Mrs. Yollis' Classroom Blog

Fire Safety With Ellie's Dad!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 17:25:00 +0000

Today we had a special visit from Ellie's dad who is a firefighter for Los Angeles County! Firefighters are men and women who rescue people and save property. His name was Jamie.

The special helmet not only protects Ellie's dad, but provides information about what station he is from.

Firefighters need to respond quickly when they receive a 911 call. They set up their equipment so they can jump right into it. Notice the boots look like they are lace-ups, but they are not. The are zippered!

Ellie's dad said they practice many emergency responses. One thing they practice is to get dressed in less than a minute.

Start the clock!

Firefighters need to solve lots of problems when they respond to an emergency. They have gear in all of their pockets, special breathing apparatus, flame resistant clothing, tools for shutting off gas lines, and much more. Does anyone remember what other tools he had in his pockets?

Part of his equipment included a Personal Alert Safety System (PASS). If ever a firefighter stops moving for 20 seconds, the PASS starts an alert so a firefighter who is in trouble can get rescued.

Jamie informed the students that if they are ever trapped in a house with smoke, get down low and crawl to an escape. Because smoke rises, it is easier to see and breath if you are down low.

Talk with your family about how to respond if your house is on fire. Where is your emergency family meeting place?

Dressed in all their gear, firefighters can be scary to see when you are already afraid. However, he said if you are in a fire, don't hide from a firefighter, they are there to help! Here is Ellie's dad rescuing a young girl.

Beverly was very interested in the fire safety information. She stayed awake the entire time!

Because she was such a good listener, she got to pretend she was a firefighter!

Who is that new volunteer firefighter?

After the presentation, several students stayed after to become junior firefighters!

Important safety tips:

1. Never play with matches.

2. If you are on fire, do not run. Cover your face and STOP, DROP, and ROLL! That will smother, or put out, the fire.

3. Talk with your family about fire safety. HAVE A FIRE ESCAPE PLAN. How do you escape and where is your family meeting area outside? Don't just talk about it, PRACTICE the plan like the school fire drills.

4. If you are in a smoky environment remember to get low, it will be easier to see and breath.

Do you have any questions for firefighter Jamie?

Have you ever been in an emergency situation and were helped by a firefighter?

Skyping With Canadians!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 02:45:00 +0000

Today, we Skyped with Mrs. Watson's class in British Columbia! They are our blogging buddies in Canada. We first met each other when we were members of the Our World, Our Stories global project last October.

Geographers, Kelly and Sarah, locate and point to Solintula, British Columbia.

Canada's Minister of Education was a guest in Mrs. Watson's room, and we thought he must work in the national capital of Canada which is Ottawa.

We opened the call with our American greeters.

Our Canadian greeters were so professional!

For fun, we each sang our verse from the Our World, Our Stories culminating song. Here is the original sing along!

* * * * *

Even thought we had some technical problems with Skype, the two classes persevered and were able to learn a lot about our two countries.

~AREA~

Mia shared that America has 3,794,101 square miles, while Sophie informed us that Canada measures 3, 855,100 square miles.

Very close, but how much larger is Canada's area? Is Canada the largest country in the world?

~POPULATION~

There are a lot of Americans! Trey stated that there are approximately 313,000,000 people in the U.S. According to Karin, there are 34,108,752 Canadians!

Not very close! How many more Americans are there than Canadians?

~NATIONAL BORDERS~

Parsa informed our Canadian friends that America is divided up into 50 states.

Quang shared that Canada is divided up too, but their divisions are not called states. Canada has TEN provinces and THREE territories.

~FLAGS~

Leila drew the flag and discussed what the symbols on the American flag stand for.

Ana shared that Canada's colors/colours are red and white and the national emblem is the maple leaf.

~NATIONAL ANIMALS~

The bald eagle is America's national bird. The female is larger and the wingspan is enormous! Madison used two yard sticks (similar to two meter sticks) to demonstrate the wingspan!

Canada's national animals are the industrious beaver and the Canadian horse. Kennedy said that the horse was just added in 2002.

