40.573-08:00Mrs. Walker's Frog-Tastic BlogA place to read about frog-tastic children's books read by Mrs. Walker (former 4th grade teacher)!Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-72756478132543984812010-09-03T05:56:00.000-07:002010-09-03T08:59:16.765-07:00Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlUfPA7ET6_jVxmaJEWa6eOz_Xao6kBERg2hj5ctY7Kjqiw6IBHITrjaRojFnMGPlsxd6gDpujFnMT5hfmZdBjwBz3PHfChKHXZFirD_zZScCasCF7fVW9qEz-hjOQJdWCJ1gjG_C6zdA/s1600/Mockingjay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlUfPA7ET6_jVxmaJEWa6eOz_Xao6kBERg2hj5ctY7Kjqiw6IBHITrjaRojFnMGPlsxd6gDpujFnMT5hfmZdBjwBz3PHfChKHXZFirD_zZScCasCF7fVW9qEz-hjOQJdWCJ1gjG_C6zdA/s320/Mockingjay.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Okay, I so I pre-ordered <u>Mockingjay</u> from Scholastic back in April. I could not wait to read it! Not only should I have pre-ordered it from Amazon instead, but I don't know if it was really worth pre-ordering!</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">Don't get me wrong... I absolutely LOVED <u>The Hunger Games</u>. I read that book and was absolutely amazed at the writing and how vivid it was. I felt like I was there with Katniss and experienced so much emotion as she entered the games. I think I read the book in record speed and could not wait to get my hands on <u>Catching Fire</u>.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">When I started reading <u>Catching Fire</u>, maybe a few days had passed after finishing <u>The Hunger Games</u>. I was a little disappointed at how <u>The Hunger Games</u> ended with such an incredible ending that made you HAVE to read more, and then <u>Catching Fire</u> picked up and basically ignored the WOW ending of <u>The Hunger Games</u>. </span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">I eventually found myself even more perplexed by <u>Catching Fire</u> and I was hooked yet again! I had started to love <u>Catching Fire</u> even more than <u>The Hunger Games</u> and when it ended I literally said, "OMG!!!" and couldn't wait for <u>Mockingjay</u> to come out in August.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">So the decision to pre-order was a no-brainer. I got a nifty little Mockingjay pin (like the one Katniss wears in the book) and I was pleased that I could use my bonus points to pre-order it, AND it would be sent to my house instead of to my school. All seemed like a good deal until the 24th came and I still didn't have my book. Friends that pre-ordered through Amazon had theirs and were already reading the book before I had mine. I was very disappointed with Scholastic.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">Never-the-less, my book finally arrived and I was able to dive right in. It was tough trying to read while having Gus (three months old), but I managed to give up some of my smut tv and DVR for some reading time.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">My disappointment comes from being so anxious to read <u>Mockingjay</u> and find out what happened to all my favorite characters, only to have it start like <u>Catching Fire</u>. I don't, for the life of me, know why Suzanne Collins didn't pick up where <u>Catching Fire</u> left off. Once again, we fast-forwarded and then had to work backward with some retelling of what happened, instead of leading us through the action from the point that <u>Catching Fire</u> ended.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">So that's my first issue with the book. My second BIG issue is that it was so violent. I'm okay with the mature content of the first two books, but this book was over the top with violence, gore, and unnecessary grossness. I was unhappy about that because I know there are kids in fifth and sixth grade that will be reading this, and unfortunately, if I had to give it a rating, I'd say PG-13. </span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">The third issue I have is that I honestly didn't like the plot of this book. It was up and down and I just didn't like some of the things that happened-- it had already been done in the first or second book and I wanted to see something new, but instead it was more of the same, without even a twist. I also HATED how Peeta's character was changed through this last book. </span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">Everyone used the "Team Gale or Team Peeta" slogan through the first and second books and it worked. In this book... it was just a sham. I have been Team Peeta all along, but I felt robbed of the fun that I experienced in the first two books. The relationships that Suzanne Collins worked so hard to establish in the first two books were basically ignored in this book. I felt like some really good things could have happened but didn't, and then there's the ending.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">The ending of this book was horrible. Just absolutely 100% horrible. It just didn't have any zing left to it and it honestly felt like Suzanne Collins got sick of writing and just ended it. It reminded me of how my fourth graders would write these awesome beginnings, pretty interesting middles and then their stories would just immediately end. Except, Suzanne Collins writes a prologue that I think she wrote to try to please readers, but it fell SOOOO short.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">I'd give this book three out of five frogs. It lacked a lot and didn't live up to the hype. It's sad that the first two books led readers on a wonderful adventure and made you hope for something amazing to happen and then you were just dropped off in the middle of no where in the third book. Very disappointing.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">This book is not for anyone under 13 in my opinion. Parents, you better read it first if you're going to let your child read it. I know I said this about the first book... but I think the first book had some things that parents could talk to their kids about and it'd make for some great parent-child dialogue about war, and injustice. This one... just doesn't do that. It's a lot of extra violence thrown in for no reason.</span></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><strong><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana;">Hoppy reading!</span></strong>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-25829187845374612052010-08-12T05:55:00.000-07:002010-08-12T05:56:25.478-07:00The Butt Book by Artie Bennett<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZv6xq4qIS87I-9xBQdDjV22ZvuYnc1kK6OWf5IoXq_Zbmj46nrje_a0FQmWqV5BAhJPMAy3oTje8_6ptIASNae46kn8aN5_5ZBmY9GCb_0kee8HkRhStRmIOLGEktyXWQKYHWdu-t1Kc/s1600/The+Butt+Book.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZv6xq4qIS87I-9xBQdDjV22ZvuYnc1kK6OWf5IoXq_Zbmj46nrje_a0FQmWqV5BAhJPMAy3oTje8_6ptIASNae46kn8aN5_5ZBmY9GCb_0kee8HkRhStRmIOLGEktyXWQKYHWdu-t1Kc/s320/The+Butt+Book.jpg" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My...my...my it's been a LONG time since I blogged about a book!! What have my fans been doing since April?? I'm sure they've been waiting with anticipation for my next review! LOL</span></strong></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
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<div><strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Before I go much further, let me just say how much I love reading children's books and then writing a blog about them! My goal is to get back on top of things so that I can do this more regularly!</span></strong><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana;">Artie Bennett himself contacted me about reading and reviewing his book, The Butt Book. I was thrilled! A real-life author wanted ME to read and review HIS book? Are you kidding me?? I was so delighted to get the book into my hands and read it. He even inscribed it to me! How lucky am I?? So... I promised him that I'd read it and write a review, and I was hoping that I'd like it, because how weird would that have been?? Anyway, here are my thoughts on this book!</span></strong></div><div><strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></strong></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
