Rationale for Class Projects
I am a firm believer in that children learn best when they are creating
hands-on, meaningful projects. Therefore, in our class, we seem to always
have some sort of project going on. Please read the following to see what
fun activities we are doing in our classroom now and in the past!
Current and Past Projects
December 2008 We are taking part in "The Gingerbread Man Project of 2008".
We read "The Gingerbread Man", "The Gingerbread Boy", and "The Gingerbread
Baby". After reading these variations, we compared the stories and then
wrote our own version of a gingerbread story with a happy ending. It is a
Reader's Theater titled, "The Gingerbread Family".
The Story of the Gingerbread Family
Characters
Gingerbread baby
Gingerbread Mom
Gingerbread Dog
Scary Fox
Narrator
Narrator: Once upon a time there was a Gingerbread Family. Their names were
Gingerbread Baby, Gingerbread Mom, and Gingerbread Dog. There also was a
creepy old fox who lived in the woods behind their house. He snuck up one
day in the Gingerbread Family�s back yard. This is what happened.
Gingerbread Mom: Good morning. Let�s take our dog outside for a walk.
Baby: OK, Mama.
Dog: Ruff ruff. I want to go on a walk. Ruff.
Mom: I hear something in the woods.
Dog: Ruff Ruff I smell something. Ruff. (runs to the woods)
Baby: Uh oh!
Mom: Come back, Gingerbread Dog.
Baby: Ox, Ox. (pointing to the woods)
Mom: What are you trying to say?
Baby: Fox, Fox.
Fox: I am verrry hungry. (Running towards the family)
Mom: Ok. Why don�t you come in our house for a snack?
Dog: Ruff ruff. He is going to eat all of our stuff.
Narrator: The fox sneaks all of the food from the Gingerbread Family�s
cabinet.
Fox: Ha ha ha.
Baby: Bad fox. Bad! No No NO!
Gingerbread Mom: Do you want to make a gingerbread house with us?
Fox: No.
Gingerbread Mom: How about we make two of them and then you can have your
own?
Fox: Yes.
Baby: Let�s make one together, fox.
Dog: Ruff ruff
Gingerbread Mom: Here are the ingredients to make them.
Narrator: They make the houses and then put them in the oven.
Fox: This is delicious. Thank you, Gingerbread family.
Family: You�re welcome.
Narrator: The Gingerbread Family and the fox became friends and are still
friends today.
THE END
Gingerbread Man Project 2008
March 2007 We took part in the "Great Egg Roll" project. Our math class
teamed up with Mrs. Harris' math class to see which class could roll plastic
eggs the farthest. It was a great lesson, with each student taking turns
rolling the eggs, measuring the distance, and then averaging the team's
results. To find out more, please click on the link below:
The Great Egg Roll
Feb./March 2007 We are taking part in Read Across America by reading several
Dr. Seuss books that were graciously supplied to our class through a
Frankfort Education Foundation Grant. The books were part of our "Listening
Center" grant, so they include high-quality CD's of famous people reading
the text (such as David Hyde Pierce). Once we read the books, we will vote
for our favorite Dr. Seuss selection and then graph our results. We will
send this information to the website below. This will certainly be a fun,
nation-wide project that blends reading and math skills! As a Seuss fan, I
can't wait to begin!
Our Favorite Dr. Seuss Book/ Read Across America Graphing Project
Jan./Feb. 2007 We took part in an online collaborative project
entitled "Kidspired Frosty Readers". We read Owl Moon and
then wrote about a nature observation we made on a cold, late, January day.
Here is the piece of writing that we published on the "Kidspired"
website:
Nature Walk: A View of Chelsea Intermediate School
When we look at the sky, we see the wind making the white clouds move,
and snow falling from the sky. We see black power lines in a blue sky. We
see the yellow sun.
When we look at the trees, hills, and bushes, we see a lot. We see a
nest, a green birdfeeder, and the brown branches of trees. On the sledding
hill, we see snow and dirt, but no one is sledding on it. We see some snow
on the bushes, and some snow blowing away. We also see some tiny green
leaves on the bushes.
When we look at the ground, we see frozen snow. We see patches of ice.
We also see specks of salt. We see tiny footprints in the snow. In
conclusion, this is all we see on a cold, winter day.
Finally, we made a graphic organizer showcasing all that we have
learned about owls using the Kidspiration software program. We also
published this on the web.
35 other classes across the country took part in this same
project, so we used our school's LCD projector to view their writing and
Kidspiration projects as well. To find out more about this fun project,
please click on the link below:
Kidspired Frosty Readers 2007
Nov. 2006-Feb. 2007 We are also taking part in Will County Forest Preserve
District's Junior Bird Feeder Challenge. Every day, we observe birds and
collect data based on our observations. This data is turned in to the Will
County Forest Preserve District. In addition, we fill the bird feeder that
they have lent us, and enjoy class visits by Ms. E.T., the Forest Preserve
Representative. To learn more about this project, please click on this link:
Junior Winter Bird Feeder Challenge
Nov./Dec. 2006 We took part in a holiday card exchange project. We
assembled, signed, addressed, and mailed 25 holiday cards to schools across
the United States and even to a school in Australia! In return, all of the
schools exchanged holiday cards with us. This is another collaborative
project that I found online. The coolest part, in my opinion, was the
display that we made. We took a map of the U.S.A. and put stickers on each
city that we sent a card to. Then, when we received a card from a class in
that city, we displayed it next to the map and took a piece of yarn to
connect the card with the sticker that represented its city. It was a
fabulous display and was almost completely student created! Please see the
photo gallery section of this website for a picture of the display. The link
for the actual project is below:
Holiday Card Exchange 2006