~FUN FACTS~

It is interesting that the highest and lowest points in North America are in the United States. Matthew and Aidan put these facts together.

Although Death Valley doesn't sound inviting, it is quite beautiful!

Canadian fun fact: Canadians eat more Mac and Cheese than any other country on Earth!

We loved this fact! However, considering America's enormous population and love of Mac and Cheese, we find this fact hard to believe!

Thank you, Royce, for being our class photographer!

* * * * *

What did you think of the Skype call?

Do you have any questions for the Canadians?

Please share your opinion with the Minister of Education, Mr. Abbott. Why you think blogging is important?

Video Tutorials: What Are Quadrilaterals?

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 02:57:00 +0000

In our polygon unit, we are learning about four-sided figures called

QUADRILATERALS!

Many people were confused about why some shapes have more than one name. Here are some tutorials to help you learn about quadrilaterals.

* * * * *

What is a parallelogram?

Here is an interactive parallelogram.

* * * * *

What is a rectangle?

Here is an interactive rectangle.

* * * * *

What is a rhombus?

Here is an interactive rhombus.

* * * * *

What is a square?

Here is an interactive square.

*     *     *     *     *

Maybe you'd like to watch the Polygon Movie again and meet these quadrilaterals in person!

*     *     *     *     *

Have you used our quadrilateral tutorials?

Which tutorial helped the most?

Skyping With Australia!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 05:12:00 +0000

Today we Skyped with our blogging buddies in Australia, 4KM and 4KJ. It was Tuesday at 2:00 P.M. for us, but for the Australians, it was Wednesday at 9:00 A.M.

It was about 77˚ F (25˚C) in both of our suburbs!

Skyping With 4KM and 4KJ on PhotoPeach

Here are some interesting comparisons:

Area

Australia 7, 682, 300 sq. km   (≈ 8 million sq. km)
U.S.A.          9, 826, 675 sq. km (≈ 10 million sq. km)

Australia     2, 967, 892 sq. miles (≈ 3 million sq. miles)
U.S.A.      3,794,101 sq. mi (≈ 4 million sq. mi.)

Population

Australians 22, 837, 351
Americans 312,000,000 million (2011 estimate)

National Flags

National Seal or Coat of Arms

National Facts

Australia became a federation on January 1, 1901, and Canberra became the capital in 1927.

The United States became a country on July 4, 1776, and Washington, D.C. became the capital city on July 16, 1790.

National Birds

Emu photo by Kathleen Morris

Photo by Todd Yollis

What are some Australian or American facts that are not mentioned in this post?

What questions would you like to discover when we Skype again?

What was your favorite part about the Skype call?

Happy Valentine's Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 20:32:00 +0000

Today we recorded a special Valentine's Day song! We hope you enjoy our singing!

L is for the way you look at me
O is for the only one I see
V is very, very extraordinary
E is even more than anyone that you adore

Love is all that I can give to you
Love is more than just a game for two
Two in love can make it
Take my heart and please don't break it
Love was made for me and you!

Thank you Mrs. Boyd for being our accompanist!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

We celebrated throughout the day. First, Royce's mom put a fruit medley together using red fruit donated by class members.

Students passed out their valentines. Many students wrote the valentine names in cursive! Ooh la la!

At the end of the day, Mrs. Yollis said that students could open their valentines or have free-time.

Many students opted to build tessellations. A tessellation is flat design that tessellates. That means that the shapes fit together with NO GAPS and NO OVERLAPS!

This beauty has been growing for two days!

Some students added dots to this growing equilateral triangle pattern.

As we started to get Valentine's Day comments about our L-O-V-E song, students started commenting back!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

What did you give for Valentine's Day?

Mardi Gras: Learning From Experts!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:53:00 +0000

Mrs. Yollis' class had the opportunity to learn from experts today! They Skyped with Ms. Naugle's 4th grade class in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Louisianans taught the class all about Mardi Gras! Over a million people descend upon New Orleans to be part of this celebration.

Alexandra and Ellie located the Pelican State in Big Blue, our class atlas. Notice that Leila brought in a Mardi Gras mask and Aidan brought in some cajun spices for the class to smell. Many students have had cajun spices on chicken and pasta.