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<div><strong><span style="color: #009900;"><a href="http://www.artiebennett.com/book.html"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The Butt Book </span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">is absolutlely AWESOME!! It's a rhyming book and is so darn cute! I think every teacher should have this in their classroom library and I PROMISE you that kids would be signing a waiting list to read it! It's not gross or disgusting, it's very clever and tells about the importance of butts. I laughed thoughout the book and even read it aloud to my husband. He laughed aloud as well!</span></span></strong><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana;">I think anyone with a sense of humor will LOVE this book. It's perfect for third-fifth graders and would make an awesome birthday or holiday gift. Definitely check it out!!</span></strong><br />
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<strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana;">Hoppy reading!!</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #009900; font-family: Verdana;">Mrs. Walker</span></strong></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-21144476917753862042010-04-26T05:49:00.000-07:002010-04-26T06:12:36.427-07:00Choose Your Own Adventure Series<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choose_Your_Own_Adventure"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 327px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464428113749270738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY0txBooB4Uz62soQsZxnW1LlqXh92Ivnti_X48e_xlDfDUWmoKe_eZYQf_V71BsvAIxCvAytcjylLGQCAYjH8QcC3cLwSM5oFEsNqRrFLOiOsv3fUc2XfZj2uePhI2CggrVFFfByHDo4/s400/Choose+Your+Own+Adventure+Books.jpg" /></a> <span style="font-family:verdana;color:#990000;">When I was in fourth and fifth grade (1985ish), I discovered a series of books called "<em><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_k2k_2?ie=UTF8&keywords=choose%20your%20own%20adventure%20books&index=blended&pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0553269658&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=15WK5E2MHWSCQWHBB2FY"><span style="color:#3333ff;">Choose Your Own Adventure</span></a></strong></em>." These books were amazing because you usually only read the first two or three pages, and then you were forced to make a choice that pertained to the plot. It was awesome to see how the plot unfolded based on my choices. There were hundreds of these books written and published between 1979 and 1998. Edward Packard is one of the authors that wrote over 50 different <em><strong>Choose Your Own Adventure</strong></em> books.</span><br /><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#990000;">The thing that I liked the most about these books was that I got to choose the actions of the characters, and if I didn't like how it ended, I could go back and make a different choice. There were always between 20-30 different possible endings in each book, and some were good, and some were bad.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#990000;">I brought in a few of the duplicates that I had from my childhood into my classroom. The books have been sitting all year without anyone reading them. So, we were at track out week and I had just finished reading <em><strong>Big Nate</strong>,</em> and I didn't want to start a new book that I wouldn't be able to finish in a week. So, I decided to grab a book from the <em><strong>Choose Your Own Adventure</strong></em> basket. My students weren't sure what to make of the choice, but once I started to read it and they were able to choose where the character went next, they were hooked!</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#990000;">I absolutely LOVE exposing my students to new genres and authors. I soon found out that there are <em><strong>Choose Your Own Adventure</strong></em> books that were published between 2005 and 2010! One of my students went to the local library and brought in a few copies of the newer versions. While they have the same concept, I do not like the newer ones. Mainly because there are fewer choices and more reading. One of the books that I read (that she had brought in) was called <em><strong>Track Star</strong></em>. This book started off with me reading... and reading... and reading... and then there was finally a choice for the kids to make (after like five pages of reading). We made the choice and I read... and read... and read... and then the end happened. From one choice! The same thing happened when I read <strong>Terror on the Titanic</strong>.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#990000;">So... my suggestion would be to check out Amazon.com or eBay to see if you can find some of the older versions of these books (if you're interested). There's also a series similar to this by <em><strong>Goosebumps</strong></em> called "<strong><em>Reader Beware, You Choose the Scare.</em></strong>" My kids like those too because they're a little on the creepy side.</p></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="color:#990000;">Hoppy Reading!!<br /><em>Mrs. Walker</em></span></span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz2TOV5Z20ZndH0IbEydjcEWGtGjyYfdFx76HoEk-g2faDmLw6nvKgTIe3TrKlLDYKzqXqMkd5sSi6x_iYsVHjU48jUT4SVCo1pVKyzUJxIr5Hz1pN-z64w8IOfTSveEKffGnwCcFAZHw/s1600/Choose+Your+Own+Adventure.jpg"></a><br /><br /><div></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-13766392370844809262010-04-10T14:48:00.000-07:002010-04-10T15:11:18.526-07:00Big Nate: In A Class By Himself by Lincoln Peirce<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0YUWq2NrjDQZcKNye6_9UirrbR4nHX05wn9PKA3y1kiSQzNOFvapwF-JymCfALDMlTq_E7Id5vtBd0crFkpTd6eQvwq_2F2cYs8vDye9q1cm6UicSQsE407tQVxtOdGz-7VZdiKIZtI/s1600/Big+Nate-+In+A+Class+By+Himself.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 115px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 115px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458629879192420018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0YUWq2NrjDQZcKNye6_9UirrbR4nHX05wn9PKA3y1kiSQzNOFvapwF-JymCfALDMlTq_E7Id5vtBd0crFkpTd6eQvwq_2F2cYs8vDye9q1cm6UicSQsE407tQVxtOdGz-7VZdiKIZtI/s400/Big+Nate-+In+A+Class+By+Himself.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"><strong>I found this book at the Book Fair that my school had a few weeks ago. I had not noticed it when I first went in with my class, and I don't think any of my students noticed it either. The fair ended on Tuesday, and on Monday I received a $10 gift certificate. I went down on Tuesday and saw Big Nate: In A Class By Himself and immediately picked it up. It looked exactly like something my fourth graders would LOVE!!</strong></span><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">Big Nate is about a middle schooler named Nate and he is always getting detentions. His teacher is named Mrs. Godfrey and is AWFUL! Nate has a best friend named Francis and another good friend named Teddy. Together the three of them take each day as they come, and fill the days with laughter. My girls and boys both enjoyed this as a read aloud.</span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">You can read portions of this book here: <a href="http://browseinside.harpercollinschildrens.com/index.aspx?isbn13=9780061944345"><span style="color:#ff0000;">http://browseinside.harpercollinschildrens.com/index.aspx?isbn13=9780061944345</span></a></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"><strong>Anyway, I hope you find this review helpful! I think 4th-7th graders would enjoy this book the most and while it's primarily for boys, girls can and will enjoy the humor as much as boys will!!</strong></span><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">Hoppy Reading!</span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span></strong>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-53372487963553292202010-04-03T08:52:00.001-07:002010-04-03T09:01:23.049-07:00Sweet Farts by Raymond Bean<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOgZUqKHVCnKS-XkkQ-D70U71tYhj_zikpVHMmIDn7-uoOhEL8a-bJAvm02pVsEntlkF3jeXDYhVYqhqRNjhhKqvr6lVOiX5VL13MD_YGVpfVh3UdA4GK3x-Kl_e4RazccEDzgxtgswo/s1600/Sweet+Farts.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 87px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 133px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455939755932871298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOgZUqKHVCnKS-XkkQ-D70U71tYhj_zikpVHMmIDn7-uoOhEL8a-bJAvm02pVsEntlkF3jeXDYhVYqhqRNjhhKqvr6lVOiX5VL13MD_YGVpfVh3UdA4GK3x-Kl_e4RazccEDzgxtgswo/s400/Sweet+Farts.jpg" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;">I decided to read the book Sweet Farts to my class a few months ago and they LOVED it! I have to admit that there were quite a few parts where I couldn't help but laugh out loud at how funny it was! I do teach fourth graders (who by nature are gassy) and I do admit that I have a <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">juvenile</span> sense of humor. Now when a student passes gas in my class, I usually remind them to say excuse me, but that's it. I think I've only laughed maybe three times in my ten years as a teacher, and all three <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">warranted</span> a laugh.