Good Listening

We've talked a lot this year about how important it is to listen in class. Below are some things to remember so you can be a good listener and full participant in class:

• Come to school ready to listen. Complete all homework and/or review work done the previous school day, and think about what might be covered in school each day.


• Attitude is everything! Everyone has their favorite subjects, as well as those that don’t interest them as much. Be committed to learning something new each day. You’d be surprised what you can accomplish if you just let yourself!


• Be attentive. Focus on the lesson being taught or the class discussion. Resist the temptation to talk, or to become distracted by your surroundings. Maintain eye contact with your teacher – often we forget to ‘listen with our eyes’ as well as our ears (also, it is respectful to look at someone who is speaking to you).


• Be an active listener. You can think faster than your teacher can talk. Always be evaluating what is being said and try to anticipate what will be said next.


• But don’t be too active! Not everyone may be thinking as fast as you are. Resist the temptation to blurt out answers or comment on what is said without being called on. You can show your teacher (and classmates) that you are connecting with what is being said by raising your hand (or by linking your fingers together like Mrs. C showed you). Accept the fact you won’t always get to share your ideas and be willing to listen to other points of view.


• Challenge yourself. Don’t ‘tune out’ when the material being presented seems too hard to understand. Listen even more closely and work hard to understand. Don’t be afraid to ask questions – no one expects you to know it all!


• Adapt to the environment. At times you may find the classroom too loud, too quiet, too hot, too cold, too bright, or too dark. You may be seated near someone you don’t get along with, or you may wish you were seated near a friend. Don’t let that affect your real goal – learning. Life is seldom perfect – the ability to overcome inconvenience will serve you well in life!

Letter to Parents

Dear Families,Beginning after MEA break, we will introduce our students to their very own class weblog. A weblog, or blog as they are commonly called, is a special type of web page that can be created and easily updated using a web browser. Each new entry has its own date stamp. Each entry has a comments section where visitors to the blog may leave comments to the author.The idea is to allow the students an opportunity to utilize this technology to read, write and respond to questions, comments or links, while at the same time sharing their thoughts with a real audience, you!HOW IT WORKSA few times a week (sometimes more frequently, sometimes less), Mrs. C. or I may post a comment, problem or a link to a website, and invite the students to share their responses via email from home. Alternatively, we may give kids time in the computer lab to word process a piece of their own writing which can then be uploaded onto the blog. These assignments will not be assessed, rather they are meant to familiarize students with a form of communication which has already transformed many fields within our society (journalism, politics, business), and will soon transform education as well.Having a real audience is the key component to this experience. In addition to receiving comments from Mrs. C. and me, we are trying to arrange for other fourth or fifth grade classes who visit our blog to post comments as well. Parents, grandparents, other family, and friends are also invited to visit the blog and respond. Potentially, anyone on the internet could respond to our blog, however, it is not likely that the world at large will stumble across it. Additionally, as the blog administrator, Mr. C. must approve any comments left on the blog before being published on the site.This blogging experience is designed to minimize risk to your child. The only personally identifying information included in the blog will be their first name. The will be no mention of our school name or our location. Students will not be allowed to post their age, email address, photographs of themselves, or other sensitive information. More directions for working from home will be provided.
ConCav
Mr. Con(verse). and Mrs. Cav(anaugh).
Resources:Blogs created by fifth grade students in the USA
http://wuestreaders.blogspot.com/
http://writersworkshopessays.blogspot.com/http://itc.blogs.com/macros/
BBC News article about blogging in a school in the UK
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/3804773.stm

Welcome to a New School Year!

Welcome students and families! We're excited for a brand new school year.

We're looking forward to partnering with you in the education of your child. We've set up this classroom blog for students to express their thoughts, opinions and ideas on an array of topics. Look for information to come home early in the school year on how to access the blog, as well as guidelines for acceptable use and privacy safeguards. We hope this will become a means to keep you connected to what goes on in our classroom. We feel this affords kids a unique opportunity to extend the walls of their classroom to the greater community abroad. Your kids will have many great ideas to share and, we're sure, would appreciate your personal feedback. Please feel free to share this site with friends and family as well.

