Elizabeth Wooda @EwoodsWooda

#D4GTeacherContest pic.twitter.com/MUkhDgPVX2

Two Poems 

by Lee

JUPITER

Deep in space,

wandering about,

I see an object,

the largest of them all,

red, tan, and brown,

being harassed by a storm,

Jupiter

Deep in space,

this wandering object,

holds many moons,

and among these moons,

an everlasting horizon,

scarred by the winds,

Europa.

SATURN

  

Deep in space,

I see an object,

caged in by rings,

trapped for eternity,

forever lonely,

in it’s cage of rings,

Saturn.

Deep in space,

I see an object,

that has caged,

the titan of the east,

without them,

Insanity,

Darkness.

Friday The Thirteenth

by Lee and Mohammad

The thirteenth and Friday is today.

Oh no, I better hide away.

I don’t want to be seen.

Today my brother is being mean.

I don’t want a black cat in my way.

Oh, today is a terrible day.

I don’t want to dump my breakfast in the trash.

for it could fall on my foot in a flash and make a big gash.

Friday 13th

By Tori and Emma

It’s Friday the Thirteenth, an unlucky day,

there is a hurricane outside.  It is too wet to play.

In falls the roof, Watch Out!

Even my fish is starting to pout.

My mom is gone

but I must live on.

I can't call my friend.

Why won’t this day end?

5th Grade students from Eisenhower and Horace Mann appear here with Mr. Tim Toy showing off their poetry projects they wrote and created today during our Poetry Master Class.

Today students learned about, listened to, and wrote poetry.  Their couplet and free verse poetry was compiled in a Chapbook that each student was able to take home and share with their families. 

Feather of a Turkey

By Maura

One year ago, all 365 days past,

on Thanksgiving at Grandma`s house

there was a feather.

The feather flowed on the chill of howling wind.  

The speckled bird’s down dropped

to the cold and frosty bed of grass

off the back of the fowl most popular on the day of thanks.

Down it floated, making the crisp and common sound of autumn,

it sat listening to the wind in the tangled branches of the trees.

The winds slowed, rustled, then picked up speed.  

It was time to leave, thought the feather.

The soft fluff let go of the ground and flew.

Soon it was intercepted by a hand,

I caught the soft feather and brought it home.      

I find myself reflecting on the beginning of the school year and wanting to share what stands out to me with you.

Since pushing into multiple classrooms this year to co-teach with my colleagues, the number of people that I work with has increased dramatically.  I am beyond grateful to have the opportunity to work with so many inspiring people.  

One of the reasons I became a teacher is because I love people, so to have the opportunity to work directly with more people makes my life more full of love.  

The opportunity to collaborate with teachers, parents, and my students fills my heart, increases my connections, and helps me  become a better teacher and person.  

The past nine weeks when pushing into classrooms, I concentrated on writing instruction.  I introduced narrative writing and opinion writing to several classes.  Reading the texts that were written and seeing my students' self concepts grow to include the title, "author" fills me with joy.  

I get goose bumps as I realize that I am living my life's purpose here at East Pike and Horace Mann.  I look forward to the rest of the year, when I will be teaching informational writing and how to make and support claims by quoting evidence from texts.   

Another aspect of this school year that I am so thankful for is the opportunity to increase my use of Google apps and tools.  This year, I added the Google Classroom to my toolkit.  I also continue to practice and improve my skills using WeVideo.  

WeVideo provides an incredible platform for documentation, as does Blogger.  These tools transform my teaching, enabling me to teach engaging lessons that speak to the present moment, what is and what will be relevant in my students' lives now and in the future. 

I embark on the second nine weeks of my thirteenth year of teaching with total happiness and full of gratitude because I co-create curriculum with my colleagues and students.  

 

we work, write, learn, and grow together. 

Poetry in Two Languages 

By Mohammad

Please enjoy this mini-documentary, "The Perfect Pumpkin."

This educational event took place at East Pike Elementary School on October 29, 2015.

Third graders in Mrs. Higbee's class and Mrs. Jones's class enjoyed this learning experience.

Many thanks to the parent volunteers and student teacher 

who helped made this event a huge success!