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;">So when I introduced the book Sweet Farts to my class, they were instantly hooked, just from the title. The story was actually really good though and my kids thoroughly enjoyed it as a read aloud. It's definitely appropriate humor for grades 3-6 and fourth and fifth graders would be the targeted audience for this book.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;">I liked the book because the main character has the problem of figuring out something to research for his science fair. He decides to focus on gas and finding something that a person can eat to make the smell of their gas less gross. He has to test his theory and use various things from the scientific method to test his hypothesis, but it's quite humorous as he goes through the process. He ends up discovering that he's not the first in history to ever try to find something to make gas more pleasant. His thoughts are if gas didn't smell so bad, it wouldn't be a big deal to pass gas in public. This all comes from a boy in his class that farts and then blames him. The whole class thinks he farted and everyone blames him.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;">If you're a teacher who is "above" talking about gas, or thinks it's disgusting and rude and a dirty habit, this book is NOT for you. I tend to be more light-hearted with my kids and I don't mind laughing with them when it's appropriate. They thoroughly enjoyed this book and actually learned something about the scientific method at the same time.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#3333ff;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Hoppy</span> Reading!</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;font-size:130%;color:#3333ff;">Mrs. Walker</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-32722450708872310612010-04-02T07:02:00.000-07:002010-04-02T07:16:40.452-07:00The Dork Diaries: Tales of a Not-So-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renee Russell<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCjRyLNXc6geXfSnKJPFdDcoiMH6_1ikjlHsPhDEIFsefG6T9RvQHFAR23R3tiIT4p6iE_KiYnNbRKyuHMcLKf2KmMbf4d79Vyj_jQ-kGtWsfaY42c00_08mOkB4jWAvPLfqaEawBpBc0/s1600/Dork+Diaries.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 103px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 149px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455540578757419314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCjRyLNXc6geXfSnKJPFdDcoiMH6_1ikjlHsPhDEIFsefG6T9RvQHFAR23R3tiIT4p6iE_KiYnNbRKyuHMcLKf2KmMbf4d79Vyj_jQ-kGtWsfaY42c00_08mOkB4jWAvPLfqaEawBpBc0/s400/Dork+Diaries.jpg" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">So my school just had our 15th Annual Scholastic Book Fair and it was a HUGE success! I love the book fair because I love books and I love Scholastic books in particular, so it's the best of two things! I love being able to touch the books and read the back and really browse them as if I were at a book store. I love the Scholastic Book Orders but you can't touch the books. </span></div><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">Anyway, I make a HUGE deal about the book fair with my students. They know I'm crazy about books and I love to go to the preview with them and really check out the books. The kids get to create "wish lists" to take home and share with their parents and then hopefully come back to school with money to buy some of the books on their list. My school also has a big family night centered around the book fair (with face painting, various games and activity rooms, and teachers reading aloud) and it brings in a lot of families and books get purchased! </span></div><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">While the kids are making their wish lists, I make one as a teacher. This year I received quite a lot of books that I had selected for my wish list. When the last day of the fair arrives, I usually go down and buy some of the books that weren't purchased for me. This year I bought numerous books, but one stood out for me and I began reading it for read aloud this week. It's called Dork Diaries and when I first saw it and looked through it, the first thing that I thought of was Diary of a Wimpy Kid.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><a href="http://www.dorkdiaries.com/"><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#cc33cc;">http://www.dorkdiaries.com/</span></a></div><div> </div><div><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">The book is like a Diary of a Wimpy Kid told through a middle school girl instead of a middle school boy. I wasn't sure if my boys would like it, but I was wrong! It's very funny, has awesome illustrations, and totally engages both boys and girls! </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">I highly recommend this book to kids in 4th-8th grade, though I think 4th-6th is the group that will appreciate the humor most.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">The basic plot revolves around a girl named Nikki and her struggles to fit in. She is a new studnet without any friends and she ends up making friends and deals with a mean girl named Mackenzie.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">There's a second book coming out in June called The Dork Diaries: Tales From a Not-So-Popular Party Girl. You can bet that I'll be buying that one!! Rachel Renee Russell is currently working on book three and has plans for a fourth book in the series!! Get on board now and enjoy the whole series as it unfolds!!</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-69022304318281697332010-04-02T06:47:00.000-07:002010-04-02T07:01:25.711-07:00Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNIcg4MnAFjwGAdnnG_AqyeJ4aH3UV_Uahlu9MWSreG-NpsLW65d4-EBUGb-uH311cImivFNRTaew7ArjUg9QUQgOL7SEpprSJTuFVqZ3MrO3vxDo4qDBxCnsyoW372noku2HcxctmjaE/s1600/Catching+Fire.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 99px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455538786749471762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNIcg4MnAFjwGAdnnG_AqyeJ4aH3UV_Uahlu9MWSreG-NpsLW65d4-EBUGb-uH311cImivFNRTaew7ArjUg9QUQgOL7SEpprSJTuFVqZ3MrO3vxDo4qDBxCnsyoW372noku2HcxctmjaE/s400/Catching+Fire.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="color:#3333ff;">This is the second book in <em>The Hunger Games</em> trillogy. I had hoped that it would start up exactly where <em>The Hunger Games</em> had left off, but it didn't, well not exactly. I started reading this thinking that I knew what was going to happen (sort of) because I had read <em>The Hunger Games</em>. However, I was wrong! This book takes the reader on another unexpected journey, just as <em>The Hunger Games</em> did. I wasn't expecting the plot to twist and turn and keep me reading more! </span><br /><span style="color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="color:#3333ff;">I still hold firm that this book is NOT for elementary readers. Not even mature readers in 5th grade. I think this should remain a hidden jewel reserved for middle schoolers, teens, and adults. I've recommended it to several teachers that I work with and they are devouring it as quickly as I did! I am now waiting in anticipation for the last book <em>Mockingjay</em> to come out in August!!</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-81460694321576947982010-03-02T13:47:00.000-08:002010-03-02T13:55:06.238-08:00The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh75U9mCrlPQJSJVhXcJzgvz5ccgLxYgm_Lj67I0XPp1E3E7tXuiB0OEbn5mwsm_UIPiUrS8_EMm7Qd3-CaOAlWf2YmY9s60V3Rx6WPBWVwH95a590tBL9kIhd6dYjV6SVe5XyoBffL1yU/s1600-h/The+Hunger+Games.