Mr. Converse and Mrs. Cavanaugh (ConCav)

Blogging Terms and Conditions

Blogging Terms and Conditions

1. Students using blogs are expected to act safely by keeping personal information out of their posts and/or comments. You agree to not post or give out your family name, password, user name, email address, home address, school name, city, country or other information that could help someone locate or contact you in person. You may share your interests, ideas and preferences.

2. Students using blogs agree not to share their user name or password with anyone besides their teachers and parents. You agree to never log in as another student.

3. Students using blogs are expected to treat blogspaces as classroom spaces. Speech that is inappropriate for class is not appropriate for your blog. While we encourage you to engage in debate and conversation with other bloggers, we also expect that you will conduct yourself in a manner reflective of a representative of this school.

4. Student blogs are to be a forum for student expression. However, they are first and foremost a tool for learning, and as such will sometimes be constrained by the various requirements and rules of classroom teachers. Students are welcome to post on any school-appropriate subject.

5. Students blogs are to be a vehicle for sharing student thinking and writing with real audiences. Most visitors to your blog who leave comments will leave respectful, helpful messages. If you receive a comment that makes you feel uncomfortable or is not respectful, tell your teacher right away. Do not respond to the comment. *As site Administrator, Mr. C. must approve any post/comment before it can be published.

6. Students accessing blogs from school must take good care of the computers by not downloading or installing any software without permission, and not clicking on ads or competitions.

7. Students who do not abide by these terms and conditions may lose their opportunity to take part in this experience.

Letter to Parents

Dear Families,

From now until the end of the year, our class will be taking part in a pilot experience designed to introduce them to weblogs. A weblog, or blog as they are commonly called, is a special type of web page that can be created and easily updated using a web browser. Each new entry has its own date stamp. Each entry has a comments section where visitors to the blog may leave comments to the author.

The idea is to allow the students an opportunity to utilize this technology to read, write and respond to questions, comments or links, while at the same time sharing their thoughts with a real audience, you!

HOW IT WORKS

A few times a week, Mrs. C. or I may post a comment, problem or a link to a website, and invite the students to share their responses via email from home (see the previous post, Leverage, on this page, as an example). Alternatively, we may give kids time in the computer lab to word process a piece of their own writing which can then be uploaded onto the blog. These assignments will not be assessed, rather they are meant to familiarize students with a form of communication which has already transformed many fields within our society (journalism, politics, business), and will soon transform education as well.

Having a real audience is the key component to this experience. In addition to receiving comments from Mrs. C. and myself, we are trying to arrange for other fourth or fifth grade classes who visit our blog to post comments as well. Parents, grandparents, other family, and friends are also invited to visit the blog and respond. Potentially, anyone on the internet could respond to our blog, however, it is not likely that the world at large will stumble across it. Additionally, as the blog administrator, Mr. C. must approve any comments left on the blog before being published on the site.

This blogging experience is designed to minimize risk to your child. The only personally identifying information included in the blog will be their first name. The will be no mention of our school name or our location. Students will not be allowed to post their age, email address, photographs of themselves, or other sensitive information. More directions for working from home will be provided.

Mr. C. and Mrs. C.
ConCav

Resources:
Blogs created by fifth grade students in the USA
http://writersworkshopessays.blogspot.com/
http://itc.blogs.com/macros/

BBC News article about blogging in a school in the UK
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/3804773.stm

Calling All Bloggers!

Well, here it is - our very own class blog! I'm sure I don't need to tell you (but I will anyway) that we are the first class at our school to have its own blog. We rule! Next week you will learn how you can access this page so that you can begin responding to some posts I'll be writing, as well as publishing your own for others to respond to. I'm very excited to get started. I hope you are, too!