Royce, Mia, Trey, and Sasha took notes in Word.

Many students took notes on paper, and below is a photo of Kelly's!

We used the notes to write the following paragraph!

Mardi Gras came to America in 1699, and it is also called Fat Tuesday. There are three main colors for Mardi Gras, purple, green, and gold. Purple symbolizes justice, green symbolizes faith, and gold represents power. There are many parades during Mardi Gras. The parade workers are called krewe, and they help build the floats. There are many parades. In fact, there is one ever day during the week, and on weekends there can be two or three scheduled! Many of Ms. Naugle's student attend the Rascal's Parade which is only for children. Mardi Gras starts Tuesday, February 21 this year.

Here are some of the the Mardi Gras souvenirs!

This student caught a football and a leather sword at one of the parades.

At the Zulu parade, they give out coconuts! They do not throw the coconuts because that would cause a lot of injuries! Ms. Naugle is hoping to get a coconut this year!

Many parade goers wear fantastic masks! Here are two great examples!

At the end of the presentation, they performed a dance for us! Music is a big part of Louisiana's heritage! We loved the music and the dancing!

We also used library books to learn more about Louisiana.

Louisiana is the 18th state, and its capital is Baton Rouge. The Pelican State is home to many alligators. Some of Ms. Naugle's students have hunted alligators when it is alligator hunting season.

We talked about Hurricane Katrina that hit New Orleans in 2005. It was a deadly hurricane. The name Katrina can no longer be used in naming a hurricane. We were sadden to learn that many of Ms. Naugle's students had to evacuate. Some were out of their homes for over two years!

* * * * *

Maya did a wonderful job with the photographs!

Thank you, Ms. Naugle and class, for sharing this celebration with us.

We loved learning about Mardi Gras from our new expert friends!

* * * * *

Do you remember any other facts about Louisiana?

Have you ever been to a celebration like this?

The Polygon Movie

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:55:00 +0000

Mrs. Yollis' class has been investigating geometry!

The three different types of angles were discovered.

Parts of a circle have been identified.

They even used GoogleEarth to locate 2 and 3-dimensional figures.

Today, the students are learning about POLYGONS!

(A polygon is a closed figure with straight lines.)

In this 2008 drama that Mrs. Yollis wrote, Circle tries to get a starring role in the new movie,

Polygons,

but is forced to accept the fact that

A CIRCLE is NOT A POLYGON and never will be.

Don't worry, it has a happy ending!

Do you see any polygons in your house?

Which polygon is your favorite?

Which triangle do you prefer?

Google Earth Geometry!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:03:00 +0000

Post written by Mia, Sasha, Brenden, Kelly, Alyssa, Aidan, Leila, Royce, and Sarah

Mrs. Yollis' student love exploring Google Earth! Today, they combined their love of geography with their love of geometry!

While exploring Washington, D.C., America's capital city, they also searched for 2 and 3-dimentional shapes!

The White House

The President of the United States lives in the White House. The address is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The White House belongs to all Americans.

Notice the columns in front. They are cylinders.

Mia discovered that Pennsylvania Avenue is parallel to Constitution for a while, and then Pennsylvania turns in another direction.

Logan identified some intersecting streets. Pennsylvania Avenue intersects 19th Street!

Washington Monument

Here is an aerial shot of the Washington Monument. Around the base of the obelisk is a circle of flags. In addition, there are two other circles around the monument. The top is a square base pyramid.

Brenden took a picture of the Washington Monument looking down inside of it.

Jefferson Memorial

Here is an amazing photograph of the Jefferson Memorial! The dome ceiling appears to be a hemisphere. Notice the concentric circles around the memorial. Concentric means shapes that share the same center point.

Here is a screen shot of Jefferson Memorial with the Washington Monument in the background.

This is a photo of Jefferson Memorial with the statue of Jefferson inside. Without the domed roof, the building is a cylinder.

Here is an amazing close up of the Jefferson Memorial statue. It is around 18 feet tall in person. It looks tiny here, but it is HUGE in person!