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 90px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 135px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444156710662433298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh75U9mCrlPQJSJVhXcJzgvz5ccgLxYgm_Lj67I0XPp1E3E7tXuiB0OEbn5mwsm_UIPiUrS8_EMm7Qd3-CaOAlWf2YmY9s60V3Rx6WPBWVwH95a590tBL9kIhd6dYjV6SVe5XyoBffL1yU/s400/The+Hunger+Games.jpg" /></a><br /><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">So I had never heard of this book before this past weekend. While in New York for the Scholastic Teacher Advisors weekend, I met two middle school teachers who told me about this book. They both raved about it and when we all had dinner together, one of the Scholastic book club editors was telling me about the plot, I decided to give it a shot. I cannot believe I almost didn't read this book.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">I will not give away too much, but I will say it's one of the most powerful stories that I've ever read. I am so attached and connected to the main character, and I honestly feel for her. I am not finished reading the book, but I wanted to blog about it because I think it's amazing. It's hands down, one of the best books that I've ever read, and I'm only on page 200. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">There's a second book called Catching Fire, and then the last book Mocking Jay isn't released yet (August). I cannot wait to see what will happen in the books to come.</span></div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">This isn't a book that I would recommend for children in elementary school. The concepts are too mature, but I think some middle schoolers would appreciate the book and it would be a great read aloud for older children. </span></div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games">Review of The Hunger Games</a></span></div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">I give this two thumbs up!! </span></div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">Hoppy Reading!</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-13950777862429322622010-02-22T12:18:00.001-08:002010-02-22T12:22:20.056-08:00Maniac MaGee by Jerry Spinelli<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih2UpAEOUhULQEDBL2GfOy55oPO-A7W7XXsNAeQVbxNcCDIPDIo4rHeuRpVKQp7uvfmxFvVCMuBqavKlhn06eZkoVT9P_LjazBQYct9a-I9tYrpT0f2Cgs9rVuzGqjryTWnaZs-18-tTg/s1600-h/Maniac+MaGee.jpg"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441164835868451906" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 91px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 134px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih2UpAEOUhULQEDBL2GfOy55oPO-A7W7XXsNAeQVbxNcCDIPDIo4rHeuRpVKQp7uvfmxFvVCMuBqavKlhn06eZkoVT9P_LjazBQYct9a-I9tYrpT0f2Cgs9rVuzGqjryTWnaZs-18-tTg/s400/Maniac+MaGee.jpg" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;">Maniac MaGee is a wonderful book about a young man who is unfortunate enough to not have a home or family of his own. He becomes a legend of his own right, and makes quite a name for himself. This book is in three different parts, and each one builds up to the final adventure of his life.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;">I think this book would be appropriate for children in grades 4-6 and has some complex themes. There are things that happen to Maniac that the reader will read about and hurt for Jeffrey "Maniac" MaGee.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;">The book has a great ending and is told with ease. It doesn't take a lot of effort to read, and the reader will want to read more. My fourth graders really enjoyed this book and couldn't wait to hear the next chapter!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;">Hoppy reading!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:#000099;">Mrs. Walker</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-46304022437910563952010-02-20T07:18:00.000-08:002010-02-20T08:38:43.227-08:00Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPbVv9jJbRUcxCpFzfdG8ERTITKmEHGYum64mxfoBb3Rj2zK05jYXMR6ImhpEpYmsJYpionFeqs27LT4viXKhjfdEwqeOpLaXP9GUfh1mIXstALEgTcqGjqpS7p4I7nYFMP9Ju2piDX8w/s1600-h/Skeleton+Creek.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 94px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 145px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440345999558234610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPbVv9jJbRUcxCpFzfdG8ERTITKmEHGYum64mxfoBb3Rj2zK05jYXMR6ImhpEpYmsJYpionFeqs27LT4viXKhjfdEwqeOpLaXP9GUfh1mIXstALEgTcqGjqpS7p4I7nYFMP9Ju2piDX8w/s400/Skeleton+Creek.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> <span style="color:#3333ff;">Age Level: 4-8</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="color:#3333ff;">Interesting Facts: This book is an interactive book! You read the novel and also watch videos that are found on the internet, that go with the plot. </span></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="color:#3333ff;">Skeleton Creek is an incredible book!! I found that several of my fourth graders were totally scared after the first video, so they opted not to be in the room while I read it aloud. It's not for all kids, but the ones that can handle it-- absolutely LOVE it!</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">I think I like it so much because it's the type of media that this generation of kids will totally eat up. They are the tech-savvy generation and this book uses the website with the plot and it's a perfect marriage. It's amazing that this hasn't been done before this point! I definitly think this is the new trend in books and I can't wait to read more!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">The basic plot is that a boy named Ryan and his best friend Sarah decide to poke around the "old dredge" and end up getting more than they bargained for. The book is written as Ryan's journal and has various entries and they're all dated. Ryan's parents have forbidden him from seeing or communicating with Sarah and so they get around this (as all teens do) by emails and videos. Sarah uses her webcam to send messages to Ryan, which are viewed on her website that goes with the book.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">They end up biting off more than they can chew and the book ends with a shocking ending that leaves the reader with tons of questions and the excitement to read the second book Ghost in the Machine.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">I highly recommend this book and think that it's one of the all-time most favorite books of my students. I think fifth and sixth graders would love it the most!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">Hoppy Reading!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#3333ff;">Mrs. Walker</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-35640514770421699942010-02-20T07:12:00.000-08:002010-02-20T07:17:32.513-08:00Scholastic<span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">As many of you know, I've been selected to be one of Scholastic's Teacher Advisors for the 2010-2011 school year! I'm so honored and thrilled to be apart of such a wonderful company and can't wait for my trip to New York City next Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday!</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">Two women came to my classroom on Thursday to spend the day with me and my students and it was great. One is the editor of the Arrow Book Club and the other is the editor of the speciality catalogs (social studies, math and science, united we read, etc.). They also brought lunch for my entire staff at school and spent some time talking to the different people that I have the pleasure of working with. It was amazing!</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">While in my classroom talking, they suggested that I blog about my favorite books... and I thought about it. I mean, I have this blog, but why not use it to talk about one of my most favorite things... books?? So that's what I'm going to do (or at least attempt to do this). I'm going to pick a book and write a little about it and tell why I love it so much. I'm going to start with a new entry (after this)... so leave me some love about what you think!!</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">:)</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#3333ff;">Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-41350818858183174412009-09-13T06:10:00.000-07:002009-09-13T06:12:22.835-07:00Question for Monday 9-14-09<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">I'd like you to tell me about your favorite thing to eat for breakfast. If you could eat anything, absolutely anything at all, what would you have for breakfast?