Inter-Island Science Meeting: Solar System Models!

While studying the Solar System this trimester we have been doing short two week projects with our TLC classmates. Every two weeks one of our TLC schools is in charge of the project and the posts the assignment on our Solar System Wiki. Last week it was Islesford School's turn to "host" the wiki. They created a really cool assignment where every school had to create a model to demonstrate some aspect of the solar system.

Last Monday our five different TLC school met on the Tanberg to share our models with one another! We always love these big group meetings!

The Islesford youngers made a model to show the order of the planets from the sun!

That's Jupiter! Isn't it pretty!?

The Matinicus youngers showing their model!

Isle Au Haut School's super cool model of the distance of the planets from the sun! Their model took up their entire school! Pretty cool!

Ut oh... are we boring you Finn?!

Monhegan did a stop animation of the orbit of the planets around the sun. It was mighty cool but a wee bit too long to try and post on the blog. Sorry folks.

Here's Cliff Island showing the orbit of the Earth around the Sun! Such a great demonstration!

And of course we end in a spontanious dance party. Obviously. It's how we roll.

Our next project has to do with Stars, Comets, Asteriods, and Meteors! It's call operation SCAM! Stay tuned!

Awesome visit from Anne and Finn!

We had some very special visitors last week! Two of our most favorite visitors of all time. No really, we LOVE them... it was none other than our favorite TLC coordinator, Anne and her super dog-pal, Finn!

We were pretty excited for them to visit! Our entire morning message was dedicated to them!

Here is the beautiful portrait Margaret did of Anne and Finn!

And did you know that Anne and Finn are both great words to work on rhyming!!!

Millie was a little freaked out about having Finn at school. I think she thought it was her boyfriend, Scout... so she was really confused and just decided to sit on him a lot.

Quinn was just over-the-moon when he saw Finn!

I think Dalton was pretty happy too!

Scout and Finn seeing each other for the first time on this visit. They look so confused. I wonder if they are saying, "Hey wait, that's me. But I am me. This is so weird."

Anne had to do a lot of not-so-fun work while she was here. But we forced her to stop to do some fun projects with us, like making "found poems" using words and phrases from magazines!

The idea for the "found poetry" came from our friend Ms. Rogers on Matinicus who had set up a wicked cool poetry wiki for our TLC group. She posts poetry projects for us to do every week.

We had A LOT of fun with this "found poetry" assignment.

We had even more fun because Anne was here to do it with us.

Margaret's poem, with a little help from Jessie :)

Quinn's "found poem."

Anne's super cool poem!

And Daltini's poem!

Anne also helped the boys with their science project... called Mission SCAM (stars, comets, asteriods, and meteors!)

Did you know Anne is an excellent puzzle solver? She and Margaret made a great team!

Happy school.

Before we knew it it was time for Anne and Finn to leave us! We will miss their faces VERY MUCH!!!

Thanks Anne and Finn. We wuv you.

Margaret the Math Wizard!

I know I have said it before... but get ready, because I am going to say it again... Margaret is just the smartest little kindergarten in the whole world! When she started school in the fall she was all about books and letters and math and numbers were not so interesting in her mind. Boy, has that changed. She is now a math wiz! She has meant nearly all her kindergarten math standards and now is starting to meet the first grade standards. Wowsers!

She can not only count to 100 but she can write the numbers too! She wanted to make sure each number was written just right and I think she is pretty stinkin' close!

She is also working on telling time (another first grade standard!)

She made a schedule of her day with the different times she does each thing.

I mean... can you say smarty pants!?!?!

She is also learning to tell time with the minute hand, which mean she is learning to count by 5's! I just love how much Margaret loves learning!!! She is the best kindergartner in the whole wide world!

Moment of the Day: Darth Vadar Style!

This Moment of the Day is brought to you by Quinny.

Jessie: "Hey Quinn, can you bring home your Darth Vadar costume from Halloween?"

Quinn: "Yeah, sure." He puts on the mask! "Hey! It smells like cookies in here!"

Writing Class with Islesford

We started up a little virtual writing class between the Islesford and Monhegan olders this past week. It is interesting because two years ago we had a virtual writing class between Monhegan and Iselsford and it was really the first kind of "virtual" class we tried to have between our island schools. It was kind of the beginning of what the TLC was to become. I don't think we realized at the time how far we would come in two years! Pretty exciting to think about.

Here are my precious boys waiting to call Islesford on the Tanberg. Boy, they are special.

Hello Islesford!

We started off our class working as a big group. We read some good example of "people sketches" which are strong descriptions of characters in writing.

Then we had the kids write their own "people sketches." We had them either write a sketch of Ms. Eysnogle, the teacher on Islesford, or myself. Their sketches were super good and very sweet.

We then had the kids partner off. I love this. The above picture is of Dalton's partner on Islesford working on her computer with Dalton.

And this is the picture of what Dalton saw of his partner on his computer screen!

Each of the pairs of partners read a section of a piece of writing they have been working on to eachother and then gave feedback of where the writer could add more character description to the writing.

Quinn met with his pal Joe. The two of them had a great time sharing their stories to each other!

It really helps when the kids can share their writing with other and get feedback that is not just from the same boring ol' teacher (yea, that's me).

Not to mention, any chance for the boys to work with their TLC classmates is A-O-K in their book!

Halloween Trick-or-Treating!

Since Halloween was on a Monday this year we only had a half day of school so we did not celebrate much during school.

The festivities began after school outside of the Black Duck where all the kids gathered to begin trick-or-treating!

The Morning Cloak Butterfly had her gorgeous homemade wings on again!

Butterfly, Hawaiian Warrior, and a Pumpkin! Just as cute as can be!

The whole gang ready for some candy! This is a lot of kids! (Okay... we had to import some!)

Mysterious Middle Schooler inside of the Black Duck... collecting his treat!

Delicious homemade treats!

Only three trick-or-treaters made it all the way to my house for candy!

The kids had PLENTY of treats... so it was time for some TRICKS! Me and my squirt-gun gang waiting VERY patiently outside of the boys house to try and scare the bejesus out of them and spay them with squirt guns and silly string. We did quite scare them... but we did get them wet!

Happy Halloween Everyone! Hope you got some treats and some tricks!

Epitaphs!

In honor of Halloween the boys learned about epitaphs for poetry last week. We read some famous epitaphs like these....

"I made an ash of myself." - Ruth Adams

"Good Friends, for Jesus' sake forbear,

To dig the bones enclosed here!

Blest be the man that spare these stones,

And curst be he that moves my bones!" - Shakespeare

Then I gave the boys a chance to write their own epitaphs... I know it sounds kind of morbid... but it was actually pretty fun and it is poetry!

Quinn's Epitaph:

Energetic for Life

But in the end

My imagination will be using explosives

To bring me high in the sky

Or further into the ground

Dalton's Epitaph... pretty funny.

And mine...

Do you like the "Angel of Death" Golden Retriever that will meant me at the end of the tunnel?