Here Comes The TK6 GRACE Makerspace!

Carol Gehringer, Media Coordinator

Last spring (2016), our Crossroads campus kicked off their Makerspace with the donation of a 3D printer and plans for renovating the Crossroads Library to accommodate Makerspace activities.

What about Makerspace activities on the Raleigh campus? How are TK-6th grade students embracing the Maker movement?

First, let’s recap: What is a Makerspace - and why should we have one at GRACE? The Maker movement in education allows students to have unique learning experiences. A Makerspace is “any space where a student can design, explore, and create using a diverse set of tools and materials” ("Make MakerSpaces Work for Your School"). The Maker movement allows students to be designers, tinkerers, innovators, and creators, to build 21st Century learners with skills in critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity.

On GRACE’s Raleigh’s campus, our Makerspace will look different from the Crossroads campus. Instead of a designated space, we will have two MakerCarts, one on each floor with the tools and materials on them.

The MakerCart on the first floor will be geared towards the TK-1st grade students, while the one on the second floor will be geared towards the 2nd-6th graders. Both carts will include tools and materials for fabrication technology, information technology, and coding activities.

This past Friday -- on our second full day of school -- our 3rd graders had their first Maker activity, tied to their summer reading, Humphrey's Really Wheely Racing Day (by Betty G. Birney). Using cardboard boxes, foam noodles, and other materials, the 3rd graders created racetracks and raced each other using matchbox cars.  The students enjoyed it and they worked well together in their teams. 

Before they started their activity, I reminded the students that Thomas Edison failed thousands of time, trying to find the right filament for the light bulb. If he had stopped after his first attempt, we might not have lightbulbs! I encouraged them to try, to tinker, to fail, and to try again.

Well done, 3rd graders! What grade will be the next one to tinker, create, or design?

Read more about the Maker movement in education. 

REFERENCES

1) “Make Makerspaces Work for Your School.” MindBridge Partners. Boston, MA, May 2016.

Reposted from our 21stCenturyGRACE blog.

Mrs. Boyd's Book Available at Book Fair

Merrily Boyd
K-6 Art

As some of you who have been at GRACE awhile may know, several years ago I had a great opportunity to illustrate a children's book, Sleepsinging.  Written by Lynn Fowler, who was a GRACE parent at the time, Sleepsinging is a sweet book about a little girl who loves singing and sings all the time, even in her sleep (much to her brother's dismay). 

 

Illustrating this book was my first venture into the "real" world of illustration, and I learned a lot about just how much work goes into a children's book--from storyboards, to making sure characters and backgrounds looked consistent across the pages, to editing, and then to final publication, the whole experience helped me grow as an artist.

I'm happy to announce that Sleepsinging will be available at the upcoming book fair, which opens the week of October 5th.  Books will be $15.00, with a third of the proceeds going back to GRACE!  I will be glad to sign and personalize any books and will be there in the gym during the book fair on Grandparents' Day (Friday, October 9th).  I will also be reading Sleepsinging at our Breakfast with Books event on Monday morning, October 12th.

I hope to see you at the book fair next week!  (If you need to stock up on Christmas gifts--this is the place!)  ;)

A B C - About Book Clubs at GRACE

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

At GRACE, we love to encourage our students to read. 

A few years ago, we started book clubs in 4th-6th grade. Last year (2014-15), we added book clubs in our 3rd grade, bringing our total to 8 book clubs on the Raleigh campus.

They continue to grow -- in 2013-14, we had 65 students participate, but last year, 2014-15, we had 105 students meeting together to discuss a book we read.

Here's a reminder of how our GRACE book clubs work:

FACILITATORS: Mrs. Walker: 3rd grade & Mrs. Gehringer: 4th-6th grade

HOW OFTEN? Book clubs meet approximately twice a month, with girls one week and boys the following week.

• A schedule will be posted in Talon for the 4th-6th grade book clubs, and Mrs. Walker will notify the 3rd graders of their meeting schedule.

WHEN?  During car pool, 2:45pm-3:15pm. We meet until 3:15pm. Then the students will be dismissed to the lobby or to aftercare.

• MONDAY - 3rd grade              TUESDAY - 4th grade 
• WEDNESDAY - 6th grade       THURSDAY - 5th grade

WHERE?  In the Raleigh library, of course!

WHY BOOK CLUB?

• Good way to encourage reading
• Good way to socialize with others in your grade
• Amount of reading done is decided by the book club
• Book club meets only 1-2 times per month and during car pool, so it doesn't interfere with lunch or after school activities
• No grades! But it might help you in reaching your AR goals (more about this later!)

WHAT DO I NEED TO DO NOW?  

• Talk with your student about it!
• Tell us if your student wants to participate in book club.
• Ordering a book club t-shirt (optional)? Get the money and size information in by next week.

