Mountain Man Rendezvous

Another term has passed, and along with that comes the next term party. For the first term all of Mapleton School children who didn't get 2 citations went to Trafalga and had a blast. It was actually really stressful for me, but this party for term 2 was AMAZING! For the term 2 party all of the 4th grade was able to participate in a Rendezvous :)

We just finished a unit on the Mountain Men of Utah, such as Jim Bridger, Provost, and Jedediah Smith, which the kids all loved. To celebrate amazing behavior and the learning we just had, the four 4th grade teachers, all worked so hard together, and with amazing help from the principal, the Rendezvous was a success! I had so much fun watching the kids go through the different stations, eat and enjoy company at the trading store, and giving beaver skins to students who wanted to answer a mountain man question. Beaver skins were how each student was able to "buy" anything from the trading store or to do different activities. The stations were nerf guns, buffalo chip throwing, making dream catchers, a frame station, a 3-legged race, throwing beans on a target, walking through a mountainous area (using only construction paper, so creative), and arm wrestling.

I was also so happy that my team members were so helpful with helping me get my room cleaned up and set up for the trading store (Room 18 was a party for sure :) ) The best part was seeing how happy everyone was. Enjoy the pictures!!

 Who Will be the Winner? 

 One student walking through the mountain range 

 Miss Blaisdell is on a mission :) 

 Mountain Men Waiting 

 Lovely Frame 

 Impact! 

This was the buffalo chip throwing; one student literally almost pelted me, ha ha 

This day would not have been a success without an amazing 4th grade team, wonderful supportive room mothers and parent volunteers, and of course, excited and full of life 4th graders!

2012 Time Capsule and Enjoying "It Snowed and Snowed"

After all the "It Snowed and Snowed" I noticed countless numbers of students from other grades and other classes looking and peeking under the transparency's to see what lied beneath. It made me so proud of my students. Here are some of their work up on the wall:

Then for today, I gave the students an option to decorate their 2012 time capsule either with paint or colored markers. Some chose colored makers, and then proceeded to write down their thoughts and goals for 2012 around each number, but most wanted to use paint. It was so adorable to see them working at the round table in the back, especially with their red bibs I made them from cut up pieces of tablecloth, ha ha. Yes, I am learning to be more resourceful.

After decorating each digit in the 2012 number, the students wrote something around each number.
2: Who I Am; How Tall I Am; What is my Shoe Size
0: I Like...
1: Last Year I...
2: My Goals for this Year are...

It turned out really well, and most everyone got the decoration part done today. Monday will be spent writing. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy of this writing project. What a wonderful way to remember being 9 or 10!

 Love the colors and patterns :) 

Aren't their bibs so cute!! Oh, I am so in love with my idea!

All you need is some paint, a plate, brushes, and a tablecloth

One sweet boy put his 2 backwards--a great memory to share with posterity

Kimberly was proud of her design

As you can see, I have amazing sailors aboard my ship. Could not have asked for a better crew! Stay tuned for the next fun writing project we are going to do (also thanks to Pintrest)!

Love,
Captain Mills 

It Snowed and Snowed

Hello! Thanks to Pintrest, I found this amazing idea and used it on my students, and they LOVED it! I introduced the writing activity by showing them my example and explaining the concept. Basically, a picture of a snowy scene is drawn and in that picture, one object or animal that is going to be hidden under a blanket of snow (yay for puffy paint). Beneath the picture are lines to put down 5 clues to what the hidden thing is. I told my class that they wanted to keep it super secret so they could all be part of a guessing game...and boy did they take me seriously! I constantly heard, "Hey, don't look at my picture," or saw kids holding their hand over their hidden object. Seriously, so cute! Even when they showed me their rough draft before they could start their final, they were very secretive and sneaky. Ha ha. Kids are amazing! Below are some pictures of the process for "It Snowed and Snowed."

 Here is the example. Can you guess what it is? Look down!

 Uncover the transparency and you will see there is a MONKEY! 

 The sweet hand is covering up something magical :) 

 In the process of adding the snowbank, he he. So secretive

Hm, do you have a guess? It's a bubble! 

I was so impressed how creative these were! My students never cease to amaze me.