December 2012, Glossi

With the semester wrapped up a few days early we had time to work on a new project. Each of the students had the opportunity to write an article and publish it to our Glossi, an online magazine. We wrote and published pretty quickly to get it out before break, so please excuse our rookie mistakes!

Click to view 5th Grade Rocks! Miss Tate's Class Glossi on GLOSSI.COM

Remind 101

Earlier this week I sent home a note in Thursday folders about Remind 101. Remind 101 is a program that allows me to send text/email reminders to parents about tests and other important things going on in our classroom.

How to sign up for Ms Tate's 5th Grade notifications: Text @misstat to (469) 208-6542 or Email misstat@mail.remind101.com

(To opt-out, text “unsubscribe @misstat” to (469) 208-6542. Standard text message rates apply.)

The First Thanksgiving

In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.

After the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor William Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies, including the Wampanoag chief Massasoit. Now remembered as American’s “first Thanksgiving”—although the Pilgrims themselves may not have used the term at the time—the festival lasted for three days...Historians have suggested that many of the dishes were likely prepared using traditional Native American spices and cooking methods. Because the Pilgrims had no oven and the Mayflower’s sugar supply had dwindled by the fall of 1621, the meal did not feature pies, cakes or other desserts, which have become a hallmark of contemporary celebrations. (http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving)

Video: Bet You Didn't Know- The First Thanksgiving

What are some of your family traditions and favorite dishes to eat on Thanksgiving?

Digital Citizenship

The small group reading Hatchet has started blogging and Bud, Not Buddy is right behind them! A blog is a fully functional web site that is simple to create and can be updated directly from a web browser.

Digital Citzenship is appropriate, responsible behavior regarding the internet. At the beginning of the school year we talked about digital citizenship and even earned our digital passports in online etiquette, communacation, privacy, searching, and creative credit. Nickelodeon and Common Sense Media teamed up to teach kids how to be cyber savvy. Harness the power of the Internet and learn how to be a good digital citizen!

Welcome!

 We are starting some exciting new technology adventures in our classroom! I have been learning all kinds of new ways to integrate technology into the curriculum and I am really excited to try them out with my students! Our class blog will help you to stay in the know on what we are leaning and the projects we are working on. It will also be a place for us to display all of our new technology skills.