Lincoln Memorial

Here is the Lincoln Memorial from the sky! There are intersecting lines, circles, and rectangular prisms on the Lincoln Memorial.

In this photograph, the Lincoln Memorial is seen from a different angle.

To tilt down in Google Earth, press SHIFT + ARROW down.

Notice the circle around the Lincoln Memorial. There are columns that look like cylinders holding the Lincoln Memorial up. There are three rectangular prisms on the roof of the Lincoln Memorial.

Here is a photo of the Lincoln Memorial. There are cylinders (columns) holding up the Lincoln Memorial.

This is the Abraham Lincoln statue inside the Lincoln Memorial! Did you know if you have the 3-D buildings layer on in Google Earth, you can go inside the memorial as well? Try it!

This is a gorgeous building! On the front there is a triangle. It is a beauty! Do you know the name of this building? Some students thought it was the Department of Treasury. Others thought is was the Supreme Court Building.

Can you name this building?

Have you ever used Google Earth?

Have you ever been to any of these places?

Do you know any facts about these places?

100,000 Visitors!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:24:00 +0000

Numbers are exciting!

Mrs. Yollis' class loves to keep track of their visitors using the ClustrMap gadget in the sidebar. Recently, the visitor count read a new number, and they had to add a new place value position!

Welcome, hundred thousands place!

See if you can find a big number in your life.

Perhaps you could ask your parents to check the odometer on the family car. It shows the number of miles (kilometers) on your car.

Woogi World Log In

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:30:00 +0000

CyberSmart week for the school district is February 6-10, 2012!

Many activities are planned.

To kick off the week, we will join Woogi World!

The district has enrolled every elementary school student in this online education community. Here is a link to their About Us page. Each child will be given a temporary password on Monday.

For homework, log in with your parents and create a new USERNAME and PASSWORD. Together with your parents, follow the instructions on the paper I'll give you on Monday. Here are some things to think about when generating a USERNAME and PASSWORD:

1. USERNAMES and PASSWORDS are private. Never share them with your friends.

2. Have your parents write your USERNAME and PASSWORD on a piece of paper. Keep all USERNAMES and PASSWORDS in a private place.

3. We use several online sites in our classroom. (Spelling City, vMath Live, Woogi World) Consider using the same USERNAME and PASSWORD for each. Perhaps modify the password to reflect the site. End the password for Spelling City with SC. End the password for vMath Live with VML. End the password for Woogi World with WW.

4. Although you will be choosing a private USERNAME and PASSWORD, your teacher is the administrator of the program and will have access to your information.

Cyber experts recommended mixing letters, numbers, and symbols when creating a safe password.

Do you have any other tips for creating safe passwords?

What did you do in Woogi World?

Circle: Radius and Diameter Exploration!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

In our class, we are studying geometry, and

today we learned about circles.

Mrs. Yollis' necklace was made of CIRCLES.

The playground had many CIRCLES.

* * * * *

CIRCLE VOCABULARY

We learned that circles have a center point. It is the same distance from anywhere on the circle.

In addition, we learned that a line segment drawn from the center point to the outside edge of the circle is a radius.

The diameter is a line segment. It passes through the center and has endpoints on the circle.

* * * * *

After the vocabulary lesson, Mrs. Yollis' students were ready to make their own CIRCLES.

Chalk was tied to a piece of string. The string was the RADIUS.

Here is one radius with a length of 1 yard. (36 inches)

We also created a radius with a length of 3 yards!

Next, we went outside with our two radii. (Radii is the plural of radius.)

One student sat in the CENTER.

We pulled the radius tight, and students pulled the chalk around the center.

QUESTION: With a radius of 1 yard, what was the diameter?

(Answer given below.)

ANSWER: A circle with a 1 yard radius will have a diameter of 2 yards.

1 yard x 2 = 2 yards

or maybe you prefer it in feet:

3 feet x 2 = 6 feet

The bigger circle was much harder to make!

It had a radius of 3 yards (9 feet).

It was hard to keep the radius pulled in a tight line segment. We had to restart at times.

