Thursday, January 28, 2010

January 28 “Enthusiasm is excitement with inspiration, motivation, and a pinch of creativity.”

Well, here we go... Today we made paper airplanes in class. It was pretty chaotic, as you can imagine... but in a good way. As we looked at directions on the LCD projector, we talked about the need for those directions to be clear, concise, and simply stated. We also talked about the need for basic line drawings (well crafted) to further explain the words in each step. We helped each other figure out how to make one design, then we let loose--Whew! As luck would have it, at that precise moment, who should arrive but Mr. Howe. Actually, he thought the whole thing looked like lots of fun--but reminded us we'd just have to keep a lid on it, (we ARE supposed to be setting the standard for social decorum...) which meant no flying in/on the halls, gym, or playground.

The assignment tonight is to explore some sites for designs to modify/or make up a design. I made it clear that the written directions needed to be completely their own--no copying. (This IS a writing assignment, after all.) Tomorrow there will be a substitute in here, and I am a bit concerned that their "creative chaos" may be misconstrued. Help me to remind everyone that tomorrow they should control their enthusiasm to ensure the continued mental health of my sub. Here are some links to peruse:

Model Airplane--How to Make It Fly Better--Tweaking Tips
There are tons more if you google "paper airplane".

Also, yesterday's blog had a link to a pretty sophisticated plane with TONS of help to make it.

Check out this video for another idea (It's one of many out there.):




Tomorrow we'll take our Spelling tests, turn in packets, and complete a lesson about Columbus that will include some homework (I'll give time in the afternoon to work on this). The assignment, for your information, is to draw four SMALL illustrations of Columbus's life and write a few sentences about each. They have all the necessary information and templates.

I hope you all have time to relax this evening. (It's my class night, so relaxing is pretty much out for me...) Maybe the paper airplane idea will give you some quality fun time with your son or daughter. Personally, I learned a lot from them today! (Geesh!)

Take care-
Teri