Idea Exchange

Today you are going to break into groups, not pairs, to closely look at several sites. These sites give suggestions for ways to help protect environment.

Here are three sites your group might visit:

1. Action for Nature

2. Environmental Protection Agency Kids Site entitled We can Make a Difference

3. 50 Simple things you can do to save the earth

Locate three similar sites that have ways kids can help as well

Here is a document that will help  keep your ideas organized as you look for reasons why your ideas help the environment.  Think about what you and your family can do, what your classmates can do, what the community can do, and what big corporations or companies can do to help the environment.

keeping-ideas-organized.doc

In honor of Earth Day, you are going to propose some ways to protect the environment here in our school and our neighborhoods. Use the sites that you found during the Earth Day Challenge, as well as sites you find on your own, to suggest ways you can make a difference for our environment.

1. Locate sites that tell what kids can do! Write a plan for what we can do here at Mission and at home. Post your plan on your blog.

2. Be sure to explain what you want people to do and how they can help. Locate sites that will help you to make concrete suggestions.

3. Explain how will you get the word out to other people.

We will read everyone’s suggestions and decide which ones we want to implement.

Revisit the Nierlich students blog clues if you need suggestions for good interactives and ideas for what  you can do.  Lots of ideas can be found in the sites we located during last Thurs. scavenger hunt activity.

Have fun!

There are three books nominated for a California Young Reader Medal:

The Cats in Krasinski Square by Karen Hesse

Coming on Home Soon by Jacqueline Woodson

I, Doko: The Tale of a Basket by Ed Young

You’ve heard the stories. Post a comment here about which book you think should win the medal and explain why you think it should win. Give specific reasons, not just, “I like it,” or, “It’s a good book.” Be specific, such as, “I like The Cats in Krasinki Square because it had rhymes and it was based on a true story. The characters were very brave.”

Does the President actually have any power?

Think about what you saw in the movie about the powers of the President. Then post an answer to this question:

Can the President do whatever he or she wants, or are the powers of the President actually limited?  Give examples to support your position.

We are going to write biographies this week by reading books about a person and looking for information online. Before we begin to research, though, we need to know what we’re looking for. Please post 5 important questions that you think need to be answered in a biography about someone new. Keep in mind that we can’t actually talk to these people, so the questions should be ones we can answer through research. For example, please don’t ask, “What’s your favorite movie?” We can’t ask the people. A better question might be, “What did this person do that makes them important?”

Download a Word Document with Teacher Questions to Guide Your Biography Assignment biography-questions.doc

Presidents’ Day is coming up, and it’s a good time to learn about life as a President.  Click on the links below to learn about what life is like in the Oval Office.

Be President for a Day- you have the chance to plan a day as President of the United States.

http://pbskids.org/democracy/presforaday/index.html

Decorate the Oval Office- How you choose to decorate says something about how you will act as President!

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/96/whitehouse/ovalfrm.html

Secret Life of Presidents- What are the deep dark secrets of our Presidents?

http://pbskids.org/wayback/prez/index.html

Presidential Diary- See what a typical day was like for President Gerald Ford.

http://www.ford.utexas.edu/library/exhibits/daylife/dailydia.htm