Up on the Housetop

Lesson Plan

Teacher: Mrs. Abby Paben

Date: 12/XX/16

Overview & Purpose

Santa must conserve his magic dust for his reindeer to fly; therefore, he needs to use a ladder that will get him from the roof to the top of the chimney to deliver his presents. Due to his weak knees, he just can’t land that jump any more. In order to decide the height of the ladder, we must use the Pythagorean Theorem.

TEKS Objectives

8.7.C 1. We will use Pythagorean Theorem to solve problems.

Materials Needed

1. iPad
2. Google Slides App
3. Calculator

Verification

1. Students will need to follow the Pythagorean Theorem steps in order to create their measurements for their right triangle and show proof that it works.

Activity

We will use Google Slides to construct a house by using the tools within Google Slides. We will draw off a right triangle from the top of the chimney to roof within the app. Then, we will come up with measurements that realistically fit to prove the Pythagorean Theorem so that Santa can find out how tall his ladder needs to be.

Link to pictures and work: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1-o1hjIrZRJLNA7bvLDBBAwc4pKd4KVPiA0vlb0Bt6qE/edit?usp=sharing

 

 

I was diagnosed on October 31, 2016. It was Halloween and a Monday. A day I was prepared to gorge on all sorts of junk; a day I was not prepared to change every thing. Sitting in the chair listening to my doctor that morning I knew that my life was about to be different. Different because I would have to meal prep (something I have always scoffed at), I would have to cook (something I never do), and I could never, ever eat another Oreo cookie again. Insert sad face emoji here.

I have been sick for eight years. Eight years. Only my closest friends knew that I was sick all day. Every single day. You just learn to roll with it. Want to know my symptoms –  Google Celiac Disease. I am a textbook case. Since being diagnosed I have researched, reached out, and then researched some more in hopes to make sense of this tiny protein we call gluten and all that it entails. Celiac disease isn’t an allergy or an intolerance. It is an autoimmune disease in which your body attacks itself at the slightest trace of gluten. I even had to get rid of my Mac lipstick. Here are 12 things I’ve discovered since being diagnosed:

1. It’s all I think about and talk about. Sorry. Seriously. Every detail of my day needs to be planned out. Food has to be prepped and ready. My ten vitamins have to be packed. I can’t just take off somewhere without knowing what I will have to eat. Did I mention I also have Diabetes? (A symptom of Celiac) Yeah. Not eating a meal isn’t an option. I have to eat, and I have to eat things not containing gluten.
2. Cross Contamination is real. We have all new pots and pans. The toaster is gone. My peanut butter and butter is labeled “Daisy Only”. Even if my friends want to be sweet and make me something Gluten Free – please don’t. I can’t eat out of your pans. You know how pans get scratched? Gluten hides down inside of those scratches, and the tiniest bit of that protein could make me extremely sick. Sounds crazy, but it is very true. Gluten is pure poison to a person with Celiac.
3. Just because it says Gluten Free doesn’t mean it is. It hides in all sorts of places. In all sorts of ingredients. I have to read every single label. I have a list a mile long saved on my phone of words that I check. I am not just looking for the word gluten. It is much easier just to eat clean, unprocessed food. Dairy, meat, fruits & veggies. Plus, if I can’t have a Great American Cookie, I sure don’t want a gluten free cookie. Pass.
4. You Feel like a Weirdo. It is a lot to explain. To everyone. If you dare eat out you have to call ahead and check for safety. Do you use a separate counter for gluten free needs? Do you use separate knives when preparing gluten free meals? Will you change your gloves before you prepare my food?  You feel like a new age hipster, but you’re not. You just don’t want to ever be that sick again.
5. I can eat rice and potatoes. Score.
6. My Whole House is Gluten Free. Frank and I decided it would just be easier. If we would have gone the other route we would have to have separate pans, separate sponges, even separate strainers for my food vs. theirs. This whole thing is already stressful enough. My family eats gluten while they are out and about. They even have cookies in the cupboards here. We just do not cook with gluten. At all.
7. I have not taken a nap in almost two months, which means I am no longer lethargic. Celiac disease makes your body unable to absorb nutrients (if you are consuming gluten). I thought I was just a working mom with kids. We are all tired. I didn’t know that all of my vitamin levels were just non-existent.
8. My husband and kids have my back. They don’t want me to be sick anymore either. Often times they are asking if something contains gluten or telling people that I can’t have it before I even have a chance. It’s actually pretty sweet.
9. I have not been sick since November 3rd. Three days after cutting gluten from my diet. I never knew how bad I felt until I didn’t feel bad anymore.
10. Celiac is not cancer. What do I mean? Ok, I can’t eat a lot of stuff. I can’t graze on food at get togethers or parties anymore, but I don’t have cancer. What I have can be managed by me planning ahead and by me eating healthy foods. By me not being lazy. For this I am thankful.
11. It’s me. Not my kids. I can not imagine having to helicopter a severe food allergy or the whole cross contamination thing with one of my kids. My heart goes out to any parent that has to diligently protect their children in this way every single day. I am paranoid enough thinking about myself getting cross contaminated.
12. I have not felt this good in a long, long time. My diagnosis has truly been the best thing that has happened to me.