Keep dragging the chalk around the center point!

Finally, we were were able to complete the circle. It was time to measure the diameter!

ANSWER: The circle with a radius of 3 yards has a diameter of 6 yards.

3 yards X 2 = 6 yards

or maybe you prefer it in feet:

9 feet X 2 = 18 feet

* * * * *

Some students confuse a flat circle with a 3-dimensional sphere.

Take this quiz to see if YOU know the difference!

Circle or Sphere? on PhotoPeach

Were you able to create a perfect circle in class?

Do you have any tips?

What is Plagiarism?

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:52:00 +0000

According to the New Oxford American Dictionary:

* * * * *

Now that Mrs. Yollis' class is learning to research using the World Book Encyclopedia Online, it is important for everyone to understand how to share learning without just copying.

* * * * *

How to share learning without becoming a plagiarist is tricky.

Step 1: Read the passage completely.

Step 2: Take notes on the interesting parts.
(IMPORTANT - Only write facts. Do not copy sentences.)

Example:

California
largest population
33,871,648 people

Step 3: Use the facts to compose your own sentences.
Now is a good time to add your opinion as you share.

Here are my own sentences using my California facts:

I was surprised to learn that my state, California, has the largest population of all fifty states. There are approximately 34 million California citizens.

* * * * *

How do you research?

How would you feel if someone took your writing and tried to pass it off as their own?

Please leave a comment with something that YOU researched. Remember, put it in your own words!

Angle Quiz: Acute? Obtuse? or Right?

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:57:00 +0000

In geometry, we are learning about angles!

An angle is a figure formed when two rays share the same endpoint.

Below is a special angle called a right angle.
It is also called a 90˚ angle.

Any angle less than a right is called an acute angle.

Any angle greater than a right is called an obtuse angle.

Below is a quiz. Can you guess the angle?

Name That Angle! on PhotoPeach

Do you see any acute, right, or obtuse angles in your house?

Tell us about them!

National Geographic Live: Brian Skerry

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 04:28:00 +0000

Mrs. Yollis and the other third grade students went on a field trip to see Ocean Soul by Brian Skerry. This program was sponsored in part by Ingrid Hanzer on behalf of National Geographic Live!

In reading and science, the class is learning about animal habitats.

The ocean is the world's largest habitat!

Students line up to board the bus to the Broad Theatre. Thank you, PFC, for sponsoring the travel expenses!

We were met by Dan Beaupre, director of Educational Partnerships for National Geographic Live!

Mrs. Yollis, Brian Skerry, Ingrid Hanzer (sponsor), Dan Beaupre

After the presentation, students ate lunch on the grass outside the theater.

Brian Skerry emailed Mrs. Yollis some photographs to use on the class blog! Remember, it is essential to have permission to use someone's work.

Here are some of Brian Skerry's wonderful photos!

Brian Skerry harp seal photograph used with permission.

Brian Skerry hermit crab photograph used with permission.

Brian Skerry manatee in fresh water spring photograph used with permission.

Brian Skerry yellow goby photograph used with permission.

Brian Skerry female leatherback turtle photograph used with permission.

Our time spent learning about the ocean with Brian Skerry was inspiring. Here are some watercolor paintings created by students after seeing Mr. Skerry's photographs of the ocean.

Ocean Watercolors! on PhotoPeach

What did you learn about the ocean from Brian Skerry?

What did you learn about photography?

Happy 50th Birthday, AA (Australian Parent)

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:22:00 +0000

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Today we are sending a special birthday song out to a wonderful Australian parent. This parent, named Alma or AA, has been a supportive person of this classroom blog for the past two year. Here is a post from 2010 when she and her daughter, Bianca, sent our class an Australian care package! This mother-daughter pairing has developed an online friendship between Mrs. Yollis and her mother!

AA's daughter, Bianca, is a former student of Mrs. Morris in Australia.Through our classroom blogs we have gotten to know one another. AA dedicates a lot of her time to support classroom blogging. She regularly leaves quality comments for students, and we certainly appreciate her support!

Thank you, Sarah, for the violin accompaniment!