OTHER QUESTIONS?

• Do I need to buy the books?  No - we have multiple copies already purchased specifically for our book clubs. However, if your child loses the book, you will need to pay for its replacement.
• Do I need to read the first book before the first meeting? No, we will hand out the books at our first meeting.
• Do I need to read every book? No, but we will encourage you to read at least the first chapter to try different genres!
• How will this help with my AR goal? All the books we read have Accelerated Reader (AR) quizzes. Students take a multiple choice quiz to test their comprehension of the books they read. Since there is a competition for prizes, they will want to read more books and pass as many AR quizzes as possible. Mrs. Lane, our reading specialist, will be sending out more information on AR in the coming weeks.

Any other questions? Contact me (cgehringer@GRACEChristian.net).

SAVE THE DATE! Fall Book Fair - Oct. 6-13, 2015

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

Mark your calendars for our annual 2015 FALL BOOK FAIR held on our TK-6 campus.

Tues. Oct. 6th through Tues. Oct. 13th (2015)

GRACE gets a percentage of the sales which we will use in the Raleigh library (TK-6). You can purchase books for teachers' classrooms, as well as books and activities for your children.

The book fair will be open during the school day in the Raleigh Library. Extended book fair hours will be posted later in September.

Students will preview the book fair early in the week to create a wishlist to share with their parents and grandparents.

Immediately after the Grandparents Day program on Friday, October 9th, the book fair will be in the RALEIGH GYM. 

VOLUNTEERS needed to help - please contact Mrs. Gehringer (cgehringer@gracechristian.net, 919-783-6618) if you can help. We especially need volunteers on Thurs. Oct. 8th (evening) to help move the book fair from the Raleigh library into the gym.

Watch for more details in a few weeks!

Databases #1: Britannica School & ImageQuest

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

Britannica School is an award-winning online resource with differentiated, reliable information for students in Kindergarten-12th grade.

 Students can move up or down a reading level as needed, using one of the three portals -- Elementary, Middle School, and High School -- to access information via a tablet, laptop, iPad, or other Internet-enabled device.

ImageQuest is a companion resource from Encyclopedia Britannica -- and an award-winning image database for students in Kindergarten-12th grade.

With almost THREE million rights-cleared images, it is an excellent resource for students' homework assignments.

Access to high-quality images on all topics, free of advertising, and from trustworthy sources, in one location makes ImageQuest a valuable resource for schools.

For more information, see Britannica School (school.eb.com) and ImageQuest  (quest.eb.com).

For password and login information, visit your GRACE library!  

Online Databases for GRACE Christian School

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

Now that school has started, it is a good time to remind you of the MANY online resources we have available at GRACE Christian School for our students to use.

I will highlight these databases in separate posts over the coming months, as I introduce them to our students.

• Encyclopedia Britannica 
• ImageQuest (Encyclopedia Britannica)
• PebbleGo
• PebbleGoNext
• FactCite
• CultureGrams
• Country Reports
• PK Science Suite: Life Science, Physical Science, Earth/Space Science

As always, for password and login instructions, contact the GRACE Library.

SPRING BOOK FAIR in less than 2 weeks!

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

Our annual Spring Book Fair on April 23 and 24 at Barnes & Noble (Cary) is coming soon!

You can purchase books from our Required Summer Reading List, as well as ANYTHING in the store (CDs, DVDs, books, games, items from their cafe, etc.) to help. GRACE gets a percentage of the sales which we will use in both the Raleigh and Crossroads libraries.

You can pre-order cupcakes and decorate them there, while we view the student art on display, and enjoy performances by our students.

We are having a competition between classrooms: for every book you purchase from a classroom or library wish list, you can enter your teacher’s name in a drawing.  One teacher will win a cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory! (ATTACH FORM)

We will have student performances Thursday and Friday after school. Our final performance schedule will be available the week of the book fair, but we expect to see TALON there!

Our youngest students (TK, Kindergarten-2nd grade chorus) will perform, as well as our older students in band and chorus.

See you there!

Library Adventures

Susan Walker
TK-3 Library

TK:  “Meet the Authors”

This class meets twice a month.  During the month of February, cowboys and princesses came to the library.  They heard stories, and then rode a wooden rocking horse.  The students learned about Beatrix Potter and how her stories originated as a letter to friend’s sick child over 100 years ago.  TK boys and girls heard the story read one week and watched another during their library time.  A new appreciation of her works and of Peter Rabbit continues.