</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-47621457902286281252009-09-13T05:54:00.000-07:002009-09-13T05:57:05.058-07:00Using Blogging With My Students<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;">I don't think I realized how difficult it would be to show my kids how to blog, and have them blog in my classroom. Every blogging site that I looked at requires students to have their own email address. This is a HUGE problem when my county does not give my kids their own email to use. </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;">I think I found a way to get around this, but I'm not sure. I wanted to use this blog for my kids to comment on various topics, and to get their opinions out there and to share their thoughts/feelings, but we'll see. It could end up being just my blog about teaching.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;">Wish us luck as we try this out tomorrow!!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333FF;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-32949310227243199972009-01-18T17:01:00.000-08:002009-09-05T10:40:06.854-07:00It's Been A While!<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">Hello!<br />It's been quite some time since I last posted, so I thought I'd take a minute and write something today.<br />We're in the third quarter now and that means that the school year is already more than half over. It's amazing to think that we've been together for more than 100 school days! We've been working on story elements and have learned about plot, conflict, and Pourquoi Tales. The class has been writing their own Pourquoi Tales (Pourquoi means "Why" in French) and then they're going to be putting them into Movie Maker. It should go quickly now that they've had some practice with MM.<br />We're almost ready to track out. A week from Tuesday is our track out day and I can't wait! When we return in February we'll only have 15 weeks of school left.<br />Well, that's all I can think of to post for now. Check back again soon and see if I thought of anything else!!<br /></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-2624172719420577432008-12-23T14:43:00.000-08:002008-12-23T19:26:08.458-08:00Happy Holidays!<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#ff9900;">We made it to winter break! Even more exciting than that, we're 1/2 way through the year already! Can you believe it? It's gone by so quickly!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;">We are doing so many wonderful things in our classroom! I hope your child has come home and told you all about their Wiki and their Movie Maker Projects! I've added some of the completed <a href="http://www.steveandcat.net/mrswalker/movie_maker_projects.htm">Movie Maker Projects </a>to my website so you can see several in one spot. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;">I am so proud of the class for their hard work on the MM projects. They worked very hard to get the writing completed, to create the pictures with CoreFx, and then to narriate their movies. If you haven't had a chance to view them yet, please be sure to do so!!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;">We are always looking for Frog-Tastic Mystery readers... if you're interested in signing up for the January/February spots, please let me know!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;">Have a wonderful holiday!!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#ff9900;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-61596191104149218982008-11-16T14:53:00.003-08:002008-11-16T15:02:28.723-08:00The Last Frog-Tastic Mystery Reader??<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7iFH5Yy835KLjG3U8__As6j7TM-o1ZQuOSXS063NNiTa2iO3lJsGsmW-1D6zIe8ektAefDVC_oMgB15LtEWZGgukPmSEZ18GS-OYUGasO-G8_xdK22-2iUa9A5YpPDkEqYevu5Jm1UK4/s1600-h/whole+class+with+grandma.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269392769108230002" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7iFH5Yy835KLjG3U8__As6j7TM-o1ZQuOSXS063NNiTa2iO3lJsGsmW-1D6zIe8ektAefDVC_oMgB15LtEWZGgukPmSEZ18GS-OYUGasO-G8_xdK22-2iUa9A5YpPDkEqYevu5Jm1UK4/s200/whole+class+with+grandma.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJIUHXMv1G6EcPuTrAQqEdh-iyVsbfUBqGvTN1bfn2bjIkTto6NdOrcwP10iW5HwCz_qKY2xPIfSOqAU-WPPIJQkBiJGrJu2V_TP_a55HnavBMw6vlVoamEXAH-C_HFy7uOf0CgqpFR4U/s1600-h/whole+class+listening.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269392765341955554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJIUHXMv1G6EcPuTrAQqEdh-iyVsbfUBqGvTN1bfn2bjIkTto6NdOrcwP10iW5HwCz_qKY2xPIfSOqAU-WPPIJQkBiJGrJu2V_TP_a55HnavBMw6vlVoamEXAH-C_HFy7uOf0CgqpFR4U/s200/whole+class+listening.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijwKULQCNmvWrtPKgZBXFN1FuhRNqJSBV-4qsaZKIz5xYfn_7eCvfT7MBOeUT3YwIuw3ZlE0gxvt_8t_wPk4fsj49jCNGwzlJbPyzzeFgzOH-pPfLj1VzfFzP1LFqQzpenfEAFl-GSTkU/s1600-h/with+book.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269392762166776802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijwKULQCNmvWrtPKgZBXFN1FuhRNqJSBV-4qsaZKIz5xYfn_7eCvfT7MBOeUT3YwIuw3ZlE0gxvt_8t_wPk4fsj49jCNGwzlJbPyzzeFgzOH-pPfLj1VzfFzP1LFqQzpenfEAFl-GSTkU/s200/with+book.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#006600;">We had the pleasure of having Carleigh's grandma come to read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/You-Cant-Rush-Karleen-Bradford/dp/1551432838/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1226876189&sr=1-1">"You Can't Rush A Cat"</a> to us on Friday. Carleigh was able to guess that it was her grandma based on the clue that she was little, she walks all the time, and she drives a red car.</span></div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;"></span></div><div> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;">Unfortunatley, there aren't anymore readers signed up to read to the class. I sure hope that this wasn't our last mystery reader! The kids really do love it and look forward to seeing who'll be reading to us each Friday. It'd be ideal to have someone for each child come, since they get very excited to see grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, and siblings! They get to be the star and share the moment with someone they love. It's really a wonderful experience!!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;">This week we have our second field trip of the year! We're going to the capitol building and legislative building. After our trip we'll be going to Pullen Park for lunch and to play. It's supposed to be in the upper 50s on Thursday, so hopefully it won't be too cold for everyone! Personally, I think that upper 50s are beautiful! And, considering that it's snowing in Michigan, I will take upper 50s anytime in November!! :)</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;">I am very excited for the first Ecology Club meeting this week. We'll have our first meeting on Thursday from 4:00-5:00 in my classroom. There was a nice level of interest, and fortunately, all the fourth graders that had a positive teacher recommendation were able to join! YAY!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;">:)<br />Have a frog-tastic week!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#006600;">Mrs. Walker</span></div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-50874004703361110212008-11-10T18:40:00.000-08:002008-11-10T18:53:42.784-08:00Welcome Back!<embed style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 320px" name="flashticker" align="middle" src="http://widget-2f.slide.com/widgets/slideticker.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" quality="high" scale="noscale" salign="l" wmode="transparent" flashvars="cy=bb&il=1&channel=2594073385382584623&site=widget-2f.slide.com"></embed><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#6600cc;">I hope that everyone had a wonderful track out!! I had a nice three weeks, but I was very excited to come back and see the kids! Today was a great first day back and it went by so quickly! I wanted to post pictures of the new room. Our room is a little bit larger than the old room, and there seems to be more room to walk around. The kids also like the view!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#6600cc;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#6600cc;">I am excited to have tomorrow off and be able to sleep in a little. I'll be going to school to work on some things and organize a little more, but I do plan on enjoying my day off. Hopefully you'll enjoy the day off as well! Be sure to have your child study the study guide tomorrow!! The social studies test is quickly approaching!!