Why am I blogging about this? Because I hope it helps someone else. I was sick for so long. If I would have talked about it, if I would have known, then maybe I could have gotten help sooner. Spreading awareness is key.

Tech Champ – Sara Moore

Holiday Edition

English I

Objective: To read a variety of informational texts and conduct research on a Winter Holiday celebrated in another part of the world, and create a media representation of assigned holiday  

TEKS:

(6)  Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Literary Nonfiction. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the varied structural patterns and features of literary nonfiction and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to analyze how literary essays interweave personal examples and ideas with factual information to explain, present a perspective, or describe a situation or event.

(21)  Research/Gathering Sources. Students determine, locate, and explore the full range of relevant sources addressing a research question and systematically record the information they gather. Students are expected to:

(A)  follow the research plan to compile data from authoritative sources in a manner that identifies the major issues and debates within the field of inquiry;

(B)  organize information gathered from multiple sources to create a variety of graphics and forms (e.g., notes, learning logs); and

(C)  paraphrase, summarize, quote, and accurately cite all researched information according to a standard format (e.g., author, title, page number).

Specifics:

Find all information on GOOGLE. Be specific in your searches and you will have better luck!

Put all information into a Google Slides Presentation IN THIS ORDER

1. Name of Holiday (5 points)
2. Country(s) Associated with Holiday (10 points). If this holiday is celebrated in the United States, say something about it!
3. Religion(s) Associated with Holiday (10 points)
4. Dates Holiday Celebrated (5 points)
5. 3 Traditions Associated with Holiday (15 points)
   1. One slide per tradition – include a description
6. 3 Foods Associated with Holiday (15 points)
   1. One slide per food – include a description or a picture
7. 1 informational text – essay, memoir, biography, autobiography, or news article – discussing the holiday (15 points)
   1. Include an excerpt from the informational text on one slide, and the link to the full text
8. 10 pictures representing Holiday (that you find on the internet) (1 point per picture)
   1. As many slides as necessary
9. Links to ALL websites you got information from (15 points) – yes, you can put this all on one page. Just make the text small.

Share with Mrs. Moore (sara.moore@warrenisd.net) as soon as you create the slideshow – If it is not shared, you can’t get credit!

Additional pieces of this project that will be accepted and counted as extra credit:

1. Make a holiday card that would be appropriate in your holiday
2. Make a collage or diorama depicting your holiday
3. Make a food or bring a drink that is consumed at your holiday (on Dec 16)
4. Wear the colors/clothes associated with your holiday (on Dec 16)

TIMELINE:

12/12/16: Assign project and answer questions

12/14/16: You have the whole class period to research/compile information

12/15/16: You have a vocab quiz, then the rest of the class period to research/compile information.

12/16/16: Slideshows due at the end of the class period. Any additional pieces are also due on this day.

NOTE: In the interest of time, you will not be required to present this information; as such, be sure that you have adequately explained each portion of your holiday.

HOLIDAYS FROM WHICH TO CHOOSE: (Students will randomly draw)

1. Hannukah
2. Kwanzaa
3. Boxing Day
4. Yalda (Winter Solstice)
5. The Emperor’s Birthday (Japan)
6. St. Nicholas Day
7. Bodhi Day
8. Festivus
9. Pancha Ganapati
10. Donghzi Festival
11. KrampusNacht
12. Feast of Winter Veil (World of Warcraft)

The following is a sample of a finished project by a student in Mrs. Moore’s class. (We have permission to share.)

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/185SpqalMRfjaaeYr-fIBYHeCdEm9iIs9GWNThXKYx90/edit?usp=sharing

 

I probably will never be able to express today’s experience adequately, so I am going to try and keep this short and sweet. Against my wishes our school purchased a 3D printer. I did not want it. I did not see the educational value in it, and honestly I did not think I would be “smart” enough to figure the machine out. My how things have changed. This printer has changed my life and my students. We have cried, we have thought harder than we ever have before, and we are excited about where this journey is taking us.