A classroom blog is a fabulous project filled with wonderful friendships!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Click here to see a special birthday blog for Alma's birthday!

Mr. Yollis Shares About Kodiak Grizzly Bears!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:53:00 +0000

Mrs. Yollis' class has been reading Badger Claws of Ojai, the story of a Chumash Indian boy. In the story, the Chumash boy encounters a grizzly bear named Old Silver Tip.

To complement the story, Mr. Yollis came in to share about his experiences with a sub-species of grizzly called Kodiak grizzly bears.

Even Beverly enjoyed learning about her relatives!

* * * * *

Kodiak Island is the largest island in the Kodiak Archipelago, and it is the second largest island in the United States.

* * * * *

Here are some photo from Kodiak Island. The bears and Mr. Yollis were there to fish for salmon!

Notice the salmon trying to get up the falls to the lake where they can spawn.

Grizzly bears have a large hump above their shoulders. The males, called boars, can weigh up to 1400 pounds. Females, called sows, range in weight from 500-700 pounds.

Above is a photo of One Ear. She had three baby cubs.

Above is One Ear and two of her cubs. Her babies watch her and learn how to catch salmon.

Lots of flora and fauna can be found in Alaska! That's a fancy way of saying there are lots of plants and animals in Alaska.

Above Mr. Yollis tries to compete with bears to catch a tasty salmon dinner! Luckily, there was enough salmon for everyone!

* * * * *

Here are some videos Mr. Yollis took on his trip.

Enjoy and Learn!

Transportation to rural areas in Alaska is done by float plane. Watch the video to see a float plane land on the ocean!

Here is a video full of fun facts about grizzly bears!

Did you know that grizzly bears love water! Below is one looking under the water for salmon!

Here is a video clip of a grizzly fishing for salmon at the bottom of a waterfall.
Will he catch a salmon?

Below is a video clip of One Ear playing with her three cubs!

Would you enjoy a float plane ride to the wilderness?

What did you learn about grizzly bears?

Please leave a comment below!

CHALLENGE!

Try to write a sentence in your comment that starts with a dependent clause.

Dependent clauses start with special words:

After, Before, Since, While, When, If, During.

A dependent clause ends with a comma and cannot stand alone as a sentence. It must be followed by an independent clause,
which is a sentence that can stand alone!

Fun With Opacity!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:57:00 +0000

In science, we are learning about light. Today we learned that some kinds of matter block light. If an object blocks light it is opaque (oh PAYK).

We went outside and created animals using our opaque hands!

Photo #1

Photo #2

Photo #3

Photo #4

Photo #5

Photo #6


Photo #7

Here are some other more difficult shadow puppets to create!

Click to Enlarge.

What do the numbered shadows look like to you?

Are there any opaque objects in your house?

Happy Birthday Martin Luther King!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 22:44:00 +0000

Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Last year, Mr. B. accompanied the class as they honored Dr. King with a song.
Listen and enjoy!

Below are the words to sing along!

Once there was a man named King, Alleluia.

They called him Martin Luther King, Alleluia

King was wise and he was good, Alleluia.

He believed in brotherhood, Alleluia.

CHORUS:

Martin Luther King,

Freedom was his dream.

Martin Luther King,

Freedom was his dream.

Martin’s eyes were colorblind, Alleluia.

For he loved people of every kind, Alleluia.

He had a dream for you and me, Alleluia.

He knew that all men must be free, Alleluia.

CHORUS

Fun Facts:

American's celebrate his birth on the third Monday in January. MLK Day is a national holiday.

Martin was first named Michael, but his name was later changed to Martin, after his father. His father's name was Martin Luther King, Sr.

1948 was the year he graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia.

In 1955, Mr. King received his doctorate degree from Boston University. His new title was Dr. King.

Dr. King used nonviolent acts to change the unfair laws of the U.S.

On August 28, 1963, Dr. King gave his "I have a Dream" speech in Washington, D. C. to over 200, 000 people. This important speech was given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

In 1963, MLK was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the civil rights movement.

* * * * *

Do you know any other interesting facts about Dr. King?