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#6600cc;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#6600cc;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-34261535268464982292008-10-20T08:26:00.001-07:002008-10-20T08:40:01.204-07:00We're Tracked Out!!! Whooo hoooo!!!<embed style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 320px" name="flashticker" align="middle" src="http://widget-d0.slide.com/widgets/slideticker.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" quality="high" scale="noscale" salign="l" wmode="transparent" flashvars="cy=bb&il=1&channel=144115188094323920&site=widget-d0.slide.com"></embed> <div style="WIDTH: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: left"><a href="http://www.slide.com/pivot?cy=bb&at=un&id=144115188094323920&map=1" target="_blank"><img src="http://widget-d0.slide.com/p1/144115188094323920/bb_t060_v000_s0un_f00/images/xslide1.gif" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://www.slide.com/pivot?cy=bb&at=un&id=144115188094323920&map=2" target="_blank"><img src="http://widget-d0.slide.com/p2/144115188094323920/bb_t060_v000_s0un_f00/images/xslide2.gif" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://www.slide.com/pivot?cy=bb&at=un&id=144115188094323920&map=F" target="_blank"><img src="http://widget-d0.slide.com/p4/144115188094323920/bb_t060_v000_s0un_f00/images/xslide42.gif" border="0" /></a></div><br /><p><strong><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#330099;">This last week we had our first field trip of the year! We went to <a href="http://www.wakegov.com/parks/oakview/history.htm">Oak View Historical Park</a> in Raleigh. We all wore our field trip shirts and looked super cute! </span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#330099;">The kids learned about making butter, washing clothes, keeping food without refrigeration, and then they went to the field of cotton and were able to pick some. They went inside and learned about the five cotton B's: Boring, Back-breaking, Bloody, Burns from the sun, and Bugs. They saw a cotton gin and were able to use it, and then they were also able to see how much cotton a slave would have to pick each day. </span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#330099;">After learning about cotton, they went to the barn and learned about the various artifacts used in the 1800s. They had to guess what each item was used for. The kids really enjoyed all the hands-on things this field trip offered. They also got to see the three resident goats at the farm, Boyd, Napoleon, and I can't think of the other one's name. </span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#330099;">The kids ate lunch there and then we came back to the school for the remainder of the day.</span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#330099;">The rest of the week went by really quickly. I was very fortunate to have so many helpers stay on Thursday and help me with the classroom. Thanks to them and some parents, we were able to get everything taken down, cleaned, and put in Ms. Allen's room in 40 minutes. That's a record-breaking time!!! Now I just hope I can get it all put up that fast (not likely).</span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#330099;">I hope that over track out we can get together to see the new Madagascar movie that comes out November 7th. Maybe that weekend.</span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#330099;">Anyway- have a great track out and I'll see you all on November 10th in room 600!</span></strong></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;color:#330099;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span></strong> </p><p> </p>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-59292343121160292662008-10-12T13:03:00.000-07:002008-10-12T13:12:25.355-07:00Track Out Week!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNLSp6csNDpZd6JizeYzHUTeZ7U-BCcd_tQL485NvsWA5ieleN15_qnGePlrjMhxF-VTuKMLDmm9F0a1mWAVnSSrz_j-yM6L0N-iUr_2RJUG7A3hLlb_mty2lV6dQLtHHwwzc5s9fMsTA/s1600-h/TJ+and+mom.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5256360853253210402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNLSp6csNDpZd6JizeYzHUTeZ7U-BCcd_tQL485NvsWA5ieleN15_qnGePlrjMhxF-VTuKMLDmm9F0a1mWAVnSSrz_j-yM6L0N-iUr_2RJUG7A3hLlb_mty2lV6dQLtHHwwzc5s9fMsTA/s200/TJ+and+mom.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsUzWlYPGV_Le0HSaMdoxcJbtVR5ZgpU2R73i_kckCPK7fayimWhOjpFp1TOMrYsByeorrc-frmBPBT5e6V5DPC8A19GW2Z6CChPHEwNg5FrgZgE78VGGwJC7HzMAQNN1DpNT2fEtoqf0/s1600-h/T+is+for+Tarheel.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5256360851345336210" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsUzWlYPGV_Le0HSaMdoxcJbtVR5ZgpU2R73i_kckCPK7fayimWhOjpFp1TOMrYsByeorrc-frmBPBT5e6V5DPC8A19GW2Z6CChPHEwNg5FrgZgE78VGGwJC7HzMAQNN1DpNT2fEtoqf0/s200/T+is+for+Tarheel.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6gEC7Uwjwy0OVPAIqKejBSu-SXGiHYgcFa0qasORLjyR117TUdl2RlNky45TqR2cS-16gbZ8AOwjZls2__d1844nArp2MOS7njXgbmc_PnhE6XPLvRg_2wWH8rwC6Hp80dVg9s0KHpnQ/s1600-h/Silly.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5256360852025322210" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6gEC7Uwjwy0OVPAIqKejBSu-SXGiHYgcFa0qasORLjyR117TUdl2RlNky45TqR2cS-16gbZ8AOwjZls2__d1844nArp2MOS7njXgbmc_PnhE6XPLvRg_2wWH8rwC6Hp80dVg9s0KHpnQ/s200/Silly.jpg" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">What a great week! We had TJ's mom come to read to us on Friday. She read T is for Tarheel (even though she's a Wolfpack fan) and the kids really enjoyed the book. We have readers for October 17th and then two Fridays in November, but then no one else is signed up. If you haven't signed up yet, please think about it. I wish you could see how excited the class gets right before the mystery reader is introduced. So far we've had one dad, two grandmas, and two moms. I'd love to get a few grandpas, and maybe some aunts and uncles! Older brothers and sisters would also be a great surprise!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;">On Wednesday, Carleigh's dad came to the classroom to talk to the kids about fire safety. Last week was Fire Safety/Prevention Week. Make sure your family has a plan in place in case of a fire. It's also great to have a meeting spot and to practice what you'd do in the event of a fire. No one wants to have to experience a fire, but it's better to practice and have a plan in place, than to wish you had.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;">The Book Fair is here! I spent about 30 minutes on Friday looking at the books and creating a "Wish List." I can say that there are a lot of really great books and the prices are really good as well. Thursday night is the Book Fair Safari and you can come to the school from 6:00-7:30 and see all the great things planned. There are going to be live animals!! The great thing about the Book Fair is that some of the money helps Oak Grove. Our class preview day is Thursday from 2:00-2:30. If you'd like to send money to school with your child, that would be a great day. You could also come to school that day and look with your child. They do take credit cards as well as cash and I think checks.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;">Check out the website for pictures from Fire Safety Day. I created a slide show that's located on the main page.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;">Have a frog-tastic week!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-71597666890686602008-10-04T14:36:00.001-07:002008-10-04T14:50:23.842-07:00A Frog-Tastic Week!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj12VV1XwS-AU67L9Tc6SUhYHh1oSCgoBlex_ZPd3aLZwx3WEwISXYJzdllQLbJhqJcHxjaW6jfaSkcpnLOmUoak4E1SCvo-aR2VX50PGH6cRHjsnceVyRaZlhkV6Fp5SIUOVnE40M6fbs/s1600-h/Danny+and+his+mom.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253416403295802466" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj12VV1XwS-AU67L9Tc6SUhYHh1oSCgoBlex_ZPd3aLZwx3WEwISXYJzdllQLbJhqJcHxjaW6jfaSkcpnLOmUoak4E1SCvo-aR2VX50PGH6cRHjsnceVyRaZlhkV6Fp5SIUOVnE40M6fbs/s200/Danny+and+his+mom.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEB0vIob9wZpPllARc_fItown_tUVR63pHYdw8fSD2QsfyEhWeOmWF9Mew8C6Y2g8qglaUxk1xM6uyrE0KxX2BlBCUNNZacXLRR7tvh4h98LBfgrADs59KQi6xP3r679UbiCrWGxGckWQ/s1600-h/Danny's+mom+reading+Parts.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253416408323268162" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEB0vIob9wZpPllARc_fItown_tUVR63pHYdw8fSD2QsfyEhWeOmWF9Mew8C6Y2g8qglaUxk1xM6uyrE0KxX2BlBCUNNZacXLRR7tvh4h98LBfgrADs59KQi6xP3r679UbiCrWGxGckWQ/s200/Danny's+mom+reading+Parts.