The Marchionda Minutes Episode 9 – Vicki's Fairy Boat
In this episode of the Marchionda Minutes podcast we hear from Vicki. She tells us about Easy Bake Oven mixes, literature preferences, and a recent vacation her family went on. We also learn that she loves Blue Moon ice cream! Enjoy! If you want to see the podcast click here.
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read moreNothing But The Work for Today
Sorry not to post much news today. Busy . . . very busy!!
** By the way, I fixed the link for images. Now, when you click on an image, you will see a nice little effect to show you a larger version of the image. Check it out with the planner page below. Go ahead and click on it!
p.s. Be nice to angry penguins. They’re scary!
read moreiPod Touch Tools for the Classroom, Education, and For Fun
Many of the students in my room now have iPod Touches and are interested in using them in the classroom, or educationally. Here are a few pick to get you started. Click on the pictures to open up a direct link in iTunes.
Math Drills Lite is a free application that has a very simple job. Using this program you will be able to practice your math facts in a fun, digital way. Different strategies are used to solve addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts.
SumFun+ does the same thing as Math Drills Lite, but has a nicer graphical interface. SumFun+ also keeps scores so you can challenge others and keep track of your progress. SumFun+ is $0.99.
This next game is my faorite, and it is on sale right now for $0.99. It is called Grade 3 Math. Grade 3 Math is a great way to practice many areas of fundamental third grade math skills in all curricular areas. It is a lot of fun and is $0.99
Flash to Pass Free is another math fact practicing tool that is free. This is a simple tool that seems to be one that does one thing well, flash cards with third grade math facts.
Word Search Unlimited Free is a great, fun series of word searches that build vocabulary and spelling skills. Circling words on the touch screen is great and simple to do. Oh, and it is free!
Next is Thesaurus. Thesaurus in not only a thesaurus, but also a dictionary and a guide for synonyms and antonyms. It is free, but has a down side. It needs an internet connection to get the information. Great for at home, but not for at school.
Dictionary! is a great tool for the third grade classroom. It is a lot larger in size than Thesaurus, but all the words are on the device, no internet connection needed, and it is free!
Finally, USA State Capitals is another game to practice your geography. This game is free and works in a flash card mode. The graphics are nice and each state flag is represented as you go through the game.
Apart from these some of my favorites are:
Awesome Note/Awesome Note Lite
Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader
X-Plane (there are many of them, call cool!)
read moreWe Had a Classroom Visitor Today
Today we were visited by Simon’s dad who told us all about his job as a contractor for naval bases in Afghanistan and Djibouti. We learned about whale sharks, lava rock beaches, parrot fish, baboons, camels, and thorn bush trees. Below are the pictures Simon’s dad brought in to share with us. Thanks for a wonderful time!
Today we started multiplication in math class. Should be a fun week. Here is the work for the day:
Exploring Newtons
Today in science we conducted a little experiment about how much energy in Newtons it takes to lift different amounts of matter. We practiced hypothesizing, recording data, and making inferences based on the numbers and our experiences with this experiment. Here is a shore video of some of the activity:
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read moreLast Day with Science in Residence
Today was our last day to learn from our Science in Residence scientists from UW-Oshkosh. Today was spent in a large group in the gym learning about chromatography, cleaning pennies with different materials, the Stroop Effect, modeling our solar system, and determining acids and bases by their tastes. Here is about a 12 minute video of us from each of the different centers.
While you are at it, don’t forget to head on over here to view all of our movies from this school year! We are collecting quite a few of them. 
Next week we will get into full swing in math class by jumping right into multiplication concepts. We will explore multiplicaiton concepts through both models, symbolic models, and written equations. We will be learning about rural communities in social studies. In reading we will be studying a few traditional fables and sayings, trying to find the wisdom in them that their authors intended. Adjectives will be our focus in writing for the week, too.
Have a great week and I will see you all on Monday!
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Our podcast episode hosts Jack. We learn about his much longed for iPod Touch and who his heros are. We also learn what kind of flavor if ice cream he would be. Does Jack have a love for all things tech? Listen to find out! Enjoy the show! Just press play to listen to the show. Head on over to our PodCast page to see our archives and a picture of Jack when it plays.
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Today our scientists split our class into two groups. One group made a comet using ribbon, sticks, and Styrofoam balls. The other group learned how to capture comet dust. Each child got to participate in both groups. At the end we made ice cream from liquid nitrogen, AND ATE IT! Our ice cream was a model of the materials that make up a comet. Below are some pictures of our day:
Here is the work for the day. Don’t forget to study for your science test on Friday!
Here is the Video from Yesterday's Science in Residence Program
On our second day of working with the students from the UW Oshkosh science department we made scale models of the planets in our solar system using Play Dough. After this we were able to conduct a science experiment that helped us determine the sizes of craters from different sizes of meteors and different speeds of meteors as they hit a surface.
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read moreScience in Residence, Day 2
Today, with our scientists, we explored how meteors make their mark and made scale models of the planets.
Here is a movie for you to download. I will try to get it in flash soon and add it to the movies section.
Here is the work for the day.
Welcome Back, Nice To See You!
It was great coming back to school and seeing all of your faces again. Although I loved having a little vacation from work, I really missed you. I also want to say thanks for coming back to school with such great attitudes. What a pleasure to be in front of all of you teaching again!
This week we will be working a lot with our Science in Residence program with a focus on astronomy. We will be learning about comparing sizes of stars, strange planets, moon cratering, comets, and what aerogel is. Look for pictures through out the week.
After a science experiment today (on building a circuit, game here) we will be reviewing concepts on energy and how it moves. We will be taking a test later in the week. Look for text books to be coming home.
Here is the work for the day:
Below are some movies related to our Science in Residence session today:
read moreMerry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Marchionda.org!
I just want to share a very quick Merry Christmas with all of you. I hope all of your holiday celebrations are full of fun and relaxation. Below is a gallery of photos from last Tuesday and our classroom holiday party. My biggest thanks and appreciations go out to Ryan and Michael’s moms for helping organize the wonderful time we all had.
I also want to say a quick, heartfelt thanks for all of the wonderful gifts and treats sent in on our last day of school a few weeks ago. I feel undeserving of such thought and care. You made my break!
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