First Grade:  “Adventures in Reading”

This is the year that fiction and nonfiction are used together to make reading an adventure.  Together they enhance the reading experience.  First Graders had a recent lesson on using the dictionary.  They have learned that this reference is used for the spelling and definition of words.  More teaching will take place in Second Grade.  Currently, we are reading 3 books from “My First Little House Books” series.  The nonfiction teaching is on history and geography as we learn about the Ingalls family and their move to the prairie.  People and places change over time but God stays the same.  “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). The students will choose their favorite of the three and write about it noting story elements.

Second Grade:  “R is for Reading.”

The focus is currently on biography.  A different story is read each week.  Students can make notations as the story is read.  After the four stories are read, the students will pick their favorite to write a book report in the form of a letter to one of the people.  We will learn life lessons from the lives of Thomas Edison, Amelia Earhart, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Hank Aaron.  We can learn from their lives much like we can from those in the Bible.  Nonfiction reading can be enjoyable as well as educational.

Third Grade:  “Journey through Reading Fiction and Nonfiction”

Every story has a story.  We have learned about the life of Sam Clemens and how he became Mark Twain, a favorite American author.  During the unit on immigration, we read about author Allen Say who wrote about his grandfather’s story in Grandfather’s Journey.  We will finish the month with a look at Christian literature with the classic adaptation of Pilgrim’s Progress.  We will discuss allegorical elements in this story that encourages believers to be faithful.  The life of a Christian is a journey of faith.

 Third Grade Book Club:  Boys & Girls

The book clubs have just finished their second book.  Who doesn’t like reading about the Titanic?  The book Time Voyage helped the boys experience what it would be like if we could travel back in time.  The story is part of a series that will become a favorite.  The girls dressed in their pretty dresses and brought their dolls in to celebrate the conclusion of The Doll Shop Downstairs.  This book was inspired by the founder of the Madame Alexander dolls.  Our principal, Mrs. Thompson, brought in some of her collection and told of how her mother collected the dolls.  After reading and discussing the book, students are able to successfully take the Accelerated Reader book quiz.  One student proudly said he took the test and got a perfect score.  One more story remains for both clubs when we return from the Easter break.

SAVE THE DATE: Spring Book Fair April 23 & 24

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

Mark your calendars for our annual Spring Book Fair on April 23 and 24 at Barnes & Noble (Cary).

You can purchase books from our Required Summer Reading List, as well as ANYTHING in the store (CDs, DVDs, books, games, items from their cafe, etc.) to help. GRACE gets a percentage of the sales which we will use in both the Raleigh and Crossroads libraries.

You can pre-order cupcakes and decorate them there, while we view the student art on display, and enjoy performances by our students.

We are having a competition between classrooms: for every book you purchase from a classroom or library wish list, you can enter your teacher's name in a drawing.  One teacher will win a cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory!

Watch for more details just after Spring Break!

READ ACROSS AMERICA WEEK / Dr. Seuss @ GRACE

Carol Gehringer
Media Center

Last week GRACE Christian School celebrated the 111th anniversary of Dr. Seuss' birthday (on March 2, 2015).

We started off the week with a reader's theater salute to Dr. Seuss over our PA system, with the help of three 6th graders. Then all our 6th graders read a Dr. Seuss book to our three Kindergarten classes, as well as our TK classes -- this is a tradition we started a few years ago and both grades love doing it. We were excited to add the TK class to our tradition.

As usual, we posted photos of our teachers and staff holding one of their favorite Seuss books, in addition to Seuss banners and posters throughout the school.

We also observed Crazy Shoes & Socks Day on Tuesday in honor of Dr. Seuss -- and Miss Lisa made a tasty treat in the kitchen for the students to enjoy on Thursday.

We also held an election to see which of 6 Dr. Seuss titles were the favorites for GRACE students. Here are the results:

CLASSROOM

• How the Grinch Stole Christmas -- TK, K (McCool), 1 (Still), 1 (Yabani - tied), 2 (Green - tied), 2 (Goeking), 4 (Burnette - tied), 4 (Schaeffer), 4 (Sweeney), 5 (Barker), 5 (Robinson - tied)

• Green Eggs and Ham -- K (Cheney), 2 (Green - tied), 2 (Chase), 3 (Hare), 3 (Hickman), 6 (Agar/Bell/Walters)

• Horton Hears a Who -- K (Damato), 1 (Huntley), 1 (Yabani - tied), 3 (Shelton), 4 (Burnette - tied), 5 (Robinson - tied), 5 (Suarez)

GRADE-LEVEL

• How the Grinch Stole Christmas -- TK/K, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th
• Green Eggs and Ham - 3rd, 6th

TK-6 CAMPUS

• Top Seuss book for entire TK-6th grade = HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS. It beat GREEN EGGS by 10 votes.

To close out the 2015 Seuss celebration, Mrs. Walker and Mrs. Gehringer also distributed Seuss prizes to all the classrooms for distribution to the TK-6th grade students.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!!