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK4dzRJgHjkltbKpqQU36gx2qglUlee3eZFME-F0r_LJkvkLcIDu716ETROIHZa8WyCYJrVkV_Jele1eNG5quekX9tA2C7R2oEN1xgYalSjeo1or8oJfB3tyGyXsQ4QdgYIhyphenhyphentWQQ6RSE/s1600-h/Silly+class+picture.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253416405621107698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK4dzRJgHjkltbKpqQU36gx2qglUlee3eZFME-F0r_LJkvkLcIDu716ETROIHZa8WyCYJrVkV_Jele1eNG5quekX9tA2C7R2oEN1xgYalSjeo1or8oJfB3tyGyXsQ4QdgYIhyphenhyphentWQQ6RSE/s200/Silly+class+picture.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuJ0tcfQ1neIIXMMCnXj_kXXRiloQWhg3PIuetV8qR8Rd7qvguH9Ce38yfbldip7U9ECv5xA2n7oUygymmDicrLABwPih2y8rb_kaTrFeOjqfb3BHVMVIAIVz4iBHz8YNQP1zptco72zo/s1600-h/DSCF1425+(Large).JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253416036309389122" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuJ0tcfQ1neIIXMMCnXj_kXXRiloQWhg3PIuetV8qR8Rd7qvguH9Ce38yfbldip7U9ECv5xA2n7oUygymmDicrLABwPih2y8rb_kaTrFeOjqfb3BHVMVIAIVz4iBHz8YNQP1zptco72zo/s200/DSCF1425+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:verdana;color:#006600;">What a frog-tastic week! We started the second quarter off with a bang! Wednesday was my 32nd birthday and we had a celebration with the cutest frog cupcake cake (pictured above). I received many cards that I loved and then some very thoughtful gifts. I have to admit it, I was definitely spoiled!! Thank you to all the students and parents that sent something in for my birthday- you really did not need to send anything!!!</span></div><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#006600;"></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#006600;">Our fourth Frog-Tastic Mystery Reader came and read to the class on Friday. The class was able to narrow down the possibilites to two moms. Danny's mom played the part by showing up in a trench coat, wig, and a mask to hide her identity. Fortunately, Danny was able to identify her right away! She read two books to the class. The first was "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/You-Are-Special-Max-Lucado/dp/0891079319/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1223155681&sr=8-2">You Are Special</a>" by Max Lucado and then the second book was "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Parts-Picture-Puffins-Tedd-Arnold/dp/0140565337/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1223156977&sr=1-1">Parts</a>!" by Tedd Arnold.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#006600;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#006600;">I cannot express how much the kids really enjoy seeing who the Mystery Reader will be each Friday. I'm so glad that so many family members have signed up to come in and read!!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#006600;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:#006600;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-53468571822747487882008-09-27T14:07:00.000-07:002008-09-27T14:15:08.099-07:00End of the 1st Quarter...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPaD7TM2TxxKjWwzE_7gfWc1zCCs7KXT_iK0VxJaoGI45Qa24reeHjaX1a4bGTemLLH5lOKz-bpB4_qTGLNch2lNoiHs7CNepBn6OV-sf5OzZZLdsFqXqtCMON1UdBFFoHUBrMRXNuJCs/s1600-h/Will+and+his+grandma.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250811322257011330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPaD7TM2TxxKjWwzE_7gfWc1zCCs7KXT_iK0VxJaoGI45Qa24reeHjaX1a4bGTemLLH5lOKz-bpB4_qTGLNch2lNoiHs7CNepBn6OV-sf5OzZZLdsFqXqtCMON1UdBFFoHUBrMRXNuJCs/s200/Will+and+his+grandma.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSiKVp3Tojao0_MXejpuzHiMT3h-kJkCBkxKaTvsc2B-scinInCTsjoSERaOpYWRIUwi-Gx5vmDa6VoKDuvogZ5PD5s6yZxxtwnpi8r3SDdNJTQhddqz2q7J2oqQizZF1Knwu0PzvlXM4/s1600-h/Mrs.+O%27Conner.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250811319624802370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSiKVp3Tojao0_MXejpuzHiMT3h-kJkCBkxKaTvsc2B-scinInCTsjoSERaOpYWRIUwi-Gx5vmDa6VoKDuvogZ5PD5s6yZxxtwnpi8r3SDdNJTQhddqz2q7J2oqQizZF1Knwu0PzvlXM4/s200/Mrs.+O%27Conner.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoggVUdu81YaR2bMcaW2UjdM3SgNUlMWh8eQKbkz7PmgThicZ7Gy0U2i55hwk1RN6qe5EGjvGIEprVxs-wcTN4PBo4Ea3X0S4kg50OGjvSfNsFz2nIwpNKwmFkl-knhR8T9nFml22Yxc/s1600-h/With+grandma.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250811321098800370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoggVUdu81YaR2bMcaW2UjdM3SgNUlMWh8eQKbkz7PmgThicZ7Gy0U2i55hwk1RN6qe5EGjvGIEprVxs-wcTN4PBo4Ea3X0S4kg50OGjvSfNsFz2nIwpNKwmFkl-knhR8T9nFml22Yxc/s200/With+grandma.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8NAOMNMCMSweT1l7oLSFYynhDoeDh4xyzsOI1sDJFd30MOCVhvIZzBajAxnjSUn_2FlCcRTaH-6Wmn2qp879hcxKjRFOeUN2EBLDY5jGtmcjZAb6TaZ1Gqpz94fKAWmq6-SKVfkIQHx8/s1600-h/whole+class.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250811324415786002" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8NAOMNMCMSweT1l7oLSFYynhDoeDh4xyzsOI1sDJFd30MOCVhvIZzBajAxnjSUn_2FlCcRTaH-6Wmn2qp879hcxKjRFOeUN2EBLDY5jGtmcjZAb6TaZ1Gqpz94fKAWmq6-SKVfkIQHx8/s200/whole+class.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-family:verdana;">We have made it through the first quarter! That means only three more weeks until our next track out! </span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Friday was a busy day for us, because we had our third Frog-Tastic Mystery Reader! Will's grandma came to read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Theres-Map-My-Lap-Lrning/dp/0375810994/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1222549604&sr=8-1">"There's A Map on my Lap"</a>. She made a few different things to show the class that went with the book and then each child was given some graph paper to take home so they could make a blue-print of their bedroom. She ended her reading with the poem <a href="http://www.amazon.com/New-Kid-Block-Jack-Prelutsky/dp/0688022715/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1222549946&sr=8-1">"There's A New Kid on the Block"</a> by Jack Prelutsky.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">This next week we'll be starting our Tuesday Homework Club from 4:00-4:30. I think it'll be a great way for the kids to get homework done and to have me there to help (if needed). It's also a great time to do Frog-Tastic Student tests and earn more points!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Have a frog-tastic weekend!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Verdana;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-21803862648478635372008-09-20T08:50:00.000-07:002008-09-20T09:18:52.764-07:00Frog-Tastic Friday!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGGPW2TXvWS3OV-k17c1_6RzsLq6eXevVBazeezMkwf40r2vP5FT26yrVKy9TUAipB-Xh1_2TClZcqnQfPJF8IxDX_6p6jOeiKStDvmZsUkgb4NvNi5VXo3E6hmccoyYK93mk3YVrjgQE/s1600-h/DSCF1385+(Large).JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248134595646564194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGGPW2TXvWS3OV-k17c1_6RzsLq6eXevVBazeezMkwf40r2vP5FT26yrVKy9TUAipB-Xh1_2TClZcqnQfPJF8IxDX_6p6jOeiKStDvmZsUkgb4NvNi5VXo3E6hmccoyYK93mk3YVrjgQE/s200/DSCF1385+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">Skylar's grandma came to read to the class on Friday. She was our second Frog-Tastic Mystery Reader and the kids absolutely loved hearing her read <em>Make Way for Ducklings.</em> I think Skylar was really surprised to see her as well! </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;"></span><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">This whole week the class has enjoyed having Mr. Peacock come and teach us some new strategies with <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSpZ-8jXg0bPlw30x-o_5o9UTE1OO_B151Gw4qWTx1DBAXw1G_90brX9akvAANKB_5itoOAHkCNrvJE0U9JMEugCS7B2TQxgfy8_GJFsYn9frBH_eHNAx8sobX3RIYrWuGu12mSot41I/s1600-h/DSCF1382+(Large).JPG"><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248134855915780354" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSpZ-8jXg0bPlw30x-o_5o9UTE1OO_B151Gw4qWTx1DBAXw1G_90brX9akvAANKB_5itoOAHkCNrvJE0U9JMEugCS7B2TQxgfy8_GJFsYn9frBH_eHNAx8sobX3RIYrWuGu12mSot41I/s200/DSCF1382+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></span></a>our writing. The class listened to music and wrote, they </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;"></span><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">looked at pictures and wrote and then they were able to dig deeper and really work on character development.