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Gloomy Day

Today was a gloomy day.
I don't know if the rain and cold got me off to a bad start,
or if I was already there and the rain and cold simply made it worse.
Either way, it was a gloomy day.

The plans I made had to be altered.
And, I had to think on my toes.
That's not a problem, usually,
and it wasn't today, but I felt
like I didn't get much done,
though maybe I did.

My students started making an "I wonder"
and "I'm curious about" list.
They wrote a response to one of their questions.
Then, they wrote this question on an index card
and tomorrow we will tack up the index cards on our newly minted "I Wonder Wall".

Next, they started doing research.
Inevitably, someone finished quickly,
as if wonderings are that neat and tidy.
Others barely got started.
I've got my work cut out for me, such as
teaching my students how to make a list of key words to facilitate research.

The bell rang for recess.

In the afternoon, my students learned about Stop Motion Video from one of the 5th grade teachers.
I taught another group about Pinterest and we created a 5th grade PYP Projects Board.

After that, my students worked on their SOL story.

I'm still doing all of the revising and editing work.
Tomorrow I will start teaching a series of lessons
around writing conventions that my students haven't mastered -
punctuating dialogue, using consistent tense throughout a short piece of writing,
simple punctuation (periods, commas), checking spelling - and rereading their work
to make sure it makes sense.

Towards the end of the afternoon, some of my students read independently.

Finally, we did a 2-minute dance party to celebrate the end of the first week of #SOL16.
They didn't like my choice of music and stood around stiffly,
almost in defiance.

Are 2-minute dance parties uncomfortable for 5th graders?
And, should I just let them choose the music?

The bell rang and off we all went.

I get another try tomorrow, and so do they.

Cross posted to Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life March Challenge, Day #7



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