WONDERFUL Student Illustrations

Here are some wonderful illustrations created during our Eric Carle Author Study!

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

I did not take pictures of this student's entire book, but I was so impressed with his collage illustrations that I just had to share them!  He was one of the last ones to finish his book, and it really shows that he took his time.  I kept telling him that he could be a book illustrator when he grows up!

Don't his animals look so realistic?

This author study and book-making project was quite the complex project, but I am SO proud at how all of the books turned out.  What do you think of the Final Products?

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

Final Product- "The Lonely Fish"

Here is another book created during our Eric Carle Author Study!

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

In Mister Seahorse, Eric Carle uses clear pages printed with seaweed and rocks, to "hide" fish illustrations behind it.  This student wanted to recreate that feature, so I provided her with transparency pages and permanent markers.  During the writing process, she really thought out how she wanted to incorporate these clear pages.  I love how her story turned out!  Enjoy!

The Lonely Fish

"One summer, the fish was very lonely.  He wanted to see what was behind the seaweed."

"It was a fish! "Hi fish, can you play with me?" said the fish.  "No," said the other."

"Next, he saw a big rock.  And he wanted to see what was behind the rock."

"It was a crab! "Hi crab, can you play with me?" said the fish.  "No," said the crab."

"Then, he saw some coral.  He wanted to see what was behind the coral."

"It was a seahorse.  "Hi seahorse, can you play with me?" said the fish.  "Yes," said the seahorse."

"The seahorse played with the fish.  They saw a shark."

"Then they quickly swam behind a rock to hide."

"They saw beautiful coral and seaweed."

"The fish and seahorse heard their moms calling their names.  So they went back home."

"When the fish went home, he told his mom and dad about his adventure, and he wasn't lonely anymore."

This student has struggled with English proficiency all year, so it was great to see her write this story with little assistance.  I also love how the illustrations with the clear pages turned out!

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

Final Product- "The Lonely Elephant"

Here is another book created during our Eric Carle Author Study!

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

This student was the only one who included a dedication page.  Her 6th page is missing because she did not like how her badger illustration turned out...

"In the world, in a zoo, there was a lonely elephant named Niij." (pronounced Neege)

"So, he went to find some friends.  First, he found a ladybug behind a leaf.  The ladybug was too grouchy."

"So he went to find another friend.  Next, he found a spider, but it was too busy."

"Then, he found a woodpecker that was pecking on wood.  Niij said,"You want to be my friend?" The woodpecker was too busy pecking."

"Next, he saw a snake slithering on the sand.  Niij said, "You want to be my friend?" but it scared away Niij."

"Then, he met a tall tall giraffe, but it was too tall to hear Niij."

So Niij saw a rhino, but the rhino was too strong for him."

"Later, he saw a big fat hippo behind a tree.  But the hippo was too big."

"He was getting tired of finding a friend.  But then he saw......."

"....an elephant!  Niij was so happy to see an elephant."

"the elephant was happy to see Niij too.  The elephant's name was Niijo.  They were friends forever."

I just loved how this student brought in some of Eric Carle's characters (The Busy Spider and The Grouchy Ladybug).  One more fantastic story to show you!  Stay tuned!

Until next time, 

-Miss Woodward

Final Product- "The Strong Ant"

I am excited to show you some of the final books we created in our Eric Carle Author Study project!  This was a project we had been working on for about a month before school ended.

If you're new to Miss Woodward's Class, learn about our Author Study here, and our book making here, here, and here.

I laminated the front and back covers, and used the book binder to bind them.  I wanted my students to have a keepsake; something they would have for years.  I wanted them to look back and say, "I made this in third grade!"  Before I gave the books back to the students, I snapped a few photos of my favorite books.

The Strong Ant

"An ant was hungry, so he went to find some food.  He knew that if something is heavy then its bigger."

"He went to find some food.  He found a leaf, the leaf was too light."

"He went on.  He found a bean but it was too light."

"So he went on.  He saw a berry, the berry was too light so he went on."

"Then he found a little orange, but it was still too light."

"After that he found a strawberry, but it was still too light."

"Before he found the heaviest thing, he found a tomato, but the tomato was still too light."

"Finally, he found the biggest thing, it was a pumpkin."