When we started off I told my students that we were going to build a hand. They didn’t really get it, and neither did I. Our a-ha moment happened the day we actually started assembling the hand. That is when it all came together. That was the moment they realized exactly what we were doing and the impact that they were making. We worked diligently on our practice hand. The students all slipped into their roles fairly easy. It all kind of just fell into place. The girls researched and tied strings. We all agreed their fingers were dainty and could easily maneuver the strings through the tiny holes in the hand. The boys used power tools to drill, lighters to burn, and assembled all of the pieces together.

During the process of assembling our practice hand we reached out to a sweet lady that I went to high school with. Her daughter was born with Amniotic Band Syndrome, which caused some of her fingers to not form correctly. I asked Brittany if she would be interested in having my students make her a 3D printed prosthetic hand. She said YES, and our journey officially started.

This morning my Tech Team had the opportunity to meet Brittany and her daughter Blake. We talked about how all of this would {hopefully} unfold. We talked about the design of the hand we will print. Blake talked us through some of the discomfort that her hand causes her, and then….. we had to take selfies. Of course! Here are a few pictures from today. We will be documenting this journey from start to end in hopes to raise awareness to other districts throughout Texas and beyond. Mrs. Abby Paben has named my Tech Team “World Changing Warriors”, and I could not agree more. These kids on my team are truly changing the world, one hand at a time.

Pictures of the Tech Team explaining the different parts of the hand that they worked on while building our practice hand.

Pictures of us talking about the process. Pictures  of the girls on our team preparing to measure Blake’s arm and wrist.

Measuring different parts of Blake’s hand, wrists and arm – and of course some selfie taking fun. 🙂

Today was AMAZING!!! When I woke up I thought to myself, “Is this real life? Do I really get to do this?”  I am so incredibly thankful that my superintendent saw the need for this program. I am glad that I wasn’t so resistant to change and innovation that I missed out on this. I am so glad that I didn’t let fear win.

Digital Portfolio Artist Statements

This year we will be creating digital portfolios through Seesaw. A digital portfolio will follow the students throughout their years with me and show their growth as artists. This will also build on their writing and speaking skills, as we will write and present artist statements for their artwork. So this assignment will actually be an ongoing assignment that will be repeated over and over again throughout the year.

I created an example poster that I would like to have copies of to hang in my classroom to remind the students some of the questions that should be addressed in their artist statement. For their first portfolio project, we will actually take photographs of their finished artwork and then the students will use Canva to create their own poster like my example answering the questions under the 5 headings using proper grammar, spelling, sentence structure…

After that first portfolio entry using the poster we will have other portfolio entries, some using this Canva method, some with audio recordings of the child’s artist statement, as well as some video recordings. I would like to have an audio/video recording area set up in my closet so that it will be private and allow the students to be able to express themselves without worrying about how they sound or look…almost like a photo booth! I think it would be a fun way for the kids to get excited about talking about their artwork!

TEKS:

(7.1, 8.1) Perception. The student develops and organizes ideas from the environment. The student is expected to:

(B) compare and contrast the use of art elements and principles, using vocabulary accurately.

(7.2, 8.2) Creative expression/performance. The student expresses ideas through original artworks, using a variety of media with appropriate skill. The student is expected to:

(A) create artworks based on direct observations, personal experience, and imagination;
(B) incorporate design into artworks for use in everyday life; and
(C) produce drawings, paintings, prints, sculptures, ceramics, fiber art, photographic imagery, and electronic media-generated art, using a variety of art materials and tools in traditional and experimental ways.

(7.3, 8.3) Historical/cultural heritage. The student demonstrates an understanding of art history and culture as records of human achievement. The student is expected to:

(A) analyze ways that international, historical, and political issues influence artworks;
(B) analyze selected artworks to determine cultural contexts

(7.4, 8.4) Response/evaluation. The student makes informed judgments about personal artworks and the artworks of others. The student is expected to:
(A) analyze and compare relationships, such as function and meaning, in personal artworks

Digital Citizenship

Lesson Plan for Grade 1, Technology

Prepared by Natalee Foret

OVERVIEW & PURPOSE

The purpose of this lesson is to understand that computers can be used to learn many new things. We must learn to be safe while using computers and protect ourselves as we would in the real world.

TEKS

(5)  Digital citizenship. The student practices safe, responsible, legal, and ethical behavior while using digital tools and resources. The student is expected to:

• (A)  adhere to acceptable use policies reflecting appropriate behavior in a digital environment;

(B)  comply with acceptable digital safety rules, fair use guidelines, and copyright laws; and

(C)  practice the responsible use of digital information regarding intellectual property, including software, text, images, audio, and video.