How did you like the song?

Link to the comment section is under

the

3 images below!

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Six Students Earn Their Own Blogs!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:36:00 +0000

In Mrs. Yollis' class, students who demonstrate responsible work habits and regularly participate in the class blog are eligible to earn their own blog. Maintaining a blog takes a lot of hard work and dedication. Today, six students are ready to take on that responsibility.

A big thank you goes out to the parents of our student bloggers.
Parents are the administrators of each student blog and have been learning right alongside their child. Well done parents!

Behold!

Click here to visit: Leila's Lounge

Click here to visit: The Kelly Connection

Click here to visit: Sasha's Sensational Scoop

Click here to visit: The Voice of Royce

Click here to visit: Come Somersault With Sarah!

Click here to visit: Mia's Marvelous Moments

Rather than leaving a comment here, please click on one of the student blogs above.

They would love to hear from you!

Link to the comment section is under

the
3 images below!

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Learn About Peru!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:56:00 +0000

On Friday, Alexandra's father came in and talked about the country of his birth, Peru!

First, we went down to the giant map to locate Peru.

Beverly got a chance to see the map for the first time.

As luck would have it, Alexandra's cousin was visiting during the same week that we had the giant traveling map! That's serendipity! (Serendipity is a fancy word for good luck.)

Alexandra's father shared a slide show. (Embedded below) with photos of Peru, including one of a surfing beach in Lima, Peru.

After his presentation, we all went outside to enjoy a special Peruvian treat!


Even Mrs. Yollis got one of the yummy desserts!

¡Muey delicioso!

Check out his fabulous slideshow! It includes images from his trip to Machu Pichu and the Nazca Lines.

About a dozen years ago, Mrs. Yollis traveled to Peru. She spent some time at Machu Pichu and thought it was a beautiful historic location.

Mrs. Yollis hiking up a portion of the Inca Trail.

The mountains were terraced or carved into steps.

When Mrs. Yollis was in Machu Pichu, there were llamas grazing on the terraced mountain.

What did you learn about Peru?

Would you like to visit Machu Pichu or the Nazca Lines?

Link to the comment section is under

these three photos.

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Comments From Argentina!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 21:29:00 +0000

Mrs. Yollis' school has National Geographic's Giant Traveling Map of South America for the week. In past years, they've had Asia, North America, and Africa.

Mrs. Yollis contacted a friend of hers on Twitter who lives in South America. She asked her amiga (Spanish for female friend) to share a little about her native country of Argentina. This fabulous comment from Greta Sandler lead to lots of excitement and learning about Argentina.

Mrs. Yollis contacted another friend who lived in Argentina, Silvia Tolisano. Here is a wonderful comment from Mrs. Tolisano, also known as Langwitches. She commented about what she liked about her South American country!

These comments prompted more learning about South America!

Yollis' Argentinians gather around the COUNTRY'S border. Colored arrows were placed on points of interests.
Green arrow ~ Buenos Aires, the city where Greta Sandler lives and teaches ELS students. Red arrow ~ Iguazu Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of South America! Blue arrow ~ Laguna del Carbon, lowest point in South America.

Here is the location of Iguazu Falls.It is located on the border of Argentina and Brazil.

We pointed to this special water feature on the giant map.

Mrs. Yollis found a beautiful video of this awesome waterfall in Argentina. Iguazu Falls is something to see!

Do you know any other facts about Argentina?

Research Iguazu Falls and share! What river is falling?

Do you have any questions for Ms. Sandler or Mrs. Tolisano?

Mrs. Yollis' Class Journeys to South America!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 21:29:00 +0000

Mrs. Yollis is passionate about teaching geography to children.

She organizes the National Geographic Giant Traveling Maps for her district.

This year her district is going to South America!

Over the years, they've explored Asia, North America, and Africa.

Students took off their shoes and explored the continent of South America!

One student said her mother was born in URUGUAY. We noticed that all the countries were labeled using CAPITAL LETTERS. That was helpful!


Some students counted COUNTRIES, while others looked for capital cities. One student walked the Andes Mountain Range and another swam the length of the Amazon River!