"Then he ate the pumpkin, and the pumpkin was scrumptious."

Don't you just love how it turned out? Stay tuned for two more of my favorites!

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward

BULLY

"Bully" is a documentary film about bullying in U.S. schools.  It follows five kids who get bullied every day.  The film also shows interviews of parents who have lost children to suicide as a result of bullying.

I highly recommend that all teachers, administrators, and parents watch this documentary.  

It was a powerful film that opens viewers' eyes to the widespread issue of bullying.  As a teacher, it broke my heart to see students getting physically and verbally bullied.  Some of them kept it all inside, but some kids told their teachers and parents of their hurt.  The part that made me most upset, though, was hearing these students cry for help, and seeing the administrators and teachers do nothing to stop the bullies.  In one girl's situation, her teachers made fun of her for being gay.

Parents whose children committed suicide as a result of bullying shared their tragic stories.  They are dedicated to making their children's voices heard.  They have been trying to raise awareness of bullying, and have shared their concerns with administrators and teachers.  One school's response to bullying was, "Kids will be kids." and "We can't always protect kids from what other kids say and do."

The parents of a boy who committed suicide shared their concerns at a Town Hall meeting.  A meeting where no school representatives showed up...  The parents said that when they send their kids on the bus, they are sending them to a place where they want their children to be as safe and protected as they would be at home.

Another boy was being called "bitch", getting his face repeatedly pushed into the bus seat, and getting threats from another kid who said he would "f*** him up so bad".  Film makers were concerned for this boy's safety that they showed the footage to his parents.  His parents went to the school's principal, who made herself look like a fool at how she handled the situation.  She said that she was sad this was happening, but she has ridden that bus route before and those kids "are as good as gold".  Her ignorance and unwillingness to act on the situation made me cringe.

The film did a good job of raising awareness of bullying in our nation's schools.  As a teacher, I have to think to myself, "What can I do to prevent bullying in my classroom and in my school?"  Many teachers are guilty of "shrugging it off" when a student tells them they got picked on.  We must set up our classrooms to be safe places for all students.  We need to teach tolerance and acceptance.  We need to make all students feel like they are a welcomed member of the classroom community.

What can you do to prevent bullying?

Learn about The Bully Project here.  You can get your own copy of BULLY here.

Until next time,
-Miss Woodward

End of the Year Gifts

I am so excited to share with you the gifts I gave my students at the end of the year!

It gave me so much joy when I gave them blankets for Christmas, so I wanted to give them something special to end the year.

First, I found drawstring backpacks here from Oriental Trading.  These were generously paid for by my parents... Thanks Ms. Teresa and Mr. Woodward!  I knew the kids would love having their own backpack that they could use through the summer and into next year.

Then, I used leftover notebooks and wrote each student a personal note inside.  I also included a little baggie of mechanical pencils (I went with mechanical because I couldn't count on the kids having pencil sharpeners at home).

I went to Goodwill and bought each student a book to read.  I made sure it was something they were interested in, and at their reading level.

Lastly, I gave them a stamped and self-addressed envelope, and encouraged them to write me letters.  All they have to do is write the letter, seal it, and put it in the mailbox!

We have only been on summer vacation for two days, and I have already received four letters!  One was even from one of my most difficult students, who struggles with reading and writing.  I am so proud of him that he wrote me a letter!

Until next time,
-Miss Woodward

Last Day of School!

Well, I survived my first year as a teacher.

Wednesday was our last day of school, and we had a very busy day.  After some cleaning, we played "Minute to Win It" games.  The kiddos loved it!  In one minute, students had to....

...move cotton balls into a bucket using chopsticks... (they were very good at this one, because a lot of them use chopsticks regularly at home.)

... use only one hand to sort a bag of M&M's into piles of each color...

... remove all of the tissues from a tissue box...

...move red cups one by one from the top of the stack to the bottom, to reveal a blue cup on the top...

...use an uncooked spaghetti noodle in their mouths to pick up four penne noodles...

...and stack 36 cups into a tower.

It really was a great last day of school.  

The best part of the day was as we were taking the kids out to the buses.  A crowd of teachers had formed, cheering for and hugging the students as they walked to their buses.  It was such a positive way to end a spectacular school year.

Until next time,

-Miss Woodward