 

OBJECTIVES

1. Computers can be used to learn new things.
2. Computer/ Internet Safety
3. What does it mean to be a digital citizen

ACTIVITY

Gather students together and talk about the ways that we use technology in our classroom and in our school. Discuss the rules of that we follow to protect ourselves in real life and how they relate to the rules we need to follow online to protect ourselves and our information.

Discuss computer etiquette

Cyber-Bullying

Passwords and their use

Copyrighted information

Ad’s and why we should not click on them

Ask and engage students by having them chime in with ideas and relate to personal situations. Create a table on the board categorizing the different topics we discuss and where they fall into digital citizenship, have students draw lines to link topics. Use poster created in Canva to show the topics we discuss in a more concrete form. Hang poster in computer area for a constant reminder.

July Canva Challenge – Original Poem Project

TEKS Addressed:

(14)  Writing/Literary Texts. Students write literary texts to express their ideas and feelings about real or imagined people, events, and ideas. Students are responsible for at least two forms of literary writing. Students are expected to:

(B)  write a poem using a variety of poetic techniques (e.g., structural elements, figurative language) and a variety of poetic forms (e.g., sonnets, ballads); and

Couple of ways this can be used:

1. Make examples of literary devices (metaphor, simile, sensory detail, etc)
2. Create visuals for elements of a particular poetic form (Haiku – Japanese Nature Poem, measured in 5-7-5 syllables)
3. Final presentation of original poems, using backgrounds to match both style and content

After completing a study in poetic forms and styles, students will compose a nature poem in the style of the Japanese Haiku. Using Canva, students will design and create a photo that includes their poem and the background, text, pictures, styles, and colors all add to the overall meaning of their poem.

As examples, students will look at a variety of well-known haikus before beginning their own compositions. Examples here: http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-haiku-poems.html

You could even expand this project – Remember a time you took a vacation or spent some time outdoors. What did you feel? What did you see? What did you smell? What did it make you think of? Write a journal entry describing your experience.

Find pictures that you took of things outdoors, or go take your own to represent your poem.

Original Haiku:

The mountains of mist

Calling softly to my heart

Come to me swiftly

These are pictures of Huangshan, the Yellow Mountains in the Anhui province of China. We traveled there last summer and every day I want to go back.

For this Challenge, My Culinary classes will keep track of all recipes and things they cook in lab and at home. (edible homework)  At the end of the year, they will use Canva to create a Class Cookbook with all of their unique recipes.  For instance, we do several cooking challenges with appetizers, desserts, and small meals they can make.  They will use Canva to feature each recipe, the ingredients, and the process of making their food/snacks/desserts.  After compiling and printing an “example pilot Cookbook”, these students can then sell it to staff and family to be put back into the program to be used for them.

This cookbook will also feature anything they make in lab, such as the Apple Pies at Thanksgiving, Crepes, Tortillas, Cookies, Cakes, and their home made pizzas.

TEKS Addressed (Underlined)

(6)  The student understands the history of food service and the use of the professional kitchen. The student is expected to:

(A)  research famous chefs from history and note their major accomplishments;

(B)  identify global cultures and traditions related to food;

(C)  summarize historical entrepreneurs who influenced food service in the United States;

(D)  analyze how current trends in society affect the food service industry;

(E)  use large and small equipment in a commercial kitchen;

(F)  develop food production and presentation techniques;

(G)  demonstrate moist and dry cookery methods;

(H)  demonstrate the preparation skills of items commonly prepared in food service operations such as breakfast cookery, salads and dressings, soups and sandwiches, stocks and sauces, appetizers, seafood, poultry, meat, pastas and grains, and fruits and vegetables;

(I)  demonstrate baking techniques such as yeast breads and rolls, quick breads, and desserts;

(J)  demonstrate proper receiving and storage techniques;

(K)  demonstrate proper cleaning of equipment and maintenance of the commercial kitchen; and

(L)  demonstrate types of table setting, dining, and service skills.

Character Traits Lesson

Materials Needed: A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon and Character Traits poster (Pinterest inspired)

 

Before we read the book, we will record how Camilla looks just from viewing the cover. As we read, we will stop and discuss Camilla’s feelings and how they change throughout the book. Students will help add more traits to the poster.

TEKS: (9)Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of fiction and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. B. Students are expected to describe characters in a story and the reasons for their actions and feelings.

This book also teaches a valuable lesson, to be true to yourself. After the lesson students will create their own pic collage showing what they love.They will use pic collage to create their poster. Students will use a picture of themselves in black and white. They may use doodle buddy to add stripes to themselves like the character in the story or they may print the picture, use markers and then take a picture of it to use in pic collage. Students will add text and/or pictures showing who they are and what they love. This will be a great beginning of the year activity.