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">As a treat, the class was invited to go outside on Friday and listen to Mr. Peacock holler. He was the National Hollerin' Champion in 2006. I was able to go to the 40th Annual Hollerin' Championship in Spivey's Corner, NC this past June and watch him compete. He came in 3rd <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdp1WvXEmCNnushGpGYjjbLADZJQatsSiP_TJ6HQ-K9dNlV0NKm-P-xyZFjd7ZOcOPysoIgDUMMpMBwadOYBWyk4W8XxnVV47OgMK1KAuKay663S6-1wSXq3iYTi2OJ26TLcbkXUpyGs4/s1600-h/DSCF1358+(Large).JPG"><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248136468847225874" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdp1WvXEmCNnushGpGYjjbLADZJQatsSiP_TJ6HQ-K9dNlV0NKm-P-xyZFjd7ZOcOPysoIgDUMMpMBwadOYBWyk4W8XxnVV47OgMK1KAuKay663S6-1wSXq3iYTi2OJ26TLcbkXUpyGs4/s200/DSCF1358+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></span></a>place this year. Hopefully some of you will go to the </span><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">41st contest and watch him!</span><br /><br /><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">Friday was "National Talk Like A Pirate Day" and the kids were invited to dress up like a pirate for the day. Many of the parents were excited for this because they attended ECU (East Carolina University) and the ECU Pirates are taking on the NC State Wolfpack this weekend in NCAA football.</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin_LgPWYho1lTQo8rNtp4kVBPU4AgrO1U-tu79dgFQyGQGavgJKRmNTVaG5wwP62elYif7qsqporSzkBwxVhPnp5HiW9eNQMJoW67UOCBRMGZgD4bvBxeCdqDAsNCu6hnK-vQk-yEsMcM/s1600-h/DSCF1389+(Large).JPG"><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5248137082940541506" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin_LgPWYho1lTQo8rNtp4kVBPU4AgrO1U-tu79dgFQyGQGavgJKRmNTVaG5wwP62elYif7qsqporSzkBwxVhPnp5HiW9eNQMJoW67UOCBRMGZgD4bvBxeCdqDAsNCu6hnK-vQk-yEsMcM/s200/DSCF1389+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">Next Friday is the end of the 1st Quarter. I can't believe how quickly the quarter has gone by! It seems like we just started the year and we're already about to start the 13th week!</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">We'll be spending the entire second quarter learning about non-fiction reading strategies. I think the kids will really enjoy this because some of their most favorite books are expository!!</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">Have a frog-tastic weekend!</span></p><p><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#6600cc;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span></p>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-44699793847871163252008-09-15T17:37:00.000-07:002008-09-15T17:50:32.084-07:00It's Been A While...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-crNXifmvVUtwCv38lPOGq-6G0Oz6_pyytLvf1YfgXgGABhA9blWZ7MIt6JfC3-cMsyRTD_xN_d_pnhvtdE85YtGAKb3X0LqkvtSxNaSs4ghj-jA1MHijRWcCjU1OwNcwGRkA2ZPPZGc/s1600-h/DSCF1319+(Large).JPG"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5246412856885832370" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-crNXifmvVUtwCv38lPOGq-6G0Oz6_pyytLvf1YfgXgGABhA9blWZ7MIt6JfC3-cMsyRTD_xN_d_pnhvtdE85YtGAKb3X0LqkvtSxNaSs4ghj-jA1MHijRWcCjU1OwNcwGRkA2ZPPZGc/s200/DSCF1319+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"> </span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">I'm so sorry that it has been so long since the last post! We recently traveled to Michigan and Indiana to see family and as a result I wasn't able to post anything last week.</span><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">I wanted to post two pictures from the first Frog-Tastic Mystery Reader (Friday, September 6th). The kids absolutely LOVED it! </span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">Our guest reader did an amazing job and really got the class excited! He read two books, one <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU_oR6AU9LK2j9zCfa0L0zbcD_ijyC1_oxm22m8i5EQQFralZRBwKMJzzF81yKsfUYLdrCbht9jox-QgC9FYCi1OFMLU4vnEYbU_Ijh71gX4qQs9pm4onH6_IAhjYFgp2EUCidW8qSR4w/s1600-h/DSCF1320+(Large).JPG"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5246412572558147186" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU_oR6AU9LK2j9zCfa0L0zbcD_ijyC1_oxm22m8i5EQQFralZRBwKMJzzF81yKsfUYLdrCbht9jox-QgC9FYCi1OFMLU4vnEYbU_Ijh71gX4qQs9pm4onH6_IAhjYFgp2EUCidW8qSR4w/s200/DSCF1320+(Large).JPG" border="0" /></span></a>was the Blue Day book for kids and the other book was the Star Wars Clone Wars book. I enjoyed the part about the hutlets (yes... apparently Jaba the Hut has babies!).</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">We're eagerly awaiting our t-shirts. I am really excited to see what they look like in person! Our first field trip is coming up shortly and it'll be awesome to have everyone wearing the same shirt!</span></div><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">This week the kids have had the enjoyment of working with Mr. Tony Peacock as our writer in residence. Mr. Peacock played music today and the class had to close their eyes and "go where the music takes them." Then they were to write about what they saw, felt, smelled, heard, and tasted in their "place." The very end of their session with him brought them to begin writing. Tomorrow should be even better! They're slated to listen to him holler on Friday. It should be a real treat for them!!</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">It's time for me to head to bed. I've got so much to do at work- a week worth of papers and things to go through. I did get a lot of writing graded while driving up to Michigan and I was able to get the 3-5 Narrative Literacy tests graded. I was very impressed with how well some of the kids did!!</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">Until the next post... take care!!</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000099;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span></div>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-23815358220980640282008-08-28T17:17:00.000-07:002008-08-28T17:50:26.434-07:00New Videos<span style="font-family:verdana;">Today, Mrs. Edwards (guidance counselor) came to our class to talk to the kids about tattling and bullying. They were given the opportunity to write a skit for various scenarios and then I recorded their skits. <a href="http://www.steveandcat.net/mrswalker/videos.htm">They're on the website for your enjoyment.</a></span><a href="http://www.steveandcat.net/mrswalker/videos.htm"><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945059131228421194.post-42853294733083161342008-08-28T17:09:00.000-07:002008-08-28T17:16:31.675-07:00The Small Things...<span style="font-family:verdana;">There are days when being a teacher is the easiest thing in the world for me. Somedays, things just go so perfectly and lessons go exactly as planned, the kids behave exactly as I'd like and I sit back and just beam from the pleasure that these things bring. Then there are days when teaching is really hard. Time goes by too fast, I didn't get to teach exactly as I'd planned in my head, and the kids just don't cooperate, and it causes me to really stress. It happens. Just like any job, there are good days and bad. Fortunately, as a teacher, I get the pleasure of experiencing many more good days than bad.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Well, today was a pretty good day all things considering (I'm sick). At the end of the day, sometimes I play music for the kids to listen to while they wait for their buses to be called (sometimes we don't get out until 4:10). </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">I saw something today at the end of the day that just tickled me and made me smile. It was the kind of thing that I try to remember and then when I'm having a bad day, I think about to make me smile and remember why I absolutely love teaching.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Three boys were standing side-by-side at the table where the cd player is, and they were listening to "Viva La Vida" by Coldplay and they were singing their hearts out. It was so cute because they had no idea that anyone was watching them and they were just feeling the song. It was really cute and made me smile. </span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Verdana;">:)<br />Mrs. Walker</span>Mrs. Walkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01643149372513720777noreply@blogger.com0