One boy noticed that his shirt was the capital of GUYANA! He hadn't even visited Guyana!

After some free exploration, we used the COUNTRY cards to locate all the COUNTRIES in South America. How many countries were there?

We were surprised to find Los Angeles! Who remembers where this city is located? What COUNTRY?

BRAZIL was so large, we could all sit inside its borders!

Next, we decided to create a human ClustrMap! First, we examined our South American map.

We tried to identify the cities that went with the larger dots. Many of the cities were capital cities!

Everyone got their visitor dots ready!

Behold! Our Human ClustrMap of South America! Can you name any of the cities?


Mrs. Yollis pointed out Angel Falls in VENEZUELA. Does anyone know any fun facts about the famous waterfall?

Have you ever visited a country in South America? If so, tell us about it!

Research and share some interesting facts about South America. Remember, do not plagiarize!

(To plagiarize mean you copied someone else's work and are passing it off as your own.)

Family Blogging Month Winner: Sarah Plays Chopin!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 16:28:00 +0000

Sarah was one of the winners of Family Blogging Month! Each student won a free-choice post here on Mrs. Yollis' Classroom Blog. Please enjoy Sarah's post about Frederic Chopin!

Frederic Chopin composed music in the early Romantic Period (1820 to 1850). The Romantic Period began as a reaction to the more formal music of the Classical period. The music in the Romantic Period had more feelings and emotions to the music and Beethoven began to write such music in some of his later works even though he lived during the Classical Period.

Wikipedia

Chopin was born on 1810 in Poland, and died in 1849 when he was just 38 years old. Chopin mostly composed music for the piano. He gave his first concert when he was seven years old and was compared to Mozart and Beethoven. No other composer could play the pinao with as much feeling as Chopin. He was sick most of his life and died from tuberculosis.

The Waltz in A-flat major, also called "The Farewell Waltz," was written in 1835 as a farewell piece to Maria Wodzińska. Chopin was supposed to marry Maria but her parents didn't allow her to marry Chopin because he was very ill.

I really like this piece because I like how the rhythm changes. In some places it is faster and in other places it is slower. When I play, I feel the music and decide where to play faster and slower. The musical term for this is Rubato, which is expressive shaping of music. Chopin was famous for this. I also really love the melody of this waltz.

Have you ever listened to Chopin before? What is your favorite piece?

What do you think of his music?

Do you play an instrument?

Thank You 2KM, 2KJ, and B4!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 03:29:00 +0000

We got some fabulous Christmas presents from our blogging buddies! First, 2KM and 2KJ sent us this clever story called

Santa's Blogging Adventure.

Not only was the story well-written, but the hand drawn illustrations were incredible. The story includes Santa stops to the classrooms of Mr. Salsich, Mrs. Watson, Mrs. McKenzie, and Mr. Avery's. So entertaining! To hear the story, head on over to Mr. Avery's class. They did a great reading of the story!

Just as we were about to leave on vacation, we received another surprise parcel from Down Under! A holiday card and some Pineapple Lumps from Mrs. McKenzie and B4. No one had ever heard of Pineapple Lumps, but Mrs. McKenzie said they are very popular in New Zealand! They were delicious!

We want to thank our blogging buddies and wish them a very Merry Christmas! Here is a song we recorded for you!

What was your favorite part of Santa's Blogging Adventure?

Did you enjoy your Pineapple Lump?

Family Blogging Month Winners!

noreply@blogger.com (Mrs. Yollis) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 17:03:00 +0000

Family Blogging Month was a terrific success! Congratulations Leila, Sarah, and Sasha!

Each girl won a free meal at the Marmalade Cafe and an opportunity to publish a free-choice post on our classroom blog! Congratulations to our top bloggers!

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Thank you to all the parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends for your participation!

This When I Was Young... post is an amazing demonstration of how important and fun it is to include family in our learning. Please take a moment to check that post out! You're invited to add your story!

We hope you will continue to participate in our learning community!

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What did you like most about Family Blogging Month?

Which family members left comments and how did that make you feel?

How did your family enjoy the month?